Best time to go?

[EmilyAnn]

I am planning my first trip to Disney World When is the best time of year for our family to go? We homeschool so we do not have to work around school vacations. Our top priority is to go at a time with the lowest crowd level possible. Next, is avoiding a time of year when it is too miserably hot. I can handle cold, I can even deal with some rain, but if everyone is sweating and having to reapply sunscreen every hour we are not going to be having fun. This will be our first trip as a family but I am hoping my husband will love it so much we will go back! If we spend all of our time waiting in lines with whiny kids or running all over the place trying to get fast passes he is not going to enjoy himself. He is very laid back and just wants to go at a slower pace and is ok with missing some things if it means not rushing.

 

[amg35]

Late October, early November! Warm enough to swim, but not sweltering (usually).

Even early December if you don't mind cooler temps.

I think January can be too iffy with weather, at least for me.

 

[mesaboy2]

I am planning my first trip to Disney World When is the best time of year for our family to go? We homeschool so we do not have to work around school vacations. Our top priority is to go at a time with the lowest crowd level possible. Next, is avoiding a time of year when it is too miserably hot. I can handle cold, I can even deal with some rain, but if everyone is sweating and having to reapply sunscreen every hour we are not going to be having fun. This will be our first trip as a family but I am hoping my husband will love it so much we will go back! If we spend all of our time waiting in lines with whiny kids or running all over the place trying to get fast passes he is not going to enjoy himself. He is very laid back and just wants to go at a slower pace and is ok with missing some things if it means not rushing.

http://www.easywdw.com/category/disneybest/besttime/

 

[EmilyAnn]

I was looking at either Nov 15-22 2014 or Jan 31-Feb 7 2015. Waiting until the end of January will give me more time to plan and save but it seems like the weather might be nicer in November?

 

[mackenziefaith]

I am a big fan of early November. Highly recommend it.

 

[ArwenMarie]

We just went the week before Thanksgiving. It was great. All of the Christmas decorations were up, the Osborne lights, the castle, the weather was great, the crowds were low, it was cheaper, we got a room discount, flights were half the price of the next week....loved it! There were the parties going on, so that was kind of annoying for MK since we weren't going to one and it closed early on a few nights making the other days there a bit more crowded. But all in all, a great week to go!

 

[pharaoh]

I just went in the second week of January and it was wonderful. Weather was chilly which I loved. Absolutely no crowds. I didn't wait more than 15 minutes for any attraction during my stay (except for a couple of characters). I'm planning to make that week my annual Disney travel week.

The downside is that I totally missed all of the holiday stuff. I would have liked to see some of it but I came too late. November is a good time for that reason although it is warmer and there are slightly more crowds.

 

[FirstTimeDisneyVisit]

i have only been to WDW in September and absolutely love it ! Cant see us going another time . Lines are great and weather can still be a lil hot but defiantly manageable . You will have fun no matter when you go , ENJOY !

 

[EmilyAnn]

I considered going in September because 4 of the 9 people going have birthdays in September and I have read that crowd levels tend to be low. The weather worries me a little bit. Isn't September peak hurricane season? And it is still pretty hot here in NC in September so I imagine it will still be really hot there!

 

[wiigirl]

I am a big fan of early November. Highly recommend it.

Me too

 

[butterfly71076]

Anytime is the best time!! I have been at all times of the year. My experience:

September was the lowest crowd-wise, except at Unleash the Villians on Friday the 13th! Very warm, even at night!
End of Oct, not bad crowds, temps were warm enough to swim, even at night without being cold.
The week before Thanksgiving, lower crowds, nice temps, but leave before Thanksgiving week starts!
Week after Thanksgiving, crowds were kind of high, but it was ok to swim, Christmas decorations were up! Big + for us!
First week of Dec, not too bad crowd-wise, temps varied greatly, pack for anything!
First week of March 2013, ok crowds, but really cold that week! Not chance at swimming, we were in sweaters and jeans, all day!
Memorial Day weekend, pretty warm, pretty heavy crowds
Mid August, pretty crowded, very warm

Whenever you decide to go, have a wonderful trip!!

 

[smashing]

I considered going in September because 4 of the 9 people going have birthdays in September and I have read that crowd levels tend to be low. The weather worries me a little bit. Isn't September peak hurricane season? And it is still pretty hot here in NC in September so I imagine it will still be really hot there!

We were there this past September. Loved the crowd level and free dinning . But it was crazy hot for us. All the cast members were saying how they loved the weather because it was cooling off. I would hate to see what the summer months were like!! We are from Canada though so used to cooler weather . We had 2 days of crazy rain. The one was so bad that we had to leave MK around 2pm. The parades and fireworks were canceled so I was pretty disappointed with that. 2 other days it rained on and off but was a nice relief from the heat We are looking to go again and debating on when to go. Leaning towards February.

 

[csmith041177]

First, congratulations! My family always loves to go in late October through early December. Temps are good, and so are crowds with the exception of Thanksgiving. Have fun!

 

[Kate and Family]

I think (someone correct me if I am wrong) that January often has many attractions under maintenance. However, there are soooo many different things to do, that unless you had something particular in mind, it would a good trade off for lack of crowds.

 

[Haygar2]

We have gone (and will be going again) in early September. I can tell you, when we were there in 2012, it was HOT and humid. We carried around a water bottle/fan with us the whole time. In fact, I think it was the only time my children have not complained about carrying something. They carried it gladly.

 

[Disneyhabs]

We love early Dec our usual time to go is the first 2 weeks of Dec always had good temps and amazing to see the parks decked out for christmas.

 

[Disneyhabs]

oops dbl post

 

[dsmith424]

I read in another thread that there has been higher crowds in October is this true?

I was debating on visiting either late September or the last 2 weeks of October.

Is Columbus Day week crowded?

 

[TeachTink]

I am planning my first trip to Disney World When is the best time of year for our family to go? We homeschool so we do not have to work around school vacations. Our top priority is to go at a time with the lowest crowd level possible. Next, is avoiding a time of year when it is too miserably hot. I can handle cold, I can even deal with some rain, but if everyone is sweating and having to reapply sunscreen every hour we are not going to be having fun. This will be our first trip as a family but I am hoping my husband will love it so much we will go back! If we spend all of our time waiting in lines with whiny kids or running all over the place trying to get fast passes he is not going to enjoy himself. He is very laid back and just wants to go at a slower pace and is ok with missing some things if it means not rushing.

This doesn't happen anymore because there are no more FP- kiosks at the rides. Everything is FP+ now.

I am going in May because I've heard the crowds are lower and it is before it gets TOO hot.

 

[Kristine316]

The lowest crowds of the year are in September, I think all of the experts agree with this. However, you did say you didn't want to go when it was really hot so, that pretty much eliminates September because it is extremely hot and humid that time of the year.

We went in September 2012 and I was expecting it to be hot, much hotter than our previous trips in the winter but, I really had no clue just how hot and humid it would be. I was miserable.

My personal thought is that looking for the elusive lowest crowds of the year is sort of a trap. Believe me I understand... I have the same type of husband who wants a vacation to be relaxing and slower paced so, I get where you are coming from. I just think if you go to WDW wanting and hoping for low crowds you will end up being disappointed and frustrated. You will say to yourself.. I thought this was suppose to be a dead time of year and look around in bewilderment.
Once you have gone a few times you can compare crowds and understand that WDW is really never slow anymore.. and that even the "lowest attended" crowded month of the year is pretty darn busy compared to real world destinations that are in their "off season".
In September you will have tons of people there for the Free Dining offer and walk ways and shows and especially restaurants will be packed. Ride lines should be shorter and waits less but, other than that there are tons of people everywhere.
I went in September with this image of WDW being so quiet that you could walk down Main Street at MK and there would be only small handfuls of people scattered about. In my defense I thought this crazy thought because before that trip everyone kept telling me how "dead" WDW was going to be that time of year. I just didn't understand what that meant.. certainly nothing like I expected.

The end of January, start of February is also another "slowest" time of the year. We have also gone that time of year, twice and the weather was pretty wonderful both trips. I would take that time of year over September any day but even though the weather is comfortable the crowds are similar if not busier than September. And you also have to deal with the Big Tour groups, which have been hotly debated if they are really as awful as their reputations. For us they were never an issue but, I do not doubt they can be a problem at times.
Compared to summer, spring break or Christmas these times of year are dead but, each year gets a little busier and there are no truly slow times of year at WDW anymore. Just different levels of busy.

I bet your first trip will be something special though. WDW can be a very magical place, especially when it is all new.