I absolutely love visiting Walt Disney World and generally try and stay as positive as possible when writing about the resort. Lively corners of Animal Kingdom, ducks, and specific trip strategies are great ways to revisit vacations and beloved experiences. But there is one less desirable behavior from fellow guests that I have noticed with an increasing frequency, and I feel the need to discuss it!  I am referring to ‘line cutting.’ The spread in this behavior, to the point where I fear it is becoming normalized, has led me to wonder if others are noticing this as well.

Line cutting refers to an individual or group shuffling their way through a queue at an attraction past other guests, in order to meet up with the rest of their party. This could be one individual, an adult with a small child, or even a large family. This is something I have noticed more and more, to the point where recently waiting for Kilimanjaro Safaris, I found an almost constant stream of people moseying past me. With a relatively wide queue, this was annoying enough; but regarding tighter Na’vi River Journey, it made the wait a grating and difficult experience. 

Line cutting is not new at Walt Disney World or anywhere else. However, I first noticed this behavior really emerge once the parks re-opened in 2020 after the pandemic related closure. With six-foot distancing strictly enforced, queues left the show buildings and spilled into general areas very quickly. Peter Pan’s Flight and many other attractions might only need waits of 15 or 20 minutes for this spill over point to occur. Therefore, many parties seemed to assign a placeholder who would text someone once they were about to enter the show building. 

During trips in December 2021 and April 2022 (I am a Walt Disney World Annual Passholder), I began hearing things like, “Okay, get in line and we’ll look in the store until you get close,” or “just call us when you are near the front.” Especially during my April visit, many guests executed this strategy with a casual elegance. 

While entering Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios, two adults got into line and one shouted back to the party, “okay, park the strollers and meet us when you’re done.” About ten minutes later, a group of about a dozen clumsily attempted to amble through the labyrinthine queue. It makes me wonder if there is a source of information even encouraging this behavior. 

I am not alone in noticing an increase in line cutting. This is a topic I have seen come up frequently on Facebook threads, discussion boards, and in mini-trip reports. While this has always gone on, it is now to a point where I have found myself getting quite aggravated.  

Have you noticed a rise in line cutting? Has it always been a common occurrence? Are there some circumstances where it may be acceptable? Please feel free to leave a comment!