Do you remember going to WDW and it was empty?

[MickeyMousse]

Do you ever remember going to Disney and feeling like it was empty?? I do. It was on our honeymoon in October 1991. Nobody was there! We walked onto every ride-no wait. All but one restaurant we were able to walk into and be seated within minutes. I have pictures of my DH with characters who were just walking around-not being mauled-and there is not a soul to be seen anywhere in the backgrounds. Oh, those were the days!! :cloud9:

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

Yup, September used to be empty like that years ago, before Free Dining started.

I miss those days.

[ibrowse17]

Yes, those were certainly the days. I can remember family trips in the 80's when it seemed like Disney had only opened the parks ( MK and Epcot ) for our family, and things were much more personal. Sadly, I do not see a return to that:( However, it is those memories that made Disney what it is to me today, and why I will continue to return in the future:thumbsup:

[Marker]

Fond memories perhaps, but if it had continued to be that way, they'd probably be out of business.

[pink]

I actually do, when I was much younger we went to MK for a few hours before we were supposed to go to the airport and I remember the park being deserted. I'm not sure what time for year it was but it was great! I took pictures with Pluto and you can see nobody in any of the shots in Tomorrowland. I wish it was like that everytime! :mickey:

[Scott C]

Not so long ago. We were at Epcot the morning after the shuttle columbia crashed -- very very quiet

Thanks
Scott C

[Aurora]

Yes I do. It was at the beginning of the last month (Dec. 5 or 6) during extra magic hours. The Magic Kingdom cleared out around 11:30 p.m. and I couldn't believe it, but there were no lines for anything. The park was open til 1 a.m. The night was beautiful.

[MMouse6937]

We were there the week after 9/11. Could have fired a cannon down main street and not hit anyone. It actually was a little strange, but we were able to see everything and do everything with no wait/crowds. Not a good reason though, would have rathered it wasn't that way really.

[pook@wdw]

We're usually 1st in line @ any of the parks we go to, so we always see the parks empty in the AM. :look: When we went in "05, the first day we arrived it was raining, so we went over to MK and was pleasantly surprised to find no waiting on any attraction that AM. Just walking thru Frontierland, we only encountered about 30-40 people also strolling thru there as well. So when it rains, we just don those ponchos and enjoy the smaller crowds!!:thumbsup:

[Tink's Mom]

We have on a few occasions and it was wonderful! :cloud9: Once when we were there on a slower day, we checked in for dinner at the castle, and not one person other than our family was in the waiting area. Cinderella came in and spent at least 20 minutes with our daughters. She asked them the cutest questions, like "What land are you from"? and "What color is your carriage"? She also took several photos with them. They still talk about it.

[Tigger&Stitch]

On our honeymoon in 2006 there were very small queues (if any!) for all the rides - even Soarin'.

I remember being so completely exhausted climbing up to the waterslides in Blizzard Beach because there was no one in front of me! I hadn't remembered that from our prior trip (July 2005) and was confused 'til I realised we had gone at a much busier time in 2005! :crowd:

:tigger:

[4277]

Yes, we were there during Hurricane Erin in 1995. We stayed at Wilderness Lodge which I think was rather new. The windows in the lobby were leaking from all the rain. We watched the storm most of the night and the next day the parks were closed till noon. We went to Epcot that day and we have several pictures of us with our ponchos on and no one else in the pictures. There were a few others walking around and all you saw were yellow ponchos.

[mickeysworld]

Yes! The good ole early 90's! We miss those days. These were the days DH and I would walk on ToT over and over again, 13 times in a row one day! Characters were never mobbed, there weren't many lines, you could go to Epcot in the morning and pick up a dining phone and make a ressie for that afternoon/evening at just about any TS restaurant! We were spoiled!

[hubbyofadisneyholic]

We were there the week after 9/11. Could have fired a cannon down main street and not hit anyone. It actually was a little strange, but we were able to see everything and do everything with no wait/crowds. Not a good reason though, would have rathered it wasn't that way really.

We were there Halloween week of 2001 and it was still pretty much like that. Crowds were very light and the overall atmosphere was still very subdued.

All things considered, I think we'll take things being a bit more crowded...

[LONESTAR]

November 98 was great no wait for anything our entire trip it was great. Kind of spoiled us.

[Disney-lovin' Dutchman]

Wow, I can't even imagine it in my head..an empty WDW

I did once see a totally empty DLRP..I lost my wallet when I was 15 (my first trip without my parents :blush:) and I was really upset so me, a friend of mine and 4 Disney security people searched for it. We finally found it in Frontierland after 20 minutes of searching, and I was so incredibly relieved! the Disney people were so nice, incredible service!

When my friend and I were walking back to our hotel, we both said to each other "Wasn't it cool to see a deserted park??:D"

It was! :thumbsup:

[Tinkerfreak]

Our first trip with our girls at the end of october 2002. At the time we did not realize how lucky we were. We literally walked onto everything with no wait. We never had to save a spot for a parade or fireworks show, we just walked over right before it started and stood there to watch it. My husband really has had been dissapointed every year since then because it get more crowded every year. He hates waiting in long lines. In 2006 we went the week before Christmas and it felt so crowded to us in Epcot that we left and hung out at our resort. It was so hard to try to keep together while walking through and the shops were all crowded so we felt like we could not really take our time and look around.
Last year we went back to our regular time at the end of Oct. for Halloween and we had a much better time. Crowds were much lighter and wait times for lines were very short. It also rained the first few days we were there so that helped even more to keep crowds down.
We still like to go but I admit we do long for the lower crowds of our first trip and had we known then what we know now we would have enjoyed it even more.

[FromKnoxvilleto Disney]

We also went the week after 9/11 and it was empty. The place was almost solemn. Yes it was empty and we had no lines but it was almost not magical. Even the cast members were not excited and it kind of ruined the magic. At least it was before children. I prefer to go when the lines are like 20 minutes or so because I enjoy watching other people get excited.

[IloveDisney71]

On our honeymoon in 2006 there were very small queues (if any!) for all the rides - even Soarin'.

I remember being so completely exhausted climbing up to the waterslides in Blizzard Beach because there was no one in front of me! I hadn't remembered that from our prior trip (July 2005) and was confused 'til I realised we had gone at a much busier time in 2005! :crowd:

:tigger:
We went to Typhoon Lagoon one day when a very minor tropical depression was coming thru the area. They kept the park opened (no lightning - just rain). Anyway, it was awesome, it seemed like there weren't more than 100 or so people in the park since it was so deserted. BUT I felt the same way about being tired climbing up all the stairs so quickly because there were NO lines anywhere. It was great, we were going to be wet anyway so the little bit of rain didn't bother us a bit. We rode everything (some things twice) in just a couple of hours. The wind did start to pick up a little and the rain started to "sting" us a little at one point but other than that is was perfect! :mickey:

[IloveDisney71]

When I was younger in the late 70's, early 80's we often went to WDW in January & Feb. because the crowds were always lighter then.

[NJ Camper]

I can remember not long ago when early dec. or most of jan.-feb. was moderately busy at the most we didnt need ressies for meals lines where short and this was only in the last 5 years

[Stan]

I agree that there are far fewer times than there used to be that the parks are "empty", but I don't resent the Mouse's earnings- I want WDW to be here for my grandkids' grandkids! ;)

DS & DDIL were also in EPCOT right after 9/11. Not only was the park empty, they found it spooky to watch Illuminations with all the fire & booms. :( Glad it's OK now (tho we'll never forget).

Disney does still provide opportunities for uncrowded park experiences. EMH is "free" if you're staying on property, and my clients often tell me of riding and riding without lines. So sleep all day & take your toddlers to MK at 1 AM :D - some on INTERCOT have reported neat character interactions for the last Dumbo etc riders at 3 AM. :secret: Then there are the various MK parties which I hear also often allow easy ride access... for about the same price as a 1-day park ticket?

Then again, as I go in and out of the parks for portraits I'm often amazed at short attraction lines, even during "busy" times. Frustrates me when I'm in too big of a hurry to take advantage of them :mad: but makes me wonder what combination of events or circumstances made it that way. :confused: For example, I was done with a session almost exactly noon last Monday and was leaving MK. I walked by Buzz & it said standby was 5 min. How often does that happen? ...I couldn't resist ;) (115,000 points).

[Pat Ryan]

Twice... once in 11/01, $39 hotel stays on Hotel Plaza Blvd. with $109 rt airfare from CT.

The other time we stayed at the Polynesian and it was pouring all day... it broke at 4p, got on the monorail and headed over and the park was empty.

[DisneyTwirler13!]

MK was almost totally empty last Labor Day. There was almost no one in line for any of the Mountains, and you could actually walk through Frontierland (because that's how u tell if it's crowded).

[AdventurerKim]

I remember those "empty" times, in the late 80's and early 90's. The Thanksgiving after 9/11, the parks were not crowded, and in May 2003 crowds were small. I have pictures of MK at 10AM in the summer in the 80's, and there's practically no one.

[Verolovesdisney]

Our family was in Orlando in 2004 when I believe 3 hurricanes came through Florida back to back. I remember the morning we were getting on the plane in Ottawa (Sept 10th), Ivan still had a path taking it directly through Central Florida. Everyone else was a little freaked out, but all I kept telling myself (stupidly...)is "could be a worst place to be stuck during a hurricane". Well we lucked out and Ivan headed south, missed the tip of FL and headed for the panhandle instead. The day Ivan was originally suppose to go through (Sept 13th), we were at Epcot and the place was completely dead. Almost scary. Funny thing is that if you remember, Ivan went through the panhandle, headed East and wound up back in the Atlantic, and actually slowed and other Hurricane down (forget the name) which would of hit in the late stages of our vacation. (we were there for 11 days). Anyway, all that to say, we rrrrreeeaaally lucked out, and the parks were super quiet the whole time, pretty much walk on city. Even got in (quite easily) to the princess Breakfast. What a trip:cloud9:

[KevMcNJ]

I recall going in 1990 (Ithink)
between Thanksgivng and Christmas and my old GF and I owned the place.

Rode Space mtn and at the end of the ride the cast memeber

matter of factly asks us,

" do you want to go again?"

of course we said yes

so we stayed in our car and rode again

good times

[kbean]

I remember those times. It was exactly one year ago today. It was nice and cold, sunny, and the longest wait was space mtn. 15mins. I'll be there next weekend for a day trip.

[LudwigVonDrake]

I went to WDW in November 85 and 86 (Pre-Thanksgiving) and lines were almost non-existent. All my other trips have been in July or August and lines certainly do exist :D

[biodtl]

I can't say I ever saw it empty, but I do remember the days of much shorter lines. We used to go pretty regularly, until my honeymoon in 1994. After that, we had a long stretch without going and what a surprise the long lines were!

Although, in Ovt 06 we had a late dinner in WS and when we were done, the park was almost deserted. It was really cool to enjoy the sights as we made our way out of the near-empty park.

[pwdebbie]

Oct. 5, 2007 -- We walked on every ride, no wait, at Magic Kingdom. By about 2:00, dh and I had done everything we wanted to do. That evening, we hopped over to Epcot where we had dinner reservations. It was much more crowded.

Deb

One and only (?) trip, October 2007, POFQ

[Aggie97]

Feb. 1-5, 2000: We did every single attraction and show in the four parks, many things multiple times; DTD; PI; and many TS and character meals. During the MK E-Ride night, we rode all the rides over and over again without exiting.

DL-Paris in March 2003: It snowed one day while we were there, and we had the place to ourselves.

Christmas Day 2006, 12 - 3 a.m. at the MK: The weather had been horrible all day, and it was still raining. We couldn't believe it was so empty on Christmas! :mickey:

[CaptSmee]

Do you ever remember going to Disney and feeling like it was empty?? I do. It was on our honeymoon in October 1991. Nobody was there! We walked onto every ride-no wait. All but one restaurant we were able to walk into and be seated within minutes. I have pictures of my DH with characters who were just walking around-not being mauled-and there is not a soul to be seen anywhere in the backgrounds. Oh, those were the days!! :cloud9:


You were there right after 9/11 when attendance and travel was at an all time low, so yes there was no one there. It has steadily increased each year since and this year is going to be a record high attendance. I still enjoy going and find that off peak times are still the most enjoyable.

[Dopey's Girl]

I was there November 2001 and it was deserted. It was pretty eerie. I have pictures of the castle from main street around 11 AM and there are 3 other people in the picture. It was nice to walk on all the rides, but it still felt very strange!

[BelleCiavo]

We were at WDW the week before 9/11 (actually 9/11 was the last day of trip) and the parks were empty then too. CM's were out in the streets almost begging us to come inside and Millionaire was so empty I almost made it to the hot seat (I can't believe I didn't :blush:) We were spoiled rotten, but I have found that the Tuesday-Thursday after Labor Day are still very quiet, even with the free dining. We were also at WDW in 2004 between hurricanes (Frances & Ivan, I forget the "G" hurricane :confused:) that was also a very quiet time, they offered discounted tickets to the Night of Joy.

[vizsla]

We arrived at WDW just a few days after 911. The whole WDW resort was basically a ghost town. You felt out of place because you had the parks to yourself. I never imagined that the parks would be so empty even though a tradegy had just happened on American soil.

[dteed]

We went in Feb after 911, seemed very slow to me. At that time you paid for e-ride nights and it was absolutly vacant at MK.

[Dyanna]

We were there a year to the date of 9-11 (2002) There was no wait for any ride. Each of the rides had a posted wait time of 5 minutes so we were able to go on the rides several times in a row. Did not have to make any reservations the entire week for lunch or dinner. Just walked right in. All cast members were in shock on how empty the parks were. I am sure that there will never be a time that we go back that will be quite as empty as that time.

[Diznee4Me]

We were down about a month after 9/11. Everything empty and very quiet. We stayed at the All-Star Movies (Mighty Ducks) and even the pool was quiet.

[diz_girl]

Labor Day 2005 (September 5). It was very empty for most of that week, as Hurricane Olivia was sitting just off Daytona Beach all week long and then followed us up the coast when we left. But the weather wasn't very rainy, so we just kept an umbrella handy, just in case.

It was also the week after Katrina hit and the TV coverage was still 24/7 on that. I felt pretty guilty enjoying myself at WDW, but I knew that there wasn't anything that I could do at the time to help, other than to give money to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army.

[4ubie1]

My first trip back in '91 was very deserted. It was awesome...walked onto every ride and was able to walk right up to all the characters. No mob or anything. And on another trip, there was a tropical storm coming through so that got rid of a lot of people. I actually don't mind the rain..keeps things cool and the crowds away. :D

[wedway76]

The 2nd or 3rd week of September 1996 it was relatively. It was the year before our DS started school. It was great. We were able to walk on just about anything we wanted.

[disneycouple2004]

That has happend with us a few times..far less as time goes on...most recent was Dec 15-16 2004..not sure why..but i remember the dates well...we walked right on every ride in all the parks...walked in most of our dining and hardly no wait..wow...of course by the 17 on it was wall to wall...:D

[adoptionislove]

Never!!

We seem to go when it is PACKED!!!

[Figgyluv03]

We were there the week after 9/11. Could have fired a cannon down main street and not hit anyone. It actually was a little strange, but we were able to see everything and do everything with no wait/crowds. Not a good reason though, would have rathered it wasn't that way really.

You should have been there the day after.Alot of people just packed up and drove home and a lot had to rent cars since all the airports were shut down.

[King Triton]

It sure doesn't happen very often anymore.

I can remember going to then MGM Studios a couple of years ago when they opened and walked back to the city streets and they were very, very quiet for a short time.

The other time I remember not too long ago was a day that had some intense thunderstorms that went on for quite some time. We had late (8:00ish) dinner reservations in Epcot and were considering not going, but around 7:30, the rain finally let up. We went over to San Angel and went in early to our reservation...they were happy to seat us because they had close to 50% no shows due to the weather. Once we were done, Illuminations was going to start and it was strange because there were no crowds at all...you could pretty much pick your spot. The other thing I remember about that night is that it didn't take long to leave Epcot, which is unusual and it was difficult to navigate to and from the left side of the World SHowcase (Mexico) because of the flooding from the storms. Luckily it was warm, so we didn't mind taking our shoes off!

[TheMartellFamily]

We have been there when it has been not busy , but then we have been when it is really busy. We have learned to make the most of it. We love to go in October because the crowds have not been bad at the parks. Well this has all changed. We just know that now when we go the crowds will be there no matter what. This gives us a chance not to get over stresses since the knowledge helps you cope. WIth more people comes more uptight and unfitting behavior. We have just keep telling ourselves This is the happiest place on earth and we are on vacation.

[Womble]

We were at WDW four or five weeks after 9-11.

All the parks (not just Disney) were almost empty.
We walked around the Animal Kingdom animal exhibits and saw no one except staff. That was very eerie!
We were able to get bookings at any restaurant, any time we wanted.
At no time did we queue for a ride.
Pleasure Island was deserted for most of the week.

While at MK I took the greatest video (I’ve every taken) of SpectroMagic.
We were standing at Frontier land and I had no one standing next to me. I mean there was no one within 30 feet of me!
It was the most bizarre thing.
To think in the past I had waited for an hour and a half to get a “front row” spot on occasions and also watched the parade in a crowd four or five deep.

Even though it was a nice experience for us, because of the reason it being so empty, I hope I will never see WDW that empty again.

[CleveSJM]

Two weeks before Christmas in '93. Nobody at Epcot, walked onto everything. Maybe waited 10 minutes for Dumbo at MK. Everything was decorated for Xmas... Ahh, the good old days.

I remember asking a CM if there was something wrong and they said it was always this slow at that time of the year. Little kids are all in school, college kids are going home for the holidays, and international travel is at a low before the holiday, etc. It was great.:cloud9:

[LauraF]

It used to be that way for my family when we went between Thanskgiving and the first week of December. (Before it was "discovered.") NOBODY was there. I remember going on Space Mountain at least 7 times in a row on one day - I'd get off, run up the escalator and back into the ride and be on in less than 5 minutes.

And ADRs? My father was called a control freak for making them because you could commonly walk up to Le Cellier for dinner and be seated in 15 minutes. On a Saturday.

[AllDisney]

The trip we made in January 1999. We went on Tower of Terror 13 times in a row....with NO lines. It was a really fun experience. Also during the same trip we took advantage of extra magic hours at MK and that was fantastic. The cast member, when asked, said there were about 4,000 people in the park that night. We had it to ourselves.

It was a bit cold, but we came prepared. We enjoyed the trip very much and still talk about the lack of crowds at the parks during that trip!

[MickeyMousse]

You were there right after 9/11 when attendance and travel was at an all time low, so yes there was no one there. It has steadily increased each year since and this year is going to be a record high attendance. I still enjoy going and find that off peak times are still the most enjoyable.

No, we were there in October 1991 not 2001.

[SoaringEpcot]

We were there the week after 9/11 as well. There was only one or two times that we even had anyone on our bus with us going to the parks. It was the first time that I had been when I was able to ride all rides more than once. Often when we went on the rides there was no one there except for the CM's. That was a slow time of the year any way and 9/11 made it even slower. It was a very sad time, but I am glad we were able to go.

[May524]

January of 2005. We just arrived for the disney college program, and it was empty! It was so much fun! However...it wasn't like that in January of 2007..wasn't super crowded, but not empty like before! hehe :blush: