When to go...

[WeRtrippin]

We have also been in October but in like 2007 or 08. Very few crowds compared to what I'm hearing about now. The reason we went then was because it was Fall Break. Back then, not a lot of schools took a break but now the whole state (almost) takes it the same week. The F&W fest also draws a pretty good crowd as does the H'ween party.

I would personally wait until November or even late September if a school schedule isn't a factor. March-May can also be great if you aren't scheduling around school. The only issue with March is it can be a little on the chilly side and can be rainy. Spring break for Alabama, GA, and MS is also typically in March so that draws people to WDW.

My dd is almost 17 and we are going in early January 2017 and I've already read that it is predicted to be a "10" week but I was hoping that just ONE time we have ever been it wouldn't be wall-to-wall people.
I regret not just letting her miss a few days of school to go when it wasn't so crowded in September or February or something. There was just always something going on in our lives we felt we HAD to do!!

 

[klmall]

First I need to say that even as an adult-only group that MK is my favorite park. We have noticed crowds growing every time we have gone in the first two weeks of December. First, it was in 2007 and crowds were light to moderate. Then in 2011, it was busier but tolerable. By 2014, even though we went earlier in December it was mobbed. In addition, it seemed FP+ was channeling crowds into crazy patterns especially in the MK. Plus the MVMCP parties which we used to love, cut into our hours in the MK more and greatly influenced ADR availability cutting them also for the places we wanted.

As much as I love being there near Christmas, I doubt we will go then ever again.

I'd love to attend in October but our times there were impacted heavily by F & W and the Halloweeen parties just as in December. We loved the weather but why lose so many good park hours to parties?

We are strongly considering going the first week after Thanksgiving as we did back in the 90s. Crowds truly bother us especially when you can't walk a straight line for even a few feet in a park. Thank goodness, we follow our Disney days with 2 or 3 days at a Universal hotel. It seems like heaven there compared to the planning Disney requires. It's our vacation after our vacation!

And I didn't mention that we could go literally any week we would like!

 

[Dan Murphy]

These may be of some help......

http://**************.net/2015/10/18/2017-weeks-to-visit-walt-disney-world-ranked-in-order/

http://**************.net/2015/10/04/disney-world-crowds-in-2017/

 

[Hopefully]

I love-love-love reading travel books on Disney, so before our trip in 2009 I read the lot and they all advised going in October. Nice weather, low crowds, great discounts and the F&W festival.
So we did and had an amazing time. Longest line during our 10 day trip at the end of October was 30 minutes and it really annoyed us since we've been so spoiled the rest of the trip.

Now we're planning a new one for October 2018, but since I started my new book-athon I saw October went from a low attendance period (back in 2009) to a peak period because of the F&W festival and the nice weather and great discounts... (the irony...)

Has anyone been in October a few years ago and recently? Has it really changed that much? Or do people just attend the F&W and is the rest still pretty calm? Should we reconsider the period? We could also move to late April/ early May.

Love to hear your advice / experiences.

We have gone in Mid to Late October for the last 10 years. Each and every year is more crowded than the year before. October is now a busy time of year. It is not holiday crowds, but busy.

Thanx for all the advice. Since we'll be planning to go for a week or a week and a half I was wondering; is the "Easter period" crowded or just the weekend and Easter Monday?

And Sleepyhollow I'd love to read your experience with then and now! Thanx and have a great time out there!

The two weeks around Easter are crazy busy.

 

[AngieInOH]

If 2009 was the last time you've been there you'd better prepare yourself!! Low crowds now do not mean that you have the park pretty much to yourself. Low crowds are still pretty crowded in my opinion. I also went in Jan 2009 I remember it being pretty sparse as far as crowds go. Jump forward to Jan 2016 and WOW!!! At times it was hard to move around. Both of these visits were during "slow" times. Most rides are not walk on/5 min wait like in 2009, but it's still very managable. Just be prepared and you'll have a great time! I couldn't even imagine being there when crowds are a 10!

 

[GrumpyDad1974]

We haven't been able to go in October in years due to DD school schedule probably since 09'. We have been able to go in the spring, if you can go in the spring away from Easter the crowds are nice. The Flower and Garden Festival is great, not as big as Food and Wine but lots of food and drink options.

 

[MermaidMommy]

I've seen March mentioned a couple of times, and the first week of the month can be a great combination of moderate crowds and (usually) nice weather. However, many states and colleges have spring break during March, so the rest of the month is summer-level crowds. If you want lower crowds, you'll need skip the six weeks of spring break, which start the second week of March.

 

[Eastern]

We went late May this year. Weather was hot but dry, not humid. I would go again in May.