Magic Kingdom on Saturday?

[pooh5594]

I know that this has been talked about forever, but is Saturday really the best day to go to the Kingdom? We're going January 20-23 for a short trip and this is one of the two days we can go. What do ya'll think?

 

[JulielovesDisney]

Saturdays and Mondays are usually the busiest for Magic Kingdom. A lot of the locals go to the parks on the weekends, and since MK is considered "the heart of the Disney experience" and is most popular, it usually gets pretty busy. Mondays is when a lot of people are thier vacations. They'll arrive on a Sunday, then start the parks on Monday. And most people start with MK. If you don't mind the crowds, then go for it. Jan. isn't the peak season, so it might not be very crowded, but you'll notice a difference if you go on a Sunday or Tuesday.

Have fun down there!!

 

[pooh5594]

Well now I'm a little nervous because Saturday is really the only day for us to go. Why does Len Testa and the Unofficial Guide say that Saturday is the best day to go?

 

[kirbsam]

any day ending in the letter y, is actually a great day to go.

 

[pooh5594]

That's cute!!

 

[june@imsarc.com]

Julie-what do you mean about Sunday and Tuesday? Are they truly less crowded?

 

[bigcrit]

It really depends. If EMH doesn't change than I agree with Len. If you have a tourinf plan / itinerary at the park. Get there early and leave for a break by 1 then you will have a great time regardless of crowds......

 

[kirbsam]

if you listen to the unofficial guide, having a plan is way more important than picking the right day. have a plan, and it doesnt matter which day you go.

 

[deide71]

Agreed.

We went to Disney last Aug. 4-11, All of our days were 8's, but we were @ each park @ opening and had no trouble with lines.

Go early, you'll be fine.

 

[afc104]

At least one guide I read had Saturday listed as a day to visit the MK.

 

[lentesta]

Why does Len Testa and the Unofficial Guide say that Saturday is the best day to go?

I'll be happy to answer this!

We've spent something like three months this year measuring wait times in the MK this year, on every day of the week. When we look the peak waits for the MK's headliner attractions attractions for every day of the week, they average the lowest Tuesday, followed by Wednesday, then Saturday. Here's a quote from our Crowd Blog (sorry, can't post link) earlier this year:

In order of highest wait times, here are the rankings:

1. Monday
2. Thursday
3. Sunday / Friday (a tie)
5. Saturday
6. Wednesday
7. Tuesday

There's more than 20 minutes difference in peak wait time averages between Monday and Tuesday at the three Magic Kingdom headliner attractions.

So my answer to why we recommend Saturdays is that the data tell us it's a good day to go. You'll hear different opinions from other people and websites. To the best of my knowledge, however, no one besides us has ever bothered to test their opinion by actually collecting long-term wait time data.

While it's always possible we're wrong (I doubt it), I think the "Saturday's busy" idea is an urban legend that just won't die.

Hope this helps! Enjoy your trip.

Len

 

[lentesta]

if you listen to the unofficial guide, having a plan is way more important than picking the right day. have a plan, and it doesnt matter which day you go.

Amen! And get there early.

Thanks kirbsam.

 

[pooh5594]

Thank you so much for all your replies!! Especially Len Testa. We have bought the Unofficial Guide every year since 2004 and love it, and find it to be extremely helpful, unbiased and funny.
I tend to worry alot because our daughter has a disability and we just can't charge the parks commando style as most parents can. Our child is happiest in Fantsyland and with the characters, and has a blast regardless of crowds or wait times. Maybe her mother(me ) should take a lesson from her book and just chill out. So we'll go on Saturday, and enjoy all that we can and look forward to our next trip where we'll hit what we couldn't this time.
Thanks again for all of your help, and Len, thank you for your help as well.

 

[bigcrit]

Len is definitely a guru on the matter and the UG is definitely awesome.

Len, will you up date the UG for Christmas time. I know that when I am there 12/14 - 12/19. Saturday 12/17 can't be a good day for MK. It is crammed between 3 MVMCP's. Just curious and as always thanks for lending a hand here on the dis. You helped us immensely on our trip in May. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

 

[lentesta]

No problem, pooh5594. Hope your trip goes well.

Hey Bigcrit, nice to hear from you again. The thing with the MK on Dec 17 is that we try to recommend each park at least once every seven days in our calendar, so a family staying there for a week has at least one chance in each park. Sometimes this means we recommend a "least bad" park, rather than "best." Let me know if that doesn't make sense.

Len

 

[RevBob]

Hi Len,
I'm a subscriber to touringplans.com, (there I listed the web site for you, plug, plug.) and have noticed that even with Disney coming out with hours 6 months in advance now that when I enter dates for April to get touring plans that the hours listed on the plans are still showing up as estimated. Any idea when this will be updated to match with the hours that Disney is actually showing for the parks? Thanks.