Changing From September Trips To Going In May Instead

[jhaig]

We started bringing our princess to WDW every September since 2007. We were one of those families that took her out of school up until about five years when we switched to homeschooling. Now she will be taking classes at our local community college as part of her senior year of high school, which is good but it means that for now our tradition of September trips is over. Now we will be looking to travel to FL in mid-May after college finishes.

Usually we have been spoiled with September trips in terms of beautiful, hot weather and very low crowds. How different will going to WDW in mid-May before Memorial Day be as far as crowds and weather?

 

[malissa99]

We have been in both May and September and we love both! End of May was low crowds and great weather, a little cooler for sure. But we love both May and September, have fun!

 

[beccasmom]

May is a very nice time to go, avoiding, of course, the holiday weekend. It can be quite warm, but the crowds are light in my experience, particularly in early and mid-May. I don't think you'll find many differences between May and September.

 

[OB1]

I have done both. Early May is low crowd, but the later in May you go, the more crowds will build. SEP felt very slow after Labor Day, but very hot. May is normally not as hot & humid.

SO from my perspective
MAY - less heat & humidity, moderate crowds, flower & garden
SEP - scorching hot, low crowds, food & wine

 

[anniemae]

The past couple of May's, people were reporting very very low crowds. I checked some wait times this past May and they were practically nonexistent. I think Sept is getting busier, plus it is very hot, humid, and prime hurricane season. I would pick May over Sept any day.

 

[Alesia]

May is so much nicer than September.
The crowds are very manageable. It's still pretty warm, but not usually as hot as September and it will be much less humid. It's less rainy, too. And I think the parks are prettier in the spring than they are in the fall.

 

[jhaig]

May is so much nicer than September.
The crowds are very manageable. It's still pretty warm, but not usually as hot as September and it will be much less humid. It's less rainy, too. And I think the parks are prettier in the spring than they are in the fall.

Seems like we have never seen MK without Halloween decorations. May is looking better at this point!

 

[VAtink]

We went both September and May in the last year, and while we preferred September (love food and wine and the Halloween party), May was absolutely beautiful with the flower and garden festival. The one thing that we were most surprised by in May was all the large tour groups. Between the cheerleaders and the school field trips, the parks ended up feeling very crowded at times (in AK I believe we counted 12 different school field trips). Wait times were a lot higher for us in May, but I think we just had bad luck with our park schedule matching all the large groups schedules.

The weather was a bit warmer in May (2nd week) than it was in September, but they mentioned on the news that we were hitting record highs that week, so I don't think that's typical. The best thing about May is the lack of rain we had! Didn't see a drop of rain until the last day of the trip!

 

[kathy884]

I think September is the lowest crowd time, but personally if it were me I would prefer May for lower heat and humidity. There is less rain that month. I've only been once in May, but it was lovely.

 

[canyoncam]

Seems like we have never seen MK without Halloween decorations. May is looking better at this point!

Went this last May. It was SO refreshing seeing it without decorations after 5 years of only going in Sept/Oct. I preferred the weather in May, less rain/humidity and still quite warm. LOVED Flower and Garden over Food and Wine. And in terms of crowds, it felt less crowded.

 

[ChicagoJ]

We may switch our trip to the last week of May (leave the day our kindergartner gets out of school). How hot does it get that week? Hurricane season starts June 1....is that cutting it too close?

 

[anniemae]

We may switch our trip to the last week of May (leave the day our kindergartner gets out of school). How hot does it get that week? Hurricane season starts June 1....is that cutting it too close?

It will be hot, but not as bad as Aug/Sept. Hurricanes for some reason, really kick into high hear around mid Aug-mid Sept. I think I read that is peak hurricane time. You should be fine.

 

[smallworldnh]

I've been both months as well and love May weather and crowds. We've gone in September the last few years because of the free dining, but if that disappears, we may go back May again. Food and Wine is a big draw for the fall though.