This article is your complete guide on the best day of the week to visit each Disney World park! From my experience selling tickets at the Magic Kingdom park and based on historical wait time data, I believe the best days to visit Disney World are on the weekdays of Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. This is typically because locals visit on weekends and families typically start their vacations on Sundays with the first day in the park being Monday. That means the middle of the week is normally the slowest time and the best time to go to each Disney park!
So if you’re ready to learn about the best days to go to Disney World read on!
SPECIAL NOTE: If you need help picking the best time to visit Disney World for your next vacation be sure to check out our Disney crowd calendar below!
The best days to visit Walt Disney World are on the weekdays of Tuesday and Thursday, or Sunday during the weekend according to historical wait time data. The primary reason is that many families embark on week-long vacations at Disney, often starting their adventures on Monday. From my experience as a Cast Member at Walt Disney World, it’s apparent that Monday and Saturdays tend to be the busiest days. This surge in attendance is because families are eager to jump-start their Disney experience upon arrival. We have also seen recent Disney Genie+ data, which backs this observation up with the most expensive day of the week for the Disney World Genie+ being on a Monday.
Another trend that amplifies the crowd size is the Florida locals’ preference. Many Floridians visit Disney World during the weekends. This local influx, combined with vacationing families, ensures that the middle of the week becomes some of Disney World’s slowest days.
These times are popular because long weekends are the most convenient for many working adults to take off. Speaking from the perspective of a Florida Resident, there’s a special charm in seizing long weekends at the resorts and diving into the parks to experience some magic. Thus, if you’re hunting for the least busy time at Disney World, aiming for the midweek is your best bet. Ultimately, knowing the best time to go to Disney can greatly enhance your experience.
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So, now that we’ve covered which days to avoid let’s review the best days of the week to visit Disney World parks in 2024. In general, the best days of the week to visit Disney World parks are Tuesdays and Thursdays. The reason is many families find that you need an entire week for a Disney vacation and typically arrive on Saturday or Sunday. We find weekends and Mondays the busiest days at Walt Disney World.
Simply put, the best day to visit Magic Kingdom is Thursday or Tuesday. The Magic Kingdom park is typically the first thing that comes to mind when most people think of Walt Disney World. It tends to be on almost every family’s do list and is also the most important part when planning the best days to visit Disney World. The Magic Kingdom park also holds a special place in my heart, as one of my very first jobs was selling tickets at the front gate. I was able to see firsthand the patterns of crowds visiting all four Disney theme parks, and I have been tracking wait time data ever since.
The best day of the week to visit EPCOT is Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. We would recommend visiting on a Wednesday during the festivals mentioned above. One of the biggest advantages EPCOT has going for it compared to some of the other Walt Disney World theme parks is that it is the largest of the four Disney theme parks and tends to hold crowds better than the others. We also find that many guests with small children tend to avoid EPCOT as they don’t feel like there is much for young kids to do there makes this one of the best Disney parks for adults visiting Walt Disney World. There are still certain ways to avoid large crowds, especially during the festival season.
When is the best day to visit Hollywood Studios? From our observations, Tuesdays and Wednesdays emerge as the least crowded days at Disney World, especially for this park. These days offer a more relaxed atmosphere, allowing for a more enriching experience. If, however, your schedule confines you to the weekend, then Sunday proves to be a more favorable choice compared to the hustle and bustle of Friday or Saturday.
Animal Kingdom is one of the only Disney theme parks that we recommend visiting on certain weekend days. We typically see lower crowds on Fridays and Sundays. Wednesday is another one of the best days to go to Animal Kingdom. Even if you didn’t book your trip through the Park Prodigy let us know how we can help you plan the perfect Disney itinerary. It’s important to note the suggestions above are meant only to provide guidance and are based off of my experience as a vacation planner.
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One of the easiest ways to determine the best day of the week to go to Disney World in 2024 is to look at ticket prices during your visit. One of the ways Disney tries to entice people to visit during slower periods is with cheaper prices. We typically see the cheapest Walt Disney World tickets during weekdays in September.
One of the easiest ways to ensure you get the most out of your day, no matter which Disney park you plan to visit, is to arrive early and stay late when possible! This will also allow you to take an afternoon break at your hotel if need be. Disney recently made changes to the extra magic hour program, switching it to an extra magic half-hour at every Disney World park for on-site Disney resort guests. We’re huge fans of this, and we felt that extra magic hours in the morning always created some of the busiest days at Disney World. We feel like crowds will be a little bit more spread out as you won’t have everyone heading to the same park on the same morning.
So one of the easiest ways to take advantage of your time in Disney is to arrive early in the morning and get in a half hour before other park guests. This will also take some of the pressure off of making sure you picked the best Disney park for that day! It’s important to note that this new early entry can also be a huge help for guests who plan to park hop as you will want to get the most out of your day.
Be sure to check back with us as we continue to update the best days to visit each Disney World theme park!
Weekend foot traffic at Walt Disney World can be unpredictable. Walt Disney World is home to so many festivals throughout the year such as EPCOT Flower and and Garden, Festival of the Arts, and the Food and Wine Festival that more locals are visiting now than ever before. The best way to plan around these crowds is to plan your full days at the parks on weekdays. The middle of the week generally tends to be the best day to visit Disney parks.
This might seem like it’s obvious but Holidays tend to attract the largest crowds at Walt Disney World. In many cases such as Fourth of July and Christmas the parks will reach capacity. You can still plan a great family trip around holidays such as Labor day, memorial day, and Halloween however we still recommend following the tips outlined above.
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Tuesday tends to be the best day of the week to go to the Magic Kingdom.
The busiest day at The Magic Kingdom tends to always be Monday. This is because many families plan a week long vacation to Disney World, and typically receive the best deals by traveling Sunday or Monday. As you can guess almost everyone loves to start their vacation at the Magic Kingdom resulting in large Monday crowds.
Now that we have established some of the busiest days at Magic Kingdom you might be wondering, is Magic Kingdom better on a Sunday or Monday? And as a general rule of thumb if we had to pick between visiting Magic Kingdom on a Sunday or Monday we would always pick Sunday. The man reason is we typically find that Sunday is more likely to be a travel day compared to Monday which will result in more guests traveling on this day and either not visiting the Magic Kingdom park or arriving later in the day. On the flip side, we do find that Monday tends to be the first full day in the parks and many families do pick the Magic Kingdom for their first day.
Planning a family vacation to Walt Disney World? Let our Disney travel experts plan a hassle-free vacation for you with a no-obligation quote, or call us at 321-966-4300. Every family who books their Disney World vacation package through The Park Prodigy will receive a dedicated planner who manages every Disney vacation aspect. This includes help with Disney dining reservations, navigating the Disney Genie+ system, personalized park plans based on your children’s ages and height restrictions, and price monitoring to ensure you always get the best deal! Let our team of travel experts take all of the pressure off of planning your next Disney World vacation!
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