How are DLR crowds compared to WDW?

[TedMosby]

Even during the busiest times of the year (i.e. Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.)? I'm doing some research for a trip sometime this holiday season and crowd calendars generally only give a "It's busy" or "It's not busy" and I don't really know what that means. Is a 10/10 at Disneyland the same as a 10/10 at Magic Kingdom? I ask because I was a CM at WDW for several holiday seasons and would rather not be on the other side of that experience, but if it's not as extreme in California then maybe it won't be so bad?

Sorry if this is a dumb question!

 

[figment_jii]

Truthfully, I think it's hard to compare crowds between the two resorts. That being said, assuming a "10" crowd means it's at or nearly at capacity, I think both DL and MK will feel the "same" - meaning both will be wall-to-wall guests. I do think DL tends to feel crowded more quickly than MK because it's a smaller park with attractions more densely packed into the park area.

Like MK, DL tends to reach capacity (i.e., they close the gates) at least once (if not more) during the week between Christmas and New Year. Unlike WDW, DLR has not announced what the closure levels are, so most folks are left guessing about whether they'd be let back in or not (the first stage is when the parking structures are closed and/or new entries into the park are prohibited and the most extreme stage is when no one is allowed into the park, but the in-between stages are not known).

 

[superlarz]

Magic Kingdom has a ton more space, even if all of the lines are really long there is usually breathing room. 10/10 is somewhat subjective, but Disneyland can tend to feel a lot more crowded because the pathways are much narrower and everything is bunched together.

 

[Indiana Scott]

We always go during off-peak times but from what I've seen, WDW isn't nearly as crowded feeling even though they may have as many people. All that extra space really pays off.

 

[agamble]

The problem with the Disneyland Resort is that it is very small compared to WDW. This is great as you can experience a lot more with less walking and the 2 resorts have about the same number of rides. However, it's not so great when it comes to crowds. The wait times may be less for some attractions because there are so many, but the walking areas are narrow and very crowded even during medium crowd periods.

 

[PrncessA]

I agree that Disneyland "feels" more crowded because it is more compact. Especially at night along the Rivers of America!

 

[gingerfeathers]

I also agree with this. I just went to DL for the first time a few weeks ago, and I actually got a bit claustrophobic in some areas of the park because there were so many people in a really small space. You can definitely tell they learned a lot between when they built DL and when they built the Magic Kingdom. With that said, there was way more breathing room at California Adventure. However, I did feel like the crowds were in general a bit heavier than at WDW, and I usually travel to WDW around the same time of year. At peak afternoon times, I felt like waits were generally 10-ish minutes longer on average than what I always experienced at WDW.

 

[wilkeliza]

Disneyland definitely can feel more crowded. I've been to both parks several times and I have never had to leave WDW parks due to intense crowds. I have never even had a crowd induced panic attack at WDW because I can always find a space to get the small amount of room I need. In August we were at DL as the last day of our trip which happened to coincide with the first day that APs were able to come in again if they had been blacked out all summer. Right before 3pm I told my fiance I was done and on the brink of a panic attack and just wanted to get out there. By the time we made it from the Dole Whip stand (we compromised he got his dole whip and then I got to leave) up to the exit the parade was starting. I finally found a spot up front that had some breathing room and calmed down so we were able to watch the parade. I'll admit I don't have issues in lines or anything like that but when I see a crowd of people and just steady streaming past me it can really throw me off. I think for DL I still just need to learn the places to go because like other people have said it is so much smaller that there isn't much extra room. I was shocked at how the rides in Fantasyland just felt stacked on top of each other.

 

[PrincessShea]

Just echoing what everyone else is saying. I have been to Magic Kingdom on Christmas day and in addition to that have not been to WDW in my adult life when it was not summer or some sort of school break. My point is that I know WDW when it's crowded. That being said I have never experienced crowds like the ones I experienced in DL this past Oct 14-18. Because Disneyland is so compact and small compared to WDW, there are literally times you cannot move. The crowd can be suffocating. During PTN, Fantasmic, and the fireworks, no matter where you are in the park, just don't plan on moving. The other thing about DL is that so many of the queues are not contained and you are outside the ride in roped off pens. I dunno, I could go on but my point is I'd rather be at WDW when they close for capacity than at DL.

 

[Kernandi]

I was also there Oct 14-18 and agree it was crazy! However, I have also been to wdw with crazy crowds and, for the most part, I think I prefer DL. It was the CMs that made the difference for me. We met so many incredible CMs (and only one subpar one) that even though it was crowded and rides kept shutting down (Saturday morning at dca-- tsmm, rsr, soarin and California screaming were all down at opening!) and shows were delayed, we had an amazing and fabulous time. I enjoyed it far more than wdw. I had only been to DL once before and was not sure I would return (due to LAX, not DL-- and this time that wasn't a problem), but now I can't wait to get back to DL.

 

[only hope]

We are long-time local WDW passholders who just went to DLR for the first time Oct 11-13 and 15. Those were high-crowd days, which we had not expected. As others have said, the walkways at DL are crazy crowded and it took forever to get anywhere. I was getting really frustrated by how slowly people walked by the end of the last day! However, the wait times were shorter than a normal day at MK. They were higher than we wanted or expected, but most things at some point in the day were 25 minutes or less. Exceptions were Peter Pan, HMH, and SM until night. That is never the case for MK anymore, or even Hollywood since there are so few attractions now. Plus, the fp system is much better and its easier to get fp for headliners.