Thinking about June... comparisons/thoughts welcome!

[bazzanoid]

Morning all,

9 months since my last WDW holiday, I can't take it anymore!!!! Finances mean I can't go till 2011, but the planning can commence with earnest.....

Thanks to some inconsiderate person already booking our usual villa for the beginning of october when we normally go , I'm looking at the first two weeks of June (May 31st - June 17th)

I know it's hotter than October, anyone have any thoughts on the difference in crowd levels between the two and advantages / disadvantages?

Baz

 

[wifey]

It can be very humid and very busy, some local and not so local schools are already on vacation, watch out for the Brazilian Tour Groups with their little flags and remember Gay Days are usually the first weekend of June which means one of the parks could get very crowded BUT they are well behaved which is more than I can say for others we've seen there at the time Of course the Star Wars weekends often mean bigger queues too but the atmosphere is really worth it if you are fans of the books and films since they will have characters posing all over DHS As long as you go prepared drink plenty of water and be sensible with sun block and can cope with the queues you'll be fine.

 

[bazzanoid]

Ah I forgot about the Star Wars weekends... hmm might have to rethink the dates a little - how about May?

 

[wifey]

We enjoyed May in 1998 it was less humid than June or July but still had he odd rain shower for about 20-30 minutes a day but very manageable, crowds were better too shorter queues and more ride time

 

[bazzanoid]

Ok, May it is! Changed my booking to May 10th - 27th

 

[wifey]

Those dates look good Mothers day is the 9th May next year and Memorial day is the 31st May so you have scheduled well there!! The weekend of Mothers Day can be a little busy but most folks don't stay for long so hopefully it will not impact too much on your touring plans , same again for Memorial weekend. Enjoy your planning and the flowers in Epcot should look amazing too so pencil in a good day there even if you don't have a garden it's still beautiful.

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

May and October are my favourite times to visit

We've been twice in May and it was perfect. Weather spot on (just a couple of afternoon showers and cracking thunderstorms), crowds not too bad.

Good choice of dates, happy planning

 

[bazzanoid]

Shame it's such a long time to wait lol - 2011 is two years away!!!

Might have to sneak in a visit to DLRP next year to compensate for it......

 

[wifey]

Ah but you'll enjoy it all the more because the anticipation will build up for a good while and you can do so much research and look at "food porn" for lots of restaurants
That can really be a decider in our house for where we dine for as they say "you eat with your eyes first, then your nose and then savour the flavours and textures on your tongue" at least that's what happens in our family
There's a good list of national holidays let me see.... ah here you go
http://allears.net/pl/holidays-us.htm

That will help you figure out when the parks will be busy since lots of families get together for the holidays and turn up at the theme parks.
Keep an eye on the Orlando Sentinel site too for bits of info that the parks like to talk about to reporters (including new dining experiences) and sometimes things they prefer not to divulge.
Of course the official theme park sites often update too so you can read about what's happening or planned to be in the parks in the future.
Above all keep a rough idea of what you want to do until the official park hours are released then make your definite plans and reservations organised. Have fun

 

[bazzanoid]

That's why we chose those dates - neatly avoids the holidays, we really don't do crowds. Last time we went (thanksgiving - mid december) a careful amount of park planning led me to an excel sheet full of green, yellow and red blobs on various parks and days hehe

but as a result one of the busiest times of year turned into the quietest holiday we've had, and the way we do theme parks, we found our 2 1/2 weeks very empty as we hammered the parks (including the 'dark' side and busch gardens) in about 8 days!!!! Lovely and relaxing, leaving us loads of time to stroll about and soak up the atmosphere everywhere we went...

I know it's not for everyone, but it's our way of doing things... hit the park rides that are on our to-do list, and move on... once complete the rest of the holiday is for chilling, people watching, photo taking and shopping! As we're adrenaline junkies we once did do a park a day and struggled to squeeze everything in over a 2 week period, and went home feeling satisfied but not relaxed, so now we do the intense bit first and chill for the remainder.

:

 

[wifey]

That's why we chose those dates - neatly avoids the holidays, we really don't do crowds. Last time we went (thanksgiving - mid december) a careful amount of park planning led me to an excel sheet full of green, yellow and red blobs on various parks and days hehe

but as a result one of the busiest times of year turned into the quietest holiday we've had, and the way we do theme parks, we found our 2 1/2 weeks very empty as we hammered the parks (including the 'dark' side and busch gardens) in about 8 days!!!! Lovely and relaxing, leaving us loads of time to stroll about and soak up the atmosphere everywhere we went...

I know it's not for everyone, but it's our way of doing things... hit the park rides that are on our to-do list, and move on... once complete the rest of the holiday is for chilling, people watching, photo taking and shopping! As we're adrenaline junkies we once did do a park a day and struggled to squeeze everything in over a 2 week period, and went home feeling satisfied but not relaxed, so now we do the intense bit first and chill for the remainder.

:

We know what you mean we don't like the crowds either it's much more pleasant with lower attendances and avoiding EMHs but DH and DS last time wanted to see the Star Wars stuff and it was cheaper than going in August which is also humid and very hot Not that we could have had any of August off work everyone wants those weeks So we try to go out of season so to speak. We enjoyed the last week of November and a week in February too (post Valentines Day) so we had to adjust a bit to June and July being so crowded and hot and humid into the bargain We don't like to melt away watching a show in front of the castle with absolutely no shade or any way of keeping cool. I don't quite know what Disney were thinking there.. the CMs must wear ice packs under their costumes to keep cool or something but the poor kids watching the show at the front of the stage were roasting where they stood I'm thinking if we go again after our upcoming trip to make it February again if possible and maybe try somewhere different to stay if possible.
We like to do a bit of people watching too in between days at the parks and shopping or a day in a water park it's funny the behaviour you see sometimes and it makes you stop and think about life in general. We try to schedule a few rest days too i.e. no park activities just relaxation otherwise we would be totally worn out before we got home, it pays off in the long run as we don't come home as stressed out and feel a bit happier about being home again.

 

[bazzanoid]

and feel a bit happier about being home again.

Sorry, you're going to have to explain that one to me, it's an alien concept being happy returning from florida!!! i hate leaving, soooo many times i've been tempted to buy a place out there and just not catch the return flight!

 

[wifey]

I know what you mean, we often wish we could win the big lotto jackpot and move out there permanently but there's a lot to be said for sleeping in your own bed with fresh clean linens on and having a proper long bubble bath in peace!! Oh and not forgetting a decent cup of tea or a good beer that doesn't break the bank
I like to get caught up with my mail and laundry and then I have to face the very real prospect of returning to work the next day too unfortunately but making DVDs and photo books of our trip helps to relieve the post holiday blues so I can at least function on a basic level until the weekend when hopefully I can have a chance to recover. I tell my self for months all the planning paid off and look at the photos and recall all the good times we have been fortunate enough to have on holiday. That makes being home much more bearable plus there's always the chance of planning to go again but we don't often know when until about ten months after we come home. It takes so long to plan and finance a trip it's worth waiting for plus there will always be others to chat to about past trips upcoming trips new events etcetera so that helps too.

 

[bazzanoid]

Not too bad as I'm self employed, so although i lose money i can just opt to take an extra day or two!! i normally time our return for the start of a weekend so i can chill over the weekend.

Oddly enough i was looking at prices yesterday - you can pick up 3bed 2bath villas with pools in residentially-zoned communities that are fairly old for about $150k, while a newer one on my favourite residential area (Doral Woods) would set you back about $240k... sorely tempted I have to admit as it's cheaper than buying a house here in Upminster, Essex!

Only downside is you HAVE to find a job within a certain time limit or they deny you a permanent VISA. It's useful if you've got relatives in the US as you can get an immigrant visa based on family ties

Heck, the money i'd save on a house over here i'd open my own 99c gift shop along the 192 like so many other non-americans have done!

 

[wifey]

That's so tempting isn't it, unfortunately we don't have the funds to move. My mum had relatives somewhere in Canada near Quebec I think now that would be close enough to get a good Disney fix now and again.

You would still need to prove you could supply a needed service or trade or employ americans too perhaps. Well we can dream