Going to Disney in the Fall

[mocame]

We have only gone to Disney during the beginning of May and loved it, although this year it was noticeably busier than our last trip. Probably due to the parks being busier in general all year round? Anyway, for our next trip we would like to go in the Fall. My daughter will be in college then so she didn't want to go in September right after the semester starts. Because of that we were looking at possibly October or November.

Weather-wise and crowd level-wise, when is a good time to go to Disney in October or November? How do they compare to when we were there in May?

Also, has anyone that has been in college gone to Disney and how did it affect your college classwork? Her Fall break (3 days) will be around the 2nd week in October and we would like to stay at Disney for 8 days.

 

[MegMac]

Fall is the BEST time to go, IMO. The weather is so nice. Cool in the mornings, but warms up in the afternoons. (Layer a short sleeved and long sleeved tee) It is my favorite time to go - Food & Wine, parks are decorated for Halloween. Crowd wise, the weekends are busy at EPCOT. We usually do early October, so I am not sure if there is a difference between October and November. We did do November once, and the parks were fully decorated for Christmas.

 

[MomTo3PrincessesInNJ]

We have only gone to Disney during the beginning of May and loved it, although this year it was noticeably busier than our last trip. Probably due to the parks being busier in general all year round? Anyway, for our next trip we would like to go in the Fall. My daughter will be in college then so she didn't want to go in September right after the semester starts. Because of that we were looking at possibly October or November.

Weather-wise and crowd level-wise, when is a good time to go to Disney in October or November? How do they compare to when we were there in May?

Also, has anyone that has been in college gone to Disney and how did it affect your college classwork? Her Fall break (3 days) will be around the 2nd week in October and we would like to stay at Disney for 8 days.

1) In my experience it's still pretty warm in October, and November can be whatever. We always go during Jersey Week (first full week in Nov) and we've been lucky with weather. Not HOT, but not cold (though some nights we needed hoodies and blankets in the stroller). I would expect both month to be cooler than May, but I've never been in May, so I can't say for sure.

2) Crowds will be better if you aren't travelling around holidays. I never had a Fall Break in college, but it looks like your daughter's break will coincide with Columbus day, so the parks will be busier that week than the week of Oct 16th and possibly the 23rd. You can look at crowd calendars for precise predictions, but in general the parks are busier around school holidays.

3) I've been out of college for 10 years now, but I can't remember a professor ever being OK with me missing more than 2 or 3 days a semester. Every teacher is different of course. And your daughter will know the attendance policy on the first day of each class. College classes are staggered/block schedule, so if the class only meets twice a week then being gone for a week won't be a huge deal --- she'll miss 2 classes. But, college is not high school. Chances are she won't be able to "make up" any missed work or tests. When are mid terms? That could be an issue with timing. Have you considered just having her join for half of the trip she she's not gone for so long?

 

[stnet]

We have been in October and in November. In October try and steer clear of Columbus Day, I was shocked at how busy the parks were. We love love love Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, lots of fun and the parade and fireworks are amazing. Depending on when you go in November you may get to see the parks decorated for Christmas. We went this past November the week before Thanksgiving, left on Thursday and came home on Wednesday (day before Thanksgiving). Seeing the parks and hotels decorated for the Holidays was amazing and the crowds weren't terrible. We did the Christmas party at the Magic Kingdom and it was just ok, definitely like Halloween party better.

 

[mom2rtk]

I would vote for having the college-age student meet you part way through the trip. Some classes wouldn't be a big deal to miss for a couple days but there will be no way to know that in advance.

Neither of my college age kids would have wanted to miss class for a trip. Just too stressful.

 

[IrishNYC]

I would not have taken time out of college to go to Disney, nor would I encourage my own child to do so in the future.

 

[Jonas_Swe]

Hi,

Yes the fall is hands down the best time to go!

I've always visited in late September to early October. The weather has been wonderful, yes a bit cooler in the morning, but as a Scandinavian it's still been warmer than on our summer mornings here.

It warms up really quickly as soon as the sun comes out. And about the sunny weather... Yeah, guaranteed!

Some afternoon showers in the late September weeks, but mostly dry in October. And not even close to the humidity you get in the spring and summer.

Crowds are on the weekdays at a bare minimum. I've spent more than one day at MK doing walk ons all day! With the major rides at 35 - 45 min wait at peak time.

It even spoiled me to the degree that if there was 30 min or more wait in the regular standby, I skipped it or picked up a FP for it!

Weekends pick up a little more, especially with locals. So they seldom wait too long for a ride either, in most cases. Since most of them can come back whenever to ride.

So, yes - Fall at Walt Disney World Resort rules!

 

[mocame]

1) In my experience it's still pretty warm in October, and November can be whatever. We always go during Jersey Week (first full week in Nov) and we've been lucky with weather. Not HOT, but not cold (though some nights we needed hoodies and blankets in the stroller). I would expect both month to be cooler than May, but I've never been in May, so I can't say for sure.

2) Crowds will be better if you aren't travelling around holidays. I never had a Fall Break in college, but it looks like your daughter's break will coincide with Columbus day, so the parks will be busier that week than the week of Oct 16th and possibly the 23rd. You can look at crowd calendars for precise predictions, but in general the parks are busier around school holidays.

3) I've been out of college for 10 years now, but I can't remember a professor ever being OK with me missing more than 2 or 3 days a semester. Every teacher is different of course. And your daughter will know the attendance policy on the first day of each class. College classes are staggered/block schedule, so if the class only meets twice a week then being gone for a week won't be a huge deal --- she'll miss 2 classes. But, college is not high school. Chances are she won't be able to "make up" any missed work or tests. When are mid terms? That could be an issue with timing. Have you considered just having her join for half of the trip she she's not gone for so long?

Thank you! When we went in May, the temperatures were 80's and 90's. I was hoping it would be cooler in the Fall.

Mid-terms are before the fall break. Most of her classes would be just a couple days a week. I, myself, just graduated in December from college. I went part-time and I had a couple of friends there that took a week off due to vacation or family emergencies and the professors were okay with them as long as they did the work. With her going full-time it will be harder. This is supposed to be our last family trip before my son graduates from high school. I'm trying to work around both kids and our schedules. Ugh!

 

[mom2rtk]

Hi,

Yes the fall is hands down the best time to go!

I've always visited in late September to early October. The weather has been wonderful, yes a bit cooler in the morning, but as a Scandinavian it's still been warmer than on our summer mornings here.

It warms up really quickly as soon as the sun comes out. And about the sunny weather... Yeah, guaranteed!

Some afternoon showers in the late September weeks, but mostly dry in October. And not even close to the humidity you get in the spring and summer.

Crowds are on the weekdays at a bare minimum. I've spent more than one day at MK doing walk ons all day! With the major rides at 35 - 45 min wait at peak time.

It even spoiled me to the degree that if there was 30 min or more wait in the regular standby, I skipped it or picked up a FP for it!

Weekends pick up a little more, especially with locals. So they seldom wait too long for a ride either, in most cases. Since most of them can come back whenever to ride.

So, yes - Fall at Walt Disney World Resort rules!

When did you go in the fall that crowds were a "bare minimum", even if it was on a weekday? I haven't seen reports of bare minimum and true walk-on in osme time.

 

[pooh4evr]

We have been over Columbus day twice. Including last year. It is HOT, and still fairly humid. It is also mediumish crowd wise. More and more schools are doing fall breaks, along with WDW offering discounts and free dining, which has increased the fall crowds A LOT.
But you really cant miss college classes for vacation, she could have a significant loss of grades from missing the classes. For example you miss X number of classes and automatically get a lower letter grade or fail altogether.

 

[Jonas_Swe]

Oh, and one more thing...

Since the crowds are so low, the characters usually take plenty of time to hang out with you.

I even caught some characters off guard, wandering around with out any people around. They were playing and acting their part. And I just walked up and asked for a picture.

Just imagine a (then) 30-something guy playing tag with Chip and Dale in Future World!

 

[Jonas_Swe]

When did you go in the fall that crowds were a "bare minimum", even if it was on a weekday? I haven't seen reports of bare minimum and true walk-on in osme time.

In the last week of September, just before the first MNSSHP evenings start.

Walk on's and once the crowds move in to the park after rope drop, you could stroll around without any particular lines to the rides and no congested areas. So nice and Epcot was even more quiet, until late afternoon when most people seemed to come over for WS and Illuminations.

 

[mom2rtk]

In the last week of September, just before the first MNSSHP evenings start.

Walk on's and once the crowds move in to the park after rope drop, you could stroll around without any particular lines to the rides and no congested areas. So nice and Epcot was even more quiet, until late afternoon when most people seemed to come over for WS and Illuminations.

It must have been a while ago since MNSSHP has been starting before the last week of September for some time.

Regardless, September before the parties start is one of the last hopes for reasonable crowds in WDW. I would do it if I could stand the heat.

 

[carolnog]

I love the parks in November, I can't always work DH's schedule and my own to go on vacation then, but if I could, it's the only time I would!
We went in November in 2013, Jersey week wasn't bad at all: we would barely stand in lines (something between nothing and 20-25 minutes), the weather was quite lovely (all we needed was a light jacket in the morning/late at night) and Christmas decorations were up! Win-win-win!

 

[Jadyreen1282]

I would not have taken time out of college to go to Disney, nor would I encourage my own child to do so in the future.

Who does this? What a waste of my...i mean the students money.

 

[RustManFan]

My kids teachers were not ok with them missing school whether that was elementary, junior high or high school. And my DD was certainly not ok with missing any classes for any kind of vacation during her college years. She would have been totally fine with other family going without her.

Believe me, I more than made up for it with trips after graduation to Great Britain and more recently to DL. She and her husband will probably join me and my DS at WDW in 2017.

 

[Naterfan]

Your college-age daughter is an adult. As such, she can talk to her professors and then decide if she believes herself capable of missing a few days of instruction without having any, or a minimal, affect on her studies. No one on these boards knows your child better than herself and you.

 

[atykay]

Kind of surprised by the comments saying it wouldn't be okay if your daughter missed school. She's in college. She's an adult. College classes meet like twice, maybe three times a week so you're not missing a lot. Have her talk to her professors. I am starting a master's program this fall and will be missing a week for my Disney trip but that really means only missing one day since the classes are once a week. Professors are generally very understanding people. During undergrad, all 5 of my professors one semester let me take my finals early so I wouldn't miss them when I gave birth. I skipped class quite a bit in college, still managed to graduate with a good GPA. Only had a couple of classes where attendance actually counted as part of your grade.

 

[mom2rtk]

Kind of surprised by the comments saying it wouldn't be okay if your daughter missed school. She's in college. She's an adult. College classes meet like twice, maybe three times a week so you're not missing a lot. Have her talk to her professors. I am starting a master's program this fall and will be missing a week for my Disney trip but that really means only missing one day since the classes are once a week. Professors are generally very understanding people. During undergrad, all 5 of my professors one semester let me take my finals early so I wouldn't miss them when I gave birth. I skipped class quite a bit in college, still managed to graduate with a good GPA. Only had a couple of classes where attendance actually counted as part of your grade.

A lot of it probably depends on the specific courses and professors involved. And I think giving birth is a little different from vacation.

A history class is one thing, but calculus, physics or the like? My son is a Chemical Engineering major and never skips class. Too much ground to make up. I've driven him back to campus in the wee hours of a Monday morning (3.5 hours each way) after a weekend home just so he wouldn't miss class (at his request).

 

[mocame]

I know having her take off during college is not ideal and we may not do it in the end. We'll see. She is a good student with a 3.99 GPA and taking AP classes in high school. If I thought she would be struggling to get/keep good grades in college in general, then I wouldn't even consider it. She would be taking mostly gen. ed. classes during that time. It just happens to suit everyone the best during that time. I know others have gone on vacation while in college but maybe it's a more individual thing that depends on particular classes, professors, etc.?