Backup Plan if (when) It Rains?

[Keneva]

We are staying at the Poly next week with our DD7 and DS3. What are some good backup plans if it rains more than just a shower while we are at the resort or if we are at the parks? Do most people just take it in stride and continue on with their plans:?

[mickeys_princess_mom]

If you're game to stay, a lot of people leave, and the lines get shorter! Wear shoes that you can slosh around in, and you may have one of your most fun days! We've found carrying the (dollar store) ponchos with us every day often wards off the rainclouds.

[LynneM]

Yes, most people just get a poncho and keep going, but enough people leave that it makes the lines shorter. You're mostly going from building to building; the great majority of rides are indoors, so it's not that much of a problem.

[Mickey91]

Unless we are planning to swim and it storms, we go on with what we were doing. The parks actually get a little less crowded and you can ride with less wait time. Do use caution though. The lightening is very dangerous. In the case of a strong storm with lots of lightening, we try to use that time for a snack or lunch/dinner and sometimes shopping. But, so does everyone else.

[conorsmom2000]

During our last trip, there was a quick, sudden down pour which cleared out the MK. This is what it looked like in front of the castle in the middle of the afternoon in late September. We just throw on the poncho's and keep going because so many other people leave!

[RPHX2NC]

Love the shot! I hope you got some of your family and the empty steet.

We usually stay at the park also. When rain pops up at the pool the lifeguards get out games and crafts. The kids loved that perk of staying at a Disney resort. They played games and made bead jewelry and we ordered drinks from the bar. It was fun for us too.

[mickeys_princess_mom]

During our last trip, there was a quick, sudden down pour which cleared out the MK. This is what it looked like in front of the castle in the middle of the afternoon in late September. We just throw on the poncho's and keep going because so many other people leave!

We have a couple of these, too. One is taken from the doorway of the castle on a rainy morning and looking back at Main Street, practically empty, and the other is of us posed in front of the castle halfway down the street. My friend said, "What do you notice about this picture?", and we realized no one was walking in the background!

[yjgirl32]

We were at Epcot when it rained. We had already been at the Electric Umbrella (I think) and by the time we left it was just drizzling so it wasn't too bad. It cleared out a lot of people and made gettig on the rides a lot easier. I loved it! Oh if it happens to be raining before your at a park- you might want to think about going to AK for the day- the animals are pretty frisky in the rain. Hope this helps.

[Marker]

When it rains, I get wet. But that's ok. In fact sometimes it feels pretty darned good. The way I see it, if I'm not wet from the rain, I'm probably wet from the sweat.

People always run for cover when it rains, afriad they'll melt I guess. But, many lines suddently disappear, and crowds go away ( or at least to other places).

I was once at Epcot looking for a place to grab a counter service meal when a storm decided to cut loose. The line at Cantina de San Angel
went from discouragingly long with no seats available , to there was bascially no one around in very short order. So I walked up to the counter, ordered my meal. Found a seat under an umbrella, and enjoyed my meal while watching it rain on the World Showcase Lagoon. It was really pretty cool. Best of all, there was no wait at all for the food, or for a table.

[brownie]

Our plan B is our pocket ponchos. We'll still go to the parks if that was our plan. There's plenty you can do even if it's raining.

[Aggie97]

We generally just keep touring in the rain; we put on inexpensive ($1 or less) ponchos that we don't mind throwing away after each use. But we've found that in heavy rain, it's nice to also use an umbrella -- it really helps keep the rain off our faces, heads and upper bodies. We use small, very lightweight travel umbrellas that don't take up much space in a backpack.

[kathiep]

Last Sept, we woke up to a drizzly day and decided to continue with our plan of going to the MK anyway.

We had a terrific time. We all had $1 store ponchos and the park was pretty darn empty.

The only thing I wish I had brought with me, which I will definately have this year was some long sleeved garments. DS & DD got pretty cold going in & out of the air conditioning when they were damp.

[disneygeek84]

I always laugh when it rains when I'm at home in Texas because I always try to stay inside. But when you're at Disney World, you just throw on a poncho and keep going.

We've never let the rain slow us down or stop us...even when we were little (we still have tons of Disney children ponchos from 15 years ago!) my mom would just throw a poncho over the stroller or on us and we'd keep moving.

And like a lot of other people have said, it clears the parks out when it rains for awhile or rains pretty hard. One year during Spring Break it rained most of the week, especially at night, so evening EMH were awesome. Nobody was there except a handful of people. It was awesome.

[Vito]

Another vote for ponchos.

If the rain is a quick rain, generally you don't find shorter lines. In fact, many attraction lines fill up when it starts raining as people scramble to the nearest one and hop in line.

If there's an extended rain though, that's when you can really take advantage of ponchos as many people either head out, stay put inside of various indoor places as they wait out the rain, etc. The lines get shorter progressively the longer the rain lasts, so it's to your advantage to be a poncho person.

Also, if there's some rain in the forecast or the skies look grim, put off eating. Then, if/when it rains, you can head to a restaurant to eat. It's a good way to kill 20-30 minutes while waiting out a thunderstorm, and then you're not losing any time out of your day.

If you're at Epcot and it starts raining, head for one of the long attractions. Future World is one of the best places to be when it rains - All the attractions are fairly short walking distance and there are some really long attractions. Ellen's Energy Adventure is 40 minutes long. You can also spend a lot of time at the Land pavilion - there's a food court so you can eat, Living with the Land boat ride, and Soarin. You can easily pass 1-2 hours in there depending on how long the line for Soarin is. The Seas is also a good pavilion to kill some time in during the rain. If you're near American Adventure, that's a 30 minute attraction (and one of my favorites) and another good way to stay out of the rain.

At DHS, there aren't really many time killers. The Great Movie Ride is a good one, and Muppetvision is good choice, but other than that there are no "long" attractions.

At AK, the Nemo musical will kill some time, as well as Festival of the Lion King.

At MK, Pirates is a good choice as well as Carousel of Progress.

So basically, my advice is to grab a poncho, and head to one of the longer attractions when it starts raining. You'll maximize your "indoor" time without having to wait out the rain, which most of the time is gone after 30 minutes. Hopping from "short" attraction to short attraction is probably the least fun activity, because you can't help but get wet, even with ponchos and umbrellas. You're constantly taking them off, trying to figure out where to put them when they're all wet, etc. Heading to a "time killer" attraction that will allow you to be inside one building for 30-60 minutes or more is a great way to ride out a thunderstorm.

[Vito]

Unless we are planning to swim and it storms, we go on with what we were doing. The parks actually get a little less crowded and you can ride with less wait time. Do use caution though. The lightening is very dangerous. In the case of a strong storm with lots of lightening, we try to use that time for a snack or lunch/dinner and sometimes shopping. But, so does everyone else.

This is perhaps just me, but I wouldn't worry about getting hit by lightning. Unless you're running through an empty field

WDW, being mostly flat, has lots of taller buildings and lightning rods everywhere. It's extremely unlikely that lightning will hit a person with all the buildings and lightning rods around. (Lightning attempts to find the quickest and easiest path to the ground. It is also "attracted" to sharp metal points that are grounded, which is why lightning rods are very effective. Lightning rods are connected by wires to the ground, and the electricity from the lightning travles down the cable/wire into the ground where it is dissipated. Lightning can strike people obviously, but with many more enticing targets like tall buildings and lightning rods, people are an extremely unlikely target).

The only safety recommendation I'd have while youre at the parks is to stay away from trees during a thunderstorm. You're probably quite safe anywhere else. I can't think of too many "wide open" areas that don't at least have some nearby tall structure with lightning rods at the moment, but if you happen to be in the middle of one, move near a building. Next to or inside buildings is the best place to be, near trees or in wide open areas is the worst. I would also recommend against running up and hugging a flagpole.

[Texas Tinkerbell Too]

I always laugh when it rains when I'm at home in Texas...

Rain in Texas? Yes, that kinda makes me laugh, too. Actually, I would cry tears of joy if it would rain in Texas right now. LOL!

Yes, we also throw the cheap ponchos on and "just keep swimming..."

[Belle619]

Yes, we bring ponchos (that we buy at home from Target or Wal-Mart) and flip-flops in our bag, that way if it rains we're able to just keep going!

I have to say that if they are predicting rain for the whole trip (as was the case when we last went) splurge and buy the heavier ponchos. We had both kinds, but my $1 poncho sprung a leak after the first day!!!

[Guya103]

We keep going! The rain in the summer heat feels great.