We are all creatures of habit in one way or another; we know what we like and like what we know. I think that is certainly the case with regards to Walt Disney World vacations. We spend so much time dreaming of the magic in-between our trips; therefore we want to make each vacation perfect in every way.
One of the first things that has to happen before any detailed planning can take place for parks, ADR’s, special events etc is that we have to decide WHEN to go. This can have a big impact on how your trip takes shape.
Today I want to know if anyone else takes part in the ‘pros and cons’ game before deciding when to visit Walt Disney World. You know….making a list (whether actually written on paper or just thoughts in your head) going through the positives and negatives of why you should choose a certain time of the year to visit WDW.
The first two weeks of December is my favourite time of the year to visit WDW and no matter how hard I try I will always have more ‘pros’ than ‘cons’ for visiting at this time of the year! The pros for me are the weather, crowds and the Christmas setting. The temperature is usually mild, sunny during the day, with the odd rainy day but nothing stormy. Crowd levels are fairly light, avoiding school holidays for both UK and US visitors. I enjoy the decorations and special events at that time of year too.
However the cons for me at this time of year are funnily enough the unpredictability of some of the pros! Crowd levels are increasing at that time of the year because of seasonal special offers, plus you might also be unlucky enough to share one of the resorts with hoards of cheerleaders visiting for the Pop Warner event (yes, it happened to us). Unfortunately although the weather can be just how I like it at that time of year it can also be completely unexpected…..see December 2010, brrrrr!
I would love to visit WDW for my birthday in July, but that one pro is greatly outweighed by the cons for me personally. I dislike heat (unless I am lying by the pool) and I dislike crowds, so putting them together and adding in WDW is pretty much a ‘no-no’ for me! I have visited WDW in August when I was a teenager…unfortunately (or should that be luckily?) I can’t remember a lot of the details from that trip except for getting sunburnt and experiencing crazy storms every afternoon.
Sometimes when you sit and weigh up your pros and cons for certain times of the year they come out pretty even and that’s when you have to change what you know…and take a chance with the ‘don’t know’! I’ll be taking my next trip during October and this will be the first time that I’ve attended Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot. I guess the main negative point for that time of year is that I’m not used to the crowds but I can plan and prepare…and eventually that ‘con’ will disappear!
So, how do you decide when to visit Walt Disney World? I would love to hear whether you stick with what you know or be guided by your ‘pros and cons’ list?
