crowds last week -WOW!

[noladave]

after looking at UG (touringplans.com), and listening to everyone around complain about the economy, and how Disney had to offer the 4/3 promotion, I was STUNNED to see the crowds last week at WDW. All 4 parks were crowded the entire time we were there. The last day - Saturday 3/1, we went to MK one last time, just to hit our favorite rides, and to finish our shopping, and it was PACKED.

All of this was a little surprising, to say the least, as even the UG predicted crowds of 5 and 6 (with the exception of Mardi Gras day).

Glad to see I wasn't the only one surprised - Pete's commments:

Posted on Friday, 27th February 2009 by Pete Werner

I can be forgiven for thinking that a Thursday in late February when the Magic Kingdom is closing at 8pm might be a slower than normal day to visit the parks. Especially when you see Disney doing everything short of a lap dance trying to get people to show up and spend. Boy was I wrong. Imagine my surprise when we saw Space Mountain with a 70 minute wait - and Splash Mountain at 80 minutes!! Not to mention the crowds - lots of them.

Seems Disney’s desperate push to lure more people into the parks is working. Restaurants were packed, the wait for rides were long, and the crowd leaving the park at closing time was massive. But lets not forget that Disney has scaled back on quite a bit of entertainment in an effort to cut costs. That same entertainment was a great source of crowd control, giving people something to do and watch in between rides, helping keep the lines manageable. Welcome to the new Disney World - I fear that Disney will not only be successful in driving volume into the parks, but will also keep the entertainment offerings limited.

 

[exwdwcm]

wow, that is scary. i am getting nervous about our December trip. last year we went during pop week- first week in December, this year, we are going 12/11-12/20- basically the week BEFORE christmas week. i am extremely nervous about how crowded it might be.

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

I was just commenting on this to my DH. I am going for the first time in May. 2 weeks after Easter. I have tried to re arrange a few dinner ressies. Everything is booked up. I am really scared of the crowd levels while we will be there. This post just confirms my fears. LOL.

 

[LMO429]

We go every May, crowds are generally manageable. When it comes to crowds I always prepare & expect the worst, I find this way I am ready to deal with crowds and pleasantly surprised if they are not around.

I see all these threads about "what do you think the crowds will be like at (fill in date) I wish I had the answer to help in these threads however There is no crystal ball out there that can tell anyone how crowded or uncrowded a park may be on any particular day. Last year touring plans called for 7 & 8 when we went to Disney in May but we found it pretty calm... Sure there are less busier times of the year but I think the only thing you can do is have a smart touring plan and get to the park for rope drop and just enjoy everything you can as best you can regardless if their are crowds or not

 

[DWFan4Life]

wow, that is scary. i am getting nervous about our December trip. last year we went during pop week- first week in December, this year, we are going 12/11-12/20- basically the week BEFORE christmas week. i am extremely nervous about how crowded it might be.

We just got there last Christmas holidays, the experience is really wonderful and crowds are manageable. Now we are planning to go back for the next holidays.

Have a nice day.