We are visiting Disney the week of June 6th. I have been to Disney 3 other times in June, but this is the first time I’ve used touringplans. I am confused (and concerned) that for some reason the week of June 6th is pretty much rated the most crowded week of the summer. We have always gone the 3rd or 4th week in June before, but this year our schedule dictated we go a bit earlier. I know I can’t change my plans now, but I just cannot fathom why this week is SO much more crowded than other summer weeks. I was part of the Disney College program during my college days and July was MUCH more crowded than June. I also have checked with friends and family who live in other states and a good portion of them (LA, Seattle, DC, Philadeliphia, NYC) aren’t out of school until the 3rd week of June. Making the logic that this is when students are out of school…seem invalid. I can’t find anything on the web that is going on special at Disney that week, but maybe I am missing something. So my question is, why is the second week of June supposed to be the most crowded of the entire summer AND for that matter, except for the weeks of Christmas & New Years, almost the most crowded of the entire year!
I can’t speak for all of FL, but in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties where I live (in the panhandle), HS graduations are all between May 27-31. Walton County has last day of School May 25th. Okaloosa County last day of school is June 2nd. That’s the whole western portion of the panhandle. Last day of school in Orlando is June 6th. Having livedin all four corners of the country, it seems that the schools in FL start and end earlier than in more northern climes - and there are no “snow days” to extend the school schedule. Why this would make June more crowded than July I cannot say, but the more “local” schools will be out by the time of your trip. I don’t have any school-aged children, so I can go any time that I want to (and I avoid WDW Jun-Sept like the plague due to the heat and humidity), but if I HAD to go after school was out, I’d go AS SOON AS POSSIBLE before the totally dreadful weather of Jul and Aug set in.
I DO NOT want to get into a Gay Days discussion (they NEVER end well), but for the record, Disney does NOT “host” the event; it is hosted by an independent hotel in Orlando. During the festivities the organizers “highlight” one park each day (including the 2 Universal parks), but by all accounts, this has virtually no impact on overall attendance. When each park averages around 50,000 guests per day during the summer, an extra thousand or so is really a drop in the bucket…
Thanks for all your responses. I guess I’m just freaking out a bit. I really did not think it would be the most crowded week of the summer and I was really hoping to have a nice trip. Guess next time I’ll know. I’m a teacher and we have to vacation in the summer, so I don’t have the option to go except at the busy times. I was just hoping it was on the lesser end of the busy times. (sigh)
I’m wondering about end of the year field trips for local schools? Post-graduation trips for some families?