Gay Days

[aLLpInK]

How big a deal is this and how much does it affect the crowds? We were thinking first of june but just realized this falls on "gay days"....trying to figure something out thats not going to be too outrageously crowded. I know the end of school crowds are a given.

THANKS!!!!

 

[GinnyEmma]

Didn't seem to. Busy time in general, of course.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

I've never been at that time, but I've read that there is a designated park for each day and it's best to avoid that park as it will be a lot busier than the others. Outside of that, I think the crowds are manageable because a lot of schools will still be in session. It gets more crowded the later in June you go.

 

[C&G'sMama]

DP and myself along with our 2 children (11 and 8) are going to be there May 29th through June 5th. It'll be the first time we've been at WDW this time of year since our honeymoon in 1996. I think that possibly June 4th which is the designated day at MK will be a little crowded but I'm guessing the crowds will thin out later in the day. We plan on getting there first thing in the morning leaving for the afternoon and coming back later. And we're doing that to avoid the mid-day heat. Being northerners we plan on doing that all week.

Have a blast!!!

 

[jedijohn]

My co-worker went during Gay Days and he reported that the crowds weren't all too bad. He said you have to put up with a bit of "gayness", like two guys making a big heart symbol with their hands in front of the castle, and some PDA. He also reported that the dudes were generally nice and fun to chat with, while they usually had issues with the lesbians whom tended to be more ruder (i.e. cutting them off and pushing).

 

[luckyfin]

This thread is taking an ugly turn. All the OP was asking about was the crowd level, not the fact that the people participating may or may not be acting like any other person at WDW who is vacationing- which incidently has nothing to do with their sexuality.

 

[C&G'sMama]

This thread is taking an ugly turn. All the OP was asking about was the crowd level, not the fact that the people participating may or may not be acting like any other person at WDW who is vacationing- which incidently has nothing to do with their sexuality.

Hi fellow Rochesterian have a blast. I see it's your DD's first trip. We took DD for her first trip at 18 months in 2001. She'll be 11 for her 9th trip this coming May. It's been great every time!!! And DS went for his first trip at 18mos also and this will be his 7th trip.

 

[deannanb]

Here are the dates and parks:
Thu, June 2, 2011 Gay Days at AK*
Fri, June 3, 2011 Gay Days at HS*
Sat, June 4, 2011 Gay Days at MK*
Sun, June 5, 2011 Gay Days at EP*

I've read several posts and most have said that it isn't a crazy increase in crowds. The host hotel is not a Disney Hotel.

Plan your trip for the days that work for you.

 

[Tiggerlover91]

It was 10 years ago, so more than likely things could have changed quite a bit, but I took my mom, sister, and 3 nieces the first week of June and despite the "warning" we got from the lady at the travel center in Ocala, we still went to the MK on Saturday and it was JUST fine. We chose not to wear our red shirts that day but as far as crowds went, it was nothing on the extreme side. All the couples we saw were very friendly and the ones who sat with us on the monorail actually had us in stitches laughing about how exhausted they were and felt like little old ladies who needed to sleep for the next 12 hours straight. They were young men of course, but were quite entertaining!

 

[worm761]

Avoid that weekend at DHS. OMG is it crowded!!! I have been several times during Gay Days and that is the absolute worst. It will be Star Wars Weekend and the Gay Day on that Friday according to the earlier post. I have never seen so many people in Hollywood Studios as I did that day. I swear it was wall to wall people. The other parks are fine just avoid DHS and you should be fine. Pick a day that they are not there if you want to see SWW. Other than that, we had no problems with crowds the first week of June. It used to be my annual week.

 

[luckyfin]

Hi fellow Rochesterian have a blast. I see it's your DD's first trip. We took DD for her first trip at 18 months in 2001. She'll be 11 for her 9th trip this coming May. It's been great every time!!! And DS went for his first trip at 18mos also and this will be his 7th trip.

Hello! I'm so glad to hear that your children both had successful trips at the same age. DD will be 19 months and we are so excited to bring her. This cold weather and snow is only bearable because we know that we will be leaving in 3 weeks!

 

[bwilcox]

We were there that week last year. It is actually the least crowded week of the busy summer season-as the days go on, more and more schools get out for the summer and it gets more and more crowded. The first 2 days of our vacation were the last 2 days of Gay Days, and they were the least crowded of the whole week. It got noticeably more crowded as the week went on.

 

[C&G'sMama]

Hello! I'm so glad to hear that your children both had successful trips at the same age. DD will be 19 months and we are so excited to bring her. This cold weather and snow is only bearable because we know that we will be leaving in 3 weeks!

It's really cool (IMHO) The first trip it was all about the ice machine. And she also learned how to say Grandpa (my in-laws came with us) that first tip. Well actually it came out "Bop Bop" which eventually morphed into "Papa" which is what the kids call him to this day.

The next trip she was more aware of the characters. The next trip she had the Cinderella dress and so on. And while she claims she's too old for Princesses now, we'll sneak in her Princess Minnie Ears for the next trip, because do our little girls every really outgrow Princesses?

 

[december]

I took my 3 kids last year during Gay Days, and we had a blast. I didn't witness anything inappropriate, but I'm not all that uptight. There were some cute shirts (like I'm with my Cinderella/I'm with my Princess Charming), but nothing vulgar. Dd11 thought the young men in red were the sweetest guys she had ever met when they let her stand in front of them at the parade (after a rude heterosexual couple pushed in front of her and hoisted their child up on the dad's shoulders).

SWW were a different story! Rude rude rude 20 somethings who stepped all over me and the kids! And wall to wall people! I will never again go back to DHS during SWW, but would love to go back to WDW during the first week of June. Too bad ds13's baseball schedule will only allow July trips for the next 5 yrs..........

 

[luvmy2sams]

We were there from last year during this time, and crowds were not a problem. We didn't witness any "inappropriate" behavior, but we weren't focusing on everyone else. We'd return again during this time in a heartbeat.

 

[ShellyShellfish]

Hi to all the other Rochesterians!

DH and I had our Honeymoon that first week of June in 2005...the crowds weren't horrible but our problem was it poured every.single.day. We thought we'd come home nice and tan, and that wasn't the case at all! We spent the whole week in our ponchos.

 

[smidgy]

I think it would also depend on whether you deem appropriate open displays of affection with same sex couples. Myself, I avoid the first of June.

I believe the OP was asking about CROWDS during gay days; just as someone would ask about crowds during super soap weekend (now defunct) or star wars week, etc.

 

[MM27]

viewing open displays of homosexuality as inappropriate in front of children is not prejudice.

It may not be prejudice, but it sure is ignorant. Unless of course they are being sexually intimate in front of the castle or something.

 

[aLLpInK]

I believe the OP was asking about CROWDS during gay days; just as someone would ask about crowds during super soap weekend (now defunct) or star wars week, etc.

Sorry guys. Didnt mean to start anything. Thanks for all the info and sharing your experiences. I feel much better about the dates now!

 

[PatMcDuck]

I hit the Gay Days at DL one year (in October) and quite enjoyed the guests attending that function at the parks. We did the opposite park that was designated for the day in the morning, to try and avoid lines, but we hopped around and had a grand old time. It did not seem to make the lines any worse than usual.

I am not particularly fond of excessive PDAs from any couples, whatever their sexuality, just makes me uncomfortable if it is extreme. The worst I ever saw at a Disney park was at the MK at WDW, a couple of teens were just out of control, and they were very young, maybe 14. (hetero) We finally asked them to calm down, their behavior was really almost bizarre.

Have fun !!