May 7 to May 14 will it be crazy?

[WEDWDW]

The big cheer competition is the first weekend of May.

The competition on the second weekend (your weekend) is for D2 and is much smaller in scale. There should be no impact to the parks at all from that one.

Isn't D2 Summit now just as big as The Summit since D2 fills the entire All-Star Resort as well as parts of Pop Century/Coronado Springs/Caribbean Beach?

https://www.varsity.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/VAS_D2_Summit_TravelPackage_19.pdf

 

[WEDWDW]

That's good information. Is that usually the case or do the dates change year to year? Asking because we are going in 2020 from 5/6-5/15.

thanks!

The dates for The Summit and D2 Summit are always the first and second weekend in May with Cheerleading and Dance Worlds being the last weekend in April.

Cheer competitons are HUGE at WDW-they even have built the first facility in the world designed exclusively for Cheer/Dance competitions-the new 8,500 seat venue called The Arena at ESPN WWoS.

 

[Farro]

The dates for The Summit and D2 Summit are always the first and second weekend in May with Cheerleading and Dance Worlds being the last weekend in April.

Cheer competitons are HUGE at WDW-they even have built the first facility in the world designed exclusively for Cheer/Dance competitions-the new 8,500 seat venue called The Arena at ESPN WWoS.

Thanks! Seems like our dates would fall during the D2 summit.

 

[Love Tink]

Isn't D2 Summit now just as big as The Summit since D2 fills the entire All-Star Resort as well as parts of Pop Century/Coronado Springs/Caribbean Beach?

https://www.varsity.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/VAS_D2_Summit_TravelPackage_19.pdf

D2 just doesn't bring in as many people because the gyms that compete are smaller. Smaller gyms means fewer competitors, fewer coaches, and fewer family members.

There are conventions, cheer/dance competitions, sports tournaments, marching bands, etc. all the time that fill resort rooms. But most of them just don't really make a difference at the parks. I would definitely put the D2 Summit in that category. The second weekend in May is my absolute favorite time to visit WDW and we rarely notice more than a few more booty shorts and big hair bows.

 

[VAtink]

Well I’m going to have to go against the grain here a bit. We went that week two years ago and it was ridiculously crowded, at least compared to trips we’ve done in June, August and September. Maybe we just had horrible luck hitting the parks at the same time as all the throngs of cheerleaders, but there were huge groups of them everywhere, and it really made a big impact on lines and ability to move around the park. Also, we noticed a ton of school field trips there that week as well, especially at AK. I need to check my trip report notes, but I think we counted something like 12 different school groups in AK one day, on top of 3-4 large groups of cheerleaders. It was nuts! We’ve never seen AK as crowded as we did that day!

That being said, it was still a super fun trip, and I think the crowds would have bothered us less if we didn’t go in expecting super low crowds. We also got hit with a heat wave that trip and it ended up being I believe 98 degrees most days that week. So basically everything we’d heard about low crowds and decent weather ended up being the complete opposite! HA! Guess we just had bad luck that week! On the plus side it didn't rain on that trip!

 

[Love Tink]

Well I’m going to have to go against the grain here a bit. We went that week two years ago and it was ridiculously crowded, at least compared to trips we’ve done in June, August and September. Maybe we just had horrible luck hitting the parks at the same time as all the throngs of cheerleaders, but there were huge groups of them everywhere, and it really made a big impact on lines and ability to move around the park. Also, we noticed a ton of school field trips there that week as well, especially at AK. I need to check my trip report notes, but I think we counted something like 12 different school groups in AK one day, on top of 3-4 large groups of cheerleaders. It was nuts! We’ve never seen AK as crowded as we did that day!

That being said, it was still a super fun trip, and I think the crowds would have bothered us less if we didn’t go in expecting super low crowds. We also got hit with a heat wave that trip and it ended up being I believe 98 degrees most days that week. So basically everything we’d heard about low crowds and decent weather ended up being the complete opposite! HA! Guess we just had bad luck that week! On the plus side it didn't rain on that trip!

Yeah, it's always anecdotal and individual. I was there May 11-17, 2017 and don't remember big crowds or particularly hot weather. Expectation, plans, luck, timing...

I will say that I never go anywhere expecting "super low crowds." That's a recipe for disappointment for sure, especially at WDW!

 

[VAtink]

Yeah, it's always anecdotal and individual. I was there May 11-17, 2017 and don't remember big crowds or particularly hot weather. Expectation, plans, luck, timing...

I will say that I never go anywhere expecting "super low crowds." That's a recipe for disappointment for sure, especially at WDW!

Exactly! When I returned home after that trip I got a comment about my TR from someone who was there the exact same days as me who never saw a single cheerleader! I was shocked, and wish we used their touring plan instead of ours! I really think when it comes to those large groups it's totally luck of the draw if you end up at the same park as them or not. We were not very lucky. Oh well, even a crowded hot (at least for us ) day at Disney is better than a day at home...especially a day at home at work! Totally agree with going in not expecting low crowds too. Even though we're used to relatively lower(ish) crowds on our yearly September trip, every year now we tell ourselves the secret is out and it's going to be packed!

 

[pooh2001]

We once road a bus with cheerleaders and their maybe parents/guardians
They were polite and did a few cheers on the bus
Not too bad

 

[ArielSRL]

This. We've been the last three years, the first week of May and the cheerleaders are a non issue with the possible exception of people staying at Values. We stayed AoA last year and saw families who obviously were there for the competitions but no issues. We did see a lot of them in the parks on Sat, a couple of large groups together but not that many. It's no where near the busyness of other times of the year. Worry not.

Good to know bc we are there for a quick adults only May 2-5 and I was a little shocked to see nothing at all available when I was looking around at possible moving resorts. I’ve been 20+ visits but never in May before.

 

[PDettorre]

Good to know bc we are there for a quick adults only May 2-5 and I was a little shocked to see nothing at all available when I was looking around at possible moving resorts. I’ve been 20+ visits but never in May before.

I will be there May 3-7 for the cheer summit, and from looking at the schedule it seems like Friday, Saturday, and most of Sunday the cheerleaders will have a lot going on, so not as many will be at the parks those days. Friday, lot's of teams are meeting to practice and a few teams will be competing, Saturday almost all teams will be compete, and Sunday some teams will be competing as well. From my experience, most people will be leaving Monday night or Tuesday morning, so Monday may be a bit packed in the parks. Also, they are closing down Magic Kingdom on that Sunday for a summit only event, so that is something to keep in mind as well!

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

I will be there May 3-7 for the cheer summit, and from looking at the schedule it seems like Friday, Saturday, and most of Sunday the cheerleaders will have a lot going on, so not as many will be at the parks those days. Friday, lot's of teams are meeting to practice and a few teams will be competing, Saturday almost all teams will be compete, and Sunday some teams will be competing as well. From my experience, most people will be leaving Monday night or Tuesday morning, so Monday may be a bit packed in the parks. Also, they are closing down Magic Kingdom on that Sunday for a summit only event, so that is something to keep in mind as well!

Thanks for the info. I was looking at hotel availability and was surprised that there was a lot more availability this week than next. When I looked closer it appears that the weekend of the 4th is where the availability is lacking. I assume it's largely due to the competition

 

[TheyCallMeStacey]

Also, they are closing down Magic Kingdom on that Sunday for a summit only event, so that is something to keep in mind as well!

Do you have more information on this? Is this Sunday, May 5th?

 

[Farro]

I will be there May 3-7 for the cheer summit, and from looking at the schedule it seems like Friday, Saturday, and most of Sunday the cheerleaders will have a lot going on, so not as many will be at the parks those days. Friday, lot's of teams are meeting to practice and a few teams will be competing, Saturday almost all teams will be compete, and Sunday some teams will be competing as well. From my experience, most people will be leaving Monday night or Tuesday morning, so Monday may be a bit packed in the parks. Also, they are closing down Magic Kingdom on that Sunday for a summit only event, so that is something to keep in mind as well!

The calendar doesn't show any early MK closings for those dates, what event?

 

[PDettorre]

Do you have more information on this? Is this Sunday, May 5th?

Yes, Sunday May 5th. Unfortunately I do not know the time yet, but will let you know when they release it. We just received an informational video last night that said they will be closing the Magic Kingdom for a summit only event on Sunday night after the competition ends. I am not sure if that means they will be closing early in the day, or just an hour or two early! Ill keep you posted though.

 

[PDettorre]

The calendar doesn't show any early MK closings for those dates, what event?

We didn't get much information on this, so it is possible that maybe it is after hours? I noticed the park isnt closing early that day either. But the information we receive said pretty much word for word that Magic Kingdom will be closing on Sunday, May 5th for the celebration party, allowing only summit athletes and their families in the park". Maybe that means after hours? I took it as meaning closing early but i have been known to be wrong!

 

[Farro]

Yes, Sunday May 5th. Unfortunately I do not know the time yet, but will let you know when they release it. We just received an informational video last night that said they will be closing the Magic Kingdom for a summit only event on Sunday night after the competition ends. I am not sure if that means they will be closing early in the day, or just an hour or two early! Ill keep you posted though.

Yikes! that's super short notice for people visiting then!

yeah, maybe it's from 10 pm on. That will be fun!

 

[PDettorre]

Yikes! that's super short notice for people visiting then!

yeah, maybe it's from 10 pm on. That will be fun!

Last year when I was there we were on the monorail on our way to MK first thing in the morning and they announced MK would be closing at noon that day for a special event. No websites or apps were ever update to tell us, they all still said MK was open until 9pm! No one knew up til day of, which was kind of a bummer...

 

[cakebaker]

MK is scheduled until 10pm. They just recently updated May hours and I’d be surprised if they made any changes this late. I’m sure it must be an after hours event.

That said, I’m really glad I didn’t make Sunday our MK day. If they have a cheerleader after hours event, you can bet the park will be very crowded that day.

 

[PDettorre]

MK is scheduled until 10pm. They just recently updated May hours and I’d be surprised if they made any changes this late. I’m sure it must be an after hours event.

That said, I’m really glad I didn’t make Sunday our MK day. If they have a cheerleader after hours event, you can bet the park will be very crowded that day.

As I said, I have known to be wrong and the info we got was limited. They just said the park will be closing to allow only athletes and their families. I just wanted to warn people who plan to go there that day. The cheerleaders compete Sunday as well, and have award ceremonies, so some of them will be busy during the day. But the ones who didn't make it to final rounds will have the entire day in the park Sunday.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

FYI, these after hours cheer events at MK are relatively common: http://www.orlandoparksnews.com/2019/03/varsity-spirit-after-hours-event-taking.html