When to Visit Disney

Are you planning a Disney World Vacation and wondering when to visit Disney? Or, perhaps you already have your dates set and you are wondering what the best days are to visit each park, or if it even matters for that matter?

Deciding When to Visit Disney

Depending on your family’s schedule, your dates may be limited. But let’s say they aren’t for a minute.

My very favorite time of year to visit Disney is in the fall. Specifically during the time of my two favorite events at Disney- Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival.

Mickey’s No So Scary Halloween Party is so much fun. It is a separate admission ticket, but in my opinion it is my best money spent at Disney.

The parade is amazing. The fireworks are breathtaking (THE best all year-round if you ask me.)

Everyone (including your favorite characters) is dressed up in their Halloween costumes.

And, dude– you get to trick or treat all over Magic Kingdom. Your favorite rides are typically line free and the vibe throughout the park is electric!

And there are even some fun magic shots the photo pass photographers will add for event goers.

Don’t let Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival fool you if you are not a big alcohol drinker. While it is a huge hit with the beer and wine folks like Puddie, it also has so much to offer the non-drinking crowd like myself.

We love to take one day and eat our lunch and dinner around the world one little shared plate at a time. They also have a fantastic concert series as well as some great speaking series during the festival. The best part is that most of the festival’s activities are free with your Epcot admission. (Food and drink are not free, but decently priced.)

My second favorite time of year to visit is during Epcot’s International Flower and Garden Festival.

My Go-To Planning Tool

Thankfully, my very favorite activities fall over the course of several weeks at the same time. So, my family check’s its schedule and then we check with Touring Plans to see which weeks are historically less crowded. Yes, Touring Plans costs $10. But it is $10 well spent on a vacation that requires the kind of investment of that of Disney. There are tons of free calendars out there, but I have been burnt big time by a few of them and I have had great results working with the details Touring Plans gives me on each park and the data crunching that goes into it.

If you’d rather leave all the decision making up to the professionals, this is another advantage to working with a free Disney Travel Agent. Your free Disney planner usually has access to tools like these and can assist you in making decisions on which weeks might fit your family’s needs based on everything from crowd history to special events to when your favorite restaurant might have availability.

Factors to Consider When Deciding When to Visit Disney

• Crowd Levels– There are a few times when it isn’t good to visit Disney, but for the most part, anytime there are good times to be had even with an average crowd. However, there are some golden times when it is fantastic to visit. Know your options.
• Special Events– You want to be aware of  events you don’t want to miss and those you want to avoid.
• Special Rates- Disney offers discounts during different times throughout the year. Your free Disney Travel Agent can keep tabs on these for you and even apply them to your stay AFTER you book.
  
• Weather– If you like to see what the typical weather is around the time you want to visit, this site actually breaks it down by year, month and even day!
• Attraction Closings- Disney closes attractions, especially during less crowded times, for maintenance. If your little prince or princess is looking forward to something specific, you may want to make sure that it isn’t closed during your planned visit.

Stay Tuned

This post is a part of a 10 part series (gone wild… I hope to get it down to 20 parts!)

• Introduction
• Part 1: Lodging (Onsite or Off and Choosing a Disney Resort)
• Part 2: The Parks (When to Visit and Which Park Which Day)
• Part 3: Top 5 Parks Tips
• Part 4: The Parks ~ Fireworks & Parades
• Part 5: Food Options
• Part 6: Characters
• Part 7: Our Favorite Places
• Part 8: Transportation Options
• Part 9: The “Extras”
• Part 10: Apps We Love

Next up we will explain how we choose which days to visit which parks during our stay.

Do you have a special time of year you like to visit? Do you have a tried and true park method? Do share!