Magic Kingdom Crowds Pack Walkways for Rope Drop
The “most magical place on Earth” continues to draw enormous numbers of guests this morning with no taper to the summer crowds in sight.
Thousands of people congregated throughout the walkways off of the Magic Kingdom hub this morning. In order to better handle the crowds, those arriving prior to park opening enter Magic Kingdom at least an hour before the published time.
Guests then wander Main Street U.S.A., grabbing a morning cup of Starbucks before heading out the walkway of their choice. This popular point heads straight to the Mad Tea Party ride, offering the quickest pathway to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
Others headed to Liberty Square with hopes of quickly riding either to the Haunted Mansion or to Frontierland in order to hop on to two of the three must-do mountains: Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Those heading to Pirates of the Caribbean (or the less crowded pathway to those popular mountains) lined up outside of the Adventureland Bridge.
Still, others piled into the first walkway off of Main Street U.S.A., the pathway to Tomorrowland. Lucky for these guests, Space Mountain remained one of the few big attractions outside Fantasyland to stay open this morning.
Crowds, Closures and More at Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom suffered a rough start this morning with not one but three popular, rope-drop favorites closing down at park opening or shortly thereafter.
The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean never opened this morning, and Splash Mountain shut down shortly after the first guests set sail on the flume ride.
Still, Magic Kingdom guests certainly can enjoy the variety of other attractions and the wealth of new fall decor that hit Main Street U.S.A. this week. With After Hours Boo Bash kicking off special event festivities on August 10th, the pumpkins and fall foliage adorning the Magic Kingdom arrived a bit earlier than expected.
Huge numbers of guests also continue to make Magic Kingdom a priorirty over the next few weeks as the incredibly popular nighttime spectacular Happily Ever After finishes its run. Walt Disney World will replace that with Disney Enchantment, a new fireworks extravaganza set to celebrate the “most magical celebration on Earth.” Walt Disney World begins their 50th anniversary celebration on October 1st and will continue the festivities for 18 months.