[Duchess]

We leave for WDW on TUESDAY!!!! And I'm obsessing on details - such fun!

We are planning on TL one day. I know this time of year storms pop up in the afternoon. What happens if lightening is in the area? Does it close? Do they close for just rain? Does this happen often?

[mickeysgirlz]

Originally Posted by Duchess

We leave for WDW on TUESDAY!!!! And I'm obsessing on details - such fun!

We are planning on TL one day. I know this time of year storms pop up in the afternoon. What happens if lightening is in the area? Does it close? Do they close for just rain? Does this happen often?

I'm not really sure what they do at the park, but here in South Fl we have large whistles that sound when lightening is 5 miles away . . . this way ball fields and pools can be cleared!

I'm sure WDW has a similar thing in place for the safety of their guests . . . it will most likely be outta the water during the storm and then when it passes right back in!

HAVE A MAGICAL TIME ON YOUR TRIP!!!

[dixie]

I think TL closes if inclement weather is imminent-but I may be wrong?

[Schultzie]

I work at a pool, and we have to close for lightning, and if the rain is heavy enough so that the bottom of the pool cannot be clearly seen. Also, some pools close when thunder is heard. The pool can reopen if no lightning is seen for at least 30 minutes, no thunder is heard for 30 minutes, and when the rain stops. I'm sure TL has a similar policy, it seems to be common across all pools.

Have fun!

[RowdyRAider]

If it's just raining, the park the continues operation as normal. However, lightning will close the park. If there's not enough time to come back after the storm, they'll give you a comp ticket to come back on another day.

[dznylvr]

Yep, what Rowdy said.
We actually left TL early last year because of rain, but I can't remember if it was lightning or not. But, the skies were letting loose with a monsoon.
We had to leave the park, because we hated to get wet!

[bribren]

If you can brave the rain and they don't close it, when it lets up you have a near empty park to enjoy. Its funny to see wet people, running inder cover when the rain hits.

[cinderbella]

And usually a FL thunderstorm only lasts for 30 mins so if you can wait it out you'll be OK!

[Soundgod]

Typhoon Lagoon closes for hurricanes.
That's how it came into being in the first place, or so the story goes.

I've never seen it close outright during a thunderstorm, mostly because I haven't been near one during a thunderstorm, but I do know that most amusement parks across the US close tall rides whenever lightning is detected within 5 miles of the park until radar shows the storm has moved off. I also know that most pools and waterparks will close, or at the least, evacuate all pools and waterslides during storms.
If it's just raining, I haven't seen either Disney waterpark close.

[catfish1999]

I've been to the parks a few times when they've closed the waterparks due to storms. If you go early in the day you should be ok because the storms usually hit later in the afternoon.

[leslieh]

We were at TL during a huge storm (tropical depression). It rained for hours and there were very few people there with us. There was no lightning, though, and the park stayed open.

[WishUponAStar]

My first visit to Blizzard Beach a similar situation happened. Unfortunately central Florida weather is hard to predict. I remember it being really sunny when we set out in the morning then out of NOWHERE clouds rolled in & within 20 minutes we had to get out of the water b/c lightning was coming. We chose to leave the park and return on a different day (luckily we had a pass that allowed for unlimited entry during our stay) so it really didn't matter in our situation. Although, I'm pretty sure when our bus passed the park later (after the storm had cleared) we saw guests in the park. So they definately had to re-open. Just be prepared with a "Plan B." Downtown Disney is REALLY close to Typhoon Lagoon so maybe pack a dry pair of clothes in your beach bag & if worse comes to worse you can shop over there.