Disney World Summer 6 Things to Know

It’s June, ya’ll! And that means we’re right at the start of Disney World Summer. Of course, many of you will be flocking to the Most Magical Place on Earth and soak in the 50th anniversary vibes during your family time off.

Expect to see details about crowd numbers, when to visit and when to avoid, upcoming openings and attraction closures, plus other summer events. This is our guide to a smart and successful Disney World Summer trip.

Disney World Summer Hours

Park hours for June 2022 are still slightly reduced compared to “normal years” — whatever that means anymore. Magic Kingdom opens at 9 am and closes at 10 pm or 11 pm depending on the night. And while most parks are closing a bit earlier than normal (Animal Kingdom being the earliest to close), most parks are opening an hour earlier than normal to accommodate crowds.

If you’re an early riser you might find great benefit from jumping on Genie+ to snag Lightning Lane reservations, ensuring you get on everything you want.

Disney World Summer Weather or None Like it Hot

If you’re like us, you will more than likely be skipping WDW Resort in the summer. Folks, it is HOT. While the heat, however, doesn’t get too overly aggressive until July and August, June is notorious for having the most amount of rainfall compared to other months.

Stephen sidenote: Being from Northern California, experiencing torrential downpours on an otherwise sunny [yet still very humid] day feels completely antithetical to how I expect typical summer weather to behave. Ok… back to it.

So what can you do about the wild, wild Florida weather? Be prepared. Maybe even be overly prepared. We recommend picking up some ponchos ahead of time and carrying your own water bottle to stay hydrated and cool. Despite the rain, however, June doesn’t historically fall into hurricane season. However, you will still be feeling a decent amount of weather ranging from 70 degrees F – 100 degrees F. Our advice, just be prepared.

If you don’t want to experience the overwhelming, muggy heat of America’s tropical south, either get a time machine and go back in the spring or wait until a cooler month.

Disney World Summer Events

Compared to the rest of the year, summertime doesn’t boast a lot of big events at Walt Disney World. That being said, however, during June you can expect to partake in the 2022 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival. This colorful and bliss-filled event runs until early July. At the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, you are invited to take in food tastings, garden entertainment, festival merch, and, of course, the illustrious ambience provided by the one and only EPCOT.

Additionally, if you’re visiting anytime this year, the Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary Celebration is touching every single aspect of the resort. So even if you’re not enjoying extra ticketed events or getting exclusive access to goings-on, the 50th celebration has plenty to boast.

What’s New at the Parks This Summer?

2022 has been a banner year for Disney World. While visiting EPCOT, expect to be greeted by familiar experiences and brand new offerings alike. Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure opened up in 2021, Space 220 is a new and immersive dining experience, the Creations Shop and Club Cool are enticing guests once again, and Harmonious debuted last year and is still being experienced by so many for the first time.

Of course, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind just opened up in May 2022, so if you’re going in June you’ll still be one of the first to ride. And while this is not necessarily new, Lightning Lanes have become the new way to jump on rides quickly and pack in “more”* durning your day.

*It’s not proven that Genie+ and Lightning Lanes actually add more value to a day.

Disney World Summer Crowds

We’re at a point in time where Disney World is crowded no matter when you go. While there are a lot of politics about whether or not prices should be raised to alleviate some of the pressure or deter crowds. That’s not the point of this article. So let’s not go there this time — or at all.

Here’s our advice for Disney World summer crowds. Are you ready? It’s going to suck no matter what. Already in 2022, we’ve seen record shattering crowds in Disney Parks and it’s only going to get busier as school is out and family schedules free up. Look back at January and February 2022, the crowds at the parks shocked everyone and it only continued to stay busy.

You can check out crowd calendars, but they may be an unreliable narrator and be entirely unhelpful. Based on Disney World’s website, we can certainly expect June 2022 to be busier than previous years.

Already the first half of the month has pretty much filled up. There are only a few short days with all parks available. Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios at this point seem to be the hardest to snag. We can’t necessarily vouch for the latter summer months, but we are expecting to see similar if not larger crowds. Be ready to wait in long lines and dodge through crowds to get that much-needed Dole Whip.

Disney Summer Pricing and Discounts

Typically during any given time, Disney World has some kind of special or discount offered. However, during the summer [when demand is high] Disney doesn’t need to incentivize guests to show up. June is, of course, peak travel time so most prices are going to be much, much higher. Consider booking with a travel agent like The Pixie Dust Dreams Vacation Planner. They will do their best to get you a deal.

What do you think of this list? Do you have any tips or tricks on traveling to Disney World in the summer? For more details and updates on all things Disney subscribe to our podcast.