Visiting end of August

[DisneyBliss7]

What's Disney World like the last week of August? Crowd levels? Weather?

 

[LSUfan4444]

Crowd levels?

Manageable

Weather?

Almost unmanageable.


Early and late touring will be your friend.

 

[danielocha30]

rope drop/middle of the day break/back at the park for nightime
The crowds are ok but the heat and crowds peak at the same time noon! and I will suggest to leave the park or schedule a table service lunch / indoors activity to be out of the heat

 

[KrazeeK120]

It'll be WAY hot and humid. Either go back to your resort in the afternoon or schedule TS lunch instead of dinner to get out of the heat.

Or get in line for FoP around noon.

 

[LSUfan4444]

schedule TS lunch instead of dinner

Good point...I'm a big believer in this as well. Rather than character meals in the morning, shoot for late lunches or really early dinners when you're tired and can use the break. You'll be fresh in the morning with some of the lower temps of the day so use that time wisely.

 

[AliceNDinah]

We will also be there for the last week in August. So excited, and I'm trying to scoop up as much info as possible.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

We've done the last week of August and I'm planning it again for next year. Crowds are lower the later you get into August and you can get some good deals on rooms.

Yes it's hot. It's humid. But it's manageable IMO. We do RD, midday break by the pool and then head to our PM park around 5.

 

[FourLeafClover]

We're going that week as well. Planning to RD, do as much as we can in the am, leave for the afternoon (either back to condo or offsite for lunch/ac), then return late afternoon for more rides and fireworks. The crowds that week are all forecast at about a 5/10 give or take the park/day.

 

[Nick6300]

like Clover stated, crowd level 5, but it goes down to level 2-3 for the few days leading into Labor Day (back to 5). It's 90s and humid. we prepare like it's going to rain in the afternoon every day (i.e. no socks, pack ponchos, ziplock bags for phones/wallets). There are some QS dining with A/C like Cosmic Rays too.

 

[AngiTN]

One of the hottest times to go but darn if I didn't have the misfortune of being born then so off to Disney I go anyway.
Crowds aren't too bad. About like late May. I like late May better as it's not quite as hot (normally, though it was this year)

 

[maltdizzy]

Park hours are shorter, with most (non-EMH) closing around 8-9.

Crowds are more kiderate at the heaviest.

Peak humidity and near peak heat for central Florida and within peak hurricane season. With all that heat and moisture, thunderstorms are almodt daily.

 

[prprincess]

That's when we visited last year. It wasn't as hot as people warned me it would be. Our summers here in Jersey are brutal, and it was pretty much the same. But we had to deal with the remnants of a hurricane, so most of our evening activities were shot because it rained so hard every night. Crowd levels were great. I would definitely go again during the last week of August!

 

[Nick6300]

That's when we visited last year. It wasn't as hot as people warned me it would be. Our summers here in Jersey are brutal, and it was pretty much the same. But we had to deal with the remnants of a hurricane, so most of our evening activities were shot because it rained so hard every night. Crowd levels were great. I would definitely go again during the last week of August!

We take the lower crowds tradeoff to cooler/drier temps. We're going last week of Aug. this yr. Prefer it to be in Sept for more than our 2 chances at F&W, but the flight/hotel deals were in late Aug. I'm almost thankful for the earlier park closing hours during this timeframe- for more sleep. I don't want that temptation to stay at MK until 1am and then try to RD next day. But if MK (at least the early parts of the last week of Aug.) and AK are moved to 11pm instead of 9pm close, that would be nice.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

We take the lower crowds tradeoff to cooler/drier temps. We're going last week of Aug. this yr. Prefer it to be in Sept for more than our 2 chances at F&W, but the flight/hotel deals were in late Aug. I'm almost thankful for the earlier park closing hours during this timeframe- for more sleep. I don't want that temptation to stay at MK until 1am and then try to RD next day. But if MK (at least the early parts of the last week of Aug.) and AK are moved to 11pm instead of 9pm close, that would be nice.

When we went in 2015 they pushed back MK to an 11 pm close with PM EMH so it was open until 1 am. We also really like the lower crowds and sometimes the rain makes us step back and rest. We've never been washed out though.

 

[McFlea]

We're going in August (21-26) for the first time this year. We've been in fall, spring and winter, but never summer. I'm a bit concerned about the heat, but have been reading so many good tips on these boards. Better to be hot at Disney than hot at home!

 

[jpeterson]

We are going Mid-August 11-21, hoping it won't be too bad. We are from Central Texas though, so we are used to hot.

 

[WDWFantasmicFan]

What's Disney World like the last week of August? Crowd levels? Weather?

I often go in late-August. Crowds are busy but not crazy (American schools have gone back by then...). Weather is super hot, typically a thunderstorm daily around 3pm until 4pm. Would recommend getting to the parks for rope drop, head back to your hotel/villa at the peak sun/thunderstorm time and then go back in the evening. Plan indoor attractions (with AC queues) for the hottest time of the day. Have a magical trip!

 

[AngiTN]

One thing about heat and late August, most of us have built up some sort of tolerance to it by then. So often it's not quite as hard to take as it can be earlier in the summer. I know when we first come out of winter it's harder to get adjusted to the heat than it is when we've been hot for 3 months.

I often go in late-August. Crowds are busy but not crazy (American schools have gone back by then...). Weather is super hot, typically a thunderstorm daily around 3pm until 4pm. Would recommend getting to the parks for rope drop, head back to your hotel/villa at the peak sun/thunderstorm time and then go back in the evening. Plan indoor attractions (with AC queues) for the hottest time of the day. Have a magical trip!

Many of them have not. A large portion of the country does not return until after Labor Day (the First Monday in Sept)
Most Southern Schools have returned by late August but most Northern schools have not

 

[beccasmom]

I agree with all the advice given here. Please take the weather seriously, especially if you've never experienced it. Taking a mid-day break will give you a second wind. The great part is that the worst of the summer crowds will have diminished. I personally don't find the pools too refreshing (the water always feels like bath water to me), but I know for certain the kids don't mind it. Whatever works for you and gives you a break from the parks is a good thing. Getting an early start because of the shortened park hours will be a big help too.

 

[Nick6300]

I often go in late-August. Crowds are busy but not crazy (American schools have gone back by then...). Weather is super hot, typically a thunderstorm daily around 3pm until 4pm. Would recommend getting to the parks for rope drop, head back to your hotel/villa at the peak sun/thunderstorm time and then go back in the evening. Plan indoor attractions (with AC queues) for the hottest time of the day. Have a magical trip!

True on kiddos being back to school, except some states, like in the Midwest where schools start after Labor Day. I was surprised to find out the southern states started earlier when we moved to FL 2015.