Extreme Heat or Extreme Cold?

[LAKid53]

It was a lot cooler in Florida back in the 60s.

 

[Tom Morrow]

It was a lot cooler in Florida back in the 60s.

I believe it. I don't think people could have tolerated living here with current temperatures without air conditioners.

 

[LAKid53]

I believe it. I don't think people could have tolerated living here with current temperatures without air conditioners.

We also had winters, well Florida's version, back then.

 

[Tom Morrow]

We also had winters, well Florida's version, back then.

You mean, jacket weather for more than a few days at a time?

 

[LAKid53]

You mean, jacket weather for more than a few days at a time?

I live in NW Florida. Many days in January I scrapped frost off my windshield. And wore a winter coat. But we're lucky now if we get 3-4 days of really cold weather.

 

[Frank the Tank]

Disney already has a location with consistent year round weather: Disneyland.

As for the extremes, I honestly can’t believe that anyone is in favor of extreme cold. Maybe it’s the bias because we’re in the throes of a hot and humid summer or people don’t have a clear understanding of what “extreme cold” really means.

As a lifelong Chicagoan, I walk quite a bit outside in the dead of winter from the train station to work. It can be tolerated for short bursts of time and when you’re actively moving. I know what truly cold weather is very well. However, you physically *cannot* be spending a day in a theme park in that type of weather. This isn’t a matter of it being very uncomfortable (which is Orlando in July and August), but rather a normal human being cannot be walking around in a theme park for hours on end in that type of cold weather as a matter of pure safety... or even worse, standing in line and not moving around at all when it’s that cold. That’s not to mention that pretty much any outdoor ride can’t be utilized at cold temperatures. As anyone that regularly rides a train in the Midwest or Northeast can attest, cold weather increases the instances of mechanical issues everywhere. This is all just assuming cold weather in and of itself. Add in snow and ice and you have an even bigger logistical nightmare on a daily basis.

Extreme heat in a theme park isn’t optimal, but it can at least physically be done with constant hydration and frequent breaks. A normal human body literally isn’t made to handle a day in a theme park in extreme cold.

 

[Disney.Mike]

I can always put a thicker coat on, but if it's to hot I can only take off so many clothes before men's wives start drooling over me

 

[correcaminos]

Everyone answering heat ignoring that heat makes people cranky, crazy, delusional, exhausted, sick, and gross. Florida summers are pure misery.

To you. Not to me. I was wearing a sweatshirt a few nights when it had been 95+ I live in the midwest with brutal winters. That is miserable to me. Cold makes me cranky, gives me headache & runny nose, eyes itch, etc. So if you hate the heat, fine, but realize the cold is horrible for many too. Also the cold can turn deadly much quicker than the heat.

So not igorning anything here. You just don't realize how bad the cold is for some I think. let alone extreme cold which is downright dangerous within minutes

FTR Florida summers are not even close to miserable levels other places in the SW get. People always think FL is ther worst, but my husband who is an Army brat and has lived in both areas says otherwise.

 

[Joeamc]

People say that one of the reasons WDW was built in Florida was because of the weather. While this is true, it’s not impossible that it could have been built somewhere further north. Evident by the fact that it snows at Disneyland Paris and Tokyo Disneyland and the parks remain open when it does.





So my question is, would you have preferred milder summers, with snow in the winter? Or do you like the way things are now? Or even if you prefer the heat, maybe you wanted a state that’s still hot, but not as south, like Georgia or Tennessee for example.

I wish WDW was just a little further north up the coast like the Carolinas or Virginia. Would never get really cold but summers would be more bearable. Florida weather sucks!

 

[Hula Baloo]

Florida summers are absolutely miserable. I will never visit again during that time of the year. However, I would choose the heat over the cold any day. Easier to pack clothes for a warmer climate, there are buildings with A/C you can hop into when hot, you don't have to deal with cold wind whipping you in the face while on rides, and evenings in a colder climate would be unbearable when the sun goes down. I've grown up in a hot climate, so I guess it's what I know. I don't have the proper clothes to dress for snow.

 

[SpoiledBlueMilk]

I wish WDW was just a little further north up the coast like the Carolinas or Virginia. Would never get really cold but summers would be more bearable. Florida weather sucks!

The Carolinas would work, but if you want cold, I'll introduce you to February in Northern VA. We've been getting winters with near month-long stretches of single to low double digit degree weather.

Personally, I'll take the heat over cold any day. I can't stand the cold and layering isn't my thing. Plus who wants to walk around with bulky clothes and coats all the time in the parks? No thank you. I'll bask in the Florida heat and love it.

 

[phillip9698]

How do they handle the restraints and clothing situation at the other parks? I would really hate to have to take my jacket on and off to get into the rides. I dont want to stuff my coat down on the floor of those rides or do a locker shuffle all day long. For that reason alone id rather it be warm. I cant imagine riding a coaster and its 5 degrees, i dont even like driving a golf cart in freezing temps.

Seems like coastal GA would have been nice but there isnt a major airport over there to feed a park. Atlanta gets and stays unbearably hot as well, only advantage is that we dont get as many thunderstorms as Orlando.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

In real life? Cold. For WDW? Hot.

 

[EOD K9]

With airlines charging now for baggage, that’s a lot of bulky clothes to pack. You don’t need as much for a warmer climes such as Florida.

 

[addacollier]

Not WDW but I did Disneyland Paris a few December’s ago, where we were treated to 3 days of freezing fog. We were prepared and dressed for the weather and we found it pleasantly different. Luckily, it didn’t rain.

 

[Trackmaster]

I feel like anybody who would say extreme cold is somebody who just does not live in an that gets extreme cold. Yes, brisk nights where you're huddled around a fire, wearing layers of clothing, singing Christmas carols, and sipping hot chocolate is what you imagine when you think of the cold. You probably think of light snowfall too. You don't think of 30 MPH wind, -20 degree windchill, plowing your driveway, and having to drive in snow. You don't think of what its like to be in sustained cold. You don't think of waiting in line for rides in the cold. You don't think of dressing for 10 degrees temperatures and then having to peel off the layers and carry them around when you're inside.

There's a reason that cities become absolute ghost towns when the cold starts, but southern cities might have less traffic, but people still go outside. And you don't see people flood the streets in Florida when it gets cool. In northern cities, people act like they're in Hawaii when its over 70 for the first time and flood the streets.


I think that you have to keep in mind that mathematics behind this too. The "ideal" temperature for most people might be between 70-75. When it gets up, its rare to get above 95-100. It happens, but that's generally the peak. The sky (or the floor) is the limit for cold temperatures. It can get down to 10, down to 0, or into -20 or lower. Think about how far away that is from the middle ground that people prefer. Really, the heat isn't that far from the ideal middle ground temperature.

 

[The Grays]

If you have ever gotten heat stroke you know how deadly extreme heat can be. Having 2 family members that have had heat stroke one bad can see when the temps start to get in the 90's they start to get very red and as the temp goes up they get closer to passing out.

And for those that need to know yes we do live where it get extreme cold. Cody Wyoming and we can see temps of -38 then add the wind chill to it

So my vote is for extreme cold

 

[Heppenheimer]

I feel like anybody who would say extreme cold is somebody who just does not live in an that gets extreme cold. Yes, brisk nights where you're huddled around a fire, wearing layers of clothing, singing Christmas carols, and sipping hot chocolate is what you imagine when you think of the cold. You probably think of light snowfall too. You don't think of 30 MPH wind, -20 degree windchill, plowing your driveway, and having to drive in snow. You don't think of what its like to be in sustained cold. You don't think of waiting in line for rides in the cold. You don't think of dressing for 10 degrees temperatures and then having to peel off the layers and carry them around when you're inside.

There's a reason that cities become absolute ghost towns when the cold starts, but southern cities might have less traffic, but people still go outside. And you don't see people flood the streets in Florida when it gets cool. In northern cities, people act like they're in Hawaii when its over 70 for the first time and flood the streets.


I think that you have to keep in mind that mathematics behind this too. The "ideal" temperature for most people might be between 70-75. When it gets up, its rare to get above 95-100. It happens, but that's generally the peak. The sky (or the floor) is the limit for cold temperatures. It can get down to 10, down to 0, or into -20 or lower. Think about how far away that is from the middle ground that people prefer. Really, the heat isn't that far from the ideal middle ground temperature.

I now live in northern Vermont and still voted for cold. Partially because skiing is my single favorite activity, but also because throughout my former military career, I went down with far too many heat injuries, and I sweat profusely in any temperature above 80. True, on particularly cold and windy days up here, you can't stay outside long, but these total probably less than 14 days per year. You can dress for almost anything else. I've lived in Georgia, where I would be almost completely drenched with sweat after 10 minutes outside in the summer.

Speaking of Vermont and skiing, we have two resorts currently in receivership and up for sale. If the parks and recreation division of Disney is looking to diversify their holdings....

 

[Jedi Stitch]

I prefer to go to a shirt and shorts weather place than have to bundle up to go ride rides, we can do that anytime at the northern theme parks.

 

[Distant]

We were at Disney in December 2015 and we got both heat and cold in one trip.
It reached the upper 80s at one point- not what we expected or wanted in December!
And it wasn't ideal weather.

But then a cold front came in and dropped the lows to the 40s and highs to the low 60s.
It took the fun out of the parks- it really did.
Even though we live in the Carolinas where it gets cold, it still bothered me. I couldn't warm up.

I concluded that cold weather and theme parks don't mix well.

So yeah- hot for Disney trips, but I'm glad I live where it's mild.