Thanksgiving crowd comparison

[Disney Bubble Lover]

We’ve visited WDW in the spring of 2016 and 2018 and are considering a 9 day visit during the week of Thanksgiving this year to experience the Christmas decorations. My biggest hesitation is the crowd level.

Our busiest experiences have been during race weekends (Star Wars and Princess half marathon weekends) and I’m curious if anyone can provide a general comparison of how Thanksgiving week crowds would compare to an average race weekend crowd. We are getting park hoppers to help tour around MVMCP and are considering going without ADRs to give us more flexibility with crowds and the uncertainty around planning for SWGE. I’m excited to see the Christmas decorations but I think I’d rather wait for spring if the crowds will be so bad that you can’t move through the walkways, get additional fast passes and have to wait an hour for everything. Thanks for your advice!

 

[SaintsManiac]

Went in 2017. Going this year. You can walk just fine. You can pick up FPs. You won't wait an hour for everything.

Yes it will be crowded. I suggest you book a few ADRs, as the QS restaurants can be a pain to navigate.

Enjoy the atmosphere. In 9 days you will do everything you want to do. Obviously we don't know what kind of situation Galaxy's Edge will be, but I don't expect it to be any more crowded than Thanksgiving week usually is.

After visiting at several different times of year we have decided that Thanksgiving is our favorite time to go. It will be "our week" from now on.

 

[SarahC97]

I'm with the PP. We went last year and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. We're going again this year, in fact. I had no trouble finding additional fastpasses and we rode everything we wanted without crazy waits. I would highly suggest doing a few ADRs since it's a nice way to escape the crowds and finding seating at QS restaurants can be a huge challenge. Or you should eat at off times of the day if you don't want to have to stalk tables like a lion on the savannah.

I think if you've been during the marathon weekends then you won't be shocked by Thanksgiving crowds nor will it ruin your trip. Plus, the weather is pretty perfect and during the holiday week, the parks don't close early for the Christmas party or other special events, which is nice. Have fun!

 

[cgattis]

Ok, I hit “like,” but I want to say I pretty much second everything the previous two posters said. If you have a choice of which 9 days, if you lean toward the days before the holiday, crowds will be lower and you might catch an MVMCP on that end. But the storytelling at Epcot won’t start until the Saturday (I believe) after Thanksgiving. And obviously there will be parties after that as well. It’s realky a great time to go.

 

[Disney Bubble Lover]

Thank you to all for sharing your experiences, you’re definitely making me feel better. We would arrive the weekend before Thanksgiving and stay until the beginning of the following week. I think I have the worst case crowd scenario in my head, like the shoulder to shoulder people we experienced during HEA only all day long.

Last time we did a lot of half days in the parks in order to spend more time enjoying our resort (which we felt we missed out on during our first trip when we spent most of the day touring commando style at the parks). We also ventured to other resorts for ADRs which we really enjoyed and I think we would do that again this time around for the Christmas decorations. Is seating at the resort quick service restaurants difficult or is that more of a challenge in the parks? Thanks again to everyone for your input!

 

[SarahC97]

Thank you to all for sharing your experiences, you’re definitely making me feel better. We would arrive the weekend before Thanksgiving and stay until the beginning of the following week. I think I have the worst case crowd scenario in my head, like the shoulder to shoulder people we experienced during HEA only all day long.

Last time we did a lot of half days in the parks in order to spend more time enjoying our resort (which we felt we missed out on during our first trip when we spent most of the day touring commando style at the parks). We also ventured to other resorts for ADRs which we really enjoyed and I think we would do that again this time around for the Christmas decorations. Is seating at the resort quick service restaurants difficult or is that more of a challenge in the parks? Thanks again to everyone for your input!

I didn't run into issues at our resort with crowds (we were at CSR) at the QS. It's the park dining that's pretty nuts. We got the middle dining plan this time just so we can do sit downs each day. It's worth it.

 

[Castlequeen5]

We went for Thanksgiving in 2015 and LOVED it! The weather was perfect. We had gone in the summer previously. It was definitely more crowded than in the summer. But the cooler temperatures were well worth a few more people. And it is nice to see all the Christmas decorations. We're actually going this year for Thanksgiving again. We got ADRs for a few meals, but we also want some flexibility so we can visit SWGE too!

 

[Castlequeen5]

Ok, I hit “like,” but I want to say I pretty much second everything the previous two posters said. If you have a choice of which 9 days, if you lean toward the days before the holiday, crowds will be lower and you might catch an MVMCP on that end. But the storytelling at Epcot won’t start until the Saturday (I believe) after Thanksgiving. And obviously there will be parties after that as well. It’s realky a great time to go.

It starts on Friday after Thanksgiving. We have breakfast reservations with the CP package. I've never been, so I'm kind of excited to see it!

 

[Disney Bubble Lover]

We’ve always selected the middle dining plan in the past and did tons of character meals which were great and really added to the experience. We’re doing the free dining promotion at CSR this time around and chose not to upgrade the quick service plan. Now that our oldest child is considered a Disney adult we were planning to forgo a dining plan but the free dining promotion was a better deal than the room only promotion so we decided to try the QS plan. We’re looking forward to trying something different and having more flexibility in our day. Hopefully it works out and we don’t miss the table service meals too much.

 

[SaintsManiac]

Definitely do the mobile ordering!

 

[lahobbs4]

We had our first full Thanksgiving week last year and would definitely do it again! Parks really start getting busy around tues-wed of that week. We took Wednesday off from the park and did a resort day. Spent Thanksgiving day until a little after lunch at MK and then had a great dinner at Hoop Dee Doo. Weather was great, QS restaurants were kind of a pain but mobile ordering was a life-saver, missed some rides because of long waits but we go every year so we didn't mind. We even saw a movie at DS and that was a great way to get away from the park crowds. Enjoy!!

 

[Aimeedyan]

We have done Thanksgiving the last couple of years and don't think the crowds are bad at all! Last year, we did AK - rode FOP 4x with FP's (SUPER easy to grab additional FP's). Don't recall waiting in long lines for bathrooms or bottleneck crowds.

We rarely eat QS meals but do notice they get crammed when the parks are full (or even when dining reservations are harder to come by, which is typically the case for Thanksgiving). I always plan table service for Thanksgiving and have not had extensive waits (yet...).

I think we may visit MK this year (just for the morning) but are playing it by ear.

 

[justtobeme2]

We were there last Thanksgiving and it was a nightmare, we said never again. The crowds were off the hook!

 

[Disney Bubble Lover]

We were there last Thanksgiving and it was a nightmare, we said never again. The crowds were off the hook!

Was it a nightmare the entire week or just Thanksgiving Day?

 

[mickeyluv'r]

though I haven't specifically done Thanksgiving in some years, I have visited over major holidays many times.

We usually approach them in a few ways...
First, for us, we've had bad experiences doing TS over major holidays, tables waits are longer. Over holidays, we tend towards QS, but aim to eat at slightly off times. During peak times, like 12-1pm, we snack or eat ice cream before lunch. For QS breakfast, try to arrive by 8:15 to get ahead of the rush. Dinner is more flexible, though late is good.

Actually, that's mostly the trick to the entire week. Avoid MK on the actual holiday. Also, if you have 2 days in any park-the day that is closest to the holiday will be more crowded. On less busy days, we try to get in as many e-rides as possible. On the more busy days, we still do our 3FP, and keep trying for more, but that's a good time to see less crowded attractions.

Just keep trying to find ways to zig when the crowd zags. Maybe duck out of the tail end of the fireworks, or you know- don't go to Buzz at that moment- walk a little further.

Oh, but if you want o see fireworks, DO arrive a little earlier than you maybe would normally. Same thing for getting to the parks in the AM via bus. Allow a little extra time.

If the hub feels too crowded for you, consider seeing the MK fireworks from Fantasyland or another spot.

November weather can also be all over the map. It might be fairly warm, it might be on the cool /chilly side. If you get one good swim day, use it. I also suggest packing some warm weather clothes, and also some long pants/sweatshirts. Some days the afternoons are warm, but early AM and late PM are chilly. Amazingly, small items like an extra pair of socks and those $1 miracle gloves take up little room and can really come in handy.

 

[disneyseniors]

We went the week before Thanksgiving one year with family. They could only get off work/school that week. We left the day before TG and it was horrible! It was so crowded it was miserable. The whole week leading up to TG got progressively worse crowd-wise. I would never do that again. I can't imagine what the crowds were like on TG day!

 

[CynBeth]

We have done a few trips Thanksgiving Week from the Friday before to the Sunday after and have found it crowded but manageable. I don’t know what ADRs are available at this point but I agree about making some. We actually eat mostly at TS because of food allergies but we use that time to relax and recharge.

 

[a1tinkfans]

We did it last year and Absolutely had a wonderful time and it wasn’t as crowded as you mentioned ( shoulder to shoulder). We snagged every TS we wanted and got on almost every ride we wanted ( we used the app refresh method)
I wish I planned it again for this year but decided to head back earlier, lol

Have a wonderful time!
Added: we were at MK and did crystal palace thanksgiving day

 

[ariane37]

We have been for Thanksgiving four times now and it is absolutely our favorite time to go ! We have also been pretty much any other time you can think of other than Christmas/ New Year's which is going to happen this year so we are basing that on lots of experience It's crowded but not nearly as bad as one would expect and in my opinion way better than spring break- also better than the last couple times we have been there for both Presidents weekend and MLK weekend! I do very strongly suggest making ADRs even if you end up canceling; while crowds are not unmanageable you will very likely want the break of a nice meal and as others have mentioned the QS can be ridiculous to the point of waiting in line for 30 to 40 minutes unless you go prior to 1130 or after 130 for lunch and prior to 5or after 7 for dinner ( in the parks and DS not resort QS). That is actually the only negative I have for going Thanksgiving week!

 

[SaintsManiac]

This thread has me so excited for our trip!