Terk-1 said:
Thanks for your input. Would we be better off going on the Friday or Saturday before Thanksgiving week? How crowded does it get at DL? Is it as crowded like at the Magic Kingdom at WDW? How long will the lines be? We will be 4 adults and no kids, so will probably skip most of Fantasyland & Toontown. Which attractions have Fast Pass? If the park is open really late (say 11pm), do the crowds thin out at night?
The basics of FastPass (FP) are pretty easy to understand, but there are many loopholes that are worth grasping if you want to maximize your rides. I recently posted a topic on this. See "Getting the Most Out of FastPass During High Season"
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=885132, and check out the link to DarkBeer. It lists all FP attractions. When you are there, Haunted Mansion will also likely have FP.
If I were going before TG week, I would choose Friday over Saturday.
Crowds are harder to estimate this year than usual for two reasons. One, it is the 50th DL anniversary, and this is drawing more folks than usual. Second, many or all of the SoCal schools are getting the whole TG week off, which they usually do not. So people may use TG week for a DL trip more than normal.
I have never been that week, but am planning to go Tue or Wed before TG for one day. From what I have been reading, most people think it will be fairly crowded during TG week. But if you go before TG and miss the weekend, the crowds should be a bit smaller.
The park will likely be open late (11PM or midnight) and the crowds do in fact really thin out as the evening goes on. But if I had to choose between getting to DL early vs staying late, I would go early. You can get on a lot of rides in the morning, and also collect FPs (per my link above) which can be used throughout the day. If you come to DL a few hours after opening, you will lose the chance at 3 or 4 FastPasses. If you have the stamina in an all adult group, and want to really get on a lot of rides, come early
and stay late.
For example, on Tue and Wed DL will open at 8AM. We will be
in line at 7:30AM. Not just parking or walking. But in line. By 10AM we will probably have done 8 rides and have 3 FastPasses in hand for later use.
After about 11AM on an 8AM day, the lines really start to build up and it is not so imperative to focus on rides because all lines will be lenghty. But this is the time to start using your FastPasses or see a show.
Have fun.
