WDW in October

[beksy]

Can someone please give me a rough idea about the size of the crowds during the second week in October? Before we have always gone in the summer during July but want to try it when it is (hopefully) a little cooler and less crowded. I know a lot is going on during that time (MNSSHP, Food & Wine Festival, free dining) and just wandered what we might be able to expect in crowd size. TIA :mickey:

[Tinkerfreak]

If you are used to going in July you will love October. The closer you get to Halloween the lower the crowds seem to get. I have not been in early or mid october but I'm guessing it can't be any worse than July and the temps should be alot better. We usually go at the end of oct. and love the weather and being there on halloween. We have found the crowds managable. This past year we went Dec. 16th through 23rd and found it alot more crowded than are usual time. I'm sure someone who goes earlier in oct. can give you more info.

[Strmchsr]

October crowds have gone up considerably in the last few years due to the new popularity of school fall breaks during October. That said, it'll still be less crowded than July and it should be cooler, though how much is always up in the air. Usually mid October highs average 89, but that beats the mid to upper 90s of July.

[disneycouple2004]

We were there the 1st week of:thumbsup: Oct last year.
It was great !!. the weather was perfect..the crowds were not bad( a little crowded at times, toward the weekend for sure) but overall the second week should be perfect !!

[WED1901]

We have gone the last two times during Oct. Seems like it has gotten more popular to go in Oct. the last few years. Oct 06 was not that bad until the weekend once a golf tournament started on property. The parks on Fri, Sat and Sun were jammed and no available rooms. My parents were trying to come up from south Fla to spend the weekend and could not get in for a decent rate. I went in Oct for the 1st time while in college in the early 90’s and it was great!!!!!! No lines at all. It’s still going to beat the summer!! Be but don’t let everyone know how nice it is vs summer.:whisper::secret::whistle:

Humm wonder why most boards have their meets in Oct?? :thumbsup:

[WED1901]

We were there the 1st week of:thumbsup: Oct last year.
It was great !!. the weather was perfect..the crowds were not bad( a little crowded at times, toward the weekend for sure) but overall the second week should be perfect !!


Hey we were there that same week! So you also thought that weekend was crazy! It looked like summer! :mickey:

[disneycouple2004]

Yes it was crazy..all at once here are all these people..we were shocked !!..:confused:

[CaptSmee]

We were there last year the 1st week of Oct. Low crowds, lower temperatures. You will LOVE it after visiting in July!:thumbsup:

[Pinoke68]

After many, many summer visits, we visited in October 05 and again in 06. It was more crowded than I expected, but nothing like summer. And the weather was a lot more comfortabe without that extreme heat. You'll have a great time!!!

Don't forget MNSSHP:mpumpkin: and the Food & Wine Fest (definitely try to do these events on weekdays and leave MGM and AK for the weekends.

[mainemajor]

Went there last year at that time. Ave temp was 88. Epcot was busy during the weekend because of the Food & Wine Festival.:wine: A lot of locals come just for that during the weekend. During the week crouds were fine. The longest line we ran into was Soring at about 1 hour on Saturday. You will love MNSSHP. Its is a fun night, ask for chocolate.:tigger::figment:

[beksy]

Thanks for all the great info! I'd heard October was a good time to visit but wanted some expert opinions!

[Narawen]

Last year mom and I went the last week in october thru nov 2. Before, I had only been in April, May, June, and once in August. I can fairly safely say I will never go in late spring or summer again. October was perfect for us. I don't know if it's mosre crowded earlier in October, but we never had to wait more than 10 mins for any ride, and most of the rides has a wait of 5 mins- which is how long it takes to walk through the whole line. We rarely used fastpasses, the weather was mid 70's all week. It was absolutely perfect, I want to go again to hopefully go to the Halloween party.

[MrPeetrie]

This will make our third October in four years and we LOVE this time of year. The weather is still very warm, and the crowds are very manageable. If you use FastPass properly, you will not have to wait more that 15-20 minutes for ANY ride.

If there is a downside, it's that many seasonal operation attractions are closed at this time. (We haven't seen Carousel of Progress in years.) Still, it's a great time and if you can get tickets to the MNSSHP, get them!

[WED1901]

If you do go in Oct you have to go to MNSSHP!
It's a blast. It's amazing how the transform the park at a blink of an eye with the all the lights. I love that music the play! :mpumpkin:

[Park Hopper]

The one thing that I did not like when we went during the Food & Wine Festival is that it was extremely hard to get a decent dinning reservation without making them many days in advance. This could be avoided if you plan your schedule a week or so in advance, but it is hard to make plans like that when you are there with little kids. We certainly have a few meals planned out, but we like to be more spontaneous and make a decision based upon what type of food/atmosphere we want or think the kids could handle that day. Of course, this approach is easy to do when we are there in January (our preferred time).

[Polynesian Dweller]

Around that time is our typically favorite time to go. We'll be there at that time this year.

Crowds are not bad but weekends at MK can be pretty busy. Last year there were an unusual number of conventions (know because a friend was there for a convention at that time) and that made things difficult for ADRs.

Temps have generally been low 80's but we've also seen hig 80's and high humidity. Could be either.

But the big features of Octiober: cooler than summer, and still have Daylight savings so you have more light in which to do things. Its a good time to go. :thumbsup:

[mickey-mouse35]

But the big features of Octiober: cooler than summer, and still have Daylight savings so you have more light in which to do things. Its a good time to go

I think Daylight Savings starts in September now due to the change. Anyone know for sure?

[McGoofy]

I love going in October. That's when we usually try to go. The only time that I noticed it being really crowded is when it was "Jersey Week." Does anybody know when the NJ teacher's convention and "Jersey Week" is this year?

[momofdisneyprincess]

We usually go Columbus Day week but decided to switch to the last week in August this year due to the free dining. I LOVE going in October. It is my favorite time of the year. The weather is beautiful and the crowds are very manageable. It tends to chill down in the evenings so we always brought a sweatshirt with us. Great time of year to go though. Enjoy!