Can we chat rain?

[yetiowine]

Thank you!

 

[karly101]

We had a couple rainy days on our last trip - it was fun - we rode splash 5 times in a row with no wait towards the end of the night as we were drenched anyway! The first rainy day the parks were still very busy - on the next day it was noticeably lighter. Take a light rain coat or poncho whatever you wear water wicks in anyway after hours outside..I just had a water resistant hoody and was fine cause it was also quick drying. A couple zip lock bags, a camping towel is also useful for wiping seats on rides. All of our shoes got soaked on splash so a second dry pair to wear the next day made the trip more enjoyable.

 

[shooting4life]

My wife and I are all ready for the rain later this week. We both have light weight rain jacket and pants. Water proof shoes. Plus extra pairs of shoes, one for each day. Umbrella and lots of layers.

I’ve never done Disney in the rain and a 1/2 inch is predicted on two of our three days. Hope this doesn’t close too many of our favorite outdoor rides (rsr, btmrr, MH)

 

[edhmom]

We had a couple rainy days on our last trip - it was fun - we rode splash 5 times in a row with no wait towards the end of the night as we were drenched anyway! The first rainy day the parks were still very busy - on the next day it was noticeably lighter. Take a light rain coat or poncho whatever you wear water wicks in anyway after hours outside..I just had a water resistant hoody and was fine cause it was also quick drying. A couple zip lock bags, a camping towel is also useful for wiping seats on rides. All of our shoes got soaked on splash so a second dry pair to wear the next day made the trip more enjoyable.

I second the camping towel for wiping seats. It rained (poured actually) when we were there a couple weeks ago. We didn't use the towel to wipe ride seats, rather we used it to wipe the bench seat and seats at a table when the rain stopped and we wanted to eat (everything inside was packed).

 

[sherilaine]

We have enjoyed the parks a few times in the rain over our few last trips as we go end of Feb/early March - we are going mid Feb this time so I'll be surprised if we don't get one good rain day. The thing we have found is rain there doesn't seem to be an all day event - it can rain here and there and then be fine which sometimes doesn't make a difference with crowds. We did have one day where it was raining when we got up and man that kept the crowds low for well into the afternoon - we had a great time!

 

[wingednike]

I'm not sure if it happens all the time, but the trams were not running the last couple of times I was there on rainy days

 

[midnight star]

What you don't want is lightning. That basically shuts everything down.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

If you wear glasses, bring cleaning cloths in a zipper bag for wiping and drying (repeatedly!).

 

[B3rlingirl]

We had a couple rainy days on our last trip - it was fun - we rode splash 5 times in a row with no wait towards the end of the night as we were drenched anyway! The first rainy day the parks were still very busy - on the next day it was noticeably lighter. Take a light rain coat or poncho whatever you wear water wicks in anyway after hours outside..I just had a water resistant hoody and was fine cause it was also quick drying. A couple zip lock bags, a camping towel is also useful for wiping seats on rides. All of our shoes got soaked on splash so a second dry pair to wear the next day made the trip more enjoyable.

Uh... what kind of hoody was that?somthing out of the running/ outdoors apartment?
Sounds like something useful I could write on my shopping list...

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Uh... what kind of hoody was that?somthing out of the running/ outdoors apartment?
Sounds like something useful I could write on my shopping list...

If possible, you want something that is at least hip length, if not a bit longer. That way you can sit safely in outdoor ride vehicles and on benches without worrying about getting the seat of your pants drenched. Our rain jackets go to the mid-thigh and our serious rain coats go to below the knee. We look at camping and sporting good stores, like REI.com, Landsend.com, LLbean.com, etc. Look for what is on sale and look for online coupons. Even Amazon.com can have good deals. Just make sure that whatever you buy is waterproof and breathes -- you'll be much more comfortable that way. Windproof/resistant is a plus, too. And the ponchos sold at DLR are actually not a bad deal -- they are sturdier than the dollar store ponchos and if they tear while you are at the parks, the stores will replace them for free.
ETA: See post #32 below -- that is exactly the kind of rain gear that I'm referring to!

 

[tink89]

I can’t remember if it was specifically a kids size poncho or if the adult poncho just fit him but here is my son wearing one when he was 2 years old.

View attachment 378817

This is too cute!!!

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

We were at Disneyland January 13-20, for the super duper rainy week! It rained most of the day Monday through Thursday, with some evenings of lighter rain and some mornings of lighter rain. We still had an absolutely fantastic time!

Advice:

1. Good rain jackets. Not ponchos - you have to take those off on certain rides. DH and I have Helly Hanson waterproof, windproof jackets that were great. I appreciated the longer length of my jacket many times. DD has an LL Bean waterproof rain jacket that has seen better days, but she was still okay. It was chilly, too (in the upper 50s and low 60s). We wore t-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, and rain coats every day. I also wore a baseball cap because I hate rain in my eyes.
   
   
2. Ponchos are still useful for covering wet seats on rides. We didn't have an umbrella, but it could have been useful, too.
   
   
3. Waterproof shoes! I only had running shoes, and had wet feet a couple times. DH was smart enough to bring his waterproof light hiking shoes (Asolo brand) and DD's winter boots (Bogs brand) so they were both happy with dry, toasty feet. I just alternated shoes at our midday break if mine were wet. If you have winter boots and will be going during chilly, rainy weather, you are NOT overreacting if you bring and wear said winter boots!
   
   
4. Request a fan for your room. We were in a 1BR villa at VGC. We requested a fan, which we put on the kitchen counter. We laid out all our wet things on the table: shoes, shoe inserts, ball caps, backpack, sweatshirts, etc. We also hung our raincoats from hangers on the chandelier. Then we blasted them with the fan all night! Everything was nice and dry every morning.
   
   
5. Outdoor rides will be closed: Alice, Dumbo, etc. However, we had VERY light crowds. Touring Plans has those days as a 1 out of 10 in retrospect. We were repeatedly walking onto rides like Space Mountain, Toy Story, and Soarin'. We had MaxPass and were grabbing "right now" passes for these popular rides, too. We saved outdoor rides for the lighter rain times, and just tried to line up our FastPasses accordingly.
   
   
6. Reserve some table service meals. These are nice times to get out of the rain, dry off, and re-group. When crowds are low in the rain, you can walk up to some of these restaurants and they may be able to get you in. And keep an eye on the app!
   
   
7. If you have a reservation at Minnie's Breakfast at Plaza Inn on a raining morning, they create a line-up under the cover. A CM will come out to tell everyone that there is a wait because they can only use indoor seating, and that they are accepting cancellations with no penalty. However, we only waited about 20 minutes for an inside spot, and and didn't mind since we were under the cover. It was raining a LOT at that point, and had let up by the time we waited and then ate. So it worked out for us.
   
   
8. The onsite hotels add rainy day activities, so it's nice to take a break. We stayed at Paradise Pier for the first couple nights, and they had a conference room open with the lifeguard staff hanging out with kids to color and play games. Grand Californian had games and coloring activities out in the lobby, along with complimentary hot chocolate, tea, and coffee.
   
   
9. Be flexible and temper your expectations. But, also ask about rescheduling experiences. We moved DD's BBB appointment from a very rainy Tuesday to a nice, sunny Friday. We also added a day to our trip and took an unexpected day off mid week because we'd had enough rainy day rides after 3 days of it - we wanted to add one more sunny day later in the trip to enjoy characters and outdoor shows! This was easy to do, and I'm glad DH and I came up with the idea. On our day off, we enjoyed a character meal in our resort, our resort scavenger hunt, and renting a DVD from guest services to watch in our room. It was great, and allowed us to use our fifth park day on a sunny day.

Some fun, rainy pictures:

Waiting for our first ride of the trip - Soarin' - during a rainy Monday morning EMH.
Pro-tip: if you get your breakfast via mobile order at the Starbucks by Earl of Sandwich, you can eat in the rain under the sun shades at the Lego store. We did this both mornings that we walked from Paradise Pier.


Soarin' gets a thumbs up as the first ride of the trip.
Notice our mistake here: putting DD in running shoes on day one. She had wet feet by 11:00am, which is even more uncomfortable with her AFO braces. She wore her winter boots the next three days. (We are fortunate that she can walk without her AFOs as they are just to correct toe-walking. We prefer her in them, but will take dry feet any day.)


Getting rained on in Disneyland on Tuesday. It was just misty that morning, so hoods were off. Notice DD repeating her same Old Navy Go Warm leggings, but now with her winter boots. Those leggings kept her warm!


Rainy day sign at Paradise Pier.


The best mid-rainy day break strategy: pajama pants, slippers, hot cocoa, and Mickey cartoons. (Surfside Lounge at Paradise Pier.) Please note the Zombies shirt and matching bow. She was sad nobody could see these under her rain gear.


Incredicoaster still runs in some pretty gnarly rain. You can see on my rain jacket just how wet it really was! This was ride #2. It was a light rain for the first ride, and then it really started coming down when we got back on!


A fun phone notification on Tuesday night! Wednesday was a super, super rainy day, and that's what made our decision to skip the parks Thursday and add Saturday to our trip.
​

I hope this all helps someone! I'm happy to answer specific questions about Disneyland, DCA, Downtown Disney, or the resort hotels in the rain.

 

[karly101]

Uh... what kind of hoody was that?somthing out of the running/ outdoors apartment?
Sounds like something useful I could write on my shopping list...

Yup check out your local hiking store - they have the best quick dry stuff and a lot is water resistant, great for travelling as most is light weight too.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

This recent thread has more rain info: Advice for solo trip with rain!.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

For those who were in the parks today (THU., 1/31): how'd you do in the rain, what rain gear did you wear, and how did it hold up? How cold/wet did it get today? Were you warm and dry enough? Please be as specific as you can (brands, styles, shoes, etc.) for reference of those following and trying to buy their own rain gear for the parks. Thanks!

 

[Erica1016]

ZIPLOC BAGS!!
When we were at DL a few years ago, we only had one day in each park and the morning of our DLP day was a soaker. I was very worried as I am super prone to blisters when my feet are wet. Just before we left the hotel, I grabbed two large Ziploc bags that we happened to have and cut the zippers off, I put them on between my socks and shoes. (I happened to have on taller socks, so I folded them down over the top of the bag.) BEST DECISION EVER!! -I still talk about it to this day (almost 5 years later) and always bring a few extra bags to WDW now!
My shoes were soaked, the bottom half of my pants were soaked, but my socks and feet were dry as a bone. I was a happy camper and it really saved the day!!!
We also brought dry socks and shoes and left them in a locker. Once the rain cleared, I changed into the dry shoes and it was a great day. DH was a little jealous, I think!

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

Great tip - reminds me of using bread bags between socks and 'moon boots' during the winter We're coming in March, and will definitely be bringing ziplocs and extra shoes!

Any other hacks that made it more fun during the rain?

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

ZIPLOC BAGS!!
When we were at DL a few years ago, we only had one day in each park and the morning of our DLP day was a soaker. I was very worried as I am super prone to blisters when my feet are wet. Just before we left the hotel, I grabbed two large Ziploc bags that we happened to have and cut the zippers off, I put them on between my socks and shoes. (I happened to have on taller socks, so I folded them down over the top of the bag.) BEST DECISION EVER!! -I still talk about it to this day (almost 5 years later) and always bring a few extra bags to WDW now!
My shoes were soaked, the bottom half of my pants were soaked, but my socks and feet were dry as a bone. I was a happy camper and it really saved the day!!!
We also brought dry socks and shoes and left them in a locker. Once the rain cleared, I changed into the dry shoes and it was a great day. DH was a little jealous, I think!

Smart! One of our rainy day visits I remember my cold, wet feet being the worst part!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... Any other hacks that made it more fun during the rain?

Not really hacks, but things learned from hard experience:
- Gore-tex (or any generic version thereof) is your friend! That stuff is absolutely amazing and has gotten us through more drenching DLR days than anything else.
- Thermals help, too -- shirts & pants. Or insulated, waterproof snow pants.
- Wool socks (Smart wool or children's ski socks -- not itchy!) and rain boots or waterproof shoes. Tried and true combination. (Even just using Scotchguard on your shoes before your trip can help. As mentioned in a post above, Scotchguard the backpack, too!)
- I put my crossbody bag under my rain jacket/coat to keep my things dry. The necessities (e.g. AP, credit card, i.d., lip balm, tissues) go in an outer pocket.
- Gloves!
- I tend to freeze easily, so I put a wool hat under my rain jacket hood. It really helps keep me warm.
- Winter face cream! Being pelted by rain on fast rides eats your skin -- ouch! And if the weather turns windy -- double ouch! I keep a Mustela Hydra Stick in my DLR bag anyways, but it really helps during cold, wet, windy weather. Think of it like lip balm for your face. (Oh, and bring plenty of lip balm, too!)
- We bring little things to give to CMs to cheer them up and cheer them on. It isn't fun having to freeze and get drenched outside all day and night -- if we can give them star stickers that say "Great Job!" or "Thanks for making the magic!" or something simple like that, it brings a smile.

 

[shooting4life]

I used a frogtogg rain suit and stayed dry. Adidas trail shoes that are gortex lined and they stayed dry except when I splashed a puddle and some water went over the top.

The market for men’s water proof shoes that are not boots is very limited.