Ever Been To A Theme Park On A Cold Day? What Was It Like?

[rastahomie]

I'll be there first week of December and, maybe, for the first time in my life, might experience a "cold" day at a WDW theme park. Now, my definition of "cold" is probably different from yours (I don't generally break out my jacket until it gets below about 30), but, using whatever definition of "cold" you prefer, what's it like being at a theme park on a cold day? Was it brutal? Or were you still able to have a good time?

 

[ArwenMarie]

I love the theme parks in the "cold"
What Floridians consider cold anyway

Cold to me doesn't start until the temp goes below 35
I wear sweaters and fleeces above that

 

[Disney_and_Wine]

I live in New England and I have never experienced a day that I would classify as "cold". Cool enough perhaps to have no interest in pools or water parks. And cool enough to wear warm gear over shorts and a golf shirt when teeing off at 7:00 am. But never "blow on your hands and cover your ears" cold. Long pants and a sweatshirt are all you'd need. And you might very well want a sweatshirt to wear after Kali or Splash. One time I forgot one and had to buy one.

 

[ucfknight]

I don't generally break out my jacket until it gets below about 30

It would be a very rare day at WDW where you would have to wear your jacket between 7:00 am and midnight.

 

[rastahomie]

It would be a very rare day at WDW where you would have to wear your jacket between 7:00 am and midnight.

Of course. But it's been in the 40's there before, and I imagine it can be pretty miserable, especially on, say, BTMRR or Splash Mountain.

 

[SureAsLiz]

There were a few days in January when it was mid-50s and overcast (January 8th was recorded at a high of 52 with the average for the day at 44)

I just threw on a couple layers, usually a sweater and at night an actual coat that I only get to pull out a few times a year now, and called it a day. But it's definitely different experiencing the parks in cold than it is in heat, mainly in that I don't feel like I'm dying when it's cold.

The biggest thing for me was that it was a humid cold, so it tends to seep into clothing rather than just sitting on top of it like a dry cold (which is what I lived in most of my life). The wind also bites more, so outdoor coasters were not very pleasant.

 

[Mickey92]

went in January a few years back and it was extremely cold. It was 28 degrees the morning we were at Animal Kingdom. They had heaters out keeping the trees warm. Rode Everest that morning and it was painfully cold.

 

[jaysmom4285]

I was there for the January 8 day with a high in the low 50's. The night before and that night were especially cold, and I'm from Maine. The humidity does affect how you feel the cold. It was in the upper 30's those couple of nights while I was wandering around Epcot and Disney Springs, and I had a few layers, plus a packable down jacket, hat and mittens. It felt colder to me than it would have in Maine at that temperature because of the dampness in the air. The days are tolerable if there's any sun at all, but when the sun starts to go down, things can get chilly very quickly. Temps that low are rare for Florida, but it can happen. IF there's no wind, just bundle up and go with it. If there's a stiff breeze or wind with temps that low, it can feel pretty brutal. I was lucky that those were calm evenings so I could forge on.

 

[jerzeystar09]

I was there in January 2015 and a front had gone through (causing a blizzard at home in NJ) and it was about 30-40 degrees there. Very unexpected, even the princesses were in fleece shawls and extra layers. But the perk was that that time of year was dead and lines were so short!

 

[ucfknight]

Of course. But it's been in the 40's there before, and I imagine it can be pretty miserable, especially on, say, BTMRR or Splash Mountain.

Well sure. I was just going by your definition of cold.
When it is in the 40s the coldest place at WDW is the south side of the World Showcase lagoon (Japan through Italy). That's because when it gets that cold in Orlando it is usually only after a cold front passes through. So the wind is almost always from the north. Coming across the water with nothing to stop it can make things seem a bit chillier.

As for the water rides, they do turn off a lot of the effects that add extra splashes along the way. They can't do anything about the wall of water coming over the head of the unlucky seats on Kali, though. So we avoid that in the "cold".

 

[littledebbie335]

I also was there in January 2016 (while there was a blizzard at home, so I'm used to winter weather), and I was unpleasantly cold on a couple of the days of our trip. This was mostly my fault, though because I was like "It's Florida, I don't need warm clothes!"so the only warm clothes I had brought were a light fleece jacket and a hat. Plan on dressing in layers, and bring something that will block the wind. Don't forget hats and gloves, just in case! It generally warmed up enough to not be an issue by the afternoon, but there was one particular day that was cold and windy, and I was miserable.

(edited because I had the year wrong!)

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We've been there when it's been cold and rainy. We just dressed appropriately and had a great time! I would avoid the wet rides but other outdoor rides were fine.

 

[OhioStateBuckeye]

Cold.

 

[danielocha30]

greetings from Florida!! it would be very unlikely to be under 30 or even under 40 for the first week of December, obviously water rides are awful if they are running at all, outdoor coasters are ok, days can be hot and then by sundown the temperature drops significantly

 

[emmabelle]

it was so cold and still there were people with shorts on. hahaha

 

[CAS239]

It's the best.

I absolutely love Disney in cold weather. Being able to wear a jacket and feeling comfortable is so much better than dying from the heat

 

[FlyingBelle]

Yep, have a few sweatshirts we bought there because of the weather. Personally, I enjoyed it a lot more because I wasn't a sweaty mess!

 

[Disney_and_Wine]

it was so cold and still there were people with shorts on. hahaha

...Proving that there is no universally accepted definition or concept of "cold".

 

[FSU Girl]

If you aren't prepared for it to be cold it can be awful. I went to Universal a few years ago and stupidly didn't check the weather. Turned out it was going to be in the 40s, maybe even lower record cold weekend. I had a light jacket you'd wear in high 60s and flip flops. I was dying I was so cold. We ended up buying gloves and scarves at the park and realized there was a lot of outdoors to those parks because we were trying to find indoor places to get warm. If I had had proper clothes it would have been great since I hate when I'm all hot and sweaty at the parks

 

[Happiest.Haunt_999]

I'm from the North so unless I have to put on a parka, it's not too cold, we vacationed at WDW in January and loved being in the cooler weather. And walking around in sweatpants or jeans and a hoodie made me so very happy!