How are the crowds? Leave in 3 weeks!!

[bcinohio]

How have the crowds been lately? We will be there in 3 weeks. I have been reading different articles that said they are down. I just wanted to hear from someone who had been recently. We are staying at the ASSp hotel.

Thanks for your help.

 

[ZZUB]

We just returned from Walt Disney World. We had a great trip. The weather was good and the crowds were manageable. We don't prefer to go in summertime although this was our 5th summertime trip. Over the years we've learned to deal with summer crowds and heat.

However, this trip we didn't experience excessively large crowds at all. We stayed at ASMovies for part of the trip and OKW for the last part. Neither property felt over-crowded. We had no problems with transportation at either resort. At ASMovies, where the food court can become oppressively crowded if it the hotel is at capacity, was very pleasant indeed. We never experienced long waits in the food court and we ate there several different times of the day. Ditto the busses. We got on the first bus each time we tried to ride to a park.

That's not to say the parks were empty. They weren't. However, we never had to wait longer than 20 minutes in any standby line and with one notable exception, fast passess were plentiful. We were able to do everything we wanted with minimal wait times, plus we took time to rest and eat.

The only place where we felt crowded was in the section of real estate where Splash Mountan, Big Thunder Mountain and the launch for Tom Sawyer's Island connect. It can get quite crowded over there even with only a dozen or so people.

Bear in mind that the Fairy Tale Package was not available during the first part of our stay so some people may have been waiting for it. On the other hand, the second part of our stay was after 7/4 and the FTP was available. Still, I didn't see a noticeable change in the crowds.

You haven't asked for touring tips, but here are a few we followed which may prove helpful to you:

1. Go into the MK on the EE day. Be prepared to take the first bus from AS available. We left our rooms at 6:55 and I think we were on the first bus at 7:10. We arrived at MK around 7:30 and were near the front of the line. They actually opened the park a few minutes before 8:00. We were able to ride Winnie the Pooh, Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear all before 9:00. We then rode several more rides and ate a sit down breakfast before we left the park at around 1ish. We ate lunch at our hotel and returned to the park at 5:00. We knocked out the rest of the rides by closing time. By leaving during the heat of the day we didn't notice how hot it was. Also, the crowds weren't so bad in the early am or evening.

2. If you have small children like we do, then save Toontown and Mickey's tent for early evening. We only waited in a 5 minute line to see him.

3. We went to MGM on its EE day also but didn't get into the park until about 8:45. We rode RNR and grabbed a FP for TOT w/o any problems. We had planned to leave the park for an afternoon break but the weather wasn't too hot and it just wasn't crowded. We finished our touring by 7:00 and left for the day. We skipped Fantasmic b/c my daughter is quite young and we had heard from several people it would be too intense for her.

4. We saw Beauty and the Beast but I would STRONGLY RECOMMEND you skip it. Unless you prefer dentistry without novocaine, it is not an enjoyable 30 minutes. And it's quite hot in the theatre. I know there are probably plenty of people who will disagree with this opinion, but trust me when I say, no one in our party liked the show. It used to be worth seeing but they've changed it along the way. While the singing was not bad, the show itself was a painful parody of itself. Skip it and see something, anything else instead.

5. We drove to the parks after our afternoon breaks. I think it is a faster way to get there and you won't spend as much time waiting around for busses. Also, when the parks close and you want to get back to your hotel, you can almost always get to your hotel by car faster (even from the MK) than you can by riding the bus. From the MK you have several options b/c there are 2 monorails you can take (remember the resort monorail also stops at the TTC), plus the ferry boat.

6. If you only do one character meal, and you should do at least one, eat at Chef Mickey's. The food is excellent and there are more characters per person than any other character meal. We actually ate there twice b/c my little girl loved it so much. She got a lot of character attention. Plus we really enjoyed the food.

Well, that's much more than you asked for. In short: the crowds weren't so bad. You'll have a great time.

 

[mykidsmom]

We are leaving 3 weeks from today!!! Thanks for the info Zzub. We'll be at OKW - any tips about your villa location?

Did you do any water parks? If so, what day and how were the crowds?

 

[ZZUB]

We didn't go into any of the water parks and I regret it. Would loved to have done Blizzard Beach. But my daughter is so young that we didn't think she'd really enjoy it. Maybe next time.

As for OKW, we stayed in building #38 and it was very quiet. My guess is, however, that it was not one of the most frequently requested buildings. When we checked in, they told me my room wasn't available. When I explained that we really wanted to get into our room as soon as possible, the woman asked me whether I had any building or room preference. I told her no and we go into our room immediately. Our new room then was in building #38. Also, it occurs to me that the Unofficial Guide says that buildings which abut Bonnetcreek Pkwy are not desirable. Our experience was just the opposite. We never heard road noise and barely could tell there was a road beyond all of the trees and bushes. Our building was also fairly quiet. I never saw more than one other family and we never heard anyone either.

That being said, if you intend to ride the busses, you might want to consult a property map to figure out which buildings are closest to a bus stop.

OKW is a very nice property and we enjoyed it very much. I wish we had stayed there longer. I think you and your family will really enjoy all the space.