September vs. November Trip

[ifjf414]

I am looking at the proposed dates for free dining and I am try to decide between the week of September 20-28 or November 15-23. Can anyone give me advice on which is a better time to go and why?

Thanks in advance.

 

[jimandami]

September will be less crowded but really hot and humid. The Halloween party will be going on if you are interested in that. November will have better temperatures (can be cool but usually not bad) and the Christmas party. We went once in September and I said "never again!" just because it was too hot. However, tons of people on this board love it!

 

[beccasmom]

My choice would be November. The weather is usually pleasant and the crowds are manageable (crowds start arriving in earnest the weekend before Thanksgiving). September is lovely crowd-wise, but rather humid.

Lots of holiday events (MVMCP and Osborne Lights) as well as wonderfully decorated parks and resorts are another strong temptation to visit in mid-November.

 

[GrnMtnMan]

September: Food & Wine at Epcot (starts Sep. 19 and ends Nov. 10). Halloween party at MK. Plus both water parks open daily. Generally longer hours.

November: Christmas party in MK and some decorations will be up all over. You miss Candlelight processional with your dates. One water park will be closed for refurbishment.

 

[MrsDuck]

November would be my choice!

 

[ZoZo]

I'd definitely pick November.

But I don't do well at all in the heat and humidity - it can often be in the mid-90s and super-humid in September. We even stopped going in October because of the heat - now we go in February instead. November would be similar weather; loved the "pleasantly warm and no humidity" touring!

 

[draybook]

Yeah, the end of September will NOT be empty. We went in the second half of Septemebr last year, as opposed to our usually early/mid September, and you WILL notice the F&W crowds coming in.

 

[nkereina]

We've actually been during both date ranges!

In 2011, we went 9/24-10/1. Extremely HOT and humid. We were on the dining plan but found it difficult to eat (and want to eat) large meals because the heat just took so much out of us. Between getting up early, walking around the parks all day, and the heat - we were absolutely exhausted. After this trip, we said we'd never do a "hot" time of year at WDW again. We also found there to be a lot of refurbishments since it's considered low season. The advantages, however, were that daylight was long this time of year, which people don't usually think about, but it made for longer park hours. There were also very low crowds. We also thought MNSSHP was fun. As far as F&W, we caught the start of it during our 2011 trip although it's starting earlier this year. Be strategic about Epcot and you'll be fine - we only noticed the uptick in crowds here on the weekend nights we were there.

Last year, we went 11/14-11/22. Temperature-wise was much more tolerable - mostly low 80s but we did experience intermittent rain throughout the week. It wasn't the standard summer downpour, it was the cloudy all day drizzly type of rain that was just a downer. Between the rain and some days being in the 70s, we did not get much pool time in. Some days we wore hoodies too. Advantages were low crowds, not many refurbs since they were gearing up for the Thanksgiving crowds, and most (if not all) of the Christmas decorations were up. Although we did not care much for MVMCP.

Between the two times, we'd go in November again.