Which October week is the best?

[Thiago Acquaviva]

Hello guys!

We are 3 adults and we only went to WDW in September, November and February (and love them all).
We're considering October this year, I know it has been pretty busy last years.

Considering these 2 October weeks, which week is the best or least crowded?
or they are just quite like the same?

a) 14th - 22th
b) 21th - 30th

Big thanks in advance

 

[GADisneyDad14]

FYI - Gartner (big IT convention) is 10/14-10/18. I’ve seen reports about tough resort availability around then (not sure if applicable to you). Also not sure how much that actually impacts the parks. But it always tends to get mentioned as something to watch out for in October.

 

[randumb0]

I don't think you will notice much of a difference in attendance between the two weeks

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

FYI - Gartner (big IT convention) is 10/14-10/18. I’ve seen reports about tough resort availability around then (not sure if applicable to you). Also not sure how much that actually impacts the parks. But it always tends to get mentioned as something to watch out for in October.

Thank you for that info, I didn't know about this convention.
But I think it won't affect us since we'll be staying on property, right?

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Thank you for that info, I didn't know about this convention.
But I think it won't affect us since we'll be staying on property, right?

I know Gartner monopolizes rooms on site, although I'm not familiar enough to know which resorts. It gets mentioned on the Resorts board frequently, so maybe some other folks know the details.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

Option B is the lesser of the two evils IMO - by a very narrow margin.

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

I know Gartner monopolizes rooms on site, although I'm not familiar enough to know which resorts. It gets mentioned on the Resorts board frequently, so maybe some other folks know the details.

oh, that's bad

I found at them website, the hotels listed are:

• Disney's Yacht & Beach Convention Center
• Walt Disney World Dolphin
• Walt Disney World Swan
• Disney's Boardwalk Inn

so far so good because we're staying at a value.
but I hope them to be at the convention all day, not the parks right?

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

I found a thread here at the DIS Board about previous Gartner Events (2016 and below) and it seems to not affect crowd at the parks.
but good to know, big thanks for the info @GADisneyDad14

 

[Amy11401]

I found a thread here at the DIS Board about previous Gartner Events (2016 and below) and it seems to not affect crowd at the parks.
but good to know, big thanks for the info @GADisneyDad14

I am going to be there that week too and people on this board have said that their family members do go to the parks.

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

I am going to be there that week too and people on this board have said that their family members do go to the parks.

oh that's not good

 

[Sugart]

I found a thread here at the DIS Board about previous Gartner Events (2016 and below) and it seems to not affect crowd at the parks.
but good to know, big thanks for the info @GADisneyDad14

My wife and I were at UO in 2016 during the convention, parks weren’t noticeably more crowded, but there were several private events that week ranging from closing the park early to not being able to get in certain restaurants at night. Not a huge impact for the two of us, but it was noticeable

 

[goofyintoronto]

I would go with B for sure.

 

[Brocktoon]

I always hit WDW during October for F&W so I've been there a few times during the Gartner event. It doesn't have any direct effect on the crowds. But as a previous posted mentioned about UO, you may see some side-effects around the Boardwalk/Swolphin area. We noticed a lot of tents and parking shortages. Also dining can be more difficult in that area. They used to close DHS early for one night, but I'm not sure if they still do that. I think things have been more focused in Universal in recent years. You may also see a lot of the Gartner attendees wander over to the F&W fest in the evenings grazing at the food booths.

Really unless you wander over to the Boardwalk area you wouldn't even know the conference is going on.

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

this is great to hear @Brocktoon
big thanks for that info! I'm more relieved now.
We were planning to go on the option b) 21th but we had to make some arrangements at work, I think we will only be able to go on the option a) 14th

but I guess overall these 2 weeks don't differ that much, right!?

 

[Brocktoon]

You'll be fine. For better or worse I can tell you that all of October has been crowded for the past few years, but I still head down every year ... this year I'll be down during 10/23-11/2.

The only period of October you may want to avoid if possible would be around Columbus Day weekend 10/5-10/8. You'll be missing that by ~ a week.

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

You'll be fine. For better or worse I can tell you that all of October has been crowded for the past few years, but I still head down every year ... this year I'll be down during 10/23-11/2.

The only period of October you may want to avoid if possible would be around Columbus Day weekend 10/5-10/8. You'll be missing that by ~ a week.

Good to know! We were considering this columbus day week but as soon as I made a quick research I gave up.
But is October crowded as much as november holidays or december and spring break? or not that crowded just a little more than the regular season?

 

[Brocktoon]

Nope ... I don't think October is as crowded as the winter holidays or spring break, but it's more crowded than it used to be years ago. Just my opinion but I think 2 major contributions to the October crowds:

1) There really isn't much of a slow time at WDW anymore. Crowds are up across the boards so slow times can be crowded, and crowded times can be packed. WDW is seeing record attendance.
2) Many schools in the US are going to a year round schedule which mean they have a fall break in October. I think we're seeing a bit of a shift where some of the summer crowds have gone down a bit and that has shifted to a rise in the fall crowds. We've also talked with folks from the UK who I believe also have school breaks during October.

On top of the above Disney is finally reaping the rewards of the Magic Band/Disney Experience app data to staff the parks and hours as efficiently as possible. This means that even when attendance isn't packed, the parks and wait times still seem crowded.