January Crowds

I can remember many years ago, my family went down on the 2nd of January. You could literally drive strait in to the park, and you could see bumper to bumper traffic the other way leaving WDW.

That is marathon weekend. While it doesn't have a huge impact on the parks, it will be busier than an average January day. It will also impact moving around the resort area. Last year it took me about an hour to get from AK to Beach Club just because of how traffic needs to be routed around. Just things to keep in mind!

A number of other INTERCOT members will be there that weekend as well to either run, or cheer on runners (or both!). It's a fun, but exhausting weekend!

Yeah, marathon weekend definitely messes with the traffic but since you're flying in you'll probably be taking the buses rather than driving anyway. And if you're planning on renting a car, then definitely don't drive on Saturday or Sunday.

The crowds are not light like they used to be. January has become hugely popular with South American tour groups (it's their summer holiday). They travel in huge packs. If you see one of these large groups going one direction, just go a different direction and the crowds won't be too bad for you. Don't expect the parks to be empty like they used to be in January, but they won't be bad, either.

Strmchsr;2427517 wrote: Yeah, marathon weekend definitely messes with the traffic but since you're flying in you'll probably be taking the buses rather than driving anyway. And if you're planning on renting a car, then definitely don't drive on Saturday or Sunday.

We were on a bus...it was gridlock all over. The driver told us it took him almost 90 mins to get from Old Key West to AK to pick us up. I have never seen anything like the traffic was that day!

Dopey's Girl;2427518 wrote: We were on a bus...it was gridlock all over. The driver told us it took him almost 90 mins to get from Old Key West to AK to pick us up. I have never seen anything like the traffic was that day!

Which is why we are leaving on Monday this upcoming January. Traffic is gnarly on Saturday and Sunday of Marathon weekend, which this year is the 10-11th. On Sunday, things don't truly clear out until 2-3pm. If you are going to a park on Sunday, I'd suggest either Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom, as those are the first to clear of runners.

January used to be wonderful, our favorite time to go. Cool, low crowds, easy going. The tour groups have ruined that (yes, ruined it!)

ETA: I see the OP is leaving Saturday. Hopefully your flight is not early in the day, because traffic is definitely affected in Saturday (1/2 Marathon day) as well. Things should be moving well by noon.

If you don't mind a ride like Spalsh MT being down, it's a great time to go. The weather is cool and the ride lines are short. We've been twice in the first month and outside my favorite attraction being down, it's a great time to be there.