How can I tell what park will be busier on a certain day?

[qa4ever]

Are there any crowd calendars like easywdw for Disneyland? I may be able to make a quick day trip on June 21st. My preference would be to go to California Adventure, however, it looks like it has EMH that day. Does that make a huge difference? I'm thinking maybe not as much as at WDW since there aren't so many onsite hotels? Although, because it is a weekend, in the "summer" it will likely be packed anyways, so maybe I should stick with DL. Would love to see some crowd predictions per park for that day!

 

[HydroGuy]

Are there any crowd calendars like easywdw for Disneyland? I may be able to make a quick day trip on June 21st. My preference would be to go to California Adventure, however, it looks like it has EMH that day. Does that make a huge difference? I'm thinking maybe not as much as at WDW since there aren't so many onsite hotels? Although, because it is a weekend, in the "summer" it will likely be packed anyways, so maybe I should stick with DL. Would love to see some crowd predictions per park for that day!

No it will not make a difference except in the first hour of the morning after the park opens. DLR does not see the park attendance variation that WDW does. Just go to whichever park works better for you.

If you are the type that arrives before the gates open then there is some sense in going to the park that does not have EMH because of that first hour of the day. But even if say DL has EMH you can still arrive at park opening and just plan to go to the parts which are not open during EMH - Adventureeland/Frontierland/Critter Country - and be on the same footing as all the EMH attendees.

 

[2boysmom1998]

I was there last week and found whichever park had EMH was busier that day.

 

[figment_jii]

I agree with HydroGuy that EMH/MM doesn't really impact crowds in the park throughout the day because there aren't that many onsite hotel guests and park hopping is fairly common. If you are rope drop type of guest, I would probably opt to head to the park that doesn't have EMH/MM. As mentioned, EMH/MM in DL only includes Tomorrowland and Fantasyland, so there are all of the attractions in Adventureland, Frontierland, NOS, and Critter Country that are not impacted by EMH/MM (meaning, the lines won't already be long when the parks opens to everyone). So it's less of an isue to avoid DL's EMH/MM. Over in DCA, RSR and TSMM will have already built up lines, so I try to avoid DCA's EMH morning when possible. That being said, within a few hours of opening, the crowds have evened out and whether the park had an EMH/MM or not, doesn't seem to really matter.

 

[elaine amj]

Very good to know....this will be very helpful for my upcoming trip.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

I find in general that Disneyland is always a little more crowded than DCA, but that could be an illusion because of the way the walkways were planned. As others have said, if you're there at rope drop and don't have EMH or MM, go to the park that does not have these things first. You'll walk on a lot of rides in the first hour or two before people wake up and get moving. By noon, to me it always feels like both parks are just a sea of people.