Disney World is full of magic and joy! But one thing that’s not so magical is the wait times.
No matter what you do, you’re going to have to some waiting at Walt Disney World, but I’ve got some tips and tricks to help you keep your waiting to a minimum!
Get to the parks early or stay late
If you get to the park early, you’ll see the lowest wait times. You may even be able to jump on rides before there’s any line at all.
You can also stay late in the parks. Most people leave after the nighttime show, but if the park is still open, you can take the opportunity to get on more rides. The wait times typically aren’t as low as when the park first opens, but they’re still reduced.
And as long as you are in line when the park closes, you can ride, so if it’s two minutes until park closing and you see a ride with a low wait time, you can still jump in line and you’ll get to ride.
Another benefit of staying in the park after the nighttime shows is it’ll mean reduced wait times for Disney Transportation, which always end up with lines immediately following a show.
FastPass
Use ALL of your FastPasses and use them wisely! If you’re planning on being at the park when it first opens, wait times should be low enough that you shouldn’t need to book a FastPass before 10:30 or 11 AM.
Additionally, don’t waste your FastPasses on rides that already have low wait times, like Mickey’s Philharmagic or the People Mover. Shoot for rides that are usually upwards of forty minutes (minimum), like Peter Pan’s Flight and Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train.
Once you use up your three FastPasses, you get another one to use (and once you use that, you get another one). So check out the app and see if there are any good FastPasses available to take advantage of.
You can use the My Disney Experience App to get a sense of the average wait times before you book your FastPasses.
If you’re staying at a Disney Resort, you can book your FastPasses 60 days before your trip. If you’re staying at a neighboring hotel, you can book 30 days before your trip.
For more on Disney’s FastPass System, check out this post.
For more on using the My Disney Experience App, check out this post.
Single Rider Line
Expedition Everest, Test Track, and Rock ‘N’ Roller coaster have a single rider line for guests who are going on that ride solo. Cast members will pull from this line to help fill single empty seats before a ride begins.
These lines typically move significantly faster than the general queue, so if you’re alone, or with a group that doesn’t mind being separated, consider saving a FastPass and making use of the single rider line instead.
Rider Swap
If there’s a child or person in your party who needs to be taken care of, you can take advantage of Rider Swap if you want to go on a ride that child/person can’t go on or doesn’t want to go on.
Rider Swap allows for one person/the rest of your party to wait in line and ride the ride while one person stays with the child/person not riding. One person who rides can ask a cast member for a rider swap card. This will allow the person waiting to ride the ride without waiting in the line.
So, at least one member of your party will still have to wait in the line, but you won’t have to double your wait time if the person waiting also wants to get on that ride.
Ask a cast member for all the details.
Ride during parades and shows
Wait times dramatically reduce before and during parades and nighttime shows. If you can stand to miss the show, it’s a great time to be on the rides.
Personally, I love the parades and shows, but luckily my family tends to do two days in Magic Kingdom. We catch the Festival of Fantasy parade one day and ride during the parade on the second, which has proven to be the best of both worlds.
Ride during popular meal times
Try to eat your meals late or early so that while most people are eating, you can be on the rides! Most people eat lunch between 11:30 and 1:30, and most people eat dinner between 6:00 and 8:00.
Not only will this reduce your ride wait time, but it will also reduce your wait for food too!
Use Mobile Order
If you’re using the My Disney Experience App, you can take advantage of Mobile Ordering. This allows you to skip the line at several Disney quick service locations by ordering on your phone and picking your food up at a designated window.
Go to the parks in the rain
The parks usually empty or send people running for cover when it rains. If you can, bring a poncho and rain gear and try to suck it up. You may be rewarded if you do!
While there are some rides that can’t operate in the rain, most of the rides are indoors, under cover, and have under cover queues. If less people are in the parks, it means less wait time for you!
Watch the app
Keep an eye on the wait times on the My Disney Experience App, and take advantage when rides have a lower than average wait times. If a wait time is under twenty minutes, it might be a good ride to jump on. And if a wait time is ten minutes, that’s usually Disney code for no real wait time at all.
The Disney estimated wait times are usually more conservative. They’d rather estimate a higher wait time and have you pleasantly surprised when you get through faster.
Pro tip: start checking wait times periodically throughout the day about two weeks before your trip. You may notice patterns with certain rides.
For example, my Dad’s favorite ride is Epoct’s Soarin’. We always get a FastPass for it, but I know he likes to get on at least twice if we can. I started watching the wait times before we went and I noticed that later in the day (usually at some point between 3:00 and 5:00 PM) the Soarin’ wait time would dip to twenty minutes.
I kept an eye on the afternoon Soarin’ wait time when we were in the park and we were able to get on the ride with a twenty-minute wait (which we sailed through).
Meet characters at meals
If meeting characters is a priority for your family, you might want to consider booking a character meal. Character meals are a great way to get to a group of characters without waiting in line.
And if you’re planning on eating/buying food in the park, you’re killing two birds with one stone.
Character meals include multiple characters that will come and visit your table. Meals usually feature character groups (Mickey and friends, princesses, etc), so you can choose the one (or several) that’s best for you and your party.
You can book a reservation 180 days before your trip via the Disney Website or call and talk with a Disney Dining cast member who can help make sure you get the right experience for your group.
Avoid busy times of the year
This probably goes without saying, but one way to significantly reduce your wait time is to plan your trip when there are less people in the park.
This means avoiding the summer (Memorial Day – August), Spring Break season (March-April), and the Holidays (mid-November- Early-January). There are other times of the year that are moderately busy, but these are by far the busiest, so it’s best to avoid them if you have the option.
For more Disney tips, check out the Disney section of this blog!
Sound off: How do you avoid wait times in Disney World? Tell us about it in the comments!