will Harry Potter make DisneyWorld less crowded?

[coachsomer]

It looks like our Disney trip will coincide with the Potter land opening. Will we find the Magic Kingdom to be less crowded as a surge happens in Universal?
When another nearby parks opens a major attraction does this affect the
Disney crowds.

will the Potter opening have any impacts on :
airport,
roads,
Disney discounts??

Thanks

 

[OKW Lover]

Some really good questions here.

I wouldn't think that there would be any noticeable difference in crowd levels at WDW, nor would there the traffic be any worse than normal. Its only the really hard-core fan that will be headed to Universal on opening day, not the vast majority of casual theme park visitors.

Will you see any special discounts? I'm sure we would have heard of them by now.

 

[kaligal]

will the Potter opening have any impacts on :
airport,
roads,
Disney discounts??

Thanks

Airport - no.

Roads - maybe, but only by Uni.

Disney discounts - they've already started the Kids Stay Free thing. I think they're hoping that if people can get the kiddos into WDW and feed them for "free" then they won't bother paying for a ticket to Uni.

It isn't like the whole world will be showing up on Uni's doorstep the day it opens. You'll have your HP uber-fans and your Uni uber-fans and a group of folks who were going to be there, anyway.

 

[ADP]

It's really hard to tell if there will be any impact. I go back to 1999 when IOA first opened. There was a buzz about the new park, but I don't remember noticing any impact at the Disney parks. Of course, Potter is a very recognized brand so it is a little different than opening a new theme park.

I'm not sure how much Summer Nightastic and the debut of Toy Story 3 (June 18th) will have at holding crowds longer at WDW. There are rumors circulating Toy Story Midway Mania will get a Toy Story 3 layover. Who knows for sure.

 

[Disney Dad Canada]

My prediction is there will be a lot of people at WDW saying "I can't believe I waited for 5 hours for one freaking Harry Potter ride. I'm so glad I'm back at WDW."

 

[disneyholic family]

an argument could be made for the opposite effect...

perhaps HP will draw new people to orlando, who while they're in the neighborhood seeing harry, will head on over to take in a bit of WDW as well...

so maybe HP will actually increase the crowds at WDW....

i guess we'll have to wait and see...

 

[mel&me]

i don't think it will diminish Disney crowds at all. I have to agree with
disneyholic family it may actually have a slight increase.

 

[kbelle8995]

Harry Potter will be a major attraction opening. I think that you will see some overflow to Disney. Harry Potter reaches across the aisle. It will not just be little kids.

I think you will see some overflow at Disney. The grand opening is in the summer and the crowds are usually out anyway.

 

[TeriofTerror]

an argument could be made for the opposite effect...

perhaps HP will draw new people to orlando, who while they're in the neighborhood seeing harry, will head on over to take in a bit of WDW as well...

so maybe HP will actually increase the crowds at WDW....

i guess we'll have to wait and see...

My thoughts exactly!

 

[alebisi]

I think that because Harry Potter Land is only a land and not a theme park by itself, lots of people will go for 4 or 5 days to Universal but they will still head to WDW afterwards or before during their trip. Unfortunately I think WDW will still be crowed in high peak season when HPL will open.

 

[WaltD4Me]

I don't think it will noticeably effect park guests at Disney. I think people going to Disney will plan to do a day at Universal now or cut a couple days from a Disney trip to go to Universal, something Disney will notice, but not something you will notice crowd wise. Maybe on the actual opening day of HPW, June 18th, there might be a little difference at WDW, but it's going to be nuts over there with all the media and everything, so you might see people giving up on Universal and heading over to Disney. HPW is going to be a big draw for sure, but again I don't think you are going to notice it in the WDW parks as a guest.

 

[FireDancer]

an argument could be made for the opposite effect...

perhaps HP will draw new people to orlando, who while they're in the neighborhood seeing harry, will head on over to take in a bit of WDW as well...

so maybe HP will actually increase the crowds at WDW....

i guess we'll have to wait and see...

This is what I think will happen. I don't know anyone that would go to US and not go to Disney. I think a lot of people will be planning their vacations to go to HP and will add a few Disney days onto it actually increasing the crowds in the short term. As the initial surge dies down it might have a negligible effect on crowd levels if people decide to make their one US day two US days without extending the total length of stay.