How do you cope?

[sharon-o]

How do you cope with the heat and (mostly) humidity in july/august?

Is it as bad as the horror stories we are hearing?

How did you deal with it if you have travelled in these months before?

Any advice...mom, dad, 2 teenage boys (13 +16)


thanks sharon

 

[JohnnySharp2]

It can be very difficult Sharon, not just because of the heat but the crowds too.

We are going twice this year including in August, it's not an ideal time at all but because of the school holidays really.

Personally I would not advise any first timer to go July/August, mainly because there is always the tendency to try and do too much - for us it's not too bad because we have been so many times now we can just pace ourselves. However, if you try and rush round and pack so much into a couple of weeks it will be exhausting.
You need to have plenty of rest between your park visits and to relax as much as you can.

Getting to the parks early and taking a break at lunch time is essential, you can always return in the evening, this way you should avoid the hottest times of the day and in some cases the busiest also.
Drink plenty of water, wear loose comfortable clothing, do not rush around too much..just the general advice really.
Be flexible in your plans so that you can have days of rest, Florida isn't all just about the Theme Parks.

 

[KAC2005]

I agree! Our first hol to wdw was last July and we were fine! Did most of the rides in the moring and spent the afternoons back at the hotel! If we got too hot at the parks, we went into a shop!!! ( Good for me but not the budget!!!!!)

We didn't have any kids with us last year, so that probably made it easier too!

This year we are taking our brother who is 8! So we will be making sure that he gets a rest!

Kathryn

 

[kevin harrison]

Take it easy at first, don't cram too much in too soon, have rest days every 3 or 4 days, Up early - pool in the afternoon - drink constantly, have a flexible plan, shops are air conditioned so go in one when you are hot and if I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it.

 

[paulh]

first time for us we were in parks at 8am out at midnight(they did open late years ago) after hoilday said never again but after a loking back we decided to go again but pace and enjoy.When its your first time you think its going to be your only time this trip is our 16th.Best bit of advice is plan plan plan and stick to it we do
paulh

 

[maleficent_man]

Comfortable clothing is crucial - this ain't no fashion parade!! Drink plenty of water - yeah it's expensive in the parks, but it's worth it. Try to do some indoor shows/attractions during the hottest parts of the day (only problem is that everyone else thinks of this!). If you can, take a break from the parks and come back.

I am a bit of a die-hard must do everything and be in the park riding or doing something from open to close, but I know that with my Mum it simply isn't fair to expect her to be running around like a fool (me!). We have a park scheduled for almost every day of our 2 week holiday but this is so we can take is (somewhat easy!).

Wear light colours and apply plenty of cream. Pop into shops for a few minutes and enjoy the air-con, go on a water ride and enjoy the cool breeze.

 

[tartangirl]

We always go in the summer and dont have any problems.

We always:
- leave the park when we start getting too hot early afternoon for a break
- walk out of the sun where possible
- wear sunglasses to avoid glare
- wear sun lotion
- drink loads
- send DH ahead to get fast passes so we dont have to wait in long queues
- stop at every shop

We dont even notice the humidity but it certainly gets hot hot hot

 

[sharon-o]

Thanks for all the tips, we are staying for 3 weeks so nearly every other day we have a free day ( eg..shops, pool, day at the beach, waterpark etc..) .

I have planned for every day eg..wed early park, thur late park (evening), fri day off etc... whilst looking at simons book, So i have added in lots of rest days.

We go abroad every year in the july/aug period (europe) and i can not imagine wanting to rush around ( always have relaxing beach hols) its just too hot but i do want to do lots!

Well thanks again i'm sure we'll survive!!!!!
sharon

 

[JohnnySharp2]

I am sure you will be fine, sorry for making it sound like some sort of assault course, just that the advice given is from people who have done it before.

 

[Dimplenose]

Both my previous trips (and my next one) have been in August. We went for the last 2 weeks in August and didn't find the crowds a problem. We didn't have "rest days" but did split the day into 2 parts.

In the morning we'd do one park and have lunch there before heading back to the hotel for a rest/swim at about 2pm.

At about 4pm we'd head off to another park for fireworks or dinner (plus some rides of course).

Some places were worse than others during the heat. Places with large expanses of concrete, such as Epcot world showcase, were particularly bad. But frequent visits to air conditioned rides/shops/restaurants helped us cope.
The parking lots are also like furnaces - do write down where you left the car as it's no pleasant walking round looking for your car at 2pm (we were eventually picked up by a Disney patrol car who helped us find it!)

We visited Blizzard Beach at 11am one day - this was the only time I got sunburn so do be careful with the sunscreen. We were also surpised at how hot the ground was, I'd definitely reccommend taking some sort of water shoe (we ended up buying some a Disney prices just for comfort).

As mentioned before drink plenty of water. My family actually didn't mind the taste of the water fountains and refilled our bottles regularly. (We found the water tasted better if cold, so look for fountains in the shade).

I hope this helps.

Libby

 

[SammieG]

I think you are doing the right thing by pacing yourself. We go at the end of August and crowds and weather is not too bad. Better than September, as September can just rain the whole time.. and the humidity is higher in September,
We found one of the spray water fans that they sell in the park to be really good. We usually get something similar at Walmart, but to be honest, we should have payed the extra and got the disney one as they are better quality, and if they break, you can take them back to any of the stalls and get a replacement. We have been through several from Eckerds or Walmart and they dont stand the test of time.

You will have a great time. I doubt that in your 3 weeks you will feel you have done everything... as we spend about 5 weeks a year at Disney - and still dont feel we have everything licked!!

 

[tiggerlady]

Hi Sharon
We prefer to go when it is hot, but you do need to be sensible, do the sun tan lotion thing when you get up,before leaving for the parks,reapply to exposed areas, we buy a coolbox (you can buy a cheap polystyrene one from Walmart or similar fill with ice and cool drinks ( hotels have ice machines) take it with you to the parks have a drink to go and leave some for your return, weare always ready for a cool drink when we get back to the car,if you have access to a freezer fill some sports type bottles the night before take these to the parks they defrost throughout the morning and can save a small fortune on purcasing drinks at the parks they can be refilled at the fountains or use up any unfinished drinks when you stop for lunch.
Take spare socks and a cooling foot gel/lotion to change especially if you are spending a long day in the park, however it is advisable to get there early and leave around 2-3pm and return for the evenings entertainments.
Be aware that it does storm/rain most afternoons, so be prepared, buy a water poncho!!
going in the height of summer means longer days and longer opening hours in the park and of course sunshine