January or Summer?

[jeremiahsmom]

This probably seems like a no-brainer. Magically my high school sophomore has a week in January where he doesn't have to be in school because of testing. Apparently he won't have any test to take and will just not go. I wasn't even considering a trip to Disney and now it has snowballed. First of all we are on a budget and all of the values are sold out for the time we can go. We have a room booked at Wyndham which is probably fine. I'm surprised at how sucked in we are to all of the extras you get by staying at an actual Disney hotel. I was disappointed to find out we would not be getting new magic bands for instance. And we have to pay for parking both at the hotel and if we drive to the parks. That was all fine (not really) until I found out that Splash Mountain would be closed the week we are there!!!!! That is our favorite ride of all time. And Test Track!!! My son was already bummed about the hotel not being themed and this new piece of information added insult to injury. Now we are thinking about summer which we have somehow managed to avoid. We would be able to stay longer, maybe get free dining, all of the rides would be open, parks stay open later.... but the heat?! Is it worth it to sacrifice all of the above mentioned to avoid being hot?

 

[Sara_H]

I will say, summer is hot...like hot. We often go to Florida in the summer but when we do we typically spend most of our days at the beach or by a pool. We have done MK for one day in the summer of few times and it is definitely hot but manageable for one day. I couldn't imagine spending a week in the heat at the parks. To me, it just wouldn't be enjoyable. That being said, the heat doesn't stop millions of other people so I think you just need to figure out what is best for your family.

 

[figmentfinesse]

I always go in the summer, and it’s really not SO bad most of the time. If you can stay longer, then you can take midday breaks while you wait for the hottest parts of the day to pass. There will also likely be two rides opening between Jan and summer: Ratatouille in Epcot and Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway in HS. I personally would definitely wait. That way you can get your preferred dining reservations and fast passes. I also always swing for the park hopper plus so I can go to the water parks to cool down. Summer is a blast at Disney!

 

[jeremiahsmom]

Ratatouille in Epcot and Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway in HS. I personally would definitely wait.

Ahhhh! Yet another plus in the summer column.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

This probably seems like a no-brainer. Magically my high school sophomore has a week in January where he doesn't have to be in school because of testing. Apparently he won't have any test to take and will just not go. I wasn't even considering a trip to Disney and now it has snowballed. First of all we are on a budget and all of the values are sold out for the time we can go. We have a room booked at Wyndham which is probably fine. I'm surprised at how sucked in we are to all of the extras you get by staying at an actual Disney hotel. I was disappointed to find out we would not be getting new magic bands for instance. And we have to pay for parking both at the hotel and if we drive to the parks. That was all fine (not really) until I found out that Splash Mountain would be closed the week we are there!!!!! That is our favorite ride of all time. And Test Track!!! My son was already bummed about the hotel not being themed and this new piece of information added insult to injury. Now we are thinking about summer which we have somehow managed to avoid. We would be able to stay longer, maybe get free dining, all of the rides would be open, parks stay open later.... but the heat?! Is it worth it to sacrifice all of the above mentioned to avoid being hot?

Honestly, it kind of sounds like you might be happier with summer since your favorites will be open then along with some new attractions. Plus, Florida weather can really surprise you. I went this past February hoping for mild temperatures. It was at least mid-80s and humid all week. And while I'm sure that's nothing compared to summer heat, it's enough to make me realize milder weather is not a guarantee even in the dead of winter.

 

[Klayfish]

If you're asking me which I'd choose, January or summer it's an absolute no brainer for me. Summer every single time. It's hot, but it's really not a big deal nor hard to deal with. Longer daylight hours, water parks. Yeah, summer is THE time to go, IMO.

 

[sponica]

I've been in January, I've been in May, I've been b/w Christmas and New Years, I've been in March, I've been in July and August.

If crowds/staffing levels in January were like how they used to be (every ride was practically a walk on), I'd take the tradeoff of no Splash Mountain...but they're not.

Here's the thing, July/August in Florida is hot...but I'd rather melt my face off in the FL swamp than deal with a freak cold spell in January...

 

[AWalks]

We’ve gone in January, February, May, June, July, August and September, and I would definitely go again in the summer. However, we live in an area that gets almost as hot and humid as Orlando in the summer, so we’already used to summer being a sweaty mess!

Ride closures are always a sizeable risk in Jan/Feb, unfortunately. Splash is my husband’s favorite ride and luckily we will have 1 day on our upcoming Jan trip before it goes down for refurb, but we’ve also had Jan trips when it was down the whole time and it didn’t ruin the trip for him.

I personally feel like it’s just not warm enough to swim most of the time in the winter months, so that is a positive for going in the summer. You just have to make sure to drink plenty of water and plan to take breaks. June weather will usually be a bit milder than later in the summer, so if you’re worried about weather, that might be more manageable for you.

 

[AWalks]

I've been in January, I've been in May, I've been b/w Christmas and New Years, I've been in March, I've been in July and August.

If crowds/staffing levels in January were like how they used to be (every ride was practically a walk on), I'd take the tradeoff of no Splash Mountain...but they're not.

Here's the thing, July/August in Florida is hot...but I'd rather melt my face off in the FL swamp than deal with a freak cold spell in January...

I agree about the summer heat! One Jan trip it was in the 40s and raining for a few days, and while it’s hard to complain because you’re still at WDW, it was not super pleasant. Fingers crossed that our early Jan trip coming up isn’t too cold!

 

[mickeymom22]

If you are a park veteran, you can handle the heat. You need the mind set that you don't have to do everything and you will be back. The heat really zaps your energy level. The thing that I really noticed when we were there for a week in the summer is that there was way too many sweaty strangers too close in my personal space. The energy of the crowd simply felt like everyone was irritated. Also, be prepared for downpours daily. They don't really cool anything off. They just make it steamy afterwards. Pool time is important!

My family sounds like yours. We really like being in the Disney bubble and staying on-site. We are going in January this year and are sad to see Test Track will be down, but we have never been to the Arts Festival so we are looking forward to that. I am sure if I left the decision up to the kids they would choose staying on-site, but if they had to wait until summer they would choose to go NOW!

If you haven't been to Toy Story Land or Star Wars Land, those will be new places for your family to enjoy.

After all that, I honestly would rather go sooner than later...

 

[TinkSassy]

You have to think how your family deals with heat - I'm bad with it and so is most of my family (we have to take frequent breaks, we get cranky, etc). Over 85 and I'm melting so my one day I was there in July - I left by 3pm because I was miserable (just wrong at WDW!). So I stay away from summer completely - but if you do ok with heat in the 90s and low 100s then I would wait for summer. If not the cooler weather would be a good trade off in my opinion.

 

[jeremiahsmom]

We went in January two years ago and Splash was down then. I feel silly that this is the straw but I am also realizing there are a lot of things we love about staying at a Disney hotel that we'll miss if we are staying off-site even if though I would hardly call Wyndham off-site.

 

[sponica]

I agree about the summer heat! One Jan trip it was in the 40s and raining for a few days, and while it’s hard to complain because you’re still at WDW, it was not super pleasant. Fingers crossed that our early Jan trip coming up isn’t too cold!

My friend went both late summer and in December last year. She much preferred her face melting off than needing sweatshirts and the like during the cold snap (especially since cold swamps are WORSE than cold dry air)

 

[Praying Colonel]

Is it worth it to sacrifice all of the above mentioned to avoid being hot?

Those things sound important to you, so I'd say in your situation it would not be worth it.

I've been in the summer and been in January and there are good points and not-so-good to both times of year. For example, you're not going to be hot in January but you very well may be cold. During 1 January trip it struggled to hit 50 one day. Somehow 50 at WDW feels colder than 50 elsewhere--especially when the sun goes down. I did OK but DW is cold anytime it's under 80 and she was not happy. YMMV.

Overall, I'd say if having Splash/TT/staying onsite are big deals to you, I'd wait.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

My friend went both late summer and in December last year. She much preferred her face melting off than needing sweatshirts and the like during the cold snap (especially since cold swamps are WORSE than cold dry air)

It must be the moisture from the humidity that make both colder temperatures & hotter temperatures worse than dry air of either.

 

[NotTheBatesMotel]

We're pretty used to the heat (we live in VA) but I love colder weather, so I'd pick January over the summer any day. Hotel availability changes all the time so keep checking.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

We're pretty used to the heat (we live in VA) but I love colder weather, so I'd pick January over the summer any day. Hotel availability changes all the time so keep checking.

I live in VA too but hate the humidity.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Everybody is different in how they handle the heat of summer. Me and my family aren't bothered by it much as long as we are smart (hydrate; duck into shops and queues with generous AC output; try to schedule a sit down meal for afternoon). January is fun, but it will be crowded just like it would be in summer. Plus it sounds like the two rides being down are a problem for you.

 

[evlaina]

This is tricky. Normally I would say January hands down. We went in September and lord, we could not cope. As hot as you think it will be, IT WILL FEEL HOTTER. That being said, considering you're looking for January less than 2 months from now, I would say summer. I couldn't plan a trip in that amount of time and be happy with the results.

I am throwing a third option out there of going when your son has Thanksgiving or Christmas break because 1, you have time to save up and stay where you want with better availability, 2, Free Dining could become available, 3, the weather, and 4, the decorations!

 

[Klayfish]

It must be the moisture from the humidity that make both colder temperatures & hotter temperatures worse than dry air of either.

Yes, probably. We were there a few years ago for Christmas to New Years. Never forget one evening leaving MK. We were on the tram back to our car. It was in the 40's, a light misty rain and windy. It was utterly m-i-s-e-r-a-b-l-e.