Jan/February trip worth it?

[PrincessAnnabell]

Looks like we will have to postpone our Oct trip. Is it worth the risk that your kids will be sick on a Jan or Feb trip? Or should we just wait for Next October? We would be taking 6 kids ages 1, 3,5,11, 11 and 15

 

[Spunky946]

We went in January and no one was sick. Frankly you could get sick there at any time. I would not not schedule a trip just because someone might get sick. Jmo.

 

[ddpaints]

Honestly you could be sick in Oct just as easily as Jan or Feb. This is the first year in 7 yrs that we will be going in Nov and NOT in Jan or Feb. I love it at that time of year. We have been able to do a lot with a lot less planning. We just start taking probiotics and Air Born about a month out from our trip. GL in whatever you decide.

 

[Shleedogg]

We've been sick at Disney in September, October and January/February. It can happen any time unfortunately. The crowds are usually lighter in January/February though! We normally do a trip the first week in February and for the past 4 years it's been great. This year the crowds felt like a much more peak time. There were tons of Brazilian tourists.

 

[worm761]

I agree with the others that you can get sick at any time of year. DS and I got sick on a May trip. DD got sick on a September trip. With some many people in one place and all those germs you can only do your best to not get sick. We have only had illness on 2 out of 9 trips. It happens.

 

[Sparkly]

February is fine. As others have said, you can get sick anytime! Wash your hands frequently and sleep well.

 

[kohlby]

We did a 10 night trip at the end of Jan/start of Feb. My middle child was coming down with something on the last day. (We found out she had a double ear infection the next day). My kids were 11 months, 3, and 6, so we actually beat the odds by having no one sick for that long of a trip. The next year, while at home, we had 6 weeks straight of someone being too sick to leave the house between the three of them. So, you never know! That being said, we've done many Disney/Universal trips and only had illness get in the way of our plans once. (We didn't know about the ear infection on the other trip - just that our 3 year old wasn't acting like herself, but we didn't know if that was just being tired at that point). My eldest came down with a stomach virus the day before we were scheduled to leave. Again, this was the end of a 10 night trip. Our planned park was one we had already done it so figured we would just all head home a day early. It wasn't a big deal.

On a plus side too - the end of Jan/start of Feb was the lightest crowds I've ever seen and we tend to go during off-seasons as it is.

With 6 kids, the chance of someone getting sick is of course greater. But that doesn't mean it will happen - or that you can't work around it. Many of your kids are older, making it easier to split up if you need to.

 

[MandiC]

Yep, kids are just as likely to get sick in October as they are in January/February. I did give my kids some EmergenC in their drinks once a day to try to avoid any sickness before we left, I was a little worried because one of my little ones did develop a cough two days before we left (we left the two little ones at home this time) but everyone was fine for the trip.
Edited to add- during the winter I also make sure to give my kids Vitamin D supplements, might not be necessary everywhere but vitamin D deficiency is common around here and when you are vitamin d deficient you get sick more often.

 

[harrisb1964]

We've done Jan and Feb trips and loved them. Low attendance, short lines,overall good weather and can't beat the price. We would would never go any other time!