photo courtesy of Janey Henning
Central Florida has a interesting weather phenomenon that occurs almost every afternoon in the summer. It pours down rain for about 30 minutes and then as quick as it arrives, it is gone leaving you with a beautiful sunny late afternoon. When I lived there we use to joke that the easiest job in town was that of a weatherman. High of 95, afternoon showers, low of 72, if that was your forecast you were right about 90% of the time.
Avoid paying big bucks for ponchos at the parks and bring your own. They fold up incredibly small and can easily fit inside a bag or purse. If (or should I say when) it rains, pull out your poncho and continue to enjoy the park. The covered rides stay open during storms so there is still plenty to do in the rain. If you have a stroller bring an extra poncho to cover the stroller. While a thunderstorm might be a good time to find something to do inside, your stroller will be parked outside getting soaked. We always brought an extra poncho and some clothespins to cover the stroller during the rain.
Another benefit to the afternoon showers is that many of the tourists do not realize the rain will end quickly and head back to their hotels. If you can brave the weather you might be able to enjoy a less crowded park after the storm.
A word of warning: Central Florida is the lightning capital of the United States. If it is more than a rain shower hang out in one of the many restaurants or gift shops until the storm passes. Just don’t buy anything!
Once when we went to Disney and it rained(make that poured) I was wearing a new pair of navy blue canvas tennies. When I got home and took my shoes off, my feet were dyed blue. It lasted for days.
I am so enjoying your 30 days series! We are headed to WDW in just over 30 days, and it’s really served to get me excited and thinking about all that I have to do…
We actually tell the kiddos next week, when school is over, so that will really kick things into gear!
Question…do you have a suggestion for sunscreen? I KNOW we’ll need it!
I do agree that it’s cheaper to bring your own ponchos. But if you do have to buy a Disney one, save it over the years no matter what condition it is, because Disney will replace it for free next time you are at the parks.
We own 5 bright yellow mickey mouse ponchos from Disneyworld that we bought during a huge rain storm! I always bring them with us on quesionable days because I will never fork out that much money for a yellow trash bag again!!