January 2013 at Walt Disney World
OVERVIEW: JANUARY 2013 AT DISNEY WORLD
This page reviews January 2013 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, operating hours, adds a few other notes, and ends with week by week summaries.
JANUARY 2013 CROWDS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
After the New Year’s holiday period is over, January is one of the least crowded periods at Walt Disney World. The marathon weekend (1/12 through 1/14) and Martin Luther King holiday weekend (1/19-1/21) will be the busiest times other than the first 4 or 5 days.
See this for more on 2013 crowds at Disney World.
JANUARY 2013 PRICES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
January has 5 price seasons–3 the first week!–but after the first week, Walt Disney World resort hotel prices are as low as they get all year. They pop up a little over the Marathon and Martin Luther King day weekends.
See this for more on 2013 prices at Walt Disney World.
JANUARY 2013 DEALS AND DISCOUNTS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
You can find deals for January 2013 here.
JANUARY 2013 WEATHER AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
January weather is cooler and variable. Cold, rainy days—not uncommon—are great for first time visitors, as they reduce the crowds in the parks and make the rides easier to see with low waits. Returning visitors looking for good days to lounge around the pool should not count on many.
Click the image, or go to Weather and When to Go to Disney World, for more on temperatures.
(When open, click again to enlarge.)
JANUARY 2013 OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
Park operating hours vary by the day, and sometimes change without notice. It is rare for hours to be shorter than Disney has publicized, but Disney may lengthen them in response to unanticipated crowds.
The best way to keep up with operating hours is to check Disney’s official calendars, usually available six months in advance.
These calendars can be found by clicking the following links:
The calendars can be tricky to use–see this for hints on how to work with Walt Disney World’s online calendars.
OTHER NOTES AND COMMENTS ON JANUARY 2013 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
January and, to a lesser extent, February are the most common periods for rides to be closed for refurbishment.
This makes these months less good for first time visitors who do not know if they will return—why go when the chances of missing something great are high?
The Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend is 1/12 through 1/14/2013. This can add congestion to the parks, and unusual traffic patterns to the roads around them.
WEEK BY WEEK COMMENTS FOR JANUARY 2013 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD BY ARRIVAL DATE
The week rankings that follow below are from 2013 weeks to visit, ranked in order, and are designed for first-time visitors who do not know whether or not they will return.
Click the image for a calendar view of 2013 weeks (when open, keep clicking to enlarge.)
12/29/2012 End of New Years week; prices and crowds start very high, but both drop a bit starting late in the week. Crowd ranking=9. Routine ride closures for rehab and maintenance may begin late in the week. Week ranking=52. Use the Autumn-Winter-Spring Itinerary but see this for required changes
1/5/2013 Prices and crowds begin very low then build again for Marathon weekend. Crowd ranking=3. Weather remains cooler and variable, and routine ride closures for rehab and maintenance continue. Marathon at beginning of week. Week ranking=48. Use the Autumn-Winter-Spring Itinerary but see this for required changes
1/12/2013 Prices and crowds begin higher for the Marathon weekend then drop to low levels. Crowd ranking=3. Weather remains cooler and variable, and ride closures for rehab and maintenance continue. Week ranking=50. Use the Autumn-Winter-Spring Itinerary
1/19/2103 Prices and crowds kick up for the Martin Luther King holiday weekend, then drop again. Crowd ranking=3. Weather remains cooler and variable, and routine ride closures for rehab and maintenance continue. Week ranking=49. Use the Autumn-Winter-Spring Itinerary
1/26/2013 Lowest prices and crowds of the year. Crowd ranking=1. Weather remains cooler and variable. Routine ride closures for rehab and maintenance. Week ranking=47. Use the Autumn-Winter-Spring Itinerary
MORE ON WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD
- For when to go to Walt Disney World, see this
- For the next best dates, see this
- For the best and worst times to visit, see this
- For 2013 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
- For the 2013 Week Picker, click here
- For 2014 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
- For forecasting crowds at Walt Disney World, see this
- For the 2013 Crowd Calendar, click here
- For the 2014 Crowd Calendar, click here
- For seasonal pricing at Walt Disney World, see this
- For 2013 price seasons, click here
- For projected 2014 price seasons, see this
- For weather at Walt Disney World, see this
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9 comments
I will wait for February’s suggestions then, since I will be there in early February.
However, I would like to add a piece of advise regarding temperature. This year I arrived in late January and the temperature on my first day was around 38F (3 celsius) and I had practically not packed much of winter clothing because weather.com was forecasting 60F. I tried to buy something at the PArks but not much of a choice was available.
Below 60F temperature was a standard during the first days but around 2W of February temperatures started to rise with some days reaching practically 80F (average 72F)
Hope this helps!
Hey Tom–yup, temps are highly variable from November through Feb. See this http://yourfirstvisit.net/planning-your-first-family-trip/when-to-go/next-best-dates/weather-and-when-to-go/high-temperatures-year-round/ and this http://yourfirstvisit.net/planning-your-first-family-trip/when-to-go/next-best-dates/weather-and-when-to-go/pool-days-november-through-february/
My stuff on February will be out early next week…
Hello there, I have found your website extremely helpful! The best information I have come across by far.I am trying to plan a family vacation in January 2013. Most likely the week of the 13th-20th. Our plans are to take a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas and spend fuor days at Disney from the 17-20. We are coming from California, would you recommend this time? I have a 6 and a 10 year old. Or would February the middle of February be better?
Hi Marisa, of the two I’d aim for February, so long as you can avoid the week of Presidents Day. Temps are highly variable in both months, so it could be in the 30s or the 80s, but Jan is more variable than Feb…
Thanks Dave! One more question for you, our time at WDW will be limited and basically will only have 3 full days. We I would like 2 full days at MK and one 1/2 day at Animal Kingdom and 1/2 day at Hollywood Studios. Would you recommend just 4 single day tickets, with me using 2 of those tickets in 1 day or the park hopper option, which in my opinion is not really worth the price especially when we will be using it only on 1 day. ?? I appreciate your help.
Marisa, the short answer is that you can’t use two ticket days on one calendar day. No matter how many “ticket days” you have left, the only way you can go to more than one park in a day is with a hopper…
Thanks for the amazing website. Quick question if you have a few minutes. . . my wife and I have gone to DW twice, both during off peak hours (September and early October). We really are not fans of heavy crowds. However, we are visiting family in Tampa over Christmas, and want to introduce our 3 1/2 year old to the Magic Kingdom for one day. . . on January 2nd. Do you think that this particular day will be still be extremely busy from the Christmas/New years rush? Waiting 90 minutes to ride Winnie the Pooh wouldn’t be my ideal way to introduce my daughter to Disney magic. . . thanks! Again, really awesome website.
Hi Chris, while crowds will drop a ton after the 1st, I expect them to remain high all that week, as many kids are off through January 6–see this: http://yourfirstvisit.net/2012/07/17/disney-world-crowds-2013-christmasnew-years-crowds-20122013/
Thank you for your response!
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