Where does UG get its info??

[threeboysmom]

I'm trying to put together my park days using the unofficial guide's recommendations. A couple of questions for you "experts"......

1) The guide recommends that on Thursday, 9/15, the worst park to go to on this day would be Magic Kingdom! Trying to figure this one out since I thought Thursday would be an EXCELLENT day to visit MK, especially since the night before will most likely have evening EMH. Is there something specific going on on 9/15 that perhaps I don't know about? I was planning on doing MK on this day, but maybe I should switch?

2) The guide also recommends visiting the MK on SATURDAY, 9/17 (says it's the best park to visit on that day). Why??? I thought Saturdays at MK were a ZOO and to be completely avoided if possible? Again, where does the guide get its info? Any inside information perhaps?

Thanks! I think I have my park days figured out so I can call and make my ps's next week. Just wanted clarification on these two recommendations since they go against what *I* always thought to be true.

 

[RevBob]

Actually, according to the Best Day's link at the unoffical guide's website (touringplans.com), Mondays and Thursdays are the most crowded days for MK, and Tuesdays and Saturdays are the least crowded as a whole. We were at MK on May 14th, which was a Saturday and found the park not crowded at all. The most that we waited for any ride was 15 minutes, of course we used FP alot. Hope you have a great trip.

 

[threeboysmom]

Thank you!!! I've always read here on the DIS that Saturdays at the MK are mobbed and best to be avoided at all costs. I guess things have changed since my last trip. I am going to plan on going to MK on Saturday - hopefully the UG knows what they're talking about!!

 

[Dodie]

touringplans.com also indicates that Saturday is actually a light day (now?) at WDW due to travel. It is a travel day for most who drive or fly in -- arriving either late that day or on Sunday.

 

[lentesta]

Where does UG get its info??

Hi threeboysmom,

I think our "Best Days" page explains where we get our data from. There's also a "Crowd Blog" that explains how we analyze those data. I've been asked not to post links, but both are available directly from our website.

Thanks!

Len

Daughter asked me to put this in my post:

 

[DVCconvert]

Where does UG get its info??

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I read on a few websites to go to the parks that have the EMK the night before. They posted that those parks were pretty empty the next day. I think that is the plan I am going to use on our next trip.

 

[goofy4tink]

I don't know Len, but I have yet to be in MK on a Sat and have it not be a zoo!! We have found that Mondays are a good day. We were there the last two Augusts, third week and then again most recently for Thanksgiving. Naturally the Sat after T-day was a mob scene everywhere.

Nope, you won't find me in MK on a Sat. Maybe first thing in the morning after they have an EMH evening but I'll be out of there by noon!!!

 

[RevBob]

We were at MK on Sat., May 14th. And much to our surprise, it wasn't crowded, even though the "crowd blog" indicated that it would be the most crowded day of our stay. Our average wait time was between 7-10 minutes, and only had one wait of 15 minutes. We used FP quite a lot, since the return times were never more than an hour later each time we got a FP. We did alot more than what we were expecting to do!

 

[threeboysmom]

I don't know Len, but I have yet to be in MK on a Sat and have it not be a zoo!! We have found that Mondays are a good day. We were there the last two Augusts, third week and then again most recently for Thanksgiving. Naturally the Sat after T-day was a mob scene everywhere.

Nope, you won't find me in MK on a Sat. Maybe first thing in the morning after they have an EMH evening but I'll be out of there by noon!!!

That's what I always thought too!! Saturdays have ALWAYS been a big travel day, but yet MK has ALWAYS been crowded on Saturdays.... I don't get what has changed to make it different now????

 

[skiwee1]

I don't know Len, but I have yet to be in MK on a Sat and have it not be a zoo!! We have found that Mondays are a good day. We were there the last two Augusts, third week and then again most recently for Thanksgiving. Naturally the Sat after T-day was a mob scene everywhere.

Nope, you won't find me in MK on a Sat. Maybe first thing in the morning after they have an EMH evening but I'll be out of there by noon!!!

I agree about Saturdays being a zoo. Every time we go we had to hit Saturday for the Spectro and fireworks. It has always been mobbed! I don't care what any book says. Saturdays are packed and I avoid it at all costs except to get there a bit earlier to watch the parade and fireworks.

 

[TammyC]

I have been wondering about this also. The UG site lists results of a survey of guests indicating which park they visited on which day, and Monday and Thursday were at the top of the list for MK. If those responses were based on a guest's last visit, that may well have been when old EMH (morning only) hours were in effect. And, if memory serves me correctly, Monday and Thursday were early mornings at MK???

 

[Disney Debbie]

My mom and I went Sat. March 4th and it wasn't crowded at all.

 

[tpmartin]

According to a Tour Guide, Saturdays is the Worst because all of the Floridians go on Saturdays.

 

[bicker]

According to a Tour Guide, Saturdays is the Worst because all of the Floridians go on Saturdays.

Yes-- that affects all the parks. Many Floridians love visiting Epcot, for example, over-and-over again.

The impact of Saturday as a travel day for folks who aren't local is very significant. That's why Sunday and especially Monday are particularly heavy days at MK, since many non-locals have tended to visit MK first, moving on to the other parks as the week progresses.

By the same token, MK will be somewhat more crowded on Saturday nights in the off-season, during the years it is the only night that Spectromagic and Wishes will be performed.

 

[lentesta]

I tend to agree with bicker, and the "locals" theory for the Magic Kingdom doesn't explain why the Studios or Animal Kingdom (with less cumulative capacity than the MK) isn't a "bad" choice on Saturdays. Also, FL passholders are subject to blackout dates during the busier times of the year, negating the impact of the locals more likely to visit the parks.

There's always the chance we could be wrong, but what I've not seen is any actual data collected in the park over, say, a three-month period that shows Saturdays to be the busiest (or even top two) day of the week. (We've got eight weeks of data from the MK this year, and it's posted freely on our site, along with the methodology used to make the recommendations.) Next time you hear the claim, you might want to ask to see the data on which it's based. Oh, and send it to me, too, so I can look at it.

Len

 

[Amirah95]

HULARIOUS! LOL!