How busy is spring break?????

[nicki.momof3]

Funny, the last time we went over spring break I said "NEVER AGAIN" and have since pulled kids out of school to avoid the busy season. The best thing I've ever done was change my trips to go in the slow season. It's a whole different experience!!

Wish I could go during the "slow season". I am a teacher so I am not allowed to take vacations during the school year. So I am either stuck with summer (busy and hot - we did August 2x), X-mas, or spring break. Since we have done the summer 2x we thought maybe we would try spring break - I guess a busy Disney vacation is better than no Disney vacation.

 

[srwarden1928]

We were there the week before Easter this year. We followed the recommended parks and the touringplans from touringplans.com to the letter. They were spot on. We didnt wait long for anything and saw everything we wanted to. The planning was probably really important, but with it we had a wonderful trip.
Now Im wanting to go back.

 

[nicki.momof3]

I am just sarting to read the rec. touring plans. I am glad to hear from someone that used them and they were successful for spring break. There are so many plans. I was looking at the holiday with young children - which did you use?

 

[natnelliesmom]

We were there the exact same week this past March!! Make sure you see Mr. and Mrs. Easter Bunny! We got some cute photos.
It was crowded. Very crowded. I can honestly say though that it really wasn't that bad. We took it easy and really did have a wonderful time.
The evening EMHs are very helpful- twice while we were down there the MK was open till 3:00 am. We just took afternoon naps, yes the whole family- and then had dinner and went back in around 7:00 pm. DD3 and DD5 did very well. I do have to say that there are no lines for Snow White, Peter Pan, Small World etc. at 2:00 in the morning!! It was awesome!
5 min waits for the mountains- no line for Pirates or Haunted Mansion. It was a wonderful time!
Make sure you get your ADRs all set. We did have some luck getting some last minute ressies by asking for two 2-tops instead of a table for 4. They were very good about seating us next to each other.
Since the parks were so busy mid day- it was a good time to check out the resort stuff that you might otherwise skip. Like the petting zoo at Fort Wilderness- they also have some boat rentals and playgrounds that my girls really enjoyed.
The bus waits were not bad at all- they add extra buses to account for the bigger crowds.
Really it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Just be smart about EMHs, make your ADRs early and plan your fast passes well.
Have fun!
-Sarah

 

[nicki.momof3]

The evening EMHs are very helpful- twice while we were down there the MK was open till 3:00 am. We just took afternoon naps, yes the whole family- and then had dinner and went back in around 7:00 pm. DD3 and DD5 did very well. I do have to say that there are no lines for Snow White, Peter Pan, Small World etc. at 2:00 in the morning!! It was awesome!
5 min waits for the mountains- no line for Pirates or Haunted Mansion. It was a wonderful time!
Have fun!
-Sarah

YOu have young children like mine (mine are 3,4,6,). Could you explain your day and how you got them to last until 2am. Do you do the morning early magic hours? WE love the night time parades and whole night sense. Please share an example of your daily schedule.

 

[Belle1962]

spring break thread--be sure to add yours to the POLL. Hope it helps with planning.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=25937853#post25937853&highlight=

 

[dimimi]

I am glad to hear from someone that goes at spring break. I keep hearing about the parks reaching capacity and them closing the gates. We will be there the monday before easter - leaving the day after easter. Since we have 3 kids under the age of 3 going all day is not an option. We go at EMH and stay about 4 hours and then return after the kids have napped in the evening.

With the exception of Easter sunday will we be able to get into the parks at say 4pm from your expereinces (April 6-13)??

If we are going to be locked out of the parks every evening I am thinking about cancelling my trip - our 100% favorite thing to do is night activities at the parks.

The only bad thing I can think of is when you go after 4 you won't be able to get fast passes. We usually go early and collect fast passes for the day. We don't wait in lines. My suggestion would be to get all of the fast passes you can before you leave for your nap. I can't imagine waiting in lines over an hour with such little kids!

 

[nicki.momof3]

Great suggestion - we will be doing that. Do they hand out fasspasses 4-5 hours in advance?

 

[PrincessTiffany]

Great suggestion - we will be doing that. Do they hand out fasspasses 4-5 hours in advance?

During peak times in the parks Fastpasses can be gone by noon for the entire day. Meaning you may get your Fastpass by 11:00 a.m. and it may not have a return time until 8:00 p.m. that night. If there are still Fastpasses available in the afternoon this is a great touring plan, but if the Fastpasses are all gone by noon (which is often the case during Christmas week and Easter/Spring Break) then that doesn't do you much good for planning your evening touring. I would also like to hear more about how people utitlize Fastpass during peak season. We always tour in the off season now and take our kids out of school. But, once they reach high school age we probably won't be able to do that. So, I would like to know how you utilize the very late EMHs (meaning until 2 or 3 a.m.) then get to the parks early enough to get Fastpasses for later the next day. Did that make sense?

 

[THE-ELLA'SMOM]

You guys are freaking me out!! We will be at the world from April 3rd to the 18th. I am planning on getting a 10 day pass with water parks and more option, no hopper. My DD will be turning 5 on the 7th. Our first trip was Nov 2007 and frankly I think we are spoiled and in for a rude awakening! We are not early risers, what time are the parks usually open to during this time?
Any other suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks in advance!

 

[bradisgoofy]

I am glad to hear from someone that goes at spring break. I keep hearing about the parks reaching capacity and them closing the gates. We will be there the monday before easter - leaving the day after easter. Since we have 3 kids under the age of 3 going all day is not an option. We go at EMH and stay about 4 hours and then return after the kids have napped in the evening.

With the exception of Easter sunday will we be able to get into the parks at say 4pm from your expereinces (April 6-13)??

If we are going to be locked out of the parks every evening I am thinking about cancelling my trip - our 100% favorite thing to do is night activities at the parks.

In the 12 plus trips to WDW we have NEVER been locked out of any park. Usually we find the early morning people are heading out about 3pm and that's when we go in.

 

[TheChaoticChef]

I HIGHLY suggest TourGuideMike. It was the best $20 spent on my trip. It will be invaluable to those of you going during uber busy times.

 

[nicki.momof3]

I would also like to hear more about how people utitlize Fastpass during peak season. QUOTE]

I would also like to hear from people who utilize fast passes during peak seasons. If I am understanding everyone the fastpasses will be gone early (before noon). How often can we get fastpasses? Is it once an hour. I would like to get some before we leave the park for a nap at noon and use them when we come back. Is that possible . If so how do I do it?????

We are going Easter week with 3 kids (ages 4,5,6).

Thanks for all your coninued help