Disney in February...?

[disneyobessed]

Please tell me the pros and cons for going in February.. We are looking into it for 2013... the 3rd week. We have to go Massachusetts school vacation week.. Im interested in crowds.. weather... ect. We always go in August.. so I know it will be much cooler..which may not be a bad thing. Does it rain?

 

[Robo]

Please tell me the pros and cons for going in February.. We are looking into it for 2013... the 3rd week. We have to go Massachusetts school vacation week.. Im interested in crowds.. weather... ect. We always go in August.. so I know it will be much cooler..which may not be a bad thing. Does it rain?

First and second week of February, A-OK.
Third and forth week, not so much.

The crowds are much greater.

 

[MrRomance]

We're going for 2 weeks (11th-25th Feb 2012) and I'll be posting a TR, you should get a good idea from that. From my research, Feb is great for crowds with the exception of Presidents Day Weekend.

 

[sharadoc]

If you are used to going end of August, you're going to be shocked! President's Day is one of the busiest times of the year. You can't get into restaurants, fastpasses are gone before noon for the major rides and it's just generally really busy.

You'll need to find out best park days, make some general touring plans and have a fastpass runner for those major must-dos.

Weather could be really nice, and much nicer than August heat and humidity. So, it's a trade-off.

 

[freepixie]

I'm curious as to the weather too, we are going in Feb 2012 for the Princess Half, we've only ever gone to WDW in June/July. I know about the crowds and everything, but we are just so not sure what clothes to pack!! Shorts and tank tops... jeans and hoodies... sandals, sneakers or boots???

 

[GrammyJudy]

ALSO COSTS MORWE AS DO AIRLINE TICKETS. vERY BUSY

 

[Safari Queen]

It could be really cold...like low 40's or even colder with the wind chill...or delightful mild, so you need to pack to dress in layers. We went on a boat trip one time and had to wear everything we wore to the airport in Massachusetts (hats, scarves, gloves, parka).

 

[disneyobessed]

ugh... after reading this.. i might reconsider.. Idont want to have to wear anything other than shorts and a tshirt or a light jacket.. We go normally the 2nd week in August when it is in fact very crowded so the crowds dont bother me.. its the possiblity of being cold:scared1

Last August it rained for 3 straight days and beleive it or not we were actually cold walking around the park in our soaking wet ponchos.. We all had to buy sweatshirts because we were freezing.. it was only in the 70s pouring and the AC was still blasting everywhere..

 

[KingLlama]

We went in February in 2008 and 2010. The first trip, the weather was lovely. I wore a t-shirt/shorts every day, my wife wore a light jacket some nights. But in 2010, some days were colder, with highs only in the 50's. Most of us ended up buying sweatshirts.

So it's kind of a crapshoot, weather-wise.

Crowds are pretty low, but the tradeoff is that you lose some attractions. We're going February 4-11, but we'll miss out on Dumbo, BTMR, and the MSEP, among others. That's the sacrifice you make for shorter lines.

 

[TimeLady]

I was there at the beginning of last February. It's all a matter of opinion, but I loved the weather. (Then again, I'm from the Northeast.) Evenings called for a sweatshirt or jacket, but jeans and a t-shirt were comfortable during the day. I couldn't have worn shorts.

 

[henrylarry6]

Disney in February can be extremely crowded. I have tried going there for my kid's February vacation and it hasn't been worth the money. Last year the parks closed down at noon because they reached full capacity! This year I planned my February vacation in Massachusetts. Not only is it more affordable, but the crowds won't be nearly as bad. I will bring the kids to Disney during the off season!

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

I have two experiences. One was the week before President's day week in 2010 where it was FREEZING and raining the entire time but fairly low crowds during the week, got busier on the weekend before I left. This year we went 3rd week of February, President's Day week and the weather was amazing! BUT very crowded. We got up early every day and were in the parks by 8-9am and out by 12-1pm when it was getting very very busy. We would go back later in the night after hanging out at the pool for awhile. I think February is hit or miss weather wise, and like previous poster said, weeks 1-2 are fine, weeks 3-4 are very crowded.

 

[egrl144]

Is all of this just for the end of February? We had thought about going in January. are crowds going to be very bad? What weekend is better to be there-marathon or MLK?

 

[alivia]

Disney’s weather is moderate in summer and cold in winter, when hundreds of inches of snow pile up, although the roads are kept clear except during storms. So it would be advisable to visit in April or October. These days are best to visit there because the weather remains quite pleasant. So you can enjoy whole day there.

 

[cablguy2]

Like others kinda said. It varies, we went 2011,2012 feb 2-7 each time. And the weather to us was great I think in 2011 in morning an evenings just used wind breaker or hoodie. 2012 was shorts an t's the whole time. Crowds was very managable. Of course TSM an tot RnR was some of the busiest. But we are planning going first week of feb in 2013.

 

[CamoMama]

I took my girls th first week of February this year and we had a great time. The weather was good, although it did rain a couple of times, but not for long, and the last day was a bit chilly. The crowd levels were mostly low and aside from parade times we didn't feel crowded. The only thing I'd do differently is the resort we stayed at. That time of year is the cheerleading competitions and we shared CBR with the varsity teams who were very poorly behaved. They were also at the All Star resorts, so I'd steer clear of them as well. If we go during cheer season again we'll stay somewhere else for certain. Next March we'll be staying at POR in a royal room.

 

[jenfromjersey]

I was there for President's weekend in 2004 I think and the crowds were super low, I was really surprised. It was a bit chilly though. In 2008 I was there the weekend before President's weekend for my 30th birthday, and the crowds were low, but we FROZE at night. Had no idea it would be that cold

 

[doublescoop]

We went this past February 18-25 and it was WONDERFUL. The weather was perfect-warm but not too hot-and it rained only once for one hour, just long enough to chase away some crowds and leave the park nearly empty. LOL President's Day was a zoo-so many ppl that many of the attractions we wanted to see were filled but the rest of the days the lines were minimal and we had so much fun. If I could go again in February, I would in a heartbeat.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I've been that week many times. It's busiet near the holiday,then peters the further you get from it. If you can stagger a little into non-vacation week time - you get lower crowds those few days.

higher crowds menas more park hours. WE've always been abelto see everythign, but then - we are able to use late and early hours. that helps.

Liekly you won't get much rain, but it also MIGH"T be too cold to really swim or wear shorts. Then again, the most common weather pattern we've seen was where it was cool in the am/pm and warm in the afternoons. for us- that means most days we wear shorts to tour, but a thick jacket in the morning. Around dinnner time, we go back to the resort to get long pants and maybe hats/gloves. a few days we wear jeans all day.

Usually there is at least ONE warm enough for swimming- but that may be all you get. So being flexible is good.

Also.....well....if you are undecided about your resort- it is worth the money to consider the Contemporary and or the Beach CLub/YC/BWk or Swan/Dolphin resorts. I especially like CR that time of year. No matter how cold it is- you can walk from MK to CR in about 15 minutes - an MKhas the most late night hours. similarly the BWK/BC area resorts are only a 15min walk to BOTH HS and Epcot.

However, if you pick CR- limit your WS dinners. It is along trek from Japan to CR via monrail -with lots of stadning on cold monorail platforms. If you pick CR- you can eat at any monorail dining in minutes with almost no outdoors exposure. (The CR monorail platform is indoors.) Of course that's assuming the monorail is running!
Another bonus of CR is seeing the MK fireworks from the resort.

My least favorite Feb resort pick is the BIG moderates - like POR, CBR, or CSR. They have lots of walking outdoors. If you aren't doing a deluxe, then preferred location (at a value) would be my next choice.

Alos, if you are goingto have a non-park day - Presidaent's day itself might a good day to set a rough plan for your non-park day (weather permitting). Another good idea is to avoid MK on the holiday, and use the holiday day to do lesser attractions- like Ellen's Energy and Mexico.

 

[Mamato3Princes]

We went from Feb 4th-14th this year. It was semi crowded... but prob not as bad as the summer and spring break crowds tho. It was FREEZING towards the end of our trip. I'm talking 30-40 degree weather during the DAY. We're from SW Florida so that was extremely cold to us . Other then the weather, the trip was great. I'd go back in early Feb again.