Late August Crowds???

[davish562]

Hello,

I am planning on booking a vacation from August 9th to August 27th at Fort Wilderness. About how long would the wait be for a ride like Splash Mountain? Space or Big Thunder Mountain? 7DMT? Soarin'? Test Track? Is this a better time than from June 10th to 17th? Yes I already know it is going to be crazy hot. Thanks for helping!

 

[LSUfan4444]

About how long would the wait be for a ride like Splash Mountain? Space or Big Thunder Mountain? 7DMT? Soarin'? Test Track?

Depends on what day and what time of day.

Is this a better time than from June 10th to 17th?

I'm guessing you meant August 19th - 27th, not August 9th. And in terms of crowd size, yes. There should be less people in August.

 

[davish562]

Depends on what day and what time of day.



I'm guessing you meant August 19th - 27th, not August 9th. And in terms of crowd size, yes. There should be less people in August.

Thanks. Yes I did mean August 19th

 

[mcd2745]

We've gone twice (2010, 2011) in the last week of August leading into Labor Day weekend - and are arriving Aug 24 this year. Crowd levels were great. No complaints with regards to wait times. One thing to note was that those years free dining was offered for that time period (and it was before CC guarantees), so ADRs were extremely hard to come by relative to the crowd levels. Now, this year with a later Labor Day (Sep 7), I don't know if crowds will be a little higher until the very end of the month, but I doubt it since many states are back in school by mid-August.

 

[lugnut33]

It will be busy, it always is nowadays. That said, it won't be middle of summer busy. Individual days at the the parks see a wide range of attendance. Like if you go to the MK on a Saturday, expect it to be very busy. Last year we were there from 21-29 and there was noticeable drop in people on Tues. 26th.

 

[lugnut33]

As for waits, you can expect at middle of day:
BTMRR 30-40 minutes
7DMT 60-80 minutes
HM 20-30 minutes
SM 40-60 minutes
PP 50-70 minutes
Soarin - 70-90 minutes
TT - 60-80 minutes
SSE - 15-20 minutes
TSMM - 80-120 minutes
RnR - 50-70 minutes
ToT - 30-45 minutes
ST - 10-20 minutes

 

[Mickey&Mouse]

Our last two trips were mid-August 2012 and late August 2010. It was noticeably more crowded during the mid-August trip. For the time frame you're planning, I think the crowds will be lighter since it's later in the month. I'm not sure how it compares to June 10-17 though. Good luck!

 

[Disney_Alli]

I'm going the 7th to the 30th of August this year. We've been at this time before and find the waits drop dramatically after the 15th or so as lots of families start back to school or head back to get ready for school. Waits shouldn't be too bad (and yes I do actually mean the 7th to the 30th)

 

[davish562]

We've gone twice (2010, 2011) in the last week of August leading into Labor Day weekend - and are arriving Aug 24 this year. Crowd levels were great. No complaints with regards to wait times. One thing to note was that those years free dining was offered for that time period (and it was before CC guarantees), so ADRs were extremely hard to come by relative to the crowd levels. Now, this year with a later Labor Day (Sep 7), I don't know if crowds will be a little higher until the very end of the month, but I doubt it since many states are back in school by mid-August.

Thank you for sharing your input on the crowds in Late August. Was it hard to find a spot for the fireworks and the MSEP parade?

 

[davish562]

It will be busy, it always is nowadays. That said, it won't be middle of summer busy. Individual days at the the parks see a wide range of attendance. Like if you go to the MK on a Saturday, expect it to be very busy. Last year we were there from 21-29 and there was noticeable drop in people on Tues. 26th.

Thank you for sharing when you noticed the crowd levels drop. Late August seems like the time to go in the summer!

 

[davish562]

As for waits, you can expect at middle of day:
BTMRR 30-40 minutes
7DMT 60-80 minutes
HM 20-30 minutes
SM 40-60 minutes
PP 50-70 minutes
Soarin - 70-90 minutes
TT - 60-80 minutes
SSE - 15-20 minutes
TSMM - 80-120 minutes
RnR - 50-70 minutes
ToT - 30-45 minutes
ST - 10-20 minutes

Thank you for sharing what the wait times would be around. Do you know what time the Magic Kingdom is open to during Late August? Also is it easier to find a good place to watch the fireworks then during the busier summer months? Thanks again!

 

[Imamom2]

We have done late August in 2000, 2002, 2007, and 2012. First three trips the crowds were great and EMH nights were 3 hrs. 2012 offered free dining package that began our third day and we noticed an increase in crowds from that day on. I think we arrived 8/24 and free dining began 8/27. The lines were not huge and I'm sure it was nothing like mid summer but there was a very noticeable increase.

 

[davish562]

We have done late August in 2000, 2002, 2007, and 2012. First three trips the crowds were great and EMH nights were 3 hrs. 2012 offered free dining package that began our third day and we noticed an increase in crowds from that day on. I think we arrived 8/24 and free dining began 8/27. The lines were not huge and I'm sure it was nothing like mid summer but there was a very noticeable increase.

Thank you for sharing how the crowds got a little bit busier when the free dining plan started. What time was the Magic Kingdom open to when you went in 2012? It stinks they don't 3hour EMH anymore

 

[davish562]

Our last two trips were mid-August 2012 and late August 2010. It was noticeably more crowded during the mid-August trip. For the time frame you're planning, I think the crowds will be lighter since it's later in the month. I'm not sure how it compares to June 10-17 though. Good luck!

Thanks for sharing how the crowds in Late August are a lot lower than early to mid August

 

[davish562]

I'm going the 7th to the 30th of August this year. We've been at this time before and find the waits drop dramatically after the 15th or so as lots of families start back to school or head back to get ready for school. Waits shouldn't be too bad (and yes I do actually mean the 7th to the 30th)

Thank you for sharing how the crowds drop drastically after the 15th. Was it hard to find a spot to watch the Magic Kingdom Fireworks? What time was the Magic Kingdom usually open to?

 

[mcd2745]

Thank you for sharing your input on the crowds in Late August. Was it hard to find a spot for the fireworks and the MSEP parade?

I want to say not really....but it's hard for me to say one way or the other because I don't usually watch those things in the popular spots. I usually watch Wishes from behind the Castle more often than in front of it on Main St or in the hub. Same for the parade - never from Main St.

 

[davish562]

I want to say not really....but it's hard for me to say one way or the other because I don't usually watch those things in the popular spots. I usually watch Wishes from behind the Castle more often than in front of it on Main St or in the hub. Same for the parade - never from Main St.

Is it easier to find a spot for the MSEP in Liberty Square?

 

[Imamom2]

Thank you for sharing how the crowds got a little bit busier when the free dining plan started. What time was the Magic Kingdom open to when you went in 2012? It stinks they don't 3hour EMH anymore

I think it was still 3 hours then. In previous trips MK was open til 2am. Epcot and Studios til 1am on weekends. Regular closing in August used to be 11pm for MK and 10pm for Epcot and Studios. It was really cool! The closing times have been earlier the past few years. I preferred late EMH to early opening but now with extra magic being 2 hours I think most people plan around both.

 

[davish562]

MK was open til 2am. Epcot and Studios til 1am. It was really cool!

Thank you, because right now it says the Magic Kingdom is open to 10 pm in late August. Do they extend the hours closer to the date?

 

[lugnut33]

Depending on how busy it is the park hours will be extended. If you see park hours getting increased then you know that Disney expects the parks to be crowded. That said, you are more likely to see park hours extended at Animal Kingdom to try and pull people away from MK.

As for the fireworks and parades, we have never had a problem getting a good spot. Of course, we are not picky about where we watch from. For the parade we are fine watching in Frontierland down near Splash. We usually walk up and get a spot right up front about 5 minutes before the night time parade arrives. For Festival of Fantasy, you can arrive about 10 minutes before and get a spot along the rope. We rarely ever care about watching from the hub or main street. We did watch FoF parade from the hub last August and arrived to our spot around 30 minutes prior and were right on the curb, but be prepared because the sun will beat on you like Mike Tyson.

As for the fireworks, we prefer to watch from behind the castle, but that's just us. If you have not seen them before, then go watch from in front of the castle. You'll be fine getting a spot 20 minutes to a half hour before (the castle projection show). If you are facing the castle I'd recommend anywhere on the right side of the hub so you get a good view of Tink. Maybe Robo will come in here and post up one of his great maps showing best viewing spots around the hub?