Wait Times In January

[collegeprogram01]

We leave too go down for 9 days the end of next week. i have noticed that the wait times seem much longer then usual for January. Has anyone else noticed the same?!

 

[anomamatt]

We leave too go down for 9 days the end of next week. i have noticed that the wait times seem much longer then usual for January. Has anyone else noticed the same?!

First, Disney World is always crowded these days. We did a trip in Feb 2017 that seemed almost as bad as 2017 Christmas/NYE, so it's impossible to really predict. That said, with the holidays falling the way they did, and the marathon this past weekend, the big holiday crowds have seemed to persist longer than normal. We got back on the 2nd, but I'm headed back down on the 18th and hoping for lighter crowds by then (as always, it will be "crowded", but hoping for less crowded). That said, the extending MK hours to midnight (e.g., Jan 20) makes me wonder. I've also been moving around FPs and there are not many left for day of FPs (about the same number a week out for our christmas/NYE trip)... FP-wise it looks like it could be busy.

 

[collegeprogram01]

thats what i was thinking as well...this past Sunday they closed the EPCOT parking lot to capacity. This is our first January trip. We picked January because of the lower crowds...we shall see!! I worked there many moons ago and I remember January and February were not busy. Hope for the best...either way it will be great to be there!

 

[anomamatt]

thats what i was thinking as well...this past Sunday they closed the EPCOT parking lot to capacity. This is our first January trip. We picked January because of the lower crowds...we shall see!! I worked there many moons ago and I remember January and February were not busy. Hope for the best...either way it will be great to be there!

That is the right attitude. Hope for low crowds, but prepare for the worst. And have fun no matter what.

A week before Christmas/NYE trip this year I started freaking out about the crowds. But even then, we had a blast and did everything we wanted -- and didn't let the crowds bother us. Aside from a few "choke points" in each park, the crowds were not awful that week...

 

[collegeprogram01]

Its going to be a great time!! Enjoy your trip!!!

 

[disneygirlsng]

thats what i was thinking as well...this past Sunday they closed the EPCOT parking lot to capacity. This is our first January trip. We picked January because of the lower crowds...we shall see!! I worked there many moons ago and I remember January and February were not busy. Hope for the best...either way it will be great to be there!

A huge portion of the Epcot parking lot is taken up by race tents/set up as well as runners/spectators parked there for a good majority of the morning-early afternoon on Marathon Sunday. So the full lot wasn't being used just by guests in the park.

 

[DisneyChristmas]

Today, Monday following the Marathon weekend, the Magic Kingdom was BUSY. At about 7:00 pm, we heard the announcement that the park would stay open an extra hour past the planned closing time. Following the fireworks, most rides were remaining open throughout the park.

 

[collegeprogram01]

wow!!! this seems unusual for this time of year...it is what it is...we will make the best of it!!

 

[mco65]

Our last trip, Jan 2017... was way busy... WAY busy... like Christmas time busy... Of course it was the first week of Jan (Marathon week) but i thought it would be slower than Christmas. I was wrong.. So if you are seeing LOOOOONG wait times the first week of Jan.. that would match what we experienced last Jan... in 9 days, (22nd or so of Jan) I would think the crowds have to be lower than they are now, they have to! Fingers crossed!...

 

[hllb]

Crowd calendars don’t have crowds dropping until after MLK day. The first and second weeks of January are usually quite busy. They shouldn’t have been as busy as the week after Christmas but it was supposed to be busy.

Leaving in 9 days, crowds should be better.

 

[magicwdw]

Going the last week in January for our usual weekly trip. Crowds have always dropped way off after MLK. Hoping this year is no different.

 

[Kevin Chalmers]

Here's hoping the same....we're headed down in 11 days. With almost all of the crowd calendars out there, the crowds appear to be what was predicted.

 

[AngiTN]

wow!!! this seems unusual for this time of year...it is what it is...we will make the best of it!!

Yes and no. For some years yes, for this year, no. Not when schools in a large part of the country didn't return till yesterday. So last week was still Christmas/Holiday season crowds, just slightly lower than the week between Christmas and New Years.
With the Marathon tacking on at the tail end of the Holiday break period you had a lot of folks who just stayed a day longer to complete their trips.
You just have to pay attention to how breaks fall and they are typically driven by when the Holiday falls during a given week. This year was different because of the Holiday falling on Monday. Many schools didn't resume on Tuesday, they just stayed out all week.

 

[sponica]

Yes and no. For some years yes, for this year, no. Not when schools in a large part of the country didn't return till yesterday. So last week was still Christmas/Holiday season crowds, just slightly lower than the week between Christmas and New Years.
With the Marathon tacking on at the tail end of the Holiday break period you had a lot of folks who just stayed a day longer to complete their trips.
You just have to pay attention to how breaks fall and they are typically driven by when the Holiday falls during a given week. This year was different because of the Holiday falling on Monday. Many schools didn't resume on Tuesday, they just stayed out all week.

I wish I was in a part of the country that did that...we always go back Jan 2 come hell or high water. My district was even in session when Jan 2 was the federal holiday last year...

 

[AngiTN]

I wish I was in a part of the country that did that...we always go back Jan 2 come hell or high water. My district was even in session when Jan 2 was the federal holiday last year...

Yuck! That would be awful for trying to do vacations, for families and teachers.

 

[sponica]

Yuck! That would be awful for trying to do vacations, for families and teachers.

We have to hedge our bets while designing the calendar and play the "how many snowstorms will we have this year" game or in the case of this year "how many days of crippling cold will we have?"

The sweet spot for us is when Christmas/New Years falls on Thursday. Because they won't usually open on Jan 2 if it's a Friday. My employer follows a similar calendar for winter break, so I hated this year...

 

[wfjeff]

Never been in Jan, but several times in Feb ... which is a time of yr we have loved the most. We are leaving for WDW tomorrow thru 1/20. Hoping just for manageable lines and warmer weather.