Crowds around Easter....which days the worst???

[cindyfan]

Just curious from people who have been there at Easter............
When is it most and least crowded the 2 weeks surrounding Easter?????

We are going the Wednesday AFTER Easter and staying a week.
So I'm thinking that the crowds will start to lighten up by then......anyone able to give a bit more insight????

Thanks

 

[drusba]

All days are bad particularly at MK. You're not quite so bad days at Epcot and AK are actually Easter and the day before. Also, MGM on Easter (practically everybody goes to MK on Easter). When you are there, Wednesday and Thursday will be the worst. This year Friday may be just as bad because it also happens to be a Grad Night. Saturday usually brings some relief but then it is also a grad night this year. Sunday, you should see substantial change for the better.

 

[cindyfan]

Have you actually been there during Easter?

We are only planning MK for EE on Thurs morning, then not again til Sunday.

We've been there during Grad Nights. The only difference we actually noticed about the crowds is that they were mostly teenagers.....Yikes!
But we didn't feel the crowds were any "heavier", just that there weren't too many people our age! LOL
And we didn't do MK those days because it closed by 7pm and no fireworks or parades.

 

[MaryKatesMom]

Hi!

We arrived the Wednesday after Easter last year and although I KNEW it would be crowded I still had a difficult time adjusting. After our flight and checking in we got to MK around 2pm. When I mentioned the crowd to a woman in line, she said that MK the day before wasn't letting anyone in the park in the afternoon so I should feel lucky to get in, but I don't know if that is true.

The wait time to ride Dumbo was over an hour and 45 minutes. At 2pm the fast passes for Peter Pan and Winnie were for after 7pm. Buzz Lightyear and one other Fastpass for my girls (I forget the ride) were completely sold out.

I don't know how old your children are, but my 2 1/2 year old needed a stoller (I brought my own) and it was extremely difficult to navigate Fantasyland by mid-afternoon. The rented stroller's are made of hard plastic, very long and unlike umbrella strollers therefore a great number of people had difficulty managing them and kept hitting me in the back of my ankles!! I was amazed at the number of people that would cut me off by stepping in front of the stroller causing me to abruptly stop and jerking the stoller.

My four year old was breaking my heart by repeatedly asking When are we going on a ride?. We were able to ride 2 rides all afternoon before we had to give up because we had a PS at one of the restaurants in an hour and there weren't any lines less than 1 1/2 (except Small World which we did).

Yes, we are spoiled by Knoebels amusement park because the girls will go on 10 rides in an hour and I'm not exaggerating.

However, what I did learn is that Fantasyland emptys out after 8:30 and the park is open until 11PM that week. So if you can get your kids to nap then it is worth waiting until evening to ride some rides.

My other tip, is to consider Typhoon Lagoon. We took the girls there on Friday and it was the best day we had. There weren't any lines for the toddler area and plenty for them to do. A much greater value because of the non-stop fun.

I am once again going to WDW the Wednesday after Easter and intentionally chose BCR because of the pool. I won't step foot in MK until after dinner.

 

[drusba]

As to your question as to whether I have been there at Easter time, yes, thirteen times. However, this the first time I have ever seen them stick a grad night at the end of the Easter week, which can only add to the crowd. Usually during Easter week, Wednesday and Thursday are very bad for crowds, Friday is a little better, and Saturday usually brings some relief. One consolation is that this year likely will not be quite as bad as last year as Easter is later and, unless Disney is kidding, ressies are down somewhat from last year at same time.

 

[cdpa4d]

I am going on April 26th - May 3rd. I expect crowds to be moderate to light that week since Easter is the weekend before we arrive. all the kids and college students should be back to school that week since Easter is so late this year. I go this time every year and we always have great luck with crowds. The weahter is usually fantastic; knock, knock on wood!
I can't get enough of the world!
ADP

 

[gschmerl]

I have been to WDW twice the week before Easter. Early in the week it wasn't too bad, but from about Wednesday on it was PACKED. We went when the parks opened in the morning and were able to get a lot done then. We left in the afternoon and lounged by the pool and then went back at night. MK was open until midnight during that time and Epcot until 10:00 or 11:00(not sure). Get there earyly, take advantage or extra magic hour and fastpass and you'll be OK. Just be prepared for MK to be packed. We thought the children would be in bed and we could enjoy the park late at night, but it was packed until closing.

 

[momto2princesses]

Originally posted by cdpa4d
I am going on April 26th - May 3rd. I expect crowds to be moderate to light that week since Easter is the weekend before we arrive. all the kids and college students should be back to school that week since Easter is so late this year. I go this time every year and we always have great luck with crowds. The weahter is usually fantastic; knock, knock on wood!
I can't get enough of the world!
ADP

We will also be there April 26th - May 3rd and I started to get nervous about the crowds after reading some of the comments posted. Has anyone else gone in the past during this time period? I was hoping that the crowds would not be heavy for the same reasons cdpa4d stated.

 

[stacy6552]

is grad night different at MK than at disneyland? As a grad, who went to grad night, we werent even let in until after tha park ahd closed and cleaned up. so i wouldnt let the thought of gradnight worry you about corwds during the day.

 

[drusba]

Unaware of how they actually work at Disneyland. At WDW, the "grad night" is not really just a local event as large numbers of school groups come in from neighboring states and even others and many stay for 3 to 4 days. They do, like other guests, go to the parks during the day and evening and can be at MK when the park closes before grad night begins. As to those arriving April 26 and staying to May 3, you should not be overly concerned. That arrival date will still have large crowds but thereafter, they will be just the usual type of crowd for that time of year -- crowded but nothing to get overly worried about. In fact, if you want to hit a park that first day, try Epcot which should be lighter on that Saturday.