Where everyone go? A crowd mystery...

[Albort]

July 4th- Anaheim California.

Soooo, i was at Disney California Adventure... and it was mysteriously empty.

Scream was 10 min wait.
Grizzly was around 25-30min wait.(hotness)
Soaring wasnt very long either.

What really suprised me was TSMM. it was about a 10-15 min line. WOW. ALL DAY, not just in the morning and day.

The entire park of DCA was literally dead. HOWEVER, Electrical parade was pretty packed with people.

Sources from DL says that the park was pretty dead as well. But lots of people for fireworks.(so ive heard but wasnt there to witness)

Makes me wonder... where everyone go???? :|

 

[Grim_Grinning_Girl]

Maybe everyone figured it would be crazy crowded and decided not to go. So you didn't go into Disneyland?

 

[Eeee-va]

This is interesting, but I'm not shocked. So many people were blocked out, and I'm sure others thought it would be packed and just stayed home. I was wondering if July 4th would actually be LESS busy than days surrounding it.

Sounds like you picked a great time to go!

 

[Albort]

This is interesting, but I'm not shocked. So many people were blocked out, and I'm sure others thought it would be packed and just stayed home. I was wondering if July 4th would actually be LESS busy than days surrounding it.

Sounds like you picked a great time to go!

actually, i work at Disneyland. i dont think my department hit predicted sales level. :|

 

[Grim_Grinning_Girl]

actually, i work at Disneyland. i dont think my department hit predicted sales level. :|

Out of curiosity, would you be able to post what the department's predicted sales level for the day was? Of course you don't have to mention the store name, the products it carries, or even what land it's in - just dollar information.

Curious to learn what any one of those stores averages in a day, totally understandable if you would rather not disclose that information.

Optional question: You don't have to give details or be descriptive - Do you like your cast member uniform ? Is it ok, or could it have been worse ?

I don't think they're bad, think the only DL one I wouldn't want to wear is the Small World uniform. And The Haunted Mansion seems too layered and hot.

 

[Albort]

actually, my TAG kinda gives my department away...

i dont know what our target was either. sorry.

but it was REALLY slow... Most came with their opening load....

 

[Eeee-va]

actually, i work at Disneyland. i dont think my department hit predicted sales level. :|

Oh, oops....I actually knew that the mysterious Albort worked at DLR, but I don't always end up registering the shiny names beside the posts.

Sorry you didn't hit your sales levels--does that actually affect you adversely, though? (Or would you rather not say?)

 

[Albort]

Oh, oops....I actually knew that the mysterious Albort worked at DLR, but I don't always end up registering the shiny names beside the posts.

Sorry you didn't hit your sales levels--does that actually affect you adversely, though? (Or would you rather not say?)

it was BOOOOOORING... i ended up just wandering the park and helping guest out with finding things.

 

[Donalds_best_pal]

Yea today definitely was not as busy as I thought it would be. I work Tomorrowland attractions and it seemed like today was no busier then yesterday. However I certainly wouldn't say the park was anywheres near being slow.

 

[disneydreamer74]

Hmmm.. That really is interesting. I expected mass crowds. In Fact, I wanted to schedule next weeks vacation around the 4th, but after hearing the horror stories opted to wait a week. Darn, guess I coulda went!!

Also, Albort and Donalds Best pal.... I would like to take a minute to thank you two ( and all CM's for that matter) for all of the enthusiasm you put into your jobs. I hope you realize that it is you all that ultimately make all of our Disney vacations magical for our families. Thanks again! You are appreciated.

 

[Sherry E]

Just from reading different accounts on the DIS from CMs and from visitors, to me it seems like, since approximately early Fall last year on until now, on certain days when crowds were expected to be crazy they were not, and during certain times when crowds were expected to be lower, they were crazy! That's why it appears to be so difficult to determine what the peak and off-peak seasons are now!

 

[jlmarr]

Also note it was a mega-blockout day, with the Deluxe AP's blocked and the SoCal 3 Day Summer Fun pass (3 days for $99) blocked. The Deluxe AP is blocked on the 3rd/4th/5th, but the 3 Day pass was blocked on just the 4th.

 

[Sherry E]

Also note it was a mega-blockout day, with the Deluxe AP's blocked and the SoCal 3 Day Summer Fun pass (3 days for $99) blocked. The Deluxe AP is blocked on the 3rd/4th/5th, but the 3 Day pass was blocked on just the 4th.

Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking. This is all very interesting. Al Lutz said in one of his early colums this year that more people than ever now have APs, and many of them were purchased after Christmas 2008, at the beginning of January 2009. This seems to be a product of the economy, where more locals or semi-locals are choosing to get DLR APs rather than travel out of state and spend more money on trips. SO....this all has me wondering... Jlmarr, you bring up a good point about many of the AP holders being blocked. This leads me to believe that the majority of new AP holders in 2009 got Deluxe APs or lower - I mean, some may have gotten Premium, but I tend to think they got lower level APs to start out with. IF my hunch is correct, then this means that the first half of December this year - which would normally be much slower and more manageable than the second half of December, crowd-wise - will probably be crazy and jam-packed - because all the APs except Premium are blocked by mid-December, correct? Some APs may be blocked even in early December, but the Deluxe stops right around mid-month, I think. Those folks will likely all pack into the parks to see the holiday stuff before the blockout dates begin.

See, I had been thinking that this year I was going to break my tradition of going to DLR the weekend before Christmas (which has been crowded but okay) and go a little earlier in the month when it was less crowded but while all the holiday stuff would be up and running. But now I am thinking that early to mid-December may be like June was - super-crowded. Oh well, I guess there is no escaping it. The old patterns are changing with the economy!

 

[PinkBudgie]

I believe you are right. We won't be going in June again. It is just too crazy- not near as bad as Jan 1st and 2nd, but still busy. ( Jan 1st and 2nd are blocked out this next Jan, I noticed. ) And I think the new water show will just make it busier next year. We will go in July or August like we always have before. I also wonder if the percentage of S. Californians with Deluxe APs has gone up. Especially with the Costco deal. I know I would still choose Deluxe even if I lived down there and could get a cheaper one.

 

[Sherry E]

I believe you are right. We won't be going in June again. It is just too crazy- not near as bad as Jan 1st and 2nd, but still busy. ( Jan 1st and 2nd are blocked out this next Jan, I noticed. ) And I think the new water show will just make it busier next year. We will go in July or August like we always have before. I also wonder if the percentage of S. Californians with Deluxe APs has gone up. Especially with the Costco deal. I know I would still choose Deluxe even if I lived down there and could get a cheaper one.

Yep. When World of Color, the Little Mermaid ride and Carsland open up, I think we will see a whole new crowd level in DCA (which, of course, is the goal for Disney). Gone will be the days where DCA is a nice, uncluttered park to escape to when DL gets too crazy. We may as well enjoy that now, while it lasts!

 

[AZMickeyfans]

Shoot! I almost went but the thought of crowds kept me away. Well, that and it being "out of the way" from Vegas back home to Phoenix!

 

[Albort]

Shoot! I almost went but the thought of crowds kept me away. Well, that and it being "out of the way" from Vegas back home to Phoenix!

sorry AZMickeyfans. I failed.

 

[AZMickeyfans]

sorry AZMickeyfans. I failed.

not at all!!! how could you have known!!!

 

[LuLusApple]

Darn we were going to go over the fourth but cancelled fearing the crowds
I upgraded DD12s AP to premium too, last time we were there. Bummer I guess I should fear not and get whatever comes LOL

 

[jpeka65844]

Funny how perspectives are. We were in the park yesterday from 9:30 AM to 11 PM and thought it was crazy busy. And we're used to going to WDW on spring break and in the summer.

It just seemed that there were LOTS and LOTS of locals. After awhile, you can spot the locals. They're the ones that aren't loaded down like pack mules for a day in the parks.

Probably the one thing we regret is not taking a mid day break. We were scared they'd close the parks due to capacity. We were pretty cooked by the end of the day.

Oh well...live and learn......