Disneyland over July 4th

[OhioStateBuckeye]

So.... Looks like I am going to the parks over the 4th. I assume crowds will be huge?

Any advice on things I can do to alleviate the madness?

I will be purchasing maxpass.

Does Disneyland have a special dessert party or something for fireworks like wdw does? I don't usually buy into that type of extra but I may be willing to for the 4th.

 

[wiscbugs]

Everything I have heard is that the 4th is not too busy....we don't get there until the 8th so I am hoping that whole early July time period is not too bad.

 

[Susan121302]

I will be there the previous week. We arrive Monday June 25th so I anticipate it will be VERY crowded that week since the new Pixar Pier will have just opened that prior weekend. I would guess that the crowds would also flow into that following week as well.

 

[Laz]

It was a few years ago, but the fourth wasn't too bad. The worst crowds were at night between the parks waiting for fireworks.

 

[Malcon10t]

With the opening of Pixar Pier, all bets are off. We are usually there, and crowds haven't been horrendous the last 2 years. But that can change this year.

 

[DizneyMommy]

July 4th is a hard one to predict. Some years it’s capacity crowds, other years it doesn’t feel too bad. I think a lot depends on what day of the week it is too. This year it is a Wednesday. It seems to be the worst when it falls on a weekend or 3 day weekend. But yeah, Pixar Pier, all bets are off. Also at least Deluxe passes are not blocked out.

 

[gelatoni fan]

I went on July 4th a few years back and it was actually below average crowds until night time given that it was summer. But a couple hours before fireworks, Main Street filled with people and they had one way only traffic. This was back when there were more tiers of annual passes and most people were blocked out though. Additionally, Pixar Pier will probably mean bigger crowds this year.

My advice is to avoid Main Street once the sun goes down except for watching the fireworks and try to get the last show for World of Color (it has a July 4th intro). I don't recall any dining or dessert packages that offered VIP seating for fireworks but someone else here can give you more updated info.

 

[FlyingBelle]

We're planning on July 5th and 6th (Thur and Fri) with a group of 14. Sure wish there was advance fast passes like WDW, but we are planning on getting Max Pass. Anyone have any experience with crowds the day(s) after the 4th?

 

[biochemgirl]

We're arriving the Saturday before and staying through the 4th. TouringPlans has all the days between 5 and 6 so I'm hopeful it won't be too bad. We went over Thanksgiving and Spring Break and experienced 8 and 9 days that were completely manageable with a little planning and MaxPass ;-) My plan for the 4th is to enjoy the day and plan to stake out a spot 90 minutes before the fireworks. There's only two of us so we really don't have a problem fitting in somewhere and could probably arrive 45 minutes prior and still be ok.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

We're planning on July 5th and 6th (Thur and Fri) with a group of 14. Sure wish there was advance fast passes like WDW, but we are planning on getting Max Pass. Anyone have any experience with crowds the day(s) after the 4th?

We're arriving the Saturday before and staying through the 4th. TouringPlans has all the days between 5 and 6 so I'm hopeful it won't be too bad. We went over Thanksgiving and Spring Break and experienced 8 and 9 days that were completely manageable with a little planning and MaxPass ;-) My plan for the 4th is to enjoy the day and plan to stake out a spot 90 minutes before the fireworks. There's only two of us so we really don't have a problem fitting in somewhere and could probably arrive 45 minutes prior and still be ok.

Past crowds (from either our personal experiences/TouringPlans) aren't as relevant this year as Pixar Pier will have JUST opened. So you can't really compare to something like last year, when crowds were ok on the morning of the 4th (still crowded, but not CRAZY crowded by any means)... because last year, there wasn't anything new that had just opened. Also, as soon as people start publicizing things like, "the 4th isn't too bad," more people plan trips for then! We went on the 4th last year (left around 2?), and were just at DCA. It wasn't too bad in the morning at all, but was picking up from noon on. I'd expect bigger crowds this year, but you never know...

@FlyingBelle If you use Maxpass efficiently and are in the parks before rope drop, you can easily use 10+ FPs in a day, including most of the headliners... so if you actually utilize it well, I doubt you'll be wishing for the Disney World system when you're done.