Orlando Timing Question

[Harpo]

Hi, folks.

For those familiar with year-round Walt Disney World activity, I've got a question.

Right now, it's looking like there's a good chance that my wife and I will visit WDW either before or after our November cruise. If it's before, it would be Movenber 7 through 9. If it's after, it would be November 18 through 21.

Here's the question:

During those few days before Thanksgiving, are the WDW parks significantly busier, or do the crowds tend to be manageable during that time?

In other words, crowd-wise, would it be significantly better for us to only have 3 days before the cruise but two weeks before Thanksgiving versus having 4 days after the cruise immediately before Thanksgiving?

An advantage to going during the week of Thanksgiving is that we could then go to Hilton Head Island for Thanksgiving weekend, spending the time with my parents and my nephew before we have to fly home to return to work, so that's why we're considering the change in plans (even before we'd really made plans!).

Thanks!

[Squid2]

From my (very limited) personal experience, it's a bit hit or miss. The week before TK can either be empty or crowded... one year it was empty, the next year it was crowded. The good news is that the parks tend to stay open a lot later during that week than earlier in November, so you have more time.

Squid2

[Westcot]

I personally have never been to Disney during Thanksgiving, but all I've got to say is if you're at the Magic Kingdom, it's ALWAYS packed. Especially around holidays, but I'm not sure about Thanksgiving. It's more of a "family" holiday than a leisure holiday, I guess you could say. EPCOT and Disney-MGM have rather small crowds compared to Magic Kingdom (this because their paths and wider than AK and MK's), and some parts of Animal Kingdom can be light depending on what time of day you go.

The only thing that I can really warn you about is Magic Kingdom... the management doesn't understand anything about closing a park after so many people are in. If you don't like crowds, don't spend a lot of time in MK. EPCOT and MGM can be great parks because they're less crowded and more relaxing.

[tycooner55]

On the subject of timing (since I didn't want to start a new thread) what would crowds be like for BGA in the beginning of November? My family is considering a trip then. Last year we went to Sea World at the same time, and the park was deserted. I'm hoping BGA will be the same.

[Harpo]

Thanks for the info.

Westcot, just as an FYI... I've been to WDW quite a few times, but never at Thanksgiving, so I do have familiarity with the parks and their layouts.

At least this trip to Orlando will be FAR more pleasant than my last trip. My last time there, I flew into Orlando and drove to Winter Haven for my uncle's funeral. That funeral was about 2 months after a December trip where I visited Florida (including the Disney parks) for a bit of coaster riding. On that trip, I visited the 4 Disney parks, the 2 Universal parks, Sea World, Busch Gardens, Cypress Gardens, and Old Town in about 1 week. I feel very fortunate in that I visited my uncle on that trip. His death was completely unexpected, so it was just lucky that we were able to get together for a couple of hours in Winter Haven -- in other words, I didn't make an effort to see him because I knew he was dying. I made the effort to see him just because I thought he was a delightful person. At that time, he seemed to be in good health, so his death 2 months later was very surprising. (On the day he died, he went to the doctor complaining of an upset stomach. The doctor sent him home. That afternoon, he was taken to the hospital and they were preparing for emergency heart surgery, but he didn't live long enough to get into the operating room.)

Anyway, like I said, this visit to Orlando will be on far happier terms.

[SCAREcrow22]

I say go in late January. We went at that time of year this year, and boy... The LONGEST line we waited in for at Disney had to be Autopia... AUTOPIA!- 45 mins. And at Universal? Pfff. 15 mins. That was one ride. The rest, even Spiderman, literally under 5 mins each.

[Alpengeist]

On the subject of timing (since I didn't want to start a new thread) what would crowds be like for BGA in the beginning of November? My family is considering a trip then. Last year we went to Sea World at the same time, and the park was deserted. I'm hoping BGA will be the same.

You should be fine at BGT at the beginning of November. ...It's right after Halloween and before Thanksgiving.

^There's actually a few good times to hit Universal during the year. Along with January, the first two weeks of May, the last three weeks of September(before HHN), early November(after HHN), and early December. Of course, I would stick with weekdays when at all possible.

[Harpo]

I say go in late January. We went at that time of year this year, and boy... The LONGEST line we waited in for at Disney had to be Autopia... AUTOPIA!- 45 mins. And at Universal? Pfff. 15 mins. That was one ride. The rest, even Spiderman, literally under 5 mins each.

Thanks, but our timing is not that flexible.

We'll be visiting Disney either before or after my parents' 50th anniversary cruise. That cruise date is fixed, so we only have the choice of November 7 through 9 or November 18 through 21.

Right now, we're leaning towards November 18 through 21, but we've not yet made any reservations.

[Squid2]

Hey, Harpo, me and my lady will probably be in Orlando around that time for Thanksgiving. Want to (finally) meet at WDW, maybe even meet Great Gatsby?

Squid2

[Harpo]

I'll get back to you on it once our plans are finalized. Hopefully we can find a way to meet!

[Westcot]

Westcot, just as an FYI... I've been to WDW quite a few times, but never at Thanksgiving, so I do have familiarity with the parks and their layouts.


Sorry, there's usually a lot of people on this forum that have never been there. I guess I should have worded it differently. :)

[GreatGatsby]

Glad to see you're thinking about coming down, Harpo!

As for the crowds during Thanksgiving - I'm not supposed to tell you this, but it would be beneficial to avoid Magic Kingdom around Thanksgiving. However, the crowds at the other parks are manageable, but you have to muster up quite the patience - the lines will be moderate to long, the temperature will be considerably cooler, meaning your indoor attractions will be the main draw to the average tourist.

If that's the only time you can go, I suppose the crowds will be about an 8 out of 10, ten being the most crowded. Utilize your FASTPASS privileges wisely, and if you do finalize your plans, I'll let you in on a few tips to avoid the peak crowd times.

Be advised that during Thanksgiving, every school across the state will be out for the holiday, and there are many central Florida families with Annual Passes that will spend their holiday in the park.

I do recommend you visit two weeks before Turkey Day. There will be some days when the parks will be completely empty, but there will be others where there are some noticeable crowds. But remember, the parks during that time (it is the off-season, after all), will be closing earlier than the holiday season, like Squid2 said above me.

[Harpo]

Are schools in Florida out for the entire week of Thanksgiving?

Admittedly, it's been a LONG time since I was in high school, but I recall we only got Thursday and Friday off of Thanksgiving week.

I've generally been pretty good with my Fast Pass usage at the Disney parks, and have used it to great advantage. I remember the first time I visited after the Fast Pass was put in place. I made a comment to a cast member about only being able to have one Fast Pass ticket at a time. He commented, "Oh, there's a way around that, but I can't tell you what it is." It didn't take me long to figure out the way! (For those who haven't figured it out, it's left as an exercise for the reader! :D)

[GreatGatsby]

Are schools in Florida out for the entire week of Thanksgiving?

I've generally been pretty good with my Fast Pass usage at the Disney parks, and have used it to great advantage. I remember the first time I visited after the Fast Pass was put in place. I made a comment to a cast member about only being able to have one Fast Pass ticket at a time. He commented, "Oh, there's a way around that, but I can't tell you what it is." It didn't take me long to figure out the way! (For those who haven't figured it out, it's left as an exercise for the reader! :D)

No, they are not off the entire week, but many counties are released three days before and are not admitted back for a day after the weekend.

As for the FASTPASS tickets, I'm not sure what the Cast Member meant exactly... the machines are programmed so they only release one pass per ticket.

Unless he means "a way" that does not involve tampering with the machines, I really can't think of what he was implying.

[Squid2]

I know what he meant! I tell people about it all the time. But since Harpo wants to leave it up to the reader...

There is a time listed at the bottom of each ticket that lists when you can get your next Fastpass. If your time is for late in the day, you'll frequently find that the hour listed for your next Fastpass will be before the time you're supposed to show up to ride on your current Fastpass. This little trick allows you to have more than one pass at a time. I personally have had 4 Fastpasses at one time, each for a different attraction.

Squid2

[baseballfreakjc]

I go to Disney every year ,and I usually stay at the Grand Floridian. Love it there, they go above and beyond. I would imagine it wouldnt be so bad there on thanksgiving week. I would say the busiest time is christmas or halloween. But go to Disney, it's the best place on Earth :)

[nickdaegg]

Heh, Alton Towers' fasttrack machines had black buttons on one side of them. If you kept pressing that, you'd get a load of free fasttrack tickets! :D