I’m a lucky duck that has gotten to go to Disney World now twice since they have reopened, and I can compare how to the crowd levels have changed since the initial opening a month ago (in my apparently not so humble opinion according to my non fiancé).
I should clarify that our July visit started literally the second day that MK and AK were open to the public, and the other two parks weren’t even open yet, so the crowd levels were at their absolute lowest. I’m sure anyone who visited even a week later experienced a significant increase in crowds (which still probably felt extremely empty) because people waited for all 4 parks to be open before planning their trips. That being said, I would say crowds on this trip were easily triple the crowds in July, which isn’t saying much, because the parks were absolutely empty when we went in July. We felt like we honestly had a private park experience those 3 days. We walked onto nearly every ride, with no wait greater than 15 minutes for Jungle Cruise. We also saw a ton of character cavalcades, which again felt like they were private showings for us. When we walked down Main Street USA, we felt like we were alone in the park. It was eery, but amazing.
Fast forward to this week, and I’d say the crowds have really picked up. That being said, if I hadn’t gone in July, and this was my first trip back, I’d say the parks were the emptiest I’d ever experienced and it was amazing. It is all relative. They only felt crowded this time because I had experienced the emptiness in July. Honestly, MK still felt super roomy and empty everywhere we went. We were never right on top of anyone. We went right at park opening and were there off and on until the park closed (on a weekday), and it never felt crowded at any point. We walked onto all of the little rides. We don’t do big rides (I have a 3 year old), but I saw that the Mine Train said 25 minute wait in the morning, and I’m sure that was generous. Space Mountain said 10 minutes in the afternoon. I think Splash Mountain is the mountain with the longest waits lately, probably because it is so hot, and because no one knows when it’s going to close.
Epcot actually felt pretty crowded when we went on Sunday afternoon/evening, but I think the construction walls and the nature of Food and Wine Festival contribute to that. People tend to hang around in the World Showcase eating and drinking, so it feels like there are people everywhere. The World Showcase was definitely crowded. Wait times for all of the big rides (Frozen, Soarin, Test Track) were 40 minutes and up (at least that’s what they said… I’ve learned that those times are quite inflated lately). Garden Grill and Seasons were both really busy in The Land. It just felt busy overall, compared to life nowadays, not compared to normal Disney World of course.
On Monday, Hollywood Studios felt similarly crowded. We went at park opening and the Main Street (Sunset Boulevard?) was full of people. We were able to immediately walk straight onto Toy Story Mania though. Everyone was very busy with their phones because it was Boarding Group time. The line for Mickey and Minnies Runaway Railway was over an hour when we arrived (again, it probably was more like 30 minutes I have subsequently learned, but they were saying it was an hour and the line looked overwhelming wrapped around outside – spoiler : it moves really fast and there isn’t much of a line inside). Slinky Dog also had a 40+ minute wait right off the bat. So my point is just that there are definitely a lot of people out at the parks. Obviously this is nothing compared to a normal time. When you think of all the attractions that are closed that normally fill up with tons of bodies at a time, all of which are sitting empty right now (in HS for example : Frozen, Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast, the Little Mermaid, the character meet and greets), it is clear that the parks are at extremely low capacity, probably still under 20%… who knows, but everything just feels more full than it did in July. It honestly made me happy because it felt a little closer to normal. The crowds and lines can be deceptive though because of the six feet of spacing between everyone, and the lack of weaving lines around inside ride areas. So while the parks might FEEL a little more crowded right now, they definitely are still super empty in the grand scheme of things.
Outside of the parks it felt the same in July and August. The resorts feel empty because you don’t really have to spend much time in places like the lobby because you can go straight to your room. The Boardwalk pool in August wasn’t as busy as the Polynesians pool was in July. The Boardwalk itself was empty all day every day. At night it got a little busy with everyone getting pizza at the pizza window and then sitting at the tables on the Boardwalk to eat. Otherwise it was a ghost town. The Beach Club beaches were super empty. All of the walkways in the area were empty enough that you almost felt ok removing your mask briefly. It felt safe removing your mask walking from Boardwalk to HS because that’s a longer walk and the walkway was completely empty the whole way. The lake is so quiet and empty with no Friendship boats running right now too.
We ate at Topolinos for character dining for breakfast both in July and August and it felt the same crowd-wise both times. They kept tables empty, had plastic dividers between booths, used mobile check in, took temperatures, etc. It felt safe both times. You can see my rave review in an earlier post. That review still stands. We love love love Topolinos.
We had quick service for dinner at Caribbean Beach one night and noticed that that pool was Super busy in the evening just past 8pm. The quick service place was busy too, but not crowded at all.
Verdict: if you go now, it’ll feel like the emptiest WDW has ever been, I can promise you that. You’ll walk onto rides for sure. You will wait less time than the app says for the big rides. You’ll encounter areas with lots of people, but you will be able to keep plenty of distance to feel safe all the time definitely. As more attractions open, the slightly increasing crowds will have more places to spread out (hopefully some shows will open soon since the actors union reached their deal with Disney).