Figuring out which day/which park - craziness!

[GatorChris]

With a trip coming in July/Aug, I'm trying to figure out which parks I want to do on which day so I can make my dining reservation. Been a while since I've done it the WDW way.

There's so much mixed information out there, i don't know which way to go! One site will say don't do MK on Monday or Wednesday - but then WDWPassport will use actual ride line data which shows Tuesday way busier than both of those days. One site will say don't do Epcot on the weekend, while others say Saturday is good at Epcot because it absorbs the crowds. And all the rest is just a jumbled mess.

So...is there a true science? Or is it just guess work added in with a little info? Or maybe all these online tools convince people one day is crowded and they inadvertently make that day really easy.

What's the secret?

 

[leebee]

I think it's mostly guesswork. The parks are pretty crowded these days, regardless of when you go. I usually use TouringPlans crowd estimator to pick my park days, then book my dining around this. However... Although TP is usually pretty accurate, they gave my MK day a "3" (which is why we chose to go to MK that day). That didn't work out. Anytime you see Small World with a 35 minute standby line, you know it's NOT a level 3 day at the Magic Kingdom! Tron never went below 90 minutes, Tianna never was below an hour. We waited 62 minutes (8yo timed it) for Mine Train, even though it said 45 minutes. It was crazy-busy in MK that day!

 

[danceintherain]

I dunno. I have 3 different website's estimates in a spreadsheet. I also look at thrill data. Nothing agrees exactly.
I expect the general estimate for all the days is a better indicator of overall crowds than a specific park number.
Touring plans has always said that a "good plan" is more important than which day you go. In the past, my parks have been largely based on when I could get a harder to get ADR.

I wouldn't worry about "too many people" using the same plan/guide, because as you've noticed there are many different opinions. Implementation varies quite a bit too, so even if every single person who is at the parks that day is using the same calendar....some will still arrive at 11am....or not book ADRs....or whatever.

My best advice is to go in with a plan, and a decent knowledge-base so you can pivot as necessary.

 

[WLWildlife]

We don't do sit down meals, buy LL of any kind, and buy park hoppers. I know this doesn't appeal to most people, but it works for us. We decide the night before where to start the next day. We rope drop the park and stay until we have done what we want or leave if it gets too crowded and hop somewhere else of our choice. I think the key is knowing what will work for your family and going in knowing it will be busy. We prioritize 1 choice for each member of our party and anything else we get to do is icing on the cake. Have a great trip!

 

[scrappinginontario]

When are you going? I use TP too but occasionally they get surprised too.

My only definite recommendation is, visit MK on a party day if you can but you will miss evening entertainment.

We tend to skip Epcot on Fri and Sat during festivals.

We also purchase park hoppers and if waits are high but lower at a different park we may hop elsewhere.

 

[kylenne]

The reason you’re seeing so much conflicting info is because crowd prediction is useless in 2025, those absurd numbers are arbitrary and mean very little in the scheme of things and I am really bummed out by people working themselves into a tizzy about which day to go where. It genuinely does not matter unless we’re talking MK party season or Epcot during Food & Wine.

Having a good plan and being flexible is what matters. A good plan will serve you whether it’s slammed or it’s dead. That’s a much better use of your energy imo than trying to play the losing game of trying to figure out when it’ll be dead.

 

[Summer2018]

I can't stand the crowds, and I really miss the days of TourGuide Mike. His tricks of the trade worked really well for us back in the day. In more recent years, getting up early and being there for rope-drop has been the best solution for us. We leave at lunchtime either eating in the park or at our resort, spend the afternoon at the pool (usually at a patio rental at Polynesian's quiet pool), and have a Signature dinner where we can also watch fireworks or take a fireworks cruise rather than returning to the parks.