Just back - NO CROWDS!!!

tinaluis

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jul 14, 2000
We just got back from a 12 night stay in Orlando (WDW - MGM, EPCOT and MK - 2 days, Tyhpoon Lagoon 1 day with lunch at Beaches and Cream) and several days at US/IOA and various other Orlando attractions and the crowds were VERY minimal. We've been to WDW in September, October, November, February and May and I have to say that this is the least crowded that I've ever seen it. We literally walked onto almost everything. Dumbo was only a 5 min. wait because it's a slow-loading ride. Small World was a walk-on, so was Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, Snow White, the Tea Cups. The only thing we used FP for was Pooh but when we returned at our FP time, the wait was only 10 mins. Posted wait times were longer than they actually were. I think we may consider future trips in January simply because of the low crowds. The weather was pretty decent most of the time we were there (as compared to below zero in Chicago) and, although it was cold for some natives and southerners, it was a break from the stifling heat that we've had on some of our other trips.
 
That's really cool! the only time I have been to WDW was in Jan., so I think I am spoiled. I am hoping it won't be too terribly crowded when we are there in a few weeks! I am thinking not since there is no major holiday and Spring Breaks are another 2 weeks after our trip. :Pinkbounc
 
Thanks, tinaluis! We leave this morning and I am so excited :bounce:
First time I've been to WDW during a truly uncrowded time of year.
 
I usually go this time of year, but had to cancel. NOW you all see why I go during this time...its GREAT!!!;)
 


Just got back :(. The crowds arrived yesterday. We were there for for five days. For the first four, there were only three folks in our entire tent loop. We walked onto every attraction (test track, millionaire, tower of terror.) On Friday night the tent loop filled up and so did the Magic Kingdon. It was still nowhere near busy (20-30 minute waits for popular rides) but it was a huge difference.

Missing disney already,
Rachel
 
Wow I never would have thought of going in Jan. What did you do in the evenings because I am planning my trip now?
 
We've gone twice in January. Maybe I shouldn't let the secret out ;).

Because we're camping, we're usually up pretty early and to bed pretty early. Also, it's not hot, so there's no need for a midday break for us, so we go all day and fall asleep by 9pm. But, if you're up for it, we've done stuff like Hoop-de-doo, Pleasure Island, Victoria and Albert's, Campfire Program, all of which take place in the evening.
 


We just back as well - Jan 21 through Jan 31 and there were no crowds. Almost everything was a walk on - worst I saw the whole time was 40 minutes with Peter Pan on the a Spectromagic day. Even Test Track (which my four year old DD loved) was always less than 20 minutes.

We had one very cold day - otherwise shorts and a sweatshirt. This is truly a great time of year to go!
 
Same here! I been to WDW the past three January's, (most recently Jan 8-17) and just love it! The low crowds make all the difference. Maybe only I think this, but I swear the CM's are less stressed and their attitudes seem better. I also go in May, and it's always much busier and I saw more attitude and rudeness from other people and castmembers during those trips. Also, the characters are so much fun in the low season - my nephew had Woody and Jessie all to himself for five minutes, so they danced and had a great time interacting! And the discounts are AWESOME - I paid $79 a night for POFQ, and $59 a night for an off-site suite - both excellent deals! :)

The only thing I miss was swimming to cool yourself off like I do in May. But we did swim in January as well, and even hit Typhoon Lagoon. :) January is great!!!

<img src="http://home.att.net/~disneysue/hugsmall3.gif">
 
Originally posted by RachelEllen
Just got back :(. The crowds arrived yesterday. We were there for for five days. For the first four, there were only three folks in our entire tent loop. We walked onto every attraction (test track, millionaire, tower of terror.) On Friday night the tent loop filled up and so did the Magic Kingdon. It was still nowhere near busy (20-30 minute waits for popular rides) but it was a huge difference.

I'll second these comments. Friday was our departure day, but we did spend about 3 hours at the MK. Crowds were noticably heavier than they had been for the prior 5 days. The big difference that I immediately noticed was cheerleaders. In just those few hours at the park, we saw at least 5-6 large groups of teen girls who likely had arrived for a weekend competition.

Other than that, most of the rides were virtual walk-ons. We used FastPass a few times to avoid a projected 20 min wait (Test Track, BTMR, Star Tours, RNR), but I don't recall seeing any posted time longer than 20 all week. We arrived at AK around 10am on the Early Entry day and Kilimanjaro was a walk-on. Peter Pan (early), Space Moutain, Splash Mtn, Muppets--all walk-ons. I think the longest we waited all week was about 15-20 min for the "Great" Movie Ride.
 
We were there last week and never waited more than about two minutes, with the exception of BTMRR, which required Fastpasses to bypass a 20 minute wait while Splash was down.

As for what to do in the evenings, it wasn't freezing at night, so we could still go outside (but not swim). We did DisneyQuest every night, plus we saw a movie, wandered around Downtown Disney, and took advantage of the opportunity to go to bed early since we were too excited to sleep late.
 
No Crowds. Thats the one thing you really want to hear when you are about to go. Although i have to wait until Decemer in which the crowds will most likelly be large. But hey what are you going to do?
~Steve
 

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