Is Disney ever too crowded to have fun?

we have been 2 years at Christmas...we went Christmas 2002...never waited more than about 10 minutes for anything...and we went to MK on Christmas day...NO ONE was there(got there right at opening and then left about an hour and half later and the crowds were getting BAD!) after MK we went to Epcot...not bad crowds at all!


I would say as long as you use FP, and get up early and leave when you get tired,you'll be fine! don't rush yourself...there is a TON to do and you aren't going to be able to see it all! October will be a fine time to go! :)
 
YES! There's no attraction, (IMHO of course!),that warrants any wait over an hour.....We prefer mid-May, or late September/early October. Shorter hrs, yes, but small crowds with little or no wait times for rides!
 
We are planning on going around Columbus Day weekend this year--probably arriving Thursday eve Oct 9th and return home on Tuesday Oct 14th. So will that weekend be too crowded? When is Canada's Thanksgiving?
We are spoiled, we have always gone at very very off times--the first week of December, and the first Week of February, for example. Now that dd is in school, we have to use her vacation times instead. Ugh. (I would have no problem taking her out, but she really struggles in school, she has learning disabilities, and does better if she doesn't miss)
 
I have been there 5 times. Twice was the first week of May, once in Feb, once the first week of Sept and once the third week in Sept.

They were all ok times, and like alot have said, with careful planning...

BUT the first week of September (after Labor Day) was practically EMPTY. I was astounded. This was last Sept and I asked a CM in one of the shops if there had been a bomb threat or lightened crowds that week because of 9/11 and she said it is ALWAYS like that the first two weeks in September. As an example...My DH and I (had snuck away alone for this trip....SHHHH don't tell DD5) and we arrived at MK Thursday am at 9:00. We rode: Buzz, Space Mtn, Tomorrowland speedway, all the Fantasyland rides, TMRR and Aladdin (we are such kids) by 11:30 and we ate lunch and headed to MGM for some Aerosmith R&R rides. It was incredible. The parks close much earlier, but having been able to ride all that in two hours, it didn't matter. We were permitted to stay on rides like Buzz & TMRR because there was no one waiting and we rode several rides over and over again.

I hope the same holds true this year. We are booked at WL for Aug 31- Sep 7. I know both weekends will be crowded, but hopefully the midweek will be slow and we can spend alot of the weekend time doing "resort stuff". I am looking forward to DD5 being able to ride Winnie the Pool over and over again without all the waiting!
 

One of the previous posts mentioned Thanksgiving 2000. I was also there that week and all I can say about it was WOW! Where did all of those people come from? I would love to be able to see the attendance figures from that year as opposed to the other Thanksgivings. I had gone during Thanksgiving time before & everything was a walk-on. You could see by the looks on the CM's faces that they were not prepared for that. We overheard cashiers at DTD calling for backup. That year we ate supper at off-property restaurants & all of the conversations that were going on were about the crowds. Waitresses were threatening to walk off the job at one place if the manager didn't call in extra help. You could not walk through Fantasyland. If someone would have gotten hurt in that area, I don't know how help could have gotten to them. If we would have gotten hit by one more stroller, the _____would have definitely hit the fan.
 
~
~
IMHO, Sundays are the worst days, and summer is the worst season. We go in May everytime, but have heard from friends how crowded it is in summer.

Four-time veteran of WDW
Jana
 
I work for our school dist. and can only go during busy times. I have enjoyed all of my Disney Vacations! We did go once in Dec. Just DH and I to see the Christmas decorations. It was the week between Christmas and New Years which is supposed to be really busy, but wasn't. The bad part was the weather. It was so cold. Everyone wore heavy coats. the windchill (yes there was a windchill) was down to 19º at night!!! My sister went the 1st week in Dec. and also had very cold temp. that year. All the flower gardens had signs that they were empty because of Jack Frost. In answer to your question you can have fun anytime at Disney...or at least my family does.
 
/
Now that DS is older (15) we have to look at the peak times. I think the key is to get up early so you can do the popular attractions and when you get overloaded, go back to your resort (for us it's FW) and rest. :D
 
After reading all of your postings, I feel I must be doomed, although I hope not! I am taking my kids, ages 10, 7 and 5 for the first time to WDW next Tuesday, July29. We are staying until August 5. I'm guessing I'm not prepared for anything. Any words of encouragement, tips or helpful hints? I need my sanity!
 
We have gone in late August three times in the past five years and have had a few occasions when it has been too crowded to enjoy. On the other hand, that was mainly at MK - it always seems to be crowded - or at least later on in the day. Go to the parks early - especially MK - like at opening. Disney seems to reduce hours based on the expected crowds and manages to keep most of the the parks busy no matter what time of the year you go.
 
Hi Im new here.... I was wondering if the middle sept. is a good time to go? We are planning to go from sept.17 till oct 1. Thanks
 
We went last Sept. at that time and it was great! Still hot of course, but hardly any lines.
 
There is only one trip to Disney that I remember thinking...never again...July 4th week. We were in MK on the 4th and I will never do that again. Everything was a long wait...took us over two hours to leave the park via the Monorail. But...at least we can say we were there and we survived. Even with that said...we still managed to ride all the rides..we were tired, but we kept going. My kids were 5 and 6 at the time so they really were exhausted by the end of the day.

We had one other trip that came close...Presidents week in February. The lines were long, but at least it was not too hot. It rained, but we still managed to have a good time and once again got the most out of our trip.

I have been in August..the 19th to the 22nd. It was hot and humid, but the only days it seemed really crowded..I mean really crowded was on Saturday and Sunday. We are going again this year in August about a week earlier. I know what to expect so am planning accordingly..mornings at the parks, afternoons in the waterparks, nap and then back to the parks in the early evening. I think the week days will be fine since many children are starting to return to school in early August.

My favorite month has been May. DH and I have gone the last two years in May and found the crowds and the weather to be just fine. Couldn't work it out this year with kids in college since they are traveling with us so hot and humid and crowded or not...here we come.

I would love to see the parks decorated for Christmas..but have heard it's absolutely the worst for the crowds..I dunno, the 4th of July was pretty miserable. Maybe for 2005!

Don't know if I helped at all, but that's been our experiences. I really think no matter when you go..you will have a great time...it's just a matter of being prepared...I find the weather is more difficult for me than the crowds.

Enjoy!:)
 
There is never a bad time to go to Disney World.

There are just times that are better then others.

My family's 1st trip to WDW was in May of 97. A stay at the Wilderness Lodge. It was a learning experience that's for sure, 3 kids with one in diapers. We were limited as to what we could do, stroller vs a never ending bow wave of people. My point being, if you are using a stroller as a icebreaker, any crowd can be very limiting.

Our second trip was in March of this year and free of the baby buggy we had a much better time of it. Of the 10 days we were there was only one afternoon that we were actually turned back by a heavy crowd. It was in Fantasyland between the back of The Castle and Small World. It had been raining all morning and we had the park all to ourselves but as soon as the rain stopped and the sun came out. Wam. Bam. Kaboom. It was a sea of people that was so bad we all held hands in single file and still never made the short walk to Small World. There were Security Guards trying to direct the flow of people but it was even more then they could control. "This crowd was only in Fantasyland."

So yes there is a time it is too crowed but there are also trade off's. It really depends on not only the time of year but the day to day and hour to hour weather. If you buy rain gear, we called them "Self propelled road cones", then the park can be all yours. When it rains (and it will) just sit down, wait for the part to empty and enjoy.
 
We just returned home from our 5th trip this year, about our 40th trip in all. The only time of year that we refuse to go back is Christmas, granted the parks are at their best, no one else decorates like Disney, but we were shoulder to shoulder everywhere we went it seemed. We vowed that we had seen the decorations, they are wonderful, but Christmas at Disney - never again.
 
To me it really depends on how many times you've been there and what you plan to do.

The worst time we ever went was Christmas week 1981, when MK was the only park. They were putting over 90,000 people a day into that place. My sister and I waited over 2 hours to do Space Mountain. But since we were already wdw vets, we didn't try to do everything.

Now, since I am a single adult with no ankle biters, I can go when I want to. :p

My preference is November and January, as they are very slow and as long as you avoid Fantasyland, you don't see too many kids around.

I have grown to dislike crowds and I will spend a day shopping at DTD before I will spend a day in an overcrowded park.

I spend a lot of time helping friends plan their WDW trips and the one thing I tell them if its a first trip is to avoid Christmas.

If you've seen everything and want to experience an amazing Disney Christmas than its a great time to go. But if its your first trip, you need to go when the crowds are smaller and you can explore and see as much as possible.

PS. Before I get flamed, I DO NOT hate kids (But I have a definite problem with some of the parents I see down there, but that's another thread :p ).
 
I have been there the 2nd and 3rd week of Sept, the 3rd and 4th week of Sept, the 15th thru the 30th of Aug and this year the 10th thru the 20th of July.

Although I believe the crowds were heavier in July with the fast passes we were able to do everything (all 4 parks and the waterparks).

I really don't believe you will have any problem doing what you want (use the fastpasses).

Have a magical time.
 
We were there NYE and it was way too crowded to enjoy. In fact, it was kind of scary.
 
my favorite time to go is January. I miss the days when the kids could be taken out of school to go the first or second week - there is NO one in the parks and even without Fast Pass, the longest wait was 20 minutes.

but alas, we are into the high school phase and now we go on school vacations. Definite difference - LOTS more people. This year, it was February vacation, which was crowded enough that we're not ever going during April vacation. So, we're trying October this year, which is Teachers' Convention in our state.
Hope it's good.
 
Ive been to WDW 2 times during July. Its way too crowded for me and very hot & humid. The lines were very long. I loved it nevertheless but vowed never to go during peak times. So now I go May, October, first 2 weeks of December and early January.

Ill be there this year the last week of October during Halloween.. The weather is really nice and traditionally, the parks are not swamped. MNSSHP gets crowded on Halloween, but thats a given. I take my son out of school. He has never had a problem with that (we do lots of makeup!) and its been a great time for us both.

Ive gotten a bit spoiled going off peak, as the lines are not long, and in some cases, you can re-ride right away with no wait. The streets are not overly packed during the parades, so you dont need to wait an hour beforehand to get a decent spot.
 














Save Up to 30% on Rooms at Walt Disney World!

Save up to 30% on rooms at select Disney Resorts Collection hotels when you stay 5 consecutive nights or longer in late summer and early fall. Plus, enjoy other savings for shorter stays.This offer is valid for stays most nights from August 1 to October 11, 2025.
CLICK HERE







New Posts







DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest

Back
Top