Reassure me about July...!

[flortlebap]

Hello

We are returning to WDW in late July/early August. It was only booked this week so I didn't have chance to book all our ADRs etc at 180 days out - but fortunately we still got some great restaurants!

Anyway, DH doesn't want to obsessively plan this trip. This concerns me due to crowd levels etc!

How bad is it exactly, compared to June? We will do some extra early mornings but we are more night people - I guess all FPs will be gone in the evening, but do the lines for major attractions get shorter late at night compared to midday?

Any help (or words to prepare me lol) appreciated!!

 

[despina]

Going in July, once again and I believe you should have a plan of what to do for each day...get the parks early for your Fast Passes because some rides run out of them early like Toy Story Mania!!! I went this past August without my husband, just me and my 3 girls 18, 13, and 10.. we got there early, grabbed fastpass and we did not wait in long lines the entire time because we kept the fastpass system going all day!!!

If going later in the day, expect fastpass return times to be later in the day which means you'll be waiting awhile for that return time and even later before you can grab another fastpass from the machine. July/August crowds for sure!!

 

[frankieeyre]

I go every July and I personally don't think it is as bad as everyone makes out!
Get to parks early, use fastpass, maybe have a break in the afternoon if you need it.
You will need to plan what parks you are going to each day I would say, but I wouldn't say you needed a really detailed plan if you didn't want to.
Have fun! Ill be there at the end of July too!

 

[msmileyface]

I went to July in 2011. This was my first trip as an adult so I didn't have a fair benchmark against which to measure the crowds. However, it was 9 or 10 out of 10 every day we were there. We never waited more than 15 minutes for anything, and most things we walked right on within 5 minutes. I really do attribute that to getting there before rope drop and using Touring Plans (I used Touring Plans.com and the Unofficial Guide) So despite DH not wanting to plan too much, I think you should plan and just bring your plans along We followed our plans (especially at MK) for about 2 hours and then were able to stray. You will be fine, just do some planning.

 

[mamahas5]

I went to July in 2011. This was my first trip as an adult so I didn't have a fair benchmark against which to measure the crowds. However, it was 9 or 10 out of 10 every day we were there. We never waited more than 15 minutes for anything, and most things we walked right on within 5 minutes. I really do attribute that to getting there before rope drop and using Touring Plans (I used Touring Plans.com and the Unofficial Guide) So despite DH not wanting to plan too much, I think you should plan and just bring your plans along We followed our plans (especially at MK) for about 2 hours and then were able to stray. You will be fine, just do some planning.

Good to hear as we're going in July as well. It's during a convention or we probably wouldn't have chosen that time but I feel better reading your reply to OP!

 

[dpswift]

Your vacation is what you make of it. You have been enough to know your must sees. We always go to our top priorities first. Then go ahead and do what we want. I find that having a lot of ADRs makes me tense. I can only imagine what it would be like if I had a detailed plan. It is a vacation not boot camp. As long as you know what you would be ok missing you should be fine.

 

[P00H1010]

We have gone in July the last 3 years. It is hot and crowded but certainly not unmanagable. We are not rope drop people and have never done a morning EMH. We generally hit the parks late morning to early afternoon. There are generally some FP available for later in the evening. We do park hoppers with waterparks option and have an idea of where we want to be on what day but moreless go with the flow. Couple tips....take advantage of evening EMH lines are quite a bit shorter.....if you want to see Fantasmic either go really early, do the dining package or see the 2nd show (1st show line was at standing room only at 30 minutes before the show during our whole trip last year....2nd show is less crowded). Have fun!

 

[JennyDrake]

As PPers have said, expect hot and crowded and arrive at RD. An afternoon break with a nap or swim helps keep everyone liking each other. _I_ would not obsessively plan because you have no control over crowds, lines and downpours. Do make whatever ADRs are essential, then just have a plan for which park which day and the top 4-5 attractions you wish to see.

 

[flortlebap]

As PPers have said, expect hot and crowded and arrive at RD. An afternoon break with a nap or swim helps keep everyone liking each other. _I_ would not obsessively plan because you have no control over crowds, lines and downpours. Do make whatever ADRs are essential, then just have a plan for which park which day and the top 4-5 attractions you wish to see.

Downpours are why we are coming back this year

We were lucky enough to get 15 days in Orlando last year, so I won't be disappointed about missing certain things. However last year I had a rigid plan and it all went wrong when we had 9 days of virtually solid rain! So I need some pixie dust and sunshine for this trip

 

[Zoebear]

I agree with the previous posters; July will be fine if you do some planning, but expect the unexpected in terms of crowds, rain etc.

We've been in July and August before, and it will be our norm as the children are older now and I don't want to take them out of school. I do like it then; lots of people and excitement. However, the one thing I really don't like is the number of tour groups. I know these kids are happy, they are have every right to be there, but I find big masses of people moving through together and being loud (sometimes, not all the time) a little overwhelming

Just my experience. All in all, have a great trip! My plan: morning rope drop, afternoon break, night touring

 

[tbia]

I went to July in 2011. This was my first trip as an adult so I didn't have a fair benchmark against which to measure the crowds. However, it was 9 or 10 out of 10 every day we were there. We never waited more than 15 minutes for anything, and most things we walked right on within 5 minutes. I really do attribute that to getting there before rope drop and using Touring Plans (I used Touring Plans.com and the Unofficial Guide) So despite DH not wanting to plan too much, I think you should plan and just bring your plans along We followed our plans (especially at MK) for about 2 hours and then were able to stray. You will be fine, just do some planning.

WE also went in July 2011, with no real plan and probably waited no longer than 20 minutes for anything. My theory is this....ALL of the shows were much more crowded than when we went this past April. I think people really hit the shows to get in air conditioning and out of the heat.

 

[Hootch]

July is not really that different from the end of June crowd wise. It should be a little heavier than early June and a little lighter than early July. A lot of Southern schools open up in early August and some parents, including us, prefer to have the kids in some sort of routine by then. Our school system starts Aug 5th.

It will be hotter though making midday breaks even more important than the typical June.

 

[kidd_freeper]

The advantages of going in July are that everything is open and the parks stay open later. I prefer July myself.

Your enemies are the heat and the crowds. But these are beaten by getting to the parks at rope drop and taking a midday break.

I can't emphasize it enough. Get there before the park opens.

The Indy race cars are a perfect example of a ride that is miserable to wait for in the midday heat, but are a lot of fun in the early morning. The ride doesn't have a fastpass, and it usually has long wait times. If you choose to stand in a hot and smelly line for an hour, you will be tired and grouchy the rest of the day. "So I won't go on that ride" you think to yourself...well, now you are eliminating attractions because you got to the parks late. There are other examples.

 

[CuppieCake04]

Hello

We are returning to WDW in late July/early August. It was only booked this week so I didn't have chance to book all our ADRs etc at 180 days out - but fortunately we still got some great restaurants!

Anyway, DH doesn't want to obsessively plan this trip. This concerns me due to crowd levels etc!

How bad is it exactly, compared to June? We will do some extra early mornings but we are more night people - I guess all FPs will be gone in the evening, but do the lines for major attractions get shorter late at night compared to midday?

Any help (or words to prepare me lol) appreciated!!

we are going same time frame.. 7/26-8/8

 

[MHSweb79]

I think the most important planning you can do is choose your park days wisely. Check out easywdw.com for his recommendations. This can make a HUGE difference in crowds - MK on a morning EMH day might be gridlock by noon, but the very next day could be quite manageable.

After that, you don't HAVE to plan anything unless you want to. I would also recommend getting there early, but you could also get there later and close the park down if you are night owls.

 

[diskids2]

We have gone that time frame for the past four summers. It is crowded, hot, humid, does rain, lots of tour groups....but we have a BLAST!

We are RD people. I do plan what park we are seeing on what day based on someone's logic . I do have my ADR's booked. We use FP alot, avoid EMH, and take a break in the middle of the day. Basically I would say our first two hours of every day are planned. Usually involves headliners and FP's. The rest of the day is not planned and we move along as we desire.

I have never gone in June, except once, about 15 years ago, June 6-12, so I can't compare July to June for you.

I do have a suggestion for you. If you have access to the Disney wait times, MDE or even Josh's site....take a look a the FP return times about two weeks before your trip. Get an idea of when the FP window will be for a later arrival. I am sure it will help you to know that an arrival of 11 am USUALLY gets you a FP to RnR of around (insert what you find out). vs. an arrival time of 1 pm USUALLY gets you a FP to RnR of around (insert what you find out). That will help you skeleton plan for a later arrival.

I agree with PP's. Have a basic plan that you bring with you and combine that with the spontaneous magic!

 

[mirage0306]

We usually go in June too, and arrived last year during that awful tropical storm. The rain was pretty awful and really dampened our spirits--definitely part of the reason we are going again this year (though I probably would have found an excuse anyway, ha ha ha). But this year we are also going at the end of July and you know what--I am really not worried. Every crowd calendar I've looked at has the crowds higher than early June, but it's not by that much. Weather (heat wise) is very similar--avg. temps are just a degree or two more in July. That's not a big deal.

I also use easywdw for park day recommendations, and touring plans for suggestions on when to hit attractions. But like a pp said, if you've been there several times, you already know what you want to hit and what isn't as big of a deal to you. Our plan is to get to the parks as early as we can, use FP, and get the headliner rides done right away. We also plan on taking advantage of evening EMH. And we have a resort day scheduled in the middle of the week for some relaxing downtime.

I can deal with oppressive heat so much better than nonstop storms, so my fingers are crossed that the weather cooperates. But I am confident we'll both have great trips!!

 

[mirage0306]

I do have a suggestion for you. If you have access to the Disney wait times, MDE or even Josh's site....take a look a the FP return times about two weeks before your trip. Get an idea of when the FP window will be for a later arrival. I am sure it will help you to know that an arrival of 11 am USUALLY gets you a FP to RnR of around (insert what you find out). vs. an arrival time of 1 pm USUALLY gets you a FP to RnR of around (insert what you find out). That will help you skeleton plan for a later arrival.

Fantastic idea!!!