Worried about Columbus Day week.

[pjpoppins]

Should I be concerned? I know it's typically a little busier but it sounded like this year was crazy. We went this past summer and were even there for 7/4 and it really didn't seem that bad. 7/3 MK fireworks were nuts but we knew that going in. We are staying at the Fort and booked kinda late. We originally wanted to go for Thanksgiving but it was full.

 

[uccats97]

I wouldn't worry. It may be more crowded than a typical Monday, but nothing to fret about. I'm sure you'll still have fun!

 

[DaisyDuck001]

I went on that week some years ago, and it was extra crowded. Since then I try to avoid that week. (However it's getting tougher to find any uncrowded times of year, due to special events, races, etc.) I'd pick a different week if possible; but if that's all that works for you, worrying won't help. Hoping you have a good trip anyway.

 

[macraven]

I found Disney to be too crowded for me on the Columbus Day weekend

Better for me to go before that weekend

 

[mom2rtk]

If you go this week, I would definitely avoid the MK on days when there is no Halloween party. It concentrates crowds in the park those days.

 

[ravenanne]

We went this past Columbus Day and I didn't find it to be too crowded. As long as you plan accordingly, you will be fine. My advice would be to use a crowd calendar while planning your week and decide park days based on what's recommended. On actual Columbus Day we hit EP in the morning and it wasn't too bad at all. If you go into it expecting the worst, you will be pleasantly surprised when it's not as bad. That's how I did it, and we had a great time!

 

[mom2rtk]

We went this past Columbus Day and I didn't find it to be too crowded. As long as you plan accordingly, you will be fine. My advice would be to use a crowd calendar while planning your week and decide park days based on what's recommended. On actual Columbus Day we hit EP in the morning and it wasn't too bad at all. If you go into it expecting the worst, you will be pleasantly surprised when it's not as bad. That's how I did it, and we had a great time!

Columbus Day proper generally is not the problem. That's travel day for anyone who took a 3 day weekend. It's the days leading up to it.

 

[jdisnut]

It seems like a lot of this has to do with your expectations and tolerance. I've been to the Disney parks over Christmas, which I know is supposed to absolute chaos, and I honestly didn't think it was as terrible as advertised. My wife's a teacher, so our travel opportunities are pretty much limited to the busy season. Maybe I'm just mentally prepared for the worst.

So to answer your question, Columbus Day will certainly draw larger crowds than a typical weekend. Enough to prevent you from happening a good time? That really depends on preference.

 

[ravenanne]

Columbus Day proper generally is not the problem. That's travel day for anyone who took a 3 day weekend. It's the days leading up to it.

It depends on when you plan the trip, either before or after the holiday weekend. I agree, though. We arrived the Sunday before(10/9) so we skipped the weekend crowds. Plus, we arrived just after the hurricane so I'm sure that contributed to the lower crowd.

 

[otten]

We weee there that weekend last year. It was very busy but not unmanageable. I'm not sure last year is a good example of crowds that weekend though because we had the hurricane closure on the Friday before the weekend which may have affected crowd patterns.

 

[SpaceMtnGirl]

We will be there that week too. My son's school has always had fall break the first week in October and we always go that week. We can feel the increase in crowds as it gets closer to Columbus Day but leave before the weekend. This year, his school moved fall break to the second week, so we will be moving our trip to that week. I plan to hit Epcot on Columbus Day. We will be in MK on Saturday 10/7 but Wishes is a must-do for us so I plan to do the dessert party to help with those crowds. We'll also do 2 MNSSHP because we love them and can do many attractions with less crowds. Other than those strategies, we will just brace ourselves for crowds and do our best! I just hope there's no hurricanes this time!!!

 

[Maddysdaddy]

My standard response on threads like this is:

If that is the only week that works for you to go, then there is no point in panicking about crowds. Crowds are what they are, and if you plan your day assuming they will be horrible, you're prepared - and if they happen to be smaller than expected, it will be a pleasant surprise for your family.

As my late grandmother used to say, "hope for the best and plan for the worst".

 

[AshleeH]

It is crowded. The misinformation I see about October these days is crazy (not necessarily on this thread - most people here seem to know this fact by now, but so many other places don't).

October is the new summer - it is hot, it is crowded, and MK closes several nights every week for the parties, so that makes it feel even more crowded than it is when people pile in to get every minute out of it. Many more schools have Fall Breaks these days and the majority fall on these weeks. Columbus Day Week, even more so. We have gone both during this week (2010, 2011, 2012) and the week before Columbus Day (2014, 2016) and there is no difference. Both weeks were packed. Columbus Day itself is a day we avoid MK - we did it twice and when Buzz Lightyear's line crept up to 90 minutes, we got the heck out of there. That's a barometer for us that there are just too many people, so we park-hopped.

We go knowing this is how it is and there's no changing it, so we go with the flow and do have a great time. But it makes my head want to explode on other forums/pages when I try to warn people about what to expect so they're not blindsided like we were and others chime in to try and say I'm exaggerating and that October is an amazing time to go to avoid crowds and heat. Nope - crowds roll in and temps stay consistently in the 90s (high 80s, if we're lucky).

I tried to find a picture for you, but the only ones on my phone are of the parade and that always draws a crowd, so it's not the most accurate, since all parades look like that.

Plan for it and you'll have a great trip!

 

[AZMermaid]

My school district is always out that week for fall break. I'm in AZ do this affects DL way more than WDW... but I know we aren't the only ones. We went that week in 2009 sndbghr crowds were ok... granted this was 7 years ago and fall breaks seem to have become more common since then. But it was SO hot! There was this huge heat wave!

I will say... my kids go to school on a neighboring district. Their fall break always coincides with the Jewish Holidays, not Columbus Day. This year... we had the same days off. So if some schools have fall break for Columbus week and some have it during the Jewish holidays... the years these two things collide will be especially busy. For 2017, the Jewish holidays are in September.

 

[Govols1997]

We've been the last two Columbus Days. This year the weather and crowds were awesome early on the week after Columbus Day due to the hurricane. I agree, avoid MK at night on non party nights and you're good.