Pres Week--Never Again!!

[maps]

Just got back--Holy Cow!!! I have never seen so many people in all my life. We've gone Pres Week for the last 4 yrs and this had to be the busiest week ever.

Wait times for lines was ridiculous. Going early is obviously no longer a well kept secret! People were just pouring in. We went to EPCOT on Thurs and by 11am the wait times for Soarin and Test Track were over an hour.

Anyone else notice this?

 

[VacationDad]

I've never been any week other than President's Week, so I can't compare. We went to Magic Kingdom yesterday as the Unofficial Guide says Fridays and Saturdays are best for MK but it seemed just as packed as I've always seen it on President's Week. It would be neat if Disney actually released attendance numbers for days in the past so you could see if the day you attended if it really was as crowded as you thought it was.

 

[Mainebound]

Just got back--Holy Cow!!! I have never seen so many people in all my life. We've gone Pres Week for the last 4 yrs and this had to be the busiest week ever.

Wait times for lines was ridiculous. Going early is obviously no longer a well kept secret! People were just pouring in. We went to EPCOT on Thurs and by 11am the wait times for Soarin and Test Track were over an hour.

Anyone else notice this?

Welcome back!

Wow, we were thinking about going Pres Week in '07, maybe we'll reconsider.

Hope you had a great trip despite the crowds!

 

[Lorelai]

How was the dining situation? Could you get into any table service places without ADRs?

Thanks for the info - good to know for future planning.

 

[limabeanmom2003]

Someone I know was there last weekend and a cast member told her that on Saturday the crowds were busier than Christmas or Thanksgiving.

 

[Enchanted]

Wow, we almost went last week so I could celebrate my 18th birthday in the parks, but it sounds like when we changed the trip to May, we made the right decision! I hope you had a good trip despite the crowds!

 

[bethbuchall]

We were up in the air between Presidents' Week and August for this year. We picked August, because I managed to convince dh that we really need 2 weeks there. I don't know if August will be less crowded (though I really hope so), but two weeks is better than 1!

Beth

 

[EjandMD]

We were there FEB 15-20 (I did a trip report). You need ADR's or you're eating counter food!

 

[byoung]

Stay away from the crowded seasons you will enjoy Disney More.

 

[Matt]

I was just there for the entire week. It was fine if planned properly. In fact, I never waited more than 10 minutes for anything.

 

[Tennis Mom]

We were there all week too. Very packed! Epcot had 30,000 on Thursday. We got Soarin' Fps at 9:30 for 12:30. By 1:30 they were up to 8pm.

On Fast Track, they were out of FP by 3pm

On the other hand Mission Space wait time was 10 minutes.

Friday at MK wasnt too bad. and Tuesday at MGM wasnt bad either. AK on Wed was crowded but not unmanageable. Mk on Monday was horrid (and the President was there too)

I wouldnt go anyother time of year, but may yank the kids out earlier than presidents week.

We had only 1 ADR and never had a problem eating although we only had TS dinners twice.

 

[Tennis Mom]

Someone I know was there last weekend and a cast member told her that on Saturday the crowds were busier than Christmas or Thanksgiving.

Not hardly that busy! A cast member at Epcot told me that they were running about 50% of the peak times, Xmas and summers.

 

[disneynutt1225]

We just got back today. This was the first year in almost 10 years I had been there during President's Week and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the crowd levels. We got on almost every ride in Epcot, MGM, and MK (both using fastpass and waiting in line) and I have to say we waited no more than 20 minutes in ANY line.

I had made all my ADR's a while ago, so fortunately I didn't have to face being turned away at any of the restaurants we wanted to go to. There were an awful lot of people being turned away at Le Cellier yesterday afternoon, and one of the CM's said they were completely booked until this coming Monday.

Coming from people that are used to being there during off peak times and walking on to every ride (myself and DFi) we really felt the crowds were completely bearable. The only rides we didn't manage to get on were Maelstrom and Turtle Talk with Crush because neither were high on the priority list for us. My DFi and brother even got on Everest without a fastpass and were only in line for 5 minutes because we were hanging out by the standby line when it was opened up Thursday afternoon.

 

[InstImpres]

I wouldnt go anyother time of year, but may yank the kids out earlier than presidents week.

This is our normal week but due to other family committments went two weeks ago. A few observations:

They are definetly getting ready for the Pres. Week crowds, we witnessed lots of painting, fixing, etc. Huge numbers of "earning our ears" CM's (making for longer wait times in some instances.

Also, the hours are much shorter (though you can do a lot too) DD was disappointed that there was no 3AM EMH while we were there. Typical park closures were 7-9pm.

Just food for thought (make mine Main Street Popcorn! )

 

[maps]

We still had a great time despite the crowds. We even were able to make last minute PS for Boma for 8 people which was awesome. I was surprised at how busy EPCOT was since that is the park we normally go to get away from the crowds!
Maelstom had a 20 minute wait time. We were able to FP Soarin and then go on Test Track with little wait. Then we were able to FP Test Track again before we left the park. Spaceship Earth had a long line initially but we were able to walk on before leaving the park. Universe of Energy had the longest line I have ever seen but since it accomodates a lot of people I'm sure it was OK too.

 

[Matt]

I also avoided the EMH days at each park which makes a world of difference.

 

[whithouston]

We were there Feb. 18-24 and I didn't think the crowds were as bad as people are saying. We've been at both Christmas and New Year's, and to me, there was no comparison. We normally go in the summer and it seemed less crowded than in the summer. We walked on Splash Mountain on Sunday evening. I do agree that Soarin' was ridiculous, but that was expected. The wait time for Expedition Everest was only 30 minutes on Wednesday (and that was after lunch.) Overall, a good trip, and beautiful weather!