Labor Day crowds

[Melora]

Due to the new "can't buy regular So Cal passports" right now(deluxe are too much so my only option will be So Cal select) and scheduling conflicts, my first available time to book a few day trip will be the first week of September.

In order not drag the kids out of school for more than 2 days but still get 3 days in the park, I was thinking of arriving on Monday, Labor day and then staying for the next 2 days. Has anyone gone on Labor day in the past and how were the crowds? Most people don't get Labor Day off work around here (just the kids) so I don't think it will be as bad as other holidays. I know better than to trust the "how crowded will it be" sites, but each one I've looked at says the weekdays the first 2 weeks in Sept are very low crowds and that's what Im hoping for. But wondering if Labor will be bad enough that I should bump the trip up one day.

Any thoughts?

 

[Girimama33]

I imagine it will be quite busy. There is a marathon taking place that weekend, so I imagine crowds may extend there stay.
Most people I know (including myself) do get Labor Day.

 

[Melora]

OK, rethinking this whole idea entirely.... that weekend is the half marathon and so there will definitely be holdovers from that and Im pretty sure its going to be packed.

So now the question is, do I try to go for 3 days in the middle of that week? Or put do I put it off until the next week (I know we will miss Space Mountain but we will have annual passes and can come back for a day trip) and maybe it will be quieter because people will be putting off their trip a couple of weeks to see the Halloween decorations.

I think I'd rather go with the LEAST crowds possible so any thoughts?

 

[Girimama33]

I would probably opt for the first week...if you can swing Tue-Thurs (2nd-4th). The following weekend will be okay as well, but I would anticipate more groups coming into the parks due to Dapper Day on 9/12. Mon - Wed of the second week, may not be too horrible.

 

[Brudette]

We're planning our trip for the second week in September. My biggest factor in deciding dates was crowds. We picked September in general because school is back in but weather is still really warm (we're doing the beach too). We avoided the last two weeks because that's (we're assuming) right when Halloween decorations will be up and may draw crowds to see (and we don't care about seeing them). In choosing between the first and second week of September, my thought process was this: I figure there will be more holdover crowds from the marathon/Labor Day than there will be for Dapper Day and the day preceeding it. So that's what we picked. We will be there Mon-Fri (with a day off on Wednesday), and I figure we'll mostly stay in DCA on Friday to try and avoid most of the Dapper Day crowds.

I'm certainly no DL expert as this is our first trip, so I have no idea if my predictions will prove accurate, but thought I'd share my thoughts since we were debating the same thing.

 

[kylie71]

I was there 2 years ago over Labor Day weekend, and it was much busier that Thanksgiving week! The marathon had the parks on a delayed opening schedule... so it was not the best time to be there! It was also very hot and muggy! With temps in the high 90's!
Give me Thanksgiving week any time!

--Lori

 

[SMD]

Do you already have the APs? You could buy hoppers, go midweek before the blockout is lifted, and then upgrade on the last day. I don't think that collectively the Mon-Wed of Labor Day week will be that bad. Monday will probably be crowded, then Tuesday will be a little more crowded than usually and then Wednesday it should go down. I wouldn't avoid a 3 day trip because of 1 crowded day.

 

[Melora]

Do you already have the APs? You could buy hoppers, go midweek before the blockout is lifted, and then upgrade on the last day.

My plan with the APs is to do the payment plan. That way I only have to come up with about $90 per person for the down payment instead of how ever much it costs for the hoppers.

 

[rtfelt]

Generally as soon as Labor day is over the crowds decrease significantly. The 2nd week will be less, but you have to work with your kid's schedule. You'll be blocked out on all weekends, so weekend Dapper Days won't mean anything to you.

 

[superlarz]

Labor day will be crowded. The last few weekends in Sept will be less crowded. The first weekend with Halloween decorations will bring some crowds but every other weekend will be manageable unless there is a special event. Even when it is crowded, it is usually manageable, so take your trip at the time that works best for your family. 2 days in the parks are plenty of time to move at a leisurely pace and not worry too much about crowds.