2024 Best & Worst Months to Visit Disney World
Choosing when to visit Walt Disney World in 2024 can be difficult, balancing crowd calendars, seasonal events, park hours, weather, and more. This guide does exactly that to rank the best & worst months, plus some of our favorite weeks.
If you’ve yet to narrow down when you want to visit to a specific month or season, our Walt Disney World Crowd Calendars will help you choose dates based on attendance and average wait times, but that’s it. Accordingly, we recommend many readers consult this resource for the “broad strokes” on when to visit Walt Disney World. Here we’ve re-ranked the best and worst months for 2024 based on a variety of mostly qualitative and some quantitative factors.
This considers a variety of variables in conjunction with our evolving expectations about Walt Disney World’s attendance for 2024. To that end, we regularly share big updates, discounts that are released by Walt Disney World, crowd levels change, etc., we send out email notifications. To receive these, subscribe to our free email newsletter. This will give you a good idea of what things are like ‘on the ground’ at Walt Disney World, as well as what to expect in the future.
Unfortunately, Walt Disney World crowd levels can vary, and can not be forecast with 100% accuracy. As such, you should choose when to visit based on other comfort and enjoyment factors in addition to Walt Disney World crowd projections. It’s more pragmatic to choose when you’ll visit based on a mix of attendance levels plus weather, seasonal entertainment, and special events!
As such, these rankings eschew the typical Walt Disney World crowd calendar in favor of a more holistic approach that takes into account more than just crowds when choosing when to visit Walt Disney World.
Low crowds during a time when temperatures are sweltering, humidity is off the charts and there are no special events should not trump moderate crowds during a temperate time of year with a special event. Few people evaluate their vacation’s success by some statistical ‘fun quotient’, so why not do likewise when planning, and perform a qualitative analysis when choosing travel dates?
To cut to the chase, the point of this post is to rank every month of the year for visiting Walt Disney World in light of all variables that (we feel) are important with adjustments made for the ongoing reopening of the parks & resorts, operations scaling back up, capacity increasing, and entertainment returning.
Even months with significant and obvious downsides might have tremendous upside. Take August, for example, which ranks #8. That’s obviously not great, but summer vacation demand usually fizzles out after the first week, making the two-thirds of the month much better than the first half. Even then, it’s hard to rank August higher due to the weather, and since September is such a superior alternative.
There are similar stories throughout the list. November and December have become busier, but these are such qualititatively pleasant and fun months that we’re hard pressed to rank them poorly even given the higher crowds. You’ll have to decide for yourself how you weigh those countervailing factors–we’re just giving you some insight into our thinking and methodology.
Anyway, here is our personal assessment of the best and worst months to visit Walt Disney World. We’d recommend reading the description of each month carefully to make an informed decision about which time frames are best and worst for you…
12. July 2024 – This month ranks dead last due to uncertainty and upside, or lack thereof. Last July was the busiest month of the year at Walt Disney World as the parks got hit by an onslaught of pent-up demand. That’s not normal–in recent years, summer had ceased to be peak season at Walt Disney World.
However, Americans made up for lost time during summer vacation in the last two years, and Florida was one of the top destinations. Last July wasn’t quite as busy, but that could be attributed to inflation and rising gas prices, etc. Obviously, a lot could change between now and July, but we’re expecting above-average crowds.
The big reason behind the low ranking is that July is not a good month to visit Florida because of heat and humidity. The near-certainty of poor weather plus the uncertainty of heavy crowds puts July in last place. With that said, once you plan for the realities of a summer trip, remember: “even a rainy, potentially crowded day at Walt Disney World is better than a perfect day at home.” Don’t get too down on trip–it’ll still be a great time so long as you go in with good strategy and realistic expectations.
10. June 2024 – In a typical year, June starts out slow and gets progressively worse as more schools get out and families begin taking their summer vacations. Crowds start in above-average territory and are high by the end of the month. The last few summers have been a bit atypical, but we’d expect that trend to return for June 2024.
Another normal downside to June is the weather. Obviously, it’s a hot month, and the average monthly rainfall in June at Walt Disney World is over 8+ inches, and the probability of rain on any given day is above 50%. The upside to June is that it’s typically the less busy of the summer months, with most summer vacations happening in July or early August.
10. March 2024 – Early March is one of our “sleeper picks” for low crowds–and will be once again come March 2024 with Mardi Gras moving forward to February. Consequently, there should be a brief respite before spring break, but not long enough for March as a whole to rank too highly.
Spring break is the major downside to the second half of March, as is Easter occurring at the end of the month (March 31, 2024). In particular, avoid Orange County’s spring break as that’ll be the worst week-plus of the entire season, since that local school district has the most outsized impact on crowds.
On the plus side, weather is typically temperate by March, as evidenced by the start of Epcot’s International Flower & Garden Festival at the beginning of the month. Regardless of the year, we are fans of March dates as a great time for cool weather, moderate crowds, and Epcot coming into bloom.
9. April 2024 – James Franco could make a sequel to Spring Breakers set at Walt Disney World, and it would make the events of the original film seem perfectly tame. Okay, maybe not, but that doesn’t change the fact that Spring Break at Walt Disney World is a time to be avoided if you can.
Given that Easter will be in April every year until 2024, it’s a month that we recommend avoiding if you don’t like long lines. The entire month will be above average, but the weeks abutting Easter will be DEFCON 1. You’d better have some fast fingers (and a fast internet connection!) when trying to book a Lightning Lane for Slinky Dog Dash!
Starting on Tax Day Eve, April should improve considerably. Whether crowds drop by enough to move it higher on this list is debatable–but the point is that the last week and a half of April is much better. If that were its own month, it’d rank on the top half of this list.
8. August 2024 – Feel like Mission: Space is insufficient at simulating a visit to outer space? Then you’ll love August in Walt Disney World, when every day feels like a veritable trip to Venus or Mercury! August sees the mercury rising in Central Florida, and that hot, humid, and rainy weather alone makes August among the worst months to visit.
August is qualitatively the worst month to visit Walt Disney World. Quantitatively, it’s harder to say. August marks the end of “Peak Season” ticket prices, meaning people who postponed their visits to save money will start heading to the parks. Annual Passholder blockouts lift in August, causing a slight spike in locals, but it’s usually not bad.
The big thing is that summer vacation demand starts to burn out by the second week of August as families prepare to head back to school schedules. This results in an overall drop-off in attendance and there’s typically a large lull in crowds from mid-August through the end of September. August is a tale of two months–still slightly busy as vacation season winds down to start, but significantly better during the second half. Overall, it’s one of the lowest crowd months of the entire year. It’s the weather that drags it down considerably.
7. October 2024 – For the last several years, October had been dropping. Thanks to a variety of holidays, school breaks, conventions, and other events, October had become one of the busiest months of the year at Walt Disney World in terms of average wait times before that. Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party also throws a monkey wrench into Magic Kingdom attendance (but the upside is that it makes heavy crowds easier to predict and outsmart!).
Our expectation is that October 2024 marks a return to normal, as was more or less the case this year. That means some spikes around Columbus Day for fall break, with conventions and youth events also resulting in larger crowds. Other than that, the month is only slightly above average–albeit much worse than September.
Nevertheless, October remains attractive for its seasonal events at Epcot and Magic Kingdom and improving weather. We can’t recommend this month from the perspective of crowds alone, but it’s not a bad subjective choice when Halloween, Food & Wine, and more are added to the equation.
6. February 2024 – For the last few years, February has seen high crowds at Walt Disney World–to the point that we no longer call them “atypically” high crowds. That was once again true last year, with Mardi Gras and Presidents’ Day coinciding to make the second half of the month incredibly busy. Several days were so bad that Genie+ sold out.
It’s not likely to be much different next year. Mardi Gras moves earlier in the month, meaning two busy weeks instead of one insanely busy weeks. We expect this month to be slightly worse than January 2024 on that basis. However, if you can avoid the dates around holidays, February is still a decent time to visit.
If you’re already looking forward to February 2024, the first and last weeks of the month are definitely the ones to choose. Those should see lower crowds, pleasant weather, along with two different EPCOT festivals.
5. January 2024 – This is the “holiday hangover” at Walt Disney World. It’s sort of like Walt Disney World ate too many Christmas cookies and is too lazy to get off the couch and take down the decorations, with this mentality continuing long after the tree is dead to the point where its wife is embarrassed when it finally throws out the tree. (Not that I know from experience or anything.) On the plus side, January offers mild weather and the Epcot Festival of the Arts is fantastic.
When it comes to crowds, expect January 2024 to be a repeat of this year and the year before that. Which is to say, that January is a “Tale of Two Seasons.” This year, the month as a whole ended up being 7/10 on the crowd calendar, but that doesn’t even begin to tell the whole story. The first 7 days of the month were on par with the week between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Crowd levels were 10/10 every day during that stretch…and would’ve been even higher than that if the scale went higher. Attendance spiked again over the MLK Day holiday weekend, too.
However, most of the rest of January was much less busy, with lots of 2/10 and 3/10 days. If you can go after Orange County’s winter break and the Walt Disney World Marathon, January 2024 should be a great time to visit. Basically, aim for the second week or thereafter, and skip the mid-month MLK Day holiday weekend. Outside of those red flag dates, January 2024 should see fairly low crowds, pleasant weather, and EPCOT Festival of the Arts fun.
4. December 2024 – If Disney Vacation Club is the “Best Kept Secret,” the beginning of December being the best time to visit is “Disney’s Second Best Kept Secret.” Unfortunately, there’s just a pinch of sarcasm here. It’s as if the both ‘secrets’ were entrusted to the cast of Encanto, and they wrote a whole song about how they don’t talk about December crowds.
Suffice to say, the secret has gotten out about December. That coupled with Disney’s more strategic use of blockout dates and dynamic ticket pricing has shifted attendance somewhat. Crowds are still not as bad as other peak seasons, but it’s no longer the ghost town that it once was. We still view the first two weeks of the month as desirable times to visit, even despite being about as “secret” as the In-N-Out Secret Menu.
Pleasant weather plus Christmas decorations & entertainment are the big highlights here. It also helps that Pop Warner has moved to Universal, so that won’t contribute to crowds. If you can’t do mid-November, we think early to mid-December is still well worth it from a subjective perspective. And in fact, it might be worth it from an objective perspective, too. Last year, crowds didn’t get truly bad until December 19. Almost every day before that had a crowd level of 5/10 or lower. After that…well…like Bruno, we don’t talk about the chaotic crowds of Christmas and New Year’s Eve!
3. September 2024 – Every single month that was once the off-season has seen soaring crowds at Walt Disney World in recent years, with one exception: September. Nothing has moved the needle on fall off-season crowds–not the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, not the anticipated pre-50th Anniversary lull, and not perpetual picks by crowd calendars that September would be the slowest month of the year.
When judged solely on the basis of crowds, September is always the best month of the year. Aside from Labor Day weekend, September is relatively slow, especially earlier in the month. While Walt Disney World has been able to manipulate crowd levels in other off-season months, that has not happened with September. After Labor Day, the entire month is off-season, with the lowest crowd levels of the year.
September remains resilient and “crowd-proof” because most people simply cannot visit during the month due to school going back into session, or don’t want to do so because of the weather. On that basis, September had been our #1 month of the year at Walt Disney World for ages.
But these are qualitative rankings, and I just can’t give September the nod anymore. Not after last year. Even with seasonal events and low crowds–the likelihood of brutal weather is just too much. Heat and humidity make being outdoors unpleasant during September, and it’s a high point in the storm season. (We highly recommend reading Is It Still Worth Visiting During the Fall Off-Season at Walt Disney World? before booking August or September.)
Despite that, it might be worth bearing with the weather to take advantage of those low crowds. That’s doubly true when you consider the fact that prices are cheaper in September and events are held at EPCOT (Food & Wine Festival) and Magic Kingdom (Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party.) Even in the current era of unpredictable crowds, September 2024 should be relatively reliable.
2. May 2024 – The entirety of May 2024 will fall before summer tourist season and our expectation is that–after several months of consistently high crowds for one reason or another–May will be another return to normal as the calm between Spring Break and Summer 2024.
That’s doubly true with nothing opening during the month of May 2024, or being new. Last year, TRON Lightcycle Run debuted in the prior month. The year before that, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opened at the end of May, and had previews prior to then. There’s almost no chance that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will be done by May 2024, and no one cares about CommuniCore Hall. There’s nothing else (major) that could debut during the month.
That’s huge from the perspective of crowds, and means the entirety of May 2024 should be slower. Even with the Memorial Day holiday weekend factored into the mix, crowds are typically below average in May. Most schools aren’t out of session this early, and there’s a lag between when kids get out of school and families take their big summer trips, anyway.
The main downside to May is that heat and humidity can really start intensifying in May, but still not as bad as the summer months that follow. However, May is the first month of the year during which it’s not uncommon to see the temperatures broach 90-degrees and the humidity reach high levels.
1. November 2024 – Save for Thanksgiving and Veterans Day weeks, neither of which are as bad as the Christmas and New Year’s holiday weeks in terms of crowds, November is similar to December. Early and mid-November are usually good times to visit Walt Disney World, and the week after Thanksgiving is exceptional.
The upside to November are that the weather is generally more temperate. The downside is that not all Christmas entertainment starts until after Thanksgiving (specifically at Epcot), and some resort hotel decorations are not up during the first half of the month. If that is make or break for you, visit in the last week of November 2024 (which technically also includes a couple days of December).
With the first half of December seeing lower crowds in the last couple of years, the gap between the two months is closing, but November 2024 should still retain its #1 ranking as an overall superior pick. Again, so long as you about the aforementioned holiday weeks. Only the week of Thanksgiving is truly bad in November, whereas only the first two weeks or so of December 2024 are truly good.
The culmination of all of this? That our favorite week to visit Walt Disney World is the Sunday after Thanksgiving through the first Saturday of December. That means arriving on December 1, 2024. (You might actually consider arriving Saturday to make your first park day Sunday–last year that day was dead.)
That’s the sweet spot for the best prospects of good weather, moderate crowds, and experiencing all of the Christmas festivities. For the last couple of years, that week has seen truly low crowd levels–not just moderate. We wouldn’t be surprised if the numbers rebound a little and crowds are in the 4/10 range. If lower crowds are of paramount importance, you can also target mid-November after Veterans Day–just go before the week of Thanksgiving. That week should be slightly less crowded and offer most Christmas entertainment, outside of Epcot.
Beyond this recommendation for our favorite week of the year, we’d refer you to our 10 Best & Worst Weeks to Visit Walt Disney World in 2024 and 2025. Those lists were actually inspired by this, and offering a range of recommendations beyond just the months here. That contains recommendations of dates to visit (and avoid!) in virtually every single month of 2024 and 2025. It should be helpful for picking dates, regardless of whether you have maximum flexibility or are locked into weeks when school is out of session.
Ultimately, that’s a rundown of the good & bad of crowds at Walt Disney World. As you might’ve gathered by reading the entries, the various months don’t really demarcate attendance levels. To the contrary, it’s really more about school breaks and holidays, and the stretches before and after those.
Consequently, mid-January to mid-February is more of a distinct window than either January or February, late April has more in common with May than with early April, mid-August is more like September than early August, and the last few months of the year are all about holiday breaks (or the lack thereof).
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Do you agree or disagree with our 2024 Walt Disney World month by month rankings? Are there any months you think are better or worse than we have them ranked? Any specific ideal weeks that you’d recommend people visit Walt Disney World? Any questions? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We will be arriving on 10-28-11-18 planning on catching the Halloween and Christmas decorations. We were there Nov 11-9 -23-2020 and had all the Christmas festivities as well as Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party. Was hoping to get Mickeys Very Scary Halloween Party as well this year but seeing as how it as just a really scaled down version I don’t think the price is worth it without the parade, fireworks or character greets. Hoping to have fast pass restored as that will be a bummer if not as well as the dining plan and the club level at the hotels where we will spend 2 weeks at Gran Destino and 1 week at Yacht Club.
Well this doesn’t make me feel awesome about the trip I have planned for late June 2021 (and have had planned since January as it was a reschedule from October 2020). Fingers crossed some things are brought back more quickly and we can still enjoy ourselves. With things changing so quickly who knows what it will look like in a month’s time.
We’ll be at Disney the last week in September. Booked the trip a while ago without any thought to the anniversary. There may be more people than usual that week, or it may be empty (as Tom predicted about Star Wars). Either way, we will have back-up plans. Plus, after a year of lockdown, just being at my favorite vacation place again is enough to make me happy.
The important thing is to not have high expectations. Let your family know they may not be able to do everything they have their hearts set on. I’ve seen guests raging at cast members because their vacations didn’t live up to their expectations (the weather was bad, their children were sick, overtired or cranky).
All that having been said, I wouldn’t plan another WDW trip until beginning of May, 2022. Let the must-get-there-early anniversary crowd get it out of their system.
I’m planning mid August…..
The heat and humidity are certainly horrible, but typically you have lower crowds, still long park hours. Makes for pleasant early mornings and late nights.
But the crowds will truly be so unpredictable. I don’t know if the pent-up demand will really start to wane by August, it could just be building. People booking right now, seeing park passes already booked up for half of July, scheduling August.
But a big x-factor — if AP’s make their return in August, you could get a crush of locals who have been waiting for APs to be restored.
Meanwhile, the amount of “restored park capacity” may or may not remain an issue through August. Will all the old shows be back? Unlikely but possible. What about character meets? Also unlikely.
Do you still think Nov-Dec is a good time, seeing as most if not all the deluxe resorts are completely booked?
For now, yes.
Fans have been planning trips around Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary for years, and that demo disproportionately stays on-site. Between that, pent-up demand among DVC members, and not all hotels being open yet, that’s not a huge surprise.
When it comes to crowds, the difference-maker is off-site guests who make up over 50% of attendance on any given day. If/when the nearby third party hotels start fully booking, that’s when I’ll be more worried about holiday crowds. It could happen, but I’d expect a lot of pent-up demand among casual tourists (those who have no clue the 50th Anniversary starts on 10/1) to burn off this summer. We’ll see!
@Mary Gibbons, beautifully said and I couldn’t agree more as that’s also been our experience and perspective on time together in line!
@Staci Stony, I too go the 1st week in November for my anniversary.( last year we didn’t)! But if I can remember correctly , Disney started putting up Xmas decorations November 1st but there was still some Halloween items still there as well. To me that’s the best because you kind of get to see the transformation that Disney does for those 2 holidays. Hope you have fun!
Disappointed and surprised to see April/May so low! We’ve booked two weeks from April 25th, coming from the UK. We did similar in 2014 and it was great. It feels like it’s a nice sweet spot between crowds from Easter and things hotting up for the summer. I don’t think there’s anything significant happening during those dates. At least I hope not! 🙂
Keep in mind that the months are ranked based upon their totality, and certain weeks can be far better or worse than that average. April is where it is because of Easter and spring break, and you’re missing that entirely. May is not higher because the weather starts worsening later in the month.
So basically, you’re getting what should be the very best of both months. Definitely a week that would normally rate as “well above average” or great–assuming things return to normal next year!
John, those are my dates too. Fourth plan will finally be the charm, I hope! Tom makes me feel like those dates will be good. I have three first timers with me and want them to love Disney like I do. I hope now not too many people listen to Tom and go another time!
We are going in late September because it’s our Fall Break. We always go during Fall Break (which is sometimes the second week of September and sometimes the third, this year it’s Sept 20-24). I’ve noticed in the last few years a lot more people seem to go during this time. It seems a lot more school districts now have a Fall Break. Is there no worry about attendance numbers for Fall Breaks or is it just not enough of a factor to worry about?
It’s definitely a consideration for late September, but it’s still a good time to visit, in our view.
Keep in mind that crowds have increased across the board in the last few years–by several millions of guests per year (minus last year). So literally every single week is busier than it was a decade or even 5 years ago. Relative to other weeks and months, all of September is still great. That could always change, but it hasn’t yet–even as other “off-season” months like January, February, and October have seen greater attendance growth.
Hi! Just a clarification for March 2022. Were you saying that the dates you would pick would be the 13-17th? Or were you saying that Orange Counties’ spring break is during that time? I ask just because after doing some research, I’ve been finding that spring break is listed for the 11-18 for Osceola and Orange County. Just wanted to clarify before I booked some dates in March. Thanks for everything you do!
I’d visit (roughly) March 6-12, 2022. The end of the trip will overlap with the start of spring break, but it should be nearly as bad as the following week.
Yay! Our thrive rescheduled trip is the week after Thanksgiving this year. We arrive on 11/27 and staying the week. My kids are only missing 3 days of school. This is our first time going during the Christmas season, so we are excited!
I have 7 kids ranging in age from 8 to 22. So school and work dictate when we can go. What I’ve come to realize as the kids get older and time flies by – is that some of the best time I’ve spent with all of my kids together….is waiting in line at Disney (and one week at the beach each summer). I know that sounds crazy. But we’re one of those families that just loves to be at Disney. And while some lines are just too long – and of course the kids fight and I get cranky….what I have come to realize is that we are together. Three kids are now in college (well one just graduated from UNC….go Heels!) – so they aren’t even home most of the year. My “quality time with the family” has become waiting in line for Disney rides. Because even though we are waiting in a line….we are still at Disney, and we are together.
HI, I am wondering why to avoid the whole week of Veterans Day? Veterans Day is just one day and kids don’t get out of school. At least not here in CA. Wondering if you could explain the “whole week.” Thank you
@Lee, spring breaks in the US last from around mid March through the first week (sometimes two) in April. All the states and counties within them can have different breaks from each other. So you most definitely are going right in the middle of school spring breaks. I think the only UK school break that tends to not coincide with US school breaks is your October half term which usually are toward the end of October and come after when the majority of US fall breaks occur over mid October’s Columbus Day (roughly).
Sept #2. Yes! 🙂 That’s what we hope too. Early December is definitely better in some ways but we decided Sept might be the best dip for quite some time.
Every month has trade offs. We’ll take risky weather (with midday breaks) and shorter hours for all the positives- low crowds, Food & Wine and possibly Eat to the Beat, BOO Bash, more things returning and preparation for the 50th, and low cost renting BW points for $150/night. So excited and I hope the good news keep coming all summer. Time to celebrate!
We arrive Labor Day but won’t be going to the parks until the day after. Will we luck out with good crowds? We did the same in 2016 and it was great, I’m hoping for a repeat.
We have second half of August booked, if we are allowed to travel from UK. I am hoping there will be a decent drop in crowds from the first half of the month, and hoping a few more things open. DDP? i can dream
Hi, We’re first timers coming from the UK booked to go 28th March 2022 till 6th April. How does fall with spring break and should we braced for long waits?
Hope your predictions come true. Heading down Dec 5-12. Weather is usually the biggest thing I worried about. Heat. humidity and rain can ruin a WDW vacation. Fingers crossed.