January 2015

[Sunnyday3]

I just looked at WDWinfo's rehab list - Water parks: Blizzard Beach (no real surprise there - it's winter!) MK: CRT will be closed all of Jan & Feb! Cinderella's Royal Table- closed 1/5/2015- 3/6/2015 EC: nothing listed yet. HS: LA Prop Cinema Storage closed 6/16/2014- 2/28/2015 We've never done CRT, and were thinking about it for this trip. Guess that made the decision for us - DH will be excited - HDDR again for our 2 entitlement table service meal!

So if Splash Mountain isn't on there, does that probably mean it'll be open and running? That's our favorite!

 

[Sirenn]

So if Splash Mountain isn't on there, does that probably mean it'll be open and running? That's our favorite!

Ooh, that would be aces! The last three times I've visited Disney parks, it seems like Splash Mountain was on the rehab schedule. I want to zoom down the flume already!

 

[hops&dreams]

So if Splash Mountain isn't on there, does that probably mean it'll be open and running? That's our favorite!

It's not on there, but we're still 6 months out. Jan/Feb is prime time for rehabs for all rides. Splash is usually out, but when we went in 2012, it was running in the first week of Feb.

 

[MagentaMulan]

Is it possible to make ADRs before i book a package? My 180 days start this weekend (18th), so If the rumors are true that rates come out the 21th should i wait to make them once i book a package? I was told i could link them if i choose to book before they come out, but how do I do that???

 

[mdyoung]

Is it possible to make ADRs before i book a package? My 180 days start this weekend (18th), so If the rumors are true that rates come out the 21th should i wait to make them once i book a package? I was told i could link them if i choose to book before they come out, but how do I do that???

Yes, it is possible with both the WDW website and by phone with a CM before booking a package. The website begins accepting ADRs @ 6am EDT at the 180day mark. The phone lines open at 7am. You will need to do them one day at a time as each hits the 180 day mark. I just did this for January 4-9 because I didn't want to risk not getting the "important" reservations. I got all but Be Our Guest, and can live with that, by using both website and phone. I am in CDT so that meant 6 days of being up at 4:30a.

You can link your ADRs with My Disney Experience (MDE), go to My Reservations and Tickets, click Link Dining Reservations and add the reservation #s. I signed in to MDE before I started making reservations and everything linked automatically even the ones I made by phone.

 

[MagentaMulan]

Yes, it is possible with both the WDW website and by phone with a CM before booking a package. The website begins accepting ADRs @ 6am EDT at the 180day mark. The phone lines open at 7am. You will need to do them one day at a time as each hits the 180 day mark. I just did this for January 4-9 because I didn't want to risk not getting the "important" reservations. I got all but Be Our Guest, and can live with that, by using both website and phone. I am in CDT so that meant 6 days of being up at 4:30a.

You can link your ADRs with My Disney Experience (MDE), go to My Reservations and Tickets, click Link Dining Reservations and add the reservation #s. I signed in to MDE before I started making reservations and everything linked automatically even the ones I made by phone.

Thank you!!

 

[mdyoung]

No problem, glad to be able the answer a question instead of asking 15 of my own!

 

[btk2333]

we got tired of waiting and pulled the trigger on renting points! Jan 31-Feb 8 at BCV for us

 

[tiffjoy]

I just booked a room only for January 22-26. This means that at my 180 day window, I can book dining for our entire 4 days, right? I've never been this anxious to get the dining I want (including BOG dinner for my birthday girl) so I want to make sure I am all ready!

 

[Wood Nymph]

I just booked a room only for January 22-26. This means that at my 180 day window, I can book dining for our entire 4 days, right? I've never been this anxious to get the dining I want (including BOG dinner for my birthday girl) so I want to make sure I am all ready!

Yes, you should be able to book all of your days on your 180th day.

It is also a good time of year for room discounts. They have come out around October 10th in the past.

 

[mlfallis]

So while I am waiting for the 180 days to open I am now thinking about changing resorts. The options are endless once you have at least a room booked.

Now to decide between now and when the packages come out so hopefully my TA can make the changes all at once, well until there is a discount. Fingers crossed.

 

[tiffjoy]

So while I am waiting for the 180 days to open I am now thinking about changing resorts. The options are endless once you have at least a room booked.

Now to decide between now and when the packages come out so hopefully my TA can make the changes all at once, well until there is a discount. Fingers crossed.

I booked a Little Mermaid room at AoA, and I don't think they are often discounted. But I am not set in stone on that choice, even though my DDs would like it, so I'm hopeful for some good discounts and will switch if needed to save some money. I usually check for discounts through orbitz as well, so I will be checking into that once rooms open up for them.

Yes, you should be able to book all of your days on your 180th day.

It is also a good time of year for room discounts. They have come out around October 10th in the past.

Thank you! I thought so but wanted to be quite certain. I am so thankful my window opens on a Saturday as I will need to set my alarm for 2:45am here on the West Coast! I am so determined to get the restaurants we want, and I don't have a lot of days to play with.

 

[erij11]

I just booked a room only for January 22-26. This means that at my 180 day window, I can book dining for our entire 4 days, right? I've never been this anxious to get the dining I want (including BOG dinner for my birthday girl) so I want to make sure I am all ready!

tiffjoy, I see from your signature that you have gone often in January. I would love to book a short trip for just me and my daughter from Jan 23-27 but I'm really concerned about the weather. For the past few winters, we've gotten snow in NC which used to be rare and now I'm afraid it is the norm. I've also read some posts about late Jan being very cold.

So with all of that being said, would you please give me a bit of insight on the weather during your January trips? This would be great info coming from someone who has done this. Thank you in advance.

 

[manateesmom]

Thank you! I thought so but wanted to be quite certain. I am so thankful my window opens on a Saturday as I will need to set my alarm for 2:45am here on the West Coast! I am so determined to get the restaurants we want, and I don't have a lot of days to play with.

tiffjoy, I am staying Jan 4-9, and because of some issues with the MDE app, I did not get on to book ADRs until 7 PM on my 180 day. I was able to get BOG dinner on day 4 of our stay, and I'm pretty sure it was also available on day 3, I was aiming for a b-day on day 4. I got 6:10 pm, too, totally reasonable. Even though crowd forecasts have supposedly gone up for that week, I found that everything I wanted was wide open, even 12 hours after the window opened.

Good luck!

 

[hops&dreams]

tiffjoy, I see from your signature that you have gone often in January. I would love to book a short trip for just me and my daughter from Jan 23-27 but I'm really concerned about the weather. For the past few winters, we've gotten snow in NC which used to be rare and now I'm afraid it is the norm. I've also read some posts about late Jan being very cold.

So with all of that being said, would you please give me a bit of insight on the weather during your January trips? This would be great info coming from someone who has done this. Thank you in advance.

I've been in Jan 2010, and first week of Feb 2012... here's what I experienced, weather-wise.
2010 - it was a freak year, and it was SNOWING in WDW - the bus drivers were very excited, as it very, very rarely snows down there. To me, it would have been described as flurries, as the flakes didn't even stick. So, the first day was cold, and it got progressively warmer as the week went on. There was a day of straight up spitty rain, but by the end of the week, it was in the 70's and we were wearing just t-shirts and jeans/shorts. For us, who had come from the midwest, the temps that were in the 40's/50's were fine - it was much warmer than we were used to back home, where we had left 8" of snow on our driveway the day we left.
2012 - more normal year. We went the very first week of Feb, to escape from the superbowl which was in our town that year. (I had worked on it for 6 months, so I was totally over it and ready to get away!) Temps were in the high 40's to low 50's when we walked out the door in the mornings, and highs were around mid 60's on a "cooler" day and 70's on a normal day.

Overall, it is a bit of a packing challenge, but we brought our 3-in-1 coats, which worked well for us. (DH has a Columbia from their Interchange line, DD and I have North Face from their Triclimate line). Overall though, we will take the unpredictable weather for the lack of crowds any day! Being cold, I can deal with - just add more layers. Being from the midwest, what others think is "cold" is ok for us, as we are coming from much colder temps, so we kind of have a "winter skin" built up. During that time of the year, 60's is long sleeve tshirt weather.

So, in short, be prepared with layers - a couple of sweatshirts would be fine, or a light/interchangable jacket (this is why the 3 in 1 was perfect!), but if you get non-freaky weather, plan on wearing a hoodie or light jacket in the mornings/evenings, and going in a t-shirt during the day. I never plan to get drenched on a water ride, unless the sun is beating down on us, and we don't really plan on a waterpark day. We do swim, as WL's pool is heated to a very comfy temp.

ETA:
Average temps are listed in EasyWDW's crowd calendar, as well as chances for precipitation, based on historical weather data. (January's is here: http://www.easywdw.com/category/calendar/01-january-2015-crowd-calendar/ )
Also look on wunderground for historical weather data - http://www.wunderground.com/history...cot+Center&req_state=FL&req_statename=Florida

 

[thill]

I've tried to read as much as I could before posting any questions but there is just so much to read, which is a good thing by the way. From what I can tell I can make reservations now for room only in January 2015 and then apply free dinning to my reservation when it comes out in October right? I'm going to go ahead and start making my ADR's now even though I missed the boat and the best ones are probably already taken, oops . I think I can get a room only discount now since I'm running the Goofy Challenge but can't keep that discount and add free dinning so I'm thinking getting a regular room rate now and added the dinning or room discount later when they come out is my best bet. From the more experienced at doing this does that sound correct?

Also, I'm glad to hear that the crowds are better in January and that the weather isn't typically too bad. I know it's a risk but if I'm going to be there for a race then I might as well make it a trip for the whole family!

 

[hops&dreams]

I've tried to read as much as I could before posting any questions but there is just so much to read, which is a good thing by the way. From what I can tell I can make reservations now for room only in January 2015 and then apply free dinning to my reservation when it comes out in October right? I'm going to go ahead and start making my ADR's now even though I missed the boat and the best ones are probably already taken, oops . I think I can get a room only discount now since I'm running the Goofy Challenge but can't keep that discount and add free dinning so I'm thinking getting a regular room rate now and added the dinning or room discount later when they come out is my best bet. From the more experienced at doing this does that sound correct?

Also, I'm glad to hear that the crowds are better in January and that the weather isn't typically too bad. I know it's a risk but if I'm going to be there for a race then I might as well make it a trip for the whole family!

From what I understand, you don’t need to make a reservation if you’re past your 180 days – The 180 day thing is because on 180 days, you can make ADRs for your whole 10 day vacation (or however long your trip is) as soon as your 180 day hits for your first day, rather than making them for day 1 today, and day 2 tomorrow and day 3 the day after that, etc…

You just get a little jump by being able to book all your ADRs 180 days out from your FIRST day if you have a room booked.

Also, I wanted to stress that free dining is only a POSSIBILITY, and a slim one at that. For the past 2 years, they have not offered that – last year, their specials were Stay, Play, and Dine (everyone pays kid prices for park tickets and meal plans) and % off rooms. Just a heads up, in case you were banking on free dining.

 

[thill]

Also, I wanted to stress that free dining is only a POSSIBILITY, and a slim one at that. For the past 2 years, they have not offered that – last year, their specials were Stay, Play, and Dine (everyone pays kid prices for park tickets and meal plans) and % off rooms. Just a heads up, in case you were banking on free dining.

Oh, I really do want free dinning but I completely understand that it's not guaranteed. I'm going to try and get whatever discount I can with that being what I ultimately prefer but will plan the trip based on what we can afford at current prices. I will keep my fingers crossed though for the next few months and keep an eye on emails from my Disney VISA card.

 

[Roccosmom]

We are going to be at BCV January 22 - 28! All ADRs are done- and I even got everything we wanted It somehow seems more real once the ADRs are done!
Now comes the hard part... waiting! I'm not so good at this waiting thing-but at least I am in good company with my fellow DIS'ers!

 

[Eastern]

So with all of that being said, would you please give me a bit of insight on the weather during your January trips? This would be great info coming from someone who has done this. Thank you in advance.

I have been there into the first few days of January the past 2 years. We had mixed results. In 2013, we had a couple of very cold days (around 40 in the mornings) but we had coats and hats so it wasn't bad. We liked not sweating! Warmed up during the days, and dry weather. You needed a sweatshirt/jeans at night.

Last January, wasn't as cold, but it was very rainy. I had only bought mesh type shoes and they were quickly soaked I wish I had brought some sturdier shoes. I was actually stuffing paper napkins into my shoes to try and dry them out!

So I would advise layers, hats and coats just in case, and shoes that will stay dry! The rest is up to luck