When was the last time you went to Disney when it wasn't crazy busy?

[Daisy1940]

August 31, 2018 at MK and HS both were TP crowd level 1.

Fantasyland was freakishly empty all morning, we walked on to rides including SDMT and PP from 8:00am EMH until we left around noon. My husband and I couldn’t stop talking about how weird it felt. It was almost unsettling to keep looking around and seeing so few people. HS that evening was empty except toy story land (where we were) but even that wasn’t too bad.

Crowds picked up that Saturday and Sunday but we are hoping to make a September trip work for us next year because it was so great both crowd and waittime wise.

 

[PSUGuy]

In 2005 we arrived Jan. 1, NY Day, a Sat. By day 3 the holiday crowd was gone and Disney was a ghost town, I actually wished there had been more people in Pleasure Island, the Adventurer's Club wasn't the same with a sparse crowd.

Bill From PA

 

[DisArmyWife215]

Serious question: When was the last time any of you can recall being in the parks when it wasn't packed in like sardines? The last 3 times I've gone (New Years Eve 2013, Summer 2016, Summer 2018), it's been incredibly busy. Granted, those are "peak" times, however, I'm hearing that peak season is basically all the time now. Do any of you recall the last time you went where it didn't feel so crowded? How many years ago would you say the parks began being crazy busy? Or has it always been this way? I started going in 2000 when I was in kindegarten, so I don't remember the crowds back then. Interested in your answers!

Our trip Oct 2016 didn't seem crazy busy to me. I liked it better than our June summer trip a few years prior, not sure if it was the heat or actually more crowded but I decided then I'd never do a summer trip again. We went end of May 2018 and it was more crowded than Oct trip but again didn't feel packed.

 

[TCRAIG]

May 7-14 2016

 

[bernina]

The Weds and Thurs before Thanksgiving in 2016. No idea actual crowd levels but it wasn’t bad at all. And weather was great!!

 

[poooh]

First week of December 1998 was the lowest crowd level I've ever experienced. I was 4 years old lol but I remember that every single ride was a walk on (and my parents can attest to this.) And there is not a single person in the background of our castle photos.

Second week of January 2014 was very pleasant crowd-wise as well. Also, even though FP+ had been out for a while and some paper FPs were still available, we had a lot of people asking us, "How come you get to cut the line?!" Very strange....

 

[DoryGirl1963]

2nd week of November 2011.

 

[Brenda Wood]

January of 2018 was not too bad. But I was only there 2 days in MK. Before that was May 2017 and it was HOT and PACKED. I go again in 2 weeks - hoping for minimal crowds compared to May!

 

[KellyHonos]

Our trip Oct 2016 didn't seem crazy busy to me. I liked it better than our June summer trip a few years prior, not sure if it was the heat or actually more crowded but I decided then I'd never do a summer trip again. We went end of May 2018 and it was more crowded than Oct trip but again didn't feel packed.

AMEN! I was just telling myself, weather-wise alone, I can't do summer again!!! I'm just too fricken hot! lol. Glad to hear you notice lower crowds in October. I'm sure that has something to do with kids being in school. Naturally when I have gone during the summer and holiday seasons, I've always gone into it knowing it will be busy. However, I have to go during those times because my sister doesn't like missing school, so we have to wait for breaks. If I had it my way, I'd go during the fall or during the spring.

 

[KellyHonos]

The Weds and Thurs before Thanksgiving in 2016. No idea actual crowd levels but it wasn’t bad at all. And weather was great!!

Really? What was the weather like? I'm always wondering the best time to go weather-wise bc the humidity KILLS me lol

 

[KellyHonos]

First week of December 1998 was the lowest crowd level I've ever experienced. I was 4 years old lol but I remember that every single ride was a walk on (and my parents can attest to this.) And there is not a single person in the background of our castle photos.

Second week of January 2014 was very pleasant crowd-wise as well. Also, even though FP+ had been out for a while and some paper FPs were still available, we had a lot of people asking us, "How come you get to cut the line?!" Very strange....

LOL, hmmm, maybe it was a lot of first-timers, not realizing what you were doing? Strange! I wish I could remember the crowd levels from when I went as a small child. Sadly I don't. Maybe I could look back at photos and see how crowds looked behind us. I know there's one photo from one of my first trips with my dad and I in front of the Tree of Life and I don't recall there being tons of people behind us but if my memory serves me at all I think that pic was taken fairly early in the morning.

 

[KellyHonos]

January of 2018 was not too bad. But I was only there 2 days in MK. Before that was May 2017 and it was HOT and PACKED. I go again in 2 weeks - hoping for minimal crowds compared to May!

I bet you'll be somewhat safe in terms of crowds right now due to kids being back in school and people probably being broke from holidays and traveling. But then again, like I said in the original post, I feel like peak season is all year-round now. Who knows! Wishing you the best of luck. You'll have fun regardless!

 

[epcotty]

Although we haven't done this in more recent years as it's been tougher to schedule, in the earlier years of this decade we would go in early May and it was nice and uncrowded then

 

[kimmar067]

....um....NEVER.

 

[klmall]

The people who did not visit WDW before (i'll say 2010) would not really know how "not busy" it was back then. The newer ones that just started within the last 5 years would think that a "very busy day" from the late 90's, early 20's would be almost empty in today's standards. I remember we would go to MK in the 90's and we literally did almost every ride and some over and over again, saw a show, ate and be walking out the gate before night time.

ITA - While there were occasional busy times at MK back in the 90s and early 2000s our trips the last full week before Thanksgiving were very low in crowds. In fact, I didn't know what busy looked like until 2002 when we had to go Easter week due to DS's high school schedule. And all our trips from 2005 on seemed busier than ever regardless of the week or season. Back in the 2000s the crowd calendars on several well-known sites were actually helpful! That's certainly not true nowadays. And our last trip at the end of April 2017 was miserably crowded. I think a number of factors have conspired to make 90%+ of days at WDW moderately to excessively busy including lower park staffing and "free" dining.

 

[mamamelody2]

We went over Labor Day last year. Weekend was somewhat crowded, but not bad. The days after the holiday were GREAT! Really low crowds. I remember lining up for the Festival of Fantasy parade in Frontierland 1 minute before it started and easily getting a spot right in front by the rope. Looking across the way there was nobody at the rope for like 50 feet in each direction. Granted, that was in the sun, but still! One day we went on ToT 4 times in a row, all walk on, in the middle of the day. We are going that week again this year.

 

[Stigsmom]

October 2012 was our kids’ first trip and nice. All trips since then have been more crowded.

 

[KellyHonos]

Very interesting responses. Some are saying it's never NOT been crazy busy, while others are saying they have experienced low-crowd visits.

 

[DisArmyWife215]

Naturally when I have gone during the summer and holiday seasons, I've always gone into it knowing it will be busy. However, I have to go during those times because my sister doesn't like missing school, so we have to wait for breaks. If I had it my way, I'd go during the fall or during the spring.

Luckily our district has a mini fall break in Oct, use that with a weekend and we can do a 5 day trip. Love it!

 

[KellyHonos]

Luckily our district has a mini fall break in Oct, use that with a weekend and we can do a 5 day trip. Love it!

LUCKY! It's my goal to go to WDW in October.