Opinions please! End of August or end of November/beginning of December?

[ILovePixieDust]

hello all,

I am debating on the best time for our family to head to Disney World for the first time. DSs will be 7 & 9 at the time. I really like the weather and crowd calendar indications for end of November (after thanksgiving) and beginning of December BUT not sure about taking the kids out for what would be 7 school days for a 10 day trip. I am nervous about all the school work and also music/piano homework that we would need to catch up with.

If we went at the end of August, we could go for 2 full weeks and the crowd calendars don't look too bad (although not quite as good at the Nov/Dec weeks). My biggest concern for that time is the weather - being peak hurricane season and hot and humid. Not sure how well we would cope...

What are all your thoughts and experiences for those times of year?

Thanks in advance!

 

[mesaboy2]

No denying it will be hot and humid, but I would not worry about the hurricane issue much. The most likely thing a hurricane might do is disrupt travel plans, and even that chance is pretty small.

 

[OurLaughingPlace]

We always go the end of August for 10-14 days and it is fabulous Yes, it's hot but if you're prepared you will be fine (breaks for swimming, indoor shows, lots of water, use frogg toggs).
Personally, I would love to go in November, but can't miss school. Our DD's are in high school so they can't miss school, plus I'm a teacher (so I can't miss school either).
If you are worried about August, it's definitely doable. Plus I'd rather do 14 days in August rather than 10 days in November. I'd always take more days at Disney. Crowds in late August have been good for us. Pools / Water Parks will help beat the heat. And it's Disney ... you'll have fun!
Have a super trip!

 

[CAS239]

I would go with August simply for 2 weeks vs 10 days. Both are a lot of time at Disney, but I'd go with the longest.

If it were the same amount of days, I'd go with November/Dec., Simply for the weather. It's really hot down here about 9 months out of the year, so the coolness is much appreciated

 

[lustergirl]

I would go the end of November/early December. Much cooler.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Depends on how you feel about taking your kids out of school

Nov/Dec is far superior in terms of weather. August is brutally hot, rains everyday, lightning. It is doable, but you have to go in with the right expectations in terms of weather.

That being said we go every August at the end of the month because that's when we can go due to school (too much makeup work now in the older grades)

Good luck deciding!

 

[lovndisney12]

Here is what I would look at - but either way you will have an awesome trip as both have their benefits:

August - longer trip so you can break up the days in the park more (and avoid the hottest part of the day by returning to the pool, etc.). By spending more days you get more fast passes which means less waiting in line. You also won't stress about the kids missing school and their lessons. As you mentioned, you might have some more stormy weather than Nov / Dec and it will be hot. Two weeks will allow you to really enjoy and go at a slower pace. (Also - what resort? - two weeks at a Value could start to feel cramped as those rooms are pretty small - so if that is your escape from hot weather - it might not feel like such an escape)

Nov / December - You get the holiday decorations which are fabulous - but if it is your first time the kids might be disappointed not seeing some items in their "normal" form (I know this may sound silly to some but I remember when we went and the castle was made up like a birthday cake and while it was cool - really wanted the regular castle). BUT, this might be your only chance to see Disney during the holidays without going during the very end of December when the parks are crowded and can reach maximum capacity (because as your kids get older you really won't want to take them out of school) Weather won't be as hot BUT you might have a few cool days that wouldn't be ideal for the pool. (This is our favorite time and unfortunately we have to go with all the crowds the end of December now that the kids are older - but we choose this over the heat of the summer because with the kids activities in the summer we can't break away for more than a week)

Really what it comes down to is if you are going to stress about having them miss school and worry about making up the work and lesson time - just go in August so you don't have that pressure and distraction while you're there. If that won't be an issue and you really are worried about the weather and heat, then go in Nov/Dec.

 

[ILovePixieDust]

Thanks for all the input! It's so nice to have the feedback from others and more things to think about....Christmas decorations vs. more fastpasses.

Our plan is to stay at Animal Kingdom. That's another decision we need to make! Savannah view studio or standard one bedroom?
These are all good "problems" to have!

 

[tasha99]

Thanks for all the input! It's so nice to have the feedback from others and more things to think about....Christmas decorations vs. more fastpasses.

Our plan is to stay at Animal Kingdom. That's another decision we need to make! Savannah view studio or standard one bedroom?
These are all good "problems" to have!

It depends on your family, but we always like to have a bedroom or 2. Makes a world of difference in our attitudes towards one another (I have teen/young adult kids). We travel in Aug/Sep and it is scorching, so being able to do laundry in the room is a plus as well.

 

[Fantabulously Cherry]

I have never been end of August. But I know how wonderful it is end of November/beiginning of December. Crowds are light, you can still wear shorts (but pack for colder weather just in case) but it's not blistering hot. I normall do October/November/beginning December, but I'm trying mid-September this trip.

 

[lauracitawita]

I've never been in August, but I was there the end of September one year and it was HUMID! I love heat, but the humidity was a killer for me. I will never go again around that time. (we still had a blast!)

We have been in November several times. Once it was so cold we had to buy hats and mitts in the park. All the other times it was just gorgeous.

I would choose the end of November every time. My daughter will be in grade 8 this November...and we are planning a 14 day trip!

 

[jtowntoflorida]

In 2014, we went at the end of August (27-31st, which was Labor Day weekend) and mid-December (13-20). The crowds were far, far lighter in August than in mid-December. August was brutally hot and we did experience one of Florida's famous torrential rain storms with lots of lightening. However, we found this to be a bonus since everyone left the parks but we just donned our ponchos and enjoyed the lack of crowds. The heat was a killer...it was so bad I found myself wondering how anyone can stand to live in Florida. We didn't have our pictures taken in front of any of the park icons during the day because it was so hot in the sun we'd be instantly covered in sweat. By contrast, December was much cooler than expected. We wore jeans every day, and layered with sweat shirts. We didn't swim at all. It dropped into the 40s at night, which made riding some of the rides at night pretty brisk. For park touring, though, the cool temperatures were much better. We weren't the sweaty, disgusting messes we were in August.

So the tradeoff is...crowds vs. heat. I was so enamored with the late August crowds that I suggested switching our yearly family trip to August. My family immediately rejected that due to the heat. This year, we're going back to October, which is when we'd vacationed prior to 2014. It seems like the better compromise between crowds and weather.

 

[asbyrneva]

I have done both. Remember thanksgiving this year is the 26th so the first drop in crowds really wont happen till Nov. 30 (monday). You also have the parties etc so crowds wont drop as much as say early Nov. Also we went over thanksgiving 6 years now and last year I nearly froze. Its cool in the mornings but this past year it never even warmed up I was in a sweatshirt almost the entire trip. We went to the pool for one afternoon and it was too cold for me to go in heck I had a sweatshirt on when I was sitting by the pool (pools are heated but getting out is miserable.)

Crowds would be lower end of August it is hot and humid but totally doable. Plan for early mornings and evenings. We work out our touring so we are outside and then inside/covered attractions and its fine. We've been 3 years in a row and are headed back this year.

If I was going to pull my kid out for 7 days of school I wouldn't do it when it was crowded like the last few days of Nov. you really arent buying much in terms of crowd relief.

I vote for August.

 

[Pills]

I'd also vote August, if only because you'd have a lot more time. We did late August twice ('09, '11) and mid-November twice ('10, '13).

Honestly, the biggest problem we have with August is that Animal Kingdom is too hot, and there aren't enough areas with air conditioning. However, with you staying at AKL, you can easily go back to the pool or the room for a bit to cool down, and then go back to the park.

On our '11 trip, we avoided Hurricane Irene and spent two more days down there than we had originally planned for, and it was the most relaxing a WDW vacation could be. I think I'd go extra time over better weather any day.

 

[sharadoc]

We've done both. My family would rather not go at all if August was their only choice. We've done that twice and it's inhumanly hot and humid. I can't stand to walk out of my room and immediately be covered with sweat. You never, ever feel dry and you have to constantly drink.

We always took our kids out of school for a trip. When my DD turned 13, it became tougher, she didn't do as well when she got back and she had a lot of work to catch up on. Up to that point, it was no problem. With your kids' ages, I would think you could be fine.

The only negative about end of Nov./beg. of Dec. will be the holiday decorations and events. You'll be SO spoiled you won't be able to go at any other time of year. It's amazing and magical. We have been 3 times during Nov./Dec. and will be there again Thanksgiving week. It's awesome!

 

[whiporee]

We've done Nov-Dec a few times, and I think you'd be better off in August. You can lose a lot of nights to MVMCPs, and there are a couple of rides (Splash, Kindani) that aren't any fun as it gets cold. Plus the resort pools if you're into that.

I think the early December crowds are bigger than people think they are. I was amazed last time at just how large they were, and the shortened evenings make it seem a bit more crowded.

 

[pktbMouse]

Def August..Im thinking that the park hours are open wayy later in August than November...more time in parks!

 

[ghoulardi]

we enjoyed several times in Nov/Dec.

 

[ksinniger]

We did both end of august and early november in 2014, and as others have said, there are pros and cons to both. I cannot stand being cold, and it was COLD our first few nights in November. 30-40 degrees cold. We were prepared, but that made packing a pain-- had to pack for every temp between freezing and low 80s. August was HOT and HUMID, but I felt like it was easier to cool down (either by drinking somthing cold, heading into A/C, or swimming) than it was to warm up in November.

 

[ILovePixieDust]

Thank you for all your valuable comments! I am so appreciative!

I am leaning much more towards August now and more confident that we can find ways to work with the heat. We'll take swim breaks, buy those water bottles with built in fans, Frogg Toggs…..

I think I will also enjoy it more since i won't be worrying about what we will need to catch up on when we get back.

It is sooooo fun planning!