Are you planning your Walt Disney World vacation and trying to decide when to go? Let’s take a look at our exclusive Walt Disney World Crowd Calendar for 2024 to find the perfect time!
One of the biggest questions people have when planning their trip to Walt Disney World is one of the most basic ones: when should you go?
Figuring out the exact dates of when to go to Disney World is the first step of planning your Walt Disney World Vacation. You cannot make any other decisions until this step is complete. In my opinion, the number of people at Disney can make or break your vacation. I rely on our crowd calendar to help pick the best time to go.
What is a Disney World Crowd Calendar?
A Disney World crowd calendar is our best guess at when to go to Disney based upon how many people are visiting the Disney parks on any given day. For us, low crowds means a good time to visit. Low crowds mean lower wait times for attractions!
Why Our Crowd Calendar Works
There are 3 key categories that help determine crowd levels – Disney events, holidays and weather, and school calendars. Our crowd calendar is set up to show trends based on these three factors.
1. Disney Events
Any event that Disney is hosting WILL affect crowd levels so it’s important that we know about them. We have looked up 2025 dates for the following:
- runDisney events
- Cheerleading and dance competition dates
- EPCOT annual festivals
- Specific Disney events
2. Weather and Holidays
Crowd predictions for Disney World have become more challenging over the years. One thing is certain – any federal holiday that results in a 3 day weekend will be busy at Disney World. We have noted every single holiday as well as the typical weather for each month.
3. School Calendars
Of course we don’t know every school calendar, but there are trends. Spring breaks bring extra crowds for a solid 4-6 weeks, Jersey week happens, and of course everyone is off around Christmas.
You may not have kids in school and think you don’t need to worry about school calendars – but you definitely need to take them into consideration.
Month By Month – When to Avoid Disney And When To Go
2024 Disney World Crowd Calendar
May 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 88°, 6 days with precipitation this month. Here are our suggestions of what to wear in May.
May is one of the best times to go to Disney World! Weather is great, events have died down and school is still in session. As a general rule, weekend attendance will be heavier than weekdays but overall, the crowds will be smaller throughout the month.
Holidays and Disney Events in May
- May 4 Star Wars Day. This will be a busy but fun time to be at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. May the Fourth be with you!
- May 5 Cinco De Mayo
- May 24 – 28 Memorial Day Weekend – Holiday weekend and the beginning of summer break in some parts of the country. Memorial Day is not only the unofficial start to summer in the general USA, it is also the summer kick off at Disney World! The parks start to stay open later beginning Memorial Day (usually staying open until 10:00 rather than 9:00).
June 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 91°, 12 days with precipitation this month. Here is our suggested list of what to wear in June.
Keep in mind that during all the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common.
June is hot, humid, and rainy but the parks are not typically overly crowded, especially during the weekdays. The first full week of June should be the best of the month because many schools are not out yet.
Holidays and Disney Events in June
All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
All month – Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot, weekends in EPCOT will be busy
June 1 Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon 35th Anniversary
June 9 Donald Duck’s 90th Birthday
June 16 Father’s Day
We have a detailed list on what to wear to Disney in June here.
July 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 92°, 13 days with precipitation this month. Keep in mind that during the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common. Here is what to wear to Disney in July.
Holidays and Disney Events in July
- All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- July 4th week brings heavy crowds at Disney World, especially the Magic Kingdom. Disney is known for its incredible fireworks displays along with a holiday weekend. Both the Magic Kingdom and Epcot have special 4th of July celebrations. Disney Springs has special 4th of July decor and Animal Kingdom usually has special food and beverages to celebrate America’s Independence Day.
Dave Says:
The second half of July is very busy on weekends but similar to June, the weekdays are doable. If you can brave the heat and humidity (average is 74% humidity in Orlando in July) it is not a bad time to go.
August 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 91°, 14 days with precipitation this month. Keep in mind that during the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common. Here are our suggestions of what to wear to Disney in August.
- August 9(?) Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom begins (ending on October 31)
- August 18 – 24 World Princess Week (Tentative)
- August 29: Food and Wine Festival Starts at Epcot. The Epcot Food and Wine Festival. Avoid Epcot during the weekends as it is a favorite place for the locals to visit.
Middle of August – crowds start to decrease as school starts in some parts of the country. The temperatures are also beginning to back off just a bit toward the very end of August. Do be aware that tropical storms and hurricanes often form from mid-August to late October.
Dave Says:
Be aware that Epcot can get very busy as the Food and Wine Festival is very popular. Check out August 15-31 – if your kids are not in school yet, consider this time of the year to go! This is a prime week to visit.
September 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 89°, 11 days with precipitation this month. Rain gear will be necessary! Here is our suggestions of what to wear in September.
Holidays and Disney World Events in September
- All Month: Food and Wine Festival at Epcot
- All Month Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom
- August 30 – September 3 (Labor Day Weekend) – A holiday weekend with heavy crowds. One thing to note, Labor Day itself is one of the least busy holiday Mondays as visitors will often head home the Sunday of Labor Day weekend.
Dave Says,
After Labor Day weekend is over head to Disney World! The rest of September is a great time to visit Disney World as schools are in session throughout the country. This would be especially great if you have toddlers who are not currently in school. There is so much to do at Disney with toddlers!
October 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 85°, 5 days with precipitation this month. Here is our suggestions of what to wear to Disney in October.
Holidays and Disney World Events in October
- All Month Mickey’s Not-So Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom
- All Month: EPCOT Food and Wine Festival
- October 11-15 – Columbus Day/Indigenous People’s Day and school fall breaks all occur here. Crowds will reflect it.
- October 31 Halloween
Dave says:
October 1-6 This is a great time to go if you can. Lower temps, lower crowds! Halloween is one of the biggest holidays at Disney World – check out the visitor stats to see! It will be busy, but it is incredibly fun.
November 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 78°, 3 days with precipitation this month. Here are our suggestions of what to wear to Disney in November.
Holidays and Disney Events in November
- November 1-4: Half Marathon
- November 4 – 10 Jersey Week (Tentative)
November 6 – December 20 Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom - November 11 Veterans Day -Federal holiday which brings heavy crowds
- November 23 – Food and Wine Festival Ends
- November 24 – 30 Thanksgiving Holiday week which brings heavy crowds. Generally speaking Saturday-Wednesday are less busy than Thursday-Sunday of this week. In case it matters to you, Christmas decorations at Disney World WILL be up!
December 2024 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 75°, 4 days with precipitation this month. Here are our favorite Christmas Disney clothes, as well as our suggested packing list!
Holidays and Disney Events in December
- Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom (Ending December 20)
- Festival of the Holidays at Epcot (Ending December 25th)
- December 25 – Christmas
- December 31 New Year’s Eve
Be aware that the second half of December is when you will find Christmas holiday crowds leading into New years. The Christmas crowds are a real thing.
Disney is known to have the highest attendance of visitors between Christmas and New Years Day. Not only are the crowds high, but general cost of everything is higher this time of year.
2025 Disney Crowd Calendar
January 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 72°, 4 days with precipitation this month. What to wear in January packing list.
Holidays and Walt Disney World Events in January
- January 1 New Years Day
- January 1 – 3 Holiday Activities
- January 8 – 12 runDisney Marathon. Walt Disney World Marathon weekend (which includes the Walt Disney World 5k, 10k, Half Marathon Goofy’s Race and Half Challenge, Dopey Challenge and the Marathon) is happening and some schools are still on break which makes this time not only busy but early morning road and park traffic on race days can be very difficult to maneuver around.
- January 15 Space Mountain 50th Anniversary
- January (mid) Festival of the Arts and Cuisine begins (Tentative)
- January 17 – 19 College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships
- January 20 Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- Martin Luther King weekend (Jan. 17 – 20) brings a 3 day federal holiday weekend and college Cheerleading and Dance competitions. While this weekend isn’t one of the busiest, it is wise to be aware that crowds are higher than what you may expect.
- January 31 – February 2 National Dance Championship. This is a nationwide dance team competition which brings higher attendance.
February 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 75°, 4 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney Events in February
- February 7-10 National High School Cheerleading Championship This is a very prestigious, televised competition (ESPN). This competition brings in 20,000 athletes.
- February 14 Valentine’s Day
- February (TBA) Twirl Mania International Championships
- February 15 – 17 President’s Day Weekend
- February 15 Cinderella 75th Anniversary
- February 20-24 runDisney Princess Half Marathon weekend. The half marathon event also includes a 5k, 10k, and the Disney Fairy Tale Challenge.
- February 28 – March 2 The Contest of Champions which is an open dance and drill competition that takes place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex at Disney World.
March 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 79°, 5 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney Events in March
- March 1 – July 1 TBA Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot
- March 8 – 9 UCA International All Star Cheerleading Championship
- March 17 St. Patrick’s Day
Overall, this month is rolling with spring breaks throughout the country and a wide variety of High School and College competitions and school outings happening throughout the month.
If you go to Disney World in March, go early! As the month goes along, the crowds tend to increase with spring breaks and school functions.
April 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 84°, 4 days with precipitation this month.
Holidays and Disney Events in April
- All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- All month – Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot
- April 1 Disney’s Blizzard Beach 30th Anniversary
- Mid April TBA runDisney Springtime Surprise Weekend
- April 19 – 21 Easter weekend. The week before Easter and Easter weekend are generally a very busy time as many students are off school coinciding with spring breaks.Â
- April 20 Easter Sunday
- April 22 Earth Day
- April 25 – 28 ICU Cheerleading & Dance World Championships
- Late April TBA US All Star Federation Cheerleading and Dance Worlds
Similar to March, April usually has a full slate of activities and holidays that can cause it to be pretty crowded most of the month.
May 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 88°, 6 days with precipitation this month
May can be a great time to go to Disney World! Weather is great, events have died down and school is still in session. As a general rule, weekends will be heavier than weekdays but overall, the crowds tend to be smaller throughout the month.
Holidays and Disney Events in May
- All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- All month – Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot
- Early May TBA The Summit-Varsity All Stars Cheerleading and Dance Championship
- May 4 Star Wars Day. This would be a fun but busy time to be at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. May the Fourth be with you!
May 5 Cinco De Mayo
May – August TBA Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon - May 24 – 26 Memorial Day Weekend
- May 26 Memorial Day – Holiday weekend and the beginning of summer break in some parts of the country. Memorial Day is not only the unofficial start to summer in the general USA, it is also the summer kick off at Disney World! The parks start to stay open later beginning Memorial Day (usually staying open until 10:00 pm rather than 9:00 pm).
- May 30 – June 1 TBA One Magical Weekend
June 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 91°, 12 days with precipitation this month. Keep in mind that during the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common.
June is hot, humid, and rainy but the crowds are not typically overly crowded, especially during the weekdays. The first full week of June should be the best of the month because many schools are not out yet.
Holidays and Disney Events in May
- All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- All month – Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot
- June 1 Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon 35th Anniversary
- June 19 Inside Out 10th Anniversary
- June 22 Lady and the Tramp 70th Anniversary
- June 23 Pocahontas 30th Anniversary
July 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 92°, 13 days with precipitation this month. Keep in mind that during the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common.
Holidays and Disney Events in July
- All month – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- All month – Flower and Garden Festival in Epcot
- July 3 – 6 Fourth of July WeekendJuly 4th brings heavy crowds at the Magic Kingdom. Disney is known for its incredible fireworks displays along with a holiday weekend. Both the Magic Kingdom and Epcot have special 4th of July celebrations. Disney Springs has special 4th of July decor and the Animal Kingdom usually has special food and beverages to celebrate America’s Independence Day.
- July – Mid November TBA Food and Wine Festival at Epcot
The rest of July is very busy on weekends but similar to June, the weekdays are doable. If you can brave the heat and humidity (average is 74% humidity in Orlando in July) it is not a bad time to go.
August 2025 Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 91°, 14 days with precipitation this month. Keep in mind that during the summer months quick afternoon rain showers are very common.
- All month ENDS THIS MONTH TBA – Disney H2O Glow Nights at Typhoon Lagoon
- All month: Food and Wine Festival at Epcot. The Epcot Food and Wine Festival. Avoid Epcot during the weekends as it is a favorite place for the locals to visit.
August TBA Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom begins (ending on October 31) - Mid August TBA Department of Defense Warrior Games at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex
August 30 – September 1 Labor Day Weekend (see below)
Middle of August – crowds start to decrease as school starts in some parts of the country. The temperatures are also beginning to back off just a bit toward the very end of August. Do be aware that tropical storms and hurricanes often form from mid-August to late October.
Be aware that Epcot can get very busy as the Food and Wine Festival is very popular. Check out August 15-31 – if your kids are not in school yet, consider this time of year to go! It’s typically a great time to visit.
September 2025 Disney Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 89°, 11 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney World Events in September
- September 1 – Labor Day
- August 30 – September 3 (Labor Day Weekend) – A holiday weekend with heavy crowds. One thing to note, Labor Day itself is one of the least busy holiday Mondays as visitors will often head home the Sunday of Labor Day weekend.
- All Month Food and Wine Festival at Epcot
- All Month Mickey’s Not-SoScary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom
The rest of September is a great time to visit Disney World as schools are in session throughout the country. This would be especially great if you have toddlers who are not currently in school.
October 2025 Disney World Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 85°, 5 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney World Events in October
- All Month Mickey’s Not-SoScary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom
- All Month: Food and Wine Festival at Epcot
- October 11 – 13 – Columbus Day/Indigenous People’s Day and school fall breaks all occur here. Crowds will reflect it.
- October 31 Halloween
October 1-6 This is a great time to go if you can. Lower temps, lower crowds. Halloween is one of the biggest holidays at Disney World. It will be busy, but it is incredibly fun.
November 2025 Disney World Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 78°, 3 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney Events in November
- November 1 Transformation to Christmas begins (decorations start going up)
- November Early TBA Wine and Dine Half Marathon will bring a bit heavier crowds. This runDisney event is full of fun!
- November TBA Food and Wine Festival at Epcot ends
- November 3 – 7 Jersey Week (New Jersey schools are out and Disney World becomes a popular destination)
- November 4 Election Day
- November 11 Veterans Day (observed) – Federal holiday which brings heavy crowds
- November 13 Fantasia 85th Anniversary
- November 22 Toy Story 30th Anniversary
- November 24 Tangled 15th Anniversary
- November 24 – 30 Thanksgiving Holiday week which brings heavy crowds. Generally speaking Saturday-Wednesday is less busy than Thursday-Sunday of this week. Christmas decorations at Disney World are up during this week.
- November TBA – December 25 Epcot International Festival of the Holidays at Epcot
- November TBA – December TBA Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom
December 2025 Disney World Crowd Calendar
Weather: Average high temperature is 75°, 4 days with precipitation this month
Holidays and Disney Events in December
- December TBA Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom ends
- December 25 Festival of the Holidays at Epcot ends
- December 25 – Christmas
- December 31 New Year’s Eve
Be aware that in the second half of December you will find Christmas holiday crowds leading into New Year’s. The Christmas crowds are a real thing.Â
Disney is known to have the highest attendance of visitors between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Not only are the crowds high, but generally, cost of everything is higher this time of year.
If you are trying to stay on a budget please take all this into consideration.
Dave Says:
Other than the first week of January, I like this time to go to Disney! The weather can be a bit unpredictable and it can be a bit chilly but typically not too bad and the crowds tend to be much lower after all the holidays.
How To Decide When To Go To Disney World
When you decide to go to Disney World hinges on a lot of personal factors specific to you and your family as well. Some questions you need to ask yourself are:
- How important is the crowd factor to me during my visit?
- Am I ok with my children missing some school?
- What kind of weather do I want to have?
- Do I want to spend a chunk of my time at the pools and Typhoon Lagoon?
- Do I want to visit during special times, like during one of the Epcot Festivals such as the food and wine festival or flower festival?
If I were to pick 3 of my favorite weeks to go from our Disney World Crowd Calendar, it would be:
- The last week of August
- The first week of October
- The first week of December. In early December the Christmas decorations are up but the Christmas crowds haven’t started yet.
I also like the entire month of September because school is in session throughout the country which makes crowds lower, and the competitions that are so wide spread from January through April haven’t started yet. This is a perfect time to go on an adults only trip!
We do have a post that helps a bit more with when the best time is for you to book your Walt Disney World vacation. It will go through a bit more detailed information on budget and timing.
Now that you know when to go, be sure to check out our month by month packing guide for what to wear at Disney World! If you are wondering where to stay during your visit start here: find out if you should stay onsite at Disney World or offsite!
We hope you found our Disney World Crowd Calendar to be helpful! Be sure to share it with your friends and family who are planning their own trip!
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How come December 2023 shows green for the first half of the month but December 2024 shows yellow? What is the difference between the two years to make early December 2024 busier than 2023?
Disney World has gotten busier overall so we THINK that 2024 is going to be busier than 2023. Additionally, with the removal of the park reservation system we are pretty sure that 2024 is just going have more people. Its not an exact science though! I hope that helps.