Which parks to choose on low/high crowd days?

[prettymom]

I need some itinerary advice...first timer here.

My family of five (kids ages 9,6, 11 months) have a trip planned first week of February, staying at AKL. We have 5 day PH we plan to use on Wed, Thur, Fri, Sat afternoon (event that morning), and Sunday. The tix (convention rate) also came with water park and one extra (like disney quest or mini golf) included. We also have time the last day we're there (Monday the 8th) before our evening flight.

We plan to start with MK on Wednesday because that's most exciting for the kids. How would you prioritize touring, knowing that the first couple of days will be less crowded than the weekend days will be? I've booked fast pass+, but I keep tinkering with them as I change my mind.

 

[prettymom]

More info on us: we're flying in from California, so with jet lag I'm not planning on a super early start Wednesday morning. I anticipate being more able to take advantage of evening extra magic hours more so than morning extra magic hours, since it will feel three hours earlier to us.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I would recommend visiting Kenny the Pirate and looking at his crowd calendar recommendations. I find him and Touring Plans (a paid site that I find well worth the fee) to be helpful when deciding which parks to visit on each day. They're always my first source of information when planning our trips.

 

[colarey]

Crowd calendars are definitely the way to go. We are also going the first week of Feb. You might want to consider not going to MK on Wednesday as it will be one of the busier days there. We've also had to go the route of not going to MK first thing even though it would definitely be more exciting. In the long run, you'll get to do more if you visit on the lower days (Thursday the 4th looks to be a great MK day on most all of the calendars).

 

[loves to dive]

Since you are staying at AKL you are going to be busing it to all the parks so you need to factor in travel time. I don't pay attention to crowd calendars, have never actually even seen one so I can't advise as to what they say. With park hoppers you have an advantage if park A is getting to crowded, just hop over to park B or back to the resort for a rest (the little one is probably going to need it). I'd book my FP for mid-morning since you are planning on staying late and not doing rope drop, then you can gauge how everyone feels after you do your first three rides. Keep in mind, since this is your first time, there is no way you are going to see and do everything there is to see and do. Don't sweat it, even old timers like myself who have been going often and for many years haven't seen and done everything. Don't try to over plan, your family is not going to thank you for it and don't try to over do it. Nothing worse than tired younguns. Listen to your kids and when they get tired, take a break, maybe go to lunch at one of the resorts near whatever park you are at to get out of the crowds.

 

[minnie mum]

I also recommend that you look at a crowd calendar before finalizing your itinerary. I use easywdw.com and normally choose the most recommended park each day to avoid the more crowded parks.

The least recommended park will almost always be the park (s) with EMH that day. But with PHs you have the option of going to the morning EMH park and hitting a few of the headliners for a couple of hours before hopping to the most recommended park for the rest of the day (use your FPs at the second park). But only go to the EMH park if you will actually take advantage of that extra hour.

If you haven't already booked your ADRs, try to book them at the park you will be in or at a nearby resort to avoid wasting a lot of time with transportation.

 

[bc7ate9]

If you haven't already booked your ADRs, try to book them at the park you will be in or at a nearby resort to avoid wasting a lot of time with transportation.

Or just skip ADRs. Lots of good QS options.

 

[prettymom]

We've looked at the crowd calendars (touring plans subscription). All parks are of course less crowded wed and thur, moderately crowded friday, and more crowded saturday and sunday. Which park is the most enjoyable to be in when everything is crowded?

 

[SHammett]

If you are strictly looking at which park is most enjoyable with high crowds, that would be Epcot in my opinion. BUT if you're looking to do and see as much as possible in those 5 days, I would plan to do Animal Kingdom on the most crowded day. There are only a handful of rides you would need a fastpass for (Safari, Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids and Dinosaur). The fastpass system isn't tiered there, so you can get 3 of those and plan to wait in line for one. See the Lion King show and you've hit all the must-do's. The same cannot be said for the other parks, though DHS would run a close second. Just too many must-do's at MK and Epcot, I would much rather have low crowds while touring them.

This was my logic in planning 2 weeks over Christmas break, hoping I'm right!

 

[amylevan]

We've looked at the crowd calendars (touring plans subscription). All parks are of course less crowded wed and thur, moderately crowded friday, and more crowded saturday and sunday. Which park is the most enjoyable to be in when everything is crowded?

There is more to play than just weekend days crowd level. EMH and crowd habits all play into how crowded parks are - compared to other days.

The best advice I can give: avoid parks with EMH unless you have hoppers or plan to take full advantage of the full EMH time. Avoid MK on Saturdays and Mondays.