I’ve been mostly a lurker for a while but thought I’d start a thread for my random, late questions as I’m finalizing plans.
My family of 4 is heading down to The World from 8/10-8/20 for our twice-canceled revenge trip. We’re staying in studio at the Poly with rented points. My wife is a teacher so we’re limited on travel days when it’s not nuclear hot so we’re throwing caution to the wind. Were planning on our arrival day as a pool days and have two more rest
We normally rope drop and take an afternoon break. We also have cooling towels and my wife ordered a “neck” fan. Any other tips for beating the heat?
Our first park day is MK on the 11th. I was hoping to hit Capt. Cook’s for breakfast before EE. Will we have time to do that and get a boat/monorail to not be behind the crowd?
Are folks still creating TPs? Are you having more better luck with pre-built or custom?
We are planning to park hop many days in the evening. Any recommendations for stacking vs “early” LL strategy?
You’ll be fine! We are heading to the Poly the week following, in the same boat as you with school schedule restrictions. Yes it’s hot and rainy, but, lines are shorter and your park hopper will give you awesome flexibility. And don’t forget about extended evening hours at Epcot and MK for DVC villas! I would recommend good poncho’s, from frogg toggs, and waterproof shoes! Wet socks and lots of walking=not fun. I’m going with the stacking strategy, set thing up for the evening, seems like a better idea given the heat. Good luck and fun, leave the AC on for us!
If you eat at 7:00 a.m. when they open, it might work. MK lets people onto Main Street at 7:45, and people who can do the 8:30 EE start to line up at the ropes to TL and FL. You may be behind a few people.
Yes you will melt but you will also have a great time!!! As long as you assume that every time you leave A/C it will be like stepping into a steam shower, then you can mentally prepare. I know our summers are humid in MN but honesty Florida is something else.
Do sunscreen sticks instead of lotion for kids faces so it doesn’t melt and sting into eyes, wear contacts instead of glasses so they don’t fog up, light or sweat proof colors for shirts so you look less busted for pics, and waterproof mascara for your wife. If all else fails just know there is a cold beer about every 10 yards in Epcot
We’ve been testing moisture wicking shirts all summer to prepare! Our last trip I had some nasty sweat stains going on in our MNSSHP pics. Our Mighty Ducks t-shirts looked pretty nasty by the end of the night.
We took our first big family trip to Disney in August 2019. We are going back the same week this year. So it certainly didn’t melt us to the point we aren’t willing to do it again! I am adding cooling towels to our stash though since we now have 2 teens who sweat way more than before.
I don’t have on property advice, but I’ll add that of all the parks, HS seems best for stacking and you could get a great hopping day there if you can hit some shorter lines at your first park. Then just stack your HS rides for later.
Fellow Minnesotan here - we just got back from a July trip. The humidity is really what got to us. Cooling towels helped but we had a few different types of neck fans and ultimately found that they didn’t work and just ended up being another thing we had to carry through the park so ditched them after the first couple of days. We bought “cooling” clothes (from Columbia and Duluth Trading) and they seemed to help! MK, HS, and Epcot were all manageable with inside lines/shopping/dining. AK was the most difficult and we cut both our days short due to heat (even with inside lunches). I’m not sure if they all do it, but some of the inside QS locations were gatekeeping - you had to show your mobile order and that it was ready for pick-up before you were able to go inside. I understand, but it was kind of irritating - especially when we had to show multiple cast members. Just something to keep in mind if you are doing indoor QS.
We were touring the last week of June with heat indices in the triple digits. The overnight temperature seldom dipped below 75.
Our first day started a little later than rope drop and even tho we had ice cream for breakfast, we were melting when we left the park shortly before 2 pm.
After that we made sure to be out of the park of the day by noon. Felt much better.
Hydration is a struggle for me. I feel less affected by the heat and humidity when I add a flavorless electrolyte to whatever beverage I’m drinking.
While at Disney I like to carry an 8oz disposable water bottle. It fits in a pocket. I refill it easily while in a park - adding electrolyte from a tiny bottle I carry. And if I lose the 8 oz water bottle, I’ve got more water bottles back at the resort.
I had a cooling towel - I really don’t understand how it’ll work with the dew point so high. It did help keep the sun off my neck.
One summer trip we did get great relief from the cool packs you squash to activate. One of those on the back of your neck is so restorative. We didn’t bring them this trip.
Thanks for all the input. We’re planning to leave the parks around 12-1 everyday to swim. We also will bring water bottles to refill and likely some Gatorade or other electrolyte powders.
Iowan here who actually loves hot weather (Iowa hot weather). I’ll never go in the summer again. There are things you can do to make it more comfortable but it’s just so freaking hot.
I took a UV umbrella last summer and it helped a lot. Used it whenever I had to stand in the sun, which seriously just feels like it’s about 350 degrees on your skin.
Hat to keep the sun off your face and/or neck.
Cooling towels really do feel nice for a little while.
Portable fans for everyone.
Take lots of breaks, cut through stores and indoor locations whenever you can.
Obvious one but stay hydrated.
Wear quick-dry/performance clothing. Think stuff people wear for hiking, running, outdoor sports, etc. No heavy cotton t-shirts and no jeans or denim anything. I also recommend moisture-wicking underwear. Bring extra clothes to change into or plan to do laundry.
Don’t get chafing or sunburned! Take seriously some measures to avoid both, as they will just make you even more miserable.
Elevate your feet at the end of the day for a while.
If you’re in good physical shape/active it will be easier, but just take breaks as you need to. Planning to take a pool break every day is a good idea but the weather can often mess with afternoon plans so keep that in mind.
Last week of June our trip was me and DH, senior citizens, and two teens - 17 and 16.
We toured separately - teens leaving by 7 am to rope drop - no Genie+ or LL. Line waits over 40 minutes not tolerated.
Park hop to different park for evening, beginning with ADR at park about 5 pm. Teens ate with us before touring the park on their own, again with no G+ or LL.
DH and I had a couple of must do things each day - one being Cosmic Rewind, one of the teens got a BG - which we mostly accomplished. The teens did everything they wanted, with one exception. Since they walk fast, they accomplished a lot.
Good luck and enjoy
eta: several trips now I’ve created touring plans before leaving to see how they look. Revise expectations in my head. Go with the flow in the park.
Little bit of both. I’m only buying G+ for our MK and HS days. For AK and Epcot, using early entry and the TP. That’s also going to be a park hop day for sure, AK in the AM, lunch at Tiffin’s, break at the resort, then to Epcot. I’m going to bite the bullet and just buy ILL’s for GOTG, since we won’t be in park for a BG.
I’ve created touring plans, and I plan to use them in the parks and optimize as we get LLs. I’ve also been thinking about estimating the LLs we might get and adjusting touring plans accordingly.
We’re not planning on rope dropping any of the days, but I still want to ride as much as possible. I also haven’t been in 22 years, so I definitely wanted some guidance.
