Tourplans.com says 3 and 4 for...

[agotta]

today and tomorrow. Anywhere there know if the crowds are indeed dying down??

Amanda

 

[pumpkinfish]

I think it is still busy since it is the week after Easter. This is not the "normal" that these touring plans are based on...

But that's just my opinion! LOL

 

[Pedler]

Any other thoughts on how the tourplans.com crowd levels match up with what the parks are actually like?

 

[weluvpluto]

I love UG, but I think they may have been off the mark a little bit this week...
Yesterday, 3/29, MK closed due to reaching capacity, they have it as a 6 crowd level, Best Park: Epcot, Parks to Avoid: Disney Studios, Animal Kingdom.

 

[k_k_100]

JMHO - they seem to be way off on many things. They have posted 12/03/05 as a good day to do MK - it is one of the worst! That is the day they film the Holiday parade - it is total chaos!

They also have early Dec. as a "1" for crowd levels - It certainly isn't the busiest time of year - but it is not a 1. Last year, during the week, (Thurs. 12/2) the wait for Peter Pan was over an hour before noon - the wait to see Ariel was almost 2 hours! I know those are 2 very popular attractions all the time - but - the crowd was definately not a 1 at any of the parks. Many of the Epcot Resorts were totally sold out early Dec.

 

[LadyLuc361]

That's disappointing about the touring plans being wrong. I was hoping to go next Decemeber like the 11-18th. Is this normally a busy time? The touring plan said it was a 1 or 2 ....but if I can't trust that, I don't know what to expect.

If anyone has been there during mid december, what were the crowds like? Thanks for any help!

 

[k_k_100]

LadyLuc361 - Early Dec. is still our favorite time to go! It is so beautiful w/ the Christmas decorations.

We have been going for quite a few years during the first week of Dec. Every year it gets a little more crowded. Word has gotten out that it is not crowded - so everybody comes... and... In no way does it compare to the crowds at Christmas or Easter. I think you will be going at a great time - you will definitely be out before the rush.

A site that seems to be a little more accurate is this:

http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/weather/whentovisit.asp

Not as specific - but a good indicator of the general levels. We also go for only 4 nights - so we are a little more stressed out to see everything. Making use of EMH mornings at MK we have been very successful. A week in Dec. sounds perfect!!!

 

[WaltD4Me]

LadyLuc - I think you'll be ok. We were there the week before your dates this December and while it was a little more crowded that I was expecting, the crowds were still very manageable and only the "biggie" rides even had Fast Pass turned on. That included RNR and Test Track, but even then not all the time. One day we walked right on to Tower of Terror and the wait for Dumbo late morning was only 10 minutes. The weekend will probably be more crowded also, but during the week you should have no problems.

 

[berly1657]

Oh, great - we leave tomorrow, but don't plan on hitting the parks until Monday...Maybe everone will leave this weekend? and just us MI people will be there?

 

[LadyLuc361]

Thanks for the info! I can't wait to see the Christmas decorations


Rachel

 

[lentesta]

Hi folks,

Rats. It sounds like our Easter predictions were off a bit. I think part of that comes from using historical information - it's difficult to predict record highs, for example. We'll take this information into account for the next version of the calendar, due out soon.

k_k_100, when you say "Every year it gets a little more crowded" the first week of December, are you going from memory, or did you actually write down a representative sample of wait times every year for comparison? I'm not doubting you - we'd just obviously be interested in any actual record of events. Similarly, if you have actual measurements that show the parade filming draws especially heavy crowds to the Magic Kingdom, it'd certainly influence our charts. I've been in the MK during the last two parade filmings, and I don't recall it being especially crowded, except on Main Street. I'll go back and check our wait time measurements for those days, just to make sure. Drop me a line if you've got data you're willing to share: len@touringplans.com.

Thanks!

Len

 

[k_k_100]

Len,
I certainly did not mean to offend you. I am by no means an “expert”! I was just sharing my experiences over the past 6 years. I have noticed a definate change in the past couple of years – especially on the weekends. I have no idea about “a representative sample of wait times” - I’m on vacation!

The resorts, at least in the Epcot area, are very busy. I think – I’m not 100% sure – the Yacht & Beach Clubs were sold out (the weekend of Dec.3) – or close to sold out. The “crowds” were kinda crazy – one example was Small World 2 years ago – We went to go on it and there was a 45-minute wait! It was lined up out onto the street in Fantasy Land! We went back an hour later and only had to wait about 10 minutes – It was very sporadic.

Again, I was just sharing my personal observations. When I read a crowd level of “1” I think I can just take it easy, not worry about EMH’s or priority seating. That was our experience in the past – but has not been during the past 2 years.

I don’t think I’m the only person who has this opinion. I just noticed this new post on the board:
http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=779907

I appreciate your web site and thank you for all the hard work you do.

 

[Pedler]

Len,

Could the changes in the ticket pricing for longer stays be having an affect on crowd levels? In particular on arrival and departure days. Under the old pricing you had to consider if you wanted to blow a whole days ticket for just a few hours on arrival or departure day. With the new pricing plan it is only an extra $4 per day total for our family to add extra days. For only 4$ we will definitely be going on arrival day where under the old pricing plan we probably wouldn't have done it.

Just some thoughts.

 

[Pedler]

One other thought. The new pricing plan also caused us to end up staying longer than we had planned. Our origional plan was for a six day trip staying off site at the Nick hotel with 4 days at the parks. With the new package pricing, meal plan, ME (so no transportation cost) and minimal increased cost for additional park days we ended up with a 7 night stay at WL with 7 days at the parks and the dinning plan. The dinning plan also means we will eat more sit down meals at the parks and be there more often. This is all a direct result of the pricing policies and packages they have.

I also wonder if the sales of the dinning plan will have an affect on getting PS's at some places. I know we are going to do 1-2 character meals and dinner at Cindy's. Without the plan we most likely would not be doing all of those.

 

[Jalva22]

Pedler, I don't know how representative I am, but I do know that our original plan for arrival day was to either hang out at the resort or go to Sea World. The new pricing gave us the option of adding a day for $12 total (for 4 people). So, we are now going to be at the MK on arrival day. That's 4 people to add to the parks on arrival day solely because of the new pricing.

 

[Pedler]

I do wonder what type of impact the new pricing plan is going to have on attendance at WDW and other Orlando attractions. It would seem that in some cases people that might have gone to another area attraction may be more inclined to spend more time at WDW rather than spend a bunch more money elsewhere. I know some will go to places like Universal regardless of the pricing plan but the old idea of not "wasting" a days admission for just a few hours seems to be changing.

 

[tracy51]

Just another person to pipe in and say that because of how inexpensive it is to get "one more day" that is exactly what we are planning to do. Originally, we had planned on definately no parks on our arrival day. After reviewing the new pricing structure and finding out that we can add a day for just a little bit more, we are getting that 'extra' day in case we just want to 'pop' into a park for a little bit that night. It costs so little extra we don't mind if we're only there for an hour or two. Now whether or not we actually go is another story (it's under $10 more for the extra day so I don't mind if we decide not to use it).