Having 2nd thoughts

[bs58]

We, mother, father, daughters ages 7,6, and 3 plus grandparents are scheduled to go to WDW next week
Tuesday thru Saturday. At the time I thought this would be a low attendance period. As I have gotten more
educated it appears this is average to above average attendance. I have no problem pulling them from school
in September (lowest attendance) to go to WDW. We already have ressies. I am not sure just how much waiting
the girls can tolerate. I don't want their visit to consist of waiting in lines. Am I being paranoid about this? Are
the lines more bearable during the week as oppossed to the weekend? Will we be able to get into one of the waterparks
in the afternoon? How have the actual crowds been lately? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!

 

[BevS97]

Don't panic! It's going to be fine!

We went the first 2 weeks in May last year, and it was brilliant- we waited in very few lines.

There are a number of line avoiding strategies that are worth knowing. If you arrive at the parks early (at opening time), you will find very short lines - you will probably be able to ride with very little queuing for a couple of hours.

There is also fast pass, so if there is something you really want to do, and the lines are long, then you can get a fast pass and come back later.

Lines are also shorter during parades and meal times -however, you will probably want to watch the parade. But if you are at a park for the 2nd time, then you could skip the parade and benefit from short lines during that time.

Lines are also much shorter in the evenings.

If you are staying on-site, then it may be worth getting to the park early, and then leaving and returning to your hotel in the middle of the day, when the lines are longest and the heat is hottest - and having a swim and a rest, and going back to the parks in the evening- this depends on how late the parks are open during your stay of course.

also, think about making some PS's , if you will want to do a character meal, or other seat-down meal - that should minimise waiting for food, which is particularly frustrating.

if the kids already know they are going to WDW next week, I would have thought the wait until September would be much worse!

Bev

 

[bs58]

Bev,
Thank you for the comforting words. I did just find out that the water parks have been open all day. Fingers crossed.
Thanks again.

 

[Disneybelle66]

FYI,
just read on the resorts page, I believe, someone is currently at the CBR and said they hadn't waited in any lines!! She , Holly I belive, said they walked right on to the main rides, and even road some two in a row!! GO, and have a blast!

 

[welovemickey]

Hi, sorry to burst any bubbles here, but you should probably be aware that Disney is experiencing above average crowds for this time of year. We were there from 4/12 thru 4/26 and it was extremely crowded. A couple of times I mentioned it because there was definately a lack of CM's around (especially in the restaurants). What they told us was that they are in the process of filling 4000 jobs that were cut back in the fall. They said that this has been the busiest spring in a long time.

The busiest park was the MK. MGM wasn't too bad and AK seemed to have tons of people, but the wait times for attractions wasn't bad. We didn't get a chance to go to EPCOT. We spent a lot of time at Seaworld and Universal. Both of those parks seemed much better prepared to handle the crowds than disney did.

I would plan to be at the MK when it opens and go straight to Fantasy Land. Then hit the other main attractions after. We never went on the Dumbo ride - DS wouldn't wait in line, but the Alladin ride in Adventureland had hardly any wait at all (compared to Dumbo) so he rode that a few times. Use the FastPass and relax - there's lots to look at while waiting in line and there were a lot of characters walking around interacting with the kids in lines.

 

[MELSMICE]

If you have never been to WDW then it will most likely seem crowded no matter what.

Take the advice on arriving at the parks early. Get there 1 hour to 1/2 hour before opening. You will probably get the most done then. It seems like most people arrive between 10-11 a.m. By that time, it's getting hot & you'll probably be ready for a break in a hour or 2. Get to the water parks early. They fill up fast, especially in hot weather, but they are fun & worth going to.

Don't worry about it getting crowded or not seeing things. We always put a time limit on how long we will wait in a line. About 30-40 mins. is our limit. If the line is longer than that, we move on to something else.

Take it easy, see what you can & don't worry about what you don't. Hopefully you'll get back there again some day to see the rest of it. You'll have more fun if you try to relax.

 

[Cameo]

We just got back and I do think attendance was up. We went to MK several days. Wednesday was the best day, Saturday a bit more crowded and this past Monday was terrible. They actually had extended hours for the MK as compared to what the schedule said when we left home. It was open until 9:30 a couple extra nights while we were there. But, with two little ones, we only picked rides with waits of 15 minutes or less. Fastpass is a must!!

Animal Kingdom was very busy on Thursday also. MGM was crowded and Epcot. Everyplace was busy. Just go in knowing what's going on and you can plan a little bit.