Rain - Does the rain influence your travel plans for locals and non-locals?

[SpaceMan5]

Just curious how much the rain really influences one's travel plans for the locals and non-locals. I am from WA and we have made several trips in Oct, Jan and Feb with no concern about what the weather would be like. That time of the year just worked with our schedules and luckily we had zero rain. That is until Jan 2023 and we were caught in the surge that drenched DL. Being from the NW we were prepared and had a great time even in the downpours. There was a care free attitude of those around us like we are all in this together and lets laugh and have a great time.
So for the locals do you avoid DL during the rainy times or do you still go hoping for shorter lines and/or just like being at DL in the rain for a change?
For the non-locals, do you plan your trips during the drier months to avoid the rain or going during the school breaks?

 

[violina]

I'm not local to the area, but I am up in NorCal. The only thing we factor in is heat, and how it changes our approach to clothes. We've been in the rain before, but it didn't really impact the trip and the subsequent plans.

We normally go Sept/Oct/Nov, because for my group, that timing works out best for everyone.

 

[Disneysince82]

I’m grew up in the PNW! We are traveling to DL in December so clearly we have accepted the idea of rain but personally I can handle rain/gloom better than I can extreme heat

 

[Dug720]

Coming from across the country, I poncho up and keep going. (Granted I'll do the same thing at WDW, so...) I'm not going to melt.

I'm a teacher, so I'm limited in terms of when I can travel.

 

[twodogs]

We fly from Texas, and we have to plan long in advance and around our kids’ school breaks. So we go, regardless of the weather!

 

[LKing]

So for the locals do you avoid DL during the rainy times or do you still go hoping for shorter lines and/or just like being at DL in the rain for a change?

I am local with a Magic Key. I go at least once a week. I don't avoid the parks if it is rainy, or too hot, or too crowded. I just change what I do and how long I stay. For me, it isn't about the lines. I am fortunate to be able to go on the rides whenever I want. If a line for a ride is too long, I'll ride it another day.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

So for the locals do you avoid DL during the rainy times or do you still go hoping for shorter lines and/or just like being at DL in the rain for a change?

We are local and love DLR in the rain! Spontaneous wet weather trips aren't as easy now as they were before the reservation system, but we still plan to go to the parks if the forecast looks good (wet!).

 

[SpaceMan5]

I’m grew up in the PNW! We are traveling to DL in December so clearly we have accepted the idea of rain but personally I can handle rain/gloom better than I can extreme heat

Same here. if we get good weather it is a bonus.

 

[SpaceMan5]

Coming from across the country, I poncho up and keep going. (Granted I'll do the same thing at WDW, so...) I'm not going to melt.

I'm a teacher, so I'm limited in terms of when I can travel.

I kinda of figured that school breaks would be a big consideration for non-locals. Speaking of poncho, North Face is my friend

 

[Iceman93]

I used to love rain at WDW, because generally it was warm out and the drenching felt good. It was fun to just walk through the park getting soaked but acting like nothing was out of the ordinary, while other people scrambled to get under cover, don ponchos, and generally act like they were going to melt if they got wet. Plus those Orlando afternoon thunderstorms would generally pass with a few hours of sunlight still to come which would help us dry off (with much lower humidity and generally fewer crowds because lots of people streamed out of the parks when those storms would hit).

Now that I'm local to DLR, if we're planning a Disney day and it rains, we just stay home because generally rain also comes with cool/cold weather. It's no fun being drenched AND cold!

 

[WonkaKid]

Prior to the pandemic (before the scourge of reservations;-)), I used to say that the only thing that led to smaller crowds was rain. That is, events such as the Super Bowl, the Oscars or the release of a blockbuster movie did nothing to lower crowds. But now with reservations being made weeks if not months in advance, I don’t think rain has any significant effect upon crowds/attendance.

 

[DizMe]

I'm from NorCal and generally have my trips planned ahead. I fly down. I take what I get. The thing with the DL area is that there is usually no way of knowing whether or not it's going to rain until maybe the day before--the weather reports change constantly. It may be comforting to know it most likely WON'T rain when you go. Typically, they don't get that much annual precipitation (I think it's 13" per year). Most of the rain tends to fall Jan-March. I just looked it up and there are on average 341 days/year it DOESN'T rain.

Now, who knows what the "new normal" might be, but most of the time when it rains at DL, it clears up at some point later in the day. However, I've been there when there were some massive storms and the bad thing about those (which are not common) is that many rides go down, restaurants can't handle it well because so much is outdoors, and the infrastructure can't really deal with a deluge. I've seen water pouring out of ceiling light sockets in stores on Main St., and there's a fun picture of ducks swimming in the street near the hub. Again, that kind of thing is rare but I've been going to DL for decades so I've seen it a few times.

 

[gelatoni fan]

Rain absolutely decreases crowds but perhaps not as much as before the pandemic.

I was in the parks during Lunar New Year last year when it rained quite seriously one day and didn't rain another day. There was a very dramatic difference in the length of the lines for Lunar New Year characters. When outdoor shows get cancelled and it's difficult to enjoy the special food stalls at DCA, passholders have less reason to go in.

There were fewer people in the streets but wait times for indoor attractions like Web Slingers were not really lower. Due to reservations, passholders still have to go into the parks to prevent a strike against their pass but instead of staying all afternoon and leaving after the fireworks, may just go on a couple indoor rides and then go home.

 

[marcar12]

I am not a local. In the last few years I have realized how big of a role weather plays in how much I enjoy a vacation. So I do take it into consideration when planning, for sure. I have decided that if we do a Disney trip between April and Aug, it will be to Disneyland in CA. If we do a trip between Oct and March then it will be to Disney World in Florida. (all because of various weather conditions! I don't want tons of rain nor do I want the awful humid heat!)

 

[DLgal]

We are locals who stay home when it rains. We go so often and we don't like being wet or cold or too hot, so when we are having "extreme" weather, we just stay home and try again the following week.

 

[SpaceMan5]

Prior to the pandemic (before the scourge of reservations;-)), I used to say that the only thing that led to smaller crowds was rain. That is, events such as the Super Bowl, the Oscars or the release of a blockbuster movie did nothing to lower crowds. But now with reservations being made weeks if not months in advance, I don’t think rain has any significant effect upon crowds/attendance.

That was the vibe I was getting in Jan. Lots of rain but still very busy.

 

[SpaceMan5]

Rain absolutely decreases crowds but perhaps not as much as before the pandemic.

I was in the parks during Lunar New Year last year when it rained quite seriously one day and didn't rain another day. There was a very dramatic difference in the length of the lines for Lunar New Year characters. When outdoor shows get cancelled and it's difficult to enjoy the special food stalls at DCA, passholders have less reason to go in.

There were fewer people in the streets but wait times for indoor attractions like Web Slingers were not really lower. Due to reservations, passholders still have to go into the parks to prevent a strike against their pass but instead of staying all afternoon and leaving after the fireworks, may just go on a couple indoor rides and then go home.

A strike against passholders? I have never heard of that. So is it like 3 strikes you're out kinda of deal? Plz explain. thanks

 

[gelatoni fan]

A strike against passholders? I have never heard of that. So is it like 3 strikes you're out kinda of deal? Plz explain. thanks

3 no shows in 90 days and you are blocked from making reservations for 30 days.
Unlike the other Disney parks, you can't cancel your reservation in the morning to free up the spot so you have to show up to avoid the penalty.

A lot of passholders have this mentality that if they took up a reservation and showed up at the park, they should at least go on a ride or something before leaving. I've walked into California Adventure just to walk right back out before but people I know like to at least go to the bathroom so they feel like when they went into the park, they actually did something.

 

[LKing]

You can cancel the night before without penalty.

 

[gelatoni fan]

You can cancel the night before without penalty.

A lot of times, people wake up, see that it's raining and then decide they don't want to go out. Being able to cancel the night before doesn't really help in these situations if a person's intention was to go to the parks but they only decided not to after seeing heavy enough rain.

I never cancelled a Disney park reservation based on the weather forecast the night before but I have decided not to show up at Hong Kong Disneyland due to the weather when I already had a reservation.