These Are the Best Times of Year to Avoid Grotesque Disney Crowds

Devon O'Rourke

6 years ago

Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

INSIDER SECRET: September can be a great time of year to visit Disney because the weather is cooling off and most kids are back in school.

Disney parks are some of the world’s most popular vacation destinations, but popularity means people, lots of them. How can you enjoy a Disney getaway with smaller crowds? I’ll share the magic dates.

You can subscribe to our newsletter for more travel tips like this.

The crowds at Disney can be unrelenting. (Photo by Mia2you/Shutterstock)

These Are the Best Times to Visit Disney to Avoid Crowds

Disney parks will always be busy to some degree. There will likely never be a time where you’re strolling through a theme park, thinking, “Where is everyone today?” There are, however, optimal times to visit a Disney park. Here are the top dates in 2020:

In January, there is a small window of weekdays after New Year’s Day: January 7 to January 10
Any day starting the Wednesday after Martin Luther King day until Valentine’s Day: January 23 to February 13
After Valentine’s Day there’s a window between school vacations: February 25 to March 8
Anytime in September after Labor Day: September 3 and beyond
Weekdays in October are usually good
Weekdays in November are even better, with the exception of Thanksgiving week: November 1 to November 21
Weekdays in December are also generally uncrowded until after Christmas Eve

Disney crowds are often huge. (Photo by Solarisys/Shutterstock)

One of the best parts of visiting Disney on a less-crowded day is that the pricing is relatively low. The more popular the day, the more expensive the ticket.

But, we’ve got great travel secrets to keep your costs low and to avoid those ridiculous prices!

I recommend staying at a local hotel and visiting the park a couple of different days. That way you can see more of the park and experience the ebb and flow of the crowds.

Bottom Line

Don’t fret over the crowds at Disney. It’s part of the experience. Disney is a popular destination and it’s only going to get more popular with the new Star Wars attraction in the coming months.

We have listed the days when crowds should be smallest. Now, here are the most popular (i.e., crowded) times of year:

Holidays, especially major holidays like New Year’s Eve
Winter school vacations, generally between Christmas and New Year’s
Spring school vacations, scattered throughout March and April
Summer Break, middle of May through Labor Day
Disney Event Days, like the “Not-so-Scary Halloween Party”

Comment if you have any additional tips to avoiding the Disney crowds!

For the latest tips and tricks on traveling big without spending a fortune, please subscribe to the Million Mile Secrets daily email newsletter.

Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)