How are crowds Jan. 3-9? Promotions/Deals?

[mommy2paisley]

We want to take DD for her birthday which is January 3. I know January 1 is usually very busy. Do the crowds thin out a little after that or will we still have pretty lomg waits that week? We have been first week of May, first week of October, week of Thanksgiving and week after and two weeks the first of September. I'm just teying to gage if we will see larger crowds than we are used to from past trips???

Also, in the past, has Disney had any deals/promotions for that time of year? We are taking my grandmother with us and this will be her first trip to Disney!!!! I am hoping to have her have as good a time as possible!!!

 

[mountdew1]

The 6th-10th is Marathon Weekend. While this doesn't affect crowd levels tremendously especially when you account for the fact there are 30,000+ runners and their families, it does fill up many of the hotels. Your best place for historical discounts would be here -> http://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/ but you may run into problems finding discounts for the weekend itself as the hotels are usually pretty full. I've found crowds to be reasonably light, but it usually depends on when exactly the dates fall and when people go back to school/work.

 

[anniemae]

I have heard that the crowds thin out a lot right after New Years Day, like a mass exodus. I have never been in Jan, but have heard it is very slow. You will have the Marathon like the PP said, but there always seems to be something at Disney. They just can't let there be a slow time! I think it is a good week to go.

 

[sharonabe]

I would expect most schools will start back on the 4th, so crowd-wise should at least be comparable to your May and October trips. I wouldn't expect any discounts, though. They MAY do the Stay, Play, and Dine for Jan, but not sure it will start that early.

 

[RebelHawk]

My wife and I love going in January. As was mentioned above there is a mass exodus as everyone finishes up their holiday trips and head back to the real world. The parks are much less crowded and dining/fast passes are much easier to book. The caveats we always mention for this time of the year is Marathon Events, the weather and expect ride closures for maintenance. The Marathon Events can make it seem like it is busier than it really is because so many of the hotels are booked up but the parks are (mostly) blissfully quite. The weather can also get wacky. We have been in January in shorts and tee shirts and we have bundled up because the nights dipped down to 32 fahrenheit. We live in SC so can drive down to WDW and we alway pack for two climates if it looks dicey. Finally we find that there are more rides and water parks closed during the slower times for maintenance so don't be surprised if something is closed. You can always check online for planned closures to set your expectations.

 

[Cando86]

We went January 4-12 this year. Crowds thin out the Monday after NYE, so Monday Jan 4 of 2016 I would say crowds significantly decrease. We experienced low crowds and it was great. The Marathon Weekend did fall during our trip but didn't seem to affect crowds noticeably at all. The only time the Marathon crowds seemed to impact us were on the actual marathon day, the bus to MK dropped us off at the Contemporary instead of right at MK which wasn't a big deal at all.

January is a great time to go. Be prepared for all weather though. We experienced 80 degree days when we were in shorts and mornings that started in the 40s when we were in hats and gloves all day. Just pack accordingly and you should be fine!

Another thing to keep in mind is that Splash is usually closed during this time. Also one of the water parks will be shut down (the other will be open though - they alternate which park is closed every year).

The promotion we used was the Stay, Play and Dine deal where you pay child pricing for the dining plan and park tickets.

 

[LaLinda]

We have been in very early Jan before & the crowds were small. Had some pouring rain for 2 days then cleared up & got warm!

We are planning to go again in early Jan 2016 as well.

 

[magicaldisney]

We did that same week once as a grand gathering and it was great. We are used to going during higher crowd levels so it was a huge treat. The only thing is that it was freezing the year we went (unusually cold for Florida that year). We were from Minnesota and Wisconsin so we were used to cold, but it just didn't seem the same to be there wearing winter jackets, hats and gloves. The lower crowd levels are worth it though!