Spring Break or Summer/lesser of two evils :)

[radforas]

So we have become early summer WDW vacationers because of DD's Middle School schedule.
For the last several years we have done early or late summer because of the difficulty of missing a week + of school.
So I'm contemplating a Spring Break trip this year to try and avoid the summer humidity and attend the Flower and Garden over at Epcot.
The problem being DD's Spring Break schedule is the week after Easter Sunday.
My questions are: How much crazier are the crowds compared to summer?
Is Easter week blacked out when it comes to room discounts?
We usually do a Moderate like CBR or POR but price wise during that time frame we will probably have do a Value like POP.
Anyone with recent Easter week experience that can help?

 

[MissingDisney]

We're spring break veterans. It's spring break. It's crowded. No getting around it. ..but...it's much easier to tolerate when it's not 99 degrees and 95% humidity. Just takes planning and patience. We always get a ton of stuff in and have a great time but go expecting crowds and count it all joy when a standby line is less than an hour. We plan other activities when lines are at peak and it breaks up the day. Park hoppers are a must for us and let's us maximize our experience but that's our choice. Not for everyone.

 

[radforas]

We're spring break veterans. It's spring break. It's crowded. No getting around it. ..but...it's much easier to tolerate when it's not 99 degrees and 95% humidity. Just takes planning and patience. We always get a ton of stuff in and have a great time but go expecting crowds and count it all joy when a standby line is less than an hour. We plan other activities when lines are at peak and it breaks up the day. Park hoppers are a must for us and let's us maximize our experience but that's our choice. Not for everyone.

Thanks for the reply.
I figured it would be pretty crowded but in reality we have been many different times of the year and Disney is never crowd free.
I just didn't know if park closure due to capacity is common that week or that type of thing.
We're veteran park goers and always get the hopper passes, we also try to make rope drop when I can get DW and DD moving, lol.
Does anybody know if I can expect a room discount or not?
Again, thanks.

 

[Figgy1]

That would depend on when your dd gets out of school and the first day of school. The last 2 weeks in August hot and humid but the crowds aren't too bad. We had a choice June through the first week of July or August and we chose August. 4th of July would have been fun but way too crowded

 

[Tuvalu]

Does anybody know if I can expect a room discount or not?.

Typically no. We arrived on Easter this year and there was no discount at POFQ. Rates are higher because Easter is considered a "peak season" (the same rooms are cheaper in the summer.) We also stayed at WL during Easter week a few years ago and no discounts were offered resort-wide (I keep a journal and noted that.)

Easter is the busiest week of the March/April spring break season. A "regular" spring break week is similar crowd-wise to a summer week. Easter week is more like Christmas week - crazy busy. However, we did not experience any park closures this year; a few years ago MK closed briefly due to capacity, but that was before New Fantasyland opened and capacity limits increased.

MK opens at 7am that week, and it was a neat experience watching the Welcome Show in front of the train station in the dark! Once inside the park we could watch the sunrise - the lighting was fabulous for picture-taking!

Flower and Garden is a must-do for us, and for that reason alone I would brace the Easter crowds rather than choose early summer. And as you said, the weather will be MUCH more pleasant (and the chance of rain is less too.)

 

[meganwdw]

What about the last week of April?? My girls have really late Spring Break so we've opted to go then as opposed to our usual mid November trip! We've been the first and second weeks of May and it was nice but I'm really not sure what crowds will be like that week in April!

 

[Tuvalu]

What about the last week of April?? My girls have really late Spring Break so we've opted to go then as opposed to our usual mid November trip! We've been the first and second weeks of May and it was nice but I'm really not sure what crowds will be like that week in April!

The last week of April should be similar to the crowds of early May. You will be a month post-Easter at that point.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I would take summer any day over spring break. Mind you, we live in a warmer part of the country and can handle summer conditions at WDW without issue. Still, we've found the parks to be open a bit longer in the summer and the crowds, especially in August, to be lower. You're also MUCH more likely to find a respectable room discount in the summer vs. anything during spring break.

 

[stevehousse]

Done spring break a few times and it is crowded!!! I don't plan on going again. Easter week is especially crowded as well!

For whoever suggested the last week in April, it's a great choice. It'll be the same as the beginning of May, when we usually go.

 

[radforas]

Thanks for all the replies, we actually had a great trip this past June with excellent weather for that time of year.
So.... as much as I want to see Epcot during the Flower and Garden again we'll probably go for a summer trip again next year.
Maybe we'll try spring break another year if DD's doesn't fall during Easter week.

 

[stevehousse]

What's the reason for not letting the kid take a week off of school? Just curious? Is it sports or after school activities they are involved in and can't miss or do you think the work would be too much to catch up?

 

[radforas]

What's the reason for not letting the kid take a week off of school? Just curious? Is it sports or after school activities they are involved in and can't miss or do you think the work would be too much to catch up?

We used to pull her out regularly for a fall trip when she was in elementary school and it was not a problem.
Unfortunately she does not exactly breeze through her middle school level work and missing a week plus of it would put her too far behind in our opinion.
Maybe circumstances will change in the future and we can enjoy a spring or fall trip again.

 

[Courtney6682]

That would depend on when your dd gets out of school and the first day of school. The last 2 weeks in August hot and humid but the crowds aren't too bad. We had a choice June through the first week of July or August and we chose August. 4th of July would have been fun but way too crowded

We went the first week of this aug and it wasnt bad at all....I checked wait times at MK last night at 1130...space and splash were both at 5 mins! I was soooo wishing I was there lol