Need Help Determining our New Time to go

[DISNEYFOS]

We just came back from a trip which really made me question our DVC. It was really not like our past trips. Very heavy crowds...hour waits for ADRs, very rude and obnoxious guests and irritated cast members trying to deal with them. Not blaming the cast members but it makes for a very unpleasant day to be yelled at and listen to others being yelled at...

We like October because of Food & Wine and the Halloween party. We also have three out of 4 of our Birthdays in October which makes it even more special for us..

I'm hoping its just because I chose Columbus day holiday...but I'm willing to completely change the time of year if it means a better experience.

Is there now something about October that makes this a bad choice.

 

[allshookup]

Yes almost everything you said about why you love going in October is why more & more people head to the World at the same time. The food & wine festival, MNSSHP & cooler weather. That being said, Columbus Day weekend is an even busier time, so maybe trying the beginning of October might be a bit lighter? As for attitudes...well I'm not sure why, but I think we see more & more rudeness from both the guests & the CMs, and I'm finding that we pretty much have to just ignore the rude ones, and engage the friendly ones & we have a much better time. I have had some guests become downright hostile towards our family because we had the nerve to save our spot for the fireworks or parades. It gets really crazy, but I just ignore them & they eventually go away.

 

[joandegennaro]

I think after days of incountering "rude" people your tolerance level starts to slip and slowly you become less inclind to be polite. I noticed this with my own kids, who I believe I have raised to become polite and considerate young teens. After 3 or 4 days of being shoved, given looks ect they become a little less of the person they started the trip being. When you have thousands of people who start to feel this way unfortunately it really rubs off on everyone.

You just have to go in knowing that some people are rude in general and not let them affect your vacation. One of my DH favorite thing to say to people who rush past us to get ahead in line is " No, No you go ahead, obviously your vacation time is more important than my families All done with a pleasant voice and a smile. Sometimes it make the other person stop and think what they are doing and how rude they've been and sometimes it doesn't even registar.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We took our first trip to WDW at the end of October in 1997. There were only two MNSSHP (one on the 30th and one on the 31st). Food & Wine was maybe two years old. It rained a lot and we spent a lot of time being wet. Crowds were small.

Disney recognized the fact that they could sell a whole lot of tickets to the Halloween parties if they ran them more frequently. Plus they added the fall half marathons.

So what used to be a quiet time has become much busier. Disney is finding out there isn't any reason for the parks to be quiet when they can add a little theming, put on a show or race and brings in thousands more people. Plus if the rooms aren't booked, put out a discount or add free dining to fill them up.

I think you are going to be hard pressed to find a time when crowds will be low, parks will be empty, and guests will all be sweet to each other.

 

[CarolMN]

IMO, the Columbus Day Holiday weekend and week following are more crowded than the other weeks in October.

Many of the Southern schools still have Columbus Day as a holiday and a good portion of them have that week for their fall break.

OP - try another October week and see if you feel the same. We went 10/3 - 10/9 this year (left just ahead of the CD visitors) and the only real crowds we encountered were at EPCOT on Sunday, 10/3. (We weren't there for a Saturday, but I'm sure Saturdays and Friday evenings are also crowded at EPCOT). Of course, we probably tour differently than you, but I do not recall waiting very long for the rides we chose or any rude CMs or guests. In fact, there were at least 6 men that offered me a seat on the bus, which embarrassed me a bit, since I am perfectly capable of standing, LOL. But I smiled and thanked them profusely anyway, especially the teenager. Got to encourage manners, LOL.

 

[nolanboys]

We were just there from 10/1 - 10/6 and found it lovely. Very low crowds and beautiful weather. Agree with Carol that it is probably because of Columbus Day. Don't give up on October yet! Too many fun things to enjoy and great weather.

 

[DISNEYFOS]

Maybe I will try the beginning of Oct. I'm okay if it was just busy..but some of these people are just beyond rude. We told the kids that we would wait in line for one of the characters at Camp Minnie Mickey.. Just one because the lines were too long..and they needed to pick one..They both agreed Minnie..So we waited...maybe 20 mins..not too long..the kids did well. Right when we were 2nd in line..this woman with two kids..maybe 10 /12 or so. push past us and got in line in front of the couple with a young daughter in front of us. said something in spanish to the woman and went up to Minnie...So I look at the woman who looks puzzled..like what's up with that? She said...I don't know?!? She was there at the beginning of the line..and then left and said something about being back in a bit...she thought she took her kids to another line then came back. What a total scam...Who does that??

My daughter was asking why they didn't have to wait. Well I don't know?? After that I started noticing it all over. My husband had to yell at a boy that was pushing people to get thru a line..knocking my daughter over. It was just disgusting.

 

[westcoastsunshine]

Oh my....October used to be a great
time to go to DW. I am so sorry
for your bad experience.
I have only encountered crowds
like this at Christmas when I finally
went back to my home resort,
had a cup of tea and read a book.
I think September is a pretty good
time to go because most children
are back to school.
I would love to try Halloween at
Disney. I bet it is fun even for
adults.
The best thing about Disney is
that you don't have to apologize
for being an adult who loves
Mickey Mouse.

S.

 

[westcoastsunshine]

Oh my....October used to be a great
time to go to DW. I am so sorry
for your bad experience.
I have only encountered crowds
like this at Christmas when I finally
went back to my home resort,
had a cup of tea and read a book.
I think September is a pretty good
time to go because most children
are back to school.
I would love to try Halloween at
Disney. I bet it is fun even for
adults.
The best thing about Disney is
that you don't have to apologize
for being an adult who loves
Mickey Mouse.

S.

 

[LSchrow]

.....this woman with two kids..maybe 10 /12 or so. push past us and got in line in front of the couple with a young daughter in front of us. said something in spanish to the woman and went up to Minnie...So I look at the woman who looks puzzled..like what's up with that? She said...I don't know?!?

we were there 9/26-10/6, and experienced pretty much the same scenerio quite a few times. every time it was clear that english was not their native language (not just spanish, btw)....the CMs obviously did not want to get involved enough to stop it, and we are not going to have an arguement (vaca time is too precious), so we just blew it off.
we go this time every year, and it was definately worse this time

 

[Janis]

We just returned yesterday and the only rudeness I found were the "flag" people. Just shoving and being really loud when they should have been quiet (in shows, etc). Even refusing to move to the end of the row for "Lights, Motors, Action" to allow for others to sit. I understand the language barrier, but several people "signed" to them to move on down - everyone can understand that. But we tried not to let it spoil our fun, we just tried to steer clear of the big flag groups. Otherwise the week was perfect, how could it not be, we were at Disney World!

 

[Oshawa]

We just returned from our 10 day trip yesterday. We also found the parks crowded. We thought it would be a great week but the crowds were crazy and I have to agree a lot of rude people.
Almost saw a fight break out at Jambo House when a man (and his family) did not think he should have to wait in line like everyone for the bus. About 5 men surrounded him and made their point very clear. I was so glad we were going to another park.
We did have a great time but people need to learn how to relax a little and learn how to be patient. They are in their own little World and don't have a care for anyone else around them. Like PP mentioned they think there vacation time is more important than anyone else who paid money to be there. The way we look at it now is that we know we are comming back for future vacations and we don't need to rush through the parks.
Oh I should mention...we did meet some very nice people too.

 

[lasob]

We have alternated between the third and fourth week of Oct. for the last three years ( about to leave for this year). We do this for a couple of reasons.

- to use the annual pass for two years
- we like the F&W
- the weather

But we have learned to AVOID F&W on the weekends. We go to MK or DS on the weekends. We have seen a increase in crowds in Oct ( in the 90's there were walk on rides, but they closed a lot of things early and did a lot of rehabs during this time). So we are fine with Oct. Compared to spring break, summer, or Xmas, Oct is great.