November plan help

[Betsyp]

I know, the thread title couldn’t be vaguer, mll

My original plan was:

11/7 (Mon) - Epcot
11/8 (Tues) - MK
11/9 (Wed) - AK/HS
11/10 (Thurs) - open

My thought was to avoid MK on a Monday. Then I discovered that Tuesday was a party night at MK, so it closes early. My nephew works at Disney, and goes all the time on his off-hours, and when I asked whether I should move MK to avoid party crowds, he said I should.

So I came up with a new plan:

11/7 (Mon) - Epcot
11/8 (Tues) - AK/HS
11/9 (Wed) - MK
11/10 (Thurs) - was Epcot, now HS. 1/2 day at HS was just not enough, and I’ll be hopping to Epcot multiple times

But, in reading Tourist Blog’s plan for MK, he said that he WOULD advise going to MK on a party day, but leave around 4pm before crowds arrive. Should we switch MK and AK/HS day? If we do that (3 adults), we’d leave MK around 4pm and park hop to wherever…

Also, if it matters, Jersey Week - which I’d never heard of until 5 minutes ago- is 11/10 and 11/11. I’m leaving on 11/11, so I don’t know if I’ll do anything that day, but it will affect Thursday’s plans, I suppose. I’m inclined to just keep that day as is, but I’m open

Thoughts and advice?

Thank you!!

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

I know, the thread title couldn’t be vaguer, mll

My original plan was:

11/7 (Mon) - Epcot
11/8 (Tues) - MK
11/9 (Wed) - AK/HS
11/10 (Thurs) - open

My thought was to avoid MK on a Monday. Then I discovered that Tuesday was a party night at MK, so it closes early. My nephew works at Disney, and goes all the time on his off-hours, and when I asked whether I should move MK to avoid party crowds, he said I should.

So I came up with a new plan:

11/7 (Mon) - Epcot
11/8 (Tues) - AK/HS
11/9 (Wed) - MK
11/10 (Thurs) - was Epcot, now HS. 1/2 day at HS was just not enough, and I’ll be hopping to Epcot multiple times

But, in reading Tourist Blog’s plan for MK, he said that he WOULD advise going to MK on a party day, but leave around 4pm before crowds arrive. Should we switch MK and AK/HS day? If we do that (3 adults), we’d leave MK around 4pm and park hop to wherever…

Also, if it matters, Jersey Week - which I’d never heard of until 5 minutes ago- is 11/10 and 11/11. I’m leaving on 11/11, so I don’t know if I’ll do anything that day, but it will affect Thursday’s plans, I suppose. I’m inclined to just keep that day as is, but I’m open

Thoughts and advice?

Thank you!!

1) Jersey week is actually the whole week. A lot of schools have to close for election day on Tuesday because they are voting locations. Then, they close Thurs Fri for teacher convention. A ton of people just take the whole week since you only end up missing 2 non-consecutive days of school where very little gets done anyway. Our district has started making Mon and Weds teacher in service, so we get the full week. Expect heavy crowds all week.

2) With hoppers, you *definitely* should do an MK party morning. The park will open early (7:30am for on site) and tons of people without hoppers avoid those dates because they want the full day with the fireworks. If you a) don't care about fireworks or b) can go over another evening, you'll get more done on an MK party morning than a full MK day. Party days are one of the few days left where MK crowds are consistently lower.

 

[Betsyp]

1) Jersey week is actually the whole week. A lot of schools have to close for election day on Tuesday because they are voting locations. Then, they close Thurs Fri for teacher convention. A ton of people just take the whole week since you only end up missing 2 non-consecutive days of school where very little gets done anyway. Our district has started making Mon and Weds teacher in service, so we get the full week. Expect heavy crowds all week.

2) With hoppers, you *definitely* should do an MK party morning. The park will open early (7:30am for on site) and tons of people without hoppers avoid those dates because they want the full day with the fireworks. If you a) don't care about fireworks or b) can go over another evening, you'll get more done on an MK party morning than a full MK day. Party days are one of the few days left where MK crowds are consistently lower.

oh wow, unbelievable that our dates would coincide for Jersey Week...Oh well, I’m not in any rush, and my nephew (who I’ll be with for 3 days) can also help navigate the crowds. It will be amazing, anyway.

Thank you !! I can do fireworks any other time, and actually we’re having dinner at LTT on the Monday. MK closes late that evening, so it works out great !

**Is there anything I can do to mitigate the unfortunate crowds during Jersey Week?

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

I was just doing a little planning on MDE a few minutes ago and noticed MK is “sold out“ (for now anyways) for both the 7th and 9th, but on that note lesser crowds and shorter hours ALWAYS win for me.

 

[Genie+]

**Is there anything I can do to mitigate the unfortunate crowds during Jersey Week?

Are you staying onsite? Early Entry helps get a jump ahead of the crowds. Even without it, still advisable to ropedrop and try getting some stuff done before wait times start peaking. Once posted waits get too long to bear, switch over to shows, shopping, eating or something nearby with low wait. Beware that a low wait ride across the park may no longer be once you get there. And don’t forget to put in a Mobile Order for lunch before you start getting hungry.

It’s not convenient for everyone, but we like to do that then take a break during the hardest part of a park day (noon-4pm usually). Most days we try to get a good 2 hour nap and some days spend time in the pool. Then we’ll quickly freshen up and go back to close the parks. Sometimes we’ll stop at a different resort first for dinner if no decent options were available in that park. Wait times drop in the last hours. Remember most rides keep the line open right up to the minute of official park close and usually inflate wait times to discourage people from swamping the line last minute, so a 45 min posted wait might only take 25 minutes. Works great for rides like 7DMT, SDD, FoP, etc.

Have a great trip! Keep an eye out for park hour updates. They could be extended a few weeks before your trip and then again closer to the dates. That helps thin the earliest and latest crowds a bit to make them even better if you can manage doing both.

 

[Betsyp]

Are you staying onsite? Early Entry helps get a jump ahead of the crowds. Even without it, still advisable to ropedrop and try getting some stuff done before wait times start peaking. Once posted waits get too long to bear, switch over to shows, shopping, eating or something nearby with low wait. Beware that a low wait ride across the park may no longer be once you get there. And don’t forget to put in a Mobile Order for lunch before you start getting hungry.

It’s not convenient for everyone, but we like to do that then take a break during the hardest part of a park day (noon-4pm usually). Most days we try to get a good 2 hour nap and some days spend time in the pool. Then we’ll quickly freshen up and go back to close the parks. Sometimes we’ll stop at a different resort first for dinner if no decent options were available in that park. Wait times drop in the last hours. Remember most rides keep the line open right up to the minute of official park close and usually inflate wait times to discourage people from swamping the line last minute, so a 45 min posted wait might only take 25 minutes. Works great for rides like 7DMT, SDD, FoP, etc.

Have a great trip! Keep an eye out for park hour updates. They could be extended a few weeks before your trip and then again closer to the dates. That helps thin the earliest and latest crowds a bit to make them even better if you can manage doing both.

Yes, I’m staying at CSR - I’d never stay off site, lol

Thank you for the great tips! Early entry is something I will do, for sure - you can get a lot done before the official opening. This is also where being an obsessive trip planner will come in handy - as it has on my other trips to WDW. I’ll make sure I have planned options as you mentioned to deal with the very long waits.

Taking breaks in the middle of the day sounds like a great idea on paper, but it could be more difficult in real time, especially since CSR is a schlep to most parks. That said, It could be possible.

My first park day is EPCOT, Monday, with dinner at LTT/MK at 8:55 pm. There’s no reason I can’t take break that day with that ADR - and as MK is open until 11 pm that night, in fact it would be a great idea.

Tuesday is MK day - and we’ll leave around 4pm as that is a party night. Dinner is at Homecoming - and then perhaps we can go to another park for a few rides

Wednesday is AK/HS, with dinner at Monsieur Paul, so I imagine we will leave HS relatively early for hotel...not sure, but I can’t imagine showing up to MP all sweaty and messy, lol

Thursday is my last full day - HS and EPCOT, with 7pm dinner at Rose and Crown. I won’t return to hotel as the parks are so close, but there won’t be any issues taking breaks.

Thank you again for the great tips!