Halloween Time (not Mickey's Halloween Party) Crowds

[djk]

To what extent does Halloween Time affect crowds? We are thinking about going September 10 - September 15. Will it be crazy busy? Or are the bigger crowds mostly seen at Mickey's Halloween Parties as opposed to dates that just happen to fall within Halloween Time? For reference, our last three trips have been either the last week of April or first week of May. How will early September crowds compare to those in late April/early May?

Thanks for any input!

 

[Niltiac]

I can't compare to April/May, but I can say that Halloween Time tends to be crowded on the weekends and manageable during the week. It's hard to say if Halloween Time will have started already on the dates you're looking at since it varies year to year and hasn't been announced yet for 2017. If you're there for the first day and/or weekend of Halloween Time, I've heard it can be extra crowded because many locals come to see the new holiday offerings as soon as they can. If you're there before Haloween Time officially starts, you'll likely have Space Mountain and Haunted Mansion closed for overlays, so if those rides are important to you consider moving your dates later in Sept to guarantee that Halloween Time has started.

I know you're not asking about the parties themselves, but they could affect your crowds because party-goers are allowed in the park 3 hours before the party starts, while regular guests are still there. So on party days you can expect especially large crowds in DL starting 3 hrs before official park closing. This won't affect you on the dates you're looking at because parties usually start later in Sept, but if you decide to move your dates later it may affect you.

 

[MacMama0930]

I don't think there will be any parties during your stay. October tends to have the big crowds because of all the parties, Halloween atmosphere and lots of random school breaks. September crowds last year seemed manageable. I'll try to pull up the numbers from last year.

 

[MacMama0930]

 

[figment_jii]

There really aren't any times when the parks are empty anymore (except perhaps during major rain storms), so be prepared to have crowds in the park regardless of the "season" and day of the week. Weekends during HalloweenTime are very busy, but as the PP mentioned, the parties haven't (historically) started until late in September (that can change, so keep an eye on the Parks Blog for information). DLR hasn't announced when HalloweenTime is going to start this year (that announcement is usually made in mid-summer), but it normally happens in in the first half of September. The Summer of Heroes promotion is running through September 10th, so except pretty good crowds for the last weekend of that promotion. Also, in the week leading up to HalloweenTime, both Haunted Mansion and Space are (usually) closed to have their Halloween overlays installed.

 

[Aladora]

To what extent does Halloween Time affect crowds? We are thinking about going September 10 - September 15. Will it be crazy busy? Or are the bigger crowds mostly seen at Mickey's Halloween Parties as opposed to dates that just happen to fall within Halloween Time? For reference, our last three trips have been either the last week of April or first week of May. How will early September crowds compare to those in late April/early May?

Thanks for any input!

We've been at the beginning of Halloween time twice and the absolutely busiest day we have ever had in 10 trips was the first day of Halloween when it landed in Friday the 13th. That was also our hottest trip. Having said that, the rest of that trip was busy but not as insane.

Make use of mornings, we found that the crowds really started to build up after lunch, typically by 2:00 it was not enjoyable anymore so we would take a break back at the hotel until dinner time.

 

[SMD]

People like to go as soon as Halloween starts to see the decor, character photo ops and ride overlays. All of Halloween time draws crowds. Also, last year they did the AP Days promotion ending right before the official start of Halloween, so I expect they'll do it again. If you haven't been in April or May in the last 2 years, those weeks will be more crowded than what you experienced as well.

 

[djk]

Thank you all for the good insight and giving me some things to think about.

I don't think there will be any parties during your stay. October tends to have the big crowds because of all the parties, Halloween atmosphere and lots of random school breaks. September crowds last year seemed manageable. I'll try to pull up the numbers from last year.

MacMama, thanks for sharing the Touring Plans numbers from last year. It looks like smaller crowds (2s and 3s) were predicted for the last week in September. I thought it would be busier then than earlier in the month. Do you think that held true?

What do you think the least crowded week in September will be? (And yes, I know, it's impossible to really know, and yes, I know that it's always busy these days. Just asking for some educated guesses as to when it would be *least* crowded.)

People like to go as soon as Halloween starts to see the decor, character photo ops and ride overlays. All of Halloween time draws crowds. Also, last year they did the AP Days promotion ending right before the official start of Halloween, so I expect they'll do it again. If you haven't been in April or May in the last 2 years, those weeks will be more crowded than what you experienced as well.

Our previous trips were in late April/early May of 2011, 2013 and 2015. We thought 2015 was pretty busy for "off-season", which is part of the reason we have been thinking of trying a different time of year. Possibly this week in mid September. Which do you think is less crowded: early May or mid September?

 

[MacMama0930]

Thank you all for the good insight and giving me some things to think about.



MacMama, thanks for sharing the Touring Plans numbers from last year. It looks like smaller crowds (2s and 3s) were predicted for the last week in September. I thought it would be busier then than earlier in the month. Do you think that held true?

What do you think the least crowded week in September will be? (And yes, I know, it's impossible to really know, and yes, I know that it's always busy these days. Just asking for some educated guesses as to when it would be *least* crowded.)



Our previous trips were in late April/early May of 2011, 2013 and 2015. We thought 2015 was pretty busy for "off-season", which is part of the reason we have been thinking of trying a different time of year. Possibly this week in mid September. Which do you think is less crowded: early May or mid September?

Those were the actual numbers, not predictions.

 

[MacMama0930]

Thank you all for the good insight and giving me some things to think about.



MacMama, thanks for sharing the Touring Plans numbers from last year. It looks like smaller crowds (2s and 3s) were predicted for the last week in September. I thought it would be busier then than earlier in the month. Do you think that held true?

What do you think the least crowded week in September will be? (And yes, I know, it's impossible to really know, and yes, I know that it's always busy these days. Just asking for some educated guesses as to when it would be *least* crowded.)



Our previous trips were in late April/early May of 2011, 2013 and 2015. We thought 2015 was pretty busy for "off-season", which is part of the reason we have been thinking of trying a different time of year. Possibly this week in mid September. Which do you think is less crowded: early May or mid September?

Since DL is such a heavily visited LOCALS park - I think weather plays a BIG role in attendance. I think those numbers may have been lower because those days saw 100 degree temps, I believe.

 

[tarheelalum]

Halloween time is packed.

 

[SMD]

Our previous trips were in late April/early May of 2011, 2013 and 2015. We thought 2015 was pretty busy for "off-season", which is part of the reason we have been thinking of trying a different time of year. Possibly this week in mid September. Which do you think is less crowded: early May or mid September?

I think they'd be about the same, crowded to very crowded. I think the weather might be a little bit better in May, because the last few Septembers have been hot, but there's no hard rule there either.