The Pros and Cons to Visiting Disney World in January
January is one of those months coveted by regular Disney Parks visitors. Temperatures, crowds, and low prices are the draw.
The holidays are knows as the busiest times at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. Parks have been know to reach capacity by 10 and 11 am.
But after the holiday crowds have vacated the parks it becomes a completely different experience. If you are looking for some Disney downtime than this may be your season.
This type of year does have a lot of advantages but also some drawbacks.
For those that are thinking of heading to Walt Disney World or Disneyland in January here are some pros and cons to think about.
Pros:
- Very Light Crowds (some of the lowest of the year)
- Touring Plans {affiliate link} shows that for most of the month of January crowd levels are 4 and below. To guage this summers are usually 8-9 and holidays are a 10. So a crowd level of 4 is fantastic.
- Weekends that may raise the attendance to more moderate levels are Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend (Jan 7 – 11, 2015), Disneyland Star Wars Half Marathon Weekend (Jan 15 – 18, 2015), and Martin Luther King Weekend (Jan 17 – 19, 2015).
- Short Wait Times
- With low crowds come shorter wait times. You can walk on most rides first thing in the morning and even at peak times most rides are a nominal wait (20 minutes or less)
Radiator Springs Racers at Disney’s California Adventure (photo credit: KerriNikolePhotography via photopin cc)
- Low room rates and Winter Room Specials
- The rack rates for rooms are low this time of year and if you can find a special you can grab rooms at very low prices.
- Note: Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend (Jan 7 – 11, 2015), Disneyland Star Wars Half Marathon Weekend (Jan 15 – 18, 2015), and Martin Luther King Weekend (Jan 17 – 19, 2015) may be exceptions.
- Mild temperatures
- The temperatures make this time of year a pleasure to go to Disney World. The averages for this time of year are a low of 49 degree and high of 71 degree highs.
An Empty Main Street in the Magic Kingdom (photo credit: Joe Shlabotnik via photopin cc)
Cons:
- Shorter park hours
- When there are low crowds Disney adjusts their operating calendar shortens the park hours.
- Parks can typically close as early as 9 pm with Animal Kingdom closing as early as 5 pm.
- Large Temperature Swings
- The average temperatures for Orlando in January are quite pleasant but a cold snap or a heat wave could easily make your trip less enjoyable.
- Refurbishments
- The parks take the time when crows are low to perform maintenance and refurbishments on many rides. You may not be able to ride your favorites while you are there.
- Current list of Walt Disney World January 2015 refurbishments:
- Cinderella’s Royal Table will be closed for renovation from January 5 – March 6, 2015
- American Idol Experience will be closing permanently in January 2015.
- Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is currently undergoing refurbishment, scheduled to be completed in spring 2015.
- The multi-year transformation of Downtown Disney into Disney Springs will impact parking and congestion on Lake Buena Vista Drive.
- Blizzard Beach Water Park will close for its annual refurbishment January 4 through March 3, 2015.
Closed for Refurbishment Sign (Photo credit: Love Our Disney)
If you are even thinking of going I would consider contacting Joe (my husband) of Off to Neverland Travel. He can keep you up to date on new specials that just make this trip even more affordable.
And his services are free to you. You pay the same to use him or not. So I say make him do the work. I do.
Magic Maker® Joseph DeFazio (281-971-0016)|joseph.defazio@offtoneverland.com
With all said and done January is still one of the best months to visit Walt Disney World.
If you want more information and thoughts on traveling to Disney World in January check out this week’s Riding the Rails at the Magical Blogorail.
Loved reading, since we are planning to being there in March!
ckrusch Another GREAT month. Beware of the weeks of spring break but otherwise wonderful weather and longer park hours.
Even with the cons you listed, I think I would rather go during January just simply to avoid the crowds!
I think it is the best month to go, if you could take the kids out of school! We just went Christmas break- disaster!
dentistmel I feel for you. We have always wanted to do Christmas but for the reason you stated we haven’t. We did go last Thanksgiving and that really was not that bad.
We enjoy going in January. 🙂 The cold in FL is warmer than the cold here in PA, so we love it!
I love going in January! It’s always perfect weather for us!
I will happily go in January to take advantage of those pros – then lose my mind with crowds and the heat the rest of the months!
Great post Mary with the pros and cons. I’ll certainly go back in January one year, but I’m one of those that doesn’t mind the crowds or the heat, so if I had to choose between summer or January I’d choose summer.
Of course, I’d take both, too! 🙂
Thanks,
Mike
Thanks for sharing great tips! It’s great to know when to visit Disney World and when better not.
hi i have a few questions, is animal kingdom the only park that closes early? also when you mention it getting cold whats considered cold for flordia (im canadian) and last one i promise lol hows novemeber ?
Would love to see pros and cons for every month….
Thanks so much! I can’t wait to get back to the Best Place On Earth….(Disney World of course…sorry, not a big fan of Disneyland). I always went in the middle of September, until my son started school that is! I took him once on Spring break. Like I said….ONCE! Of course we had a great time being together in a wonderful place, but the crowds were horrible. Since we’ll never go back during another school break, we haven’t been back in years. Too many years….so I’ve decided to take him out of school! I was trying to think when the best time would be to go, and after reading your post, January has won! I can’t thank you enough.
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