December Weather Poll Question

[6loversofdisney]

I would like you to do the poll (if you would) and also comment. I know there are no guarantees on weather but I would like to hear your experiences.

 

[kathy884]

It varies tremendously in December. With five different Christmas visits, I really and truly did not know how to answer. The last trip was an anomaly with days in the 70s for most of the week and three in the low 80s. But -- I also remember a trip where it was freezing and being in a park in the evening with a temperature in the 30s and wearing my parka.

I'm hoping for unusually warm this year as we are going the week before Christmas week. But I will pack my parka just in case probably.

 

[DebbieB]

I've gone at the beginning of December many times. Highs have been anywhere from high 40's to low 80's. There's no one answer, I have experienced all of them. One thing I learned - if the high is under 70, it gets cold after dark. There were trips where I brought a light winter coat and gloves for night, others I just needed a light jacket. Some trips I wore shorts everyday, others not at all, some a mix.

 

[ucfknight]

December in Florida is highly variable. You can have a few days of 55 for the high and 35 for the low followed by a few days of 80 for the high and 60 for the low.

 

[wdwfanva]

Last time we were at WDW in Dec. the temps were all over the board. 50s-80s durig day and 30-60s at night. Best dvice is to take wide range of clothng and layer.

 

[AmyB2006]

I've probably said this like 1000 times, but in FL, December weather all depends on cold fronts. It only gets cool/cold if a cold front goes through. Otherwise you will have typical FL weather of 80+ during the day and around 60s at night.

If a cold front goes through, you could have anywhere from 50s to 70s during the day and 30s to 50s at night. The temp doesn't really vary more than 20 degrees from daytime to nighttime. So if you have 75 degrees during the day, you're probably going to have anywhere from 55 to 65 at night. If you have a high of 55 during the day, you could have anywhere from 35 to 45 at night. The only caveat to this is if you are there the day the front blows through, then you will have a dramatic shift into the colder weather.

The coldest weather will be the day or two after the front goes through, and then it will warm up by 5 to 10 degrees each day until it gets back up to 80+ or until another front goes through.

But anyway, look for cold fronts the few days before your trip, and plan for everything.

 

[Hannathy]

It varies even within one trip/week. The last time we went in December the first day we wore our warm coats, it was cold, super heavy killing frosts, and by the end of the week we were in shorts and spent a day at BB.

 

[FLchick415]

I was there this past December, and while the trip started off kind of cool, it gradually got warmer each day. Pack for every type of weather because you just don't know what you're gonna get. lol

 

[lustergirl]

The weather has been perfect for our trips the first week of December. Such a great time to go as well with all the xmas decorations.

 

[Lbachelot]

We were there for 12 days this past December and if you had an option for "all of the above" I would check that. We had days in the 80's, 70's, 60's and 50's and some nights got into the 40's. Layers are your friends!

 

[kaybird]

We were there for 12 days this past December and if you had an option for "all of the above" I would check that. We had days in the 80's, 70's, 60's and 50's and some nights got into the 40's. Layers are your friends!

Yep, should really have had an "All of the above" option. We have gone swimming in Dec, and lived through 3 days of 24 degrees. Be prepared for anything!

 

[mom2rtk]

I won't even answer the poll. It's "kitchen sink" weather. As in..... pack everything including the kitchen sink. Because any sort of weather is possible.

 

[JenLynn]

We've been to WDW twice in December. Both times there was a huge range of temps during our trip.

Trip #1:
On arrival day it snowed at the airport and was the coldest it had been in a long while. We were freezing the first 2 days - windy and very cold. We wore winter coats and mittens. My son's asthma (which is set off with cold weather) was terrible. Over the course of the week it warmed up and by the end it was quite pleasant and we were wearing jeans and short sleeve shirts.

Trip #2:
On arrival day it was very warm and my kids were playing in the hotel's pool. Within 2 days it had gotten quite chilly and we had to wear sweatshirts every day. At night it was so cold! I remember waiting for the MVMCP parade to start and cuddling with my daughter as our teeth chattered.

So ... you can get any type of weather!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Agree with other posters.

I have never been during Xmas week, but we've been a number of times the week (more or less) after Thanksgiving and in November. Also lots of trips in February.

One year- we went a few days before Thanksgiving, so technically it was partly in November. The first few days were very cold/windy. The area even saw FLURRIES - in NOVMBER! By the start of December, the weather was back up into the 80's. Twice during that visit they were talking (near) record setting weather! One record a record low, the other a record high.

Having been many times in cooler months, HOW each person reacts to a certain temperature also varies widely. I've had a few heated debates on the DIS from folks who see nothing odd about hitting a water park when it is 50 degrees! Last summer, we wore long pants at night in AUGUST!

Also, it is not just the daytime high or low that matters, but both. There's a big difference between 60/75/65 and 40/75/40 type days. Or wind/rain/low humidity vs. sunny/no wind/high humidity.

 

[6loversofdisney]

I won't even answer the poll. It's "kitchen sink" weather. As in..... pack everything including the kitchen sink. Because any sort of weather is possible.

I love that way you put that!!!

 

[hakepb]

I am under the general impression (looking at actual weather results) that ~75% of the time, guests that stay 1 week+ will have a nice December trip with multiple days for swimming.
But 25% of the time, you might get stuck in one of those below average weeks with 1 or fewer swim days.

In my general mid-November through March timeframe, I'm usually a 25%'er

 

[jsal318]

December15 - 22nd, 2012. The 15th thru the 20th was beautiful - mid seventies. The 21st and 22nd were freezing. It was in the low 40's waiting for the bus in the morning and didn't go above high 50's during the day. We went to the Hoop de Doo Review the night of the 21st and hid in the general store as long as we could to stay warm!

 

[mslhb]

Lol at 75+ = Hot. We went the 1st week of December 2012 and thought the weather was PERFECT. It was mid 70ish everyday. I literally had every possible weather combination packed. We brought tank tops and sandals and also heavy sweatshirts and mittens. As others have said that time of year weather really is a crapshoot.

 

[lovin'fl]

We went for 2 Xmas trips...2011 and 2013 (days leading up to Xmas and not the Xmas to New Years week). Both times it was warm. We wore shorts. It was like 60-70s (maybe even 80s) all day and night, maybe a little cooler at night. The 2013 trip, on Xmas Eve it got cold (we flew home the next day)....freezing and we had to buy hoodies and froze even with those while we walked through Osbourne's Spectacle of Lights that night. I heard, from friends who went after us and were there for NY's, that it was freezing that whole week.

 

[myadventurebook]

I agree with the kitchen sink answers.

On my first trip with BF in mid-December 2012, our first day was awful. We had freezing rain and high winds. We mostly stayed indoors (we were at Epcot so it wasn't too hard) and went back to the hotel by dusk. We came back and tried to watch Illuminations, but it was just miserable- I wished I hadn't left my winter coat in the car at the airport!!

The rest of the week it got nicer, but it was still cool at night. I wore jeans and t-shirts most of the week and kept a hoodie on when it got dark.

On the flipside, when we went in mid-november last year I wore tank tops and shorts... it really is unpredictable. Also, I'm the type of person who neuotically checks the weather 25 times a day before any type of trip, and I still had trouble preparing!