Just how busy are non-party days at MK?

[Action City]

I've thought of that, but it would add another $375 for us, which I don't know that we can afford. I was looking at the Touring Plans historical numbers for the first Saturday of the December for the last couple years - 2017 was a 9, and 2016 was an 8..... oie.

Pretty sure the first Saturday of December is historically when the Christmas parade is taped.

 

[mshanson3121]

Pretty sure the first Saturday of December is historically when the Christmas parade is taped.

Well that explains it!! Aside from the idea that we would need to stake out a spot hours in advance for the parade and the crushing crowds....that would be fun to attend!

 

[mom2rtk]

They haven't taped a parade in the MK in a couple years. They do tape a variety of musical acts around the parks, but I believe they have been doing that in early November lately.

That said, I still would not do a Saturday in the MK during party season. Leaving after the fireworks on one of those dates was the only time I've ever feared for my safety at Disney. And we were just a party of 2.

 

[sharonabe]

Pretty sure the first Saturday of December is historically when the Christmas parade is taped.

Well that explains it!! Aside from the idea that we would need to stake out a spot hours in advance for the parade and the crushing crowds....that would be fun to attend!

mom2rtk is correct. They haven't taped a parade at WDW for several years, so that doesn't play into the equation.

Of course this is Disney we're discussing and they could decide to tape a parade at any time on any day, so just stay informed.

 

[shanew21]

We went the week before Christmas this past year. MASSIVE difference. To the point that I'd say plan your MK day for a party day and just go to a different park once it hits 6pm.

Here was MK the week of our trip:
Dec 19 (party) - 6/10
Dec 20 (non-party) - 10/10
Dec 21 (party) - 5/10
Dec 22 (party) - 6/10
Dec 23 (non-party) - 9/10

The park was open until 1am on Dec 20 and it was still jam packed past midnight.

 

[For love of disney]

The party may cost about as much as the hoppers. We only did the hoppers this last trip because we had to for free dining, so I definitely understand not wanting to add more money to an already expensive trip. The party is awesome though, and they let you enter the park early so you don’t need to waste a park ticket.

So can I ask you since I am going to WDW around the same time as you did in late nov/early dec, that you would NOt recommend going to MK during the non-party MVMCP day? I was just planning on going to MK once with 2 little ones but rather avoid the bigger crowds and not planning to do the MVMCP.

 

[chelseabun76]

My only chance of watching HEA on our trip in November, is a Saturday. lol We are spending the day at DHS, and leaving for MK around suppertime. The only thing we have on our list after we get to MK is to find a spot to watch the fireworks, and enjoy a treat or two while waiting.... My son isn't the BEST at sitting. I keep trying to snag a dropped dessert party for that night for a bit more breathing room, but nothing so far... keep hoping the pixie dust will fly!

 

[Love Tink]

I'm thinking maybe we're better off just attending the party. We don't have much flexibility, and the kids really want to see both a parade and fireworks.

If they aren't particular about which ones, you could see the Star Wars fireworks at HS and the daytime parade at MK.

 

[Love Tink]

So can I ask you since I am going to WDW around the same time as you did in late nov/early dec, that you would NOt recommend going to MK during the non-party MVMCP day? I was just planning on going to MK once with 2 little ones but rather avoid the bigger crowds and not planning to do the MVMCP.

The conventional wisdom (and personal experience of many of us) is that the days without a party are much more coowded that the days with a party. People see the schedule and see longer hours and nighttime entertainment and automatically choose to go on non-party days. In can make a massive difference in crowds. I always try to talk people into going on a party day.

 

[stinkpickle]

...Our last trip was November, 2016 (week before Thanksgiving week). Crowds were really manageable all week. We went to MK on Saturday (before our flight home) because BTMRR is my son's favourite ride and it was just reopening after refurb. It was SOOOO much busier than any other time we have ever been there (including the Wednesday, which was our other non-party day that week, when we saw the fireworks). It took us literally twice as long to get everywhere, 10 minute waits to use the restrooms, people EVERYWHERE. I swore I would never do it again...

I remember that day. We stopped by that Saturday to ride BTMRR, too. That day was packed, and the following Monday (non-party day before Thanksgiving) was even worse. The party days were SOOOO much better.

 

[winnieofpooh]

Does this trend exist for the first week of parties too? We're going the second to last week of August next year, and anticipate only 1 party on our 6 day trip (the first party day). Will crowds be insane during the 'opening' week of MNSSHP too, or does this more so apply to when there are multiple parties a week?

 

[Doug M]

Madness. We went in 2015 to MVMCP and wanted to also catch Wishes and the last harrah for The Electral Parade. The non party day was the most crowded park of any of our week that week (Dec 7 to 14). It qas mid week and even the weekends were not as bad. The exception was the HS Osborne Lights area, but that was the last year for that.

 

[kathy884]

We did a Thursday MK non party day in early November last year -- crowd predication 7, but actual crowd level was a 9 (Way more crowded than what we were hoping for). Hurricane Irma and many delaying travel plans from Sept. to Nov. might have been a factor. It's was like your super busy spring break week or just before Christmas, but not as bad as between Christmas and New Years. Except for super early if you didn't have a fastpass lines for some popular attractions, lines were 60 to 90 minutes long. We ended up skipping some things as lines weren't worth it to us, and we've been to the MK a ton, so not that big a deal. We were happy just soaking up the vibe when it was crowded and we didn't have any fastpasses. We were using a touring plan too. We still really enjoyed our day, but lower crowds would have definitely been preferable.

I've been so disgusted with how parties skew the MK crowds for non-party days that I am avoiding party season entirely and going in March as the crowds for the MK are going to be just as bad on non party days in November and March is one of my favorite times weather wise. I'm doing the first week in March next year instead of party season this year. We're not overly keen on the parties (did one once and that was enough for us. We thought the party was too crowded too). I like party days in the morning for low crowds, but DS always likes to see fireworks, we don't do hoppers, and we only go to the MK for one day, so that rules out a lot of flexibility during party season. To me it's Disney double dipping with their popular MK park, but people go for it, and as it's quite profitable Disney has extended party season. But me I've had enough of that and am avoiding that time of year entirely.