When to visit?

[fuzzybear]

Experts, I need your help!
I know all three of these times are among the worst times to visit Disney, but going to school trumps going to Disney in my husband's eyes so these are our only available dates. We can go July 19-26 (yes, I know it is next week), December 28-January 3, or March 19-26. We always arrive before rope drop and we don't care about ADRs. Which of these three options would be the least painful crowd-wise? Thanks!

 

[Sphinx610]

Although it is fun to be there over New Years... But w the phase closures I wouldn't want to be there then.
I've been there over the summer and it's so hot and crowded. I'll never go back in the summer again...
I vote March. Better weather and I'm going to say less crowds of those three dates. That gives you plenty of time to plan too even though you say you don't care about that. haha
Whenever u go it'll be a blast tho

 

[joannamet]

I would also say March if you're trying to avoid the crowds. I was there last July and the heat and crowds were a non-issue for us but that's kind of last minute. Bottom line is that there's no bad time to go to DisneyWorld but of your 3 choices I would stick with March.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We were there March 19 to 25th, 2014 in a year in which Easter was April 20th and the crowds weren't too bad at all. The weather was pretty good, too.

 

[kathy884]

We've always had the same choices, as we have always been tied to the school schedule. March for the glorious weather is my favorite by far and would be my pick. It's just such a great time to be in Orlando. I've done over a dozen trips in March -- love it!

I've done five Christmas trips, and really and truly the crowds, especially for the dates you are talking just aren't appealing. Plus the weather can be iffy. It can be wonderful (We've had high 70s), but it can be really cold too (like in the 30s at night and wearing a parka). And average temperatures are a little cooler than I like. Still I would do this horrible crazy busy time as a second choice before I'd do summer. These days I only consider Christmas if it's one of those times when we are there before all the big crowds come in. The week before Christmas week isn't bad at all crowd wise.

Weather is a big deal to me on vacation, and let me tell you the Florida in the summer has NO appeal to me whatsoever. We are talking major heat and humidity. I did one and only one summer trip (freebie Disney Deluxe accommodation is what lured me -- DH had a convention at the Contemporary). To salvage the trip I did only one theme park day and focused on water activities -- got a season pass to a waterpark and did a beach day. I go to Orlando for theme parks, not water parks though, but I it's just not fun to be sweating like a pig. You asked about crowds, though. I do think summer crowds are lower than spring break crowds.

Everyone is different but these are my thoughts on those choices.

 

[kathy884]

I also went ahead and looked at your dates on the easywdw.com site. They have a great crowd calendar. I have a subscription to touringplans.com but as there is a small fee for this info isn't supposed to be shared. Their touring plans are great, but actually the free site I think is just as good if not better for a crowd calendar. Your summer dates are all crowd level 7s and 8s. Your Christmas dates are all 10s. 10s really and truly are pretty horrible. The difference between a 9 and a 10 is incredible. Your spring break dates are mostly 7s and 8s with maybe two 9s. Given how similar the crowd predictions are for summer and spring break, spring break would be a total no brainer for me. But then you know from my previous post how much I hate the Florida summer heat and humidity.

 

[danny1649]

I will go against the grain here. I would go 12-26 -1-3 yes it will be crowded but arrive early and with smart use of Fast Pass you will be fine. The parks all decorated and characters in holiday best.It's a magical time of year to visit.So have a basic plan in place and just soak up the magic that happens this time of year.