As a teacher I don't have much opportunity to travel in the off season. Which would be the better time to go to WDW? Spring Break (Good Friday and the week after) or Christmas Break (12/23 - 12/30)?

P.S. My first trip after I retire from teaching will be some year in OCTOBER!!

Shari: Spring Break, especially the weeks before and after Easter, are the worst weeks to go to the WDW area. The crowds will also be heavy during the Christmas Break. I would never go during these two times. For various reasons and with many different family members I have been about 5 times over
a 15/20 year period. I won a very expensive trip there four years ago and
brought my grown daughter (25 yrs. old then) as she had never been there. That was in Feb. I would go in October after you retire. WDW is not small any longer.
It takes quite a while to see everything. If you are not an amusement park or crowd person- there are probably certain aspects you will not like. Hope you get to do it in October and enjoy more minutes in the attractions than sweltering in lines.

Shari - one thing to remember is that not all schools have the same Spring Break. In the state I live in, even schools within 10 miles of each other don't have the same break. But - EVERYONE has the same Christmas break. So - if you want to pick one of those 2 time periods - I'd go for the Spring. I do agree with the previous poster, however, that times where there are no school holidays are the best.....

Although I didnt make it to Disney, I was at Universal the first week in January and there was hardly anyone there. This was on a Saturday too! A friend of mine who lives near Orlando says that right after Christmas things tend to slow down a bit. Then in Feb. it gets busy again! Whenever you decide to go, have fun!

I've been twice in February and there's rarely a line anywhere. Do you have winter recess at all? B/c my school has it the week b/f president's day (which is probably crowded) and that's when we go on vacation.

Shari, another poster said it best: it depends on YOUR spring break; each school system is different. We have gone to WDW two times during spring break - when the breaks were late in the year - and never had a problem. This year, our spring break was the week after Easter, (the last week in April) and we had the best time ever. Between the smaller crowds and fast-pass, we were able to do everything we wanted to do, and more.

The vast majority of schools have spring break the same week you are talking about- the week after Easter. Now I know this is not the ideal time to go but I have gone this week before out of necessity and it wasn't THAT crowded- we certainly had fun (and my crowd tolerance is pretty low). Obviously if it's possible most people would prefer to go at an off time but it is certainly still fun to go during this week, too. And the weather is usually very nice that time of year. It's probably pretty good in December, too, we went the first weekend in December last year and the weather was very nice but not as warm as April. You can't wait to do everything until you retire. : )

After 18 visits (19 and 20 coming up) during all different times of the year, I have to agree with the others that say Spring Break is a better time than Christmas. There are crowds, of course, but they are very manageable. With Fast Pass and early entry (if you stay on site) you can get through the best rides with very little wait. The week between Christmas and New Year's can be a zoo. It is a very beautiful time to visit the parks, but way to crowded. I remember one time we were there at that time of year, and the wait for Splash Mountain was 2 hours. Also, weather can be very unpredictable. I have been there many times when temperatures have dropped into the 50s which we did not anticipate. For Florida, that is cold!! Whenever you go, HAVE FUN!! Please feel free to email me if you have any questions.

Ilisa, please don't take this as a hostile question, because it is not. But why do you go to WDW so much? If you've seen one mouse, haven't you kind of seen them all? I just don't understand.

We've dealt with the same dilemma, as we don't believe in taking our kids out of school for vacations. I agree with other posters that Easter is marginally better than Christmas. The crowds are smaller LATER in the week that begins with Easter Sunday than they are early in the week. Best times are very early and very late in the day. You might also consider the last week of summer vacation, just before school starts - not crowded in Orlando, esp. if your school year starts fairly late as it does here in NY state - but weather in Florida is questionable at that time of year.

I go to Disney because I like it. Plain and simple. It is the one place we can go to and just let our inner child loose. We truly find it a magical place. Incidentally, I have been going to Disney since the year it opened (though 5 of those trips have been in the last 6 years). The next two trips are because of a soccer tournament my husband and I are organizing at Disney's Wide World of Sports. After that, we are planning a trip in April 2002 for our daughter's third birthday. And please, don't suggest that we travel and see the rest of the world, because we do. In addition to the Disney trips, we have a European one in the works. Sorry for the long-winded answer to your short question. Simply put, we like it there (and believe me, 20 trips is nothing compared to some people I've met).

Both are busy weeks and the crowds are basically the same. We especially enjoy the Christmas decorations, the special parades, events and yuletime activities at all the parks(not as much at Easter time)and we make it a point to visit at least one park during that time each year(we live in Florida and do go in October). Good Luck!