Best Time to Visit in January?

[muse1983]

So my wife and I are planning on returning to the World in January 2015. We've always visited in either May or October so are inexperienced when it comes to January crowds etc. Preferably we would like to be there after the Christmas decorations have been taken down too (love Christmas but I want my regular ol Main Street without the decorations) What would be your best suggestion on when to visit in January? Thanks!!

 

[Clamman73]

Historically, it looks like the lowest crowds are during the week after the marathon weekend, or the last week.

 

[disney4life2008]

Decorations are usually down end up first week of January. Crowds decrease a lot of after NYD. I normally travel anytime between January 9 and 18 and crowds are non existent. Nearly everything is walk on - with some exceptions. The marathon takes place during this time but they are more focused on the run and even their presence in the parks is not anything too major. There is a national cheerleader competition that takes place end of January but that is more impacted by the value resorts. Otherwise, you can not go wrong in January.

 

[USAF79]

Last week was extremely low crowds. Watch out for Brazilian tour groups though, switch parks if you see them. Also can be cold. Shorter overal hours as well. Much enjoyed though. We did a Thursday at universal and felt like we were the only people in the park!

 

[disney4life2008]

Last week was extremely low crowds. Watch out for Brazilian tour groups though, switch parks if you see them. Also can be cold. Shorter overal hours as well. Much enjoyed though. We did a Thursday at universal and felt like we were the only people in the park!

I would not say switch parks if a tour group is there. For the most part - they all travel together in terms of attractions. So the key is to travel against them - do not do what they are doing either work ahead or behind them

 

[ToTBellHop]

Christmas decorations at Epcot come down on 1/1. At the other parks, they should come down the week of 1/5 (with MK and DHS usually last). Resorts take down their decorations on independent schedules, it seems, but pretty much all of them are back to normal by about 1/7.

We went this year in early January from 1/5-1/13. Crowds were wonderful. My only complaint about the tour groups that time of year (as opposed to the summer groups) is that they often talk during rides and take lots of flash photography. I don't personally find them to be rude like some people claim the July groups are. However, the January groups tend to be families, not packs of teenagers like you see in the summer.

High temperatures vary from mid-40s to mid-80s. It's definitely a mixed-bag of weather, but seldom muggy and not particularly rainy.

We love going in January.

The only real crowds I've seen in Januarys of yore are the first few days of the month (usually through the weekend after 1/1) and MLK weekend.

 

[muse1983]

We will be staying at POP so ultimately the cheerleading competition is the biggest thing we want to avoid (even though they typically hit up the All Star resorts we just kind of want to avoid their presence regardless lol) I'm thinking Jan 11-17 is looking like a solid choice for us.

 

[dreamfinder]

To see decorations you would want to be there as early in January as possible. As mentioned, they start taking them down very quickly. Some years during Marathon weekend we have run through the parks with them still all decorated, other years we have run through the parks and seen next to nothing still up. And then there was the year with the cold snap where stuff was still up til MLK weekend. If you don't want decorations, Marathon weekend or after should be fairly decoration free.

 

[Arty Cordova]

So my wife and I are planning on returning to the World in January 2015. We've always visited in either May or October so are inexperienced when it comes to January crowds etc. Preferably we would like to be there after the Christmas decorations have been taken down too (love Christmas but I want my regular ol Main Street without the decorations) What would be your best suggestion on when to visit in January? Thanks!!

Just stay away from Martin Luther King weekend. I went this past January and it was really packed.

 

[muse1983]

Our last trip was Jan 24 - Feb 1, 2013, and we also stayed at POP. There were multiple cheer events in January, so we tried to time the trip in between two of them, to minimize the impact.

Lines were very reasonable (<30 minutes, many times <10 minutes or walk-on) at all parks (exceptions like Peter Pan, Soarin, TSMM), used FP to get some extra rides (eg, got FP for EE, rode it in stand by line, then again with FP - same approach with TSMM).

We took our time - no touring plan, no rushing across the park strategies, etc. We rode/saw everything we wanted, often more than once.

Ate lunch at BOG with about a 30-40 minute wait. Buses were not a problem - never had to wait for a second bus.

Weather was great - cool in mornings and evenings (wear a light jacket/sweater), warm in the day. Saw very few groups (some cheer, some from other countries, but not very large).

I haven't been able to find much info about cheer events in January, where would be the best place to find out? It looks like Jan 11-17 will be our dates and from what I have seen so far we will be arriving at the end of the marathon and be leaving right as the cheer stuff (the ones I can find at least) are starting. If anyone comes across anymore info for the dates we will be there let me know! Thanks

 

[lunchbox1175]

My first question would be how long of a trip? If you are only going for 4 days, I would go the 5th thru the 9th. I believe the marathon weekend is the 9th - 13th, and MLK weekend is 17th thru 19th next year, so if you were going for longer than 4, I would go starting the 26th.

 

[muse1983]

My first question would be how long of a trip? If you are only going for 4 days, I would go the 5th thru the 9th. I believe the marathon weekend is the 9th - 13th, and MLK weekend is 17th thru 19th next year, so if you were going for longer than 4, I would go starting the 26th.

The last day of the marathon will be on January 11, 2015. We would arrive on the 11th and leave on the 17th

 

[LWB]

To see decorations you would want to be there as early in January as possible. As mentioned, they start taking them down very quickly. Some years during Marathon weekend we have run through the parks with them still all decorated, other years we have run through the parks and seen next to nothing still up. And then there was the year with the cold snap where stuff was still up til MLK weekend. If you don't want decorations, Marathon weekend or after should be fairly decoration free.

Thanks for this info! We are going for marathon weekend and I had wondered about decorations being taken down by then.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Decorations were all down prior to marathon weekend this year.

 

[lunchbox1175]

The last day of the marathon will be on January 11, 2015. We would arrive on the 11th and leave on the 17th

That should work pretty well then, as it might be a little busy on the Sunday you arrive but Monday thru Friday should be pretty nice.

 

[MDactor1980]

I've been going for the past 3 January's, always on MLK weekend. MLK weekend is crowded, but certainly not crowded like a summer crowd. We've negotiated the crowds with minimal irritation and had a great time!

Other advice - make sure you have a light jacket. The weather is not likely to rain, but it can get chilly in the evening and in spots in the shade!

 

[muse1983]

I've been going for the past 3 January's, always on MLK weekend. MLK weekend is crowded, but certainly not crowded like a summer crowd. We've negotiated the crowds with minimal irritation and had a great time!

Other advice - make sure you have a light jacket. The weather is not likely to rain, but it can get chilly in the evening and in spots in the shade!

Thanks, I'm looking forward to some cool/cold weather down Main Street.

 

[MDactor1980]

Thanks, I'm looking forward to some cool/cold weather down Main Street.

It's almost always sweater weather. This past January it didn't much crack above 65. It was lovely!

 

[lunchbox1175]

It's almost always sweater weather. This past January it didn't much crack above 65. It was lovely!

Lol....you never know, we have been three times in January, once it was in the upper 50's all week, another time in the 60-70 range, and our last trip in January, it was like 85.....we were shocked, but it wasn't humid, so it was really nice.

 

[RScottyL]

According to http://www.mousesavers.com/walt-dis...asked-questions-about-walt-disney-world/#busy about January visits:

The BEST times to go to Walt Disney World are:

Second week of January through mid-February. It’s cool (sometimes even a bit cold) at this time of year. This is one of the least busy times of year and hotel prices are lower. However, some rides will be closed for refurbishment at this time of year. The first week of January can be busy due to extended holiday vacations and the Walt Disney World Marathon. Avoid any holiday weekends.