So, this is weird. We’re in the middle of spring break season in Florida. The city of Miami sent a stern word of warning to spring breakers this year, and Disney experts cautioned friends and family to avoid Disney World this time of year. What’s the big deal about spring break, and why is everyone so worried about it?
Typically, we see some BIG crowds in the parks and resorts around spring break. Teachers and students have a little vacation time, the warm (but not too warm) weather is particularly appealing, and college students have a break from their busy semester. Seems like the perfect time to take a vacation to Disney World, right? Well, for a while, that’s what everyone thought.
In fact, Disney World itself was preparing for big crowds throughout March. Two of the Annual Passholder tiers — the Pixie Dust Pass and Pirate Pass — are “blocked out” for the remainder of March.
Disney reserves the right to create blockout dates during “peak and holiday periods” for these two levels of Annual Passes, meaning you can’t use your Annual Pass to get into the parks if blocked out. Clearly, with all those blockout dates on the calendar, Disney considers March the “peak” season.
With all this in mind, you probably have a picture in your mind of what Disney World looks like right now. Are you imagining wall-to-wall crowds? Wait times in the triple digits? Well, you may be surprised to hear that this photo was taken in the middle of spring break. Yep, Magic Kingdom hasn’t been as busy as many expected.
We’ve seen the Tower of Terror wait time as low as 35 minutes in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. If you’re unfamiliar, this ride can see 2+ hour wait times if the park is especially busy, so 35 minutes is a GREAT time for one of the park’s most popular attractions.
So, what’s the deal? Where are all the crowds? Well, perhaps all those blockout dates are working. We have a feeling that with TWO levels of Annual Passes blocked from Disney World, there are significantly fewer people visiting the parks right now.
Plus, Disney World will soon see a spike in crowds thanks to some upcoming cheer and dance competitions at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. These events are set to happen between April 26th through April 29th. Right now, the EPSN Wide World of Sports is pretty quiet, as there aren’t any major competitions happening until April. Could this be the calm before the storm?
It seems like Disney fans are staying away from the parks during spring break! Between the lack of Annual Passholders in the parks and the shockingly low wait times, it’s clear spring break isn’t so bad after all.
In the meantime, we’re always on the lookout for the latest Disney news, so stay tuned for more.
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Have you ever been to Disney World during spring break? Let us know in the comments!
I’d love to visit again from the UK but would like the ‘free’ dining plan, the magic express from the airport to the hotel reinstated, clean toilets in the parks, polite staff( like back in the day) ……. Basically as it was ten years ago.