Best day of the week to do MK

[cindala]

Originally posted by Miscrapper
I found inconsistent information. In your updates you recommend Studios on Mondays during off season, but Thursday and Friday are recommended for Studios during Fall on this new interactive thing.
Also which park is best on a Monday in the fall?
And there are many many threads on benefits or lack of them to EMH - what is your opinion of EMH?

We plan to use it for sure for MK based on past experience but are unsure if it is worth it for other parks. thanks so much for information!
Amy

I also found inconsistent information! We have all of the the Unofficial Guidebooks from the last several years, and it seems that this 2004 edition changes the recommended days in several areas.

It recommends Friday or Saturday for the MK in the summer! We find those two days to be the worst when we go in the summer, and many people will tell you the same. It also says not to go on Sunday, but we have found that a pretty good day to go!

If you want a better idea, go to the WDW official park hours guide. The days with longer hours posted are usually more crowded than those days with shorter hours. (At least for MK anyway.)

 

[lentesta]

Thanks for the feedback, folks.

Hey Billybaruch, the reason I put the EMH days in there is that some folks don't know which days EMH is available for each park. A quick search of DISBoards should confirm that this question pops up every day or so. So I figured we might as well include it, just to be safe.

Also, the data and statistics are there to make the touring plans as good as can be. Lots of other interesting information comes from it, too. For example, I think on another thread I mentioned that doing EMH at the Animal Kingdom may be counter-productive during holiday periods. That is, you'll wait longer to see the same attractions, even with a very good touring plan and an hour headstart on the general public. That's something our statistician noticed after analyzing the data from Christmas 2002. As EMH is also a subject of great interest on the boards, you can see where that comes in handy.


Cindala, thanks for the feedback. I don't think what you've found is inconsistent per se, although it may differ from what's in previous editions of the Guide, or what you believe to be true.

I'd disagree that Sunday is a good day to do the Magic Kingdom, especially if someone's not a Disney resort guest. By the time day guests are admitted, there are several thousand Disney resort guests already in the parks. This isn't true on Friday or Saturday - everyone gets in at 9 a.m.

Even if you are a Disney resort guest, on Sunday you're competing against those same thousands of other Disney resort guests, when you don't really have to. Visiting on Friday, for example, when a plurality of Disney resort guests are probably at the Animal Kingdom, will almost certainly reward you with smaller crowds.

Hope this helps. Again, thanks very much for the feedback.

Sincerely,

Len

 

[Miscrapper]

Len, thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge! I asked about best day on Mondays in fall. We are staying on-site but I am thinking we won't do EMH this day because we will probably do MNSSHP on Sunday eve (or an Illuminations Cruise if I get lucky!) So we'll arrive more like the 9:00 opening or even a bit later. I was originally planning to do Studios on Monday. I was also thinking of Friday EMH for our second visit to AK but now I am thinking that might not be a good plan!

Again, thanks for any insight you can share.
Amy

 

[billybaruch1]

Len, thank you. I was a little worried my prior post seemed too negative. But you came right back with a straight-forward reply. I appreciate that.

I'm glad your program shows the best days at each park for a fall visit to WDW will be the EMH days. But I'm a little confused about how by using the EMH at the Animal Kingdom during the holidays "you'll wait longer to see the same attractions." That hour without the general public, then park-hopping elsewhere, has got to be better (more fun, more attractions visited) than not using the EMH and just sleeping in that day. No?

And yes, EMH is a hot topic, for sure. Thanks again. I'll probably get the next Unofficial Guide as long as it weighs less than a small child!

 

[lentesta]

Hey billybaruch1,

Not a problem. We didn't consider park-hopping after the Animal Kingdom. Rather, we looked at how long it would take you to get through the dozen or so attractions in the Unofficial Guide's AK touring plan. On a non-EMH day during Christmas, let's say it takes X hours to do the touring plan. I believe we found that for the same period using EMH, it took almost X+1 hours to follow the same touring plan, step for step. I think it averaged out to an extra 4 minutes per attraction - something like that - for around 15 attractions. We attributed this to the relatively small number of attractions open in the AK, and the relatively small capacity of those attractions. Put simply, there ain't a lot of places for all those people to go, so lines build. This is the only park that exhibits this behavior.

Hope this helps. Oh, the next edition of the Guide should stay around 800 pages. I lobbied for a microfiche version to no avail. Rats.

Len

 

[swilphil]

Len--I like all the info. on the EMH. Thanks!! Someone mentioned the size of the WDW Unofficial Guide. When we went in 2000, we used the Mini Mickey and loved it! I looked on Amazon for a new copy, and it gives 2001 as the copyright. Is there a more recent Mini Mickey? Is it available at large bookstore chains, like Barnes & Noble or Borders? We are leaving Sunday, so I don't think I have time to order online.

Thanks for all the great info. I like hearing about how your recommendations are based on stats and data that you have collected.

 

[lentesta]

Hi Sherri,

I think that 2001 is the last edition of the Mini Mickey, although I believe we're working on one now for 2004. I think the major changes involve the touring plans, which are completely new since 2001. Drop me a line if you'd like more information. I think we can cover it between now and Sunday!

Len
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