Need Jan dates advice

[SCDizneyDawn]

Ok, I am trying to convince DH to add an extra week in Jan 2006 to our current use year plans.

So, I am thinking of staying in a 1br at SSR and was wondering if anyone could think of reasons why one week in Jan 2006 would be better than any other week in that month. The entire month is considered adventure season is why I choose it.

I would be booking at the 7 month window, if that impacts the weeks any.

We typically go to Disney the first or second week in May and either October or first two weeks of December. So, I have no knowledge of January patterns!

thanks for any help!

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

We typically go to Disney the first or second week in May and either October or first two weeks of December. So, I have no knowledge of January patterns!

A couple of things to consider in January. It is the month of the Disney Marathon which next year I believe is on January 8. Then the following weekend is Martin Luther King Jr. weekend. Both times can draw more crowds than expected for a January. If you are looking for less people, you may want to go toward the end of January to avoid the holiday and the race crowds. But even these crowds are mild compared to most times of the year.

HBC

 

[winjos]

We like to go in January for the following reasons:

1) No crowds!
2) No crowds!
3) No crowds!

We have gone the 1st week (after New Year's) and the week after MLK. Both times, we walked on all rides! There are a couple of down sides: weather is a bit unpredictible, some rides are down for rehab, and the hours are shortened. However, with no lines, it is easy to visit all your favorite rides. One more thing, there are a lot of international groups that visit that time of year. Overall, January is my favorite time of year (my DH's too because there is no humidity).

Hope this helped!

 

[SCDizneyDawn]

Good news, the DH said to start planning!

Thanks for the advice, I really needed to know what things could go on during the month. I really just want to be able to do somethings and do more relaxing than we normally do. The temps are not a problem, will get in lots of swimming on our May trip!


Thanks again for the advice

 

[RoyalCanadian]

You can read my trip report here for our Jan. 4-11, 2005 trip to SSR. As someone else has pointed out - no crowds!

We were there during the Disney Marathon and didn't experience any great crowds out of what we thought would be the ordinary for that time of year. We managed to walk on most every ride with judicious use of FastPass and the Unofficial Guide Touring Plan. The longest line we experienced was at the Jungle Cruise -- about 25 minutes.

If you are going there over the Disney Marathon weekend, you might want to consider taking an easy day on the Sunday as traffic across the resort is rather backed up due to the marathon routing. It took us 45 minutes to drive from SSR to CR for our Chef Mickey breakfast -- the buses weren't going anywhere any faster. Everything had cleared up after our breakfast. We chose to drive to Clearwater Beach that day and enjoyed collecting shells, watching DD play in the water and getting lost in Tampa. Supper that night was a greatly anticipated Beaches & Cream double-cheeseburger with onion rings. There were a great number of marathoners around us "breaking training" with burgers and sundaes, including a few Kitchen Sinks.

While the weather can be a little dodgy at that time of year, it can also be absolutely gorgeous. We had a week of 80+ temps during the day and only one morning when it rained on our bus ride to MGM -- the rain stopped before the bus arrived. We wore shorts the entire time and did wash a couple of times in the 1BR.

Enjoy your planning!

 

[SCDizneyDawn]

Thanks for the great trip report!

I think for the moment I am leaning towards a late Jan trip. We have a cruise Oct 22 and another Disney trip April 30 for a week, and I was trying to balance this between!

 

[sjdisneywedding]

If you dont mind the weather then Jan is great for park visiting. There are absolutely no crowds. We've gone quite a few January's now and its like its a different place. On this past trip we did 3 parks in one day because we had no wait for anything.

The only other draw slight drawback is that the parks close early. MK and MGM usually close around 7. Also Jan is a very popular time for refurbishment for the attractions.

The weather can lierally be hit or miss. One year I got one of the worst sunburns I ever had it was so hot, another year we were wearing sweathshirts AND jackets looking for hot chocolate. I would definately bring a few sweatshirts or sweaters because even if the days are warm the nights are fairly certain to be chilly.

also great thing is not too much of a need for priority seating. we didnt plan ahead at all this past trip, called every afternoon about 3 or 4ish and every day we got exactly what we wanted, + or - about a half hour.

 

[jennymouse]

We've done the last part of January into the first part of February for the last two years and it's great. Perfect touring weather, little chilly for swimming tho, and no crowds. Paradise!

 

[StormalongKay]

We were just there Jan 13 - 19, 2005 which fell over the MLK weekend and didn't find the crowds bad at all. We were disappointed in the weather, it was our first Jan trip and all of the days were too cold for shorts. Forget swimming! We didn't see one person in the BCV pool all week. For us, part of the magic is the warm temps in the winter, and evenings were downright uncomfortable cold.
With that being said, we did enjoy all the parks in jeans, sweatshirts and jackets. And since we know we'll return for many years to come through DVC, it wasn't terrible but I don't think we'll return in Jan. Even considering the lower points! Our other trips were in March, May and September (3x) and those months are much safer bets!