MK party day or no? … hear me out before you answer

[lpass]

I’ll be visiting WDW the first week of December. I want to go to MK on a non party day, stay for the 2:00 parade and then dip. I REALLY want to hop to AK because I’ve always wanted to be there when it’s dark. If we rope drop and use lighting lanes, is it really a horrible idea to go on a non-party day? I heard the first week of December isn’t as crazy as the weeks closer to Christmas so I’m hoping this could work.

 

[Disturbia]

We will be doing this on Christmas when AK has extended evening (Wed in Dec). Most likely park hours for AK will change and EETPH will be 7-9 pm.

We will be taking a mid day break and eating at Boma or Tusker around 5 pm (ADR day this week).

 

[scrappinginontario]

I’ll be visiting WDW the first week of December. I want to go to MK on a non party day, stay for the 2:00 parade and then dip. I REALLY want to hop to AK because I’ve always wanted to be there when it’s dark. If we rope drop and use lighting lanes, is it really a horrible idea to go on a non-party day? I heard the first week of December isn’t as crazy as the weeks closer to Christmas so I’m hoping this could work.

Are you asking if it is busier in the MK on a non-party day? 100% yes!

You can go on a non- party day but you will wait in substantially longer lines than on a party day. It’s your choice but not something I would personally choose to do unless

A) I wanted to see the fireworks
B) It was the only day I could go.

This data from Touringplans.com shows the difference in MK crowds in 2023, the week you are looking at.



To help put this into perspective, this would be the average wait for an attraction like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train:

2: 18-48 mins
7: 49-77 mins

For us, we plan our MK days during party season on party days due to the amount we can get done with very little wait. Everything is less crowded (pathways, food, restrooms, etc) which is the game changer for us.

Totally up to you if seeing AK after dark is worth the longer waits. Is there not any other day you can go to AK? It gets dark earlier in Dec so often guests can see Pandora after dark.

 

[lpass]

This is great! Thanks so much for all the info. I have two days to choose from for my MK/AK day. I want to be at AK around 4:00. AK closes at 6:00 typically, but the non-party MK day is the same day I can take advantage of AK extended evening hours, park closes at 8:00.

Unfortunately, we only have one park day. But we are going to MVMCP as well.

 

[cattycat2]

I only have 5 days in the parks so I've decided to add an additional park ticket on the day of the MVMCP so I can go into MK that morning and ride attractions before the party. That might not be favorable to some but I'm not staying for a week and I want to be in a park that's not as crowded. I plan on taking a break and then hopping back over to eat and get my wristband before the mob of people start showing up.

 

[jeankeri]

I do think you will be fine even going to MK on a non-party day. Just be sure to be at the MK turnstiles AT LEAST 30 minutes prior to EE to be in far in front of the crowd as you can. Also, since you will be going to MVMCP- will this be before or after your EE day? You can wait on certain rides-say Tron or Tatiana- for party nights and prioritize others for LL.

 

[gottalovepluto]

You’ll be fine! Have fun!!!

 

[WDW Traveler]

My DD and I went to Magic Kingdom on a MNSSHP party day last year and I have to say I did not notice much of a difference crowd-wise. Wait times were still average. Nothing really short that were usually really long. Were still moderate crowds for a day in September. Maybe Halloween party and Christmas party days are different??

 

[japanese maple]

This is great! Thanks so much for all the info. I have two days to choose from for my MK/AK day. I want to be at AK around 4:00. AK closes at 6:00 typically, but the non-party MK day is the same day I can take advantage of AK extended evening hours, park closes at 8:00.

Unfortunately, we only have one park day. But we are going to MVMCP as well.

Well if you are going to MVMCP then that helps you a lot! You can get majority of rides done with very low waits at the party. We are also going to MK on a non-party day, then AK extended hours that night. Our plan is to just either buy an LLMP or something else, enjoy the park, look at the decor and get done what we can get done.

 

[jo-jo]

Are you asking if it is busier in the MK on a non-party day? 100% yes!

You can go on a non- party day but you will wait in substantially longer lines than on a party day. It’s your choice but not something I would personally choose to do unless

A) I wanted to see the fireworks
B) It was the only day I could go.

This data from Touringplans.com shows the difference in MK crowds in 2023, the week you are looking at.

View attachment 905333

To help put this into perspective, this would be the average wait for an attraction like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train:

2: 18-48 mins
7: 49-77 mins

For us, we plan our MK days during party season on party days due to the amount we can get done with very little wait. Everything is less crowded (pathways, food, restrooms, etc) which is the game changer for us.

Totally up to you if seeing AK after dark is worth the longer waits. Is there not any other day you can go to AK? It gets dark earlier in Dec so often guests can see Pandora after dark.

Wow. 2 to a 7, Thank you for posting this. I just noticed that MK is open until 11 on non party days, and was ready to change my plans.

 

[erinch]

We were there Veterans Day weekend and following. It was crazy crowded almost all week, with Thursday being the only exception. Although I haven’t looked at the data. We did purchase LLs every day, including MK on a party day. My DH broke his hip a year ago. He is doing much better, but 8 20 minute waits for attractions, which was typical on our party day, add up to 2 hours and 40 minutes in line vs the total of half an hour we had for the same 8. The rest of our group would have been fine with the 15-20 minutes on most attractions. But we were glad we had the LL.

We did hop to AK one day, and got to see it get dark. We did the hack of getting in line for FoP 5 minutes before closing, and got to walk out into a mostly empty Pandora. Don’t miss the Christmas lights in DinoLand.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Wow. 2 to a 7, Thank you for posting this. I just noticed that MK is open until 11 on non party days, and was ready to change my plans.

The hours are longer but historically it is packed on non-party days and you get less done with longer waits. Party days in MK are the way to go!

 

[jo-jo]

The hours are longer but historically it is packed on non-party days and you get less done with longer waits. Party days in MK are the way to go!

I was expecting 9-9 , so I was thinking "wow 11, that gives us a longer window to rest at resort. Even staying until 11 , which is late for us, but the next day we could sleep in.

But I repeat, a 2 to a 7. wow.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I was expecting 9-9 , so I was thinking "wow 11, that gives us a longer window to rest at resort. Even staying until 11 , which is late for us, but the next day we could sleep in.

But I repeat, a 2 to a 7. wow.

We visited on a MVMCP day in 2022 and did almost everything we wanted between 7:30 and 4:00.

Wanting to see the fireworks we hopped to MK on a non-party day later in the week. We had to find a fireworks spot an hour in advance if we wanted to see the projections. Lines for food were long but mobile ordering worked well.

After the fireworks we thought we’d catch a few rides but it was not happening!! Small World was lined up towards HM and a 60 min wait. People Mover was our next guess at a lower wait attraction and after taking a long time to shuffle there we were met with a line heading towards Space Mountain and a posted wait time of 45 mins.

We cried Uncle, slowly made our way to the exit and left.

When the MK is closed 4 nights a week for parties, the other 3 days=massive crowds!!

 

[jo-jo]

We visited on a MVMCP day in 2022 and did almost everything we wanted between 7:30 and 4:00.

Wanting to see the fireworks we hopped to MK on a non-party day later in the week. We had to find a fireworks spot an hour in advance if we wanted to see the projections. Lines for food were long but mobile ordering worked well.

After the fireworks we thought we’d catch a few rides but it was not happening!! Small World was lined up towards HM and a 60 min wait. People Mover was our next guess at a lower wait attraction and after taking a long time to shuffle there we were met with a line heading towards Space Mountain and a posted wait time of 45 mins.

We cried Uncle, slowly made our way to the exit and left.

When the MK is closed 4 nights a week for parties, the other 3 days=massive crowds!!

Well, we just booked two days with LL on non party days. Hoping for a few repeat rides. Energy doesn't last all day like it use to. And I know we won't be there before 9 at the earliest. Body just doesn't work the same.

 

[rdevans_2000]

In the past we have found that in the first half of December the difference between party days and non party days is not huge. This year we will be at MK this year on Dec 11, a non party day. Touring Plans shows projected crowds of 2 on the 10th and the 12th (both party days) and projected crowds of 5 on the 11th. For us, that not too intimidating.