April or October

[Disney loving Iowan]

We are thinking of going next year but can't decide between the later part of April or the later part of October. Can anyone give me any input on which month may be better and why? TIA

 

[nono]

Well if you go in April, depending on your dates and locations you visit, you could enjoy the spring trees blooming (not just sakura). If you go in October, depending on your dates and locations you visit, you could enjoy high season of fall foliage.

Fantasy Springs in DisneySea should definitely be open by October. It may or may not be open when you go in April. That may make April have lighter than usual crowds, with people waiting to visit until Fantasy Springs is for sure open. Of course, an opening date may be announced before you finalize your trip and that could make April have different characteristics that I'm writing above. I guess for me, I'd likely choose October, just to let some of the novelty of Fantasy Springs wear off. Hard decision. Best of luck deciding!

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Well if you go in April, depending on your dates and locations you visit, you could enjoy the spring trees blooming (not just sakura). If you go in October, depending on your dates and locations you visit, you could enjoy high season of fall foliage.

Fantasy Springs in DisneySea should definitely be open by October. It may or may not be open when you go in April. That may make April have lighter than usual crowds, with people waiting to visit until Fantasy Springs is for sure open. Of course, an opening date may be announced before you finalize your trip and that could make April have different characteristics that I'm writing above. I guess for me, I'd likely choose October, just to let some of the novelty of Fantasy Springs wear off. Hard decision. Best of luck deciding!

Thank you for your input. I really appreciate it. This will be my first of only time I'll get to go so I want to make the most of it.

 

[Douglas Dubh]

Late April could get busy depending on when golden week is this year.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Late April could get busy depending on when golden week is this year.

We will make sure we go before that starts.

 

[CanucksRock]

I head to Tokyo in 10 days We are going to TDR on April 11 & 12, Universal April 14 and TDR again April 19 & 20. I can provide feedback after the trip.

 

[gelatoni fan]

I head to Tokyo in 10 days We are going to TDR on April 11 & 12, Universal April 14 and TDR again April 19 & 20. I can provide feedback after the trip.

I would be wary of using April this year as a prediction for April next year. Normally, late March to early June is Easter in the parks which involves special shows but they don't have Easter this year. April 11th to 12th this year is also a transition time that happens once every 5 years where there is no daytime parade.

April 19th and 20th are at the beginning of the 40th anniversary which normally would mean higher crowds but the enthusiasm for the 40th feels very low compared to what I experienced for the 30th and 35th due to limited offerings. It's highly possible that a lot of people will get spots earlier than usual for the new daytime parade but that doesn't necessarily translate into higher wait times for rides and sometimes even leads to lower ride wait times since people are all out waiting for the show.

A lot of people are expecting new shows (or the return of shows) at Hangar stage, Dockside Stage and Theatre Orleans some point when the pandemic ends which may happen by April of next year. It's not uncommon for shows to debut with all performances requiring show lotteries which drives up attendance as people go for more days in order to get more chances to potentially see these shows.

 

[CanucksRock]

Good thing I’m not a show person, I’m all about the rides …to this day, my favourite day at MK was the 50th on opening day. Oct 1. Everyone was in line for merch, popcorn buckets & fireworks. We spent all day going on all the rides with little to no wait.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

I head to Tokyo in 10 days We are going to TDR on April 11 & 12, Universal April 14 and TDR again April 19 & 20. I can provide feedback after the trip.

Have a great time!!! And yes please let me know how it goes.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

I would be wary of using April this year as a prediction for April next year. Normally, late March to early June is Easter in the parks which involves special shows but they don't have Easter this year. April 11th to 12th this year is also a transition time that happens once every 5 years where there is no daytime parade.

April 19th and 20th are at the beginning of the 40th anniversary which normally would mean higher crowds but the enthusiasm for the 40th feels very low compared to what I experienced for the 30th and 35th due to limited offerings. It's highly possible that a lot of people will get spots earlier than usual for the new daytime parade but that doesn't necessarily translate into higher wait times for rides and sometimes even leads to lower ride wait times since people are all out waiting for the show.

A lot of people are expecting new shows (or the return of shows) at Hangar stage, Dockside Stage and Theatre Orleans some point when the pandemic ends which may happen by April of next year. It's not uncommon for shows to debut with all performances requiring show lotteries which drives up attendance as people go for more days in order to get more chances to potentially see these shows.

Do you think we would be better off waiting till 2025?

 

[gelatoni fan]

Do you think we would be better off waiting till 2025?

It's too early to tell because we don't have detailed information about Fantasy Springs and the return of shows yet. Right now, I would say that late 2024 or sometime 2025 is better if you care about experiencing everything the parks will have to offer and are willing to pay for premier access or a vacation package to do that.

Unless Fantasy Springs and a bunch of new shows open at the beginning of April 2024, I expect April 2025 to have bigger crowds than April 2024. But again, we don't have that information yet.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

It's too early to tell because we don't have detailed information about Fantasy Springs and the return of shows yet. Right now, I would say that late 2024 or sometime 2025 is better if you care about experiencing everything the parks will have to offer and are willing to pay for premier access or a vacation package to do that.

Unless Fantasy Springs and a bunch of new shows open at the beginning of April 2024, I expect April 2025 to have bigger crowds than April 2024. But again, we don't have that information yet.

Thank you!

 

[Haley R]

We’re planning on going next May depending on when they announce the Fantasy Springs opening. We’d like to be there after it’s open but May might be too close.

 

[CanucksRock]

We decided to go ahead and do this year because it’s a trip for my 50th. …we figure we’ll want to go again in a few years when my friend turns 50 Our original plan was to do all the Asia parks, but with Covid, we decided to just go to Japan.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

We decided to go ahead and do this year because it’s a trip for my 50th. …we figure we’ll want to go again in a few years when my friend turns 50 Our original plan was to do all the Asia parks, but with Covid, we decided to just go to Japan.

Yeah I was saying to my daughter that it would be cool to at least do Tokyo and Shanghai but that can't happen.

 

[dunkindonut]

October is a gorgeous time to visit Japan. May is also a good time, but April is very touristy due to cherry blossoms. Do not go the first week of May but mid may should be nice.