Sept 2015 Crowd Calendar - Thoughts?

[ShayBells]

Not everyone has said that FP+ screws up wait times. I think the system runs just fine.

I apologize at my use of everyone. I should of said some or a few. It's just hard to write a post and dissect every word for what might or might not affect someone else. My use of everyone was an exaggeration. A figure of speech if you will. It wasn't meant to be literally every person in the world.

 

[ShayBells]

I'm going Sept 13 to 20. Im anxious to see how the parks feel to me. I was there last May and it felt crowded. Totally forget what the levels were predicted as. I just remember we waited around 30 for IASW and I was blown away. Never waited for that ride in my life. We always go in Sept. Last time was sept 2013. FP+ was rolling out about that time if I remember correctly. I didon't use it but didn't notice a difference. I Never used FP- so didn't even think to try it. my thoughts though are that crowd level is subjective. If someone is use to going over xmas sept crowds would probably feel like a ghost town no matter what. Since I'm use to sept crowds I'd probably die with xmas crowds. Also two people could go the same week same days and come back here saying the waits were awful while the other ones say it wasn't bad at all you can never really tell. And fortune telling isn't real no matter how much we all live in the magic of our disney world.

I wrote this in saying everyone (literally) has different opinions. Not one could be the same. I like going in September. That is my opinion and I am happy to be experiencing FP+ this coming Sept. I never meant to offend anyone.

 

[SeilerBird]

I apologize at my use of everyone. I should of said some or a few. It's just hard to write a post and dissect every word for what might or might not affect someone else. My use of everyone was an exaggeration. A figure of speech if you will. It wasn't meant to be literally every person in the world.

I understand what you are saying. I just wanted to point out that there are actually quite a few people who love FP+. It is just that we don't go around making threads about how much we love FP+ as often as the haters do. We are the silent majority.

 

[alicat130]

We were at DW the Wed, Thurs and Mon following LD last year for our first trip. We didn't think it was crowded at all, but we didn't have anything to base that on. Our longest waits were for character meets and we used FP+ during the middle of the day to avoid any longer waits for rides.

We had so much fun we're going back this year for the same week, can't wait!

 

[KNovacovschi]

The Epcot Food & Wine festival is starting early this year, Sept. 18th I believe. So, that can bring in higher crowds during the later part of September.

Where did you get that information? Everywhere I've read it starts Sept 25th. Last year it started a week early.

 

[anniemae]

Think of it as the new normal. This is how Disney is now. There is no more empty parks, it's just the way it is. Gone are the days of walking down Main St. with just 10 other people, yes I have photos of DH and I on Main St and we are just about the only ones there. That was over 10 years ago. We will never see that again.

I think the folks saying its not so bad have just adjusted. The folks that say it was horribly crowded (who were there at the same time) are still dreaming of the old days!

 

[DisneyFive]

I'm not sure if you mean actual crowds or what was estimated . . . . one of the 2014 Sept. calendars I used is still on 2014 (only months through Aug. are updated to 2015) but this is just the estimated crowd levels. As I said, the days for ours were estimated 2's to 4's - I know the 2's were way off as the wait times were well over 1-1.5 hours on the big rides. But it was still a great trip - and if you don't mind the heat/humidity it is a good time to go!

Oh sorry, my bad. I wasn't clear on that. I was wondering how you got the actual attendance figures. You mentioned 22,000 for MK one day, and over 40,000 for another. Is there a way to get this data (not the 1-10 rating, I can get that from touringplans.)

Thanks,
Dan

 

[DisneyFive]

I completely agree that on different days the crowd level will be different. That is a no-brainer. My point is that it really doesn't have a real world effect on enjoying a day a WDW no matter what the crowd level might be (except major holidays). I go on the same amount of rides no matter what the crowd level is.

Well, this is your opinion, based on you. Your comment is painting with a broad brush. Personally, I enjoy a lower crowd day more than a heavy crowd day for my previously mentioned reasons. I suspect there are many that feel the same way. There are websites dedicated to finding the best park (low crowds) because there is a demand for that information. Can you enjoy a park on a heavy crowd day? Absolutely. Are you still able to have an amazing time? Totally! It's just easier for our family when the crowds are less.

I know but everyone is saying that FP+ has screwed up wait times etc. I was saying I'm anxious to see what they feel like to me. I'm use to the slowest week of the year always having basically walk ons to rides. If they have screwed everything up crowd levels won't matter I'll still have higher wait times than I am use too.

I don't want this thread to turn into a love/hate FP+ discussion, we have plenty of those , but I'll comment on your post. I don't think people think FP+ screwed up wait times for most rides that already had paper FP's, it seems to be limited to rides that never had FP+, but now do, like Pirates or It's a Small World for example. They tended to have very short standby times, but now with the awareness due to FP+, they are filling up and causing longer than expected standby waits.

Not everyone has said that FP+ screws up wait times. I think the system runs just fine.

That's great. My stance on FP+ is that there are great things about it, and not great things. A mixed bag, but I don't want to drag this discussion into love/hate FP+.

Dan

 

[puffinp51]

Oh sorry, my bad. I wasn't clear on that. I was wondering how you got the actual attendance figures. You mentioned 22,000 for MK one day, and over 40,000 for another. Is there a way to get this data (not the 1-10 rating, I can get that from touringplans.)

Thanks,
Dan

The 22,000 vs. 40,000 were the numbers we were told by a wonderful CM when we stopped to chat with her about the parks and asked about the crowds as it was our first visit in Sept. I can't confirm the lower numbers the week right after LD but the week we were there was definitely higher crowds than a "2". But as long as you plan a bit ahead - I like to plan some but really enjoy hopping and doing whatever the moment inspires us to do - you will have fun. No matter what! I would say I wouldn't go in September again just because of the heat and humidity + the crowds. I will take cooler weather and crowds any day - one of our best ever trips was in Feb. when they had record colds. We loved it!

And on the FP+ I would say that it's all what you make of it - like you said, some good, some bad. The part that I miss most about the paper FP is how, when our DD's were little, at the end of the day if we had any left, we would "gift" them to others. My girls would be so excited to give "pixie dust" to a family who just saw the wait time was forever long and was leaving as they didn't want to wait. Even though my girls are adults now, they remember those moments - one of the best parts of our trips. That is only what I really miss about the old way
No matter when you go, I hope you have a magical time

 

[Anne5555]

We went in September 2014 and loved it, despite the heat, humidity, and daily rain showers. We were very blessed, because our 5 day trip ended just before a week of awful rain. I remember looking at the posts after our return and posters stating that it rained most of the day and that they had problems like Fantasmic being cancelled. It was also rainy before our trip. I'm considering planning our next trip for October to possibly reduce the risk of storms, but I would consider September if the deal is much better.