Summary
It’s one of the most popular questions we get. I even have friends of friends message me and ask ... "Just when is the best time to visit Disneyland?" My answer is always "whenever you can!" It’s the truth. Whenever you and your family can make the trip to The Happiest Place On Earth is the best time. But, of course, just like at Walt Disney World, there are better times to visit Disneyland than others. In this post, we're outlining the best times to visit Disneyland in 2023 and 2024.
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Planning the Best Times to Visit Disneyland in 2023 and 2024
We'd be toadally remiss if we didn't talk about the biggest changes coming out of the pandemic — and that's the theme park reservation system. Many days sell out, but even so, there are more crowded days than others. While we do have years of experience and data collection under our belt, there are many more factors at play that put us in new territory when making our predictions.
With so many locals at Disneyland, who have a bigger influence on crowds than at Disney World, we knew crowds would return to Disneyland after its reopening — and boy, did they ever! We will talk more below about Magic Key holders and how they influence crowds.
We've taken that into account when adjusting our Crowd Calendar. Keep hopping back because we will continue to update both this post and our Crowd Calendar as we learn more!
2023 and 2024 are gearing up to be big years at Disneyland. In 2023, Disneyland will kick off the 100 Years of Wonder Celebration Jan. 27, which will run through the remainder of the year — and Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway will open the same day! A reimagined Toontown will make its debut March 8, 2023. The Magic Happens parade returns Feb. 24, 2023. And further down the road, Tiana's Bayou Adventure will open in late 2024, which means guests visiting in 2023 and 2024 should be prepared for Splash Mountain to undergo a refurbishment (the exact dates Splash Mountain will close have not yet been released, but we'll update as soon as we know more!). As we look into 2023 and 2024, there will be some sweet spots to time your visit if you're looking for the least busy time to hop into the parks.
Is It Packed at Disneyland? Here's the Easiest Way to Tell
This post is going to dive into all the nitty-gritty details, and the whys and hows of crowds, but let's just cut to the chase. The easiest way to know if it will be crowded at Disneyland is to ask yourself:
- Is it a major U.S. holiday?
- Are most kids out of school?
If the answer is yes to one or both of these questions, there will be bigger crowds. Another thing to be aware of is major school breaks, and not just in California, and not just for spring or summer break. Many Arizona schools have breaks in the first half of October. Utah schools also have a fall break in mid-October. The spring breaks at major universities in California in late March also influence crowd levels.
Want to Know for Sure?
- Hop straight to our Disneyland Crowd Calendar. You can view the busiest times on the Disneyland Crowd Calendar for the day, month or year.
- If you're planning a visit but don't see your particular dates discussed below, leap down to the comments. We frogs — and some of the Disneyland community — are hoppy to share answers.
Visiting During a Busy Time? Don't Fret!
Even during the busiest times, there are ways to skip the lines and make the most of your time. Here are our best tips to reduce waits! FASTPASS and MaxPass have been officially retired and replaced with the paid Genie+ system. Again, our best advice is to purchase your tickets and make your Disneyland theme park reservations as soon as possible to secure your spot. Reservation availability is released 120 days in advance (or 90 days for Magic Key holders). You'll get the best price on Genie+ if you purchase it with your tickets as the price can fluctuate for day-of-use purchases.
Factors That Influence the Best Time to Go to Disneyland
If you’re more familiar with Cinderella Castle than Sleeping Beauty Castle, it's important to know that the best time to visit Disneyland isn't the same as at Disney World.
The biggest difference is the locals. Disney World has a good amount of locals, but not nearly as many as those in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. Many of those Disneyland locals are Magic Key holders (annual passholders). Magic Key holders still need to make a park reservation to enter the parks, and their availability calendar is also limited. Depending on the type of pass they have, Magic Key holders might find themselves blocked out of the park on certain days or weeks, particularly those times that are especially popular with tourists — namely summer, spring break and holidays.
The Disneyland blockout calendar provides a fairly good idea of the very busiest dates of the year because those are the times when most Magic Key holders (especially for the more affordable passes, such as the Imagine and Enchant Keys) are not allowed to enter the parks. For example, during most of June through mid-August, certain Key holders are typically blocked from entering at least one or both parks, a strong sign that there will be tourists! One important thing to keep in mind in the future: Crowds are higher right before and after major blockout periods. (Who wouldn't want to hop back into the Happiest Place on Earth or make a last visit before the blockout period?!)
Even if park capacity is the same each day, Magic Key holders influence the park crowds. During school days and workdays, Magic Key Holders might visit the park for just the morning or just the evening, making the park seem less crowded than on a Saturday or holiday, when many more people arrive early and stay all day long, making the park feel more crowded.
Outside of the Magic Key holders, other limited-time local promotions can influence crowds for certain periods of time. When Disneyland offers special ticketing promos for California residents or Southern California residents, more locals flock to the parks. That can make it hard to predict crowd levels as it attracts more guests during typically quieter times. As the promo end dates draw near, everyone rushes in to use the tickets before they expire. Undercover Tourist typically offers these same promo tickets for an even steeper discount than the parks, so our Disneyland ticketing page can offer insight into promo dates when available.
A more recent crowd forecaster is Disneyland's 1-Day Ticket Availability Calendar. Disneyland's 1-Day tickets are sold in tiers based on projected crowd levels, giving us a sneak peek at when Disney is expecting things to be the busiest. (Psst ... Undercover Tourist also offers 1-Day tickets to Disneyland, and they include our 365-day refund policy!)
Another factor that has more influence on crowds at Disneyland than at Disney World is the conventioneers. The Anaheim Convention Center is right across the street. What out-of-town visitor wouldn’t enjoy popping over in the afternoon and early evening for some Disney magic? It’s generally not necessary to rearrange your vacation based on a convention, but there might be one exception. Disney’s own D23 Expo, held every other year, brings flocks of fans. Those folks will plan to spend some of their hours before, during and after the Expo playing in the parks. The next D23 Expo is planned for summer 2024.
Keep in mind that special events and holidays also influence crowds. Many people visit during Disneyland Halloween Time or the holidays to experience the magic of these seasons, and there are special events at different times throughout the year. The Food and Wine Festival at Disney California Adventure brings foodies and wine aficionados flocking to the parks in March and April. This is yet another reason to review our Disneyland crowd calendar — we list the holidays and special events! We are so frogcited to get special event dates for 2023 and 2024 on the calendar — you'll see those reflected on the Crowd Calendar as soon as they are announced, so keep hopping back! Our Crowd Calendars also offer a look at the weather at Disneyland so you can pack accordingly for that May Gray and June Gloom :)
Based on all of this information, historical crowd levels during holidays and other data, we have a pretty good idea of the very busiest dates of the year at Disneyland. But, as you probably guessed, there are some variables.
Expected Busiest Days at Disneyland in 2023
Here are the days we expect to be the busiest at Disneyland Resort in 2023:
- Jan. 1-8, 13-16, 27-30
- Feb. 2-6, 9-26
- March 8; March 11 - April 30
- Weekends and Grad Nite dates in May, plus Memorial Day
- June 16 - July 5
- Sept. 1-4; Sept. 22-25
- Oct. 2-23
- Nov. 17-26
- Dec. 17-31
Expected Busiest Days at Disneyland in 2024
Here are the days we expect to be the busiest at Disneyland Resort in 2024:
- Jan. 1-7, Jan. 10-15
- Feb. 16-19
- March 9 - April 30
- Weekends and Grad Nite dates in May, plus Memorial Day
- June 14 - July 7
- Aug. 30 - Sept. 2
- Oct. 2-20
- Nov. 22 - Dec. 1
- Dec. 21-31
*The fall of Easter impacts Disneyland crowds in the spring. Some school districts base their spring break around Easter; others do not. When Easter falls earlier in the season, March or early April, it has the effect of making a more intense, but shorter spring break season. This is the case in 2023 — Easter is on April 9 — and 2024 — Easter is on March 31. These two years, you can expect a fairly consistent, condensed spring break season. When Easter falls later, the effect is a longer but less intense spring break season. Many California universities consistently have spring break at the end of March, which can affect crowds then.
Other Dates That Will Likely See Higher Crowds
Here are other days that see higher crowds, but not as high as the absolute worst days. Some of the dates listed are isolated, with the days around them generally fine, but they do bring in more locals. Know of other dates that are popular with locals? Share in the comments below.
- Rosh Hashanah (when it falls on a weekday) - It falls on weekends in 2023 and 2024
- Yom Kippur (when it falls on a weekday) - Sept. 25, 2023
- Columbus Day - Oct. 9, 2023, and Oct. 14, 2024
- Utah and Arizona fall breaks in October
- Veterans Day (and Veterans Day Observed) - Nov. 11
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Jan. 16, 2023, and Jan. 15, 2024
- Presidents Day - Feb. 20, 2023, and Feb. 19, 2024
- Caesar Chavez Day (when it falls on a weekday) - March 31, 2023
- Memorial Day - May 29, 2023, and May 27, 2024
- Disneyland's anniversary - July 17
- Labor Day - Sept. 4, 2023, and Sept. 2, 2024
Best Time to Visit Disneyland in 2023
While these are traditionally the best times to visit Disneyland, we expect higher crowds than usual around these times with all of the fun hoppening in the parks in 2023.
Keep in mind that "off-season" low crowd levels can also mean shorter Disneyland hours and that less entertainment is available or that more rides undergo refurbishment. During some seasons, such as Halloween Time, September weekdays are less crowded, but only weekends include fireworks, so take that into consideration as well. We find Sundays to be less crowded than Saturdays.
- Jan. 9-12, 17-19, 23-24, 26, 31
- Feb. 1, 7-8
- The first few days in March (until March 11)
- Weekdays in May (except for Grad Nites and Memorial Day)
- The first half of June
- The month of August
- Tuesdays through Thursdays for the month of September and the last week of October
- Mondays through Thursdays in November (minus the week of Thanksgiving)
- Mondays through Thursdays during the first half of December
Best Time to Visit Disneyland in 2024
- Weekdays in January (minus the week of New Year's Day and the days around MLK Day, when runDisney events return to the resort)
- Weekdays in February (minus the days around Presidents Day)
- The first few days in March (until March 9)
- Weekdays in May (except for Grad Nites and Memorial Day)
- The first half of June
- The month of August
- Tuesdays through Thursdays for the month of September and the last week of October
- Mondays through Thursdays in November (minus the week of Thanksgiving)
- Mondays through Thursdays during the first half of December
January and February generally have low crowds and beautiful weather (if not a little chilly), but do offer scaled-back entertainment and shorter hours. Disney California Adventure's Food and Wine Festival generally starts in early March and brings in some foodie-loving froggies, followed by spring break crowds in March and April. Summer break kicks off for most school districts in mid-June when you'll see an uptick in crowds — but in our opinion, it's pretty manageable over an extended period of time, longer park hours, and LOTS of entertainment! In summer, the thing to keep in mind is the weather. June gloom offers some respite from the heat, though those temperatures do rise throughout the remainder of summer.
Avoiding Early Park Closures Due to After-Hours Parties
One other thing to be aware of is any separately ticketed events that may be scheduled even during the best times to visit. Sometimes a park or an area of a park closes early for private events. That's why you always want to look at the hours for the dates you want to visit so you don't encounter any surprises. Here are the most common causes of early park closure:
- The Disneyland Halloween Party — The Oogie Boogie Bash at Disney California Adventure for select days (usually closing early Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Halloween) in September and October
- Sweethearts' Nite at Disneyland Park will take place Jan. 31, Feb. 2, 5, 7, 9, 14 and 16, 2023
- Princess Nite will take place at Disneyland Park on March 7 and 9, 2023
- In the past, additional Disneyland After Dark parties have taken place at Disneyland Park on select dates in May and at at Disney California Adventure Park on select dates in March
These after-hours parties can cause the park to close earlier than usual. If you look forward to an evening at Disneyland with all the nighttime entertainment, then avoid visiting these days unless you have a party ticket. Or get a park hopper, visit in the morning and hop to the other park in the afternoon. Otherwise, your fun may be cut short, and you may not get the most out of your visit for your money. (Sometimes the park that closes early for an event is quieter than usual during the day since people avoid that park.) Since Disneyland hours are generally released only up to six weeks in advance, keep an eye out for news of parties and note any upcoming dates to avoid (or to buy a ticket for). You can look to our linked posts for upcoming events or for guidance on predicting the next season's shenanigans.
Ta-da! There it is — the best time to visit Disneyland in 2023 and 2024! Don't froget that you can purchase discount Disneyland tickets from your favorite frogs! Ribbit!
Related: 40 Tips to Maximize Your Time at Disneyland
Keep hopping!
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