How bad is a "9"?

[ajfd]

We went to DW the first time as a family earlier this year and we caught "the bug". If things go as planned we will have three more trips between now and May, 2014 (only one of them without kids for the F&W ).

Our current plan is to go the first full weekend in Dec (arrive Thursday night 12/5 , depart o'dark thirty the following Tuesday morning and get home in time for work / school that day).

We could slide our plans to arrive mid-afternoon on Black Friday and leave late on Tuesday, 12/3. This would allow us to see one of our top two choices for CP narrator (Gary Sinise on 11/30) and maybe even both (if NPH slides into the TBD spot for 12/2).

The downside is we go from four days estimated at "4" crowds to one and a half days with "9", then almost 3 full days of "4".

We're a bit worried about those "9" days. Should we be? How bad is it? I think we can schedule most of our time at parks that are "Recommended" (EasyWDW) or "Recommended/Neutral" (UT) ... will that help?

Thanks!

 

[ReluctantDisaholic]

When we go for March Break the first few days of our trip are 7 and 8, then the rest are always 9. We follow easywdw's recommended days and also get there right when the park opens. We find the crowds manageable for the mornings, then noticeably heavier after lunch. We get there early, do all our must-dos in the morning, then take it easy in the afternoon...shopping, snacks, checking out the less crowded stuff.

Before the March trips we used to go during 2 and 3 crowds, so we were nervous about 9s, but as long as you have a good strategy you should be ok.

 

[kathy884]

A '9' is unbelievably better than a 10. With rope drop and a touring plan it is doable. What isn't fun about a 9 is that miscellaneous headliner rides later in the day without a fast pass have really long waits. I normally on 9 days just do headliner rides once following a touring plan that minimizes ride wait time with maybe one exception where I can get an extra fastpass.

I'm following a similar strategy when I'm going on an 8 day in October.

 

[funkyspunky871]

I don't think I've ever been on an 8 or 9 day as I usually avoid them like the plague. However, my mom and I went this past May, and apparently the days were from 5-7 on the crowd level calendar. Even then we had trouble walking around in the parks without bumping into people. You literally could not walk in a straight line for more than a second. The attraction wait times were surprisingly good considering all the people... So I can only assume that an 8 or 9 day is twice as bad. You'll probably find it hard to walk around the parks much less find a ride with a reasonable wait time.

I'd definitely recommend doing the suggested/neutral parks for the day though. EasyWDW and UT has this stuff down to a science it seems. You may also want to go with the park hopper option just in case one park is too crowded for your tastes. Hope you have a great time!!

 

[drinkme]

9 days are really crowded. You can't just get there at rope drop but u need to be there before rope drop.

At least you won't have the heat to deal with.

Maybe make one of the 9 days a pool at the resort day.

 

[DLFT]

9's are more than manageable with proper planning of your days. A 9 day at Disney still beats just about anything else. It will be crowded in the middle of the day, but get to your park of choice early and it will still be a fun day!

 

[Robo]

I prefer a 4.

 

[harbin]

We were there 7/26/13-8/1/13. Most of the days were either 8 or 9. I did not find it to be unmanageable at all! I was quite pleasantly surprised. We followed Easy WDW and Touring plans and planned our parks accordingly. We used FP when possible. We are not much of an early riser, and with two little ones getting up early after a late night in the parks didn't work out. So we rarely made it to rope drop, although we were in the parks shortly thereafter. Our first full MK day we didn't even get there until noon and managed to ride everything we wanted. The longest we waited was for Everest (as we didn't use FP) and that was 40 min. Space mountain had a 120 min wait at one point during our stay, we just got FP and came back several hours later. I think it is all doable if you have a plan, and your expectations are set according to crowds. We are going back 3/28-4/6 which is prime Spring Break time... so expecting heavy crowds again.... but at least we won't have the heat! Planning more park days this time, so we can be less commando and enjoy our resort (which is still undecided) more! Good Luck!

 

[Softball Princess]

9 days are really crowded. You can't just get there at rope drop but u need to be there before rope drop.

At least you won't have the heat to deal with.

Maybe make one of the 9 days a pool at the resort day.

Great idea!!

 

[pellegirl]

We usually can only go during Easter break but haven't looked at any touring plans (gasp, I know) and I would imagine most of our days are 9's. We would have our own plan as to what we wanted to do and knew which fastpasses we had to grab first and honestly we did fine and that was with a 6 year old. We got to the parks early and did early morning hours as best we could, took a break in the afternoon when the crowds and heat were the highest and returned for early evening. Heck I would take a 9 in the park over my cube any day! Good luck!

 

[Dan Murphy]

Keep in mind that a 9 is still measurable, more than an 8, less than a 10. A 10 is simply more than a 9. It could be 11, 12, 15 or 20...or more.

 

[GovieMom]

A "9" is like ...

 

[elgerber]

I prefer a 4.

Agreed, if you have the option of a 4 over a 9, I would take the 4!! Especially on such a short trip.

 

[wiigirl]

A '9' is unbelievably better than a 10. With rope drop and a touring plan it is doable. What isn't fun about a 9 is that miscellaneous headliner rides later in the day without a fast pass have really long waits. I normally on 9 days just do headliner rides once following a touring plan that minimizes ride wait time with maybe one exception where I can get an extra fastpass.

I'm following a similar strategy when I'm going on an 8 day in October.

 

[ajfd]

Thanks for the replies.

I laid out the trip and a basic itinerary. Don't think we'll have a problem with the "9" days by following the advise here and using the guides.

Just sent a note to our TA to update the ressies.

Now we just have to decide on narrator for CP. I wouldn't mind seeing it twice, but DW is leaning towards doing it once and going for NPH.

 

[scottny]

I am there then and touring plans and undercover tourist both have "9" days. The highest is a "6" the day POP Werner starts.

I think any of the dates will be fine.