best time of the year to go to disney

[poohbear07]

What is the best time of the year to go to disney for a couple with a 4 yr old?

[Kenny1113]

I used to like Oct but I have found it to be too busy. Now Jan is my favorite, smaller crowds and nice weather.

[Strmchsr]

There's ups and downs to every time of the year. There really isn't a time with "small" crowds any more. January is even much bigger with WDW becoming popular for South American tourists on their summer break. And, as this January proved, it can get quite cold on occasions (it was 31 for the high with snow flurries when we arrived a couple of weeks ago). So, I would say the best time to go is whenever you want to. Don't go during the most crowded weeks (Christmas week 4th of July, Easter, etc) but other than that just pick what you want to see - Flower and Garden Festival, Halloween party, Christmas party, etc and then folks on here can tell you how to best manage at that time of the year.

[WelshieLover]

We have gone to the world the Jan 3 - 10 2009 and Jan 23 - 30 2010. Both times we lucked out with great weather and few crowds. However you never know with January weather had we gone the same week in 2010 was we had in 2009 we would have experienced the extreme cold weather they had. There were a lot of tour groups from Brazil there both years but it still was uncrowded on the weekdays. The only standby waits were at Toy Story Mania, where the fast passes were distributed really quickly by early morning.

When our children were younger often we would go in late August the week before Labor Day. If you can stand heat and humidity then that week is relatively not crowded. We spent much of the afternoon at the pool or resting and took every opportunity to do the parks at night.

As the previous poster said if you avoid the big holiday weeks you will have a good experience.

My sister in law and her family were there this past Christmas week and it sounded miserable!

[ThanxForNoticin]

What is the best time of the year to go to disney for a couple with a 4 yr old?

I'm not sure there is a single answer to your question. I think it depends on what you mean by 'best time of year'.

Are you looking for least crowded? If so, you'd want to consider January into mid-February.

Are you looking for nice weather for swimming? If so, January can be very iffy, so you might look at late September through mid-November. It will be busier, but the weather is often nice (although it is toward the end of hurricane season).

Are you looking for something special with a 4 year-old? If so, I'd highly recommend going when the Christmas decorations are up. It is awesome.

So all this being said, my personal opinion and recommendation might be to go early in December, perhaps the week after Thanksgiving. The crowds are often managable, the weather is usually good, and the place is all decorated.

Enjoy your trip, whenever you decide to go. It's a special time to enjoy Disney with a 4 year-old! Have fun!

[PittFan]

The best time for us has been right after Labor Day in early September and the middle of October. We experienced beautiful weather, low crowds ( we were able to get ADR's for almost every restaurant we wanted) and we love the Halloween displays and Food & Wine Festival. Thats just our opinion though.

[FutureFairygodmother]

I agree with early Dec. Low crowds, nice weather and everything looks extra special for Christmas. Just watch out for the cheerleaders and pop warner people. I think they come the first week in Dec. Though we only found a problem, crowd wise at the hotel - not in the parks.

[bruin1344]

early-mid May is a great time, not too humid weather, low crowds, and barely any rain

[Tink#64]

early-mid May is a great time, not too humid weather, low crowds, and barely any rain

We've visited 3x in mid May and had wonderful luck with crowds & weather! But, the week leading up to the MD holiday weekend is noticibly more crowded! My DS's are now 12 & 14 and I no longer want to pull them out of school for a week so not a feasible time for us now, but when they were younger it was perfect! The only "crowds" we ran into were some school field trips in Epcot, but whenever we saw them gathering at one of the attractions we switched up & went another direction. Not that the groups were offensive in any way, but we moved on due to expected stand by lines & wait times! During mid May we've never waited in a stand by line more than 20 minutes, if stand by wait times exceeded that mark, we'd fp & move on! Very manageable & able to visit all the attractions without long waits!

[MIKESMOM]

We enjoy early to mid October. The crowds have always been very manageable & the weather pleasant(sometimes a little cool in the evening) We love the Food & Wine Festival, not that your 4 year old would care about this, but it is great fun for the adults.
Happy planning

[DizneyRox]

Outside of Christmas, I enjoy the summer months. Everyone complains about the heat and the crowds, but that's never slowed us down. Going off peaks, you're more likely to find refurbs impacting your trip, and reduced hours can put a lot of people off.

I've found more choices in the summer, rather than being funneled towards the last remaining open park, etc.

That's just how I feel. With a 4 you don't have to worry too much about school, so the year if more open

[NJDad]

I'd pick Nov or Dec, avoiding the big holidays though.

[DisneyFr33k]

We enjoy early to mid October. The crowds have always been very manageable & the weather pleasant(sometimes a little cool in the evening) We love the Food & Wine Festival, not that your 4 year old would care about this, but it is great fun for the adults.
Happy planning

We always go mid to late October or even the beginning of November. We LOVE the Food and Wine Festival! Also, when our kids were at that age, they love the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party - that had a blast!

[RAIDER]

The first 2 weeks in Dec
The parks are relatively quiet, especially the first week . And you have have the added bonus of the Christmas Decorations

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

We've gone around Sept 20 and the first week in Dec. Managable crowds both times. Dec was definitely cooler but the end of Sept was decent. And both parties are fun but I think a little one would have more fun at MNSSHP as it felt more interactive. But the Christmas decorations can't be beat either.

[ryca1dreams]

Everyone has an opinion, so here's mine:
Travelling with a 4 year old, I would avoid December-January as weather was pretty unpredictable when we went. I would avoid summer because of crowds and hot/humid weather. Of course, all this depends on the 4 year old.
Personally, our 5 year old (now 12) and young nieces/nephews really enjoyed October - crowds were manageable, weather was great, the MNSSHP was fun, and the shortened park hours (relative to summer) didn't bother anyone. Plus you may find a discount this year...

[joonyer]

We like February and October. Warm enough to swim, but less crowded and not too hot. But we are limited as to when we can go at those times to whenever we have school holidays. This month we're going on our first Disney cruise instead of visiting WDW.

[elmjimmlm]

We really enjoyed the week between Christmas and New Years...It is a very busy week but the decorations and the "feeling" that you get is the best...We actually did get on everything and got to see things that aren't normally in the parks...There are ways to enjoy without worry about the crowds...

[passholderryan]

I prefer Sunday-Saturdays, and anytime between January- December!!! We tend to pick times when its least crowded. Middle of January is my favorite because its cold and rainy (usually). Now I know some will say its not cold, but when you live in Ft Lauderdale, if it gets in the 50's its cold. We always go the middle of December (around the 15-19th). The week before the madness. Another good time is after Spring Break and early September. It all depends on how much time you can get away. We do go for 3 weekends during the Food and Wine Fest. Usually the first and last weekend and once in between. The last weekend is crazy!!!

[eeyorepoohfan]

I've been to Disney World mostly in the summer months. Found it to be a little too warm for my liking (and I grew up in Phoenix). My hubby and I went for our first trip Dec 10-15,2009. We found the crowds and weather to be great! It started a little cool and drizzly and ended up warm and humid, but very manageable! We saw sooo much of Disney World and walked on or had very little wait for everything!! My sister, brother-in-law, and nearly 5 year old niece went Dec 7-12,2009. They said the crowds were even lighter and the weather was perfect! Plus the Christmas decorations made it extra special. Seeing it through the eyes of my niece was amazing!