Holiday Breaks or Summer for a WDW Trip?

All five of my trips to Disney World, both as a child and an adult,  have either been during March school break or the summer.  As a child and teenager, it was because my parents didn't believe in pulling us out of school for a vacation.  My wife and I feel the same way, but we have the added hurdle of both being teachers.  So school and summer breaks have become a natural choice for our holidays.  If either of these apply to you, this post is for you.  This post poses the question of whether there is a better choice between the two.  There are pros and cons to each, which I shall outline, but for the purposes of this discussion I will focus on the three trips we took as a family between 2011 and 2017.

The first two WDW / Orlando vacations were taken during March school break in the greater Toronto, Canada area.  The first time we spent five nights and four days in the parks, while the second time we spent six nights and five days in the parks.  On both of these trips we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Walt Disney World, so we were onsite.  Our most recent trip was in August and was nine nights, although the first three days and nights were spent offsite in Orlando visiting such attractions as the Kennedy Space Center.   Then we moved to Port Orleans Riverside in Walt Disney World for the final six nights, including five in the parks.

So if you are considering a holiday break, we are talking probably either at Christmas or March / spring.  Both are very busy, and are usually non discounted periods.  Christmas time has Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party (at an extra cost) along with the festive decorations in the parks.  New Years Eve brings with it a spectacular Fireworks show in the Magic Kingdom.  These are the biggest reasons to go during the Christmas break, along with the fact that it is up to 16 days long in many places.  March / Spring break is a shorter time frame, and a little less crowded until you approach and reach Easter (often at capacity in the parks).  A Mears shuttle driver told me that from mid February until Easter the crowds are consistently large, because all across North America various states, provinces, and individual school boards are on breaks.  March or Spring Break's biggest plus is its weather.   It is usually very warm and sunny with little rain.  But it is not extremely hot like summer in Florida.

The largest cons to the breaks is the cost and the extreme busyness in the airports.  For both our trips during March break, the wait in Toronto Pearson Airport was extremely long at both security and pre customs.  Weather at Christmas time could be a con because it is so inconsistent with daytime highs often in the low to mid 60s Fahrenheit (around 16 to 18 degrees Celsius).  Also, the crowds from Christmas through to New Years are heavy.  And if you want to drive either to Orlando or a more distant airport, road and weather conditions can be hazardous at times.

Summer has several pros, but the two biggest are cheaper flights, plus more room and package discounts, and the flexibility to stay longer.  Crowds are high during the summer, but not as much as at Christmas or Easter.  If your reason for having to go during breaks is work or school related, the summer provides a better opportunity to stay longer at a lower cost.  Our August trip lasted 11 days all told, and didn't cost much more than our 2015 March break getaway  due to big savings on airfares (and driving to Buffalo from Toronto to fly), tickets, and room discount.  The later that you go in August, the better the savings, and the less the crowds will be.  While in Disney World, I had the pleasure of speaking with some Brits, and they reiterated an important point I had read in some Disney Facebook groups.   They said that if you are travelling from the United Kingdom or Europe to Orlando, it isn't worthwhile to go for less than two or three weeks.  So for some of them, the summer is the only viable option for a non school vacation.

However, this brings up the main negative to the summer - WEATHER!  Mid to late August is the beginning of hurricane season, alhough WDW demonstrated very recently that it is an extremely safe place to be during one. It is also extremely hot with frequent late day thunderstorms or downpours from July through September.  But we found Disney World's heat to be very manageable (see another post for tips), especially if you stay onsite or close enough to the parks to enjoy a midday break and a swim in the pool.

So the bottom line is if money is no object and you want to be there for holiday festivities, go during the Christmas / New Years break.  If you have the means, and want the best weather, go during March / Spring break.  And if you can handle the heat, want to save money, and have more flexibility, go during summer.  That was actually our family's favourite Disney vacation yet!

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