Tropical Depression may be forming next week

[ValerieK]

2 words I came to hate in 2004: "the cone..."

We were there for Hurricane Jeanne in 2004, least we only went through one of the three that year.

 

[KristiMc]

We were there for Andrea in 2013 and it looks like we'll be there for whatever comes Monday and Tuesday. We wear Keen sandals, bring rain jackets/ponchos and go on.

We were also there for Andrea and arrive tomorrow. Hoping it does not develop.

 

[Boski]

Winds are also a factor- most buses can't run if sustained winds hit 35 MPH, below TS force.

Wait what?

 

[yulilin3]

Also remember to pack a couple of ziploc bags, larger ones if you have big cameras. You can store all electronics in the ziploc bags and not be afraid of them getting wet.

 

[warrenz1963]

Don't forget, Orlando is in the middle of the peninsula, storms can lose their power as they travel over land.

 

[Stageman12]

Wait what?

Safety hazard- drivers cannot control them in those sustained winds. My wife used to ride Lynx around Orlando and had real issues in the nastier storms.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

So we arrive in Orlando on Saturday and all the weather forecasts are predicting heavy rain for our first few days - maybe even a tropical storm. We've done Disney in the rain and we're all set with our rain gear, just in case. Never been there during a full-on tropical storm tho. If you have, I'd love to hear about your experience and any tips you can share. For one thing, I'm wondering how bad does the weather have to get to affect park operation? Will they most likely keep the parks open even if the weather system develops into a full-scale tropical storm? And if the parks are open, what rides are most likely affected by this kind of weather? I figure the outdoor stuff like Big Thunder would be shut down. But what else?

We were there for a pending hurricane. It is where we evacuated to. They closed the parks the day of the hurricane. They may have closed them early the night before, I'm not sure.

For Tropical storms--if it came, they would have a plan.

It will be wet. And likely, just another rainy day. Been a while since we lived her during a tropical storm. The 2004 Hurricanes were quite the experience, though.

The issue with TRopical storms is that they can generate hurricane strength gusts. Disney will close or restrict access as appropriate for guest safety.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

How long do these things usually last? If it "lands" Tuesday when can we expect the weather to be back to "normal"?

Depends on how large the storm is and if it stalls.

Frances in 2004 was a pain for 2 days. It just---hovered.

 

[vladimir]

We were there during Tropical Storm Josephine in 2008. I had a nine month old daughter at the time. We fixed the stroller so she was snug and dry. My five year old daughter and husband went to Future World while I went to the baby care center to feed her. Walked in horrible wind around the World Showcase to get to our lunch reservation at Tokyo Dining. Had to stop in Liberty Inn to catch my breath and rest...it was hard to push the stroller through the wind and rain. Got inside Tokyo Dining and we were treated so well. The cast member made an origami animal for her. My husband and other daughter met us. We had a magical experience eating and watching the rain outside. After five days of doing this in all the parks it started getting a little old, but still, great memories.

 

[goofy4tink]

We arrived at MCO around 1ish. Hurricane Charlie arrived around 8! Storm was supposed to make landfall closer to Tampa. So, a lot of folks from Tampa drove inland to WDW and stayed there. Well, Charlie flew directly overhead! The parks closed down around 3. We were at the CR. Our ADR at CMs was cancelled due to all the glass. We were sent to convention halls to get boxed meals. Had to stay in our rooms, away from the windows. There were a lot of channels showing Disney movies and cartoons all night. The next morning, the storm was gone. Restaurants were open, but with limited menus. CMs had spent the night in pool chaises, in convention halls! Housekeeping was limited. MK opened on-time, as did Epcot. DHS opened a few hours late. AK stayed closed that one day.
It was amazing to see how well Disney handled the storm. There was very little damage to be seen the next day! We never lost power. It was really incredible. The parks were great...no crowds to speak of for the first few days. The news kept talking about extensive damage, schools were closed, roads impassable. As soon as the roads opened, the parks got really crowded. All the residents headed to WDW, especially kids! And it was nasty humid. When we drove back to MCO, we were amazed at the damage! So much worse than at WDW. Evidently Disney knows what it's doing when it comes to storms!! I never felt like I was in danger!!

 

[ravenclawtrekkie]

If/when this area appears to be under imminent threat from any sort of hurricane, you'll find me booking a room on property. I'd rather be at Disney than at my house. My neighborhood's streets flood in a regular thunderstorm and power goes out at the drop of a hat. No thanks!

 

[OKW Lover]

Could this wipe out a whole week or do they tend to be over fairly quickly?

If there were a tropical storm and If it headed towards central Fl it might last a day or so.

 

[Darklord77]

Don't be so sure that it will be a one day event! We were there in August 2008 when TS Fay came through. It got to Orlando and pretty much just stopped and dumped rain Tue-Sat. When we arrived on Sunday we were told it would be gone in less than a day. Tropical systems are notorious for being unpredictable.

 

[geenerbell]

If/when this area appears to be under imminent threat from any sort of hurricane, you'll find me booking a room on property. I'd rather be at Disney than at my house. My neighborhood's streets flood in a regular thunderstorm and power goes out at the drop of a hat. No thanks!

So basically your evacuation plan is Disney?! That's the most awesome plan I've ever heard!!

 

[old feller]

We arrive Saturday. I'm trying not to stress out about weather since I can't control it, but it's in my nature. I keep looking and thinking the worst. It wouldn't normally bother me so much, but we are bringing my 13 year old sister-in-law for her first trip. I put too much pressure on myself when introducing new people to Disney.

We'll have our ponchos ready and just hoping that any rain is manageable and drives out some crowds.

Best place to be on a rainy day

 

[las3888]

Don't be so sure that it will be a one day event! We were there in August 2008 when TS Fay came through. It got to Orlando and pretty much just stopped and dumped rain Tue-Sat. When we arrived on Sunday we were told it would be gone in less than a day. Tropical systems are notorious for being unpredictable.

Thank you - this is the storm that we were stuck in. I will never forget it. We watched day after day of radar and that darn thing didn't want to leave Florida (then again I can't blame it). Ponchos can be fun and different for a day or two but we were totally done with it after a few days, it got REALLY old.

I am not really worried that Disney can't handle tropical storms and such, just a little apprehensive that we will experience the same--day after day of rain and drizzle our entire trip...just not what anyone hopes for.

 

[andyman8]

If anything, you'll just have a very wet few days. This is a depression in early June. Major hurricanes (especially those that could close a park) don't really become a possibility until mid to late August, and while anything's possible, this looks to just be a lot of rain. Obviously not ideal for any vacation but heck of a lot better than a hurricane.

I'll also say that if there's anything you learn from living in FL during hurricane season (especially the 2004 and 2005 ones), it's that meteorology (at least in regards to hurricanes) is an incredibly inexact science. No one, even the weather teams for each channel, really know for sure what's going to happen.

 

[Tondee]

We had planned to go to BB Monday and MK on Tuesday. Guess I will need to rework our plans.

 

[MainMom]

We arrive tomorrow. We went out and bought Keens last night to get through the rain. I can see us potentially switching out our Tuesday AK day to Wednesday which was supposed to be our off day. I guess it will depend on how sick of the rain we are by then.

 

[TeresaWen]

We were there September 2015 and it rained almost every day for a week. We had a blast!

One day in the AK we were relaxing under a table umbrella and a family joined us. So angry - grumbling about the bad weather and snapping at each other.

A few minutes later another family skipped by, kids splashing in puddles yelling "yeah no lines"

Attitude is almost everything.

A rainy day in Disney beats a sunny day at work. As long ad you are not in soggy sneakers and have a good water resistant bag.