September- please convince me it's a good idea!

[Goldilocks07]

I am having serious booking remorse and anxiety. We typically like to go in October because of the weather and MNSSHP, but the past years have been PACKED. Plus we didn't have a great weekend to choose from with our schedule.

We have a trip planned for September 17th. All I keep hearing is HEAT HUMIDITY and RAIN. I mean, I get it, it's going to be challenging weather- it's Florida coming right off of August, so I expect crazy temps.

But does anyone enjoy it that time of year? I am thinking I should bail and try and go in October. I am afraid that once I feel the heat here in NYC, I'm going to wonder what the heck I was thinking booking a trip to WDW in September.
The weather in NYC has just been AWFUL , so I wasn't clear-headed booking my trip for such a hot-weather month.

HELP.

 

[meriface11]

We love September. The crowds are low enough to balance out the heat. It rains almost every afternoon but usually just for a bit. Take a break in the afternoon and you will be fine.

 

[mom2rtk]

Lots of folks love September. Low crowds count for a lot at Disney. More every year in fact, as the parks get busier and busier.

Lots of people tolerate the heat and humidity just fine. I don't. Only you know what your heat tolerance is.

October is not high crowd season, but it gets busier every year, with more schools opting to have a fall break.

Which do you dislike more, heat or crowds?

Keep in mind though that there's no guarantee the weather will be a lot better in October. The heat generally breaks sometime in October, but there's no guarantee. I had 2 friends do Disney on Halloween Day (different years) and both hit very hot humid weather.

 

[dlove28]

Hi, I am from NYC. I know how you feel, I had the same hesitation last year. We went sept 26rh to oct 4 th. It was hot and humid but we dealt with it. No rain. No love bugs.

Get it the park early, tailor your plan to hit the air conditioned rides/ lines at the hot time of the day. Or if feasible, leave the park and head to the pool for a break. Totally doable .

 

[amg35]

I think everyone's idea of packed is different. October is not going to be crowded like the holidays, at least I hope not.

People have been describing last October's crowd levels being comparable to June crowd levels when I ask. I found June to be perfectly fine. But if you are used to no crowds, I can see how it would be a bad thing.

Now the heat, I'm hoping the end of October isn't as hot as June, because that was almost miserable for me.

In the end the possibility of better weather would win out over dealing with mid-level crowds.

 

[wdw4rfam]

This is our 7th September trip. We used to go before FD, but I will admit, that is why we keep going at that time. I wont lie, its HOT and HUMID. Now rain...we may have got lucky in the past, but only one trip did it rain a lot. Honestly, we in April, at the end of the month and had 90's too, and rain, so for us, it was better to go in September when its cheaper. Its also less crowded. FD really has brought the crowds up some, but it will be way better than October. Plus don't look at the forcasts before the trip. The last 5 years have forcast rain 75%+ every day and it either doesn't rain at all or just slightly. Like I said, its out 7th September trip, and if it was that terrible, we would not have been there 7 times. We are going the 20th-30th, so will be there the same time as you, and we have been lucky the last few years, so hopefully we will have the same luck this year.

 

[MeanestMomEver]

I'm going in late September as well and I am also worried. I hate heat and humidity and I have asthma and allergies that are not well controlled and on top of that, I've been having hot flashes. What am I thinking? Well, I'm going with my husband since he'll be attending a conference so I don't really have an option of choosing another day.

I've decided to look at it as a chance to extend flip flop and summer clothing season. I'm going to just focus on enjoying bonus warm weather before we break out the snow shovels again. A bonus week to have a great excuse to eat Popsicles and cold lunches and go for evening swims. I envision us going at a leisurely pace and....

Yeah. Who am I trying to kid?
I'm going to be miserable. But I'm going to give it a try. Maybe the lower crowds will make up for it. We'll be mostly in the parks in the evenings so I'm hoping that helps.

Thinking about your situation- if you usually go in October and like it and you could change it, why don't you? I think I would if I had the option.

If you need to stick w/ September, try to think positive. If it was THAT bad, no one would go, right?

Good luck.

 

[Goldilocks07]

Hi, I am from NYC. I know how you feel, I had the same hesitation last year. We went sept 26rh to oct 4 th. It was hot and humid but we dealt with it. No rain. No love bugs.

Get it the park early, tailor your plan to hit the air conditioned rides/ lines at the hot time of the day. Or if feasible, leave the park and head to the pool for a break. Totally doable .

I think this is the way to keep my head straight. Get to the parks early, take a nice, LONG lunch, and then get through the rest of the day.
We will definitely bring the battery operated misting fans. And fill them with ice water!

I guess I'm also concerned with the rain. A little is fine- daily 2 hour storms is not.

So to the poster who stated high crowds or heat? Is there any such thing as low crowds and warm weather?

I guess not...at least not anymore. That was October for us. No more. Crowds just walking from place to place were crazy packed. So now I'm aiming for low crowds, because hopefully the experience of not having to fight through people and being able to do and see more, will make up for the weather issues.

 

[eyehartdisney]

I went last year during that time. It was hot. However, looking at the projected crowd calendars for this year sept 17 vs october 15 (both wednesdays) the crowds in september cap out at 3 vs the october one capping out at 5. That's a heck of a lot less people. I like the heat because it means I can go swimming, and pretend like winter won't ever come back. (I live in MN. )

 

[tnd]

We always go the last week in August. It is hot and humid, but the crowds are lower, so it balances out. We go to the parks first thing in the morning, then go back to our hotel after lunch for a swim/nap, and then back to the parks in the evening.

 

[mom2rtk]

So to the poster who stated high crowds or heat? Is there any such thing as low crowds and warm weather?

It's harder and harder to find ANY low crowd time. Lowest crowds are probably Early September and late January.

For warm weather, early November used to be good, and crowds were low. But Jersey week and Veteran's Day weekend sometimes bring in some extra crowds. The week before Thanksgiving is usually low crowds but still pretty warm. Even better if that doesn't include Veteran's Day.

We have done early December many times. I really have very low tolerance for heat, so that's perfect for us. Of course, we've hit cold weather a couple times, but the heavenly sunny and 70 weather we hit the other years was worth the payoff. Crowds are higher than they used to be, but are still manageable.

First rule of crowd prediction, the more schools that are out of session, the more people there are at Disney. It's been worth it to us to take kids out of school to hit lower crowd times. My daughter has only one more year to go before high school though, so the gig will be up soon for us.

 

[jcemom]

I hate heat and humidity, yet we often go in September. The lack of crowds makes up for the heat, IMO. So many of the attractions are indoors anyway that you get very frequent air conditioned breaks. That helps. The September MNSSHPs are typically less crowded than the October ones, so that's also a plus. As for the rain, normally it only lasts half an hour or so, and we usually welcome it as it cools everything down briefly. Of course, like any other month and any other place, you never know. We have had the occasional all day rain in September. Though uncommon, it happens. Put on your poncho and keep going.

Another plus for September is that you can swim any time you want. You don't need to take a midday break to swim while it's hot. You can swim at night after the parks close and it's plenty warm enough. Actually, it's rather nice to swim without the midday sun beating down on you.

We used to enjoy going in January/February for the similar low crowds as we see in September. Weather then is so unpredictable though. After encountering increasing numbers of tour groups, and a year of near freezing temperatures, we've pretty much crossed that time of year off our list and decided to stick with September. This year we're doing December for the holiday decorations, just to switch things up, but next year it's back to September.

The one time we went in October, thinking we would get "good" weather, the temperatures were above average and the first half of our trip was in the 90s. It wasn't any better than September lol.

 

[amber_cntrygrl]

We've gone in September every year. It is crazy hot, but not enough to have kept us from going at that time. Just drink plenty of water, wear light clothing, and bring deodorant!
Last year was the first year we had gotten a lot of rain, but it didn't bother us one bit. Actually felt pretty good to get rained on, and the crowds thin out when it rains.
You'll have a blast!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Goldilocks07]

JCEMom, I would LOVE to go Jan/Feb (even March)- but the weather is SO unpredictable. It can be really nice weather, or frigid. I've been tempted to try going, but for us- being from the North East, I don't want to go to Florida without warm weather. Trust me, every year I toy with the idea.

Even this year we took a big risk going for DD's birthday, March 3. The day we got in it was 80 (pool day for us, so perfect!) but the next few days were much cooler, and one was even rainy. So you just never know.

Positive note on the rain- we scooped up ponchos in EPCOT so now at least we have WDW ponchos. I haven't owned one since camp back in the 80s/90s. LOL.

OK, so my plan of action:
1. Attempt to ditch husband and leave Mr. Krankypants at home in NYC. (OK, that's not going to happen. In my Disney dreams!)
2. Bring battery operated misting fans.
3. Bring WDW ponchos
4. Have lots of water at the parks
5. Mentally prepare myself for sweat, heat, and mid-day pool breaks.
6. Bring deodorant (great idea!!)
7. Bring change of clothes- especially a pair of dry socks

 

[Ariel on Land]

DH and I went mid-late Sept one year, and I thought the weather was fine, in fact, I was cool a couple evenings! I'm taking my 3 yo this year, week after Labor Day. I wanted cheap and low crowds!! Our last family trip was mid Oct last year and I thought the crowds got high way faster than what I was expecting, and I just don't want to deal with it!!! I'm going to rig some sort of fan to DD's stroller as she didn't inherit my heat tolerance, and her stroller has an awesome canopy, so I think she'll be ok! I've also got my stroller rain cover ready too! It'll be hot, but we will do rope drop, the lower crowds will keep us from just being stuck waiting in the heat, plus you can just get places faster, we will take a mid day break and drink lots of water and dole whip floats!!!! I can't wait! (My only fear is a hurricane....)

 

[Sugar Jones]

We've been in September twice - the exact week you are going

The heat is manageable. We bring our water bottles and fill them with ice water all day. We also bring wet washcloths in a plastic baggie and put those on our necks when we feel really hot.

As for the weather, only once did it rain all day on our trips and honestly, it's so warm that it's not bad. We got soaked, but it was still fun.

 

[POOHsie]

JCEMom, I would LOVE to go Jan/Feb (even March)- but the weather is SO unpredictable. It can be really nice weather, or frigid. I've been tempted to try going, but for us- being from the North East, I don't want to go to Florida without warm weather. Trust me, every year I toy with the idea.

Even this year we took a big risk going for DD's birthday, March 3. The day we got in it was 80 (pool day for us, so perfect!) but the next few days were much cooler, and one was even rainy. So you just never know.

Positive note on the rain- we scooped up ponchos in EPCOT so now at least we have WDW ponchos. I haven't owned one since camp back in the 80s/90s. LOL.

OK, so my plan of action:
1. Attempt to ditch husband and leave Mr. Krankypants at home in NYC. (OK, that's not going to happen. In my Disney dreams!)
2. Bring battery operated misting fans.
3. Bring WDW ponchos
4. Have lots of water at the parks
5. Mentally prepare myself for sweat, heat, and mid-day pool breaks.
6. Bring deodorant (great idea!!)
7. Bring change of clothes- especially a pair of dry socks

We were booked in October. Then when F&W announced new early opening on Sept 19th, we changed dates to late September. One of the Disney Resort value seasons runs in September, and we saved lots of $$ on resort expense. We always used to go in late September when DD was young, driving up from Miami for just the weekends. It was hot, but not as hot as summer.

Three things I would add to list:
1. Ball cap or visor-type sun hat. Keeps rain off you face/hair in addition to (or in place of) using the poncho. Ponchos can get hot, bc the Orlando rain doesn't cool the temp much.
2. Shoes that can handle temporary running water on sidewalks. I had leather sandals that fell apart from all the water. I threw them away in front of Mouse Gear and bought Mickey Flip Flops. OTOH, Athletic shoes will hold water and you'll go squish-squish.
3. This year we're bringing Frogg Toggs cooling towels, or some other brand. Lots of WDW visitors think they really help cool you off.

You don't have to leave WDW during late afternoon shower. Just have the right gear! Cotton shorts and tops dry quick. Bonus for you is people leave WDW in droves during the rain (even if it only lasts an hour or less). If you stick around, the ride waits are practically nothing! Some rides close for rain, but they'll be back running soon after a shower.

 

[cnchevalier]

My daughter and I went last year from Labor Day through the next week. Right after Labor Day, the crowds dropped immensely. The resorts were almost empty - pretty much had the pools to ourselves. It was hit, but not unbearable. We brought musters with us, but never used them. We filled up water bottles with ice and water and refilled them at water fountains. We got to the parks early and left by 1:00 most days - swam, relaxed in room. I am usually bothered by heat and humidity -- it can be pretty awful in CT in the summer. However, I found it more tolerable in FL when we were there. It did rain pretty much every day, but not for long -- it never interfered with our plans. September is our new favorite time to go and we are planning to go again in September.

 

[kastoney]

Another September lover here. We've been twice in sep and are planning the 3rd round for this year. Can it be hot yes, is it humid yes, can a storm come through in the afternoon yes, would I take that over our January trip in the rain and bundled in ski jackets, absolutely. Coming from the east coast you won't find anything different than what you usually encounter in July or August.

 

[boltfan]

September is AWESOME! I had always planned our trips in December, but my youngest begged me to go to MNSSHP, so in 2012, we went in September, just me and her (her brother and sister couldn't make it due to college and sports). We had the best time. Did it rain? Yes... and at the party. But we were having so much fun we didn't care. Was it hot. Nope, not at all. It was about 75-80 every day, and about 65 in the evenings. I wanted to go in September this year, but my other daughter said no way, because she missed the last trip because of volleyball, and she HAD to go this time as she will be a senior and will probably not be going again until after college (we DON'T do summer due to the heat and humidity). Have a great time. Wish we'd be there at the same time, but it's November for us!