Walt Disney World: which park first?
Four parks that look interchangeable on a map and behave nothing alike once the gates open. Here's the order to visit them in, which one needs your earliest start, and what Early Entry and Lightning Lane actually change.
The short version
- Which Disney World park should you visit first? With two days, Magic Kingdom, then Hollywood Studios. With four days, start at Animal Kingdom on your earliest morning, take Hollywood Studios next, give Magic Kingdom the day you can stay latest, and leave EPCOT for the day you want the shortest list of must-do rides.
- Which park if you only have one day? Magic Kingdom. It has the most rides, and the two lines everyone talks about, TRON Lightcycle / Run and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
- Which park punishes a late start? Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Animal Kingdom opens an hour before the others and is usually closed by 6pm, so a late start cuts into a short day, and Slinky Dog Dash typically runs 60 to 70 min once Hollywood Studios fills. Be at the gate before open at both.
- What does Early Entry get you? Thirty minutes inside any of the four parks before official opening, every day of your stay, if you're staying at a Disney Resort hotel or one of a few partner hotels. Not every ride runs in that window.
- When is Lightning Lane worth it? For a short list. On a quiet fall day that's the Guardians Single Pass at EPCOT, which posted 70 or more in every hour after opening, plus Slinky Dog Dash and Test Track as your top-tier Multi Pass picks, about three in all. Magic Kingdom Multi Pass pays on most days. Make Peter Pan's Flight the pick if you'll be there at opening (ride Big Thunder then, at about 5), or Big Thunder if you'll arrive late. Buy the TRON and Seven Dwarfs Single Passes only if you'll miss the open, and skip Multi Pass at Animal Kingdom on a quiet week. Rise of the Resistance dropped to about 25 in the last hour this fall, so ride it last, but keep a backup because it breaks down often. Holiday weeks add the other four Single Passes, about seven picks in all.
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The four Disney World parks compared
Same resort, four different shapes of day. Each park's longest line is here with its typical median posted wait.
| Park | Typical hours, next 60 days | Longest line, median posted wait |
|---|---|---|
| Magic Kingdom | 9am to 10pm; closes 6pm on hard-ticket party nights | TRON Lightcycle / Run, 55 to 75 min |
| EPCOT | 9am to 9pm | Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, 70 to 90 min |
| Hollywood Studios | 9am to 9pm | Slinky Dog Dash, 60 to 70 min |
| Animal Kingdom | 8am to 6pm most days | Avatar Flight of Passage, 40 to 55 min |
Two things shape every plan here. Rides break often enough that no plan should depend on one ride at one time. And Animal Kingdom's day is short: it opens an hour earlier than the others and is usually closed by 6pm, so there's no late night to fall back on.
Which Disney World park needs the earliest start?
Animal Kingdom, then Hollywood Studios. Both run their longest lines from the moment they open, and Animal Kingdom usually closes hours before EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. Magic Kingdom gives some of that time back at night. EPCOT asks for two early rides, and a third if Frozen Ever After or Remy's Ratatouille Adventure is on your list.
- Na'vi River Journey35 to 45 min, lighter at the open than by late morning
- Expedition Everest20 to 35 min, lighter at the open than by midday
- Kilimanjaro Safaris10 to 45 min, longest all morning, short after 3pm
- Avatar Flight of Passage40 to 55 min, softest in the last two hours
- Slinky Dog Dash60 to 70 min, the longest line in the park
- Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets50 to 70 min, lighter at the open, longest from 5 to 7pm
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance45 to 55 min, about 25 in the last hour
- TRON Lightcycle / Run55 to 75 min, and it climbs into the evening
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train40 to 50 min most of the day, eases in the last hour
- Space Mountain30 to 40 min most of the day, eases in the last hour
- Peter Pan's Flight35 to 45 min, eases in the last hour
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind70 to 90 min, longest in the last two hours
- Test Track70 to 75 min
- Frozen Ever After45 to 55 min, shortest at the open
- Remy's Ratatouille Adventure40 to 50 min, shortest at the open
Hollywood Studios front-loads the pain: Slinky Dog Dash is long from the gate and stays long, so the fix is a head start. At Animal Kingdom, save the end of the day for the safari after 3pm and Flight of Passage in the last two hours. Magic Kingdom pays you back at the end of the night, when Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain and Peter Pan's Flight all ease off in the last hour. TRON and Guardians run longer at night than at the open, so take those two first, unless you bought the Guardians Single Pass. Frozen Ever After and Remy's Ratatouille Adventure are also shortest early and ease only a little in EPCOT's final hour, so ride the one you want most right after Test Track instead of saving it for the evening.
Disney World Early Theme Park Entry: what 30 minutes gets you
Guests of Disney Resort hotels and select other hotels get into any of the four parks 30 minutes before official opening, every day of their stay, and Disney says the benefit runs through 2027. You need valid admission, and select attractions run during the early window. Thirty minutes is enough for one headliner and the walk to the second. At Hollywood Studios that's Slinky Dog Dash, the longest line in the park.
Staying Deluxe? On some nights one park stays open two extra hours for guests of Deluxe, Deluxe Villa and select other hotels. Disney extended those Extended Evening Hours through 2027 too, and they're the best version of the late-night plan.
Is Lightning Lane worth it at Disney World?
Disney sells three products, all booked in the My Disney Experience app. Multi Pass lets you pick up to three experiences with arrival windows, then book another each time you redeem one. At Magic Kingdom, EPCOT and Hollywood Studios, only one of those three advance picks can come from the top group. Single Pass is for the most in-demand attractions that Multi Pass doesn't cover, up to two a day. Premier Pass gives one-time entry to every Lightning Lane experience in one park for one day. None of them shortens a line for free; you pay to join a shorter one.
You want the Guardians Single Pass, Slinky Dog Dash or Test Track as a top-tier Multi Pass pick, or Multi Pass at Magic Kingdom, which pays on most days. Or you're there on a holiday week, when every park runs longer.
You can rope drop and you have the evening. On a quiet week that means Multi Pass at Animal Kingdom, and the Rise of the Resistance Single Pass if you can stay for its last hour, when it drops to about 25. Keep a backup, since Rise breaks down often. At Magic Kingdom, Space Mountain and Peter Pan's Flight both ease off in the last hour on nights the park stays open late, and that costs nothing. At EPCOT the morning does that job, since Frozen Ever After and Remy's Ratatouille Adventure are shortest early, not in the evening.
We measured it ride by ride, with sell-out times and Single Pass prices from this fall: Is Lightning Lane worth it? The three that pay on a quiet week, seven on a holiday week.
Walt Disney World crowd calendars by park
Daily crowd levels since January 2025, scored 1 to 10 from measured waits, plus a nightly forecast for the next twelve months. Pick a lighter day before you buy tickets.
Compare all four parks- Magic Kingdom crowd calendar
- EPCOT crowd calendar
- Hollywood Studios crowd calendar
- Animal Kingdom crowd calendar
Best order to visit the Disney World parks
2-day park order
- Day 1, Magic Kingdom: TRON Lightcycle / Run at the official open, a long midday break, then back at night for Space Mountain and Peter Pan's Flight, which ease off in the last hour. With Early Entry, take Peter Pan's in the early window (about 25), Seven Dwarfs at the official open (about 35), then TRON.
- Day 2, Hollywood Studios: at the gate before open for Slinky Dog Dash, then Rise of the Resistance in the last hour, when it drops to about 25. It breaks down often, so keep a backup. Booked Slinky's Multi Pass? Rope drop Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, about 30 in the first hour.
4-day park order
- Animal Kingdom on the morning you can be earliest. Na'vi River Journey and Expedition Everest at the open, Kali River Rapids once it opens at 9, the safari after 3pm, Flight of Passage in the last two hours.
- Hollywood Studios on your second early morning. Slinky Dog Dash first (Rock 'n' Roller Coaster if you booked Slinky's Multi Pass), Rise of the Resistance last, with a backup in case it's down.
- Magic Kingdom on the day you can stay latest, since Space Mountain and Peter Pan's Flight ease off in the final hour.
- EPCOT on the day you want the shortest must-do list. Guardians first (unless you bought its Single Pass), then Test Track, then walk World Showcase, starting with whichever of Frozen Ever After or Remy's Ratatouille Adventure you want most, since both are shortest early.
What changes this advice
- Party nights at Magic Kingdom: the park closes to day guests at 6pm for hard-ticket events, so the late-evening dip doesn't exist. The Halloween party runs through October 31, and the Christmas party takes select nights from November 8 to December 22. Check the hours for your date before you plan on a late night.
- Rise of the Resistance at night: it's no worse late than at midday, and its line dropped to about 25 in the last hour on the nights we measured, which is when saving it for the end pays off. It breaks down often, so keep a backup for your last hour.
- Festivals at EPCOT: they change what you eat and drink in World Showcase, not the ride plan. Guardians and Test Track are still the first two stops, unless you bought the Guardians Single Pass.
- Rain: Kali River Rapids and Expedition Everest close for weather at Animal Kingdom; Magic Kingdom and EPCOT have the most indoor headliners.
- A headliner goes down: it happens at every one of these parks. Keep a backup in the same land, and check the posted wait before you cross the park for a ride.
Ride Ready is an independent application and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The Walt Disney Company or Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Early Theme Park Entry, Extended Evening Hours, Lightning Lane, My Disney Experience and all park and attraction names are trademarks of their respective owners. Wait times on this page are typical and historical, not real-time.