orlando in summer a death wish???!!
 

well everyone says DONT GO IN SUMMER but does that mean its absolutely crazyyy? cuz it seems thats when were going. Can it still be fun? any tips to help?

If you're going, go. It's better than not being to go at all. But IMO the answer is "yes".

There are far worse places to go in the summer. Thousands of Central FL residents manage every day.

If you do come, wear appropriate clothing (e.g. shorts, t-shirts, sandals, etc) try not to be too physically active during the heat of the afternoon (early A.M. and evenings are much better), stay hydrated, wear a hat and carry a small umbrella with you.

If you must go to the theme parks, try not to "get your money's worth" by staying 10-12-14 hours unless your day is interrupted by an afternoon siesta or some down time in the pool.

Pace yourself and "respect" the heat and humidity, rather than ignore it and carry on as usual.

Alternate theme park days with water parks. Sea World has some shows where you are seated and either inside or under cover, so there is more down time. It is worth getting the Universal Express PAsses--you may be able to do both parks in one day that way. At all the theme parks you can walk up to most concessions and get (FREE) cups of ice/water. Do this often in the heat, it is easy to become dehydrated! And make sure to use sunscreen! If you stay onsite you can escape to your hotel pool/rest in room in the mid afternoon when it is hottest/

I've said this before, but they sell spray bottles with battery-powered fans attached, and they're a lifesaver in the summer (my favorite time to go!). Get a fast-pass so you can get onto the air-conditioned rides quicker. Duck into a store for some cool air. Plan long indoor attractions (like the Carousel of Progress in Magic Kingdom, or Who Wants to Be a Millionaire in MGM) for midday. And Epcot's World Showcase is mostly indoors -- at least the shops and rides.

A lot of people go to the parks early, take a midday nap at the hotel, and go back in the evening. That's a great plans if you have little kids. If you have older kids or are doingan adults' trip, you can probably just brave the heat! :)

We were there in late May (days attached to a convention) and it as hot as hell. We did early ams and evenings and went back to thre hotel pool in the afternoon. (And that's when the parks weren;t very crowded - I know if there had been ong lines for many of the attractions we wouldn't have bothered.

Also - do you have any small kids? If so, realize they can dehydrate much fster than adults - and you need to keep pumping water into them - and keep them in the shade as much as possible.

Definitely agree with all previous posters. We have been twice in the summer and are going again this summer - only time we can all go together. Sunblock is a must. We also have fanny packs with a bottle holder to keep hydrated. You will be in and out of air-conditioning and make use of an available pool. Hot? Absolutely! But we would be just as hot at home, so we figure we will go and just have fun. Don't sweat it!!! (LOL)

We went last August. Yes, it was hot and muggy. But, so what?

As Orlando Vic said, thousands (actually millions I would think) live there.

We stayed at the Polynesian which made it easy for us to come and go from the park relatively easily. If we went to the park in the morning, we'd take a swimming break midday. If the parks were open late, we might just swim until 3 or 4. Get cleaned up then head to the park later.

We'd bring in bottles of water and refill them.

Use FastPass whenever possible. We went for 8 days so it was easier for us to not feel the need to do everything in a day or two. That helped because we could skip something of the line was bad.

Some of the rides at the Universal parks can be very wet (and therefor cooling!) We take bathing suits for some of the rides/areas there.

You've been getting great advice. As OrlandoVic says, many of us actually live through the summers here just fine.

If you're theme-parking, bring very comfortable shoes, consider wearing a sunhat and buying one of the fans that karameli mentioned. WEAR SUNSCREEN. I can't say that enough, because every time I'm in the tourist areas of Orlando in the summer I see lobster-red tourist. Stay hydrated. As others have said, go early, take a mid-day break, then go back in the late afternoon. If you do these things, you'll have a very enjoyable time.

Let me add a short comment on what 321go has just said about sunscreen.

Sometimes, we locals will see people (tourists) walking about with white legs that look like they have been painted (front & back) with bright red paint. The sides of their legs retain the pale white strip.

In addition to being painful, it also identifies you as someone who underestimated our intense sun and need for adequate sunscreen. The sun here is probably much more intense than in your own hometown. Please take appropriate precautions!

Central Florida is indeed hot hot hot in summer, but you can manage. Plan to do something shady and cool or indoors in the afternoon. Be most active EARLY in the morning and in the evening. Take it slower than usual. Think of all the things you would do if you were planning to visit in March and cut the list in half for a summer visit.
However, remember that Orlando can get lots of thunderstorms in the summer, some of them offering better fireworks than anything WDW can offer.
My mother lives a little north of Orlando and on summer visits, we manage fine.

If you are taking young kids, be even more paranoid about their sun protection than you are about your own.

And do something away from the crowds if you can...crowds+heat=short tempers. Give yourself some kind of mental break every day.