January vs. February?

[jmkjr72]

We started going mlk weekend instead of super bowl weekend

We have caught the tail end of x-mas decorations on mlk weekend

 

[Planogirl]

We used to go every year in early February to coincide with DS' birthday.

We always had fun but it could occasionally be quite cold. The worst was one year when it dipped below freezing. We are rope drop people and I remember shivering outside of Epcot that morning.

We live in a warm state and I have rarely found February comfortable enough for swimming. It's usually fine for the parks though.

 

[Megsmachine]

We went the first two weeks in February 2014 and camped at Fort Wilderness in a camper. It was perfect weather!

 

[CounselorX]

We went in late January last year. It was a lot colder than I anticipated, and I anticipated it to be chilly. It seems like the average was mid 40's, a lot of rain, but what really made it feel cold were the high winds pretty much daily. It wasn't terrible but it wasn't great either. On the flip side, we also go during early September and it's so hot that I almost die. lol The late January/early February crowds also weren't as low as the early September crowds.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

I thought it was awesome for the low crowds. It was cold a few days of our trip and warm enough for shorts on a few days. If you look at easywdw crowd calendars he includes the average temps for each day as well as the average amount of rain.

I go that time of year and have jumped all different weeks in Dec, Jan and Feb. There is no real low season anymore and one thing that can make Main Street etc that empty is that rain. Cold and rain are not fun. January weather can be 80's swimming or I've had 30's winter coat and bundled.

Here is my requirement for picking my week - where am I staying?

If I am in a value resort budget then I will no longer go Jan and in Feb I will go the very last week I can. The BTG are there until end of Feb and there are thousands in each value resort and for two years in a row completely ruined my hotel experience. At the parks they are a pain but you can usually go the opposite way. I still went in January but stayed offsite in a great newer one bedroom suite for less than what a value would cost with a hot cooked to order breakfast. In Feb I picked the last week of Feb/first week of March at POP and in my entire week only saw one group at DHS. It was night and day hotel experience.

Big Tour Groups. They are 15 years olds from a couple countries in SA that come with minimal adult supervision. It is their summer vacation but most report back to school by March 1.

We've been all over Jan/Feb; and for the most part the weather is unpredictable that whole time, but does tend a little warmer by the end of Feb. We are from PA though, so even 50s feels wonderful when we are coming from snow and wind chills in the single digits.

The last week of Jan and the first week of Feb have felt the emptiest. You are after MLK, marathon, etc and before Presidents Day crowds.

The end of Feb is the best bet to lessen things being closed for renovation.

We went end of February last year and it was the BEST time I have ever been (though I have not been in January). Temps in the 70s, we swam very comfortably, one day of light rain in the afternoon, LOW crowds (we never waited more than 20-25 minutes and did everything our children wanted more than once). We went the very last week of Feb and so avoided President's Day. ONLY down side was that Splash was still closed for annual winter refurb.

Late February. Better weather, fewer giant tour groups. January can be very, very cold. See your breath cold.

As PPs have already stated, the weather is unpredictable for those months. One day, it could be in the 70's & the next day it will be in the 50's for the high (keep in mind to always add the humidity factor, which is what makes the cold in FL feel that much colder). I grew up in PA so I had been used to pretty cold winters. When I moved to FL, I didn't bring a lot of my winter clothes/coats. I quickly learned that because of the heavy humidity, the cold feels that much colder as if it could penetrate your bones at times. I think some people don't take it into consideration for the winter months but think how it is in the summer w/that sticky, wet heat just opposite. Sorry about the weather rant..

Anyway, February tends to become a bit warmer so if you're concerned about that, go mid-late February instead of January.

Crowd-wise, since New Fantasyland has been completed, it seems the 'slow season' doesn't exist like it used to. It will be less crowded but don't expect it to be near empty as it had been in the past for this time, especially at MK.

We started going mlk weekend instead of super bowl weekend

We have caught the tail end of x-mas decorations on mlk weekend

We used to go every year in early February to coincide with DS' birthday.

We always had fun but it could occasionally be quite cold. The worst was one year when it dipped below freezing. We are rope drop people and I remember shivering outside of Epcot that morning.

We live in a warm state and I have rarely found February comfortable enough for swimming. It's usually fine for the parks though.

We went the first two weeks in February 2014 and camped at Fort Wilderness in a camper. It was perfect weather!

We went in late January last year. It was a lot colder than I anticipated, and I anticipated it to be chilly. It seems like the average was mid 40's, a lot of rain, but what really made it feel cold were the high winds pretty much daily. It wasn't terrible but it wasn't great either. On the flip side, we also go during early September and it's so hot that I almost die. lol The late January/early February crowds also weren't as low as the early September crowds.

Thank you all for your advice! I appreciate it very much. We are going to go with late February, after the busy marathon weekend. I hope that lessens some of the crowds! I'm excited to just finally decide and start planning/saving. Woohoo!! Thanks so much again!

 

[goodgodmrsmolly]

We live down here south of Disney. So we only get to experience the cold weather a couple weeks out of the year. I love going to Disney and being able to wear hoodys and winter clothes instead of shorts and a shirt. I love it when we can go to the park and its 40 or 50 degrees out instead of the sweltering heat.

I think fashion plays a big part in what people wear more so than the "cold" temperatures or people getting thin blood. It got below 70 and UGG boots and hoodies everywhere and I am wearing shorts. Or just any boots, like the ones that go up to your knee. most girls/women wouldn't wear them in the heat so it starts cooling off, hey get out the winter gear.

 

[kaetra]

Take some of those cheap stretchy gloves and stick them in your jacket pockets. They really help in the evenings and are light/easy to carry!

 

[jess20k]

We used to enjoy going the last week in Jan. However the last two times we went during that time period it was crazy crowded! Mainly due to the large tour groups! For 2016 we will be trying out the Last week in Feb!