Weather in July

[disneybree]

Hey, apparently it rains everyday at Disney World according to Google and all weather networks. Does it rain ALL day? Like, pouring non-stop? Or is it just sunny and a shower in the afternoon? This is our first Disney vacation and we don't want it get ruined by rain rip. Any tips?? Thanks!! ❤

 

[Alesia]

Generally, you'll get a rain shower in the afternoon

Honestly it's more comfortable when it's raining than when it isn't. You'll probably find yourself looking forward to being rain-soaked rather than sweat-soaked.

 

[DisMommyTX]

Embrace the rain. We have enjoyed many July trips to Disney, and it rains almost every day. Most of the time, it is only a light shower in the late afternoon. Ponchos are WAY too hot, and honestly the rain is usually just enough to cool you off. If there is a real downpour, we duck into an indoor attraction. When it lightens up, we run to the next one. By that time, the rain will usually stop and often gift us with an anytime FP (if you had a FP for an outdoor attraction which closed temporarily because of the rain)! Bigger storms may take a while to pass but they really clear out the parks allowing for amazing touring later in a half-empty park. Only once have we had a trip that rained all day, every day. I mean daily torrential downpours, nothing open for hours, wade through deep water, are you sure this isn't a hurricane, storms. That trip was a bummer. Every other trip the rain has been more of a pro than a con.

 

[DOOM1001]

Sunny mornings are common but then as the day gets hotter,90-95 degrees with heat indexes of 100-115,the clouds tend to start forming around 1-2pm and then the rain comes.There's no guarantee it will be like this this is just the most common time frame.Sometimes the rain comes at 2pm,other days at 5pm,sometimes its just scattered showers and you might not get any rain in your area,other days its pretty much raining everywhere.Sometimes its a light sprinkle,sometimes they're worse than many hurricanes and last hours.Monday and Tuesday for example had really,really bad storms,flooding everywhere,on my drive home my car got pelted by hail and there was lightning all around me with rain and wind that had cars barely moving due to almost no visibility.Wind patterns and other factors also can influence where it rains,for example I went to Daytona on Saturday and apparently the winds were strong from the Atlantic and were moving the storms from Orlando towards the Gulf but in Daytona there wasn't a cloud in the sky.Basically if you come in the summer all you need to know is that it will rain,where,how long and how hard are all unpredictable so don't be upset if it rains and disrupts your trip.Sometimes as others mentioned the rain is a good thing as afterwards it drops the temperatures.Today wasn't as bad a washout as Monday and Tuesday,it rained but not as bad and it did stop so I chose to go to Sea World after work,amazingly it felt somewhat cool for this time of year,it rained and stopped and it felt as comfortable as its gonna get in July.If rain is a problem come between November and early May,dry season.

 

[Klayfish]

Yep, DOOM1001 pretty much hit the nail on the head. We're summer WDW vets, and just spent two weeks in July there (came home a few days ago). It's hot, but if you play it smart, you'll be fine. It CAN rain all day, but that's very rare. Most commonly, it'll be a sunny morning, with truly "popcorn" t-storms in the afternoon. Sometimes you'll get nothing but some nasty looking clouds off in the distance, sometimes you'll get sprinkles, sometimes you'll get rained on like you've never seen. But they are truly hit and miss. It could be raining in MK...no, wait...pouring in MK but not doing anything in AK. Have ponchos ready and you'll be fine. Like I said, we were just there for a little over 2 weeks. We got rained on the first two afternoons, pretty hard. Then we went about 10 days without encountering any rain (though it was all around us, just never hit where we were), then the last several days had afternoon storms. Zero total washout days.

 

[westie55]

In general, it is sunny and hot in the mornings and clouds roll in as it gets later into the afternoon. Downpours can come out of nowhere. It may be sunny when you go into an attraction and pouring when you come out. Sometimes it won't rain, of course, but it's best to be prepared. When it does rain, it generally ends within an hour or so and the sun returns, but again that isn't always the case and rain can last much longer. I have been to Disney countless times over several decades and have never had a trip that was all rain every day. In fact, I don't think I've ever had a day that rained 24 hours, either. I personally enjoy going to Disney in hot weather because I like to take advantage of the resort pools and water parks.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Sunny mornings are common but then as the day gets hotter,90-95 degrees with heat indexes of 100-115,the clouds tend to start forming around 1-2pm and then the rain comes.There's no guarantee it will be like this this is just the most common time frame.Sometimes the rain comes at 2pm,other days at 5pm,sometimes its just scattered showers and you might not get any rain in your area,other days its pretty much raining everywhere.Sometimes its a light sprinkle,sometimes they're worse than many hurricanes and last hours.Monday and Tuesday for example had really,really bad storms,flooding everywhere,on my drive home my car got pelted by hail and there was lightning all around me with rain and wind that had cars barely moving due to almost no visibility.Wind patterns and other factors also can influence where it rains,for example I went to Daytona on Saturday and apparently the winds were strong from the Atlantic and were moving the storms from Orlando towards the Gulf but in Daytona there wasn't a cloud in the sky.Basically if you come in the summer all you need to know is that it will rain,where,how long and how hard are all unpredictable so don't be upset if it rains and disrupts your trip.Sometimes as others mentioned the rain is a good thing as afterwards it drops the temperatures.Today wasn't as bad a washout as Monday and Tuesday,it rained but not as bad and it did stop so I chose to go to Sea World after work,amazingly it felt somewhat cool for this time of year,it rained and stopped and it felt as comfortable as its gonna get in July.If rain is a problem come between November and early May,dry season.

I got caught in Tomorrowland on Monday and Indiana Jones on Tuesday. Both were very bad. Absolutely torrential and went on for several hours. Drains couldn't keep up so the walkways were under 3-4" of water. Had flip flops on so just slogged through. Felt very bad for folks in sneakers. Those won't dry out for awhile! Rides were obvioudly shut down for the duration, mostly the outdoor attractions but also some indoors as well.

Yesterday was much better. Boomers and rain in the afternoon but not nearly as bad. It is what it is. Be prepared and you will survive! I carry both a poncho and an umbrella and will use one or the other depending on where I am and what the rain is like.

 

[hakepb]

I got caught in Tomorrowland on Monday and Indiana Jones on Tuesday. Both were very bad. Absolutely torrential and went on for several hours. Drains couldn't keep up so the walkways were under 3-4" of water. Had flip flops on so just slogged through. Felt very bad for folks in sneakers. Those won't dry out for awhile! Rides were obvioudly shut down for the duration, mostly the outdoor attractions but also some indoors as well.

Yesterday was much better. Boomers and rain in the afternoon but not nearly as bad. It is what it is. Be prepared and you will survive! I carry both a poncho and an umbrella and will use one or the other depending on where I am and what the rain is like.

Monday was insane. I don't think I've ever experienced a deluge that hard at WDW

It was great for empty Main St pics

A few inches of water in Tomorrowland

But getting completely waterlogged shoes did result in a nice rainbow

And sunset

Whelp, it looks like I failed at using Flickr since Photobucket won't allow posting.

 

[lsenquiz]

Keep in mind that Florida has been in a drought for many years. When we were there in May there was even a burn ban (may still be in effect) so they did not even do the marshmallow roasts that they usually do at the resorts. This is because everything is dry, dry, dry! So even though there might be the occasional short shower it is never enough to amount to much. The deluges are uncommon.

And PP's are right. When the shower comes to give you a break from the heat you are usually very greatful.

 

[DaisyJ]

Sunny mornings are common but then as the day gets hotter,90-95 degrees with heat indexes of 100-115,the clouds tend to start forming around 1-2pm and then the rain comes.There's no guarantee it will be like this this is just the most common time frame.Sometimes the rain comes at 2pm,other days at 5pm,sometimes its just scattered showers and you might not get any rain in your area,other days its pretty much raining everywhere.Sometimes its a light sprinkle,sometimes they're worse than many hurricanes and last hours.Monday and Tuesday for example had really,really bad storms,flooding everywhere,on my drive home my car got pelted by hail and there was lightning all around me with rain and wind that had cars barely moving due to almost no visibility.Wind patterns and other factors also can influence where it rains,for example I went to Daytona on Saturday and apparently the winds were strong from the Atlantic and were moving the storms from Orlando towards the Gulf but in Daytona there wasn't a cloud in the sky.Basically if you come in the summer all you need to know is that it will rain,where,how long and how hard are all unpredictable so don't be upset if it rains and disrupts your trip.Sometimes as others mentioned the rain is a good thing as afterwards it drops the temperatures.Today wasn't as bad a washout as Monday and Tuesday,it rained but not as bad and it did stop so I chose to go to Sea World after work,amazingly it felt somewhat cool for this time of year,it rained and stopped and it felt as comfortable as its gonna get in July.If rain is a problem come between November and early May,dry season.

Where did it rain today? It hasn't rained where we've been (AK and POFQ).

 

[hakepb]

When lightning threats close outdoor rides and pools for several hours a day ... I am the opposite of grateful that the pools and parks now close earlier than ever before.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Where did it rain today? It hasn't rained where we've been (AK and POFQ).

I'm at Beach Club now. They kicked us out of the pool about an hour ago around 5 pm and it's been thundering & lightening with torrential downpours since. Doesn't look like it's ending for awhile. Glad to back in the room! I expect it will die down later for folks wanting to head back to the parks.

 

[DaisyJ]

I'm at Beach Club now. They kicked us out of the pool about an hour ago around 5 pm and it's been thundering & lightening with torrential downpours since. Doesn't look like it's ending for awhile. Glad to back in the room! I expect it will die down later for folks wanting to head back to the parks.

It is torrential rain at MK now, along with lightning. It wasn't doing anything in the vicinity when I posted that.

 

[North of Mouse]

Hot, very humid, and big chance of thunderstorms every day (mostly evening, or longer).

Unlike what many say about the rain being 'cooling' - to us it makes us feel like we are being broiled afterward. No longer go during heat of summer.

 

[DOOM1001]

Where did it rain today? It hasn't rained where we've been (AK and POFQ).

Exactly my point,it could rain anywhere at any time,if you got no rain that's great but it definitely rained today.Here's an example,the Wine and Dine half marathon in 2015 was shortened from 13.1 miles to 6.7 due to lightning and storms,the course was supposed to run from ESPN WWoS to AK,then to DHS and finish at Epcot.The portion to AK was totally removed so we went straight from ESPN to DHS and Epcot.During the whole run we got no rain but from what I heard AK got drenched with tons of wind bringing down tree branches,3.5 miles away nothing.

 

[Antonia]

We were there July 9-15. First July trip in years. We were last there for a week in April the past two years. We've been in every season. I was not prepared for the afternoon thunderstorms.
Almost everyday my trip plan was altered by rain or lightening. We were at BWV the first 3 days and on more than one occasion the pool closed due to lightening in the area. We got in several unplanned naps - which we needed due to the heat. I bought rain ponchos as a precaution and we did use them twice. We moved to the Poly our last 3 nights. One time there the pool had to close. Note the Poly pool closed at 11! Several times our FP times were affected by ride closures due to weather. Our trip was still nice, but I just have not experienced this in other seasons.

 

[DisAWin]

My family and I just returned from a week at WDW and I have to agree with the majority of posters. An afternoon shower can be a welcome event, especially when it cools down the temperature and thins out the crowds. The negatives are when there is lightning in the area, which can close rides and attractions. We were at HS on 7/12 and the Indiana Jones show was canceled because of lightning, which I would not have even considered lightning as a threat to that attraction. The rains on 7/12 kept the pools and rides pools closed most of the night.

The rain on Monday (7/17) was unlike anything I have seen in years. It was a constant, hard downpour. We planned on going to MK during the evening but decided against it. These were the only two days where the rain really negatively effected our plans.

We were at WDW during Tropical storm Debbie in 2012, but it didn't effect us too much. The rain kept the parks empty and the temps down; there wasn't a lot of lightning, so rides operated and the pools were open.

 

[back2disney]

Hot as hades from 11-4pm, then heavy to severe thunderstorms from a few minutes to an hour to maybe 2hours this week. Florida as a peninsula with 2 different sea breezes and outflows from previous day storms feeds on itself in a daily loop with Orlando in the middle.

 

[back2disney]

Also Florida is the lighting capital of the US and Central Florida is Lighting alley.. Power was out a bunch this afternoon.

 

[WEDWDW]

Also Florida is the lighting capital of the US and Central Florida is Lighting alley

No doubt-it is amazing to make a point of checking out all the Lightning Rods EVERYWHERE at WDW!

To give you an idea of how many there are,we just returned and decided the Lightning Rods outnumbered The 15s!!!!lol