If you’re a Tables in Wonderland member, you should have received this email today. Sounds pretty awesome:
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Edit: The correct date for Winnie the Pooh is February 3rd, rather than March 3rd.
The daily analysis for all of August 2012 is now available.
Disney added Fantasmic on April 24th and 25th. This changed the recommendations during that week slightly. You don’t necessarily need to switch your days around if you’ve already made plans and dining reservations. As always, you can conquer Hollywood Studios with little stress if you arrive prior to Park opening and take care of Toy Story Midway Mania and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster first thing. You may also want to prioritize the Toy Story Meet and Greet and/or Phineas and Ferb.
I removed references to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Test Track in the daily analysis where applicable. Test Track is expected to close for refurbishment from April 15 – September 21. The official dates have not been announced. Currently, all we know is “April – September,” but it’s unlikely Disney would close the attraction during the very busy Easter weeks. Interestingly, Epcot is busier during the Food and Wine Festival than it is during Easter Week or most days over the summer, at least in 2011. That’s why the plan is to get it open and operational before the Food and Wine Festival starts at the end of September.
This website was mentioned in this Sunday’s edition of “Practical Traveler”in the New York Times. You can view the article here. In an effort to remain mysteriously sexy, I normally refuse all interviews and podcast requests. But this was done without my knowledge. If nothing else, it gives my mom something to brag about.
Word is that the Dumbo refurbishment/movement will continue through the end of March. You may recall that the original reopening date was February 17th and then March 12th. This has not yet been officially changed, but I am expecting it to be shortly.
Winnie the Pooh and Friends in Epcot will return to the Toy Soldier Shop on February 3rd. They are currently meeting at the International Gateway.
The Aladdin’s Magical Carpets refurbishment is no longer scheduled.
The Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure refurbishment is no longer scheduled.
House of Innoventions is now expected to reopen as the Vision House in April instead of May.
Basin at Downtown Disney will be closed for refurbishment through mid-March.
The Contemporary Resort’s Pool Slide will be closed for refurbishment through February 17th. Pool remains open.
The Piano Pool at All-Star Music will be closed for refurbishment from February 6 – March 2.
The Meadow Feature Pool Slide will be closed for refurbishment from February 6 – March 2. Pool remains open.
The Grand Floridian’s Pool Slide at the Beach Pool will be closed for refurbishment from February 6 – March 2. Pool remains open.
The Port Orleans’ Resort’s Ol’ Man Island Feature Pool will be closed for refurbishment from February 6 – 8.
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You may remember a Mickey Mouse shirt from a few days back from this post.
With the very coy subtitle, “What does it mean?” Apparently it means that the shirt is no longer for sale. Basically, the shirt is based on an album cover from a band called “Joy Division.” Unfortunately, the lead singer of the band committed suicide in 1980 after a long battle with epilepsy. The name of the band also comes from Nazi lore. I don’t recommend looking it up. The shirt has been pulled from theme park shelves and is no longer for sale online.
Whoops.
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Edit 2: Okay, we’re good to go.
Edit: One moment, let me add the Wonderful World of Gaming.
I have a bit of bad news. But it’s your fault. Since you weren’t receptive to my idea of taking a look at Sea World, I mean SeaWorld, we are going to Downtown Disney instead. To look at menus. It’s terribly boring. Terribly boring.
I am an expert on the Lynx bus system because it’s what I take to the theme parks myself. Well, I don’t know about “expert.” That might just be my ego talking. I get a lot of people rolling their eyes when I tell them that I am a “bus person,” but it really isn’t so bad. They generally run on time. The buses don’t run in a circle so everyone has to get off the bus at the end of the route. That cuts down on “vagrancy.” I can just sit there and pleasantly read my book or stare at my phone. It’s not as convenient as a car, but it’s cheaper and has some other advantages.
The picture above is the Downtown Disney West Side Transfer Center Lynx bus stop, which is all the way over near the West Side parking lot. From here, you would just walk straight ahead along the path, take a right, and you’re at House of Blues and Cirque du Soleil. The main Lynx bus stop on Disney property is at the Ticket/Transportation Center. From there, you can go all the way up and down US-192 on Route 56 or up into Orlando on the 50 or 111. The 56 would take you to the Medieval Times, Wal-Mart, Publix, Sam’s Club, etc. It’s a relatively direct trip up the highway. Buses run every 30 minutes in both directions and the bus stops only add a few minutes to the trip. The 111 ends at Orlando International Airport. The 50 or 111 would take you within a five minute walk of SeaWorld, which we will never ever take a look at. Actually, we are going to SeaWorld in the next couple of days. And I’m not going to put in a “continue reading” button so you’re really, really, really going to have to scroll down. And I’m going to put the best Disney information ever right after it.
See? It just pulls right up. And they’re pink! How cute is that!
I thought this picture was pretty. I don’t get lucky like this very often. I picked up a Tokina 11-16mm lens yesterday so maybe the pictures will improve if I ever learn how to use the camera. This is the walkway from the parking lot or said bus stop to House of Blues etc.
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January 26 Update: Crowd Calendar completed.
This is the Free August 2012 Disney World Crowd Calendar that shows the Recommended Parks to Visit, Overall Crowd Level Estimation, Cost, Historic High/Low Temperature, Historic Chance of Precipitation, Extra Magic Hours Schedule, Fantasmic Show Times, Holidays, and Special Events.
Make sure you first read my month-by-month overview of visiting Disney World, located here. The overview will give you an idea of what to expect in terms of cost, crowds, weather, and special events on a broader scale. Once you figure out when you would like to visit, you can move on to this more detailed look.
Here’s a quick explanation of how to read the calendar and what the numbers mean. It may seem like it’s a little long, but you’ll only need to read the explanation once.
- The first line in each box is the date.
- The second line shows the cost to book a room at a Disney-owned resort. $ = Value Season, $$ = Regular Season, $$$ = Summer Season, $$$$ = Peak Season, and $$$$$ = Holiday Season. Occasionally there will be a + or – after the $$$ to show that the cost is slightly higher or lower than usual, but not by enough to raise it another $ notch.
- The third line is the average high and low temperature and the chance of precipitation. All data is based on the last 15 years. I wouldn’t read too much into the precipitation percentages for each day because just one or two additional days of rain in the last 15 years can raise the percentage substantially. I included it so you can look at the precipitation trends throughout the month(s) and take it into consideration when deciding when to book your vacation. For a broader overview of the month, read the month-by-month overview I linked to above.
- The fourth line is an estimation of the overall crowd level. A “5″ refers to average crowds. Numbers above 5 refer to a larger than average overall crowd level and numbers below 5 refer to lower than average overall crowds. A day with an overall crowd level of “1″ means that the crowds are expected to be the absolute lowest of the year and a “10″ means crowds are expected to be at their largest of the year. In other words, the overall crowd level estimation will give you an idea of how many people are in the entire Disney World complex, including the four major theme parks, water parks, Downtown Disney, golf courses, resorts, etc. Individual theme parks can have smaller or larger crowds than the overall estimation, which is where the theme park recommendations come in.
- The fifth line shows the theme parks I recommend visiting in green and the theme parks I recommend avoiding in red. There is also a | sign that splits up the recommended and not recommended Parks for the color blind or those printing in black and white (the Parks to the left of the | sign are recommended). I use the usual abbreviations for the Parks; AK is the Animal Kingdom, EP is Epcot, HS is Hollywood Studios, and MK is the Magic Kingdom. In addition to the colors, the Park on the far left is the most recommended Park to visit that day. The Park second to the left is the second most recommended and so on. For example, if the line reads AK EP | HS MK then the Animal Kingdom is the most recommended and Epcot is the second most recommended. On the other side of the | sign, Hollywood Studios is not recommended and the Magic Kingdom is expressly not recommended even more. If possible, I would strongly recommend you visit the Park that is most recommended each day. Please read below the calendar for an overview of how I’ve selected the recommended Parks and also a day-by-day explanation.
- The sixth line lists which Parks have Extra Magic Hours and at what time they start. Morning Extra Magic Hour lasts one hour and usually starts at 8am. Evening Extra Magic Hours last three hours from the start time. For example, if you see AK:8am EP:9pm, that means the Animal Kingdom has a morning Extra Magic Hour from 8am-9am and Epcot has evening Extra Magic Hours from 9pm-12am.
- The seventh line lists the Fantasmic show times at the Hollywood Studios.
- The eighth line lists the start time of Main Street Electrical Parade (MSEP:) and Wishes Fireworks at Magic Kingdom(W:). For example, if you see, MSEP: 9pm & 11pm W: 10pm, it would mean that Main Street Electrical Parade begins at 9pm and 11pm and Wishes begins at 10pm.
The Calendar is also available in an easy to view and print PDF file, Here.
Click the image to enlarge it.
Wednesday August 1
Animal Kingdom: 9am – 7pm (Not Recommended)
Morning Extra Magic Hour: 8am – 9am
Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade: 3:45pm
Epcot: 9am – 9pm (Highly Recommended)
Illuminations: 9pm
Hollywood Studios: 9am – 9pm (Not Recommended)
Pixar Pals Countdown to Fun Parade: 3pm
Fantasmic: 9pm
Magic Kingdom: 9am – 10pm (Most Recommended)
Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade: 3pm, Main Street Electrical Parade: 9pm, Wishes Fireworks: 10pm
It’s the busiest day of the week at Animal Kingdom. The morning Extra Magic Hour will attract the bulk of the Disney resort crowd and there’s no evening Extra Magic Hours or special evening entertainment going on at the other Parks (since Main Street Electrical Parade and Fantasmic are scheduled every night this week), which will cause a lot of off-site guests to visit as well. With both yesterday and tomorrow recommended, there’s no reason to visit today.
Epcot is recommended now that we have Fantasmic scheduled every night this week. We’re coming off a very popular evening Extra Magic Hours yesterday and most Disney resort guests will be waiting to either return or visit for their first time this Friday. Disney resort guests are more likely to head to Animal Kingdom today and the addition of Fantasmic means a decent number of off-site guests will be headed to Hollywood Studios as well. In most scenarios, I recommend heading to Magic Kingdom today to take advantage of the lower crowd level there and holding off on Epcot until tomorrow. However, Epcot works fine today too, provided you follow my broken-record advice – arrive prior to Park opening and head straight to Soarin’, followed by Sum of All Thrills and Mission: Space. You may also want to take a more compartmentalized two-day approach, which gives you the benefit of enjoying the lowest possible crowds in both Future World and World Showcase each day. Collect FASTPASSes throughout the day for Soarin’ and Mission Space (in that order) if you’d like to ride any of them a second time. If you’re planning just one day in Epcot, try to move up through the World Showcase right at 11am, beginning with the boat rides in Mexico and Norway. These are the only two attractions in World Showcase that will see wait times. Luckily, FASTPASSes for Maelstrom are plentiful and you’ll be able to grab FASTPASSes with a return time of just 40 minutes in the future in case the posted wait time is 20+ minutes or you’d like to ride two or three times in the late afternoon or evening. Return to Future World after 5pm to visit any attractions that you skipped in the morning. Keep in mind that most Future World attractions close at 7pm. Usually only Soarin’, Mission Space, and Spaceship Earth continue operating from 7pm – 9pm. Overall, it’s a good day to visit Epcot and a fine day to stay for dinner and IllumiNations, provided you tour efficiently in the morning.
Hollywood Studios is not recommended due to the addition of Fantasmic every night this week. A lot of casual vacationers on a weeklong vacation will arrive on Sunday and naturally visit Magic Kingdom and Epcot on their first two full days. By Wednesday and Thursday, they’ll be ready to try Animal Kingdom or Hollywood Studios. While Animal Kingdom will draw a decent number of Disney resort guests, the morning Extra Magic Hour won’t do much to lure the sizeable off-site contingent. With no special evening entertainment elsewhere and no extended operating hours, many off-site guests will default to Hollywood Studios. Because of that, I can’t recommend it. Keep in mind that the Studios won’t be far and away busier than recommended days because we don’t have anything specific attracting people towards it. You can still have success if you tour efficiently in the morning, take an afternoon break, and return in the evening for dinner, Fantasmic, and some late night rides. However, you will find heavier crowds and longer waits than recommended days – it just won’t be the night and day difference that we saw when Fantasmic was scheduled less often.
Magic Kingdom is our best Park to visit today for the exact same reasons it was recommended yesterday. We also have a morning Extra Magic Hour tomorrow and evening Extra Magic Hours on Friday that will be more attractive to Disney resort guests and they won’t be visiting today as well. By the time all is said and done, Disney will likely extend the operating hours at Magic Kingdom on several other days this week, including Monday and Thursday. Today, we may see a second Main Street Electrical Parade added at 11pm and the operating hours extended to 11pm or 12am to accommodate it, but that only benefits us because the 11pm Parade will be significantly less busy than the 9pm Parade. Take advantage by arriving prior to Park opening and head straight for Fantasyland (Dumbo, Peter Pan’s Flight, Winnie the Pooh), the headlining Mountain rides (Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain), or other time sensitive attractions (Astro Orbiter, Tomorrowland Indy Speedway). You’ll be able to accomplish a ton of attractions in a short amount of time if you make efficient use of the morning and use FASTPASS at the major attractions throughout the day. You’ll also want to strongly consider taking an afternoon break when crowds and temperatures peak to rest up for the evening.
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Got my confirmation for the One More Disney Day Mouse Ears. Here are the details. Doubt I’ll make it:
This was from a promotion from a couple of weeks ago. As far as I know, there’s no way to register for a pair at this time. And before any of you geniuses try to print out my voucher, you’re going to need the bottom half of that barcode. Though you’re welcome to try. The only place I’m going to be at 4:30am on February 29th is in bed. With my teddy.
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Click the link below to be taken to the Morning Extra Magic Hours Times Guide for January 22 – January 28 2012 (they’re too long vertically to post on the front page)
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Click the link below to be taken to the Epcot Evening Extra Magic Hour Times Guide for January 20 2012 (they’re too long vertically to post on the front page)
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Click the link below to be taken to the Resort Times Guide for January 22 – January 28 2012 (they’re too long vertically to post on the front page)
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Click the link below to be taken to the Animal Kingdom Times Guide for January 22 – January 28 2012 (they’re too long vertically to post on the front page)
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