I particularly dread crowds and heat and we went last week of August last year. It couldn't have been too bad, because we're going again this year! Yes, it was wicked hot. We drank a lot of water and tried to get going very early in the morning. Mister fans were indispensable. Our kids used them constantly and the cool mist really helped keep us going.
We did all the EE days at each park. Amazingly, the first Sunday morning at MK was, comparatively speaking, deserted. It was my first time at a Disney park and I fully expected to be trampled and on hourlong lines. We did so many rides by lunchtime, and then the park started to fill up a bit, but not by much. I remember no lines for Barnstormer, AE, Buzz Lightyear, Pirates, IASW,and a walk-in dinner with no reservations at Liberty Tree Tavern.
MGM and Epcot were the same. MS had a soft opening at the time and my husband literally walked on, no wait. AK was also easily managed, except for Kilimanjaro Safaries and the Pangani trail...egads, they were mobbed first thing in the morning. We were really thrilled with the crowd levels; certainly not deserted, but we never felt swamped or slowed down. It was very pleasant.
One night we tried to see Fantasmic, but it was completely overwhelmed, even an hour before showtime. However, last year MK was closing early on most nights we were there. We figured out (too late) that on the night when MK had no fireworks show everyone had the same idea to try and see Fantasmic. This year it seems that Wishes is being shown every night, so that might make other options (like Fantasmic) more reasonable.
Towards the end of the week (right before Labor Day last year) the parks became progressively more crowded. The last Friday we returned to MK and found it to be much more crowded and unpleasant than the previous Sunday. Spent most of the time looking around for a short line. But again, this year Labor Day is a bit later and this may work to our advantage.
Water parks I've never done but someone had suggested to me to either get there very early or very late. Since we are on ultimate park hoppers this year we may give BB a try on a late afternoon one day. Enjoy!
prairiegirl
03 - AKL
WL next month
