Personal opinion's on 2023 crowds?

[Orion Nebula]

I have been considering booking a trip for next year but one of the main turn-offs for me are being packed shoulder to shoulder with people. In the past I always picked the more "off peak" times. Even though I know those days are long gone. Next year though I probably would try those dates anyways, but it's also due to the weather. So what are the thoughts on the 2023 season? I know right now the 50th and post-pandemic rush is often blamed for it being so bad. And I am hoping once the 50th is over and people calm down over traveling things MIGHT improve (although not optimistic).

 

[maltdizzy]

I expect 2023 crowds will look like 2022. Winter already looks like it will be as busy as this year just by gauging interest. I think that the society's new-found joy of travel (in general) will continue for years, maybe even be a permanent cultural shift with younger generations.

 

[HunterRose13]

I believe that it will be on par with 2022 through June. The last half of 2023 will be dependent on the economy. I lot of folks have less disposable income. I know several that have already booked and paid for their Spring trips and stated they are only going because they have paid for it and they are not sure when they will have another opportunity.

Fall could see a drop in crowds as those that have committed completed trips and the 50th stuff winds down. Shoulder season at least gives you the best shot at lower crowds. I am stuck going over Memorial Day weekend so I am setting my expectations for lots of people, moving slow, and looking for little spots of comfort out of the way of the masses.

 

[The Foolish Mortal]

IMO, it feels mor corwded because of staffing issues slowing everything down. And that does not appea likely to change next year.

 

[set88]

The last week of January / first week of February is ideal IMO. Hopefully the crowds will be as low as this August has been without the awful weather. The end of February through April I would expect to be insane based on what happened this year. Probably will be less crowded than this year, but still very crowded. May this year was decent for crowds, better than June. No thoughts on fall 2023 yet... still waiting to see how this fall goes. I'm going in November and I have no idea what kind of crowds to expect, honestly.

 

[HopperFan]

I agree with the above. Folks are making up for travel, folks are looking to do things that include lots of outdoors, folks are avoiding out of country travel for various reasons, some (me) are avoiding flying .... AND staffing is a huge issue.

Disney themselves say they are close to 2019 levels - that is crowded! The difference is that without the same level of Cast Members we are still missing entertainment (Fantasmic), still have long lines at quick service, have longer wait times for basically all attractions ... I haven't even seen Enchantment because the "management" of the crowds in the Hub doesn't feel safe. So unless they bring back more CMs, this is it.

This is a picture from one month after the Magic Kingdom opened. In this situation they let in way more people than the existing attractions and restaurants had capacity for. So when that happens guests fill the walkways. There has always been crowds ... what makes the difference is how they are managed.

 

[2Lunds]

I think no matter what happens with attendance numbers, it's going to continue to feel "busy" into the foreseeable future because of staffing, and I don't think management is going to be in a hurry to mitigate that. They've learned to get by with fewer staff, fewer attractions/restaurants and I believe they'll continue to do so until and unless it negatively impacts their bottom line.

 

[Orion Nebula]

The last week of January / first week of February is ideal IMO. Hopefully the crowds will be as low as this August has been without the awful weather. The end of February through April I would expect to be insane based on what happened this year. Probably will be less crowded than this year, but still very crowded. May this year was decent for crowds, better than June. No thoughts on fall 2023 yet... still waiting to see how this fall goes. I'm going in November and I have no idea what kind of crowds to expect, honestly.

Those are times that we had been looking at actually. At the very least I hope it would be like prior pandemic peak crowds rather than current peak crowds. I have played this crowd game before like most of us though, so I shouldn't have too much hope.

 

[Obi-J Kenobi]

I agree with the above. Folks are making up for travel, folks are looking to do things that include lots of outdoors, folks are avoiding out of country travel for various reasons, some (me) are avoiding flying .... AND staffing is a huge issue.

Disney themselves say they are close to 2019 levels - that is crowded! The difference is that without the same level of Cast Members we are still missing entertainment (Fantasmic), still have look lines at quick service, have longer wait times for basically all attractions ... I haven't even seen Enchantment because the "management" of the crowds in the Hub doesn't feel safe. So unless they bring back more CMs, this is it.

This is a picture from one month after the Magic Kingdom opened. In this situation they let in way more people than the existing attractions and restaurants had capacity for. So when that happens guests fill the walkways. There has always been crowds ... what makes the difference is how they are managed.

View attachment 697051

OMG, I told my DW I wanted a sweater like that dude is wearing front and center. I don't know if that makes me old, nostalgic, fashion retro, fashion awkward, or a combo-platter of all those things.

 

[Smugpugmug]

Folks are making up for travel, folks are looking to do things that include lots of outdoors, folks are avoiding out of country travel for various reasons, some (me) are avoiding flying .... AND staffing is a huge issue.

I agree with everything you said and I wanted to expand on this point a bit. For a lot of people, Americans specifically, Disney (WDW and DL) are safer bets for a vacation vs. international travel and cruises. I know policies on cruises are becoming more lenient but there are still some hoops to jump through before even getting on the ship that a lot of people don't want to deal with. The avoiding flying point is definitely true for me. A major reason why my family is doing a Disney trip this December is because we don't want to deal with flying because of the amount of delays + cancellations due to staffing issues. Another aspect of it is that many Americans do not have a passport and cannot go on international vacations and have no interest in doing so. And then there's the fact that there is A LOT of demand for the product Disney parks are providing and there is not enough supply to handle the amount of people that want to go.

 

[Praying Colonel]

My WAG is more of the same. Disney can dial the "feel" of the park to whatever they want by setting park capacity, CM staffing and ride capacity wherever they want it.

 

[RoseGold]

My October trip is with friends who would have gone to Europe but can't risk having to quarantine. So, FL it is. Revenge travel is still here.

Early Dec weekday 2021 was absolute BANANAS. Never again. I thought June wasn't bad. It was better than I expected.

 

[maltdizzy]

The last week of January / first week of February is ideal IMO

That was the norm for decades, but last year, those weeks (and more) seemed like people complaining on all the boards about wall-to-wall crowds.

 

[Upatnoon]

Disney is always busy. Look for the days with the lowest ticket prices for lower crowds. Or pick a time with the weather you prefer.

If you want to avoid the "shoulder-to-shoulder" crowds, skip the fireworks and parades. Those can make anyone's stress level go up.

 

[Scalemaster34]

That was the norm for decades, but last year, those weeks (and more) seemed like people complaining on all the boards about wall-to-wall crowds.

Yeah we were there just before going on a Cruise that left out on Feb 2nd.... it was packed.

Disney is always playing with Hotel Rates and Ticket Rates to move crowds around. Then they are adjusting Events and Festival to readjust those same crowds.... Food and Wine starts in July now, and Halloween in August?

Next year they'll have something else to push people back to the parks in August... Free Dining?

 

[nursejackie]

I have just returned from a 10 night trip this week and always on the last few days I'm already planning my next trip in my head. I obviously feel sad it's over for this year, but with the cost of living crisis, home fuel prices set to soar, and the pound being weak against the dollar, it would be even more expensive. I could possibly overcome all that (overtime, more QS dining, staying in value resort etc), but I don't want to battle the crowds we had last week again. As we have to travel during UK school holidays I understand it's going to be busy/expensive, however I had read the expected crowd levels were lower in the second half of August, but sadly that didn't materialise this year.

 

[gharter]

I expect large crowds in 2023 as well.
The real issue is not the number of people entering the parks, its the number of CMs they have operating each attraction, the number of cars running on an attraction and if all attractions are open and running near capacity.

 

[RoseGold]

I expect large crowds in 2023 as well.
The real issue is not the number of people entering the parks, its the number of CMs they have operating each attraction, the number of cars running on an attraction and if all attractions are open and running near capacity.

That is actually measurable and doesn't seem to be the problem. Unless you mean the attractions that never re-opened. I mean the Belle ride was one of my favorites, but not exactly a people mover.

The open things are running full tilt. That's why when they don't (like ToT half down for months) it causes crowd chaos.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

I am optimistic that next year won't be as crazy. There were a lot of families that had to keep postponing their WDW trips because of covid and many of those finally made it to see the mouse in Fall 2021/Winter-Spring 2022.

We just booked our first trip since March 2019. We have never visited in the Winter and decided on Jan 26 - Feb 5. *IF* it is crowded, we will have a lot more patience in cooler weather.

 

[han22735]

I am optimistic that next year won't be as crazy. There were a lot of families that had to keep postponing their WDW trips because of covid and many of those finally made it to see the mouse in Fall 2021/Winter-Spring 2022.

We just booked our first trip since March 2019. We have never visited in the Winter and decided on Jan 26 - Feb 5. *IF* it is crowded, we will have a lot more patience in cooler weather.

I hope you're right. This past August trip for us was way to busy but we are pretty much tied to going mid August. 2023 we are shooting for the last 2 weeks in August and hoping for better crowds.