Crowds the week of July 4th

[tink'72]

We just got back from our latest trip and we had a blast. We rented a house offsite ( I have a very energetic 4 year old son who would not do well in a hotel room ) and we had a great time! We are not even 10 minutes from the parks it was great. We had never gone in April. My only frustration was that the parks closed sooo early. We are used to going in the summer so we head out late to avoid the hot , not sun and stay late in the parks. Which we love!

So now that we are home I am planning our next trip.
I was thinking June 28,2008 - July 9,2008. So that brings me to my question. How bad are the crowds July 4th week?

We do usually go the middle to end of July and the parks are needless to say crowded, so I am used to the crowds but is July 4th week unmanageable crowded?

[faline]

The crowds around the 4th of July are quite high. I would not be surprised if the parks reach capacity and close to additional guests on the 4th of July. If you plan to go to a park that day, I'd get there very early and plan to stay for the duration - particularly if you're staying off site.

[Ian]

Unless you enjoy standing in 90 minute lines for It's a Small World and parading around in blisteringly high heat and humidity, I'd steer clear of WDW the week of July 4th.

[slegrant]

My family and I always travel to WDW over the 4th. We love the fireworks & we love the late operating hours. We stay on property so we take advantage of the late night and early mornings. We are very seldom in the parks past noon and don't usually go back to the parks until 9 or 10pm. We get our wrist bands for late night and hit all our favorites without the wait, We can usually get more rides done in this time frame than the folks that are there all day. We love this summer trip, because during the day we can swim, shop and just relax. If you plan it right you will also enjoy this time of year.:mickey3:

6/23/07-7/09/07 Fort Wilderness
12/27/06-1/06/07 Fort Wilderness
2-3 times a year every year !!!! on Property

[tink'72]

My family and I always travel to WDW over the 4th. We love the fireworks & we love the late operating hours. We stay on property so we take advantage of the late night and early mornings. We are very seldom in the parks past noon and don't usually go back to the parks until 9 or 10pm. We get our wrist bands for late night and hit all our favorites without the wait, We can usually get more rides done in this time frame than the folks that are there all day. We love this summer trip, because during the day we can swim, shop and just relax. If you plan it right you will also enjoy this time of year.:mickey3:

6/23/07-7/09/07 Fort Wilderness
12/27/06-1/06/07 Fort Wilderness
2-3 times a year every year !!!! on Property



This is what I was thinking we would do. I enjoy the parks late at night much better.

[faline]

This is what I was thinking we would do. I enjoy the parks late at night much better.

If you're planning to stay off-site, you won't be able to take advantage of the extra magic hours on either side of the regular park operating hours.

[CandleontheWater]

If you are going July 4th weekend, I would consider staying on site for the extra magic hours and because (if I remember this right), on property guests will not be turned away from the parks even if they reach capacity, which is a concern during 4th of July week.