Does AK seem hotter than the other parks?

[chefmickey3]

We have historically gone to Disney in the summer months. Has anyone else noticed that AK seems hotter than the other parks? We always try to do it in half a day because it is so unbearable. Why is it so hot?!?

[alilprincessmom99]

I can't comment as to why, but I can say, yes, it does seem to be much hotter than the other parks. I can only guess that it has something to do with all of the foliage or something of that nature?

[joanna71985]

Yes, it definitely is.

[jennsky]

I thought it was only me who thought that! I wonder if maybe it's because most lineups are outdoors instead of indoors? (Not sure if that's accurate, but seems that way). I do like Animal Kingdom but that is one of my big dislikes about it. It's almost worth going on a rainy day to avoid the heat!

[disneykid99]

I laughed when I saw this great thread. It is hotter. We go every September and it is so hot. We thought we just happened to pick the hottest day of the week each time we went to AK. I am glad to know it is not in our heads :whew: The plants must give off more humidity or something.

[faline]

The park was built over some sort of natural hot spot - at least that's my theory!!!

[tundramom]

It's hotter :thedolls::flame::camp: I think it's the lack of overhead cover combined with it's large size. I always tell newbies that it's the hottest! I've gotten to the point where I check the forecast when we arrive and pick the day that has the lowest temps or highest rain likelihood, even if it means cutting short to make an ADR elsewhere (we always have a day or two free to repeat).

[mickey&missy]

It really is!! I don't get it! I swear it's at least 10 - 15 degrees hotter!

[kakn7294]

My theory is that a great deal more of the park is outdoors and the buildings are farther apart therefore, there is less A/C cooling the air (even outdoors) and there are fewer places to go to escape the heat than at the other parks. It is cooler there now that much of the trees have grown up and it's more shaded than it was 10 yrs ago, but it's still hotter than the other parks!

[Eeyore's My Favorite]

I'm not on the track here - I think that DHS is the hottest park. It's so small and everything is so much more compact than the other parks & you cram all those people into that small a place & it becomes overwhelming & extremely hot. It was so bad last September that we actually left DHS & went home. I just couldn't take all the heat, all the concrete & macadem. At least at AK you are more spread out & you can find places to cool off or sit down & people watch. So much at DHS is just out in the open & the sun bakes you. JMHO..:(

[PrincessEmmasMommy]

We asked a CM about this last year. They said yes it is hotter because of all of the tropical plants they have there. The plants make it hotter.
Jen

[Gator]

How about this theory: Since it always closes before the sun goes down, you never get to experience the cool down effect you get at all the other parks. Once that sun goes down, the heat sure lets up a lot.

[Gottaluvgoof]

I'm not on the track here - I think that DHS is the hottest park. It's so small and everything is so much more compact than the other parks & you cram all those people into that small a place & it becomes overwhelming & extremely hot. It was so bad last September that we actually left DHS & went home. I just couldn't take all the heat, all the concrete & macadem. At least at AK you are more spread out & you can find places to cool off or sit down & people watch. So much at DHS is just out in the open & the sun bakes you. JMHO..:(


:ditto: I totally agree!

[TheRustyScupper]

We asked a CM about this last year. They said yes it is hotter because of all of the tropical plants they have there. The plants make it hotter.
Jen

1) Tropical plants.
2) Very narrow aisles/walkways.
3) Tall plants obstructing low-to-medium breezes.
4) Buildings close together, restricting air flow.
5) High buildings-to-walkway ratio.

[Mousemates]

My thought is similar to Gator's...i.e since we are only in the AK during the daylight hours...all our memories of it are naturally warmer ones.

[Polynesian Dweller]

Yep, it feels hotter because your body can't cool itself by evaporation very efficiently in there. As Rusty says, the tight areas and tropical plants mean that the breezes don't come through there very well. Less breeze, less cooling by evaporation.

[PirateLover]

Honestly, this is one of the main reasons AK is our least favorite park. Even in December when we are wearing sweatshirts in other parks, we leave AK sweating by 1pm. Blech.

[Stu29573]

I agree with Rusty. I've always thought that it was because of the poor air flow. It's pretty much impossible to catch a good breeze there...

[WedWay Peoplemover]

This is EXACTLY why.... Obviously, if you put a thermometer in each of the 4 parks at the same time on the same day, they would all be the same. (or one degree off. they're just a few miles apart) That's just the way the weather works.

There are just a few attractions in the A/C as compared with EPCOT, Studios, or the Magic Kingdom.

Think about it...

see... makes sense, doesn't it....



My theory is that a great deal more of the park is outdoors and the buildings are farther apart therefore, there is less A/C cooling the air (even outdoors) and there are fewer places to go to escape the heat than at the other parks. It is cooler there now that much of the trees have grown up and it's more shaded than it was 10 yrs ago, but it's still hotter than the other parks!

[MushuMulan]

I don't see much difference in the temperature when I go to the parks, and the only time I do, I think DHS is the hottest!

I don't think I ever remembered AK being any warmer than the rest, although I can see how others would see that due to the lack of indoor queues (as opposed to the other parks).

[playdead88]

i thought it was just me too! it always seemed hotter to me than any other park - we usually get there at rope drop and do as much as we can in the a.m or go there at night

[letsdoitagain]

Yes! I think AK and Epcot are both hotter than DHS and MK. :whew:

[castlelady36]

1) Tropical plants.
2) Very narrow aisles/walkways.
3) Tall plants obstructing low-to-medium breezes.
4) Buildings close together, restricting air flow.
5) High buildings-to-walkway ratio.

I always thought it was hotter there....now I know it was not just my imagination!!!

[RBrooksC]

I went to WDW last September and I can honestly say that all the parks were oppressively hot. The difference I think with AK is the idea of it being hotter. It is modeled after Africa, Asia and other areas that have a reputation for being hot, especially when one considers we usually associate the equatorial areas with much of the territory represented by AK. The mind has a way of taking something and making it worse.

Yes, there is less of a breeze, but plant respiration will allow for some cooling even if the plant is tropical.

If you take a look at the park, all the queues, buildings and shops, are open air shops. So, that doesn't allow for the same cooling as when you go into a shop at DHS or EPCOT.

[brownie]

Yes, it does feel hotter. The temperature may be the same, but I bet the heat index is higher in Animal Kingdom than the other parks. It wouldn't really feel like Africa, though, if it wasn't hot.

[kathiep]

We've always thought the same thing. The heat seems so much more oppressive at AK. You never really seem to get any hint of a breeze and the humidity seems twice as bad.

[DisneyDoug2]

I have to agree AK always seems hotter then the other parks even in January when we typically go the DW. In addition to being hotter then the other parks, it always seems crowded then the other parks due to the smaller streets.

[Stickey]

This is a common perception. In reality, it only appears hotter. It gets extremely hot and humid in FL, and it is hot at all locations on WDW property.

It may appear hotter due to the longer walks between the different areas of the AK, fewer attractions with AC, and the tropical environment. Nothing compares to standing in the sun and the crowds prior to/during the parade at MK.

[Young@Heart]

DH and I have always said this! After about 2-3 hours there, I'm beat! And there seems to be little you can do to cool down. And would you believe we've planned this park for our last day?!! :blush:

[DisneyOtaku]

I think so too! I do think it has something to do with more of the lines being outside. It just feels so hot there--that's why we always hit Kali River Rapids to cool off :thumbsup:

[Jasper]

We asked a CM about this last year. They said yes it is hotter because of all of the tropical plants they have there. The plants make it hotter.
Jen

This is actually close to the correct answer but is not quite correct. It is not the plants themselves, it is actually the humidity that is created by virtue of all the water needed to keep the plants watered and the animals with something to drink. And to a smaller degree there is a problem with the heavy plant coverage blocking what little air movement there might be in the park. When we took the "behind the seeds" tour that they used to offer at the "Our Land Pavilion" at Epcot one of the other guests asked this very question and one of the plant experts told us this.

According to this CM this issue was raised very quickly both by CMs that work at Animal Kingdom and by guests very shortly after the park opened. This CM said he was asked to be on a team to research the issue and they ran thermometers and hydrometers (to measure humidity levels) and found, as others have already said, that the air temperature was essentially identical to the other parks but the humidity was much higher. This CM went on to say that Disney was working on various ideas to improve the situation but had not come up with much as of that time. (This was just one or two years after Animal Kingdom opened.) When someone suggested they add more misters over walkways as has been done in some places he said that only offered relief while the person was directly under it and only added to the overall humidity level in the park in areas away from the misters. What he said they were working on was finding ways to set up very large fans to move the air better but still have the fans hidden from the view of the guests.

[jonahbear2006]

That all makes a lot of sense. I happen to believe, also, that there is a pyscohological effect that the park has on people. The ground is desert colored and this gives us a warm feeling, thinking of hot and dry. We went for evening magic hours and that was all the time we spent in the park and still we felt very hot because of the look of the park. I felt that the canopy actually felt cooling, and blocked the suns rays, in the early evening, and that way nice. But I think that the thought of being in a jungle or a desert just makes us feel hot, just as going to blizzard beach cools us down, just by the looks of the park itself.

[DestinationWDW]

I always thought is was part of the affect, you know Africa. But now that I read the threads it does make sense about the plants and humidy.

[#1donaldfan]

Ok, am I the ONLY one one here that's going to dis-agree with these threads??????? I have always thought that EC was the hottest.....EC has NO cover, unless your in a building....NONE !!! At least at AK you can walk in the shade a bit.....

....please someone chime in with me here, this limb I'm on is very lonely........:blush:

[Snow's Mom]

Hottest park in my opinion is DHS. AK has misters and the Kali River Rapids ride and opportunities for shade. Yes, it's humid. Guess I'm used to that.

But DHS---sun beating down on the asphalt and a zillion people crammed into a small area. Lots of buildings offer an escape from the heat, but the streets are stifling.

Epcot? It rained everytime we went to Norway, so I can't comment on the heat!

[mickeys_princess_mom]

This is actually close to the correct answer but is not quite correct. It is not the plants themselves, it is actually the humidity that is created by virtue of all the water needed to keep the plants watered and the animals with something to drink. And to a smaller degree there is a problem with the heavy plant coverage blocking what little air movement there might be in the park. When we took the "behind the seeds" tour that they used to offer at the "Our Land Pavilion" at Epcot one of the other guests asked this very question and one of the plant experts told us this.

According to this CM this issue was raised very quickly both by CMs that work at Animal Kingdom and by guests very shortly after the park opened. This CM said he was asked to be on a team to research the issue and they ran thermometers and hydrometers (to measure humidity levels) and found, as others have already said, that the air temperature was essentially identical to the other parks but the humidity was much higher. This CM went on to say that Disney was working on various ideas to improve the situation but had not come up with much as of that time. (This was just one or two years after Animal Kingdom opened.) When someone suggested they add more misters over walkways as has been done in some places he said that only offered relief while the person was directly under it and only added to the overall humidity level in the park in areas away from the misters. What he said they were working on was finding ways to set up very large fans to move the air better but still have the fans hidden from the view of the guests.
This is all really interesting! Being from Louisiana I can relate to this humidity thing....
I've always thought this park was the "hottest"...