The WORST Part of Visiting Disney World During a Holiday

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and along with most holidays in Disney World, one thing remains true — it gets CROWDED.

Thanksgiving Day Crowds

Although Thanksgiving Day crowds were a bit surprising, the rest of the week was packed and wait times were HIGH, with one ride toppling over THREE hours one day. If you’re curious to know what Disney World is like during a holiday week, we’ve compiled all the average wait times from this past week!

Before you get ahead of yourself and scroll down, grab a notebook and a pen and write down all your favorite rides. Why? Because FastPass is now a thing of the past and its replacement, Genie+, can cost you quite a bit. With the price of Genie+ fluctuating between $15 and all the way up to $29 per person, per day recently, it’s a major investment that may force you to adjust your budget.

Lightning Lane sign at Princess Fairytale Hall

Genie+ operates a lot like FastPass did, and if you purchase this service you can reserve Lightning Lanes one at a time in the My Disney Experience app. You don’t HAVE to buy Genie+ but if you don’t want to spend the majority of your park days in line, you might want to consider it.

Expedition Everest Lightning Lane

Got your favorite ride list handy? Look below for all the average wait times of every Disney World ride this past Thanksgiving week.

Magic Kingdom

Let’s start out with Magic Kingdom, where Seven Dwarfs Mine Train had the longest average wait time at 76 minutes! It averaged 58 minutes last week, so that’s quite an increase.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Lightning Lane

Next, Peter Pan’s Flight averaged 60 minutes, followed by Jungle/Jingle Cruise at 58 minutes, Space Mountain at 43 minutes, Haunted Mansion at 38 minutes, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at 36 minutes, and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at 33 minutes. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Splash Mountain, and Pirates of the Caribbean all averaged 27 minutes.

Jingle Cruise

After that, Astro Orbiter averaged 25 minutes, “it’s a small world” averaged 20 minutes, Under the Sea – Journey of the Little Mermaid averaged 19 minutes, Magic Carpets of Aladdin averaged 18 minutes, the Barnstormer featuring the Great Goofini averaged 17 minutes, Dumbo the Flying Elephant averaged 16 minutes, Tomorrowland Speedway averaged 15 minutes, Mickey’s PhilharMagic averaged 14 minutes, and Prince Charming Regal Carrousel averaged 13 minutes.

Mickey’s PhilharMagic

After that, Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover and the Mad Tea Party averaged 12 minutes, the Carousel of Progress averaged 5 minutes, and the Liberty Square Riverboat averaged 4 minutes.

Liberty Square Riverboat

Surprisingly, the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse and the Enchanted Tiki Room averaged 1 minute, while Country Bear Jamboree,  Tom Sawyer Island, and the Hall of Presidents had no waits.

What CROWDS look like on a sold-out Magic Kingdom day!

EPCOT

Over in EPCOT, the ride with the longest average wait time was once again Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, with an average wait time of 92 minutes, compared to last week’s average of 82 minutes. Frozen Ever After had an average wait time of 78 minutes, only two minutes more than last week’s average of 76 minutes.

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure

Next up was Test Track at 70 minutes, Soarin’ at 52 minutes, and Mission: SPACE at 30 minutes. Spaceship Earth averaged 23 minutes, The Seas with Nemo and Friends averaged 15 minutes, Turtle Talk with Crush averaged 14 minutes, and Gran Fiesta Tour and Journey into Imagination both averaged 13 minutes. Living with the Land averaged a 10-minute wait.

Spaceship Earth

Awesome Planet, Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along, Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival, Impressions de France, and Reflections of China all featured no wait times this week.

Click here for every EPCOT restaurant — RANKED!

Hollywood Studios

Now let’s head over to Hollywood Studios where for the second week in a row, Tower of Terror topped the list with an average wait time of 134 minutes! That’s a pretty large increase from the surprise average wait time of 105 minutes last week. Rise of the Resistance, the usual ride with the highest wait time, came in behind Tower of Terror with an average of 121 minutes, versus last week’s 97-minute average.

Holidays at Hollywood Studios

Next, Slinky Dog Dash had an average of 119 minutes followed by Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith at 92 minutes, Toy Story Mania at 80 minutes, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway at 74 minutes, and Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run at 67 minutes,

Runaway Railway

After that, Alien Swirling Saucers averaged 41 minutes, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue averaged 26 minutes, Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy averaged 15 minutes, Muppet*Vision 3D averaged 11 minutes, and Walt Disney Presents averaged 6 minutes.

Check out the rare magical moment we experienced in Hollywood Studios!

Animal Kingdom

Finally, let’s head over to Animal Kingdom, where Avatar Flight of Passage had the longest average wait time increased to a whopping 135 minutes. Last week, the average was 115 minutes.

Flight of Passage

Next up was Na’vi River Journey at 65 minutes, Kilimanjaro Safaris at 64 minutes, Expedition Everest at 39 minutes, DINOSAUR at 30 minutes, and Kali River Rapids at 19 minutes.

Dinosaur

Triceratop Spin averaged 14  minutes and It’s Tough to Be a Bug averaged 13 minutes. Both The Boneyard and Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail averaged no wait time. 

The BEST breakfast in Animal Kingdom!

It’s not a surprise that wait times were UP this week, which is a common trend during holidays in Disney World. If you’re planning a visit during any holiday you can pretty much bank on high wait times, and Genie+ can be an asset if you’re able to splurge.

Space Mountain line on Thanksgiving

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