Where has our beloved Fall Value Season (cheap + low crowds) gone?

[nadira36]

Wow, thanks for this insight. I am a bit petrified at going now during that time. We have always traveled in Sept except for the year I broke my back but that time, we traveled the whole week prior to Thanksgiving and it is relatively low crowds. Is it even worth going if the crowds are horrendous? I really don't want to spend the kind of money we put out to have a miserable time and listen to my husband and kids complain. How badly crowded was it as crowd's poured in?

It's all perception. I've been on the absolute busiest days of the year. $th of July and Christmas , even before FP was ever thought of, and it was still doable. FP made it easier, and, well, we'll see what FP+ brings tot eh table.

I have fun that week, and we almost always get to do all we want to do, plus extra.

 

[Liberator]

we were also there the week after labour day last year and from 9/21 - 9/23

The week after labour day at MK, AK and Epcot there were no lines at all in the morning and in the evening. We often had our own car at Test Track or our own log on Splash Mountain. We noticed more people at HS, maybe because the park is not that spread out, but it was not crowded at all. 9/9 MK was a ghost town. We headed to splash mountain and BTMRR and saw no one except CMs and Chip n Dale in front of us. Stayed at the Wilderness Lodge, CMs had not much to do.

Lines in the afternoon were nothing more like 10 min., we used FastPasses just to say "yeah sure we used the good old fast pass system".

From Sep. 21 - 23 it was definitely more crowded. We noticed a lot of visitors from South America, no tour groups, but families. It was wise to have FP+ reservations for afternoons/evenings. That is why I liked to test FP+, it was good not to worry about eventual long lines. Lines were still less than moderate, never saw a 60 minute line, except at RnR and TSMM.

Conclusion: I would say it was a very good time to visit. I am not that experienced in WDW visits, but we would definetly come back in September, preferably the week after labour day. We got used to the heat within 2-3 days.

 

[leshunlenese]

I remember going in middle school with the band in like 99 and we went the beginning of may and it was so empty like I do not remember seeing anyone but out band that day in the park. Went the same time about 2 years ago and it was so the complete opposite

 

[Texas Barbie]

We always go the week after labor day, and noticed a large increase in crowds this past year, especially at the MK. I believe there were more people there from the UK than then were Americans.

 

[jessrose18]

trying to decide between sept 6-13 or 13-20th... low crowds are important, also want to go to mnsshp so both dates would work. I have been at the end of september crowds weren't exactly light, but wait times were reasonable.

 

[Damien2213]

Still can't quite figure out his variance between people at Disney World during the exact same time with two completely different experiences....things that make you go hmmmmm

 

[Mommy2Corinne]

I'm loving some input here. We like to visit in September & October. Low crowds & cheapest prices! Our last trip was September 15-22, 2013. easywdw crowd calendar showed 1s and 2s for that week. However, its was SO CROWDED! I don't know, maybe I picked the wrong park each day. It was crazy though. Lines were at 90+ minutes for all headliners. "A ticket" rides were at 45+. South American tour groups everywhere! There were just so many people on the walkways that it was really hard to walk. Now, this is all relative, it's obviously nothing compared to July. But, compared to usual fall crowds we were just so amazed at how busy it was. We have been spoiled by previous fall visits. Labor Day week in 2009 was DEAD, totally empty streets. Last week of October in 2010, EVERYTHING was a walk on, even headliners. I've also noticed that pricing at some resorts, value season stops Sept 12. So, looking at our upcoming fall vacation, we are trying to pick the best week to go. What was everyone else's experience last fall? Totally open to suggestions. Thanks!

We were there last Sept almost the same exact time as you (Sept 13-21), and I totally agree about the crowds. I posted when we got back that I felt is was *very* crowded compared to what we were used to during previous fall trips. I had a bunch of people respond and tell me that I was crazy, but I know what I experienced. It was disappointing to say the least.

We have a trip booked for Sept 6-13 this year. I figure it will be our best bet for low crowds, so even though the timing is not ideal (horrible heat and humidity, we will have just gotten back from an August beach vacation, and my oldest DD may opt to stay home this trip because she doesn't want to miss school) we are going to give it a shot.

This upcoming trip will be our "test run" to see if we are still able to do Disney to our satisfaction with FP+ during what is hopefully a very slow time. (We tested FP+ last Sept, but we took FULL advantage of double dipping, so it wasn't even close to the restrictiveness that is the current FP+.)

If we can't make it work for us, we won't be going back again.

 

[MomofKatie]

Still can't quite figure out his variance between people at Disney World during the exact same time with two completely different experiences....things that make you go hmmmmm

I can give some insight. We have been to WDW many times when crowds were generally very low, and times that were busier. There are a few examples, though, of how a temporary spike in standby times can affect the perception of crowds:

1- We had a fp+ for Soarin' at around 5:30pm. When we entered the line, the standby time was 20 minutes. There was a problem with the ride (still not sure what happened, but a delay) and we ended up at a standstill for almost an hour before boarding. When we exited, the standby time had swelled to 80 minutes. Someone walking up then would have no idea that the wait was much longer than the "norm" for that time.

2- We arrived at Nemo ride entrance one morning, and the line was over 30 minutes!! I have no idea why it was so long, but within an hour, it was back down to the normal 5-10 minutes and stayed that way for the rest of the day. But a guest walking up at that time would have seen the line and thought the ride was always super crowded.

3- We got to DHS for rope drop and ran to TSMM for a FP. The place was swamped and crazy. We returned at our FP time and rode. As we exited, the standby time stated 50 minutes, but we were able to get in the standby line and get on the ride in less than 15. Why? The standby times are almost always waaay overstated at TSMM. The CM at the entrance told us to come in because there was no line at all at the time. Again, a casual visitor walking by would have seen the standby time listed and thought the line was outrageous.

4- There are funny crowd spikes that affect certain attractions temporarily throughout the day. Haunted Mansion times can go up dramatically when a large tour group all enter the line at the same time. Same with some rides in the MK as soon as the parade or Wishes is finished.

Seems like timing can really affect how busy people think the parks are. An unlucky family can just get in line at the wrong time for a few attractions, arrive at the parks the wrong time, try to ride attractions during the middle of the day, and decide the parks are swamped. Another family can go to the same park on the same day, luck into really short wait times for a few rides, eat meals at off times, and take advantage of knowing when to ride the big ticket attractions, and have a great experience.

 

[daisy_77]

We were there the last week of September through October 6, 2013. It really didn't seem crowded to me. Our previous trips have always been in the value season: first week of December, last week of January, and Sept/Oct. It didn't seem any more crowded. But that is just my opinion.

The most crowds we saw were at Epcot. It was Food and Wine and it was packed.

 

[JennyDrake]

I'm in TN and our schools start Aug. 1. We also have a ridiculous, TWO WEEK fall break in October. Many schools in the south have also gone to a year round school year.

I'll readily agree that the slow times as we once knew them are GONE.

For those of you counting on an AP for marked savings--think again. Just 3 years ago I could get a value resort in early May for $59-69/night. Now it is $134. Rack rates continue to soar and AP discounts are now a percentage off rack rate--from 15-30%. Just a few years ago AP rates were "set" at $59 for value and $99 for a moderate.

I go 3-4 times/year, never during peak season. I still like first week in December best as far as crowds go. I have been unpleasantly surprised at April and early November crowd levels for 2-3 years. Not unmanageable by any means, but certainly not light.