Crowds/weather in WDW in mid to late November?

[Walt Disney1955]

How are the crowds? I figure it would be pretty light in general aside for later in November when Thanksgiving is happening. I assume WDW is a bit busier this time of year or am I wrong?

Secondly, how is the weather in Orlando in November? It is still very hot in October, with 90 degrees still happening. Is there much change in November?

Lastly, are the Christmas decorations up in November? I know they decorate the Castle around Christmas but I didn't know for how long. I was just wondering since I am never a big fan of extra decorations on the Castle.

Thanks.

 

[AndyS2992]

Crowds are lighter than Summer and late December but as of recent years WDW no longer has any quiet seasons due to events being shoe horned in all year round like Garden festival, food and wine, art festival I could go on but the crowds will be manageable.

Hot. But cooler than October.

Yes, the Christmas decorations will be up. The Halloween stuff comes down the night of the last MNSSHP and the Christmas decoartaitons start going up almost immediately.

 

[drizgirl]

It will be busier than you think early November should be. Jersey Week and Veteran's Day have some impact.

If you're hoping to avoid crowds, be sure to avoid the MK on non-party nights.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Does the Castle look a lot differently during the day at all? Also, is Main Street flooded with Christmas decorations at that time too?

 

[AndyS2992]

Does the Castle look a lot differently during the day at all? Also, is Main Street flooded with Christmas decorations at that time too?

The castle has the Christmas lights hanging from it which aren't really noticible from a distance unless you are specifically looking to see them. Just looks like the castle is covered with dangling white string. Just pretend they are icicles

There are Christmas decorations hanging from the buildings yes.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

How are the crowds? I figure it would be pretty light in general aside for later in November when Thanksgiving is happening. I assume WDW is a bit busier this time of year or am I wrong?

Secondly, how is the weather in Orlando in November? It is still very hot in October, with 90 degrees still happening. Is there much change in November?

Lastly, are the Christmas decorations up in November? I know they decorate the Castle around Christmas but I didn't know for how long. I was just wondering since I am never a big fan of extra decorations on the Castle.

Thanks.

I've been the day after Thanksgiving and stayed for 5days/6nights. Good weather and good crowds. And like the comments above, yes the Christmas decorations will be up.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Fair enough, I don't mind the decorations down Main Street. I just still have nightmares of going to WDW during the 25th anniversary with the castle decked out like a pink birthday cake. You just want the castle to LOOK like the castle when you are there, you know? That picture above looks fine even though I am never a big fan of the over commercialization of Christmas. The month of December should be devoted to Christmas decorations, but right after Halloween? I just can never get into it.

 

[GoofGoof]

IMHO one of the best weeks to go to WDW is the week before Thanksgiving. Low crowds and mild weather plus all of the Christmas stuff is out. Temps are usually warm enough to still swim in the pool, but not overly hot with lower humidity. Average highs in the mid 70s and lows in the mid 60s.

As far as crowds, I think Thanksgiving may have surpassed Spring Break as the second busiest time at WDW outside of the 2 weeks around Christmas/New Years. It seems like more schools are starting to give the full week of Thanksgiving off which is adding to the bigger crowds. Spring Break is also spread over several weeks with college Spring Break usually in March and HS/elementary schools the week before and week after Easter. Thanksgiving is the same week for everyone (at least in the US).

Outside of that week the crowds in November are pretty light. The beginning of November is the end of the Food and Wine Festival so EPCOT is a little more crowded (especially on the weekends) and the EPCOT resorts tend to be packed. Unless you have an aversion to witnessing some fellow tourists a little tipsy it's probably not going to be an issue. The other slightly busy time is NJ teachers weekend. There's a 2 day school administrators convention that closes all schools in NJ for a 4 day weekend which is usually one of the first weekends in November. It's nowhere near as big of a crowd surge as Thanksgiving but I live in PA near Philly so it probably has a bigger impact on booking flights for me since Philly is the closest airport for half the people in NJ.

 

[GoofGoof]

Fair enough, I don't mind the decorations down Main Street. I just still have nightmares of going to WDW during the 25th anniversary with the castle decked out like a pink birthday cake. You just want the castle to LOOK like the castle when you are there, you know? That picture above looks fine even though I am never a big fan of the over commercialization of Christmas. The month of December should be devoted to Christmas decorations, but right after Halloween? I just can never get into it.

You can thank the size of the new daytime parade floats for saving the view of the castle. It looked like this before they changed up the parade:

 

[Herdman]

We were there last year the Friday before Thanksgiving week through the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Yes, it was very crowded, but very manageable if you have a plan. Weather was great. There wasn't anything we wanted to do that we didn't have time for, and we were even able to take breaks back at the resort most days, Go at rope drop and have a plan. I don't understand a lot of people that act like a 30 minute wait for a ride is like the end of the world, but to each their own. I once went to Cedar Point in Ohio and rode 5 rides in 8 hours, so a little wait is not that big of a deal to me.

Hope it all works out for you. I'm sure you'll have a blast!

 

[Walt Disney1955]

It is looking like November will be the plan. Too bad, I was hoping October so that there may be less crowds and because I would love to go to the Halloween Haunt at Universal. But November is looking more realistic, another month to save money I guess.

I was looking at the schedule, and there are a couple days mid November where the Magic Kingdom closes at 6pm, strange. But about a week before Thanksgiving the park is open until 10pm every night until after Thanksgiving. Is that because they anticipate larger crowds? I guess I was in the minority thinking this, but I always got the feeling that people would be visiting with their families and not a theme park at this time. I'm Canadian, so our Thanksgiving is in October, so it doesn't apply to me.

 

[AndyS2992]

I was looking at the schedule, and there are a couple days mid November where the Magic Kingdom closes at 6pm, strange..

That's because of Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Parties begin November 9th through to December 22nd. Just like the Halloween parties, unless you have paid for a ticket, regular guests are kicked out early.

 

[GoofGoof]

It is looking like November will be the plan. Too bad, I was hoping October so that there may be less crowds and because I would love to go to the Halloween Haunt at Universal. But November is looking more realistic, another month to save money I guess.

I was looking at the schedule, and there are a couple days mid November where the Magic Kingdom closes at 6pm, strange. But about a week before Thanksgiving the park is open until 10pm every night until after Thanksgiving. Is that because they anticipate larger crowds? I guess I was in the minority thinking this, but I always got the feeling that people would be visiting with their families and not a theme park at this time. I'm Canadian, so our Thanksgiving is in October, so it doesn't apply to me.

This year they close MK at 6 instead of 7 for the Christmas party. It's a bit of a kick in the stones to lose the whole night, but from 9-4 on those days you will see some of the lightest crowds of the year at MK. If you have a park hopper it's not a bad plan to go to MK and hop to EPCOT or AK for the evening. Just don't tell too many people or it will ruin our peaceful day. They start letting MVMCP guests in at 4 on days of the parties.

 

[75disney]

I highly recommend a trip in November. I have visited at all different months of the year (except Jan and Feb) and November around Thanksgiving is my favorite time of the year. The crowds are manageable if you have a plan and arrive at rope drop. Be sure to book your ADRs as far in advance as you can because this tends to be a Free Dining promotion period so ADRs go quick. The closer that you go to Thanksgiving, the Christmas decorations are up at the parks and resorts. It really will put you in the Christmas spirit. Best time to go to WDW in my opinion.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

I highly recommend a trip in November. I have visited at all different months of the year (except Jan and Feb) and November around Thanksgiving is my favorite time of the year. The crowds are manageable if you have a plan and arrive at rope drop. Be sure to book your ADRs as far in advance as you can because this tends to be a Free Dining promotion period so ADRs go quick. The closer that you go to Thanksgiving, the Christmas decorations are up at the parks and resorts. It really will put you in the Christmas spirit. Best time to go to WDW in my opinion.

If the crowds are similar to Spring break then that's fine. We usually went sometime in March anyway. In fact the last time I went was March. The crowds are heavier in March, than, say October but if mid to late November is similar to March then that is no problem.

 

[GoofGoof]

If the crowds are similar to Spring break then that's fine. We usually went sometime in March anyway. In fact the last time I went was March. The crowds are heavier in March, than, say October but if mid to late November is similar to March then that is no problem.

Only Thanksgiving week will be close to Spring Break crowds. The rest of November is much lighter.

 

[BoarderPhreak]

My favorite time to go. Holiday decorations are up, weather's lovely and cooler and crowd levels very manageable.

 

[AndrewsJ]

Fair enough, I don't mind the decorations down Main Street. I just still have nightmares of going to WDW during the 25th anniversary with the castle decked out like a pink birthday cake. You just want the castle to LOOK like the castle when you are there, you know? That picture above looks fine even though I am never a big fan of the over commercialization of Christmas. The month of December should be devoted to Christmas decorations, but right after Halloween? I just can never get into it.

That is definitely a valid fear (the bday cake ugh) but from a distance the castle lights aren't that noticeable to me anyway. November weather tends to be a little cooler than October but it can still be hot. I've seen temps close to 100 and as low as mid 80's so it's a toss up. As others have said, slow times are rare but in my experience crowds after Halloween and until school is out for Thanksgiving are tolerable. The Christmas parties have changed that dynamic somewhat but I still go often. In November and enjoy it.

 

[AndrewsJ]

If the crowds are similar to Spring break then that's fine. We usually went sometime in March anyway. In fact the last time I went was March. The crowds are heavier in March, than, say October but if mid to late November is similar to March then that is no problem.

I've noticed crowds grow larger on Wednesday before Thanksgiving and continue through the week after but to me it was nowhere near as crazy as March Madness as I call it!

 

[LAKid53]

We've experienced weather in the 40s at night and weather that makes you think winter ISN'T coming to Florida. We were there last Thanksgiving and most of the days were dressed in shorts and t shirts.

Avoid the 1st weekend in November (Wine & Dine Half Marathon), the following weekend since Veteran's Day falls on a Saturday this year and the week of Thanksgiving. The 2 weeks after Thanksgiving have been historically slow.

Typically, MVMCP isn't held the few days around Thanksgiving - starts back up again the Sunday after.

Holiday decorations seem to go up the day after the last MNSSHP, which I think ends November 1st. They are removed around the 1st weekend in January, after New Years. If you decide to push back to January, after New Year's, note that the 1st weekend in January is Marathon weekend - and it's the 25th anniversary, which will attract more runners.