Perhaps an anecdotal description of our first trip to WDW will lighten this thread a bit. Prior to the trip, one of the few planning tools was the Birnbaum guide. I read and researched as much as I could and painstakingly laid out our intinerary for a 5 day trip. We went 2nd week in Sept. which was a very slow time of year. My resources indicated Fridays were the slowest days for MK. We went first thing in the morning, and crowds were rather heavy. I commented to my husband "if this is light, I don't want to see what heavy looks like!". But, what did we know? We were never at MK before.
We left midday and returned around 7 to see the nighttime parade. At check in, our CM indicated a poster advertising the parade, saying it was the last time to check it out before it moved on to EuroDisney. We didn't understand the significance of that. On our way to MK, not only were the MK parking lots full, cars were parked UNDER the monorail track. Again, we commented, if this is light, we hate to see what crowded looks like. We enter into MK and become totally overwhelmed. Remember this was our first time in MK, so walking down Main Street, we didn't understand why ropes were blocking our way onto the sidewalk. Not that we could do that anyway...because of the crowds of people seated on the curb and standing everywhere. Panic set in...we needed to find someplace and get a drink, preferably alcoholic, to take this all in. I think we had wandered into Adventureland before we asked a CM where the nearest place was where we could get a drink. We were politely informed MK didn't serve alcohol!!!!
As it turns out, it was one of the last weekends for MSEP...yep..the one that made it's way back to WDW. But, people didn't know that then. There was a major advertising campaign focusing on Floridians and nearby states, inviting everyone to come out and say goodbye to the beloved parade. And come out they did! In droves!!!!
We laugh about it now. We rolled with the situation. Met a lot of nice people in the crowd who took pity on our ignorance. And it didn't turn us off to future trips to WDW. If anything, it made me more of a voracious planner!
That was 21 years ago. If there's anything I've learned in all our trips to the World, is that it's a given something that couldn't be anticipated or planned for will probably affect our trip. I used to love the "off-season" and low crowds. But so many changes now happen during that time to increase attendance, I actually like the high or regular season trips my kids' school and activities force us to take. With the late hours and special parades going on every day, it gives us more flexibility to work against the crowds!
OP - I understand your disappointment. If you decide to go, hope it isn't as bad as you expect it to be.