easter vs school summer holidays ( end of july/august )

[Busby]

Originally Posted by hannibalanddave

Busby, ..that fills me with hope for august. thx

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I was very concerned the first time we went in August as what to expect, heat, humidity etc.
Didn’t need to be worried yes hot and humid but as others have said on other posts, plan well, use early mornings and evenings. Take cooling towels as they were a god send on really hot days.
As already said on this string the parks are always busy but noticeably quieter than the peak Easter 2 weeks in our experience.

[BevS97]

Because you only have a one or two day departure window at Easter I’ve always found it too expensive and the crowds don’t appeal.

We have been going in the summer holidays for the last 10 years since I started work in school. I’ve tried the beginning and the end and we now prefer the start of the holidays. It is possibly a bit quieter at the end but I found I wished the 6 weeks away waiting to go and I dont like coming back and being straight into work (although I accept most people are. Including my husband ). So we go early summer and I don’t find it as bad as people say. It can be hot but there is plenty of air conditioning so we just make the most of all the cool places.

[Timmy]

Originally Posted by Busby

I was very concerned the first time we went in August as what to expect, heat, humidity etc.
Didn’t need to be worried yes hot and humid but as others have said on other posts, plan well, use early mornings and evenings. Take cooling towels as they were a god send on really hot days.
As already said on this string the parks are always busy but noticeably quieter than the peak Easter 2 weeks in our experience.

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thanks Busby, me and my wife are thinking of August as well, same reason as yourself (wife works in teaching). It’s sounds like April and August have pros and cons just need to decide which cons are worse, hot weather or bigger crowds 🤷.

[hannibalanddave]

thank you all for your replies ...looks like august winds this time.lol..Im sure it wont be our final trip though...

[Shifu]

Have been twice in April (found really busy), twice in the summer (both August and weren't busy really at all). Worst for crowds was our October holiday...best for no crowds at all was February...LOVED it.
This time my DS16 and I are going mid July to the beginning of August as we dont want to be getting back onto the new college treadmill as soon as we get off the plane. Its hot- You need to plan well. Cool towels, parasols and hand held fans at the ready (and that's just sitting in bed haha . Air conditioning hopping in shops and restaurants is great. Eat midday or relax indoors. But the (welcome) rain (touch wood) is in quick afternoon bursts generally, so early morning and then evening out and about's are good. We spend the afternoons in the resort, so always choose a resort with plenty to do.

Out of the two options you have , I would opt for the summer. Even with the heat, you adapt, and thats coming from someone who hasnt seen a size 18 for a few years now.

[hannibalanddave]

thanks for your reply.

[andyb1126]

We always did Easter as we had been scared off summer due to the all the talk of it being too hot, but our last easter trip was mid 90s for the whole second week and we coped with it fine which caused us to take a punt on August in 2017 and are going back again this August as we preferred it.

After the first few days you do get used to the heat. Easter is crazy busy also. You get the free dining in August too which is a big plus for us.

And the weather can actually work in your favour. We take minimal items into the parks so we can skip bag check. At easter, it can get cool at night so you have to allow for that if you are staying out all day, whereas in August, is constantly hot so it makes clothing choices much easier we found.

[Rescuer]

We are just back. Our first couple of days at universal were quiet but it got steadily busier.
We only did one day at Disney, Wednesday just passed. The fastpass line for splash mountain started on the other side of the bridge where you watch the drop.
It wasn’t even like this Christmas week and I’ve never seen that in July.
I’m a teacher so we are restricted to school holidays too. Christmas was awesome and we enjoy the summer because you can go for longer.

[aqualiv]

Originally Posted by Rescuer

We are just back. Our first couple of days at universal were quiet but it got steadily busier.
We only did one day at Disney, Wednesday just passed. The fastpass line for splash mountain started on the other side of the bridge where you watch the drop.
It wasn’t even like this Christmas week and I’ve never seen that in July.
I’m a teacher so we are restricted to school holidays too. Christmas was awesome and we enjoy the summer because you can go for longer.

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we were at MK Wednesday and didn’t use our 7 dwarves fp or buzz due to the fp lines being huge! I couldn’t understand it, I thought that was the whole point of FPs

Having now been twice end Aug and once in April
We much preferred the weather in April, Aug heat can be unbearable and so humid with lots of rain
Parks a bit quieter end of Aug though

[Thorpy]

In late August you find that some schools are back as the holidays have some variation. Easter although it moves all over the calendar, it's the same for everyone at the same time.