What are the pros and cons of October?

[mom2morgan]

I'm really struggling with my dates!

[emmatink]

We have gone three times ('07, '09 & '10)the week before halloween and we have had a blast. The crowds were not bad at all, but a warning is needed if you decide to do the MNSSHP on Halloween night! We have never been so disappointed in 2009's Halloween night. It was packed shoulder to shoulder with people. In 2010 we went to one of the party's the week before Halloween and it was great! When halloween night falls on the weekend it has been bad news for us. So it might be the MNNSHP weekend party where the locals come and pack the park out, not too sure. The weather is a toss up in central florida for late October. The nights were wonderful and the days were either great or really hot!!

[Jillirose]

We've gone once in October(Halloween weekend). The pros to me were the weather and we literally walked on every ride! There seemed to be a lot of special entertainment and a festive atmosphere about. It was about 8 years ago, so it may be busier now. The con was also the weather (a few days were very hot). I also think in more recent years there have been room discounts and/or free dining.

[ryca1dreams]

I love October:
- smaller crowds, but not as small as September
- cooler weather than September
- good rates on rooms
- sometimes special offers
- MNSSHP
- Food and Wine Festival

We like mid October. It's always worked out for us. Enjoy.

[dizne4me]

The end of October is usually my favorite time of year to be in WDW--however, last year F&W was sooooo crowded when we were there--you had to fight your way through the crowd. The other parks were less crowded and very low wait times. It was perfect weather the first day we got there and (of course) our last day - in between they were having some freakishly hot August weather. I think the next time we go will be late February early March.

[Belster]

No cons for October for us!!:mickey:

The only problem is that we have to pull the kiddos out of school when we go...we love October!

[yjgirl32]

I personally did not like Oct.

- too crowded- have gone in May and Sept and it was much less crowded
- I am a picky eater so not into the F&W festival
- MNSSHP was way more crowded in Oct than Sept- which I expected

One pro was less hot- but we like the pool and water parks so sort of a con for us.

Again this is just me.

[Disney Doll]

Pros:

Cooler than Sept, but still summer like. Great for swimming and still shorts weather, but you don't break into a sweat the minute you step outside.

F&W Festival- I'm not a huge foodie, but it was a lot of fun. Everything we sampled was so good and it was a festive atmosphere.

MNSSHP- I can't really get in the mood for Halloween in Sept so I prefer the Oct parties. We avoid weekends and the last week leading up to Halloween. We love the Halloween party!

Con:
It is more crowded than Sept, but it's not overly crowded. To me the weather more than makes up for the slight increase in crowds.

Really the only reason we don't do more Oct trips is because it's sometimes a difficult month for my husband to get away from work.

[DisneyDINK]

I went in 2008 in October. I'm always looking for the least crowded time of year, but I have discovered there really is no slam-dunk perfect time to go for crowds. I say you avoid the crazy-busy times (Xmas, Easter, 4th of July and any big holiday weekend) and just go when you have the time. I thought this January would be dead, but like half of Brazil was there on their summer holiday!

The crowds in October were more than I thought (hoped) they would be, but they were fine. F&W is kind of fun, but in the era of the dining plan who needs food between meals? Weather as a rule is awesome (but you never know!)

[disneymomma2010]

I have been several different times, including september, and october is our favorite time to go! It did not seem more crowded when we went, it was great. And the weather was perfect. We didnt burn up but could still play in the pool.
You can go on intecot and check the calender for the mnsshp. Magic kingdom does not have it everyday. We didnt stay for it but we went on a day that they didnt have it so the park stayed open later, that was the most crowded of all the parks the whole trip. We went back on our last day when they were having it, and closed early for it and it wasnt near as crowded, we breezed through the rides. So... we learned not to go on the days that they dont have it because they are more crowded, even though they close earlier for the party, you still get more done because you dont have to wait as long.

[ryca1dreams]

Con:
It is more crowded than Sept, but it's not overly crowded. To me the weather more than makes up for the slight increase in crowds.


This is true, but honestly I kind of like some people there - it just makes it more of a fun atmosphere. It is not overly crowded like Disney Doll said - no hordes of people at every attraction. I think it is "just right".

[IloveDisney71]

I'm glad the original poster asked this question because I've been thinking about going in October and I've never been in October. I've never been to MNSSHP and I really want to experience the parade and fireworks. I think Halloween is a really fun holiday. :mpumpkin:

[Dsnygirl]

We LOVE Disney in October... it's our favorite time to go, so no "cons" from me. We're missing it terribly right now, as we didn't go last year and won't hit October this year, either. :(

The weather is beautiful... cool in the mornings, warm in the afternoons, cool again in the evening... although you can get the occasional hot spell like we did in '09, and have really warm, humid mornings that turn into 90 degree days... but then you just head to a water park or a water ride and you're fine!

Not to mention... you've got MNSSHP and all the GREAT decorations at MK... the F&W Fest at Epcot which is superb...

Sigh... did I really say we won't make it in October this year?? ;)

(PS - and as far as dates... we've been mid-October and it was lovely, not very crowded... and we've been the end of the month through Nov 1st and found it a bit busier, and actually warmer, although I think that was a fluke. Really, though, I think anytime in October is wonderful...)

[Jeri Lynn]

I love October also.

The weather is great.

I'm not really into the F & W Festival but love listening to the Eat to the Beat Concerts. Epcot is considerably busier in the evenings during this time.

Love the Halloween party!

[spinnerf]

Personally, having gone in early October a few times, I found the crowds to be lwer than any other time of the year. While the Haloween Party and Food and Wine can get crowded, and they are great events to take advantage of, the parks were pretty easy to navigate. I remember one year riding Peter Pan over and over in the same day!

[Mickey'sGirl]

October is my favourite time to go. We have a long weekend for Thanksgiving during October, and we like to tag a holiday onto that somehow .... We love the Food and Wine Festival, and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party .... the weather has always been great too. It's a great time to go! :thumbsup:

[WDWCrazyKaren]

All of our trips used to be in October. We went at least 10 times that time of year. However, with the F & W Festival, the heat (yes, 90's was very normal) and the free dining, we just couldn't hack the crowds any more. We're now Janaury people!

[PetefromRI]

We've gone in October before and the only con was the chance of a hurricane,so be aware of the weather.I don't think that there is really any completely dead times to go anymore but October is pretty good.I'd have to go with mid Oct. and we're pool people so the Fall heat doesn't bother us unless your gonna be a park commando then it could be tough.

[joonyer]

October is definitely our favorite time to visit WDW. We love MNSSHP, the weather is much cooler (and less humid) than April through September, but still warm enough to swim and enjoy the water parks. And we've always found the crowds to be much better than the summer months or spring break times.

[NJGIRL]

The end of October is usually my favorite time of year to be in WDW--however, last year F&W was sooooo crowded when we were there--you had to fight your way through the crowd. The other parks were less crowded and very low wait times.

We have always gone in Oct and usually spend 3 days in EPCOT. We have never had a problem until last year. The crowds were terrible during the F & W, not only in number but in rude behavior. We saw alot of things going on that shouldn't have been at Disney. Alot of "drinking groups" that were drunk. I saw some people throwing trash on the ground, people spitting in the flower beds and alot of loud trash talk and cursing. I couldn't believe that Disney was allowing it to go on. The others parks were fine, for that matter Future World was fine, the real problem was in the World Showcase on the weekend.

I was back in November while the F & W was still going on and had the same experience. I think Disney is letting this get out of hand and was really disappointed with them for their lack of controlling the situation.

[DisneyFr33k]

No cons for October for us!!:mickey:

The only problem is that we have to pull the kiddos out of school when we go...we love October!

:exactly::ditto: We've only gone in mid-late Oct/early Nov. Our perk is our kids are in year round school so we've had three weeks off to vacation during this beautiful time of year.

[azcavalier]

We've been in October every year since they started offering the free DDP. My DW plans it so that we get there on the last day of the free DDP offer, so it's good our entire trip. Her thinking is that most people coming for the DDP will have their vacation fall within the dates, and that they will mostly have left by that point. Since we've never been in September, I can't say whether that's accurate or not.

That said, we really enjoy October, except for Oct. '09. Like a previous poster said, that October had record heat, with the daytime highs reaching the mid 90's. It was incredible.

However, it seems to us that Octobers are busier than they used to be in the parks. The crowds are worse than they used to be, and it seems to us that it has gotten worse every year for the past three years. The first couple of times we came in October, lines weren't bad at all. The last few years have seen attractions with lines that topped an hour wait, which hadn't happened previously.

Still, it's better than August!

[PetefromRI]

We have always gone in Oct and usually spend 3 days in EPCOT. We have never had a problem until last year. The crowds were terrible during the F & W, not only in number but in rude behavior. We saw alot of things going on that shouldn't have been at Disney. Alot of "drinking groups" that were drunk. I saw some people throwing trash on the ground, people spitting in the flower beds and alot of loud trash talk and cursing. I couldn't believe that Disney was allowing it to go on. The others parks were fine, for that matter Future World was fine, the real problem was in the World Showcase on the weekend.

I was back in November while the F & W was still going on and had the same experience. I think Disney is letting this get out of hand and was really disappointed with them for their lack of controlling the situation.
We're starting to see alot more of this behavior all year long and it's really to bad.If you can't respect Disney World and the other families around you,then don't go.I'm afraid that it's just a different world today then 20 or 30 years ago.I just don't get the swearing in public and thinking that it's O.K..My parents would have washed my mouth out with soap.Unfortunatly it's the parents with the worse mouths.