Category — a. When to Go to Walt Disney World

OVERVIEW: AUGUST 2013 AT DISNEY WORLD

This page reviews August 2013 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, and operating hours; adds a few other notes; and ends with week by week summaries.

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OVERVIEW: JULY 2013 AT DISNEY WORLD

This page reviews July 2013 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, operating hours, adds a few other notes, and ends with week by week summaries.

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NEXT BEST DATES FOR YOUR WALT DISNEY WORLD VISIT

This site recommends that you arrive in Walt Disney World one of the first three Saturdays after Thanksgiving.

If you can’t go then, there’s a number of tools to help you figure out the best dates that work for you.

EASY TOOLS FOR PICKING THE NEXT BEST DISNEY WORLD DATES

Easiest for first time family visitors who may never return is to work down this site’s lists of weeks to visit Disney World, ranked in order, so you can pick the highest-ranked option that works for your family.

• For 2014 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
• And for the 2015 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this

For families that can return or are returning, the Week Pickers are a better choice–as it opens up ride closure season and hurricane season weeks that are fine for most returning visitors.

• For the 2014 Week Picker, see this
• The 2015  week picker will come out in the summer of 2014

DO-IT-YOURSELF TOOLS FOR FIGURING OUT THE BEST DATES FOR YOUR DISNEY WORLD VISIT

You can do the work of the Week Pickers on your own, circling in on your preferred weeks based on any combination of crowds, prices, weather, and such.  Links for doing so are all below, or deeper within the pages below!

• For when to go to Walt Disney World, see this
• For the best and worst times to visit, see this
  • For 2014 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
  • For the 2014 Week Picker, see this
  • For 2015 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
  • For 2016 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
• For forecasting crowds at Walt Disney World, see this
  • For the 2014 Crowd Calendar, click here
  • For the 2015 Crowd Calendar, click here
  • For the 2016 Crowd Calendar, click here
• For seasonal pricing at Walt Disney World, see this
  • For 2014 price seasons, see this
  • For 2015 price seasons, see this
  • For projected 2016 price seasons, see this
• For weather at Walt Disney World, see this

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PEAK 2012 CROWDS WILL BEGIN DECEMBER 22, UNLESS THE WORLD COMES TO AN END

In later December–beginning around December 20, but really rolling in on December 22–the 2012 holiday crowds will begin to slam Walt Disney World.

Unless of course the world comes to an end on December 21.

Multi-hour waits will be common on the best-loved rides (waits crossed 3 hours at times last year), senior managers will be bussing tables, and park closures are possible.

Yes, there will also be a wonderful Christmas program and fun stuff on New Years Eve, but all in, because of the crowds and waits, this is a lousy time for a Disney World vacation.

But for the hundreds of thousands of you who will be there then, here’s some thoughts on how to make the best of it!

DEALING WITH THE HOLIDAY CROWDS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD [Read more →]

OVERVIEW: JUNE 2013 AT DISNEY WORLD

This page reviews June 2013 Walt Disney World crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, operating hours, adds a few other notes, and ends with week by week summaries.

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POP WARNER WEEK AT DISNEY WORLD IN 2013

Pop Warner week is a real but largely trivial occurrence that traditionally happens at Walt Disney World in the first full week of December. (For more on both the real and the trivial issues associated with it, see this.)

In 2013, Pop Warner week will begin on December 7!  Ignore the below, which is now out of date.

For 2013 I’ve forecast (based on the last 11 years of actual Pop Warner dates) that it will happen again the first full week of December—that is, the week starting Sunday, December 1, 2013.
I’ve received lots of questions about this forecast.

The issue is that with the very late Thanksgiving in 2013 (it’s November 28, as late as it can be) my forecast implies that families going to Pop Warner would have to travel the weekend right after Thanksgiving, which strikes some as implausible.  They believe that Pop Warner starting the week of December 8th 2013 seems more likely.

In response, I’ve had contacts reach out to both Disney and Pop Warner, and here’s the scoop.

IT’S JUST A FORECAST, FOLKS…AND THAT MEANS BY DEFINITION IT COULD BE WRONG

Both Disney and Pop Warner have told my sources that there is as yet no contract for Pop Warner to be at Disney World in 2013, and that therefore there simply are no official dates for 2013.

Pop Warner went on to tell my source that “it is always that first week in December and it will probably be the same next year.”

So there you have it!  No official dates, but “probably” the first week of December.

This is not a ton of help, I know.  Based on the info so far, I’m going to leave my forecast dates for Pop Warner as is for now, but that doesn’t mean they will turn out to be right…only that they are consistent with the best available information that I have!

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 2012 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
  • For the 2012 Week Picker, 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 2012 Crowd Calendar, click here
  • For the 2013 Crowd Calendar, click here
  • For the 2014 Crowd Calendar, click here
• For seasonal pricing at Walt Disney World, see this
  • For 2012 price seasons, see this
  • For 2013 price seasons, click here
  • For projected 2014 price seasons, see this
• For weather at Walt Disney World, see this