January at Disney

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Can anyone tell me what the weather will be like at the beginning of January. Will we get hurricanes, or will it be warm. I am coming from Ireland, so at this time we would be getting really cold weather, with frost, ice & snow. In the summer we tend to not go over 70c and would be wearing short sleeves and shorts. What clothing would be appropriate for Disney in January? I will be staying on site at ASMo for 2 weeks from January 2 2007.

Also what will the crowds be like at this time and will the Christmas decs / parades still be there.

Any advice from you kind Disers would be greatfully appreciated.

 

[rlovew]

The begining of January with the exception of the marathon weekend is not very crowded. Hurricane season ends November 30th although we had a couple that circled in the ocean in Dec. last year. The decorations begin coming down around january 1 but many times are up through mid January just not quite as many. You can check on when the Osbourne Lights are due to stop at MGM and that will tell you when Christmas season is over. I would think the parades would be over, when I was there on January 3rd last year we had the regular parade.

January can bring many kinds of weather in Florida although it rarely drops below 40F and that is only in the darkest hours of the night. By midday many times it is around 60-70F. You might want to take a jacket and a couple pairs of pants but I am guessing that you will be able to wear shorts most of the time. January is normally a dry month for FL but it does have an occasional rainstorm.

 

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Thanks for your reply rlovew - when will the schedule for the Osborne lights and park rehabs etc be released for January?

 

[byoung]

Pack some warmer clothes. Great weather for the parks.

 

[beccawes7471]

Our two prev trips have both been the first-second week of January and it has been wonderful. We were just there this year, Arrived on the 8th and stayed until the 13th, then left on our 3 day Wonder cruise. We had chilly mornings, and wonderful afternoons and evenings. We would layer with jeans, tshirt, and sweatshirt and be out of the sweatshirt by 10am. We swam two of the three days back at the hotel and it was really nice. Not hot at all, but the pool at Saratoga Springs was nice and warm. We had no rain, really pretty, sunny days. We love January b/c of the low cost and low crowds. Even though it was marathon week, when we were at MK we walked on most rides in the am, and had waits of 20min max after lunch. We only made one ADR and that was for Hoop-de-Doo. All other dining we did without reservations, with a max wait of 20 minutes for Jiko at AKL. I think you will really love being there during that time! Enjoy!

 

[kelleigh1]

Layer, layer, layer.

My husband and I were at WDW this past January - from the 15th to the 22nd. The weather was between the 40's (mostly at night) to the 70's. Daytime temperature varied between the 50's and 70's while we were there.

I wouldn't worry about hurricanes. As was mentioned, hurricane season officially ends in November, so it's unlikely you'll find one in January.

Crowd levels were pretty low during our trip and we thought it was a great time to visit. You probably won't see schedules for several months. I believe park hours for our trip were available in October or November. I would expect that the Osborne Festival of Lights schedule would be released before that however.

 

[Anniegirl]

We were there this year January 7-11. The weather was quite chilly the first 2 days, especially early morning and the evening. We had on winter coats. The rest of the days were pleasant, low 70's. The Osbourne lights were up until January 8 this year so we caught them the first night. They are worth going to see! The Christmas decorations all disappeared by the 9th or 10th. Poof, gone! If you are there during the marathon weekend I would recommend staying away from the Magic Kingdom the day of the full marathon. The park itself is fine but transportation there was a nightmare. We sat on a Disney bus for almost an hour. Ugh. You will have a blast. Enjoy your trip !

 

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Thank you all for your advice - very much appreciated.

 

[Harvestmooner]

We were at WDW Dec. 31-Jan. 8th this year and we had wonderful weather !!! It was up to 78-80 degrees F for a few days. We swam and wore shorts. It did get cold on the 6th-we had to wear sweatshirts and long pants for the rest of our stay. The crowds were bearable-and got better later into Jan.
This was our second stay in January and we had good/dry weather both times and are planning another January stay.
Bring shorts and long pants. T-shirts and longsleeves. Swimsuit and sweatshirts-you get the idea!!!
ENJOY!!!!!

 

[singingpixie]

We were there this past January, the 4th-10th. Coming from Northern Virginia, we were used to chilly, 30F weather before we left. The whole time we were fine with jeans, tshirts and sweatshirts layered, except one night when I wore my winter coat to Pleasure Island- and that was an abnormally cool couple days. The weather then is fine, as long as you're used to cooler weather. It never rained the whole week. As for the crowds, they were minimal- we didn't do much special "line beating" techniques except the occasional fastpass and we barely ever waited more than a couple minutes, even over the marathon weekend. We had christmas decorations, and even music, up until the last couple days of our stay- it did just about coincide with the end of the Osborne Lights, so that would be a good way to measure. October hours just came out, so I'd expect to see January hours in the next 3 months or so. Have a great trip! -Meg

 

[dustya21]

My family and I went to Disney January 11-14, 2005. The weather was unseasonably warm!! We flew out of Detroit Metro and the temperature was 6 degrees! We landed in Orlando around 2:00 p.m. and it was sunny and 79 degrees. We stayed at the All Star Sports and everyday the temperature at it's peak was between 80 - 82 degrees. It was wonderful!! The crowds were very low. We never once used fast pass. As a matter of fact, our first ride was the Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom and when the ride was finished, the operator of the ride told us just to stay on if we wanted to ride again!! The longest ride we waited for was the Rockin' Roller Coaster at MGM. I think our total wait time was about 7 minutes!! We are planning our trip to Disney right now for January of 2006. We just can't wait!! I hope you enjoy your vacation and we'll keep our fingers crossed for you that the weather is great!!

 

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Thank you - I am a little less dubious now about the weather and crowds. I really hate crowds!

 

[Dizneydaz]

We've been there in Jan. 05 and 06. January 06 the weather was great! We even went to Blizzard Beach once (it was a little cool, but no rain). We also used the pool twice. Jan. 05 was colder. We used the pool twice but it was cold! BRRRRR! Both times have been during the last half of the month. We've been in April, June, Sept, Dec, and Jan. and the least amount of rain we received was in Jan. (both times).

The crowd levels are great. Hardly any wait for most rides. We like January and will probably return in January in the future. Our fav. time is Sept. (after Labor day) only because the weather is warmer and we like to take advantage of the water attractions. Of course the problem with Sept. is the possibility of hurricanes-also it rains more but it usually doesn't last.

Have fun!

 

[DisneyPhD]

Pretty much what everyone else said.

Layers and a pack for a bit of everything. (and I am guessing 2 in weeks you will have it all, 85 degree days, and 45 degree nights sometimes.) Some rain, but not too bad (like summer). Bring your suit, you should be able to swim.

For the most part it should be pretty nice (mid 70's to mid 80's) but you will get some days when a cold front comes in and it is in the 50's and 60's. It is hit or miss in Jan in Orlando, but in 2 weeks you should hit it all.

You will want your hat, gloves and scarves some days (nights mostly) and bathing suit, shorts and tank tops some days.

Have a great time. The crowds aren't bad. We were there Jan 2006 from the 4th to 12 and around Jan 9th everything was down. One day the tree was there, the next it was gone. The farther from Jan 1st the less crowds. The marthan increase volume some on that weekend, but not too bad really. The number one thing to remember is traffic can be bad early in the morning thoses days, take WDW transport, they know how to get around it.

Have a great time.

(oh we should be there Jan 4th to 12 again 2007 too. VWL, but it we can get it BCV.

dustya21, do you mean Jan 2007, 2006 already happended.

 

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Thank you all. I think I will take plenty of layers and then I can add if necessary. Glad to hear the crowds will be fine.

 

[Vijoge]

Pack some warmer clothes.

Definitely take warm clothes. We were there in February. The week before our visit it was in the 80's. The week after our trip it was in the 80's. The week we were there the lifeguards at the pool were wearing snowsuits and we were wearing our winter coats. It was COLD!