what is it like offsite at Easter week?

[ADisneyQueen]

Would it take a long time to get to the parks due to the traffic?

 

[swilphil]

If you are outside the Disney gates, then yes it will. You could stay at Downtown Disney, Swan/Dolphin or Bonnet Creek.

One Christmas we stayed off of International Dr. and it was a nightmare. Last Christmas we stayed at Bonnet Creek and it was not a problem at all. Bonnet Creek is next to Carribean Beach Resort between Epcot and Downtown Disney. They have some good deals on ebay. Sometimes S/D will also offer a good deal around Easter.

 

[KayR]

I would say not necessarily.

It depends where you are staying and what time you plan to get to the parks.

We were at Emerald Island last Easter, drove to the parks everyday - but got there for opening time (or as close as we could make it, maybe 5 minutes later). We had little to no traffic. We did use the Sherbeth Road entrance to help us.

We also took advantage of the services of tour guide mike and managed to do all the major rides & attractions before the crowds got too bad. We were home mid afternoon for a swim and a rest before whatever plans we had for the evening.

For Easter I would recommend getting to the parks for opening time to get the most out of your day. It is hard getting up everyday for that, but well worth it, when you realize what you managed to achieve before the main crowds arrived at the parks.

BTW, we found that the "Dream Team" were often giving out Dreams around 10am, so getting in early had its advantages. We as a family got dream fastpasses one day and the mickey ears another day. Narrowly missed out on another dream, but you can't be gready These dreams were given out early morning around 10am 'ish'.

Enjoy.

 

[Detailor]

I don't think that the holiday weeks necessarily make the traffic unbearable - there are plenty of other times of the year that large crowds occur and traffic is heavy. I agree with others that an early to the park strategy works well to beat the traffic, but if you stay to close you'll get caught up waiting as everyone leaves.

Dick Taylor

 

[Christine]

I was just at Disney this past Easter (went from Good Friday through Easter and left a few days after Easter). We stayed off-site at the Terre Verde Resort (vacation home community) and we never hit any traffic jams except for a little rush hour traffic on Poinciana Blvd in the mornings. Even then, it took no more than 15-20 minutes to be in a parking spot.

I, too, was concerned about Easter traffic, but it was a non-issue.

 

[deejay-55]

It likely will not take much longer to get to the parks, but be prepared for them to be busy inside the gates!