Is it a good idea to go to WDW in the second half of march ?

[abdelaziz]

Hello !
First of all I apologize for my poor english as it is not my first language.
With that said my question is: For someone who probably won't find another opportunity until next year and hasn't been to Orlando for more than 2.5 years, is it a good idea to go this march from the 18th to the 27th ?
The fact that there were only a few hotels left to book when I checked this morning scared me as it signals very heavy crowds.
Also I know this is a very late date to book a hotel but due to circumstances it couldn't be helped.
And I apologize if I posted this in the wrong section. ( I wasn't too sure where to post it )
Thank you very much in advance.

 

[MaximumEd]

We will be there from the 21st to the 28th and have made several trips during this time frame. This is during school Spring Break, and from past experience, I can tell you that it will be VERY crowded during that time. With a good plan, you can still get everything done since you will be there for a pretty long trip. Prepare for the crowds, but enjoy.

 

[abdelaziz]

We will be there from the 21st to the 28th and have made several trips during this time frame. This is during school Spring Break, and from past experience, I can tell you that it will be VERY crowded during that time. With a good plan, you can still get everything done since you will be there for a pretty long trip. Prepare for the crowds, but enjoy.

Thank you very much for the reply and encouraging response. I have been to WDW twice during july and managed pretty well. Would you say the crowds are comparable ?
Also, I wish you a happy trip

 

[MaximumEd]

These days, I would say spring break crowds are worse. Maybe.

 

[Rosanne]

Stay away from weekends and holidays. Its bad enough when school is in session and no holidays during the week. I cant imagine what its like in July. I think sometimes they have to close the gates on 4th of July because they were at their limit. That means you pay the big gate fee and can only get on 3 or 4 rides due to long lines (in Florida high heat & humidity

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

If you want to go then go.
Just because the rooms seem like they are limited doesn't really mean its going to be particularly busy.
Often when you're trying to book this close they are looking for you to fill a specific void so if you want to stay for 3 nights it may say the room you want is not available but put in for 5 nights and bam there is availability.
Its spring break season but the busies time for spring break is the week leading up to and after Easter Sunday.

 

[abdelaziz]

Stay away from weekends and holidays. Its bad enough when school is in session and no holidays during the week. I cant imagine what its like in July. I think sometimes they have to close the gates on 4th of July because they were at their limit. That means you pay the big gate fee and can only get on 3 or 4 rides due to long lines (in Florida high heat & humidity

Thank you for the advice. TBH I always go past July the 4th so I never experienced that madness, but other than that it wasn't too bad both times I went.
I still think I'm going to brave the spring break because the more I think about it the more I realise that I really want to go.
But again thank you for your kind advice.

If you want to go then go.
Just because the rooms seem like they are limited doesn't really mean its going to be particularly busy.
Often when you're trying to book this close they are looking for you to fill a specific void so if you want to stay for 3 nights it may say the room you want is not available but put in for 5 nights and bam there is availability.
Its spring break season but the busies time for spring break is the week leading up to and after Easter Sunday.

Wow that is really interesting to hear.
Thank you for the insight. Also your comment made me realise that I was just letting my fear overcome my desire to visit and that it should be the other way around.
I know I'm repeating myself but thank you everyone for the help and advice.

 

[Pirate's Life]

We will be there from the 21st to the 28th and have made several trips during this time frame. This is during school Spring Break, and from past experience, I can tell you that it will be VERY crowded during that time. With a good plan, you can still get everything done since you will be there for a pretty long trip. Prepare for the crowds, but enjoy.

This will be our fourth year going during the last full week of March as well (19th through the 27th this time). It is busy but also probably the best weather in my opinion. Since the Easter holiday is actually later this year (April 12th), it might not be quite as busy but who knows. When we went in 2017 Easter was on April 16th, and in 2018 Easter was on April 1st. We could definitely tell a difference when Easter was much closer to the end of March.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

We often went during spring break (in Canada) which was mid-March. The weather was fine for us. We would be in shorts and a t-shirt and sandals. Floridians still thought it was cold. It is busy around this time because as far as I know there are different spring breaks in the U.S. One week some state has one and the other has it another week as far as I know. So there's that to think about. So I don't think there is a "down" time in March. The end of April and into May is what I have heard a pretty good time to go crowd wise.

 

[abdelaziz]

We often went during spring break (in Canada) which was mid-March. The weather was fine for us. We would be in shorts and a t-shirt and sandals. Floridians still thought it was cold. It is busy around this time because as far as I know there are different spring breaks in the U.S. One week some state has one and the other has it another week as far as I know. So there's that to think about. So I don't think there is a "down" time in March. The end of April and into May is what I have heard a pretty good time to go crowd wise.

Thank you for the reply.
Since I'm from Tunisia, a country where the weather ranges from very cold to very hot I think I would find the temperature to be very pleasant, just like you did. Sadly this spring break is the only time I can go but now I'm less worried since after some digging it doesn't seem to be as crazy as I thought it's gonna be. What scared me was the thought of finding "120 min plus" lines for everything.

This will be our fourth year going during the last full week of March as well (19th through the 27th this time). It is busy but also probably the best weather in my opinion. Since the Easter holiday is actually later this year (April 12th), it might not be quite as busy but who knows. When we went in 2017 Easter was on April 16th, and in 2018 Easter was on April 1st. We could definitely tell a difference when Easter was much closer to the end of March.

Glad to know that I won't be the only one braving the spring break. May you all have a great vacation.

 

[larryz]

Glad to know that I won't be the only one braving the spring break. May you all have a great vacation.

Just temper your expectations, make full use of advance FP+ and ADRs, and dress lightly -- it's not so much the heat as it is the humidity.

I'd be interested in your opinion on the food in the Moroccan pavilion, should you happen to dine there. One good thing about the Marrakesh restaurant -- it's not usually very busy. But the Tangierine Cafe is one of my favorite quick service places for a light meal.

 

[SyracuseDisneyFan]

Have fun

 

[abdelaziz]

Just temper your expectations, make full use of advance FP+ and ADRs, and dress lightly -- it's not so much the heat as it is the humidity.

I'd be interested in your opinion on the food in the Moroccan pavilion, should you happen to dine there. One good thing about the Marrakesh restaurant -- it's not usually very busy. But the Tangierine Cafe is one of my favorite quick service places for a light meal.

Thank you for the advice.
As for the Marrakesh restaurant I did dine there before with my mother. We ordered couscous and shish kebab. I can't really say much on the shish kebab as it's not commonly found in my home country ( Tunisia ) but i thought it was delicious. As for the couscous that's something I eat every week so I can give a better insight on it: basically there are two kinds of couscous, one with a homey feeling ( if that's a word ) and one that you expect to eat at fancy restaurants. From what I remember the one in the Marrakesh restaurant was somewhere in the middle which I thought was a very good balance. I'd like to add that the ambiance in the restaurant was also very pleasant ( but then again all of this was in 2016 so my memory might not be the best ). All in all it might not be the best restaurant in epcot but I'd say it's really solid if you enjoy that kind of food/ambiance or want to experience it at least once. Oh and I recommend asking for some harissa.
Should i dine there again this vacation I'll give you an updated review

Have fun

Thank you

 

[erstwo]

Thank you very much for the reply and encouraging response. I have been to WDW twice during july and managed pretty well. Would you say the crowds are comparable ?
Also, I wish you a happy trip

I have been in late March and in July. I would say the crowds are about the same, but the weather is much better in March! July is very hot.

I hope you have a great time!

 

[abdelaziz]

I have been in late March and in July. I would say the crowds are about the same, but the weather is much better in March! July is very hot.

I hope you have a great time!

That's great to hear !
I also checked out the temperature in March and it seems hot enough to hit the water parks but I'm not quite sure. Would you advice doing that ?

 

[Joesixtoe]

Sadly it's always busy now. So I wouldn't really worry about how many people will be there cause that seems inevitably to be many, but make your decision more on the temperature aspect.

 

[JoeCamel]

That's great to hear !
I also checked out the temperature in March and it seems hot enough to hit the water parks but I'm not quite sure. Would you advice doing that ?

Yes, the water parks will be well attended on sunny days in March

 

[JIMINYCR]

If its between this year and next I'd say take the opportunity to go this year. You havent been for 2.5 years, that is a long time in the Disney time frame of things, so there will be enough new things in place that will give you some thrills and feelings of a different Disney. Next year there will be more openings and changes which predictions are saying will make WDW even more crowded. If your concern is crowds, I dont think its going to get better, only worse, until Disney ( or the economy) does some dramatic changes to help ease the crowding and drop numbers.

 

[JustAFan]

Hello !
First of all I apologize for my poor english as it is not my first language.
With that said my question is: For someone who probably won't find another opportunity until next year and hasn't been to Orlando for more than 2.5 years, is it a good idea to go this march from the 18th to the 27th ?
The fact that there were only a few hotels left to book when I checked this morning scared me as it signals very heavy crowds.
Also I know this is a very late date to book a hotel but due to circumstances it couldn't be helped.
And I apologize if I posted this in the wrong section. ( I wasn't too sure where to post it )
Thank you very much in advance.

Your English seems fine to me! March is a great time to go. I've found the crowds to be lighter than in the summer. The weather is mild. Epcot has the flower and garden festival. Have fun!

 

[Eamethyst]

Hello !
First of all I apologize for my poor english as it is not my first language.
With that said my question is: For someone who probably won't find another opportunity until next year and hasn't been to Orlando for more than 2.5 years, is it a good idea to go this march from the 18th to the 27th ?
The fact that there were only a few hotels left to book when I checked this morning scared me as it signals very heavy crowds.
Also I know this is a very late date to book a hotel but due to circumstances it couldn't be helped.
And I apologize if I posted this in the wrong section. ( I wasn't too sure where to post it )
Thank you very much in advance.

So Disney Has busy times, days, seasons. The busiest season is christmas. The third week of Dec until Jan 3rd is very busy. The busiest day(s) are Christmas ever and Christmas Day. February is slower then most months. Everyone is back to school, working and less traveling. March is busy but not like Christmas. You will have wait times for the rides and attractions. March starts off spring break. Also universal has their Mardi Gras that started in Feb and that goes until April. So Disney will get over flow from universal. I'm going to be honest with you it will be crowded. If it's a really nice hot day, allot of people will be at one of the water parks. Not all people but some. Some people will be at Universal and Volcano Bay. If you really want to come down during those dates then come down. The Orlando area is not how you will remember it 2.5 years ago. it's changed. The highway has increased in size. All of the parks have new rides, attractions, lands. Disney Springs is something to see. Tons of restaurants, desert places, Huge AMC theater, several coffee places, lots of shopping. Water surrounds it. It a nice place to go have ice cream and sit or coffee. Don't be scared of the crowds. They don't bite. Ha ha. Orlando in general has allot going on in March not just Disney or Universal. Epcot is under renovations. it's been along time coming. Epcot use to be the theme park of the future. It's the future now and Epcot has been left behind. So Disney is spending allot of money on renovating Spaceship earth. Adding new rides. New attractions, new lands. Try not to get overwhelmed or be hesitant about coming down. If this is your last chance for this year then come down. Enjoy yourself. There is allot to do. My suggestion is for next year. Next year all of the Disney parks should be up and running without any renovations going on. September is a slow month just like Feb. I remember going to magic kingdom in September after Labor Day and standing in wait times of 10 mins max 20. We use to go in the rain because people down here are scared of the rain. People melt. Ha ha. During the fireworks everyone stands around. Splash mountain is usually never busy during the fireworks. You get on and get to watch the fireworks while splash mountain. If you can for next year book in advance. Just remember March until August is busy and can be crowded. Sept is slow. October during the day time can be slow but at night depends on which park because the magic kingdom has the kids halloween party that starts earlier every year. I think they start it early sept at night. November first two weeks is slower then the closer you get to thanksgiving gets busier. Then there is Christmas. The second week of dec is the slowest. Not much going on yet. Like kids are still in school, people are working. its little slower. After the second week its busy busy busy. Little down fall in Jan, Feb is slow. March is busy again. I know rambled on. Sorry. I hope something I said helps.