Many guests are already thinking about planning their 2011 Spring Break vacation to Disney World. Do you know the best times to visit Disney World for Spring Break? For those thinking about a Disney World visit during spring break (March and April) 2011, Easter is unusually late. It occurs on April 24, 2011, as late as it has happened since 1943, and one day earlier than its latest possible date.To figure out what this will mean for Disney World crowds over the 2011 spring break, I researched historical Orlando hotel March and April occupancy during a late Easter, spring and Easter break calendars at 140 public schools, and other sources.
The results of this are reflected in many pages on my site yourfirstvisit.net, especially Spring Break 2011 at Walt Disney World.
The short answer: the best time to visit Disney World will be those beginning March 5, April 2, and April 9. Of these, the best will be the week of April 9, as hardly any kids are on break this week.
The weeks before and after Easter—beginning April 16 and April 23—as usual will be extremely crowded. The second half of the week beginning April 23 may be OK, since, because of the late Easter, fewer kids than typical have the full week after Easter off.
The late Easter may make some think that March will be ok. Unfortunately, other than the week beginning March 5, March will be a tough month. The most crowded March week will be that beginning March 12.
MORE SPECIFICS
A late Easter does not mean an un-crowded March. Hotel occupancy data suggests that the timing of Easter has less of an impact on Walt Disney World March vs. April crowds than one would think.
An early Easter does pull guests from April into March, but a late Easter seems not to pull guests from March to April, but rather to make both March and April each a little busier than they typically are.
This is because there are four different drivers of Walt Disney World March/April attendance.
1. The key driver is the date of Easter.
The date of Easter matters because many schools have breaks the week before or after Easter. In 2011, more than half the kids in my database are off the week before Easter. Thus the week beginning April 16 will be extremely busy at Walt Disney World!!
Compared to recent years, fewer kids have the week after Easter off—likely because Easter is so late. However, I don’t recommend this week either, as many kids with spring breaks in March have the Monday or Tuesday following Easter off as well.
2. The second driver is the timing of school spring breaks not related to Easter.
For kids not having a week off at Easter, most spring breaks are in March.
While scattered, hardly any kids have breaks the weeks beginning March 5, April 2, and April 9. April 9 is the week before the typical Easter break time. Because of this, almost no schools have breaks that week—schools thinking about that week went ahead with the next week, or moved their break into March. The week beginning April 9th should be a particularly good week to visit Walt Disney World.
The busiest week for breaks other than Easter is the week beginning March 12, 2011. This will be the most crowded March week.
3. The third driver of Disney World spring break crowds is simply the second half of March.
This March period is appealing to families from colder climates. It represents a great time to break from northern winters, since by then Orlando’s weather is becoming more predictably warm.
The late April Easter also makes this period well timed for families thinking about taking their kids out of school for a visit to Walt Disney World.
4. The final driver is the dates of college spring breaks.
The dates of college spring breaks have a small but real effect on Disney World crowds. (Small because college kids would typically rather go elsewhere than Walt Disney World, and go wherever that is with others than their families.)
The college spring break period typically peaks in the second full week of March. If Easter is in March, it will shift to a double peak, then and a week later, to align better with Easter. In this next section, we break down the week by week comments for the best times to visit Disney World during Spring Break. If you need help planning your Disney World vacation, contact the local experts at Destinations in Florida Travel.
WEEK BY WEEK COMMENTS ON SPRING BREAK 2011 CROWDS
- Arrival: February 26, 2011 Crowds: Lowest of year
- Arrival: March 5, 2011 Crowds: Lowest of year
- Arrival: March 12, 2011 Crowds: High
- Arrival: March 19, 2011 Crowds: Moderate plus
- Arrival: March 26, 2011 Crowds: Moderate plus
- Arrival: April 2, 2011 Crowds: Moderate
- Arrival: April 9, 2011 Crowds: Lowest of year
- Arrival: April 16, 2011 Crowds: Near highest of year
- Arrival: April 23, 2011 Crowds: Near highest of year
- Arrival: April 30, 2011 Crowds: Lowest of year
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I want to visit Disney sometime in October when is the best week or even November anyone have the anwser i would like to plan my trip now for 2011
thank you
For October and November, the best time to visit is the 1st or 2nd week in October. These two weeks are regular rates, so they are mid of the line prices, but there are usually discounts during these dates. Plus, for crowds they are the best times to visit for these two months. However, October is peak hurricane season. Something to certainly be aware of for your visit. Please contact our agents at Destinations in Florida Travel if you have any other questions.
Me , boyfriend and are 8 year old boy are going to DISNEY WORLD the week of march 24 until 2 of april ,It’s are first time in orlando and i want to know if we pick a good week to go see all the disney Parks ???
Thank you
Hi! Thank you so much for posting such useful information. My best friend and I are planning to take our 3 children (ages 12, 12 and 9) to Disneyworld in 2012. I checked the Easter date and it is April 8. In your opinion, will we be safe arriving the following Thursday (the 12th) and staying for 10 days? I realize Disney is always busy but I would rather wait 30 minutes for a ride than 3 hours, even with a fastpass. I am in eastern Canada and we have our spring break during the first full week of March so I was shocked to learn the parks are crowded in April!!
Thanks again,
Nicole
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