UEA Weekend... are we crazy to consider going?

[wildflower329]

So, DH just sprung an idea that maybe we should try to go to Disney at Halloween time this year. The kids will have Oct 21st off from school, so we were looking at Oct 20th-24th/25th. I know that is UEA... for those that have been during that time, is it crazy, or manageable? I expect it to be much busier than when we have gone in the past (Nov in 2013.. prior to the half marathon being added and last week of Aug 2015), but wanted to figure out if we should even consider this time period.

 

[SMD]

Lots of schools have Fall breaks, not just Utah. What's manageable? Obviously people go on days with gate closures and manage.

 

[figment_jii]

I agree, it depends on what you mean by manageable. It will be very busy, so you have to go expecting long lines and big crowds. I was there the weekdays leading up to UEA and while I didn't think it was awful, it did seem to rival peak summer crowds. The line for Hungry Bear reached about halfway down the first ramp during lunch hour, which is what I expected to see during my July trip but not necessarily a Tuesday in October! We got there at opening, stayed until closing, made use of FPs and SRLs. We all felt like we were able to do everything we wanted and had a great time, but it was busy.

 

[wildflower329]

Thanks! I guess I am just wondering what we should expect if we go during that time. We still have youngish kids (5 and 8), so we will want to do some of the bigger rides, but they are also happy doing Winnie the Pooh and other rides that are less popular. Would you say that UEA weekend is significantly busier than the other Halloween time Weekends, or are they all so busy you would not notice a significant difference?

 

[figment_jii]

Sorry, I didn't stay for the actual UEA weekend; we were there the weekend before and for a few weekdays leading into UEA weekend. I did feel like the weekdays were getting increasingly busy as it got closer to the UEA weekend (e.g., Tuesday was worse than Monday, etc.).

 

[Geemo]

Thanks! I guess I am just wondering what we should expect if we go during that time. We still have youngish kids (5 and 8), so we will want to do some of the bigger rides, but they are also happy doing Winnie the Pooh and other rides that are less popular. Would you say that UEA weekend is significantly busier than the other Halloween time Weekends, or are they all so busy you would not notice a significant difference?

Halloween time is popular with Disney Fans. It brings out-of-towner's as well as the locals.
Fall breaks are prime time for people to come to DLR without kids missing school days.
Weekends are generally busier than week days.....

Expect it to be VERY BUSY!!!
You'll see the crowds build as the weekend approaches, as well as the day goes on in the parks.

To make the best of busy days start at rope drop. Knowing how the crowds might be will help you adjust for your trip.

GO! and have a fun time. If there was a slow time any more, everyone would plan for that time.

Geemo

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Check if other states have fall break that week as well. We've gone when it was mainly Utah and local school districts. The parks were busy, but manageable (from our point of view). But we've also gone when UEA coincided with AZ's and NV's break -- unbelievable crowds. NOS was a parking lot. We heard CMs saying that they had never seen that area so crowded. If you want to go to MHP during that time, buy your tickets early. The parties that fall during UEA usually sell out.

 

[GenGen22]

We have gone during this week the last two years and will be going again this year. The first year there were a lot less people than last year but it wasn't as busy as summer or Christmas time so, to me wasn't too bad. I don't care if it's busy or not. I for some weird reason do a lot more when it's packed. Just go and have a good time and don't think about the crowd.

 

[wildflower329]

Thanks everyone! While I am sure it will be much busier than when we have gone in the past, I think we will still have an awesome time. Now to make the final decision about whether we should spend the money

 

[wildflower329]

So, we may be crazy, but we decided to go for it and we will be in the parks 10/20-10/24! I am excited because this is really a bonus trip... we hadn't planned on going for another year or two, but plane tickets were super cheap and we decided to just go for it

 

[rentayenta]

We live in Utah as well and UEA is very crowded. If you are willing to do rope drop, it'll be good but once it hits 11 am-noon, its packed.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

You have plenty of time to do your research and planning to make the most of your time in the parks. Have a great trip!