The NEW Busy Season to Avoid at Disney World in 2025

If I told you right now that Summer 2025 wouldn’t be the “busy season” for Disney World, would you believe me?

I know that for YEARS, we’ve had to brace ourselves each and every summer for the monstrous influx of people that descend on Disney World. And it totally makes sense. The kids are out of school for the summer which typically makes for the best time for family vacations. But I’m telling you, based on what we’ve seen over the course of this year, we might have to be giving the “busy season” crown to a different time of year in 2025.

As we were saying, summer has been the de facto busy season at Disney World for years. However, we’re calling it right now that it looks like a new season is shaping up to the the new peak at Disney World. We’re talking about fall, and why if you’re planning on hitting up Disney in 2025, you’ll want to plan accordingly!

Are We Done With the Scorching Summers?

Anyone that has been to Disney World in the summer can tell you that summer in Florida is brutal! Between the blazing sun, relentless humidity, and the constant battle to stay hydrated, it doesn’t exactly feel like a dream vacation climate.

I can’t tell you how many families who’ve never been to Florida before are caught off guard by just how draining it can be to tackle the parks in those conditions. Sure, kids are out of school, and parents have more flexibility to take time off work, but many are finding the trade-off isn’t worth it.

Instead, an increasing number of families seem to be taking a different approach: skip the summer and go in the fall. Why is that? Well, the weather is cooler, the humidity is more bearable, and let’s face it — a Mickey-shaped ice cream just hits differently when it’s not a melting mess before you can take your first bite.

Fall Crowds on the Rise

Like we said, if you’ve been to Disney World in the summer, you can totally understand why anyone would want to switch things up and visit in the fall. But are we actually seeing a shift happen? Glad you asked!

You know that we’re in the parks every day, and, to answer your question, yes. We’ve been noticing that this year’s fall attendance has been on the upswing (even more so than summer!) I mean, we even heard directly from a Cast Member that a random day way late into October was their busiest day since coming back from the pandemic.

But Why Fall?

I mean, there are all kinds of potential reasons why, but let’s quickly go over a couple of them:

- Cooler Weather Is a Game-Changer: As we were saying earlier, summer in Florida is basically an endurance test. It’s like if the heat doesn’t get you, the humidity will. Now, Fall on the other hand is Chef’s kiss. You still get the sunshine without the risk of melting into a puddle on Main Street, U.S.A.
- EPCOT’s Food & Wine Festival Is a Major Draw: The Food & Wine Festival is already a fan favorite, and it just so happens to run throughout the fall months. Coincidence? We think not.
- Two Holidays, One Trip: Visiting Disney World in late October is like hitting the holiday jackpot. You get all the Halloween vibes while you’re watching the parks gear up for Christmas. It sounds like the best of both worlds, right?
- Fall Breaks Are a Big Deal: We can’t forget that school calendars are also changing, and more districts are adding week-long fall breaks. For parents, this means they can plan a vacation in October without having to pull their kids out of class.

What This Means for Your 2025 Plans

If you’re gearing up for a Disney World trip in 2025, don’t sleep on this trend! Fall could become the new summer when it comes to park crowds, and that means you’ll need to plan accordingly.

Until then, stay tuned to AllEars and we’ll keep bringing you the latest tips and tricks to help you plan your Disney World vacations!