Hurricane Season?

Wellington2011

Wellington2011

Member
We loved our first trip to WDW last May. We stayed at the GF and decided to try the Poly next time. Our oldest, who will be 5, loves Halloween. We were thinking about going in September 2017 to try out MNSSHP. My youngest turns 3 in early October, so we'd like to go before then and avoid paying for extra park tickets. A FL resident warned me that mid-September is peak hurricane season... now I'm wondering if I should change our plans to April or May 2017. Is rain a sure thing even if there's no hurricane danger? Also, I'd really like to find another room discount like I had in May. Are there room discounts in September, too? Thanks!
 
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Debbie

Debbie

Well-Known Member
While mid-September is peak hurricane season; don't let that stop you from scheduling your time at WDW. You are far enough inland that should a storm make landfall in the vicinity, it wouldn't interrupt your vacation but for a day or so. For it to do that, it would have to be a very strong storm that would cause a lot of wind damage, and you would mostly have to deal with heavy rain for a day or so. Now, the odds of this happening on your planned week? Not likely in all honesty. You can check out the experiences of members here on the forums, from those who were at WDW for some of the more recent storms, and I think that you will see that if anything happened, it wouldn't affect your stay for more than a day or so, if I remember correctly.
Call Kingdom Konsultants at 866.566.7858 and they will guide you on any cancellation policies regarding a hurricane and they can hook you up with anything you need for your trip!! Happy planning!
 
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Debbie

Debbie

Well-Known Member
I forgot to add Kingdom Konsultants is a sponsor here and they can help you to get any discounts available for your dates. After living through Hurricane Katrina, I have learned not to put stuff off over something that may never happen. My area went 40 years without a major storm and hopefully we will go another 40
 
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WDWDreamer4

WDWDreamer4

Member
We have traveled in September for the past 6 years and have not had a hurricane ruin our vacation. We have been luck enough to only have to drive through one going home. It will most likely rain daily, it is Florida and September is still hot and humid. I would not put off a trip because of the possibility of a hurricane. September usually has discounts available, free dining and room have been around for years. Though they are not guaranteed it is very probable they will happen next year.
Also the Halloween party is awesome! The parade and the fireworks are the best at WDW. I would highly recommend doing that with your children. We have been for years and we have DS 6, DD 4, DD 1. They love dressing up and trick or treating around the Magic Kingdom. And all the shows and dance parties. It is awesome.
Have fun!
 
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Debbie

Debbie

Well-Known Member
WDWDreamer3 said:
We have traveled in September for the past 6 years and have not had a hurricane ruin our vacation. We have been luck enough to only have to drive through one going home. It will most likely rain daily, it is Florida and September is still hot and humid. I would not put off a trip because of the possibility of a hurricane. September usually has discounts available, free dining and room have been around for years. Though they are not guaranteed it is very probable they will happen next year.
Also the Halloween party is awesome! The parade and the fireworks are the best at WDW. I would highly recommend doing that with your children. We have been for years and we have DS 6, DD 4, DD 1. They love dressing up and trick or treating around the Magic Kingdom. And all the shows and dance parties. It is awesome.
Have fun!
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I hope to someday experience WDW around Halloween! I've been there several times in October but that was before they started doing anything for Halloween
 
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Mickey5150

Well-Known Member
I remember going down 1 year during hurricane season when there had been some bad weather. The drive from the airport I saw trees down and damage on buildings. As we entered WDW it was like the scene from Who Framed Roger Rabbit when they enter Toontown and it goes from a dirty world to the wonderful Disney oasis. I'm convinced there is an invisible barrier covering WDW and protecting it from any natural disaster. My dad was down for business the week before staying at the Hilton. The side facing WDW was sunny and beautiful, the side facing away was covered in wind and rain and he couldn't be on that side of the hotel.
 
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mouse_luv

mouse_luv

Well-Known Member
We've gone in early September and while it was hot and humid, we loved it. Crowds were lower and the MNSSHP was awesome. I'd buy the extra party hard tickets again just to see HM all MNSSHP spooked up and Hallowishes & Boo to You. Go, have fun!
 
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HurricaneHanna

HurricaneHanna

Well-Known Member
No one can control the weather. No matter what date you plan your trip for you might hit a rainy week or a totally dry week or anything in between. We went last September and experienced a few short rain events but there is no way to be sure what will happen this year. Lots of things take place under cover so I say, pick the dates that work best for you and have a back up plan on your daily schedule in case you don't want to be outside totally exposed. It's possible to have a great time whether it's wet, dry, hot, or cold. Just be flexible.

Discounts are generally up on Disney's official site several months in advance. Currently they go into November of this year. It's often recommended to book at rack rates and try to apply discounts as they become available in order to hold onto the room you want most. It doesn't always work so be prepared to pay those original rates, but in September chances are pretty good of getting a discount, October not so much.
 
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JIMINYCR

JIMINYCR

Well-Known Member
Sept/ Oct may be hurricane season but the odds are in your favor. Weve had trips where the weather predictions have been horrible and yet when we were there there was very little rain. If it does rain be prepared to alter your plans, make the best of it and enjoy what you can. Even a stormy Disney can be fun and filled with things to do.
MNSSHP is very fun and one of the best events to get tickets for. Be sure to give your youngsters a nap beforehand so theyre well rested for the evening. Get to your spot early to have a good view of the headless horsemans ride and the parade. The parade, fireworks, unique character M&G's are excellent. Be prepared for long lines to the characters. Its an event where there are lots of guests, Castle shows and fireworks make the hub very crowded. Bring a decent size Halloween bag for candy, your kids can really make a haul. Disney has handed out bags for candy but they have run out and they arent very sturdy.
 
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Tom 55

Tom 55

Well-Known Member
My favorite time to go is September. Will be there in 64 more days. Back in 2004 I was there when hurricane Jean came to Orlando. It was the fourth hurricane that year to come threw Orlando. As we were landing you could see all the damage to houses. They had blue tarps over the damaged sections of roofs. Driving to WDW there were still trees down off the road. Signs were missing. In Disney they had cleaned up but there were just stumps left were trees went down. Taking the Monorail from WDW to EPCOT you could still see lots of trees knocked down in the woods. We stayed at POR that trip. While we were there the weather started predicting that Orlando will be hit by Jean. The day before we were at MK and you would notice that all the things not mounted down were disappearing. I did not see it happen but all the trash cans and hanging plant were there in the morning but by afternoon were gone. Disney has a crew called the hold over crew that stays in the park during the hurricane so they are there when it is gone to get the park ready. We met cast members coming in carrying their pillows when we were leaving. Disney is were the locals go to ride out the hurricane. They have their own power system and wires are underground. They hardly ever lose power. The park was closed that day and no buses were running. Had to stay at Riverside all day. They had the restaurant open with a limited staff and menu. Had to walk threw the rain to get there. Riverside has a bridge you have to cross to get to main building. Sat in hotel most of day watching the Disney movies they were playing. Jean just missed WDW by about 20 miles so it was just wind and rain for the day. Not to bad. By the next day they had the park open and everything looked like normal. The next day we stared to fly home. Ran into Jean when we were in Atlanta and it caught up to us when we were home in NH 2 days later. Had trip insurance and got a refund for one day that the park was closed.
 
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World_Showcase_Lover007

World_Showcase_Lover007

Well-Known Member
I'll just second the advice that others are giving to not back out of your planned September trip. While hurricanes are no joke and should be taken seriously, the chances of one making landfall, even during peak hurricane season, is very slim. I've been during September plenty of times and it was always fine, and in my opinion is one of the best times to go. Perhaps buying travel insurance is a possibility in case your trip has to be cancelled, but I wouldn't pay too much for it.
 
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Weather_Lady

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
I wouldn't let it stop you for a moment! Knock on wood, we do almost all of our traveling during hurricane season and we've never run into trouble. I would suggest -- as I do to anyone who has purchased non-refundable components of their vacation and who is worried about weather-related travel issues -- purchasing travel insurance to cover the costs if the worst happens (e.g., your flight is cancelled).
 
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StarshipDisney

Well-Known Member
It was September 2004 when Hurricane Francis was closing in and everybody was trying to get out of Florida. We were staying at the Contemporary Resort Tower at the time and just decided to ride it out at Disney. We stayed in our room the whole time while Disney piped in movies to watch. Never once lost power (I believe Contemporary has its own generators. Not sure all resorts do) and I spent hours snacking and watching the hurricane blow from my tower room before going to bed in an air conditioned room.

We then ate at Chef Mickeys the very next day. This is not to belittle the impact of a Hurricane, but Disney is certainly a great place to ride one out. Just remember to always fill up before arriving at the resort (I did...which is also one lesson that I did learn).
 
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SMS55

SMS55

Well-Known Member
In September you're going to get rained on. It's still the summer rainy season. They usually pass quickly but bring a poncho. In regards to hurricanes, yes it is the peak of the season and it's possible that a storm can come but as someone else said, in 45 years, they've closed twice for storms.
 
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mmnw

Active Member
I'm not around Hurricanes. (I'm used to Tornadoes where you need to go into the basement or interior room for safety.). Is it safe to be on a top floor of a hotel during a Hurricane?
 
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StarshipDisney

Well-Known Member
mmnw said:
I'm not around Hurricanes. (I'm used to Tornadoes where you need to go into the basement or interior room for safety.). Is it safe to be on a top floor of a hotel during a Hurricane?
Click to expand...

I was on the 12th floor of the Contemporary Resort Tower during Hurricane Francis in Sept 2004. No issues at all. In fact, I am not sure it was possible to have it much better what with power, TV, food, etc. the whole time.

The would certainly not be the case at all resorts. But it's hard to beat the Contemporary Tower when it comes to having everything available in one building with your own generators.
 
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