Waiting in line is part of the Disney experience when visiting the Walt Disney World Resort. Short wait times are manageable. However, long wait times can be tricky for several reasons. Visiting with younger Guests, the Florida heat, hunger, and boredom can all test your patience when having to wait for a lengthy period of time. Unfortunately, there are several Walt Disney World attractions that ultimately always have a long line. But what if we told you there was a way to experience them without wasting your time in a Disney Park and without additional cost? Let us share the secret to doing so.
Popular Walt Disney World Attractions
There are many popular attractions in the Walt Disney World Resort. When visiting a Disney Park, you can expect at least two rides that you need to have a plan to ride to cut down your wait time. Typically, popular Walt Disney World attractions have a line of at least 60 minutes for the majority of the time that they are open. Naturally, inclement weather and technical difficulties can result in the closure of an attraction. Therefore, when the ride reopens, you may see lower line times. However, you can expect to see the wait time increase quickly.
The most popular Walt Disney World attractions in Disney theme park, are:
- Space Mountain in Tomorrowland
- Peter Pan’s Flight in Fantasyland
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in Fantasyland
EPCOT:
- Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in the France Pavilion in World Showcase
- Frozen Ever After in the Norway Pavilion in World Showcase
- Test Track in World Discovery
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
- Slinky Dog Dash in Toy Story Land
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith on Sunset Boulevard
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway in Animation Courtyard
- Na’Vi River Journey in Pandora – The World of Avatar
- Avatar Flight of Passage in Pandora – The World of Avatar
Early Theme Park Entry
Many Guests visiting Lake Buena Vista choose to stay in a Walt Disney World Resort hotel. There are many benefits to staying in a Disney hotel; one, in particular, is Early Theme Park Entry. Disney Resort Hotel Guests can enter every Disney Park for an additional 30 minutes daily. Generally, this means that you can enter:
- Magic Kingdom Park and EPCOT at 8:30 a.m., before the Disney Parks opening to all other Guests at 9 a.m.
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios at 8 a.m., before the Disney Parks opening to all other Guests at 8:30 a.m.
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom at 7:30 a.m., before the Disney Parks opening to all other Guests at 8 a.m.
Use of Early Theme Park Entry allows you to head to popular Disney attractions while the number of Guests in the Disney Park is somewhat limited. There is a chance that you could be among the first Guests of the day to ride an attraction if you happen to be at the front of a crowd of Guests using Early Theme Park Entry.
Disney Genie+ & Lightning Lane
Purchasing Disney Genie+ is an alternative way to reduce your wait time for popular Disney rides. Additionally, knowing how to stack your Lightning Lane reservations and which attractions to choose first help you to get the most out of the paid Disney service. Securing a Disney Genie+ reservation for Disney attractions allows you to enter the Lightning Lane line and experience a ride with a minimal wait time. Disney Genie+ can help to cut your wait times on the following popular Disney attractions:
Magic Kingdom:
- Space Mountain in Tomorrowland
- Peter Pan’s Flight in Fantasyland
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland
EPCOT:
- Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in the France Pavilion in World Showcase
- Frozen Ever After in the Norway Pavilion in World Showcase
- Test Track in World Discovery
Disney’s Hollywood Studios:
- Slinky Dog Dash in Toy Story Land
- Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith on Sunset Boulevard
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway in Animation Courtyard
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
- Na’Vi River Journey in Pandora – The World of Avatar
However, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in Magic Kingdom Park, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Avatar Flight of Passage in Disney’s Animal Kingdom are unavailable through the Disney Genie+ service. Therefore, to ride these attractions with a minimal wait, you can purchase an Individual Lightning Lane Entry for the day of your visit. While buying Individual Lightning Lane Entrances can be helpful, it can quickly become expensive if you plan to do that throughout your Disney vacation.
The Real Secret
The great news is that there is another way to ride top Disney attractions without a cost and without wasting your day in long lines. When we want to ride attractions such as Slinky Dog Dash, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Test Track, and Avatar Flight of Passage, we choose to do so at the end of the day. Typically we plan to spend at least one evening in every Disney theme Park during a Disney vacation. Doing so provides us with the opportunity to see the nighttime spectaculars but also ride top Disney attractions.
So how does it work? Get in line for your chosen attraction just before the Disney Park closing time. The majority of Disney rides stay open until then. We recommend having a plan of action ready. Ensure you are in the land of the attraction 5 minutes before closing time. Doing so will allow you easy access to the attraction entrance. You will find that you will be among the final Guests to be allowed to enter the Disney ride line.
While the attraction line may be long, Lightning Lane Entrances will soon stop, as Guests will have only been able to make a reservation until Disney Park Close. Despite having to wait to ride the attraction, you won’t be wasting any time, as you cannot ride any other attractions once a Disney Park has closed. Additionally, you are likely to be able to ride the attraction in the dark, which offers extra thrills.
Another benefit of riding Disney attractions after Park Close is that many other Guests will have exited the Disney Park when you leave the ride. Therefore, you can enjoy a relaxing stroll through the theme park to the exit. Take opportunities to get photos with few other Guests around. Furthermore, you should find that the bus station has emptied, so you won’t have to wait in long lines for the Disney bus to take you back to your Disney Resort hotel.
Make sure you use this secret during your next Disney vacation. Enjoy the time it saves you during the day and the extra benefits it provides you after you have experienced the attractions.
