Crowds in March/April 09

[cattprez]

Just wondering what the school holidays dates are for march april and also what the crowds are like. I am coming "home" then and dont want it to be busy in the parks and i am bringing my mum also

 

[Mickey&Minnie]

I don't know what the dates are..but we accidently went "home" during spring break in April a couple of years ago and the crowds were horrible. I hope that your trip doesn't coincide with the spring break dates.
I am sure someone else has some dates for you.

 

[cattprez]

im still in the planning stages of returning "home" so i want to see if i can find a week where it will be nice and not busy... then i'll work my holiday around that

 

[bradandsarabr]

Easter is April 12. I would expect big crowds from mid-March until about 1.5 weeks after Easter.

 

[cattprez]

so do u think we'd predict first week of March pretty quiet?

 

[GrowingUpDisney]

Reminder from the cheerleading gym owner!!!

There will be cheerleading competitions at the beginning of March (I think 6 - 10 or the weekend before) and the Cheerleading and Dance World Championships will be at the end of April (usually the last weekend of April).

Cheers!!!

Niki

 

[cattprez]

grrr.... so how do u think the crowds would be end of Feb or Early May maybe even June?(only just realised its going to be high season!!!!!! grrrr.....) I only want about 7days there...staying on property at AKL...just dont want mega crowds... something like the 1/2nd week of dec would be nice

 

[lilclerk]

Out of those choices, I'd say the end of February. I think it's still classified as "Value" season too, as long as you miss the week of Presidents Day.

 

[GrowingUpDisney]

Sorry for the bad news again from the cheerleading gym owner:

There is also a cheer competition the last weekend in Feb and I believe that the weekend before that is a dance competition. (we don't do dance!). Early Feb might be a better option!?!?!?

Cheers!!

Niki

 

[Wildcat99]

We have our trip planned for April 17 - 23. So, you think the crowds will be that bad?

 

[TakeMeThere81]

Also, FYI the Mobile(AL) Public County Schools are on spring break from April 13-17. I know a lot of people go to Disney around here for Spring Break also.

 

[November Girl]

The breaks usually are a few days before Easter and go on for about a week. The crowds will probably be tough

 

[foldmama]

I have gone the first week of May in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Crowds are moderate to light. Added bonus of the Epcot Flower and Garden show.

 

[sugarbear_1269]

I am using a crowd estimator from www.touringplans.com. If you are a Mousesavers member or own the Unofficial Guide to WDW by Sehlinger and Testa, you can get a discount on the $7.95 annual cost.

I bought it because I was trying to figure out the crowds, since the only time I can visit this year is during my niece's Spring Break. TP.com has a very well researched crowd estimator. For people who are visiting just prior to Easter, I agree with another poster, you may be seeing peak crowds and waits of 90 - 120 minutes.

I would say that if you are worried about the crowds like I am, it is worth the money to get some background on the probable crowds in relation to holidays and spring breaks, plus official and unofficial (Gay Days is an unofficial WDW gathering/event, and brings significant crowds, as an example) events.

They give a scale from 1-10, with 10 being the highest. I will be home from 29 March until 4 April, and it looks like my niece and I will be dealing with 7-9 levels the whole time. Since our dates aren't flexible we don't have any choice.

If you are like me and can't change your plans, you might want to look into the touring plans they offer on the site. A friend of mine used one with two of her four children and she said it made 20-30 minute differences in their wait times. To me, that is worth it.

 

[happymom52003]

I am using a crowd estimator from www.touringplans.com. If you are a Mousesavers member or own the Unofficial Guide to WDW by Sehlinger and Testa, you can get a discount on the $7.95 annual cost.

I was going to suggest the same website.

If you are worried about crowd levels and you have multiple weeks you are looking at throughout the year, the crowd prediction calendar can be very, very helpful in picking the days for your trips. I've used it to plan all of my trips.

If you own the current edition of The Unofficial Guide, you can access the crowd calendar for the entire year by answering a couple of questions from the book (to verify that you own the book). Or just pay the small membership fee. WELL worth it in my opinion.

Also, as a side note....the cheerleading and dance competitons usually do not have a huge impact on crowd levels at the parks, in general.

 

[cattprez]

May Crowds

any more hints on May crowds? I pulled out my 2007 guide and showed May had the same crowds as first week dec... will look on touringplans when i get home from work... but that might be the way now... first weeks in may. Thanks heaps for all for your help...keep the ideas and hints coming im so glad now the Aussie Dollar is nearly matching US!! hehehe xoxo

 

[GrowingUpDisney]

Also, as a side note....the cheerleading and dance competitons usually do not have a huge impact on crowd levels at the parks, in general.

Just thought I would clarify - The UCA National Cheer competition (Early March) is actually held inside Disney Studios (indy stage).

The Cheer and Dance World Championships (end of April) are held inside Disney Studios (cheer) and Inside Epcot (Dance).

Niki

 

[disney4life2008]

Does anyone have a discount code for Touringplans.com? I remember there was one posted some time ago but I can not locate it.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

Meh. I was planning on going the week after my birthday 3/24 - 4/1 but if the crowds are going to be that bad...:shrug:

 

[NiarrNDisney]

I usually go the first or second week of May and the crowds are really not that bad, the longest lines we waited in were about 30min. one being Soarin the other the Seas with Nemo and company.

Thanks for the info! I too will be heading to the World in the end of March. I'm hoping the crowds will be a little better than what has been mentioned but I'm sure everyones right and it will be clogged like a toilet.