How Bad Are Gay Days

[lucysmom]

My girl scout troop is planning a trip to DLR the first weekend in October. We can't change the dates due to school schedules. Our plan is to fly in Friday. Hang out at the pool and then head over to the Halloween party. The next day we plan to go to DCA. It isn't a long trip but the girls have been selling cookies for nine years to earn enough. Is it miserably crowded? I want them to have fun and I thought the Halloween party would have shorter ride lines due to limited attendance. Does anyone have any advice?

 

[GeneralTso]

I'm sure it will be just fine, just like other event weekends that are there.

 

[Geemo]

My girl scout troop is planning a trip to DLR the first weekend in October. We can't change the dates due to school schedules. Our plan is to fly in Friday. Hang out at the pool and then head over to the Halloween party. The next day we plan to go to DCA. It isn't a long trip but the girls have been selling cookies for nine years to earn enough. Is it miserably crowded? I want them to have fun and I thought the Halloween party would have shorter ride lines due to limited attendance. Does anyone have any advice?

Since the dates can't be changed, plan for event weekend attendance.
Start as early as possible to get a jump on things.

Even on busy days, it takes a few hours for people to show up.

You might want to get RiderMax or some other tour plan to help with the time you are there since it's Gay Days weekend.

Prep everyone to go with the flow while you're there.

You've all worked nine years for this and it will be great!!

Geemo

 

[tarheelalum]

It is very crowded but its not horrible. Use the fast passes wisely and you should be fine.

 

[Nonsuch]

...Our plan is to fly in Friday. Hang out at the pool and then head over to the Halloween party...

Many people seem to use similar strategies, and the Friday Halloween party of the Gay Days weekend was the first party to sell out last year.
Buy your tickets far in advance.
A few quick tips: Enter DL before the official start of the party (~3PM). Some rides may have short lines at the official start of the party (~6PM), since guests without party wristbands cannot enter the line. Collect candy close to park closing, when the lines are short. The party fireworks are excellent, and worth investing some time to see from the hub.

 

[lucysmom]

Thank you for the suggestions, everyone. Does anyone know how many people they let in for the party?

 

[figment_jii]

Some rides may have short lines at the official start of the party (~6PM), since guests without party wristbands cannot enter the line.

They won't let guests without wristbands get into the lines for the party specific character meet and greets, but I've not seen them turning away guests from ride lines before the park official closes to the public. Given that the OP was asking about the Friday party, if historic trends continue, it'll start at 7:00 pm (run to midnight) and guests with party tickets will be allowed to enter starting at 4:00 pm (three hours prior to the start of the party).

Thank you for the suggestions, everyone. Does anyone know how many people they let in for the party?

Disney has never official announced how many tickets they sell to the parties. In general, the sold out party crowds kind of reminded me of a moderate day crowd level in terms of bodies in the party. The big events (like fireworks) will be pretty crowded, so plan to get there early. The major rides (e.g., Space and HMH) will continue to have long(ish) lines, but some of the other rides will have much shorter lines than during the day (mostly because folks are concentrating on doing party activities). I agree to wait and do the trick-or-treating at the end of the party. The candy is the same and then you don't have to wait in as long of a line and you don't have to carry around the candy (you can end up getting a lot).

I was at DLR during Gay Days a couple of years ago, and as folks said, the crowds were heavy, but they weren't all that much worse than normal weekend crowds. I agree with the tips of the PPs. If you have regular park tickets, I would make an effort to be at the park at rope drop. You can get a fair amount of stuff done in the first few hours before the crowds pick-up. Likewise, stay until closing if possible. Again, crowds sometimes lessen after fireworks/Fantasmic, so you can get in some rides during the last hour or so. Use FastPass for rides that you want to ride, but tend to be fairly popular. I would consider getting FP for RSR and Space.

You Google Gay Days at Disneyland to find their schedule of meet up in the park. That might help you plot out which rides are most likely to be impacted by the crowd at what time.

 

[Phoenixrising]

Honestly the crowds are heavy, but very manageable. If you get there at rope drop and concentrate on the rides for the first couple of hours you should be fine, and get in everything that you want to. Personally found the crowds to be much worse during Thanksgiving week (to give a comparison crowd wise). I wouldn't be worried about going during Gay Days, so long as you will be aware of the crowd levels, and there are ways to work around them.

 

[bumbershoot]

We were there at that time in 2012, and it really only got super-crowded on what was ALSO the Columbus Day holiday Monday. Which is very common for holidays at DLR...the weekend gets more and more crowded, starts off packed on the Monday, then clears out.

Since the first weekend of October isn't a holiday, it will be better than when it was over Columbus Day.

I don't think you'll have a big problem with crowds. It's a weekend so you're already geared up for that...

 

[junmatno]

Thank you for the suggestions, everyone. Does anyone know how many people they let in for the party?

They packed them in last year...FYI, DCA is. GREAT strategy for Saturday as that is DISNEYLAND gay day and Sunday is DCA Gay Day....so the crowds will be at the activities at opposite parks, we used this strategy last year and it worked great.

 

[Kristina4109]

For the past 2 years, my daughter's birthday trip to DL has coincided with Gay Days. The first time I didn't realize it until we were there, and I had a waking nightmare that the parks would be stuffed with people wearing red shirts. Not so at all. It was crowded, but certainly not unmanageable.

This past October when I was planning my daughter's birthday trip I checked and it was going to coincide with Gay Days. But since we didn't have a problem last year we went ahead with our plans. Again, no problems. Crowded but manageable.

BTW, both years we were in Disneyland Park on the day that Gay Days were scheduled. I don't think you'll have any trouble. I have heard from others that night time can be crazy but we left the parks at 7:00 pm both times.

 

[WAMUMOF4]

We attended that party last year it was really busy both the rides and trick or treat lines were really long even if it was my only option I don't think I would do it again we left early, in saying that we had been to the party on the Tuesday and everything was walk on so we were comparing it to that if you didn't have an experience 3 days before to compare it to it may be different.

 

[lucysmom]

That is what I am worried about. Their only DL time will be at the Halloween party because we fly in too late to pay for a day at DL. So, I figured we get the party tickets and try to catch the headliner rides. Then on Saturday we can make rope drop for CA. I think if they only got to ride Pirates, Indiana , HM, SM, and see the fireworks, the girls would be happy. If we got in line at 330 for a 400 entry, do you think that would be doable?

 

[alvernon90]

The worst part of Gay Days is that the lines get extraordinarily long at the beer carts. We were there in 2012 but we took advantage of the fact that there were no return time limits on FPs. I don't know what the evening crowds would have been like without that to help us out.

 

[Nonsuch]

...I think if they only got to ride Pirates, Indiana , HM, SM, and see the fireworks, the girls would be happy. If we got in line at 330 for a 400 entry, do you think that would be doable?

This will be my third year in a row attending the Friday party before Gay Days
While I don't go on many rides during the party, I think your plan is very "doable"
Last year, there were special characters in Toontown (not heavily promoted) -- I hope Disney adds more special events to the parties

 

[WAMUMOF4]

That is what I am worried about. Their only DL time will be at the Halloween party because we fly in too late to pay for a day at DL. So, I figured we get the party tickets and try to catch the headliner rides. Then on Saturday we can make rope drop for CA. I think if they only got to ride Pirates, Indiana , HM, SM, and see the fireworks, the girls would be happy. If we got in line at 330 for a 400 entry, do you think that would be doable?

Yes I think that would be doable, the first few hours you have to remember that their are both people with party tickets and normal DL tickets we went and did the early trick or treating in Toontown I can't remember the exact time it started but you need to line up for it early they only let a certain amount in their at one time that was our best trick or treating for the night and that was crowded the good thing was a lot of people didn't realise the rides were open in there as well so we able to walk straight on and have them done really quickly.

I would try to get the most important things to you done first then go to the early trick or treating and then everything else you get done is a bonus

Fast passes don't work during the party either we were told by a CM to fastpass SM when we first went in the area was closed we were told by the CM there they don't do fastpasses during parties

 

[bumbershoot]

That is what I am worried about. Their only DL time will be at the Halloween party because we fly in too late to pay for a day at DL. So, I figured we get the party tickets and try to catch the headliner rides. Then on Saturday we can make rope drop for CA. I think if they only got to ride Pirates, Indiana , HM, SM, and see the fireworks, the girls would be happy. If we got in line at 330 for a 400 entry, do you think that would be doable?

Then just plan on doing that. Don't get distracted by cheap candy.

 

[ddwwylm]

ride lines are usually much shorter for the halloween party b/c most of the people in there want to do the party specific things. DD went on splash mountain a ton of times @ the party last year when during the day it is usually an hour long wait. Also, a few years ago, back when tower of terror was brand new and they still did the party at CA, DH walked right on that ride during the party & daytime waits were something like 2 hrs. A lot of people that go to the Halloween party are local or semi regular park visitors, they're there for the trick or treating and fun special experience that you can't get on a regular day admission, ride lines won't be as long as daytime visits. If I had to guess at how many tickets they sell, I would say about 1/2 park max, it's really not that crowded.

 

[lucysmom]

Than you, everyone! It sounds like it will be a very festive way to do DL. If we can get on rides and see the fireworks, they will be thrilled. Maybe while the park is still crowded at four o'clock, we can just wander and enjoy the sights and sounds of DL. I will be watching for the Halloween superthread to start appearing. I love DLR at Christmas with my family, and I am really looking forward to DL at Halloween with the girls. Selling those cookies is a lot of work and the girls actually get so little money off each box. Now that the girls are in high school, they are busy. So, we won't be selling the cookies next year. We need to make this trip fun, fun, fun! We sure earned it!