There’s no place like the merriest place on Earth for the holidays.
Disney Parks – like no other – capture the magic that seems to float through the air during the month of December, transforming their parks into (unseasonably warm) winter wonderlands. So it’s no surprise that visitors come from near and far to see shimmering, snow-covered castles; to meet Santa and Elsa in one go; to experience limited-time holiday overlays; to celebrate those precious few weeks of family togetherness when work and school obligations relax.
And for that reason, we stand at the precipice of “the most busiest time of the year.” Hundreds of thousands of guests will pile into Disney Parks over the course of December, overwhelming parking, causing multi-hour waits for headlining rides, and even causing gates to close as parks reach capacity! Planning to join the stampede to get a taste of Disney’s Christmastime magic? Then you have to have a plan.
Join us as we tour through the best low-wait and no-wait attractions at each Disney park (from the least-attended to the most) and – for those brave enough to tackle the crowds – start your planning. The busiest days at Disney Parks can be the most magical… as long as you have the right expectactions.
6. Disney California Adventure
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 9.5 million
Disney California Adventure is the lowest-attended of Disney’s U.S. theme parks (though it’s tied with Disneyland Paris and Universal’s Islands of Adventure, so don’t let that mislead you). Disney should be wildly proud of the rising attendance there given the hard work it took: a $1.2 billion reconstruction of the park, as detailed in its own feature here – Declassified Disaster: Disney’s California Adventure. Now, Disney is in the midst of a second era of redesign for the park, this time intent on plussing it with Pixar and Marvel properties. The result is more than just new E-Ticket… it’s a slew of “hidden gems” and other asides that make the park perfect for the resort’s more crowded days.
image: Disney
For example, on busy days, you might opt to take the Red Car Trolley down Buena Vista Street, enjoying the 1920s holiday decor along the streetscape. Then, the Pacific-Electric cars will hook a right at the Carthay Circle Theater and head for Hollywood. There, the Animation building along Hollywood Blvd. is home to the charming Sorcerer’s Workshop, Animation Academy, and Turtle Talk with Crush – all perfect places to take a break from crowds. So far, Disneyland’s loyal, repeat visitors have indicated that Frozen – Live at the Hyperion (a 70-minute, shot-for-shot, line-for-line retelling of Frozen) isn’t exactly re-watchable like the former occupant, Aladdin, was. The end result is that you can probably sneak into a showing right as the doors open and at least secure a seat in the balcony of the 2,000 seat theater.
Image: HarshLight, Flickr (license)
Next, head back in time to heyday of family roadtrips and national parks with a walk through Grizzly Peak, where the Grizzly Peak Bypass trail wanders up close to the namesake mountain. The Redwood Creek Challenge Trail is more than just a playground thanks to facts, stories, and native legends posted around the area, as well as the beloved Spirit Cave (a rare in-park reference to Brother Bear), a fire circle, fire watchtowers to climb, and more. For that matter, you shouldn’t have to wait too long for Grizzly River Run, given that few care to get soaked during chilly winter weather.
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While the E-Tickets of Pixar Pier and Paradise Gardens will be slammed, you can count on The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure thanks to the Omnimover ride system that keeps crowds moving. Plus, the classic amusements of this turn-of-the-century pleasure park (like Jumpin’ Jellyfish and Silly Symphony Swings) tend to have light queues.Then, in Pacific Wharf, spend some time in the Boudin Bakery seeing how sourdough is made. Though Cars Land will be in a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam, the whole point of this area is that it follows the “Wizarding World” model – the land as the E-Ticket – which means you can dine at Flo’s, watch Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters, and revel in Radiator Springs’ Christmas decor.
5. Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 10.7 million
Annually, Disney’s Hollywood Studios might see more guests than Disney California Adventure… But there’s a big difference in the way crowds navigate these two parks… Because while California Adventure has 18 rides (pending the opening of the rest of Pixar Pier and an upcoming Marvel land), Disney’s Hollywood Studios has 6 – the least of any Disney or Universal park. So while attendance at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will likely increase by double-digit percentages with the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge next fall, designers are scrambling to super-charge the park with enough to do to soak up the crowds.
For now, a busy holiday at Disney’s Hollywood Studios simply means avoiding those six rides and instead angling toward the entertainment offerings at the park.
Image: Disney
Plan to see the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular to relive the 1981 classic Raiders of the Lost Ark. While you’re in the area, you could settle in for For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along… if you haven’t already “let it go.” We can’t in good conscience suggest you see Star Wars: Path of the Jedi or Star Wars Launch Bay, but the latter tends to be empty even when the rest of the park is packed. You might opt to skip both and head to the star of the park’s entertainment offerings: Muppet*Vision 3D. The Muppets are probably just the thing you need to relax in a packed day at the park.
Detractors call Disney’s Hollywood Studios a half-day park. On a day when FastPass slots are “sold out,” that becomes exponentially more true. But just think… next Christmas, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will transform the park altogether. So in December 2019, you can count on Disney’s Hollywood Studios being a full-day park, but half the day may be spent waiting in line for the two Galaxy’s Edge E-Tickets. For this year, avoid Toy Story Land. If you want to walk through to see the Christmas decorations, so be it. But if you’re looking for low-wait attractions, there’s nothing in Toy Story Land for you.
4. Epcot
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 12.2 million
While Epcot’s Future World was once a realm of high-brow, high-capacity dark rides like the Lost Legends: Universe of Energy, Horizons, World of Motion, The Living Seas, Journey into Imagination, and Kitchen Kabaret that could quickly and effortlessly swallow enormous crowds with great efficiency, time has mostly shuttered those people-eater rides in favor of “brainless” technological E-Tickets, which quickly become totally swamped during busy periods. So what are you to do when visiting Epcot for its various festivals that can keep the park swamped around the holidays?
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Though we’ve been surprised to see its wait time balloon as of late, in general The Seas with Nemo and Friends make a perfect reprieve from crushing crowds. Its Omnimover ride system skillfully moves guests into the pavilion’s central aquarium, where the exhibit is yours to explore at your leisure… the kind of experience other Disney Parks don’t have in such quantity. Neaby is the perfect attraction to get a dose of Future World without the wait: Living with the Land, which is specialy lit for Christmas.
Technically, the once-glorious post-shows of Future World’s pavilions have mostly disappeared or shriveled up to practically nothing, though you can still have some fun poking around ImageWorks in the Imagination pavilion, the Chevrolet Showroom in Test Track, the Advanced Training Lab in Mission: SPACE, and Project: Tomorrow inside the exit of Spaceship Earth. If any part of Innoventions is left, it also makes a fine place to wander during exceptionally crowded times.
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The real saving grace of Epcot for busy periods has to be World Showcase. Though only one pavilion has a headlining ride (Norway’s Modern Marvel: Frozen Ever After), all are still rich with things to see, do, and taste. Mexico’s Gran Fiesta Tour is a fun, classic aside, while Reflections of China, O Canada!, and Impressions de France are all beautiful (if dated) Circle-vision travelogue films that have no problem handling holiday crowds. Also see The American Adventure – a sensational and often-overlooked classic. As well, most of World Showcase’s pavilions feature museum-like exhibitions that are rich with culture and meant to be absorbed in theme-park-time, like Noway’s Stave Church Gallery (currently showcasing Norweigian mythology, loosely tied to Thor) and Japan’s Bijutsu-kan, currently hosting “Kawaii Life: Culture of Cute.”
3. Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 12.5 million
When Disney’s Animal Kingdom opened in 1999, some early visitors criticized the lack of things to do at the park. Clearly, they just weren’t looking around. Sure, Animal Kingdom opened with just two real rides (Kilimanjaro Safaris and the Lost Legend: Countdown to Extinction), but Disney’s first 21st century park was also filled with unmarked trails; immersive animal exhibits; sensational entertainment. Like Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Galaxy’s Edge, it may be that Pandora propelled Animal Kingdom’s attendance before it was really ready (the park bypassed both Hollywood Studios and Epcot in attendance as of the 2017 estimates), but at least the park’s still-meager ride count (9) doesn’t tell the whole story.
Image: Disney
If you find yourself at Disney’s Animal Kingdom during the holiday season and opt not to wait your day away in line for the E-Tickets of Pandora, that’s alright. Like Cars Land, Pandora: The World of AVATAR is an E-Ticket in and of itself, and must be seen both by day and by night to be believed.
It’s entirely alright to spend your day at Animal Kingdom just, y’know, enjoying the animals! Africa’s Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail is a spectacular zoological journey through some of the most immersive animal exhibits ever; the same goes for Asia’s Maharajah Jungle Trek. Both are trails through photo-realistic landscapes that are also plussed with Disney’s deeply embedded storytelling and detail. In fact, all of the park’s Africa and Asia (embodied in Harambe and Anadapur, respectively) are worthy of in-depth investigation, and a day with multi-hour queues for E-Tickets might be the perfect excuse to do it. A similar attraction, Cretaceous Trail, features reptiles like crocodiles and storks in Dinoland.
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Animal Kingdom’s entertainment may be a savior on crowded days, too. Check out It’s Tough to be a Bug (if you dare) or Finding Nemo The Musical, both of which are hosted in large theaters. Reportedly, visitors haven’t warmed to the new Pixar-infused UP: A Great Bird Adventure animal show or the supposed spectacular Rivers of Light, which has helped keep the stands relatively open. (In fact, Disney will even pay you $5 to see Rivers of Light this season…). Otherwise, spend time meandering around the Tree of Life and the pathways there. Especially at night, the Tree of Life is perhaps the ultimate Christmas tree thanks to the “Awakenings” show that occurs there.
2. Disneyland
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 18.3 million
Though Disneyland may only be the second-most-attended park in the country, it’s certainly the most crowded. That’s because Disneyland’s quaint pathways and 1950s-infrastructure weren’t exactly built with being a global destination in mind. It’s not unusual for Disneyland to close for reaching capacity during the holidays, and even on days when that doesn’t happen, Disneyland has some spots that are perpetually gridlocked.
But here’s the twist: Disneyland has more rides than any other Disney Park on Earth (36)! So the problem isn’t a lack of things to do… it’s FastPass. That’s why in our Editorial: Disney Should Get Rid of FastPass, we argued that FastPass has turned Disneyland’s paths into bumper-to-bumper gridlock while the park’s E-Ticket queue are empty… an absurd and unsustainable strategy! So while Disneyland has the ride count to support its upcoming Galaxy’s Edge, Disney has spent all of 2018 trimming back planters, relocating light posts, and removing benches in an effort to squeeze even just a few extra square feet into pathways.
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So when you visit Disneyland during the holidays, you’ll find plenty to do… It’s just tough to get to it. Stroll along Main Street and take in the often-missed experiences like The Disneyland Story and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. Go for the full circle tour on the Disneyland Railroad, taking in the sights of the Primeval World and Grand Canyon dioramas. Spend some time in the Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough. Depending on the time of day, some Fantasyland dark rides – like Snow White’s Scary Adventures and Pinocchio’s Daring Journey tend to have shorter waits. Even the holiday-overlay “it’s a small world” Holiday retains its high capacity, making a nice holiday E-Ticket.
Image: Disney
Once you make it to the Rivers of America, avoid the gridlock along the water and instead enjoy a ride on the Mark Twain Riverboat or the Sailing Ship Columbia. If the time of year is right, you can likely walk right onto the Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes and paddle your way around Tom Sawyer Island – another sure-fire place to escape the mayhem of a busy day on the mainland. If you can make it around the bend, The Many Adventures of Winnie Pooh tends to not top a 10 minute wait, even on busy days… but maybe for good reason. If you can make it to the entrance, Pirates of the Caribbean is almost assuredly a short wait… after all, it’s one of the highest capacity rides Disney has ever designed.
In Adventureland, enjoy the tropical serenade of the Modern Marvel: The Enchanted Tiki Room – a true classic that deserves to play to full houses. Disney’s hoping that afterwards, you’ll retire to their new Tropical Hideaway – a sort of “Dole Whip and chill,” Millennial friendly, riverside hangout spot. If you’re going to wait, it might as well be for the Modern Marvel: Indiana Jones Adventure, queuing in the ruined tropical splendor of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.
Best advice? Avoid Tomorrowland.
1. Magic Kingdom
Image: Disney
Estimated attendance: 24.5 million
Recognizing that they had the chance to learn from the “mistakes” of Disneyland, designers decided to build Magic Kingdom with international audiences, crushing crowds, and capacity in mind. With the benefit of hindsight and master-planning, Magic Kingdom looks and feels a lot different from Disneyland during peak seasons. Imagineers intentionally stocked Magic Kingdom with wide, concrete plazas rather than Disneyland’s narrow paths; with high-capacity theater rides; with double-capacity attractions rather than intimate dark rides. The ripples of those decisions still reverberate. So while Magic Kingdom hosts more guests every year than Disneyland, photos of gridlocked paths are rare.
Image: Disney
Take Tomorrowland. While we explicitly say to avoid Tomorrowland in California, it’s a pretty laid-back place in Florida thanks to outrageously high-capacity attractions like Carousel of Progress and the Peoplemover; two of Disney’s most efficient rides ever. (Disneyland has the infrastructure for both, but Carousel is occupied by the space-wasting Star Wars Launch Bay, and the Lost Legend: The Peoplemover is rotting in plain sight). Likewise, Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor can swallow massive crowds, as could its one-time neighbor, the now-closed Declassified Disaster: Stitch’s Great Escape. Consider Magic Kingdom’s Space Mountain, which is comprised of two side-by-side roller coasters to increase capacity.
Trusty walk-throughs like the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse also make for great experiences where you’re able to linger and enjoy without the pressure of crowds.
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See also, the doubled Dumbo The Flying Elephant (smartly cutting queues for the perennial favorite, and employing a new virtual queue system to boot). Though all of Fantasyland’s dark rides tend to fill up during busy times, Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid tends to have a shorter wait thanks to the Omnimover ride system (though it’s still curiously longer than the same ride at California Adventure).
The Enchanted Tiki Room is a smart go-to for holidays here, too, as is the Country Bear Jamboree. Likewise for the Liberty Belle Riverboat, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Walt Disney World Railroad.
To go, or not to go?
Braving any Disney Park during the month of December is a brave endeavor. With schools out across much of the hemisphere and the parks dolled up in their holiday best, Disney magic is in high demand.
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So should you visit Disney Parks during “the most busiest time of the year?” At the end of the day, the choice is yours. But if you want to enjoy yourself at Disney Parks around the holidays, simply remember that it’s all about your expectations. Precious few E-Tickets make it on our itineraries for low-wait rides. If you’re determined to make it to a Disney Park over the holidays, it’s because you want that special holiday ambiance, right? You’ll get plenty of it. Just know that you probably won’t make it onto many of the park’s headlining, anchor E-Ticket attractions… and that’s okay!
What other low-wait or no-wait experiences are your go-to’s for Disney’s busiest days? Let us know in the comments below!
