When to go
May at the Disney parks
The best overall month on this site: every park in full operation, summer crowds still weeks away, and the weather warm without the Texas and Florida extremes.
May at these parks: one of the year's best windows. The best overall month on this site: every park in full operation, summer crowds still weeks away, and the weather warm without the Texas and Florida extremes..
Expected — not yet announced · Checked July 2026
Crowd and cost shapes describe multi-year patterns across the ten parks rather than a forecast for any single year. Weather figures are climate normals for each region and do not decay; the Texas figures blend the DFW and San Antonio areas, and the Southern California figures blend the coastal and inland valleys.
The verdict
Good month for
- Every park on this site
- Full lineups at calm weekday levels
Bad month for
- Memorial Day weekend
- Nothing, honestly
Crowds
Moderate crowds
Busiest windows
- Memorial Day weekend
Quietest windows
- Every weekday before the last
Weather
Climate normals for each resort. These are averages over a long reference period, not a forecast — the only figures on this site that do not decay.
| Resort | Avg high | Avg low | Rain days | What it feels like |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern California (LA basin to San Diego) | 74°F | 56°F | 1 | Climate normals, not a forecast. |
| Orlando (and Winter Haven) | 88°F | 66°F | 9 | Climate normals, not a forecast. |
| Texas (DFW and San Antonio) | 85°F | 62°F | 7 | Climate normals, not a forecast. |
| New Jersey (Jackson) | 73°F | 51°F | 9 | Climate normals, not a forecast. |
| Chicago (Gurnee) | 70°F | 48°F | 11 | Climate normals, not a forecast. |
Cost
Moderate cost
What is on in May
Planning notes
The month in one decision
The pre-Memorial-Day weekdays are the year's best conditions at the northern parks — full lineups, school in session, weather that finally cooperates.
The detail that matters
Memorial Day Saturday is the summer season's opening gun and prices and crowds behave accordingly.
The permanent version of all this
Height requirements, ride mechanics, accessibility detail, and permanent dining live on our evergreen guide, our year-round sister site. They do not change with the season, so we do not repeat them here.