When to go - Early Nov or Late Jan?

[AllyElly]

Planning a trip and looking at either Nov 3-10 or late Jan. Was definitely planning on Jan until I read crowds were awful this year.

It will be me and 3 kids (3,9,11) and aren’t interested in any special events unless they impact crowds. I am just looking for the best time to go! Thanks for any suggestions!

 

[g-dad66]

I would expect January crowds to be lower, but either week should be a good time to go. Schools are typically in session, and it won't be miserably hot and humid at either time. If we could take the grandkids out of school, those weeks would be two of my top choices.

 

[Wild4Walt]

I'd avoid MLK weekend, which tends to have more crowds than you would have in Early November.

 

[georgina]

Food and Wine should still be going on at Epcot in November, if that has any bearing on your choice. Veterans day is Nov 12 so you would be getting out of there just before. You might want to check on the dates of Jersey week in Nov.

 

[Shanti]

For crowd avoidance, late January without question. It still won't be "low", though. It almost never is anymore.

 

[MamaJessie]

We prefer Nov. When I go to WDW I don't like to have to wear sweatshirts, and I love Food and Wine!

 

[gharter]

January has been very cold and rainy several times when we were there.
You want to avoid MLK weekend and the marathon weekend.

 

[BMAEC]

We are going in early November. It was difficult to get the ADRs we wanted initially because the Christmas parties begin, its during Food & Wine, and also Jersey Week heading into Vererans Day weekend. Supposedly the weather is very nice though. Just be aware of these things when you start to plan. I was a total newbie and didn’t even know that the Christmas parties existed when we booked our trip!

 

[markb681]

January tends to be when a lot of referb's are happening also...plus it does get cold in January for Florida standards!

 

[NH-to-FL]

For me, the advantages of early November are the weather, Food and Wine, and the start of the Christmas activities in the parks. I appreciate that Food and Wine probably doesn't have much appeal to your family but perhaps Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party would be interesting. I have not found the marathons to be much of an issue in the parks.

That said, late January is generally a quieter time to visit. My sense is that last year's "awful" January crowds were just the new normal for "low crowd" periods. Disney is doing a good job enticing folks to visit during "off" times. And while it can be the coldest time of year to visit, that cold is relative. If you are coming from the northern part of the country it will feel pretty nice. Yes, there might be a chilly upper 30 degree morning after a front goes through but the sun will warm things up quickly.

I think it comes down to what you value. If it is low crowds than I feel late January would be the better choice.
Wishing you a visit!

 

[mamaofsix]

If you are strictly worried about crowds, most crowd calendars have both of those weeks at about the same levels. For example, Touring Plans (which I usually find to be the most accurate) has Nov 3-10 being between 6/10 and 8/10 crowds each day. For the last week in January, they have between 5/10 and 9/10 depending on the day.

So, probably they are about the same crowd-wise. My vote would be November - better weather and less rides closed for refurb. Also, it appears that in slow months like January they are under-staffing the parks, making for longer wait times...

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Remember that a lot of rides seem to be down for maintenance in January, weather can be cold, and I remember people on the boards saying how crazy crowded it was this past January.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

I vote November due to the weather. If weather isn't an issue, January will probably have slightly lower crowds. But sometimes Disney reduces staff capacity during "low crowd" times and so the mid-crowd levels might have quicker service and more attraction cars running.

Regarding the weather specifically:
Everyone has their own standards on weather comfort. Both of our trips in January included many solid rain/drizzle/clouds/below 55 degree highs/pools closed due to freeze watches and warnings. Maybe it does feel better than -20 if you're from the North. And obviously fans of cooler weather may love it. I think we've determined it's not our cup of tea. If it's 80 degrees and raining, you can get a poncho and move on down the road. If it's 50 and raining, you're stuck (at least we were) in the room wishing it'd stop raining. We decided to shift back to September. Obviously September isn't one of your options, but I think I might consider November over January if those were my two options, especially if you're willing to get up early or stay out late to avoid the most crowded time of day/afternoons if it does get busy.

 

[Tksolomom]

I would do November. The weather is nicer, and Christmas decorations are starting to go up. January last year had horrible crowds, but whether that was because of postponed trips due to the hurricane, or understaffing is unknown.

 

[MomDoc_99]

I have done both, thoroughly enjoyed both. I chose late January this year, mainly because missing 2 weeks of northern Illinois winter is very appealing to me!

 

[beccasmom]

I like any time in November barring the days surrounding Thanksgiving. Early November is great for the F&W Festival and later the parks and resorts are beautifully decorated. We enjoy the Candlelight Processional too. January is fine, but the weather is more of a wild card.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

We went first week of February this year and the weather was amazing! The further into our stay, the hotter it got!

 

[cwoww]

We loved the first week of November. the switch over from halloween to xmas is going on all week at the parks. if you are lucky, you could catch the 1st lighting of the castle. We missed it by 1 day :/

 

[StageTek]

Was definitely planning on Jan until I read crowds were awful this year.

We are booked for our third January trip. Did 2017 and 2018. Weather was great both times - cool with a little rain now and then. Crowds were low. I know, I know... someone will say crowds aren't "low" anymore. To me crowds were low each January visit. Perhaps not low compared to ten years ago. I, too, have read here on DIS how terrible late January (2018) was, but it didn't seem that way to us.

 

[Ladyfish77]

If the kids want to spend time at pools and maybe waterparks then definitely November.