Crowd comparison: Week after Thanksgiving vs. end of January

[Sprockie]

Could anyone shed some light who has experienced the crowds at both of these times? We've only been to DW in late January, and would like to take in the Christmas experience there in November - but hoping for similar crowds. Any thoughts appreciated.

 

[ChiasMom]

following along on this one. We'll be there the week after Thanksgiving, but it's my first time and have no frame of reference. I'm interested to hear what people have to say!

 

[Traver Freeman]

Not sure about WDW, but I can tell you about DLR and maybe its similar?

The weeks in between holidays aren't as bad as the holidays themselves. It's still a little bit busier than the totally non-peak times, but it's certainly not even summer crowds.

I would probably say the crowds are about the same for the two weeks in question. Haunted Mansion will have a higher wait time during the holiday season because it gets re-themed.

A good week to go is the first week of January. All the holiday goers are gone, but the decorations are still up until about January 6th. We like to go about January 5th or 6th each year to celebrate my wife's birthday on the 7th. This year is a little different because those dates fall on weekends (including Friday) so they're blacked out for AP holders as you'll see below.

If crowds are your concern, just don't go the actual weeks of the holidays and you'll be fine. A good gauge is to look at the Annual passholder blackout dates. If AP holders are blacked out, then it's going to be pretty busy.

 

[ChiasMom]

FWIW, Touring Plans crowd calendar is predicting very similar crowd levels for both time periods (some 3s, mostly 4s and 5s, with an occasional 6).

I am reading tons of horror stories about how crowd levels have been unpredicatable lately and how times that were previously regarded as having low to moderate crowds have been getting more and more packed, which makes me a bit nervous. I guess all crowd calendar info needs to be taken with a grain of salt nowadays.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

I think those times would be pretty similar. I've come both the week before Thanksgiving, and two weeks before Christmas, and both were great. The week before Thanksgiving was my favorite, but you can't beat Christmas time at Disney World!

 

[4GoofyCrew]

End of January is AWESOME! Our favorite time to visit. The busier times won't compare.

 

[pmaurer74]

Christmas at Disney is very magical and that week is not a bad week to go.

 

[Sprockie]

End of January is AWESOME! Our favorite time to visit. The busier times won't compare.

Yes, we love late January, but can't swing it this year because it's a bad time to be away from school. Some of our DW favourites would always have a refurb going on in late January, so it will be nice to avoid that.

 

[ChuckNFM]

We will be there the week after Thanksgiving also. It's nice to hear a positive outlook.

 

[cwt580]

yeah my dates are good days..... dec 4-9

 

[100acreHiker]

We go every year the week after thanksgiving, and while we love the holiday decorations, there's no doubt the parks have been busier these last few years. We traveled last year with friends who normally go the last week of January, and they found it more crowded without question than their usual week.

 

[LuvDaisy&Minnie]

We have been both. The end of January was less busy. However, some of our favorite rides were closed for refurbishment and the weather was erratic. The week after Thanksgiving was busier but not intolerable by any means. I did, however, have the impression before going that it would be a little less crowded than it was. If you have been at the end of May in the past couple of years, it was similar to that time to me. Weather was better in November, and we enjoyed our first Food & Wine festival and also the Christmas Party at MK. The free dining promotion was in effect during the November trip also. I can't remember any closed rides during that trip. So, I prefer the week after Thanksgiving, but January was definitely less busy.

 

[4HOLIDAYS]

December will definitely be busier, but prettier because of all the decorations. We always go in dec, actually couple times a year. I feel the immed week after Thanksgiving-1st few days of Dec- is busier than the next 2 weeks of dec. We did 1st week 2016, week of13th, or 3rd week in 2015 and found that to be less crowded as well.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

We have been both. The end of January was less busy. However, some of our favorite rides were closed for refurbishment and the weather was erratic. The week after Thanksgiving was busier but not intolerable by any means. I did, however, have the impression before going that it would be a little less crowded than it was. If you have been at the end of May in the past couple of years, it was similar to that time to me. Weather was better in November, and we enjoyed our first Food & Wine festival and also the Christmas Party at MK. The free dining promotion was in effect during the November trip also. I can't remember any closed rides during that trip. So, I prefer the week after Thanksgiving, but January was definitely less busy.

Crowds aren't always the most important factor! The weather in January can be blech!

 

[dreiwhit]

Two separate friends of ours recommended the week after Thanksgiving because "the parks are dead."

However, our last trip was the week after Thanksgiving 2016. They were most definately not dead, but also not as busy as the week between Christmas and New Years, summer time, etc. I suspect that the free dining promotion, as well as the Candlelight Processional at Epcot brought more folks to the parks.

For example, at 11am on Feb 29, 2016, Sunshine Seasons in Epcot was dead. It was us and two other families there at the tables and that was it. On Nov 28, 2016, it was very crowded, hard to find tables and the FP line for Living with the Land stretched through the table area to the entrance to the table area by Soarin!

However, arriving at RD, using FPs and having a plan made for an enjoyable trip. We got to do everything we wanted, and then some, at MK, DHS and Epcot (we didn't go to AK.)

No experience going at the end of January, but I would not hesitate to go the week after Thanksgiving in the future.