a. When to Go to Walt Disney World
Home Donate How to Use this Site Sitemap
When to Go Future Crowds 2010 Weeks 2010 Week Picker App 2011 Weeks
OVERVIEW: WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD
Arrive in Walt Disney World the second Saturday after Thanksgiving.
In 2010, arrive December 4th; in 2011, arrive December 3.
See Next Best Dates if you cannot go on these dates.
WHY GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD THEN?
“Here’s a tip for avoiding the crowds. The entire world over, two of the best weeks to go anywhere are the first two weeks of December. The weather is good in most places and attendance is almost always low. At Disneyland and Disneyworld in particular, the first two Wednesdays of December are often among the three or four lowest days of the year.”
Buzz Price, Walt’s Revolution: By the Numbers
Crowd levels are the key issue in timing your Walt Disney World trip.
Here’s why: daily attendance at the Magic Kingdom, the signature park at Walt Disney World, varies from fewer than 20,000 people to more than 60,000, with more than 90,000 heard of at Christmas. The park has a total hourly capacity of approximately 40,000 people–that is, the attractions can deliver about 40,000 rides per hour.
Consequently, on a day with 60,000 visitors, it will be hard for you to average more than one attraction every 90 minutes or so. Multiply this by the number of attractions in the park and it could take you more than 50 hours to enjoy everything at the Magic Kingdom. The attractions themselves take about 7 hours to enjoy; the other 40 or so hours will be spent waiting.
On the other hand, if you go to Walt Disney World during a low attendance period, you can enjoy an attraction at the Magic Kingdom every 20-30 minutes, reducing your total Magic Kingdom time to less than 15-20 hours, and your waiting time down to 8-14 hours.
Multiply this effect over the other three other theme parks at Walt Disney World and you can see how you can save literally days of waiting in line by going during a low attendance period. This allows you to
- Spend fewer total days at Walt Disney World, easing budget and schedule issues
- While seeing more of the best of the parks
- Taking more breaks from the parks, and, all in
- Having a less stressful, more satisfying experience
Other points considered in setting your date include seasonal pricing, the hurricane season, ride closures, and special events.
Given this, early December is the best time to visit.
Crowds are low, prices are as low as they are at any time during the year, the hurricane season is over, few rides are closed, and magical special Christmas events and displays are everywhere.
See Next Best Dates if you cannot go in early December.
LINKS FOR WHEN TO GO
- For when to go to Walt Disney World, see this
- For the next best dates, see this
- For the best and worst times to visit, see this
- For 2010 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
- For the 2010 Week Picker App, see this
- For 2011 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
- For forecasting crowds at Walt Disney World, see this
- For seasonal pricing at Walt Disney World, see this
- For 2010 price seasons, see this
- For projected 2011 price seasons, see this
- For weather at Walt Disney World, see this
4 comments
I am looking to go with my family of 5 young children and the Dec 6th date looks good, except for the Pop Warner week that I’ve heard can overrun the value resorts (we’ll probably stay there due to the huge price difference for suites at the moderates/deluxe)…do you know if that really has that great of an impact on crowds?
Pop Warner doesn’t have an impact on crowds at the parks.
It does have an impact on noise at the values, and especially at All-Star Sports. Pop Century tends to have the least noise, and of the All-Stars, Music is a good bet. If your youngest is under three, then you can all fit into a suite at Music–the suite buildings at Music will be among the quietest.
At the resort, you will find crowds at the food courts, bus stops, and swimmng pools. If you follow my intineraries the first two should be manageable–and I enjoy the people watching of a crowded pool!
Hope this helps!
Thanks so much for this awesome site. We just returned from WDW and I wish I found this site before we left. We are thinking of returning in April 2011. The girls’ Spring Break is the first full week of April. . .Easter that year is 4/24. . .would the first week be O.K.? I assume most all colleges would be done with their Spring Breaks before then.
Heather you should be fine! Spring break peak weeks do shift depending on the date of Easter, but they remain in March. Thanks for your kind words!
Leave a Comment | Ask a Question | Note a Problem