Is the heat really too miserable from July-Sept for a trip to WDW?

[cart-mom]

Yes, like everyone has said, it is going to be hot and humid. We go every year at the end of August. That first step outside is the absolute worst. We manage and my family doesn't usually do well in extreme heat. One thing that nobody has talked about is hurricane season. June to November. Historically the busiest time is late August thru October. That being said, yes, I have been in wdw when a hurricane hot FL. Several times. Does it stop me? Nope. But I am prepared for it better now than ever.

 

[Haygar2]

We went in September last year. I am not going to lie. It was hot. And really humid. We bought one of the fan/water bottles and neither one of my children (13 & 9) complained about carrying it. We all took turns and it worked out great. There are plenty of things to do to get out of the heat and humidity. As long as you can stand some of it, you should be fine. If you can wait...and you want to wait...go in October. We are getting ready to book our September 2014 trip.

 

[3DisneyBuggs]

We did August 3 years ago for a baseball tournament. It was HOT!! I did survive but walking out of AK with a warm mister fan and all the frozen water gone felt like being stranded in the Sahara desert- not that Ive ever been there!

Last year we went the end of June and the heat was not bad at all. This year we are going in August due to school schedules. I know it will be HOT but we will have fun and survive it!
PS My favorite time to go is the end of October but due to school, not possible.

 

[Linda T.]

We usually go in July because of everyone's schedules. Yes, it is really hot and humid. But we go to the park by rope drop and then during the early afternoon go back to the resort to swim, relax, and nap. Then when evening comes we head back to the parks for supper, rides, and fireworks/parades.

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

We usually go in July because of everyone's schedules. Yes, it is really hot and humid. But we go to the park by rope drop and then during the early afternoon go back to the resort to swim, relax, and nap. Then when evening comes we head back to the parks for supper, rides, and fireworks/parades.

We went in mid June...same exact pattern as this poster...five rope drops in a row, three of which were EMH.

I am used to heat.outlive in NC and spend time playing golf and at beach...But the sun felt very, very hot at Disney!! If your body does not do well with heat, do not go during these months.

We would do it again, yes! Had a blast but you must get an early start and have a good touring plan that does NOT involve alot of walking back and forth around the parks. Do attractions close to each other!

 

[WendyLovesPeter]

July is rough. I've done it twice but I would do it again lol

 

[ZoZo]

We are from California and do not have a high tolerance for super high heat with humidity. Right forecasted to be 110 degrees outside today and it's pretty miserable here (we are not even venturing out if we can help it) but we don't have humidity. With humidity I imagine it would be a hundred times worse.

Yep, I'm from Washington State and can't imagine going in those hot, hot ,hot (and humid!) summer/early fall months. I don't tolerate the heat and humidity well (even though back in the 1990s, I lived in Florida for a year!). My next trip, we're going in February.

I have been in October five times, and have found the weather to be all over the map. I've had: 1) pleasantly warm and sort of humid; 2) hot and humid; 3) very hot and humid; and 4) unbearably hot and humid (mid to upper 90s almost every day, and very humid!). So please realize that even October can be very hot and still humid - there's no way to know in advance, every year is different!

Regarding hurricanes/rain, I've experienced October trips with little rain (mostly brief afternoon showers some days, which is typical for Florida in October). But I did go to WDW in 2005 just in time for Hurricane Wilma. Luckily, we only got the outer edge of the hurricane. We had torrential downpours just as the storm was coming in, with sideways rain and water/puddles up to our ankles! Even with ponchos, we were totally soaked. We were instructed to stay in our resort rooms for about 18 hours, and they closed the parks for about 2/3 of day, reopening them at 2:00 pm. We had mostly some strong winds and rain, then beautiful weather afterward! Just remember that your actual chance of having a hurricane on your trip is extremely small - you will probably just have a few afternoon storms to deal with.

 

[fairytalelover]

Glad to have been of service. I've been in mid-October and it's a much nicer experience. While it's still warm, the humidity isn't nearly as bad and the crowds are much more manageable. I hope you have a great trip, and give my regards to Ellen if you ride the Universe of Energy. She saved my life that summer.

LOL!! Will do

 

[wdwlover25]

As you can see from the variety of opinions expressed, it really depends upon the person. As for me, I will never, repeat never, take a trip to WDW again between the end of May and the middle of October.

The heat is just unbearable to me and as much as I love WDW, it pretty much ruins my trip. I mean, the heat and humidity are just unbelievable! It's hard to describe really, but here's a few hints based on my personal experience...

You start sweating immediately after walking outside and your clothes are soaked through shortly thereafter. You reach for your bottle of water, and it's no longer cold, in fact it's almost boiling hot, but you chug it down anyway because you are in survival mode and must have liquid of some sort.

You spray yourself with your water-spray fan-thing, but again, you've just squirted hot water all over your face. All around you, kids are crying and miserable, little babies are rolling around in their strollers with sunburnt faces, and moms and dads are at each other's throats and screaming at the poor little kids that just want to go to the pool.

People are dragging around, soaked in sweat, reminiscent of the Bataan death march. Or maybe "Bridge on the River Kwai" when the soldiers had to stand at attention in the hot, blistering sun until they fainted.

You want to get a lemonade, an ice cream, anything cold - but everyone else wants the same thing, and you have to wait for an eternity in the sun, flirting with sunstroke, sipping your boiling hot water, while you wait your turn for the life-sustaining cold substance. You don't care anymore what you see or do, as long as you are in the air conditioning. You wonder if you can just hide in the big ride vehicle at Ellen's Universe of Energy for the rest of the day because it's so deliciously dark and cool in there.

Finally, you give up and go back to the hotel, but the pool is also boiling hot, so you take a shower and a nap, and go back out to the park that night, thinking that it will be much better and you'll get to do more. But alas, humid is the night and sweaty/sticky is again the result. So you take another shower when you get back to the hotel and fall exhausted into your bed, thanking the higher power of your choice for the wonderful person that invented air conditioning.

Anyway, that's my summer-at-WDW experience. The word "hot" just doesn't do it justice. It's Dante's fifth circle down there in the summer.

Your mileage may vary, of course.

Lol! This represents our summer trips exactly! Loved our January trips until DS became school age. Trying to avoid the heat as much as possible we started in mid June. 90s and very humid all week explained perfectly above! CMs continued to assure us that it's unusually hot this early in the summer this year. So we tried again same time the following year - same thing. And oh so crowded! So now the CMs are telling us August is still very hot but crowds thin mid to late August. So now I'm thinking maybe I could deal with the heat if it wasn't so crowded. Last year we did August and yes the crowds were lighter but the heat and humidity were unbearable to us. Will be avoiding summer going forward. I'm really going through WDW withdrawal but we'll be patient and wait until October.

 

[bleeps]

I know you've gotten a lot of feedback already, but --

we've been going down for the past 10 years every year (with one year's trip to DL). We've gone in April, October, November, December, August, and most recently (last month!), June.

We live in the Boston area where summer temps are routinely in the 90s with 90%+ humidity.

We have decided that we will never again go down there between May and September, based on our experiences in June and August. Yes, for us, it was just too unbearably hot and humid and while we were glad to be at WDW, we just did not enjoy it nearly the way we do when it's not sear-your-face-off hot outside. Also, the crowds are unbelievable, and that also contributes to a difficult experience.

I'd vote for waiting until october!

 

[Minniesgal]

Last year, we had to move our Feb trip to July because of DH schedule.

I was petrified about the heat in July because of what I could remember of my childhood trips to Disney in July...but, actually, it wasn't that bad. We had one of our best trips.

We are actually going in August next year, on purpose, so obviously going last summer didn't scar us too badly.

Last year wasn't as hot as it usually is in July.

 

[middlesista]

As you can see from the variety of opinions expressed, it really depends upon the person. As for me, I will never, repeat never, take a trip to WDW again between the end of May and the middle of October.

The heat is just unbearable to me and as much as I love WDW, it pretty much ruins my trip. I mean, the heat and humidity are just unbelievable! It's hard to describe really, but here's a few hints based on my personal experience...

You start sweating immediately after walking outside and your clothes are soaked through shortly thereafter. You reach for your bottle of water, and it's no longer cold, in fact it's almost boiling hot, but you chug it down anyway because you are in survival mode and must have liquid of some sort.

You spray yourself with your water-spray fan-thing, but again, you've just squirted hot water all over your face. All around you, kids are crying and miserable, little babies are rolling around in their strollers with sunburnt faces, and moms and dads are at each other's throats and screaming at the poor little kids that just want to go to the pool.

People are dragging around, soaked in sweat, reminiscent of the Bataan death march. Or maybe "Bridge on the River Kwai" when the soldiers had to stand at attention in the hot, blistering sun until they fainted.

You want to get a lemonade, an ice cream, anything cold - but everyone else wants the same thing, and you have to wait for an eternity in the sun, flirting with sunstroke, sipping your boiling hot water, while you wait your turn for the life-sustaining cold substance. You don't care anymore what you see or do, as long as you are in the air conditioning. You wonder if you can just hide in the big ride vehicle at Ellen's Universe of Energy for the rest of the day because it's so deliciously dark and cool in there.

Finally, you give up and go back to the hotel, but the pool is also boiling hot, so you take a shower and a nap, and go back out to the park that night, thinking that it will be much better and you'll get to do more. But alas, humid is the night and sweaty/sticky is again the result. So you take another shower when you get back to the hotel and fall exhausted into your bed, thanking the higher power of your choice for the wonderful person that invented air conditioning.

Anyway, that's my summer-at-WDW experience. The word "hot" just doesn't do it justice. It's Dante's fifth circle down there in the summer.

Your mileage may vary, of course.

I see that this post has been quoted multiple times - but could not help myself, it is well worth a re-read When our children were in school we found ourselves heading to Disney in the heat of the summer, it was hot, humid - and dizcrasee's post summed it up. So funny and so true If you have no choice and have to go during the hot summer months - you can make the best of it by using lots of the tips folks have posted on the DIS but if you have a choice and are not lovers of heat/humidity - pick another time

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

October is so much better than now or August. The few times I've been in October have been so so nice. I go mid summer as my children are out of school. The weather is hot and miserable but we make the best of it. When my kids are don't with school I will skip summers.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[hill242]

My vote is to wait for October if you can. That's coming from a Georgia native who is "used to" the sweltering humidity.

 

[Minnesota!]

I have been to WDW 2x in August and it's not bad....it's the same as at home. The heat/humidity just helps you slow down and enjoy things a little more. We get there at rope drop, see/do a bunch, then head back to the resort for lunch/pool/shower/nap and head back out around 6pm to finish off the day It's a very nice pattern...and you really use your resort more.

We went in October 2011 and it was HOT! I would put that week hotter than our week in August last year. I remember eating at the F&WF - the pork slider to be specific - and I could only take one small bite b/c I was SO hot. I was miserable.

Go whenever you feel you could handle the weather. We also love January where hoodies and jeans rule the scene.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Anyway, that's my summer-at-WDW experience. The word "hot" just doesn't do it justice. It's Dante's fifth circle down there in the summer.

Your mileage may vary, of course.

I totally believe you, but this is so depressing. We have a trip planned for August. We usually go at the end of October, but we just can't do that anymore with school unfortunately. I guess we shall see. This might be the end of Disney for us for a while if it is that miserable.

 

[swfmco]

Seeing that DW is a teacher, we always go in July. However, last year, I went in late September for Epcot 30. The Food and Wine Festival made Epcot way more unbearable than during the summer. The crowds and drunkenness in World Showcase was not fun to manage, and it was just as hot!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[bdklein]

I totally believe you, but this is so depressing. We have a trip planned for August. We usually go at the end of October, but we just can't do that anymore with school unfortunately. I guess we shall see. This might be the end of Disney for us for a while if it is that miserable.

Don't necessarily believe the hype. I live in the NYC metro area, where it gets pretty hot and humid at points during the summer. We went to WDW near the end of August last year, and I found it to be pretty hot but not as oppressive (or humid) as it gets in NYC during much of the summer.

 

[bdklein]

As you can see from the variety of opinions expressed, it really depends upon the person. As for me, I will never, repeat never, take a trip to WDW again between the end of May and the middle of October.

The heat is just unbearable to me and as much as I love WDW, it pretty much ruins my trip. I mean, the heat and humidity are just unbelievable! It's hard to describe really, but here's a few hints based on my personal experience...

You start sweating immediately after walking outside and your clothes are soaked through shortly thereafter. You reach for your bottle of water, and it's no longer cold, in fact it's almost boiling hot, but you chug it down anyway because you are in survival mode and must have liquid of some sort.

You spray yourself with your water-spray fan-thing, but again, you've just squirted hot water all over your face. All around you, kids are crying and miserable, little babies are rolling around in their strollers with sunburnt faces, and moms and dads are at each other's throats and screaming at the poor little kids that just want to go to the pool.

People are dragging around, soaked in sweat, reminiscent of the Bataan death march. Or maybe "Bridge on the River Kwai" when the soldiers had to stand at attention in the hot, blistering sun until they fainted.

You want to get a lemonade, an ice cream, anything cold - but everyone else wants the same thing, and you have to wait for an eternity in the sun, flirting with sunstroke, sipping your boiling hot water, while you wait your turn for the life-sustaining cold substance. You don't care anymore what you see or do, as long as you are in the air conditioning. You wonder if you can just hide in the big ride vehicle at Ellen's Universe of Energy for the rest of the day because it's so deliciously dark and cool in there.

Finally, you give up and go back to the hotel, but the pool is also boiling hot, so you take a shower and a nap, and go back out to the park that night, thinking that it will be much better and you'll get to do more. But alas, humid is the night and sweaty/sticky is again the result. So you take another shower when you get back to the hotel and fall exhausted into your bed, thanking the higher power of your choice for the wonderful person that invented air conditioning.

Anyway, that's my summer-at-WDW experience. The word "hot" just doesn't do it justice. It's Dante's fifth circle down there in the summer.

Your mileage may vary, of course.

What an exaggeration and distortion of the truth.

But far worse than that is to compare it to the Bataan death march. Really? Compared to a trip to WDW? How insulting to those who served our nation and were tortured and/or died or scarred for life.

 

[2fortheShow]

I'm from the Northeast, and the last time we went to the World was August '11. It was HOT, don't get me wrong,,,about 91-93 degrees everyday. However, the lines at this time are short. We never waited more than 15 minutes on the rides, so this makes the heat somewhat bearable.