September vs. January

[Erica's Mommy]

We had planned a trip for mid-September. We had some health issues within our family (father-in-law starting chemo and DS having kidney surgery) so we are thinking about moving it back until the end of January (24-31). Tell me how it is. I know that we will be missing MNSSHP, but we are planning on going back next fall anyway. How are crowds? What rides are generally down? Free dining? TIA!

 

[Wendybird55]

We've been in September and also in February, but my thoughts on January would be crowds will be low (like Sept. and Feb....maybe a bit lower then Sept.). Obviously it would be much colder then in Sept.
When we went in Feb. we needed to wear layers of shirts and sweatshirts and some days I was wearing gloves. With colder weather you can enjoy the parks, but water activities and rides with big splashes may not be as desirable. Water parks may be closed and there will be very short if no lines for Splash Mt. and Kali River!

If I'm not mistaken. Sept., Jan & Feb are the lowest priced seasons for Disney so cost should be around the same, though I am not familiar with Free Dining or other offers that my be available.

Park hours in Jan should be similar to Sept. I would say the biggest difference will be the weather...Sept. can be very hot and humid while Jan. is much cooler and depending upon the winter can be cold...but depending upon where you're from it may not seem that cold to you. As long as you pack properly you'll be fine..some people think it's always 80 in FL and it was funny to see guests insisting on wearing shots and sandals and such in Feb. because they were in FL.

I think you will be fine with changing your dates. And hopefully everyone will be healthier and feeling better when you go in Jan. Best of luck to your son and FIL..I hope all goes well for both of them.

 

[itchin2go]

We have been in January and October - several times each.

First off, the weather is SO much nicer in January. You are just not going to sweat to death in the parks. I have been shocked at how hot it can be in October, and the heat zaps me. Not so in January. Typical weather would require a jacket in the morning and evening, but it warms up during the day - not hot, but not cold enough for a jacket. On our January trips, it has typically been nice enough to swim at least a day or 2, so you probably won't have to forego pool time.

Also, most of the month of January has very low crowds.

We always managed to snag some kind of promotion in January, but I don't know about free dining.

The biggest negative I can think of for January is that Splash Mountain is often closed for rehab around that time.

We went during October for Food and Wine, and while that's certainly worth experiencing, we would choose January over October every single time.

 

[jenhelgren]

We visited that exact week in January a few years ago and had a lot of trouble with tour groups. It is summer season for countries like Brazil and their ideal time to visit. FP+ will probably clear up some of that but almost every park we were in there were tour guides with stacks and stacks of tickets in front of the FP kiosks and FP were gone for the day at many attractions! We visited in October two years ago Halloween week and found the crowds very low compared to our January trip. We are trying September for the first time this year and hope the heat and rain doesn't make us regret it!

 

[mum2four]

We were there almost those exact same dates this past January. Crowds were low, relatively speaking, but the parks were far from "dead". We had no problems with tour groups whatsoever. If I recall, we were able to get a room discount, but I don't think there was any free dining offered at the time.

The biggest things to keep in mind for January are weather - it can be mild or down right cold - and more ride closures.

We prefer to visit when it is warmer, so we probably won't go in January again. But, I'm sure you would have a great trip!

Oh, and park hours are shorter too - 7,8 and 9pm closures

 

[sethschroeder]

People can dismiss it all they want but January and February is a mistake as more rides are down and a whole water park.

Weather: Average high of 71 really throws out going to the water park that is open more than likely

Price: Probably the same but you won't get free dining likely - http://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/

Rides: You likely will find the most closures of all year for rides including splash mountain almost for sure being down - http://**************.net/2010/05/12/winter-ride-closures-at-walt-disney-world/

 

[DisneyObsessed87]

We had planned a trip for mid-September. We had some health issues within our family (father-in-law starting chemo and DS having kidney surgery) so we are thinking about moving it back until the end of January (24-31). Tell me how it is. I know that we will be missing MNSSHP, but we are planning on going back next fall anyway. How are crowds? What rides are generally down? Free dining? TIA!

We went the end of January two years ago... Crowds were not bad at all. The longest waits we had were for TSM and Peter Pan (which are always long it seems) at 40 mins. There were a couple ride closures... I remember one of them being Splash Mountain. But if it is not a once in a lifetime trip for you since you are going next fall it may not matter as much. The weather can vary but we had days in the mid 80s... Even swam in the pool a bit. I would go in January again... And probably will again in a few years.

 

[Gottahavemorecowbell]

People can dismiss it all they want but January and February is a mistake as more rides are down and a whole water park.

Weather: Average high of 71 really throws out going to the water park that is open more than likely

Price: Probably the same but you won't get free dining likely - http://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/

Rides: You likely will find the most closures of all year for rides including splash mountain almost for sure being down - http://**************.net/2010/05/12/winter-ride-closures-at-walt-disney-world/

With all due respect, I think it's a little over the top to call January and February a "mistake." Our only trip in September was brutally hot and muggy (probably will stay away from Sept. in future). People want different things from a trip. I would have no problem planning a January or February trip but those months just won't work for us schedule-wise right now. If the cooler weather is a deal breaker as far as water parks go then by all means, stay away from Jan.-Feb. Given the choice between Sept. and a Jan.-Feb. trip, we would choose the latter in a perfect world.

 

[robndani]

We are actually going in September and January! We've been during both times last year and I personally like September a little more because its still hot, but January was very nice too. We had two days of 50 degrees and rain in January, but its Disney, so even that didn't stop us!

It's obviously way more important that everyone is healthy and relaxed and ready to have fun. I wouldn't worry at all about January. Even if a few rides are closed, there are so many others that aren't closed!

Good luck to everyone!

 

[itchin2go]

With all due respect, I think it's a little over the top to call January and February a "mistake." Our only trip in September was brutally hot and muggy (probably will stay away from Sept. in future). People want different things from a trip. I would have no problem planning a January or February trip but those months just won't work for us schedule-wise right now. If the cooler weather is a deal breaker as far as water parks go then by all means, stay away from Jan.-Feb. Given the choice between Sept. and a Jan.-Feb. trip, we would choose the latter in a perfect world.

ITA.

Last October was way too hot for us.

We've never set foot in a water park, so the loss of that doesn't impact our trip.

As for ride closures, the only one I recall of any consequence was Splash Mountain.

Our 2 January trips were certainly not "mistakes". Weather-wise, they were the best trips we've had!

 

[kastoney]

We went in September last year and again in January. While overall I like September more! January has significantly less crowds especially with free dining in sep. Only knock on January was the weather (generally in the. 50s and raining). Go prepared for wide weather variances and you will be just fine.

 

[Erica's Mommy]

We were there almost those exact same dates this past January. Crowds were low, relatively speaking, but the parks were far from "dead". We had no problems with tour groups whatsoever. If I recall, we were able to get a room discount, but I don't think there was any free dining offered at the time.

The biggest things to keep in mind for January are weather - it can be mild or down right cold - and more ride closures.

We prefer to visit when it is warmer, so we probably won't go in January again. But, I'm sure you would have a great trip!

Oh, and park hours are shorter too - 7,8 and 9pm closures

What would you estimate wait times to be at?

 

[Erica's Mommy]

We actually went over New Years this past year as well. We left on the 5th of Jan, but (whether it was a PIN or general public) free dining started that day, so I was hoping that we would run into that again, but if not, a room discount would be good too!

 

[navyblue8]

The only thing that I did not like about our January trip was the park hours. We like to sleep in and stay till close but if you are rope drop people this might not be an issue for you.

 

[HopperFan]

I do both, I prefer September for various reasons. The plus for January is the weather is much cooler but it can be anywhere from cold to hot. This means packing in layers. Hotel prices were comparable. There will be additional rides down for rehab and as said a water park closed but that time of year we rarely swim because the park hours are already more limited.

That time in January you will have thousands of teens there from South American. They are barely supervised. FP+ has helped slightly at the rides but it does not help on buses, walking through tighter areas like Main Street and worse of all the resorts. It really depends on where you are planning to stay. After two years of nightmare stays with them in resorts I will either stay off property or not go at all.

 

[Junebugwv]

I've been numerous times in Sept and Jan and I would take January anytime, especially the last week or the first week of Feb. IMO, we encounter the lowest crowds at that time. Free dining and MNSSHP have pulled in more people in Sept than before those were offered. We go the first week of Sept and it has been busier each year. The hours are shorter in Sept and Jan, but I notice it more in Sept because of the larger crowds. In January, we seem to ride more in fewer hours because of lower crowds.

 

[Erica's Mommy]

We've been in September and also in February, but my thoughts on January would be crowds will be low (like Sept. and Feb....maybe a bit lower then Sept.). Obviously it would be much colder then in Sept.
When we went in Feb. we needed to wear layers of shirts and sweatshirts and some days I was wearing gloves. With colder weather you can enjoy the parks, but water activities and rides with big splashes may not be as desirable. Water parks may be closed and there will be very short if no lines for Splash Mt. and Kali River!

If I'm not mistaken. Sept., Jan & Feb are the lowest priced seasons for Disney so cost should be around the same, though I am not familiar with Free Dining or other offers that my be available.

Park hours in Jan should be similar to Sept. I would say the biggest difference will be the weather...Sept. can be very hot and humid while Jan. is much cooler and depending upon the winter can be cold...but depending upon where you're from it may not seem that cold to you. As long as you pack properly you'll be fine..some people think it's always 80 in FL and it was funny to see guests insisting on wearing shots and sandals and such in Feb. because they were in FL.

I think you will be fine with changing your dates. And hopefully everyone will be healthier and feeling better when you go in Jan. Best of luck to your son and FIL..I hope all goes well for both of them.

Thank you!

 

[1buckeyegirl]

We have went in January 3 times and the weather was perfect, 75 during the day and a jacket at night. Kids still went swimming because the pool was heated. Splash was down 2 of those trips though.