January?

[Wolf]

Ok so mom suprised me tonight and told me she's been thinking about us going in January for my 21st birthday instead of Christmas like we had talked about before.

So my question is, how is Jaunary? Crowds, temps. etc anything else pointers, tips for that time of year? Thanks Intercotees!

[Mickey 101]

As you can see from my signature, that is our favorite time of year to go. It is the least crowded and there are good deals on accomodations since its value season. Weather is a concern. There's not much rain, but you can encounter very chilly temps, so we always take jeans, sweatshirts, winter coats and even gloves to layer on and off throughout the day in the parks. The lowest we've experienced was in the 30's during the day, but some weeks have been in the 70's and 80's, so its a mixed bag. The low crowds are a big enough draw for us to tolerate non-ideal weather. Have a great trip!

[faline]

When in January are you planning to go? If you're going over New Year's, you could find large crowds.

Later in the month, you have the marathon and Martin Luther King weekends. The marathon doesn't impact park crowds much but can impact transportation to the parks the day it is run. Crowds do increase over the Martin Luther King weekend.

The rest of the month is pretty quiet. This year, they had the Pirates and Princess parties which were really fun.

As noted, weather is unpredictable and can range from quite nice to quite chilly. When we were there in January of this year, we experienced chilly weather - only had one day that might have been warm enough for swimming. Some of the weather we experienced required winter coats.

[Jenemmy]

Also FYI ---- we are going to be going in January as well, and Magical Journeys told me that rates for next year would be out mid summer

[Wolf]

^_^ We are talking about somewhere around Jan. 18-25-ish. (my birthday is the 20th). We really decided to do this because it is my 21st and we've never been able to go to Pleasure Island before, and we've seen the Christmas stuff, and had already decided not to go to the Christmas party so she mentioned that to me instead. When we looked up about the value rates it nearly sold us LOL. So sweaters and tank tops both *check* Think they will do the Pirate and Princess party this year?

[DizNee143]

in my eyes january is like THEE best time to go to Disney!! the weather can be a bit cooler..but i rather be cold than all hot and sweaty!! the crowds are pretty minamal (sp?)..you will get spoiled with the wait times!! lol...but whatever you decide to do..hope you have a great time...and happy early bday!!

[Wolf]

^_^ Thank yall!!! I'm so glad we picked a good time to go this year, and thank yall for the b-day wishes!

[faline]

^_^ We are talking about somewhere around Jan. 18-25-ish. (my birthday is the 20th).

This year, we arrived around the time you're talking about leaving. Crowd-wise, it was a good time to be in the World. Weather-wise, we apparently just missed good weather and arrived in time for cold weather which persisted throughout our trip.

If they have the Pirates and Princess party, be sure to go! And...dress up! It was great fun!

[dntccc]

Ok so mom suprised me tonight and told me she's been thinking about us going in January for my 21st birthday instead of Christmas like we had talked about before.

So my question is, how is Jaunary? Crowds, temps. etc anything else pointers, tips for that time of year? Thanks Intercotees!

We were debating whether to go in Jan. 2008 or the last week in Nov. 2007. Two big concerns to us was weather (did not want to deal with really hot temperatures) and wait times (would like to have relatively short waits for rides/attractions). We have never been when the Christmas decorations are up and factored this in our planning as well.

At one time we were planning to go in Jan. since I found out that the crowds during then are very low (from what I understand lower than during late Nov./early Dec.), but after researching a little I found out that during Jan. there is a good chance that one or more major attractions could be closed for refurbishment/maintenance. I also found out that crowds are larger during late Nov/early Dec than they used to be. However, right now we are booked for 11/25-12/1 with the main reason being to avoid any major attractions being closed. However, if WDW releases the scheduled closings of attractions for Jan. in time for us to alter our plans, we may still decide to go in Jan. 2008 (provided the closed attractions are something we can live with missing.)

I did not see anyone mention the possibility of major attractions being shut down during Jan. so I thought I would mention that in case that would be an important factor in your trip.

[Wolf]

I did not see anyone mention the possibility of major attractions being shut down during Jan. so I thought I would mention that in case that would be an important factor in your trip.

Yeah I never thought about that, anyone know where you can find out about closings?

[Beast_fanatic]

Most refurbs aren't announced more than 45 days in advance (unless it's something long term).

[EvilQueen2006]

yes refurbs are something to consider, Splash, RNRC and El Rio de Tempo, were all down when I went this past January. The crowds were a little more than I expected due to the marathon, but still very managable. Weather was good overall, a couple of chilly days.

[MinnieMommie]

I have been to Disney every week in January and I particularly like the time of month you are considering. The first week is really crowded with holiday vacationeers and ending with the marathon weekend. I've experienced exteam weather during January and one time there was record cold with frost that damaged the orange crop. Other than the first week of the month the crowds are generally low. It also warms up a bit as the month progresses.