How is Early January for crowds?

[MarineVet]

My DS is stationed in Yokosuka, so when my DD and I visited him in March 2013, we spent one day in Disneyland and one in Disneysea. It was very enjoyable but somewhat crowded; school was in session and we went in the middle of the week but there was some discount promotion for students, and the parks (Disneysea especially) were packed. Every ride at Disneysea was 60-240 minutes wait on standby.


I have another trip planned for over the New Year till Jan 10th and my DH can join us this time. I am considering going back for two days, kind of on my way out of Japan, as they are not that far from Narita airport. January 8th and 9th are my target dates to spend at Tokyo Disney. Is this a good time to go? Thanks.

 

[DreamSweetsLove]

8th and 9th should be good, the New Years events will be over and kids should be back in school. It's also on weekdays which is always a bonus! The only downside is the cold and I don't believe there will be any special event at that time, but attraction waits should be really short! One more thing to check is just making sure whether any attractions are under refurb.

 

[chadbag]

We're in Japan Dec 27 through Jan 16 in Osaka, but are going to Tokyo on Jan 5 and will be in the parks Jan 6, 7, 8 (and maybe 9 for me -- wife wants to go stalk so Japanese pop band members )

Based purely on the hotel costs starting on the 5th and ending on the 11th, I think you should be good to go. When I was making arrangements a while back, hotel costs were a lot more up until the 5th, and also after the 11th of January. That tells me that week should be pretty mild.

 

[shelemm]

Crowds will be low starting the 6th of January. Before that, the 31st and the 1st of January should be the lowest. Saturday the 4th will be a lot more crowded than the other days.

Here is the link to the TDR Crowd Calendar. It is predictions based on previous attendance. The page is in japanese, but the calendar itself is easy to navigate and understand.

http://www15.plala.or.jp/gcap/disney/

Some ride closures begin Jan 6th: Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Indiana Jones, Disney Sea Electric Railway (no big deal), and two minor shows: Polynesian Paradise and the Diamond Horseshoe. I have not seen either show.

Beginning Jan 8, the Cape Cod Cook-Off is closed - I assume this includes the Duffy Show inside, which is definitely worth seeing.

Link to temporary ride closures:

http://www.tokyodisneyresort.co.jp/en/schedule/stop/\

If I had a choice, I guess I would go the 31st, 1st or 2nd of January to avoid ride closures.