WDW in Jan?

[Belleangel14]

Hi all!

My friend and I are going for the first time in the beginning of Jan! We kinda have no clue what to pack since we are from the north (lol). Whats the weather like in WDW at that time?

Belleangel14

 

[2goofycampers]

It might be 26 in the morning or it might be 80 during the day. Pack for both, you never know. Have a great trip!

 

[RunningGirl]

You're going to have to check the forecast as your trip approaches. We've been there quite a bit in January. Sometimes we're in shorts and tshirts, sometimes we're in winter coats and gloves. Sometimes that seems to happen in the same trip!

 

[middlesista]

As other folks have mentioned - temps do fluctuate. One year we went in December and it was sweatshirt cold for us but winter jacket, gloves and hat cold for some others. Last time we were there in January and it got cool in the evening, but again totally fine with a sweatshirt or sweater for added warmth. In fact, during the day DD, DSIL and DGD went swimming in the pool. We are just thrilled to be away from the cold and snow of New England so even what some folks feel is "cold" is just fine to us!

 

[lizabu]

When we went the same week in January it was hoodies and capris first thing in the morning. By about 10 am we would take our hoodies off and wear short sleeves as the sun was warming things up. The kids still swam in the afternoon. It was great. Not too busy and short wait times. I saw a few people in earmuffs, gloves and uggs but we didn't think it was cold enough for that at all. We're from Canada.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

It's really variable, and can change rapidly in the same week. I remember going a few years ago where the first day we were wearing our winter coats and gloves and it actually snowed! Not what we were hoping for! But three days later we were wearing t-shirts and capris. Watch the forecasts and pack accordingly.

TP

 

[darkwing818]

It might be 26 in the morning or it might be 80 during the day. Pack for both, you never know. Have a great trip!

Sounds about right. We were there this past January, while not quite 26 in the mornings, probably in the 40s & then in the 80s by noon. It's the weather, hard to pin down .

 

[Jaya]

My advice: layer, layer, layer. Short-sleeve tshirts with a jacket over for the cold morning. Put the jacket in a locker later. The long pants with the zip-off legs would be good, too. And don't forget.....you can still get badly sunburned in January - a lot of people from up north don't remember that.

 

[dawnhaze]

I was actually colder when I went last October then I was when I did in January of this year. I remember waiting for Fantasmic wrapped in a blanket during my Halloween trip.

I packed a pretty wide range of clothes in January. Jeans were comfortable some days, while shorts were better on others. T-shirts are the only shirts I own, so that part was easy. I didn't bring a real winter coat or any major outerwear since I don't even wear that stuff at home until it's below 40 during the day, but your tolerance for cold may vary, of course.

I carried a backpack with a hoodie in it for cool mornings and evenings (also some flip-flops and a poncho in case of rain, which didn't happen on that trip). This is just a thing that I do year-round, because even in the summer, the buses, shops, and theaters can be so air-conditioned that I freeze, especially after sweating in the heat.

 

[Janepod]

January is great! It is the only time we go. But bear in mind, we don't care about spending time at the pools or water parks. We enjoy the short waits, easy ADRs, and pleasant temperatures.

Typically my son/husband are in shorts, tee, hoodie, maybe changing to jeans and/or a jacket in the evening. For me, dress with cardigan, or jeans & top.

(But do pack your swim suit, just in case.)

 

[Belleangel14]

January is great! It is the only time we go. But bear in mind, we don't care about spending time at the pools or water parks. We enjoy the short waits, easy ADRs, and pleasant temperatures.

Typically my son/husband are in shorts, tee, hoodie, maybe changing to jeans and/or a jacket in the evening. For me, dress with cardigan, or jeans & top.

(But do pack your swim suit, just in case.)

How short are the lines? Do you even use fast pass?

 

[lizabu]

How short are the lines? Do you even use fast pass?

Unless they're a holiday or something the crowds are very manageable. At rope drop you will pretty much walk on to everything at a recommended park. I would still grab fast passes so you can do your favourite things twice. Things like TSMM and Soarin you still should go to first thing and ride but FP so you can do it again with little wait.

 

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

We went in January of 2012 and it was beautiful weather. It was low 60's in the morning and I wore my hoodie until about noon when it would warm up to mid 70's then drop back down to low 60's at night. That is perfect park weather to me. I loved the low crowds and the weather. But we went towards the end of January.

Florida can have drastic weather swings. You could have a freak heat wave or a freak cold spell so you can never really know how it will be until about a week or two before you actually go.

We only used fast passes on things we wanted to ride twice. Everything else was almost walk on wait times.

 

[minkydog]

We've been a couple of times in January. The weather is variable, but not usually too rainy. Sometimes it is warm enough to swim in the heated pools, even! The last time we went it was in the high 70s when we arrived, so tshirt weather. Two days later a huge cold front moved in and the temp plunged to 32 degrees in the DAYTIME. We were totally unprepared for that! We ended up having to buy hats, gloves, and jackets at WDW. They made nice souvenirs, I must say. By the end of the day, it was blowing snow and we were utterly miserable. We were in Epcot, so we stopped by Le Cellier and got a bunch of Cheese Soup and breadsticks to go and took it back to our room, where we all got hot showers to warm up!

Be ready for anything!