Rain predicted for entire length of vacation

[sarahothomas]

We will be in Disney World next week, May 13 - 19. Looking at the forecast right now just depresses me. It's predicted to rain everyday, essentially all day. Not just rain, thunderstorms too. This is the worst news for me because I was so very much looking forward to some sunshine after a colder-than-normal winter and spring here in NC. I purchased PH+ tickets thinking we could hit the water parks a couple of afternoons. I am just so bummed about this. I can only hope the forecast gets better later in the week, but so far it's only gotten worse (I've been watching since this past weekend).

*I know Disney is not at all at fault for this, weather is unpredictable and sometimes this is how it goes. I'm just bummed and this is basically a "whine" post.

 

[HeatherC]

Uggh...that stinks! But, honestly, hang in there. Much more often than not the weatherman gets its wrong this early out. Chances are that it won’t be half as bad as they are saying now.

Every day I look at the weather app in the morning, and most days it turns out different than what they say.

I will think happy sunshine thoughts for you! It will be a wonderful vacation! Have an awesome time!

 

[jo-jo]

We are here now.
A week before our trip, great weather mid to upper 80. Little chance of rain. Two days before temps jumping about 5 degrees. little chance of rain. High 80 to low 90s. One day before....first day showers, turning to rain to thunderstorms. Next only late day thunderstorms.

Day we arrive. Sunny until about 1, then clouds move in. Rains heavy. Stops....hour later.downpours again. Rain most of might and morning. We go to ak mid morning. Had little rain on and off, but nothing awful. Stopped by mid-day

So don't count on the weather more than 10 mins from now.

 

[goofy4tink]

It's pretty normal at this time of year. And although I know you aren't happy about it, the area really needs some rain! But, in all reality, it's going to be hot there, and humid. Even with the rain. Pack shoes that are okay with getting wet, and some ponchos, and go have a ton of fun!!! It most likely won't rain all day long!

 

[nkereina]

Take the weather forecast with a grain of salt this early. Check within 1-2 days out, and even on your trip, check it for the next day. Its constantly changing. I also prefer to use WESH2 or another local channel for weather forecasts because I find them to be more accurate than AccuWeather or weather.com who just uses a model.

 

[DVC-Don]

You can always ask for a "rain check" at Guest Relations. My daughter worked a spell at Guest Relations at the Magic Kingdom a while back and told me that on rainy days guests would sometimes come in and ask for a "rain check" on their pass due to the rain. There is not such thing, but it always gave the cast members a chuckle. Once and while a guest would get very upset when told no.

 

[bluezy]

We will be in Disney World next week, May 13 - 19. Looking at the forecast right now just depresses me. It's predicted to rain everyday, essentially all day. Not just rain, thunderstorms too. This is the worst news for me because I was so very much looking forward to some sunshine after a colder-than-normal winter and spring here in NC. I purchased PH+ tickets thinking we could hit the water parks a couple of afternoons. I am just so bummed about this. I can only hope the forecast gets better later in the week, but so far it's only gotten worse (I've been watching since this past weekend).

*I know Disney is not at all at fault for this, weather is unpredictable and sometimes this is how it goes. I'm just bummed and this is basically a "whine" post.

I looked at 2 different weather predictions for that week -- one a local TV station and the other one Accuweather. They're both showing the typical passing shower or thunderstorm for those days. And all but one of those days are listed as a less than 50% chance of showers so you may very well not even see any rain. They are not predicting all-day rain events, just normal summer FL weather. Like others have said, don't worry about it...the forecast will continue to evolve over the next week (though honestly, I'd be happy with the forecast as it is). That being said, use this situation to be prepared in case you *do* get an all-day rain event. Be sure that everyone has 2 good pair of park shoes so that if one pair gets wet, you have a dry pair. If you wear athletic shoes, make sure to pack extra socks. Bring a bunch of Dollar Store rain ponchos to use if you don't like to get wet -- or buy the $10 Disney rain ponchos. We did have a week of non-stop all-day rain for our trip in May 2009. We still had a great time and have a lot of good memories from that trip. Lines were short and you could walk up to almost any Table Service restaurant and be seated within 15 minutes even without an ADR because so many people didn't want to leave their rooms and the locals stayed home.

 

[Tess]

I looked at 2 different weather predictions for that week -- one a local TV station and the other one Accuweather. They're both showing the typical passing shower or thunderstorm for those days. And all but one of those days are listed as a less than 50% chance of showers so you may very well not even see any rain. They are not predicting all-day rain events, just normal summer FL weather. Like others have said, don't worry about it...the forecast will continue to evolve over the next week (though honestly, I'd be happy with the forecast as it is). That being said, use this situation to be prepared in case you *do* get an all-day rain event. Be sure that everyone has 2 good pair of park shoes so that if one pair gets wet, you have a dry pair. If you wear athletic shoes, make sure to pack extra socks. Bring a bunch of Dollar Store rain ponchos to use if you don't like to get wet -- or buy the $10 Disney rain ponchos. We did have a week of non-stop all-day rain for our trip in May 2009. We still had a great time and have a lot of good memories from that trip. Lines were short and you could walk up to almost any Table Service restaurant and be seated within 15 minutes even without an ADR because so many people didn't want to leave their rooms and the locals stayed home.

This!

We are also there at the same time as sarahothomas and we are pretty pleased with the forecast. We prefer Channel 9 (ABC) for weather forecasts, but any time you have less than a 50% chance of rain--it's a good thing. BTW, bluezy, we were there in 2009 for the 20+ day nonstop deluge--we were there for 10 of those days. You have to laugh about it because what else can you do--make the best of it and act like ducks. We also had a good time although not a first choice for vacation weather.

 

[richmo]

Don't give up hope yet. Took a look at the forecast on wunderground. Yes, there's a good chance of rain every day, but the highest total is about 0.40" for a day and most are less than that. A thunderstorm can dump that amount very quickly down there. Just pack some rain gear; you'll be fine.

 

[holden]

Florida weather cannot be predicted more than 5 minutes in advance. It could pour in AK and be dry as a bone in MK at the same time. Just throw on ponchos and have fun!

 

[dclpluto]

Relax I’m there the same time as you get there on may 13th leave the 20th. I’m not worried one bit.

 

[bluezy]

This!

We are also there at the same time as sarahothomas and we are pretty pleased with the forecast. We prefer Channel 9 (ABC) for weather forecasts, but any time you have less than a 50% chance of rain--it's a good thing. BTW, bluezy, we were there in 2009 for the 20+ day nonstop deluge--we were there for 10 of those days. You have to laugh about it because what else can you do--make the best of it and act like ducks. We also had a good time although not a first choice for vacation weather.

Exactly. We drive to Disney and when we left home 2 days prior to our check-in day, the forecast looked great. Nothing more than a passing shower any day. Then the forecast changed to rain in the evening and through the night on our arrival day. No big deal. By arrival day, the forecast changed to having the rain continue through the next two days (and continued that pattern the entire 8 days). We accepted the fact that we can't change or control the weather, only our reaction to it. So while I had a bunch of rain ponchos, 2+ pair of shoes for everyone, and plenty of socks, we decided to invest in the Disney ponchos and stick with our plans. My husband will still say that those $10 ponchos were the best investment that week. When they tore, we got them replaced for free. We soldiered on and made the best of it. We had rain ponchos draped all over the rooms every night and shoes stuffed with towels drying on the floor. It's not the weather I would hope for on vacation, but if it's going to rain for hours on end every single day of your vacation, you want it to be when you're vacationing at Disney World. It also gave us a whole new perspective on weather forecasts in FL. We used to get upset about a little rain in the forecast...not anymore. And the really funny thing is that prior to leaving for that trip, the thing we were really worried about was the swine flu outbreak that was going on in Orlando at the time. We brought tons of hand sanitizer with us so we could stay on top of the germs. Ha! 90% of that stuff came back home with us because we never used it -- too busy trying to dodge rain drops to worry about germs.

 

[RedAngie]

You can always ask for a "rain check" at Guest Relations. My daughter worked a spell at Guest Relations at the Magic Kingdom a while back and told me that on rainy days guests would sometimes come in and ask for a "rain check" on their pass due to the rain. There is not such thing, but it always gave the cast members a chuckle. Once and while a guest would get very upset when told no.

I've read stories that some guests even ask for (or demand) Disney to refund their hotel and plane tickets when there is continuous rain.

 

[NotUrsula]

I have 3 words for you: SHORT WAIT TIMES!

Rain in the parks is GOOD; it makes the lines so much shorter than they otherwise would be. My advice is to bring your own disposable ponchos, wear sturdy meant-to-get-wet sport sandals and quick-dry shorts, and just keep on trucking. (Maybe windbreakers for when you get indoors, because being wet makes that AC frigid.)

You'll probably still get some pool time; just grab it when you can.

BTW, I actually HAVE a WDW Rain Check! We got it at an MNNSHP party during the 2009 hurricane season; thunderstorms and high winds all night; the water was mid-calf deep in parts of the MK, and the CM's were constantly having to sweep the water out of the ride queues. The park did not close, but they gave out tickets for the following night's party. We couldn't use ours because we were headed home, so I still have it.

 

[Christine]

My son will be there 11-15 May so we are watching also. I agree with others. Look at WESH.COM. I think it has a better/more accurate forecast that the weather.com or some other like site.

To me it looks like a lot of potential for thunderstorms which starts to be a kind of normal thing this time of year. But I agree with you that most apps are not showing a lot of the "sun" icon at all as they were for the previous week.

I will say that on one of my past trips in April, it rained hard for 6 of the 8 days of was there. It was awful and I hated it.

 

[tannerandcatesmom]

We have been during a tropical storm that stalled over central FL. We knew we would be wet, took extra socks, shoes, ziplocs for our phones, and plenty of rain gear. In all honesty was one of our favorite trips! Not too hot, low crowds and wait times. Only got “rained out” one afternoon. You will be in Disney World! Have a great time!!

 

[tvguy]

We went the week of June 5th last year, our first trip to WDW, and that was pretty much the story, rain rain rain. What caught us off guard was things closing at WDW because of rain. It may happen at DL too, but I've never seen it happen there. Rain or shine, everything is open.

 

[prprincess]

I feel your pain. We were in the same boat in August of 2016, with a hurricane in the area. Thankfully, we were able to enjoy most of the hours of most of our days rain free. But yes, we kept the ponchos and umbrellas handy. Once the storm left the area, the weather was awesome, but we were only there for two "clear" days. But like someone told me, a rainy day at Disney is better than a beautiful day at home. So hope for great weather, but enjoy your trip regardless!!!

 

[mrodgers]

It rained every day when we were there. Typical Florida weather, thunderstorm would roll through for 20 minutes to half an hour. It was record breaking highs of over 105° 2nd week of June and everyone but me were swamping themselves with sweat underneath ponchos. Everyone was just as wet as I was when the rain stopped. I thought the rain felt wonderful.

 

[Chocolate Cake]

This happened to us a few years back. Rain every day. Downpours. It was the best trip ever. It seemed to keep the locals away and everyone else back at their hotel. We just made up our mind we were going to get wet and dealt with it. I hate for my hair to get wet, so I would put a disposable shower cap over my hair underneath my poncho hood and threw it out at the entrance of every building that we entered. I swear, I had about 50 of those folded up toiletry caps in my bag ready to go. Make sure your footwear is non-slip soles. Plan ahead and you will have a great time!

I found it sad coming back to the lobby of the Yacht Club. It was packed with people just hanging out. Looking miserable. Waiting for the rain to end. GET OUT THERE and enjoy the rain! Make it fun and smile.