October crowds vs summer crowds

[jhoannam]

We have only been to DW in October, we went 2014 & 2016. I keep reading how busy the 'fall break' season is getting. Do you all think it would be best to switch to summer trip? If so, which month? My kids get out of school the Wednesday before Memorial Day, would a trip right after school ends be less crowded than October? We were also thinking about going during Thanksgiving week of 2018 to see the Christmas decorations. TIA

 

[Alesia]

Last year, October was busier than it was in the summer (including the first week of July.

As far as summer trips go, earlier is better - both for crowds and weather.

 

[mastermind307]

We went in June 1-8, 2013 and I thought the crowds and weather were great. We went over my daughter's fall break in October 2015 and while the weather was great, it felt more crowded than the June trip. When I began planning our 2018 trip, I was torn between October and June. They each had pros and cons, but I decided on May 29-June 5. I'm hoping it will be similar to our 2013 trip, but a lot can change in 5 years and nobody know what the weather will be. We'll have a plan and have a good time no matter what.

 

[quandrea]

I'm here now and I visited this year during the first week of August. August was by far quieter. There were no lines for anything and manoeuvrability through the parks was way. This week, its nearly as hot as August and very crowded. I'm not complaining--we are having a blast, but it's much busier.

 

[Gentry2004]

I think Memorial Day would be less crowded than parts of October, near Columbus Day. I still think late October is quieter, but you still have to deal with the party closures and F&W.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

I had a similar question about the first week of May 2018 vs June 2018 since we had a day or two that we're much more crowded than expected this past May. Everyone and their brother says go in May (so maybe more people do) but I keep hearing the last two summers were slower than expected. I used the Historical crowd calendar data on Touring Plans to get a factual take on this past year. The days I thought were higher than expected in May were (an 8 versus 5s the rest of the week) and June was all 8s. So if we go, May it will be. The actual past data in this case was more clear than all the anecdotal information on the board.

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

I'm here now and I visited this year during the first week of August. August was by far quieter. There were no lines for anything and manoeuvrability through the parks was way. This week, its nearly as hot as August and very crowded. I'm not complaining--we are having a blast, but it's much busier.

Quandrea...are all the parks busy or just the MK?

 

[quandrea]

Quandrea...are all the parks busy or just the MK?

All of them. We were at Animal Kingdom yesterday. In seventy visits, I've never seen it busier. Magic Kingdom on Tuesday--very crowded, but again, with rope drop, fast pass and a plan we did very well. Epcot was busy on Wednesday. We hit up the Studios tomorrow.

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

All of them. We were at Animal Kingdom yesterday. In seventy visits, I've never seen it busier. Magic Kingdom on Tuesday--very crowded, but again, with rope drop, fast pass and a plan we did very well. Epcot was busy on Wednesday. We hit up the Studios tomorrow.

Thanks for the speedy reply, quandrea! I'm jealous...wish I was there right now!

 

[ArielSRL]

I'm a teacher and the last day for students is the Wed before Memorial Day and then our last day is Friday. I always take Memorial Day week to get the house cleaned up, shop for the trip, get organized and packed, etc. Then we hit Disney the first full week of June. It works for us. It really doesn't seem that busy to us. I've definitely read many reviews that indicate October is just as busy, and most likely busier, than some of the summer months.

 

[quandrea]

I'm a teacher and the last day for students is the Wed before Memorial Day and then our last day is Friday. I always take Memorial Day week to get the house cleaned up, shop for the trip, get organized and packed, etc. Then we hit Disney the first full week of June. It works for us. It really doesn't seem that busy to us. I've definitely read many reviews that indicate October is just as busy, and most likely busier, than some of the summer months.

Totally agree. We homeschool now but dd will enter regular high school next year. I suspect we will have some late June trips in our future.

 

[Mimifree]

We went in early June this year and again last week. It was significantly more crowded last week.

 

[cgattis]

We have only been to DW in October, we went 2014 & 2016. I keep reading how busy the 'fall break' season is getting. Do you all think it would be best to switch to summer trip? If so, which month? My kids get out of school the Wednesday before Memorial Day, would a trip right after school ends be less crowded than October? We were also thinking about going during Thanksgiving week of 2018 to see the Christmas decorations. TIA

Thanksgiving week will likely be busier than any week in June or October, based on my experiences. Never done July (although did August once and survived, although literally we did NOT come out smelling like roses LOL).

 

[AngiTN]

We get out of school the weekend before memorial day and always head to Disney the day school gets out.

We also went for fall break, which was the week of Columbus day.

The crowds were close but memorial was slightly less crowded.

 

[Shanti]

We have only been to DW in October, we went 2014 & 2016. I keep reading how busy the 'fall break' season is getting. Do you all think it would be best to switch to summer trip? If so, which month? My kids get out of school the Wednesday before Memorial Day, would a trip right after school ends be less crowded than October? We were also thinking about going during Thanksgiving week of 2018 to see the Christmas decorations. TIA

We went in late July 2016, and experienced the lowest crowds we'd seen since January 2009. It was awesome.

If you go in summer, you need to be prepared for the weather, though. Heat & daily rains.