April or May 2005...Please Help Me Decide!

[toystoryduo]

Hello everyone!

My DH and I are planning a tenative WDW vacation in either April or May of next year and we are not sure when we should go. Here is what we are looking at as deciding factors:

1. When are crowds smaller?
2. Are there any special things going on at WDW in conjunction with Disneyland's 50th anniversary at either time?
3. Any weeks during either month that could be called "Value Season"?
4. When will Spring Breaks officially be over?

We are looking at going 7-10 days with our two girls, ages 2 and 4. Please help us decide!!!

Thank you!

 

[mbcary]

Answers in my opinion:

1. I would think the crowds would smaller in the first couple of weeks of May as opposed to April. Some spring breaks go into April. Ther are also 4 nights in April that are Grad nights (23,24,29,30?). I went at the end of May and the lines weren't bad and weather great!
2. Not sure about anything special, but a couple of new rides are scheduled to open May 5th (Soarin' being the main one). If you go in April you will miss these.
3. I believe that both April and May are considered regular season.
4. Spring breaks should definitely be over in April sometime.

I hope you have a great time. The Flower & Garden Festival is April 15th through June 5th in 2005, so you should get to see that. It is beautiful.

 

[hockey mom]

While we usually go near the end of April and love it you might find it less crowded in May. It will be hotter though. Also as the above poster mentioned a few new rides open in may so you could catch those also.

 

[kar313]

Definitely hotter in May than April. We did May quite a few years ago and some days it was down right HOT!

[Just an aside - This was my 100th post!!!]

 

[MrsJ Henry]

Spring breaks will go right through the end of April. There are quite a few Schools in the North East that have break the last week of April.
Regular season starts April 17th and goes through May.
Sounds to me like near the start of May would be the best considering what you want.

 

[LMC]

We went a few years ago in eary May and absolutely loved it! The weather was great (I don't think it even rained) and I didn't think it was too hot. Anything under 75 degrees is cold to me and 75-90 is comfortable to warm. I remember wearing jeans a few days and taking along windbreakers.

Have fun! Wish we could go at that same time again but with school it will be right when dd gets out but hopefully beating the huge crowds.

 

[Ahrizel]

Early May. Spring break is over, no holidays, and Flower and Garden festival is in full swing. It's is hot, going to feel like summer to you. Highs in the mid 80's and lows in the low 60's. Mind you, that's much better then summer heat in Orlando. Light crowd levels, but the parks won't be running very long hours. Having experienced a fair range on visits, the low crowds part is really worth it. To me it's best with lower temps too, but I'm really heat intolerant. I've loved it in early December visits when it was 65 and sunny, talk about lovely weather to tour in. April, however is not really much cooler, though even in early May you are less likely to hit the hellish humidity that comes in summer. Soarin should be open in May, don't think anything else major is going to open by then. May be a new stage show in MK? The 50th celebration isn't(I think) going to effect the crowds to any real degree in WDW, Dl will probably be a different story. The Flower and Garden festival is gorgeous, combine that with low crowds and the trip in early May should be lovely. It is regular season, but it is possible some discounts may yet come out-it's a little early for them. It that time doesn't work out for you for some reason, go from late April on, but avoid Memorial Day weekend. May is a pretty light month in crowds. Early April will be high crowds from Spring break, and 4/16 and earlier in April is also peak season for prices in the resorts. Good luck!

 

[toystoryduo]

Thank you for your replies! We were thinking about going April 16-24, but I didn't realize that a lot of people would have spring break around that time. We also looked at the first full week in May, but my brother graduates from college on May 8, 2005 and we need to be there. So, now I'm thinking May 9- May 18 might work better for us. I'll call my timeshare company and try to book it later. Thanks!

 

[MaryKatesMom]

We'll be there the April 8-18.

We would prefer to go in May having done both May and April, but only April works this year. I believe the dates you've mentioned for April are NY Spring Breaks.

Having done both, I'd definately reccomend May over April.

 

[LlamaFace]

We are returning to WDW April 17th-23rd.

In 2003 we went the same week following peek and it was perfect. Crowds were not extreme and the weather was great. Rained only one evening for about 30 mins. The rest of the time was 70's and we sported shorts all week.

Oh...and hello to all....this is my first post on the DIS. I have been lurking for awhile and have enjoyed snooping through your posts. Looking forward to sharing more in the future.

Cotton Pickin Time! Gig'Em Ags!

 

[noel]

Funny how I was just wondering this very same thing April or May?
DH and I just can't do a trip in January like we'd hoped for. We'd talked about going in Dec of 2005 but I honestly don't think I can wait that long!!!

This info will be very helpful - I think we'll seriously consider going the first week of May....thanks!