Worried about the heat in August

[sfc76]

Hey everyone. Me and my family are arriving in Orlando for a three week holiday on August 7th and we are getting increasingly worried about how the heat is going to affect our holiday. I've heard people say that the heat and humidity in August is completely unbearable and that we won't be able to leave the villa between 10am-6pm as the heat and humidity will be too much, let alone walking around the theme parks around hordes of other people! Iv'e also heard people say that they wouldn't even think about going in August due to the heat and humidity. I really hope that this won't ruin our holiday. I appreciate that we should have looked into this more at the time of booking last year. I was just hoping for some advice and opinions on the matter. Tips on dealing with the heat and still having a great time? Is the heat and humidity really as bad as people say? We went to Minorca last summer and coped pretty well and had a great time. Will the heat and humidity be much worse than in Minorca? Thanks.

 

[letsgoreds]

Totally subjective. It is busy in August, so obviously a lot of people don't seem to mind too much : )

I would stop worrying about it because you are going, and it is going to be August, and it is going to be hot. Just plan lots of breaks, drink lots of water, and consider bringing misting fans/frog toggs/changes of clothes to manage the heat and sweat.

I would definitely try to plan for ropedrop, swim in the afternoon, and evening at the parks, but that is me...and usually what we do when it is cooler (go in Dec/Jan).

Have a great time! I recently read on easywdw that many of the sit down restaurants are putting out lemon water for guests in the waiting areas...if I were down there now, I would pop in these places, enjoy some AC and chilled water, regardless of whether or not I was eating there. When it is hot or rainy, we tend to break more often, enjoying a meal or snack indoors (out of rain/in AC).

 

[DisFanJen]

Personally August isn't the time of year I'd go but it's all arranged now so it's not worth getting stressed.

Hydrate, make use of attractions with air con and have fun!

 

[Figment Mom]

We'll be there in late July/early August (6 more days, woohoo!). I feel that I'm prepared for the heat.

We've made late lunch reservations most days at TS restaurants in the parks so we'll have a guaranteed break in an air-conditioned place to refuel and rest.

We plan on drinking LOTS of water. We'll rely on the free water they give at the CS restaurants. I've heard some reports of a not-so-great taste so we're bringing some flavoring packs and drops just in case.

We plan on NOT drinking any carbonated or alcoholic beverages. (We don't, typically anyway, but I also think this will be beneficial in the heat.)

I will be wearing non-cotton, moisture-wicking, quick-dry clothing.

We packed Frogg Toggs cooling towels, a Misty Mate personal mister, and a handheld misting fan.

We'll be going to each park at RD. Hoping to enjoy some early-hour touring before the worst heat of the day hits.

We'll pace ourselves. Nothing wrong with sitting in the shade and soaking up the ambiance!

I'm looking forward to a great time, despite the heat/humidity.

 

[DisneyYahoo]

We'll be there in late July/early August (6 more days, woohoo!). I feel that I'm prepared for the heat.

We packed Frogg Toggs cooling towels, a Misty Mate personal mister, and a handheld misting fan.

Where do you purchase you Misty Mates? Thanks

 

[mikki.young]

We went in August last year for the first time in ages and were worried about the heat - but it wasn't anything like as bad as we feared. Maybe we were lucky but we are heading back almost the same time as you. You may need to acclimatise a bit but early starts, water and making use of air conditioning does help. Relax and enjoy!

 

[chmurf]

We plan on drinking LOTS of water. We'll rely on the free water they give at the CS restaurants.

free water at CS is a good thing, but it will take you a lot of time if you plan on drinking a lot of water.

you'll indeed drink a lot, but it won't be a lot at the same time. It's not like you'll go to a CS restaurant, drink a couple of cups (lots of ice, uber-cold) and recharge for a couple of hours like you'd fill up the car.
To stay hydrated you'll need to drink small amounts but very often and regularly.

If you don't want to spend money on water or other kind of beverages, pack your own flask or even a camelbak and fill them at your hotel/villla before heading for the park. Or get a cheap pack of water. That's probably the most important purchase you can make in Florida in August.

 

[ChipnDaleRule]

We are going in August for the first time too. Some parks IMO are hotter than others like Animal Kingdom, plan early starts and try to be out by early afternoon. If you are going to be at a park all day then think about what rides your doing,don't be standing in a long outside queue at 1pm, some rides are more heat friendly than others. Rides like Living with the Land, Carousel of Progress, Hall of Presidents are all great places to take a break from the sun.
Think about what you eat and drink, try and stay away from caffeine, alcohol, sugary drinks,these will dehydrate you, also don't eat a heavy meal during the day, it will make you feel sluggish and uncomfortable .You can ask for a cup of iced water at any cart throughout the parks.
Remember by late afternoon on most days Orlando experience hefty storms, so pack a poncho!
Don't let the weather ruin your holiday,if you work with it and not try and conquer it you will have an amazing time

 

[london75]

We've been going in August for a few years now and I just don't think the heat is something you need to worry about unless you're from the arctic circle. It's hot yes and humid but Disney air-con is phenomenal and with the possible exception of Animal Kingdom, you are never far at all from a shop or restaurant that will give you goosebumps! In all parks there are loads of opportunities to get a little wet and we relish those, including the down pours in the afternoon which you should be prepared for.

For years we used to head back to the villa in the rain until we just put aside any attempts to look cool and bought ponchos. It's now rare we'll give up a day out for a bit (lot) of rain.

As of the last 3 years I swear by crocs as well, something about having cool feet (not in the hip way, I'm not deluding myself) that really makes you feel better.

 

[cliveywolves]

Hey everyone. Me and my family are arriving in Orlando for a three week holiday on August 7th and we are getting increasingly worried about how the heat is going to affect our holiday. I've heard people say that the heat and humidity in August is completely unbearable and that we won't be able to leave the villa between 10am-6pm as the heat and humidity will be too much, let alone walking around the theme parks around hordes of other people! Iv'e also heard people say that they wouldn't even think about going in August due to the heat and humidity. I really hope that this won't ruin our holiday. I appreciate that we should have looked into this more at the time of booking last year. I was just hoping for some advice and opinions on the matter. Tips on dealing with the heat and still having a great time? Is the heat and humidity really as bad as people say? We went to Minorca last summer and coped pretty well and had a great time. Will the heat and humidity be much worse than in Minorca? Thanks.

Hi.. We go in August most years due to school holidays, in fact we arrive on the 5th a few days before you do ... Dont worry or panic, its hot and very humid but as long as your all in good health you will be fine, you cant compare the heat/humidity to Minorca, we also go to Turkey most years when its about 35/40 degrees but its so much different in Florida.. We love being able to go in the pool at 9pm at night and its still warm and enjoyable


You will need a plan and obv this will have to be able to flex due to the weather normally late afternoon or evenings you will get rain and storms to avoid or enjoy We normally hit parks really early at rope drop do as much can, as we sometimes then leave mid afternoon go back to hotel or pool or shopping and chill out for a while then go back into park for evenings.. Have a look at touring plans it will give you an idea on best parks on certain days
You should also see a drop off in crowds and how busy parks etc as your holiday goes on due to the US kids going back to schools ...

Keep shaded as much as you can in the parks, drink plenty of water and our daughter normally has a water misting sprayer that is nice to use, oh and she likes to grab a few ice cubes from the carts around the parks and rub them on her wrists to cool, its amazing how little things can make it more bearable..

Anyway have a great time and enjoy it all, might even bump into you

 

[NatalieMT]

We always go in late August (so 07, 08, 10, 12 and we've booked August next year, I wouldn't keep going at that time if it was awful!), the only time I haven't been in August I went in April and I thought it was cold! Honestly August is my favourite time to go, yes it's hot and humid but it's not what I'd consider unbearable. The crowds I find are much lower as US school children are going back and as you get later into August a lot of UK families are also not thinking about holidaying as they need to be at home for the start of term. I always try and fly back into September a little bit. Comparing April to August crowds in April were much worse. Like others have said we tried to be out early when it was somewhat cooler and then headed back to the hotel around 3pm each day to have some chill time, swim, shower and get ready for dinner. I love the fact the evenings are warm, that was a really nice time to be out as well, I enjoy being in the parks at night.

Like others have said there's plenty of air conditioned buildings around, as well as rides that are out of the heat. Pace yourself, we enjoyed having a few little breaks during the day to sit down and just relax. Drink plenty - just plain water is best, I took a sports group when we went in April and because they're 15-16 they were all drinking fizzy drinks which isn't good. I always wear light clothing, I don't like clingy clothing anyway so I went for dresses, shorts and cami tops, that sort of thing. I actually think one evening I was wearing a jumper in Epcot and my sister is in the cardigan, clearly not roasting! Here's the picture, it was just before Illuminations to give an idea of the time of day...

 

[MrRomance]

We have been twice in August and there is no escaping the fact that the heat and the humidity are high. That said, you will adapt to it.

Important things to remember

1. HYDRATE... yes I'm shouting that but I can't stress it enough. You absolutely need to drink and ideally you need to drink water.

2. Try to avoid being out in the sun between 11 and 3. That is when the heat is at it's highest and it can be tough to bear.

3. Take regular breaks inside. Pretty much everywhere has air conditioning so instead of walking out in the open between attractions, cut through shops, try to get indoors any opportunity.

4. Plan. If you're smart and you plan your way around the parks, you can schedule regular breaks and plan ways out of the sun.

5. Keep a positive mindset. If you dread it, if you feel like the heat is going to be unbearable, it will be. If you accept that it will be hot and humid and just find ways to deal with it, it won't affect your holiday at all.

 

[susieh]

5. Keep a positive mindset. If you dread it, if you feel like the heat is going to be unbearable, it will be. If you accept that it will be hot and humid and just find ways to deal with it, it won't affect your holiday at all.

Definitely good advice there. We're about to go back for the 12th time and this will be the 5th time we've been in August.

The only other advice I would add is to take a T-shirt to wear in the water if you are going to the waterparks. No-one will mind you wearing a shirt on the rides (I think there were a couple of exceptions where I had to take it off and hold it in my hand (screwed in a ball)) and it will both keep the sun off your skin and keep you cooler *** it is wet.

 

[Aliceacc]

We're both teachers, and we ONLY go in late July/ early August... in fact, a week from now and we'll be on the way to the airport.

Yes, Florida in summer is hot, hazy and humid.

But the days stretch on for EVER-- the sun is up early and stays up for hours and hours. The air is tropical and the sun is warm... I can't wait!

Some practical considerations:
- you'll want to make sure you're well hydrated. We do that by ordering 2 cases of water and making sure that each person leaves the room with a cold bottle of water each day. When you're carrying it with you, you're much more apt to actually drink it.

- We're at the parks for rope drop, when it's relatively cool. We tour like crazy until lunch, then head back to the resort to swim the afternoon away. We find that the parks reach the point of diminishing returns, where it's too crowded and hot and cranky anyway, so the break works well for us. At about 4:30 or 5, we're on our way back to the parks for dinner and a more relaxed evening.

- We're another family that loves the Mistymate personal mister. We've bought them at amazon. com or walmart.com. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Misty-Mate-2.5-Personal-Mister-10025/19715437 I wonder if you can purchase them online and have them sent to your resort if shipping to the UK is a problem?? I bet someone on the Disboards knows. Oh, and they're also available at amazon if that helps.

Or, plan B: I'm sure that somewhere in the parks you can buy a mister fan of some sort. They're well worth the investment.

- Also keep in mind: in keeping with the tropical weather pattern, you can expect rain many afternoons, for 20 minutes up to about an hour or so. We have puchased a bunch of disposable rain ponchos for about $1 apiece-- I'm planning on 3 per person. (Any we don't use we'll just save for another vacation.) If that's not practical for you, you can buy better quality ones in the parks and resorts-- personally I would buy one BEFORE it starts to rain.

At the end of the day, it's up to you. I read too many posts from people who choose to let something like the weather determine the kind of vacation they'll have. Not us. We save to long and plan too much to let the weather kill our vacation. In fact, the very best day of touring we've ever had was in 2008, as a tropical storm approached Orlando. The parks opened early, anticpating an early closure. We grabbed our ponchos, headed to the park, and had the Magic Kingdom to ourselves!!

 

[Portugal1000]

I think 6th August will be the 5th time we have gone in August. Yes it is hot but I think its easy to manage. Our secret, dont try and do too much. We either go to a park early for rope drop or in the evening. As we always go for 3 weeks I have never seen the need to go to a park come home and then go back to another one, that would be exhausting. So we tend to spend shorter days nows before anyone gets too hot. The only park I find really bad is Animal Kingdom. We usually book a sit down lunch so we can get out of the heat for a couple of hours. We go into lots of air conditioned areas. We take frozen bottles of water and then drink lots while we are there.
We love the heat when we are at our hotel, 5 pools and lots of shade. We never sit out in the sun, except maybe late in the day.
We keep the air con on high before we go to bed and then turn it off when we go to sleep as otherwise we all end up with horribly sore throats and plus, too noisy for me. Somehow it manages to stay cool all night, even in August.
The water parks are great to keep cool. Lots of shaded areas. We love to go late afternoon and stay till closing.
Have a great time. You'll be there the same time as us.
One last thing. Cant stress how important it is to get to the parks before rope drop. You can get so many rides done before the park gets busy. Never go to a park that has EMH, unless you are staying on site. Will be interesting to see if things change with FP+

 

[pampat]

You can get Misty Mates on Amazon. Here's the link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb...eywords=misty mate&sprefix=Misty+Mate,aps,314.

I;ve purchased similar things in the parks, but can't remember the price comparison.

Personally I hate, hate, hate, the heat in August, but then again, I'm dying in the heat here at the moment! I love the comments about it being a mindset - that was a revelation to me. I'm going to try being more positive when I feel like I am melting. Thanks for the good advice.

Pam

 

[cliveywolves]

We got our fan mister sprayer thingy from Walmart once we got there it was about $5 I think...

 

[disneyholic family]

in orlando, it's the humidity as much as the heat that is uncomfortable..
i find my best bet is to get into this sort of zen place where i'm one with all the sweat...
i just become this one big sweat ball and i just become a part of it.

i know...sounds nuts..
but it seems to work for me...

also, regarding fluids...it does not have to be water...
children in particular sometimes have trouble drinking sufficient amounts of water...
let your kids drink whatever they want as long as they get fluids into them..

you might use the trick we used when the kids were little..
we used to hike a lot....and in our desert conditions you can become dehydrated within hours, so drinking enough is life and death..
so on our hikes and also in WDW, we would use the "mickey" game to get the kids to drink enough..
we would stop for a drink....everyone has to raise their water bottle to their lips and start drinking and keep drinking as i say "mickey mickey mickey mickey mickey etc etc"..
and they're not permitted to stop drinking until i finally say "mouse"..

it never failed to get them to drink....and drink enough...

and finally, we take very long air conditioned lunches during the summer....

 

[lancashire hotpot]

I personally find the heat easier to deal with in Florida than I do in some European destinations. Yes it's hot and humid but as everyone is saying , plenty of water, plan your day wisely and cooling misters are great. I try and find the shade as I'm walking around and hover a bit past shop entrances to get a quick blast of the cool air conditioning. As It generally has a shower of rain most days ( yet not for long) this does bring the temperature and humidity down to freshen up the air making it more comfortable again to enjoy more time around the parks. I have been three times in late august before and am going again next year. We find that the parks get quieter as the two weeks progress as some American schools go back earlier than us making the queues less busy. Again yes it is hot but defiantly manageable.

 

[disneyholic family]

by the way, about those fluids..

i sometimes am able to drink water, but i really hate water...

so when i need to hydrate i drink whatever....gallons and gallons of diet coke if necessary...
and yes, carbonation is bad, but not drinking is worse..

the health authorities where i live say drink whatever as long as you drink...
they prefer it to be water, but they're not purists. it's more important to hydrate. If you or a family member will not drink water, then drink whatever, but drink. (though of course NOT alcohol, but that goes without saying)