Okay...how bad IS it really, going to Florida in July?

[DisneyMomma81]

I teach, and we don't go in the summer. We go at thanksgiving break, christmas break, Mardi Gras break (That one is regional though), or spring break. Any of those whould still give a full week without having to miss school and would be better than summer. You CAN go and not have to do the summer, unless someone is coaching a soprt that plays during all of those breaks?? I cannot think of one.

I will never visit FL in the summer *S CA ~ DLR no problem. But you get a full week for Thanksgiving & Spring break? My kids got a 1/2 day the Tue and Wed-Fri off for Thanksgiving *so almost a full week but not quite* and Spring Break is Fri & Mon - they have a couple other Fri & Mondays off and a Thur-Fri in fall but full week(s) that's only at Christmas time, 2 full weeks this past year.

 

[peacelover]

Can you go in august?
I've spent a few augusts at the beach club/dolphin area. The crowds are not that bad due to the heat. What we like to do is a park in the morning, pool in the afternoon, and park in the evening. It is hot, but the breezes around crescent lake make it bearable, actually , early august is one of our favorite times to visit. very relaxing if you are not a commando park visitor.

 

[dclfun]

I also live in Florida very close to the theme parks and would never consider going from the end of May-October. Of course, because I *do* live close by, I have better options than those who have to pay for airfare and are limited in availability. I really have a hard time in the heat and humidity and it does seem to be getting hotter in the summer over the last few years. It could just be me getting older though and less adaptable! There's something about hot, whiny kids ( my grandkids), constantly applying sunscreen, trying to dodge into a/c attractions, and the inevitable waits in the burning sun that do me in. If you DO go, then I'd stay onsite, take mid-day breaks and swim or nap, enjoy the water parks, possibly visit Disney Quest ( depending on your ticket options), enjoy the evening EMH, and have a good touring plan to be sure you don't miss out on fastpasses and your favorite attractions. If it suits your style, enjoy the evening campfire program at Ft. Wilderness or one of the resort evening movies. Often there are afternoon games at the resort pools which are lots of fun and you can stay cool that way too. At least we are one less family to cause a crowd at WDW in July, but if you go, I hope you have a wonderful trip. Just don't stress to see/do everything and listen to your body. Hydrate. Rest. Swim. Enjoy!

 

[mhsjax]

For those who wouldn't go in July, would it change if you did a no park trip? Just hang at the resort in the pool and go out for meals, ect.

I have been toying with this idea instead of our usual summer beach vacation. Just wondering what others think.

We do it and so do some of our friends. We also visit the water parks. Anything Disney is good with us.

 

[mafibisha]

I went in August once. The deal was just too good to pass up ($599 per person for seven days with park hoppers, dining plan - the upgraded one that still had appetizers and tips included, and airfare). When we left, we swore we would never do it again even if it were free. It was unbearably hot. We were toward the end of August so the crowds weren't too bad, but the heat was opressive.

I am from Florida and like me, most floridians won't go anywhere near that place in the summer months. YOu don't get used to 100 degree heat with 100% humidity. LOng lines smelly people, Sorry not even if it was free. We do go to the water parks during the summer, but even those get very crowded and have to close to incoming guests around 1:00 in the afternoon. I guess if it is the ONLY time you can go and who really need a WDW fix,I would go, do the water parks during the day, come back to hotel and rest then hit the parks at night after the sun goes down. The humidity will still kick your butt, but at least the sun won't be bearing down on you. Oh and all those daily showers everyone talks about, it only gets the steam up from the ground. Nothing like 200% humidity after a summer shower.

ITA.

One year over Memorial Day weekend, my dad took our entire family. Even then it was almost unbearable.

Since our kids have been in school, we go either the week before or after Easter. It is busy but it is definitely doable. We stay onsite, do the EE and always FPs and have never had a problem doing everything we want to do, and then some.

I would recommend that, or Thanksgiving week. It too is busy but again, doable if you stay onsite, use EE and FPs.

 

[North of Mouse]

What a lot of y'all shun in the summer is what I go for. I'm from the deep south and love the sun on my skin (yes, I do use sunscreen). It seems there are sure a lot of other people that love it too, because there sure are a lot of folks there LOL. I just take it all in stride because I grew up in it, take breaks, stay hydrated, and don't fight it. The humidity only gets to me if I have to stand out in the sun for a long time, not just walking to different places in the park. It's the cold I can't take and the first week of Dec. '10 we froze ( and so did lots of Disney plants They had signs all over saying, "Sorry, but Jack Frost paid us a visit" We went that same year the end of Jan. '10 and the same thing happened - there was ICE on the MK wharf when we went for our early CP ressie - nearly slipped down Now, that's not my idea of fun - just give me the good ole summer heat - I can take that

 

[carrie6466]

I live in Florida and like summer heat usually, but be warned, it is HOT in the early afternoon. As long as you take water, it is bearable. We went July 16-23 last summer and we found the crowds not too bad. If you pay attention to the recommended parks on the planning Websites (I use easywdw.com) it works out pretty well. We went back the week before Christmas and the crowds were much worse.

We were there around the same time last year. It was hot and ITA, crowds weren't too bad. Except for the large tour groups. I didn't notice as many in July of '09, but maybe I just didn't notice them then. We took midday breaks on the days we didn't sleep in and then used EMH to stay really late

What a lot of y'all shun in the summer is what I go for. I'm from the deep south and love the sun on my skin (yes, I do use sunscreen). It seems there are sure a lot of other people that love it too, because there sure are a lot of folks there LOL. I just take it all in stride because I grew up in it, take breaks, stay hydrated, and don't fight it. The humidity only gets to me if I have to stand out in the sun for a long time, not just walking to different places in the park. It's the cold I can't take and the first week of Dec. '10 we froze ( and so did lots of Disney plants They had signs all over saying, "Sorry, but Jack Frost paid us a visit" We went that same year the end of Jan. '10 and the same thing happened - there was ICE on the MK wharf when we went for our early CP ressie - nearly slipped down Now, that's not my idea of fun - just give me the good ole summer heat - I can take that

We were there in Dec. 2010, too. It was colder there than it was at home in NY. It's why we went in July 2011. We decided the first night we froze and they covered all the plants with blankets that we'd way rather be hot and crowded than cold and crowded.

PS: We never saw what the plants and topiaries at Epcot actually were until the LAST day of our trip.

 

[North of Mouse]

We were there around the same time last year. It was hot and ITA, crowds weren't too bad. Except for the large tour groups. I didn't notice as many in July of '09, but maybe I just didn't notice them then. We took midday breaks on the days we didn't sleep in and then used EMH to stay really late





We were there in Dec. 2010, too. It was colder there than it was at home in NY. It's why we went in July 2011. We decided the first night we froze and they covered all the plants with blankets that we'd way rather be hot and crowded than cold and crowded.

PS: We never saw what the plants and topiaries at Epcot actually were until the LAST day of our trip.

Yes, you're right, I forgot about all the plants being covered and the large beds that couldn't be froze What was really frustrating was trying to enjoy the Osbourne Lights while shivering taking pictures with our gloves off One day we stayed in our MH most of the day, decided we'd rather be warm But, anyway, give me the heat any day I have never stayed inside all day because of the heat

 

[sueh]

I took my kids to Disney in July 2008 for their first trip. Although they did have fun but we didn't get to experience as much of Disney than I had hoped. It was so HOT and it was crowded. I remember getting in line for the bus at 7 am and we had sweat pouring off of us. I won't say that I will never go in July again because cost wise it worked for us. Now I am in the planning stages of a trip to go back and looking at all my options for the best time of year to go (best meaning cheapest.

Have fun!

 

[ncbyrne]

I have been to WDW a dozen times. Only once in summer. Never again. Boy was it HOT...and wet.

 

[Colleen27]

Wow, not many encouraging experiences!

We're thinking about late July/early Aug as the better of the options available for our 2013 trip, because with my son starting high school just don't have any really good options when it comes to when to travel. We'll most likely have the choice of sometime between mid-July and Aug 12 (when football starts), the week between Christmas and New Years (if I can convince my ex to accept rearranging DS's holiday visitation schedule), or the week after Easter. I'm leaning towards summer just because we'd be able to take a full 2+ weeks, drive down instead of flying to keep costs down, and take our time with half days/late nights. Around the holidays we'd be trying to cope with our usual vacation length but much higher crowds and prices.

Besides, after several winter trips in a row I'm ready for one that doesn't involve obsessive weather watching and packing our entire wardrobes because we could see both 40° and 80° in the span of a week!

 

[JandJ]

As a Floridian, I have to say, July and August are the worst for heat and humidity. DH and I get Seasonal FL Resident Passes and they are blocked out the middle of June through the middle of August which is just fine by us because it is entirely too hot to go those months. I lived in South Florida from age 3, moved away at 10 and came back to the West coast after college; DH has lived here his entire life, so you'd think we'd be used to it by now, but no, by the middle of August all we do is complain about the heat and the stickiness of the humidity.

Not to say you shouldn't make the trip, but keep some stuff in mind when planning. The mornings are tolerable but it can easily be over 90 by 9:00 am. The afternoons are ridiculous. I hate summer afternoons because I literally feel like I'm melting. I won't even walk the dog in the afternoon in the summer (fortunately we have a big, fenced backyard for him). If you are willing to get to the parks as early as possible, leave for a swim in the afternoon, and return at night, you'll be o.k. It's still hot at night as I swear the streets just absorb the heat from the sun all day and steam it off at night. The mosquitoes are out near any water and definitely at night, so have bug repellent. You will need plenty of water proof sunscreen (water proof because you will sweat a lot), a visor or hat, sunglasses, and plenty of water. One of those fans that sprays water isn't a bad idea either.

I think a good attitude is essential. It's DISNEY - it's FUN - so accept the fact that you will be hot and sweaty and just go with it

 

[Tanooki]

I've been wondering about July for this year too; but not for the Disney parks, but for the other Orlando area parks (Sea World, Universal, Legoland, etc.) as we just did a WDW trip last August and don't plan on doing a WDW trip again until next year or 2014. I'm wondering if the other non-Disney parks have the same high crowd levels (and tour groups) in July as the Disney parks do
August was very hot and humid, but the heat was manageable and the crowds were lower and reasonable because our trip was towards the end of August. This year the only month we can take a week off for a vacation in the summer is July because my oldest kids still have school, recitals, etc. in June and in August they have sports camps and I am taking some prerequisite classes for grad school starting in August, so August is out this year.

We haven't been in July but I can tell you about August
If you are considering going to Universal during the summer, I would recommend staying onsite and taking advantage of the unlimited Express Pass. We've been to US/IOA without Express pass during the summer and it WAS hot, humid and crowded as well...we pretty much hated it. We are going back this summer because we got a taste of the onsite advantages last year in March and we just about fell in love
You are barely 10 minutes away from the parks on FOOT, you can get to Harry Potter one hour before it opens, and you can use your Express Pass all day, as much as you want.
We did WDW last August for the 3rd time and I need to wait a loooooong time before we do this again. The heat and the humidity are the same as US/ IOA but you definitely need to go more commando (be there at opening, have a strategy for fastpasses, do as much as possible before noon, etc.), it was just exhausting.

I'm willing to go back during the summer because it's US/IOA and I know from experience that it's going to be much more relaxing, more of a real "vacation" feel, you know?

But if I could only go to WDW during the summer, I would do it. I'd rather go and suffer through the heat, humidity and the crowds than not go

 

[sherabby]

We will never go back in July again. I can take the heat. I don't care much for the tour groups.

 

[Colleen27]

We will never go back in July again. I can take the heat. I don't care much for the tour groups.

Brazilians? Or youth/team groups? And when are they most prevalent - any specific week or part of the month?

 

[kdkbrebel]

Been once in Aug, Twice in July and going back this July. We love it Have a plan, take breaks, enjoy the water parks, pool etc. Nothin better than being in the MK at 2 or 3am just can't get that in the winter.

 

[North of Mouse]

Been once in Aug, Twice in July and going back this July. We love it Have a plan, take breaks, enjoy the water parks, pool etc. Nothin better than being in the MK at 2 or 3am just can't get that in the winter.

This!!

 

[DVCTX]

Brazilians? Or youth/team groups? And when are they most prevalent - any specific week or part of the month?

We were there last year during July and Brazilian tour groups were everywhere. It is my understanding that the groups are there during most of July.

I love to visit whenever I can but July would not be my first choice.

 

[aprilgail2]

Been once in Aug, Twice in July and going back this July. We love it Have a plan, take breaks, enjoy the water parks, pool etc. Nothin better than being in the MK at 2 or 3am just can't get that in the winter.

I hazve been there 4 times in july and once in august- I don't mind at all. In fact this year we are going from July 16-22 so we are doing 2 weeks in July!

 

[sherabby]

Brazilians? Or youth/team groups? And when are they most prevalent - any specific week or part of the month?

Brazilians are the youth groups and they are very numerous and usually take up the entire month of July. We've been twice in July and won't go back. two different weeks.