End of January

[rae1063]

First time visit for us at this time of year. Crowds? weather? whats open? whats closed? Parade of dreams? fireworks? We have no idea what to expect.

Thank you.

Roger and Lori

 

[bumbershoot]

I did a solo trip end of January in '08. It was chilly and drizzly! I didn't mind that; it was warmer than Tacoma, but it's worth knowing that it does indeed rain in so cal.

 

[disneynerd420]

I was wondering about this too... thanks Molly!

 

[clb79]

I know it won't be way in advance, but I will be there the middle of January and will try to remember to post what the weather is like then.

 

[rae1063]

thanks CLB. I just don't want to be disheartened as we get there and a bunch of things are closed or not available.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

I can tell you one thing: ROA will be drained. So no F!, Mark Twain, Columbia, TS Island, Canoes, etc.

 

[rae1063]

I can tell you one thing: ROA will be drained. So no F!, Mark Twain, Columbia, TS Island, Canoes, etc.

Well there's something I didn't expect. Thanks.

 

[gr8leg8]

Hey there,

My DD's birthday is the end of January.
We went the past two years.

Bring Ponchos (cheap in the fishing/sports section of Target or walmart)

Being in the rain or being wet made us tired quicker.


We found a few things were closed/down that weren't on the refurb list. Tarzan was closed one year. No biggie.

We did get that "whole park to ourselves" feeling a few times.

The character interactions were great. They spent lots of time with DD and made a fuss (in a good way) about her entourage of 10 adults. We were all wearing matching tee shirts with her picture on them.

Which reminds me,
most of our pictures we are in our ponchos or look like drowned rats. But the smiles are big and bright.

It's not your typical Sunny California type experience,
but still magical.

I hope you have a good trip

 

[clb79]

thanks CLB. I just don't want to be disheartened as we get there and a bunch of things are closed or not available.

At least on the bright side when things are closed it helps thin the crowds out a little.

You hit the nail on the head though, its awful to be expecting something to find it isn't open or available.

Best thing to do is keep an eye on the boards, the official Disneyland schedule on their site and maybe even subscribe to a DL Podcast if that is your thing that has park closures, refurbishments, and schedules as part of their weekly segment.

If you do those things, stuff might be closed or not available, but at least you will know ahead of time so you can plan accordingly and won't get surprised and/or disappointed once you are there!

 

[clb79]

We found a few things were closed/down that weren't on the refurb list.

It would be nice if they always put everything on the list wouldn't it

At least the major stuff is usually there, and anything is better than not knowing at all IMHO.

 

[Disney Dreams]

First time visit for us at this time of year. Crowds? weather? whats open? whats closed? Parade of dreams? fireworks? We have no idea what to expect.

Thank you.

Roger and Lori

Well, let's see...

A few have already touched upon the weather. Late January is prone to bad weather (in So.Cal. terms) - meaning rain. You can find all sorts of rain and temperature guides on-line for So. Cal. weather.

The upside of rain in So. Cal and at Disneyland is that the locals generally don't want to deal with it at all, so the crowds are lower.

Also, Disney knows that this will be a slower time because of weather so they plan for repairs and "fixin' up" during this time. The down-side of this is not everything is open.

All of that said... you are at Disneyland! YAY!

As for closures, check the calendar on Disneyland.com frequently for updates. The closer your trip gets, the more up-to-date it will become for your dates.

The Parade of Dreams has been gone for almost a year now. It was part of the Year of a Million Dreams promotion which ended on December 31, 2008. This year's "parade" has been "Celebrate! A Street Party!" which is more of a street party than a parade. It's a big party with characters, stilt walkers, very high-energy and fun to get into. If I was a betting gal, I would say that will probably be back in January, as they are continuing the "Celebrate!" theme into 2010. Although, this is just a guess.

Fireworks, it would be anyone's guess what will be happening in the skies above Disneyland next January. As the time gets closer, more specific show information will be available.

Hope this helps,
Dreams

 

[Mickey1974]

For those of you who have all mentioned being there during the end of Jan...do you recall what the temps were like? I'd love to shoot for the 70's and sun while we're there but anything will be better than MN's -10 or -30 below windchill!!

 

[Susie63]

For those of you who have all mentioned being there during the end of Jan...do you recall what the temps were like? I'd love to shoot for the 70's and sun while we're there but anything will be better than MN's -10 or -30 below windchill!!

I can't remember where I found it but early feb is average daytime high of 70 and low of 50 at night.

 

[lisaradz]

For those of you who have all mentioned being there during the end of Jan...do you recall what the temps were like? I'd love to shoot for the 70's and sun while we're there but anything will be better than MN's -10 or -30 below windchill!!

Susie63 is right on. High of 70, low 48 and 3" rain. However I did read that in Jan 2003 there was a high of 92! So you just never know. Bring rain ponchos (they have them at the Dollar Tree right now) and dress in layers. We are from NoCal and our weather is very similar. My boys wear short sleeve tee, w/ long sleeve tee over, and vest. We peel off layers and throw them in a backpack as it gets warmer. We love Jan/Feb weather. We would rather put on a sweater then it be too HOT and crowded! Enjoy! We will be there end of Jan too.

 

[3TinksAndAnEeyore]

First time visit for us at this time of year. Crowds? weather? whats open? whats closed? Parade of dreams? fireworks? We have no idea what to expect.

Thank you.

Roger and Lori

Check out HydroGuy's thread Detailed Weather History for DLR. It will give you lots of information about what type of weather you can expect given historical data.

 

[3TinksAndAnEeyore]

Forgot the fireworks question: The rumor is that "Remember...Dreams Come True" will be the fireworks for the winter/spring this year.

 

[Disney Dreams]

For those of you who have all mentioned being there during the end of Jan...do you recall what the temps were like? I'd love to shoot for the 70's and sun while we're there but anything will be better than MN's -10 or -30 below windchill!!

As a So. Cal local I can tell you January highs are around 70. It gets chilly (relatively) in the evenings and early morning before (if) the sun comes out. It's also our rainy time.

On the good side, you will not see negative anything (egad!). Maybe you should contact a Realtor while you are here. We don't have "windchill." LOL

Again, check any one of the numerous weather sites on-line and you can find detailed weather history for So. Cal.

- Dreams

P.S. What is "Dollar Tree"?

 

[gr8leg8]

I can't remember where I found it but early feb is average daytime high of 70 and low of 50 at night.

I remember this being our forcast too,
but remember the 70* doesn't last all day.
It got cool too quickly.
We drank lots of hot cocoa.

Bring extra shoes to have a dry pair as a back up.

 

[Tink91]

How likely is it for Space Mountain to be down? I have been to DL 3 times and it has been closed EVERY time!

 

[bumbershoot]

"Dollar Tree" is a Dollar Store.


I don't think late Jan is a typical time for Space to be down...when were you there? What luck to hit it when it's down each time!