If you had to choose between a summer trip or......

[edk35]

That is us too. My girls play club softball and it's pretty much year round, but they get some of Aug and all of Nov off and then Xmas break. Though they sometimes have a tourney around Easter and always have practice (which is also the week our schools do spring break, but we have to stick around for softball).
So, we can vacation:
A-1st 3 weeks of Aug (though try-outs for the new season are in August, so we have to fit in travel around those since DH is usually coaching in some capacity...we can fit in a trip sometime in Aug and usually do every Aug).
B- Thanksgiving week (kids have off school that entire week...for now)
C- Xmas break
We usually do 2 trips...4-6 days each...one being Aug. We have a 4 day cruise booked for Aug. This year we are fitting in our other trip, to WDW, this Jan (the kids have off a couple days from school so we could do a 5 day trip...they will miss softball practice and basketball...but they are not serious about basketball and softball isn't really heating up until spring). DH's family want to do Xmas at WDW too, but that will be 3 trips in 2013 (plus my DDs's softball team will have a Nationals somewhere and there has been talk about trying for the one at Disney's WWoS again...we'd have the PAPs but would have to forgo the Xmas trip...plus we fly to Miami for our cruise just 1 week after the Nationals in Orlando).

We get the last Monday and Tuesday off in Jan. and have taken a few Jan.. trips..LOVE THOSE TRIPS. However now....with our 2nd in college it won't pan out. He and our dd start back to classes that Monday. The only reason we went last Jan. was dd was doing the college internship program at Disney and she was already there and our oldest son was still in hs so he had those days off with our younger son. SCHOOL JUST GETS IN THE WAY SOMETIMES!!

 

[edk35]

We've always avoided WDW in the summer. Late May/early June is ok, but personally I would not go in July or August unless I could not go any other time of year. Summer trips actually don't work for us anymore, anyway, due to kids playing on summer travel teams. This leaves Thanksgiving week, Christmas and spring break, and we love traveling to WDW at those times. The parks open early and stay open late, and if you are willing to set your alarm clock to arrive for an 8am opening (maybe even 7am with EMH), you can get a ton done before the parks get crowded. We do not do that every day of our vacations, but no one in my family complains about getting up early a few times because they see the payoff of lower crowds. Then, when some people are just arriving to a crazy busy park, we are returning to our resort to relax.

We love the weather in November, December and April, but it can be chilly on some days. Summer is better if your family wants to swim every day and go to water parks. We've always been able to do some swimming in December, just not every single day. Highs in Orlando are predicted to be 77, 77, 75 for the next three days!

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My fave time is late Jan. and Nov. However now Nov. over Thanksgiving week has gotten soooooo crowded compared to the first couple of Thanksgiving trips we took. We have now done trips in every month but Feb. June, Sept. and Oct. I always want to go for the MNSSHP but have never made it. We always have off the Friday mid Oct. and I am ALWAYS WANTING TO GO THAT WEEKEND. ONE DAY!!

 

[edk35]

I'd prefer to do Thanksgiving week this coming year (instead of Xmas) as my kids will all still be in HS and have that week off...DS will be a junior so won't have that week off much longer. But, SIL1 will have 2 kids in college and 1 in private HS where they all only get 2 days off for Thanksgiving, so she can't go then. We're doing a big family trip.

When we went last Xmas (12/20-26 2011) we flew from Reagan International in DC to Orlando on JetBlue and paid about $200 pp roundtrip. We booked the flight around July 2011. We also found cheap Southwest flights for our upcoming January trip (from BWI to MCO)...also around $200pp roundtrip (though MIL/FIL are doing a cruise in Feb and fly on President's Day and paid an arm and a leg for their flight).

So, like PP...I am curious where you're going to stay. Also, do your kids bring friends? I wonder how things will be when we do Disney with older kids...my DS is starting to turn his nose up at going to Disney and has mentioned it wouldn't be so boring if he had a friend with him. That's why the family trip at Xmas will be good...he'll have his cousin to hang with.

Our oldest son now a freshman in college starting turning his nose up at going to Disney Jr. year in high school. He ended up bringing a friend that Jan. trip then this past year since our dd was there for the college internship we let him bring a friend TWICE on two Disney trips this past year. He does much better having a friend with him but I personally think unless we stay at Beach Club if we do the summer trip....he will probably not want to go unless his girlfriend could go.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I'm here now...I do not think it's horrid. 75 degrees now, we're heading for the pool/hot tub.

Spent our first NYE in DHS yesterday, & would do that again in a heartbeat. We left after the fireworks, & got the next boat to BWV,back in room before 1AM...we're both on our 60s so, your itinerary would be different, of course.

The 30th in MK was a different story, but we had just arrived after the drive from Ohio, we didn't stay there much has Holiday Wishes. It was cold on the 30th...we did get to see the 5PM CP in Epcot before going to MK.

We don't expect to do a lot, but we did lots that we enjoyed in DHS yesterday, 4 Am Idol Experience, including the finale, Mermaid, Fantasmic package, then the fireworks. It was not wall to wall people for most of the day, it really was very enjoyable.

Enjoy whatever you do...I hope you do try NYE in WDW someday!

Bobbi

 

[Dasha Hermosilla]

I want to chime in... We were just there 12/29-1/1. It is doable, but you MUST utilize the EMH (yes, getting up at 6:15 while on vacation was tough but worth it!). Around mid day the parks became a zoo. Weather on the 30th was super cold but sunny and then 12/31 and 1/1 it warned up. Not pool weather unless you are a kid.

I want to say though, the fireworks on NYE at Magic Kingdom and Seven Seas Lagoon were tremendous! They shot them off at times from over six different sites from my line of vision. It was beautiful to see and to watch the reflection on the water (luckily we had a theme park view room at GF so fighting crowds was not an issue).

 

[amypetecar]

I have seen the following wait times on touringplans the past week:


Test track: 250 minutes (4 hours 10 minutes)
Soarin': 250 minutes
Buzz light year: 180 minutes (that was today! 1/2)
Spaceship earth 90 minutes
Living with the land 70 minutes (over an hour......for the land......is it 1984 and i missed it?)

I actually love crowded days more than slow days because theres more energy, more shows, longer hours, and it feels more like an event!..... But even i think id be a little grumpy waiting an hour and a half for rides that im used to walking right on like spaceship earth.

 

[edk35]

I have seen the following wait times on touringplans the past week:


Test track: 250 minutes (4 hours 10 minutes)
Soarin': 250 minutes
Buzz light year: 180 minutes (that was today! 1/2)
Spaceship earth 90 minutes
Living with the land 70 minutes (over an hour......for the land......is it 1984 and i missed it?)

I actually love crowded days more than slow days because theres more energy, more shows, longer hours, and it feels more like an event!..... But even i think id be a little grumpy waiting an hour and a half for rides that im used to walking right on like spaceship earth.

Wow!

 

[staceymay00]

I have seen the following wait times on touringplans the past week:

Test track: 250 minutes (4 hours 10 minutes)
Soarin': 250 minutes
Buzz light year: 180 minutes (that was today! 1/2)
Spaceship earth 90 minutes
Living with the land 70 minutes (over an hour......for the land......is it 1984 and i missed it?)

I actually love crowded days more than slow days because theres more energy, more shows, longer hours, and it feels more like an event!..... But even i think id be a little grumpy waiting an hour and a half for rides that im used to walking right on like spaceship earth.

We were at MK today. It got very, very busy...maybe the busiest I have ever seen MK, and we have been there plenty of times during peak crowd levels. There was even a substantial line for The People Mover. I don't think I have ever seen a line for the People Mover extend past the moving ramp.

That said, we rode many rides before we left at 1:30 and never waited more than 10 minutes. We did have to rely on FP for rides like Space Mountain (rode Space twice with FP, actually) and Peter Pan. It is possible to avoid long lines during the busiest times, but it requires arriving before RD and having a good plan.

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[Figee17]

Teacher here, so I feel your pain with scheduling. I love Disney and will go ANY time of year if I am able. BUT, my very sweet DH (DBF at the time) brought me to Disney the week between Christmas into NY and I said NEVER again. I didn't even notice the beautiful decorations most of the time because there were people EVERYWHERE! For the first time, I opted to stay at the resort rather than go into the parks (now that I am DVC and have a 2yo, we do that often, but it was unheard of for me then)
I have been in the summer many times. Is it hot? YUP! But, it can be almost as hot and humid here in MA and where would I rather be - Disney! Just be sure to stay hydrated and schedule some downtime, whether at the resort or at a TS restaurant.
Either way, ENJOY!

 

[twinklebug]

I know the kids are in school, but if you can squeeze in a 4 day weekend in December before the crowds arrive, I highly recommend it! I did just that a few years back and since then have gone down twice for 9+ day trips over the crowded holiday weeks. I got to see and enjoy more in those 4 days than I did on either of the 9+ day trips. It really was the best trip ever!

There's also usually some pretty good airfare to be found in the 1st half of December.

 

[ccigliano]

It looks like you may have decided but here is my two cents. We were just there from 12/24 -1/3 and it is doable. You need to get to parks early for fast passes and use the EMH. My expectations were that I wouldn't ride everything that I usually do but as a DVC member I knew I would be back. We saw the Holiday Wishes and New Year's fireworks at EP. Would we go back for Christmas again -probably not as we usually go in early Dec and that's what we'll do in 2013. I may go for New Year's again though as there is nowhere I'd rather be than DisneyWorld for ringing in a New Year! Have fun whatever you decide.

 

[edk35]

I know the kids are in school, but if you can squeeze in a 4 day weekend in December before the crowds arrive, I highly recommend it! I did just that a few years back and since then have gone down twice for 9+ day trips over the crowded holiday weeks. I got to see and enjoy more in those 4 days than I did on either of the 9+ day trips. It really was the best trip ever!

There's also usually some pretty good airfare to be found in the 1st half of December.

When do the crowds arrive? LOL

 

[jahber]

When do the crowds arrive? LOL

Typically they pick up around the middle of the month when colleges and some private schools are out. The week before Christmas can be bad if kids are out that week. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day through tomorrow (when most kids go back) were, shall we say, beyond crowded. My cut-off point when I stop going is typically mid-December. My AP ran out on Christmas Day, but I haven't renewed yet because I can't make myself go.

 

[edk35]

Typically they pick up around the middle of the month when colleges and some private schools are out. The week before Christmas can be bad if kids are out that week. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day through tomorrow (when most kids go back) were, shall we say, beyond crowded. My cut-off point when I stop going is typically mid-December. My AP ran out on Christmas Day, but I haven't renewed yet because I can't make myself go.

I just can't bring myself to endure those crowds!!!! Most people I know...that have gone during the holiday break...mostly Disney newbies....swear they would never do it again. We have been too many times at much lower crowd times that I just don't want to waste the points... to not be able to enjoy most of EVERYTHING. Even Thanksgiving week has gotten a lot worse than when we first went there during Thanksgiving week back in 02, then 05. We noticed a big difference in the 07 and 08 trips.

 

[OurDogCisco]

We've gone May, August, June, July, November and December. All of our WDW vacations are during peak times so, 4th of July week, Thanksgiving week or Christmas/New Year's week. The only one that wasn't was May. I go back and forth between the summer months vs Fall/winter months. One thing I like about November/December trips is that there is less rain. In August it can rain for hours. We never get the 10 minute afternoon shower in the summer. So, I can never figure out what people are talking about. But on average for us it rains from 1 to 3 hours a day in the summer. It might not be straight but it can be annoying after a while especially since we live in an area that gets virtually no rain. The crowds in Dec are not bad if you plan ADRS for at least 2 meals a day. We would do breakfast and dinner or lunch and dinner. Plus, we took advantage of EMH in the morning. So, we might go to MK from 7 am until 11 am. Then, take the last breakfast seating at Crystal Palace and then, hit the park until the crowds drive you crazy. Then, we might resort hop and go shopping. I just feel during the Christmas season you have to plan your day out more and there are less opportunities to sleep in.

 

[edk35]

We've gone May, August, June, July, November and December. All of our WDW vacations are during peak times so, 4th of July week, Thanksgiving week or Christmas/New Year's week. The only one that wasn't was May. I go back and forth between the summer months vs Fall/winter months. One thing I like about November/December trips is that there is less rain. In August it can rain for hours. We never get the 10 minute afternoon shower in the summer. So, I can never figure out what people are talking about. But on average for us it rains from 1 to 3 hours a day in the summer. It might not be straight but it can be annoying after a while especially since we live in an area that gets virtually no rain. The crowds in Dec are not bad if you plan ADRS for at least 2 meals a day. We would do breakfast and dinner or lunch and dinner. Plus, we took advantage of EMH in the morning. So, we might go to MK from 7 am until 11 am. Then, take the last breakfast seating at Crystal Palace and then, hit the park until the crowds drive you crazy. Then, we might resort hop and go shopping. I just feel during the Christmas season you have to plan your day out more and there are less opportunities to sleep in.

The getting up that early to make a 7:00 rope drop would never work for my family. They would do better staying up until 2 or 3 A.M. doing EMH evenings before they would getting up so early to make a 7:00 park opening.

 

[OurDogCisco]

The getting up that early to make a 7:00 rope drop would never work for my family. They would do better staying up until 2 or 3 A.M. doing EMH evenings before they would getting up so early to make a 7:00 park opening.

Then, I don't know if I would go at Christmas time. Honestly, the waits after 11 am are long. So arriving late puts you behind by a lot. Don't get me wrong we like to sleep in too and we do but when we do we go knowing we are going to ride the non-headliner rides and see the shows and parades only.

As an example, one year we went with our aunt/uncle but they were staying offsite. It was between Christmas and New Years Eve. My uncle had just recently recovered from a serious broken leg and couldn't walk as fast. We arrived at 7 am and went straight to Fantasyland and rode all the rides over there with EMH. At least 5 rides then, we walked over to Frontierland to ride BTMR and that was when the crowds started coming it. At this point it was about 8 am. They arrived at the gates at 8 am (although I told them to be there at 7 am so, they would be ahead of the crowds). So, at 8 am they were in line to get into the park. It took them 1 hour to get from the front gates to Frontierland land. While waiting went over to Adventureland we rode Pirates of the Carribean, Jungle Cruise and The Magic Carpets of Aladdin. At this point the wait wasn't too long as people were just entering the park and getting their fastpasses. But you feel the park starting to fill up. So, they finally arrive and we rode Jungle Cruise and the Pirate ride again but at this point is about 9:30 am. Their daughter really wanted to ride space mountain so, I ran over to get fast passes but our return time was the afternoon already by then, so, we decided to do standby. Waited 60 minutes to ride. We got out of the ride at 11 am and MK was wall to wall people. It was packed. It was scary packed. We left at that point. So, our offsite guest rode 3 rides to our 11 rides. I think more people stay for the evening EMH hours than the morning EMH. At least that has been our experience. The only park I do EMH for is MK. The other parks we seem to do okay with regular hours. However, during the Christmas break MK has EMH in the morning every day. So, it is really hard not to take advantage of it. In the summer I found it easier to do a combination between evening and morning EMH. The crowds are huge at Christmas time.

 

[drusba]

Christmas is something to possibly do once if you have not done so before so you learn your lesson to never do it again. One of its major benefits is that after doing Christmas you will never again complain about how crowded it is in the summer. Crowds much of the summer are like being stuffed in a small closet with 5 other people. Crowds Christmas week are like being stuffed in that same closet with a 100 sumo wrestlers. Particularly on NYE at MK and Epcot's World of Nations in the evening, you can actually get to a crowd size that makes it literally impossible to walk anywhere.

If you have been in the latter part of November or in December at other times and seen all the Christmas decorations and events, then there is really no reason to do Christmas week. If Christmas week is your only opportunity to ever see those things, then it is probably worth doing it once. You cannot go at Christmas time with any idea of actually doing all the rides and attractions. Fastpasses run out early and standby lines for things like Test Track and Soarin can get to four hours, and it stays near that level all day and much of the evening. The main planned activity should be to see all the Christmas decorations and shows.

 

[twinklebug]

I know the kids are in school, but if you can squeeze in a 4 day weekend in December before the crowds arrive, I highly recommend it! I did just that a few years back and since then have gone down twice for 9+ day trips over the crowded holiday weeks. I got to see and enjoy more in those 4 days than I did on either of the 9+ day trips. It really was the best trip ever!

There's also usually some pretty good airfare to be found in the 1st half of December.

Just talked myself into booking a weekend in early Dec. It was either that or go over that holiday week. Here's praying for good airfare!

 

[lovin'fl]

I know the kids are in school, but if you can squeeze in a 4 day weekend in December before the crowds arrive, I highly recommend it! I did just that a few years back and since then have gone down twice for 9+ day trips over the crowded holiday weeks. I got to see and enjoy more in those 4 days than I did on either of the 9+ day trips. It really was the best trip ever!

There's also usually some pretty good airfare to be found in the 1st half of December.

I agree with this. We are about to go for a few days at the end of January and we will be able to do EVERYTHING we want to.

And I think the few days before Xmas will be bad this year...we did 12/20-26 in 2011 and it didn't get bad until 12/24 and that's because 12/24 was a Saturday and kids were all still in school 12/20-22 (we took ours out of school just to go early and beat the crowds). This year 12/24 is a Tuesday and the kids are off from Sat 12/21 to 1/2 and that entire time will be crazy crowded. It's made us re-think going for Xmas this year.