By the co-author of The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2020, the best-reviewed Disney World guidebook series ever.

Available on Amazon here.

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Category — a. When to Go to Walt Disney World

The 2015 Walt Disney World Week Picker

The 2015 Walt Disney World Week Picker from yourfirstvisit.netyourfirstvisit.net’s 2015 Disney World Week Picker is an alternative to the 2015 Week Rankings particularly suited to returning visitors or first-time visitors with specific weather concerns.

The way the Week Picker works is that on this page there’s four ways to think about crowds, and underneath each, four ways to think about prices.

Find how you think about crowds, then click the link underneath that fits how you think about prices.

That link will take you to a page asking what you think about weather.  Click the link on that page, and you’ll get your results!

Ready?  The 2015 Walt Disney World Week Picker starts now!

Click the link that best matches what you think about crowds and prices:

You wish to consider only weeks with low crowds, and:

You wish to consider only weeks with low or moderate crowds, and:

You wish to consider weeks with low, moderate, or high crowds–just not the highest crowds, and:

You don’t care about crowds, but are seeking:

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December 28, 2014   4 Comments

July 2015 at Walt Disney World

OVERVIEW: JULY 2015 AT DISNEY WORLD

July 2015 at Disney World from yourfirstvisit.netThis page reviews July 2015 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, and operating hours; adds a few other notes; and ends with week by week summaries.

Because pretty much every US school kid is on break in July, July overall is the most crowded month at Walt Disney World.

Prices begin the month OK at the deluxes and moderates, and high at the values. Moderate and value prices stay at this level all month, but at the deluxes prices drop to low levels on July 12.

Weather is miserably hot and humid all month long.

There are no good weeks in July, but the later the visit the better–especially if you are staying in a deluxe.

JULY 2015 CROWDS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Trips that include the Fourth of July will see the highest crowds of the month. Crowds improve slightly after, but all of July  is rough, as pretty much all US schoolkids are out of school.

On a crowd scale of 1-11, the week beginning 6/27 has a crowd rating of 10/higher, the week beginning 7/4 11 highest, and the rest of July 9/high.

See this for more on 2015 crowds at Disney World.

JULY 2015 PRICES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

July 2015 prices begin 50% higher than the lowest of the year at the values, 15% higher than the lowest of the year at the moderates, and 12% higher at the deluxes. They stay at this level throughout the month at the values and moderates, but drop to near the lowest of the year at the deluxes on July 12.

See this for more on 2015 resort hotel prices at Walt Disney World.

JULY 2015 DEALS AND DISCOUNTS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Deals are available for July 2015. See this for more.

JULY 2015 WEATHER AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

July weather is hot and humid, with afternoon storms common.

The hurricane season officially begins June 1, but hurricanes a rarely a threat until mid-August..

Disney World Temperatures and Percentile Distribution Click the image, or go to Weather and When to Go to Disney World, for more on temperatures.

JULY 2015 SPECIAL EVENTS

Disney World celebrates the 4th of July at several parks–and on July 3rd as well! On Friday, July 4, 2015, the Magic Kingdom has a special fireworks show “Celebrate America” at 9p. On Saturday, July 4, 2015

  • The Magic Kingdom has the same show at the same time–“Celebrate America” at 9p
  • Epcot’s Illuminations has a special holiday ending added, and
  • Disney’s Hollywood Studios will have a special 4th of July fireworks presentation at 10.15p

For more on the Fourth of July at Disney World, see this.

JULY 2015 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:

WEEK BY WEEK COMMENTS FOR JULY 2015 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD BY ARRIVAL DATE

The week rankings that follow below are from 2015 weeks to visit, ranked in order, and are designed for first-time visitors who do not know whether or not they will return.

Disney World 2015 Week Rankings from yourfirstvisit.net (960x1280)

Click the image for a calendar view of 2015 weeks (when open, keep clicking to enlarge.)

MORE ON WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD

Want a second opinion?  Then check out my book lol.

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December 14, 2014   No Comments

The WDW Magazine Crowds Issue is Out!

WDW Magazine Crowds IssueThe latest edition of WDW Magazine, which focuses on crowds at Walt Disney World, is now out!

The magazine is available on iTunes, for Android, and on the web.

(You can also sample a free issue here.)

The edition covers many topics related to crowds at Disney World.  The centerpiece this month is a dialogue between Carl Trent (editor and publisher, and also Chief Dad behind Dad’s Guide to WDW) and me on the best times each month in 2015 to visit.

Those keeping track at home will know that this is third version of such that I’ve helped with

  1. This dialogue with Carl
  2. The Week Rankings, designed for first timers who may never return, on this site.
  3. The material I co-wrote with Josh in Chapter 4 “When to Go” of The easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit

Each is good–and largely consistent!

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December 7, 2014   No Comments

June 2015 at Walt Disney World

OVERVIEW: JUNE 2015 AT DISNEY WORLD

June 2015 at Walt Disney World from yourfirstvisit.netThis page reviews June 2015 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, and operating hours; adds a few other notes; and ends with week by week summaries.

If you must go to Disney World in the summer, the beginning of June is your best choice for a first visit.

Crowds, while not good, are lower then than most of the rest of the summer, prices are OK–except at the value resorts–and the full weight of summer weather is not yet in place.

(The end of August is the next best choice.  Prices and crowds are much better, but you are not only in peak summer then, but also the peak of the hurricane season.)

Crowds build over June, peaking the week that includes the 4th of July (a Saturday in 2015, so the most crowded June week is that beginning June 27).

Moreover, Star Wars Weekends look to continue through June 14 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, leading to massive crowds there on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through the 14th.

JUNE 2015 CROWDS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

June crowds begin at the moderate-plus level, but as more and more kids get out of school, they quickly build to high levels, and peak at the end of the month, because of crowds drawn by the 4th of July holiday.

On a crowd scale of 1-11, the week beginning 5/30 has a crowd rating of 7/moderate plus, the week beginning 6/6 8/high-minus, the next two weeks 9/high, and the week beginning 6/27 a crowd ranking of 10/higher. 

See this for more on 2015 crowds at Disney World.

JUNE 2015 PRICES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

June 2015 prices begin 50% higher than the lowest of the year at the values, 15% higher than the lowest of the year at the moderates, and 12% higher at the deluxes. They stay at this level throughout the month

See this for more on 2015 resort hotel prices at Walt Disney World.

JUNE 2015 DEALS AND DISCOUNTS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Deals are available for June 2015. See this for more.

JUNE 2015 WEATHER AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

June weather is hot and humid, with afternoon storms common. It is not as bad as July and August, but nearly so.

The hurricane season officially begins June 1, but hurricanes a rarely a threat until mid-August..

Disney World Temperatures and Percentile Distribution Click the image, or go to Weather and When to Go to Disney World, for more on temperatures.

JUNE 2015 SPECIAL EVENTS

Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will continue through the weekend of June 13, 2015, and crowd that park Fridays-Sundays.

JUNE 2015 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:

WEEK BY WEEK COMMENTS FOR JUNE 2015 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD BY ARRIVAL DATE

The week rankings that follow below are from 2015 weeks to visit, ranked in order, and are designed for first-time visitors who do not know whether or not they will return.

Disney World 2015 Week Rankings from yourfirstvisit.net (960x1280)

Click the image for a calendar view of 2015 weeks (when open, keep clicking to enlarge.)

MORE ON WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD

Want a second opinion?  Then check out my book lol.

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November 16, 2014   7 Comments

May 2015 at Walt Disney World

May   June   July   August   September   October   November    December

OVERVIEW: MAY 2015 AT DISNEY WORLD

May 2015 at Walt Disney WorldThis page reviews May 2015 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, and operating hours; adds a few other notes; and ends with week by week summaries.

Earlier May is a great time to visit Walt Disney World, with low crowds, moderate prices, and good weather.

Crowds build over the month, and the end of the month sees high crowds from Memorial Day, and the beginning of humid and rainy summer weather.

MAY 2015 CROWDS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Few US school kids are on break in earlier May. Summer breaks in some districts begin in later May, and many families go during Memorial Day week (Memorial Day in 2015 is early, on May 25.)

I rank the weeks beginning April 25 and May 2 as 3/low crowds, the week of May 9th as 4/low-plus crowds, the week of May 16th as 5/moderate-minus crowds, and the week of May 23 as 9/high crowds.

See this for more on 2015 crowds at Disney World.

MAY 2015 PRICES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

May 2015 prices begin the month 16% higher than the lowest of the year at the deluxes,  20% higher at the moderates, and 25% higher at the values. They stay at this level through late May.

On May 29, they switch to 50% higher than the lowest of the year at the values, 15% higher than the lowest of the year at the moderates, and 12% higher at the deluxes.

See this for more on 2015 resort hotel prices at Walt Disney World.

MAY 2015 DEALS AND DISCOUNTS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Deals are available for May 2015. See this for more.

MAY 2015 WEATHER AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

May weather begins as good as it gets at Walt Disney World.

Over the course of the month, temperatures and humidity rise to near-summer levels, and the rainy season typically begins late in the month.

Disney World Temperatures and Percentile Distribution Click the image, or go to Weather and When to Go to Disney World, for more on temperatures.

MAY 2015 SPECIAL EVENTS

The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival continues through May 17.

Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios start May 15, 2015 and will crowd that park Fridays-Sundays.

MAY 2015 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:

WEEK BY WEEK COMMENTS FOR MAY 2015 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD BY ARRIVAL DATE

The week rankings that follow below are from 2015 weeks to visit, ranked in order, and are designed for first-time visitors who do not know whether or not they will return.

Disney World 2015 Week Rankings from yourfirstvisit.net (960x1280)

Click the image for a calendar view of 2015 weeks (when open, keep clicking to enlarge.)

MORE ON WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD

Want a second opinion?  Then check out my book lol.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Google+ or Twitter or Pinterest!!

October 13, 2014   33 Comments

2016 Planning Tools for Walt Disney World

Disney World 2016 Planning Tools from yourfirstvisit.netOver the last week, I’ve published the draft versions of all the core tools you need to pick when to go to Walt Disney World in 2016.

These include

The Disney World 2016 week rankings I publish annually are among my more popular offerings–they’ve been viewed almost 3 million times–and are meant for first time visitors who may never return. Returning visitors will find good times to visit in September and January/early February that are ranked low for such first-timers.

The week rankings likely will change a bit between now and next summer, as I get better information on crowds and prices, but weeks very rarely shift “classes”–that is, they don’t move from “recommended” to “not recommended.”

The Disney World 2016 crowd calendar may change once the final 2015-2016 school calendars are available next summer. Every year I analyze every break for almost 200 school districts covering more than 10 million kids, and use these to update the crowd calendars. Many district calendars aren’t out til the summer before, so that’s when I’ll update the 2016 crowd calendar–in the summer of 2015. I’m not expecting any major changes–2016 looks pretty tightly predictable.

The 2016 Disney World price seasons are projections based on recent Disney practices. Disney will publish final price seasons most likely in the summer of 2015.  There’s often a curveball or two in these, but not enough to move a week from “recommended” to another class.

Going to Disney World in 2016?  Then start picking your dates!

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September 30, 2014   4 Comments