Crowds growing in off season is HS & AK expansions too little too late?

[Gshrout]

Hey I realize that the days of hitting the Parks during off season and crowd levels being a minimum are long over with. But isn't it getting a little bit crazy. So am I being too sensitive to my personal space or have any of you (my fellow Disney-addicts) begun to feel the same way?

 

[Christian Fronckowiak]

All I can say is that, in my recent experiences at WDW, I went on Fourth of July WEEK and the longest line that I waited in was 30 minutes for Great Movie Ride. I didn't find the crowds to be overwhelming except for in the MK hub, which they've since expanded.
I didn't feel unreasonably crowded at Hollywood Studios except for walking up and down Sunset Blvd.

 

[ToTBellHop]

I still find the lines quite manageable. Walkways are jammed at times. Otherwise, I think some people just like to complain.

 

[Gshrout]

Hey Thanks for answering! It's really reassuring to hear you talk like that, because it must just be me then. My family and I discuss this all the time and the topic always turns to the crowds. Could be we long for those days back in the early 90's when off season meant zero waiting and you could Hop 3 parks a day to enjoy loads of restaurants and rides. Fourth of July 1992 was elbow room only at MK. That January we pretty much had the park to ourselves. I'm hoping the expansions will give more people more things to do.

 

[Coaster Lover]

I was there in March this year (a time that I had read was supposed to be one of the worst times to go) and I never thought lines were unreasonable. We made good use of Fast Pass and otherwise never waited more than about 30 mins for the majority of attractions (not that lines didn't get longer for the E-tickets, we just either had Fast Passes or just avoided those lines when they were at a peak). Overall, if those were "Level 8" lines, I'd gladly take lines like that again for how perfect the weather was (not too hot, not too cold, no rain, minimal humidity)...

 

[Bolt]

Hey Thanks for answering! It's really reassuring to hear you talk like that, because it must just be me then. My family and I discuss this all the time and the topic always turns to the crowds. Could be we long for those days back in the early 90's when off season meant zero waiting and you could Hop 3 parks a day to enjoy loads of restaurants and rides. Fourth of July 1992 was elbow room only at MK. That January we pretty much had the park to ourselves. I'm hoping the expansions will give more people more things to do.

I assume the shareholders didn't like it when the park was empty. Just my opinion.

 

[Monty]

I think what used to be slow season is now "slower" season. Crowds can be manageable, but it's not as light as it once was.

At the end of the day, you're still in WDW, so it's all good !

 

[Gshrout]

LOL, I'm sure they hated it. The shareholders that is...

 

[ToTBellHop]

I assume the shareholders didn't like it when the park was empty. Just my opinion.

Yeah. And honestly, every time I go in January, LOTS of rides are walk-on. Sure, Peter Pan has a 40-min wait, but it always has a wait. On the other hand, Jungle Cruise is usually 10 min or less.

 

[graphite1326]

We just went the last week of Oct. I found the crowds to be higher than usual. It was during F&W festival and figured the crowds at EPCOT would be high but it seemed that all the parks were a little crowded.

 

[GhostHost1000]

Crowds are growing yes

"Slow" seasons tend to have more discounts and Disney is also doing a good job scheduling marathons and other events during these times as well

You just have to know how to navigate away from the crowds but yes in my opinion crowds do seem to be growing

 

[POLY LOVER]

We just went the last week of Oct. I found the crowds to be higher than usual. It was during F&W festival and figured the crowds at EPCOT would be high but it seemed that all the parks were a little crowded.

I was there and I agree it was busy at DHS and the only place that was really off the hook was the Osborne lights. The MK was busy but manageable.

 

[dizda]

Crowds really seemed to have picked up in the last year.

 

[docdebbi]

We just went the last week of Oct. I found the crowds to be higher than usual. It was during F&W festival and figured the crowds at EPCOT would be high but it seemed that all the parks were a little crowded.

we were also there around then.
i agree, the crowds were much larger than other years when we have gone in October. we decided not to go back in Oct. anymore. going to try April again, see what that's like.

there were 60-75 minute waits for almost everything. we waited 70 minutes in PoC line. there were lines for Carousel of progress, Philharmagic, Country bear jamboree and Wedway People mover. the peoplepmover actually had someone standing outside the limit of the queue with a "line starts here" sign.

even the CMs I talked to said they couldn't figure out the sudden increase. And touring plans constantly read, "what we predicted 4. what we saw 9." it wasn't just one park or one day, we kept checking to see if we were just whining babies, or it really was that crowded. touring plans confirmed, it was that crowded.........but we were still whining babies!

 

[Chef Mickey]

Even with the expansion, it's a terrible timeline.

Iger hasn't expanded adequately, but the bigger issue is allowing EPCOT and DHS to practically go on life support with completely closed or unused areas. DHS essentially wastes the entire backlot area, Streets of America is a joke, LMA needs an update, and Sounds Dangerous/American Idol are unused. EPCOT has unused Wonders of Life, Imagination Pavilion, and several attractions in desperate need of TLC.

Disney should get all 4 parks completely built out with every building utilized. After they are all completely built out, then focus on expanding.

I'd vote to do things concurrently, but I have little confidence in their ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously. They should have done the "upkeep" over the last 10-15 years. Now, we kind of need refurbishment AND expansion.

 

[BigThunderMatt]

I was at Magic Kingdom on Sunday the 15th and it was a madhouse. It took forever to even park our car because parking was literally backed up in all lanes back to the Auto Plaza. We had FastPasses for Thunder and Splash as well as one for Space later in the day which we ended up opting out of because after those two fastpasses and lunch everything was a 30-45+ wait. Even TTA had a line. That might not seem like much of a wait to some people but for someone like me who is used to early November and December being a respite from the insanity of Christmas-New Years it was unbelievably crowded.

What was even more surprising was this was a day they were having a Christmas party. In the past, these days have usually been less crowded because the park is only "open" until 7 with no advertised fireworks or evening parades which would usually cause people to go elsewhere.

 

[planters49]

We were at Disney World last week and the crowds everywhere were more than we have seen over the last 10 years. We usually go during November (week before Thanksgiving week) and the crowds are not so bad. We adapted to the crowds, but Disney transportation was a total nightmare. We normally drive our car to all parks except Magic Kingdom since the buses drop you at the front door. It took 2 hours to get back to Caribbean Beach last Monday after the Magic Kingdom closed. Most we have ever waited on a bus was 30 minutes tops in the past. They really should have had buses lined up and ready to go.

 

[networkpro]

Its nothing Disney exclusively is do that's the cause of the crowds shifting around, a few more inputs are in play:

• Economic recovery, more people have more disposable income.
• Greater adoption of balanced school schedule (aka year round education)
• Simple population growth

 

[Dad 2 M & M]

Its nothing Disney exclusively is do that's the cause of the crowds shifting around, a few more inputs are in play:

• Economic recovery, more people have more disposable income.
• Greater adoption of balanced school schedule (aka year round education)
• Simple population growth

Agree and additionally, part of the issue is the laggard effect is in play......the crowd data used is from a previous period (even days/weeks prior, not just months/quarters) and thus the remedy/solution lags behind ...

 

[Florida_is_hot]

The business model of WDW is charge as much as they want, build as little as possible.
Guess what people keep coming.
Why build more ...... people keep coming.
The crowds keep increasing ..... people keep coming.
Charge more .... people keep coming.

People complain how long it takes to get something new, crowds, and prices but they keep coming.

The only way anybody with any first year business degree would think it is good idea to go on a major building spree it if people stop showing up.

What you will see is what has already been announced and WDW will take their sweet time to complete even those projects.