Would you recommend skipping KRR and SM in winter? We’re going in early December and I keep wondering if I should plan on the water rides or plan on skipping them. Any suggestions? We won’t have a break on our AK days. We’ll be at MK on at least one party day so could save SM for almost last…or we’re planning on leaving and napping and coming back for HEA that night. Any advice here? Kids are 4, 6, and 8, grandparents coming, too. I don’t mind getting wet some but don’t want to freeze from walking around wet…
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We did KRR in November and it was cool when we were there. We had disposable ponchos that we wore and kept fairly dry. On Spash, ask for a dryer seat.
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I’m also going to be there in late Nov/early Dec and I’m just going to wait and make the call on Splash and Kali day-of based on the weather and how we’re feeling. They both seem to be relatively easy to modify for for same-day FP even checking this week (and I assume demand is higher in Aug than Dec). Keep in mind that (at least in my experience) you get a LOT wetter on Kali than Splash even with a poncho.
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Though I should add that I was only ‘practice’-modifying for a group of 2. A larger party might be harder, especially for Splash.
I would suggest a poncho on KRR in December–there’s the potential to get soaked. SM is not as bad usually. Of course, you never know–we have been in December and the temps were in the upper 80s. We have also been in December and had to wear jackets and gloves and we were still cold.
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I’d say take ponchos and go for it! Our first trip was in late November and one night when it was probably barely 50 degrees we rode Splash at least 5 times in a row and we were the only ones in the boat. It’s one of our best memories!
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@dunegirl I think that’s what we’ll have to do, too.
@gabmom I didn’t know you could request a dryer seat! That’s great news.
@Dreamer and @rckstrscat I guess I do still need to put ponchos on the list, huh? Thanks for the tips!
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We were at WDW the first week of December, and it turned out to be very warm most days. We rode Splash, and didn’t get wet at all; we rode Kali and ponchoed up…good thing since without the ponchos we would have been drenched. The weather can be so changeable that time of year, so maybe just keep your options open…
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There is a lot of “depends on the day” in this. It could be 80 or it could be 50. Splash is hands down my favorite Ride in the MK - if not in all of WDW. I’ve never gotten more than “splashed” on the ride, and it would have to be in the 30s for me to even consider not riding it. I’ve been on enough really good raft rides that I rarely ride the comparatively lame KRR, regardless of the season. I certainly wouldn’t do it in December as it’s a whole different level of “getting wet” compared to SM.
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Yes, if your luck is anything like mine. We rode a few weeks ago and everyone on the raft was wet if not soaked. Usually a few people manage to stay dry, but not this time. It was clear that several of the women had no idea what to expect.
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Many ponchos…
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The issue with KRR is that as often as not the water pours in through “entry steps” and washes over your lap and down onto your feet. Ponchos will keep your upper half somewhat dry, but they don’t help very much on the lower half.
So true. That’s when dri fit shorts are helpful.
I’m thinking we may skip KRR unless it’s like 80 degrees…I really would hate for us to be walking around soaked and freezing! And I kinda feel like a water raft ride is a water raft ride, right? It’d be like skipping Dumbo…I live in the boonies in Russia and we have a “Dumbo” ride at the local amusement park…
KRR is also short for raft ride – at least for us it practically felt like you loaded, went down one waterfall, then unloaded. Even at a hotter time of year, it felt like a lot of to-do for not very much excitement (though everyone else was very amused that I was the one to go down the fall backwards and get completely drenched – my capris were so wet you could see the stripes on my underwear through them 
!).
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Our plan is to skip KRR, and do SM before a break (although I don’t xpect to get too wet on that one).
For Disneyland, we like to stay at the Grand Californian and do Grizzly River Rapids in conjunction with pool time, so I have 0 FOMO about KRR.
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If it is really cool, both rides will be walk-ons. Even in the 70s, both will run relatively short lines which allows a “game day decision” without too much pain. Splash is definitely not to be missed, Kali it depends - if you can swing it as your last ride before heading out of AK it may make sense to squeeze it in as that’s low risk since you’re leaving anyway…
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For what it is worth, they also do “turn down” the water effects on Splash in cooler temps. I have gone many times of year and rarely skip it (couple times it has been closed) and have never gotten drenched. I hate KRR though. I’ve never walked off of that ride with an ounce of dry clothing or footwear. And I don’t feel like the “ride” is quite worth it.
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This!
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You all are very helpful. Thank you!