The week of Halloween?

[Sally_fan]

Hi there! I was wondering if anyone has been to the parks over the week of Halloween & has any info that they would like to share about this. We have been to the parks 2x during the Halloween season before so I know all about the wonderful things that take place in the parks, the food, how heavy crowds can be, etc. We have also attended the Halloween party (over in DCA though) but I am wondering about things like crowds that week, crowds on Halloween day (falls on a Wed this year), Dia Del Los Meurtos, when the Ghost Galaxy overlay is removed & how long it takes....anything that specifically pertains to that week. I have tried searching for this but I am getting tons of general Halloween info which is great! But not what I need. Thanks!

 

[Brady's Mom]

I would love any insight into this question, also. We are thinking of going either this week, or the week right after Thanksgiving. Decisions, decisions!

 

[wallybee]

going in Oct too.

 

[nicolispicoli]

I think this thread would help you all a ton

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2560082

 

[Sally_fan]

Thanks nicolispicoli but we have already been to DL 2x during HalloweenTIME (did the party, did the tour, seen Halloween Screams, rode Ghost Galaxy, etc)...I want to know specifically about the week surrounding the 31st. There is a ton of great info in that thread though (including some of mine! )! I am however reading some trip reports listed in that thread that span over that week......

 

[nicolispicoli]

No problem! I figured there might have been some post trip reports that would give some idea. Like you, I've only been during halloweentime, not that week specifically, so I'm not much help

 

[Geemo]

Hi there! I was wondering if anyone has been to the parks over the week of Halloween & has any info that they would like to share about this. We have been to the parks 2x during the Halloween season before so I know all about the wonderful things that take place in the parks, the food, how heavy crowds can be, etc. We have also attended the Halloween party (over in DCA though) but I am wondering about things like crowds that week, crowds on Halloween day (falls on a Wed this year), Dia Del Los Meurtos, when the Ghost Galaxy overlay is removed & how long it takes....anything that specifically pertains to that week. I have tried searching for this but I am getting tons of general Halloween info which is great! But not what I need. Thanks!

Good question!!

Trying to decide between Halloween 2012, after Thanksgiving 2012 or end of next January 2013.

I've tried the "Why decide... Just go for all three..."
I got the and a "NO!"

I'll be watching to see the details of Halloween time.

 

[sonjaandsue]

We just went from Oct. 22-29. It was our first and only trip to DLR and the only thing I have to compare it to is WDW in January. Crowds were light to moderate during the week (heavier than WDW in Jan but not bothersome if you get up early). Walked onto less popular rides, the longest we waited was 30 minutes. (Well actually our longest wait was for a corn dog...the Red Wagon is really slow.) Mon, Tues, Weds we basically walked onto Star Tours in the morning. In the afternoon and later in the week, it got up to an hour. Heavier on the weekends - we did MM on Sunday and left right after lunch but I felt like the waits still weren't that bad. Evenings were definitely heavier too - we did not explore the parks much in the evening but noticed more foot traffic around the few rides we did go on at night. I did not feel like stores or restaurants were crowded at all. I can try to get more specific if needed....

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Being that it's mid week crowds won't be too bad. We did Halloween 2009 when their fell on a saturday. It was busy, but mostly because it was a weekend. It was still very manageable (I though June was busier than Halloween weekend).

Ghost galaxy will be removed Nov 1 and will only be closed for the day. Small World will be closed that week to out up the Xmas overlay.

 

[Sally_fan]

No problem! I figured there might have been some post trip reports that would give some idea. Like you, I've only been during halloweentime, not that week specifically, so I'm not much help

Thanks again! I hope for as many responses as possible to this thread but trip reports are great because people mention crowds & include pics that show crowd levels. Good thinking!

Good question!!

Trying to decide between Halloween 2012, after Thanksgiving 2012 or end of next January 2013.

I've tried the "Why decide... Just go for all three..."
I got the and a "NO!"

I'll be watching to see the details of Halloween time.

See....that's how I think it should be in my fluffy pink Disney clouded kind (I have 3 weeks in my sights as well) but in reality....I must chose 1. Sad to hear that you must do the same. I think it might be exciting to be there ON Halloween for a change. We'll see.....

We just went from Oct. 22-29. It was our first and only trip to DLR and the only thing I have to compare it to is WDW in January. Crowds were light to moderate during the week (heavier than WDW in Jan but not bothersome if you get up early). Walked onto less popular rides, the longest we waited was 30 minutes. (Well actually our longest wait was for a corn dog...the Red Wagon is really slow.) Mon, Tues, Weds we basically walked onto Star Tours in the morning. In the afternoon and later in the week, it got up to an hour. Heavier on the weekends - we did MM on Sunday and left right after lunch but I felt like the waits still weren't that bad. Evenings were definitely heavier too - we did not explore the parks much in the evening but noticed more foot traffic around the few rides we did go on at night. I did not feel like stores or restaurants were crowded at all. I can try to get more specific if needed....

Sounds great to me! When we went the year that Ghost Galaxy opened...it sat at about 70 min all day every day & fast passes were gone by noon. Halloween Screams premiered that year as well & you had to pretty much stake out your spot 2 hrs in advance in order to get a good castle view. It was insane! BUT we know how to navigate during busy times (have been for a Spring Break & at Christmas-time) so it *should* be okay. Just wondering if anyone found it overwhelming. So far I am hearing what I want to hear! Thanks for your input!!!!

Being that it's mid week crowds won't be too bad. We did Halloween 2009 when their fell on a saturday. It was busy, but mostly because it was a weekend. It was still very manageable (I though June was busier than Halloween weekend).

Ghost galaxy will be removed Nov 1 and will only be closed for the day. Small World will be closed that week to out up the Xmas overlay.

Oh I would be sad to miss Small World (how often do you hear that??? ) but I will be back so I can catch it next time. It would be neat to catch both Ghost Galaxy & Space Mtn. As I said above, we did a Spring Break a few years back & THAT was insane! People were so miserable it was shocking, we could barely move the crowds were so thick, we had my ILs with us (whom had never been),....and we survived! In fact, it was one of our better trips. Just had to wrap your head around it & roll with it. Thanks for your input! Much appreciated!

 

[Sally_fan]

Just giving this a bump as it I don't want it to get lost on pg 3 (on it's way there)!

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

I'm definitely interested in more tales from people who have been in the parks for the last days of October, for Halloween itself, and for the first week of November. We are thinking of going in that time period this year, but can't tell how CRAZY Oct 31 might get, even if being on a Wed might keep some day-trippers away.
I also can't tell how much is closed as Christmas decorations go up, other than Space Mtn and IASW, or if the entertainment pickings are way too slim in early November to make it worthwhile. I'd love to think Sat, Nov 3, could be a perfect day to get good spots at WOC or F! without a long wait. ;-)

 

[skiingfast]

I also can't tell how much is closed as Christmas decorations go up, other than Space Mtn and IASW, or if the entertainment pickings are way too slim in early November to make it worthwhile. I'd love to think Sat, Nov 3, could be a perfect day to get good spots at WOC or F! without a long wait. ;-)

Quite a bit closes. Between Halloween and Thankgiving is a short offseason when they do a lot of rehabs. Space goes down for just a day to remove it's Halloween overlay. IASW goes down for a few weeks, last week of Oct, and first two weeks of Nov to reopen for the Holiday Season.

As far as crowds, October is a pretty good month for low crowds. What confuses people is that it's a mix of low and medium crowds, with some high crowd evenings. People say crowds were aweful on a party day, in reality the day is fine, until evening when party goers pack the parking garage, trams, Esplanade and DL, then regular guests leave DL in the evening floodings into DCA. So you get 10am to 5 pm of low crowds, and a sudden burst into high crowds 5pm to 9pm. It's the end of day crowd experience that taints the memories.

The start of November is very quite. One thing that taints the memorie during that period is the Christmas Parade Taping. If you stay away from Mainstreet and the hub, there are no crowds in the rest of the resort.

Weekends always are busy.

 

[isisisme]

In the past, Halloween was a great time to go. Low to medium crowds. This past year, the weekend before Halloween was pretty crowded. I would not say Xmas crowded, but peak season crowded. It reminded me of when we would come in the summer.
But, the week days before and after Halloween were not bad. Like someone said, party days were bad when the "mix" happens between party goers and day guests.

 

[Sally_fan]

Well, it's sounding manageable to me so far! Thanks for all of the input!!!!

 

[DLR29]

Just adding that I went on the last Friday of October last year (right before Halloween). Since the Trick or Treat parties are on Tuesdays and Fridays, it was a party night. DL closed at 8 for the party and I think DCA closed at like 11 or something. Anyway, at 8, a SURGE of people just flooded DCA. I've never seen DCA so crowded before. My mom and I were walking around at night and all of the A Bug's Land rides had 20+ minute waits and Monster's Inc was using its outdoor extended queue...at 9pm!

 

[Sally_fan]

Just adding that I went on the last Friday of October last year (right before Halloween). Since the Trick or Treat parties are on Tuesdays and Fridays, it was a party night. DL closed at 8 for the party and I think DCA closed at like 11 or something. Anyway, at 8, a SURGE of people just flooded DCA. I've never seen DCA so crowded before. My mom and I were walking around at night and all of the A Bug's Land rides had 20+ minute waits and Monster's Inc was using its outdoor extended queue...at 9pm!

Euw! That sounds nasty! But very good to know so we can plan accordingly. Thanks! We plan on taking a day "off" so maybe we'll plan that around the party dates? Or just go during the day & take the evening off? We'll have 5-7 day park hoppers so that is def do-able. And we plan on attending 1 of the party dates as well. I have only seen the outdoor queue in use at Monster's Inc 1x but I don't recall what time of year it was?