GE Opening and 1st Visit

[acellison]

We are planning our 1st trip to DL in June this year. Touring Plans has the weekend of 6/21-6/22 with crowd levels of 5 and 6. During the week the crowd levels are 8 and 9. This is due to passholder blackouts for that weekend. Does anyone think that is will really be less crowed on the weekend if GE opens the weekend of the 21/22 than it would be during the week??

 

[sherilaine]

Right now there is no official date for Star Wars land to open. Touring Plans doesn't have a clue what crowds are going to be like - they are simply basing it off historical data and maybe a good guess. No one has any idea how crowded the opening weekend will be - if that indeed is when it opens other than likely a dogs breakfast of busy! Good news - if this is your 1st visit then you have nothing to compare it to.

 

[dieumeye]

If GE opens on 6/21 (or earlier), I would highly doubt that the weekend will be at a 5 or 6 crowd level at Disneyland. Maybe it will mean lighter crowds at DCA those days? All crowd predictions regarding GE are speculation at this point. It'll almost definitely be busy, but no one can say what the actual impact will be.

 

[HydroGuy]

We are planning our 1st trip to DL in June this year. Touring Plans has the weekend of 6/21-6/22 with crowd levels of 5 and 6. During the week the crowd levels are 8 and 9. This is due to passholder blackouts for that weekend. Does anyone think that is will really be less crowed on the weekend if GE opens the weekend of the 21/22 than it would be during the week??

Sorry but TP for DLR is worthless. See:

Why I Am Skeptical of the Touring Plans Website DLR Crowd Calendar
https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...ing-plans-website-dlr-crowd-calendar.3196851/

 

[HydroGuy]

If GE opens on 6/21 (or earlier), I would highly doubt that the weekend will be at a 5 or 6 crowd level at Disneyland. Maybe it will mean lighter crowds at DCA those days? All crowd predictions regarding GE are speculation at this point. It'll almost definitely be busy, but no one can say what the actual impact will be.

TP was so clueless when CarsLand opened in June 2012 that they left normal June crowd predictions in place. It was not until like a week or two later they (over)reacted and changed EVERY SINGLE DAY for the rest of the summer to "10" levels. Once again, no insight into the future. Either before CL opened or after. Nothing helpful there at all.

I understand it is hard to predict. But no prediction is better than a blatantly wrong one IMO.

 

[Indiana Scott]

If GE opens, it will be off-the-charts busy.

 

[chickapin parterre]

If GE opens on 6/21 (or earlier), Maybe it will mean lighter crowds at DCA those days? All crowd predictions regarding GE are speculation at this point. It'll almost definitely be busy, but no one can say what the actual impact will be.

I can't remember if it was this web site or another non-travel Disney site that posted a local Anaheim newspaper releasing an article quoting a professional out of New York what the actual impact will be in Disneyland till the New Year. The biggest problem is going to be egress and that DCA is not going to offer any lighter crowds as it will take in the residual folks who are visiting and caught off guard by the crowding in Disneyland.

as far as no one cay say what the actual impact will be, I am very guilty of that when the solar eclipse happen on the 45th parallel in Oregon. The governments of every level in Oregon held press conferences about the dangerous impact of the hordes of folks coming to the 45th. So I was advising folks on a trip advisory site, friends scattered about the state and even holding a residential block meeting on how we were going to manage all of the RV's forecast to park in our neighborhood...directly on the 45th. But it was forecast to be cloudy where the historical eclipse was to start its US journey and maybe those clouds would roll over into the western valleys of Oregon, so all those folks,, canceled their coastal lodging reservations, went to Central Oregon ( leaving behind oversupplied beach restaurants and lawsuits on lodging refunds) where the impact exceeded expectations of the local citizen governments preparations and even exceed the federal government impact forecast of the US forest service and BLM. So there was zero impact of Solar eclipse in Western Oregon,other than a rest area on I-5, which had seen worse from burning semi trucks and folks leaving the coast on a two lane road, which amounted to July 4th traffic . So I was caught CRYING WOLF....THE SKY IS FALLING. But in Central Oregon, there was no gas, emergency services were strained and food/ice delivery to stores could not keep up with the demand,...... due to the visitors, traffic and poor infrastructure.....and the US government giving no credence to the astrologers who were warning that 45th eclipse is going to be bigger than anyone's imagination

So, sure.....actual impact is a hypothesis......but had it been a sunny day on the Oregon Coast.......

 

[tarheelalum]

Touring plans is a joke when it comes to predicting crowds at Disneyland. They are just awful.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

The good news about planning a first visit during that week:
DLR should be on the Peak Schedule, i.e. longer hours, fuller staffing, more/all rides running at full capacity, more entertainment, nighttime entertainment running every night, etc. This is good because it means the parks will be expecting and be prepared for crowds. When the parks are prepared for crowds, things run much more smoothly and you don't really feel the crowds as much as you'd think you might. June weather is usually pretty nice -- cooler in the mornings and evenings, warm in the afternoons. Grad Nites are finished (usually) by that time. Lower AP blocks for DL will be good for the summer after 6/20.
The not so good news about planning a first visit for that week:
In all probability, DLR will be very crowded because of SWGE -- either already open or opening that week.
As all the previous posters have said, crowd calendars do not really work for DLR. In fact, they are notorious for not being reliable, especially after DL's 60th. But, we tell people here not to try to second guess the crowds (you can't), but to choose the time that works best for them. Then come here to do the best research and planning for your trip. Do your research, make your plans (plan a & b), bring your patience and a positive attitude, and get ready to have a great trip!

 

[makthompson]

My experience has been that a lot of DVC owners will check in on Sunday and out on Friday since those are the cheapest times to use points. Sunday is usually a less crowded time and Monday- Thursday would be heavier. We always go Sun-Fri when we go for that very reason. I do not think anyone can predict what the crowds will be. However, when it does open regardless of day of the week, it will be very busy and if you do not get there early you chance not getting into the park. Once they meet the number max capacity they have to wait for people to leave to let more in.

 

[SeaDis]

If GE is open by that weekend, it will be busy.

If GE is not open by that weekend, TDA can easily lift the Deluxe (and lower) weekend blockouts on short notice. They did this in 2018 and even included a "Bring a Friend" AP promo for a discounted Friend Ticket. I gotta believe it was a trial run for May/June 2019 to use, if needed, as the GE opening dates are solidified. If you ask me, the test was a success.

Just a hunch from what we saw last year!