Winter coats, hats and mittens??

[kellya22]

Hi everyone,
We are going to WDW from 12-3 to 12-10. I have a DD 10 and a DS 18months. Should I bring winter coats, hats and mittens? I understand the evenings can be cold, but how cold? Thanks!
Kelly

 

[tjevans]

Hi everyone,
We are going to WDW from 12-3 to 12-10. I have a DD 10 and a DS 18months. Should I bring winter coats, hats and mittens? I understand the evenings can be cold, but how cold? Thanks!
Kelly

In my experience, it is extremely rare for the weather to be cold enough for winter coats, hats, and mittens. Nevertheless, it does occasionally happen. For the timeframe your looking at, the average high is in the mid 70's with the average low in the mid 50's.

 

[dialane]

It's a guessing game to know what to pack. I was at WDW in December several years ago and it was in the 90's during the day and 75-80 in the evenings, but I should add, this was not the norm. The past couple of Decembers were really cold in the evenings and sitting on cold concrete waiting for parades and such chills you to the bone. I took a heavy coat and mittens last year and used them. The year before, I dressed in layers, sweatshirts and windbreaker. I ALWAYS carry a fleece blanket to either sit on or wrap up in. They are fairly thin and can be easily packed. The hot chocolate helps a lot! Why not pack the stuff "just in case", then you won't have to buy it when you get there if it IS really chilly. However, if you don't pack it and need it, DisneyWorld will be happy to sell you their mittens, scarves and jackets!! I saw mittens, hats and scarves next to almost every cash register the last time I was there in December. Have a wonderful Holiday trip!!

 

[happyatdisney]

We were there the week between Christmas and New Years last year. It was freezing at night...well not technically freezing, but it was in the 40s. We DID wear our winter coats, and brought a blanket to keep warm while we were waiting for Fantasmic. Handwarmers, the kind that are used for outdoors, were very helpful too, inside our gloves. (Thanks to the DIS for that tip!)
Basically, it has been mentioned here before that "cold" is relative, and your perception probably depends on what you are used to for winter weather. I am pretty sure that we thought it was colder, being from Maryland, than the people from Canada, who were sitting next to us.
I can tell you that this year, we will be there about the time that you are, and unless the forecast is calling for temps in the 90s, I will pack a lot more sweaters/sweatshirts than I did last year.

 

[Pats Dragon]

Pack t-shirts, swimsuits, down coats, scarves and mittens. We have froze at MVMCP and sweltered during the day during the same trip. When Fla. is cold it is windy and damp and sometimes drizzling and very uncomfortable. On the other hand it can be warm at night sometimes. Best to be prepared.

 

[pic22]

Bring the coats, We were there in Nov-Dec 2003 and we were going to put our Jackets in a Locker in the Airport, but we somehow decided not to and when we landed in Orlando it was colder than it was in NJ. We were there for 2 weeks and we used our Jackets a few times, as it was in the fortys during the day. I know this isn't normal, because everyone was complaining how cold it was and this really isn't that cold. If you have them you can use them when you need them and just put them in the closet if you don't, if you don't have them then what??

 

[krbq]

We were at WDW last year December 6-15. The first part of the trip was very warm, and the last part was very cold (frost on the ground, CM's wearing coats and gloves). If I were you, I'd at least take the coat, hat and gloves for the children, especially the baby. Hopefully you won't need them, but if the weather turns cold -- even for one night -- you'll be glad you did.

 

[kilee]

For a little one you may want to pack some just to be safe. Their ears are so sensitive to the cold too. You may never use it, however, it will be nice to have if you do. That time of year is really unpredictable as far as the weather goes.

 

[DebbieB]

Watch the forecast carefully. I've gone around that time the past 7 years. Some years it was 80's everyday with just a light jacket at night and some years it was 50's and 60's during the day with a winter coat and gloves at night. I wouldn't automatically drag the coats, but if the daytime high is below 70, I would bring them because it will get cold at night.

 

[jdonat]

We have had every kind of weather imaginable... One year over NYE, it was
colder at WDW than in Chicago! 28deg F! We take squall jackets, down vests,
heavy sweatshirts, gloves, hats, and believe it or not silk long johns! They're
very thin, and pack well.
We also take tank tops, shorts, swim stuff, and warm weather gear. We've
had both in the same trip! You may want to check accuweather.com -they have
15 day forecasts... they are mostly guesses past 10 days, but they can give
you trends. We've had pretty dry weather over the years in December, but
we usually take some sort of umbrellas, etc just in case...

have fun!

 

[Feralpeg]

Last year at MVMCP, I wore a fleece jacket over a sweatshirt and wore mittens. On the otherhand, two weeks prior to Christmas, I was shopping in shorts and a t-shirt. Plan on any type of weather being possible.

 

[jcriket]

What I usually do before we go is check the weather on weather.com, then you can kinda see if a cold-front is coming and then go from there.
If a strong cold-front comes then you just might want to wear warm coats.

 

[Wendy1953]

I would bring, especially for the children, winter jackets, hats, and mittens(gloves) just in case you need them.....but then again my DH says I could cloth an army when I go (at anytime of the year)! If you have a car available, and can't find room in the suitcases, WalMart and Target are nearby so you could purchase the warm clothes when/and if you need them. I've been there at Christmas time, and needed two layers of sweats, but not winter coats (LI, NY---winter coats are duck, goose down), and that was only at night.

 

[ducklite]

It's only October, but we've got a bit of a cold snap, and for the next couple nights we've got low's in the mid-40's! I'd bring them along, if you do'nt need them they can just stay on your room, but if you do, you'll be glad you have them!

Anne

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I would bring layers--t-shirts, sweatshirts, and jackets. Also lightweight gloves and hats. That way you can remove and add layers as needed. Also stick in a blanket for your toddler's legs when he/she is in the stroller. Maybe an extra one to sit on when watching parades, etc.

Where do you live? That has a lot to do with how cold the weather will feel to you.

I was at WDW last year from 12/1-13 and the weather was warm-cold. My son swam several times (one day spent hours in the water) and we also have pictures of us bundled up at the Osborne lights at MGM, drinking hot chocolate. My sister laughed when I told her to bring lightweight gloves, but she wasn't laughing when she was wearing them.

 

[disney1990]

We were at Disney December 1999 to January 2000 (over the Christmas Holidays). It was below freezing the week we were there -- yes less than 32 degrees. I about froze. I ended up buying a blanket in Mexico so that my DD could wrap up in it. There were no gloves or hats left to buy in all of Disney World. I say bring them. Better to have them if you need them.

 

[Kuffam]

I would, we were there this past January it was cool and rainy and wish we had them. Eventually we broke down and bought some there $3 for those $0.99 ones you can get at Wal-Mart.

But cold is relative, on our last day when the Sun came our and it hit 70, we were swimming and all the CM still had on their coats.