Where Will You Stand in Line the Longest at Disneyland?
When you visit Disneyland Resort for the first time in a while/ever, you’ll immediately find yourself at a competitive disadvantage. Some of the other guests here are part of Disneyland gangs, and that’s not a joke.
Social clubs are a thing here, because the locals love the park that much.
Richard Harbaugh/Disneyland Resort
So, they visit all the time and know all the best tricks to ride their favorites as often as they can. You will be the proverbial deer in the headlights the first couple of days, but never forget that knowledge is power.
I can help you with your visit by providing you with some key intel.
Disneyland 70th Anniversary Decor
Here is where you will spend the most time in line at Disneyland. This information should help you budget your time efficiently.
The Disney California Adventure Side
You can think of Disney California Adventure (DCA) as easy mode at the Happiest Place on Earth. This park is smaller and many of the attractions border on being walk-on at certain times of day.
So, you only need to focus on a handful of them as your priorities.
Photo: Disney
The first attraction we should address is Soarin’ Over California, which will switch to Soarin’ Across America on July 2nd. This version of the ride will be especially popular that week since it’s also the July 4th holiday.
Currently, guests wait about an hour for Soarin’, but I don’t expect a huge increase for the patriotic version.
I say this because Soarin’ Over California is currently playing, and it’s more popular here than Soarin’ Around the World.
Christian Thompson/Disneyland Resort)
The theme park alpha here is Radiator Springs Racers. Think Test Track with a Cars theme. The number you should know about this ride is 140 minutes.
If you ever notice the listed wait time is lower than that, head to the ride immediately.
Radiator Springs Racers
The other hugely popular ride at DCA is Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! Disney re-themed the previous Twilight Zone Tower of Terror to feature characters from the Marvel movies.
You’ll definitely want to check out this version of the ride, but should expect it to take 90 minutes.
Guardians of the Galaxy – MISSION: Breakout!
This seems like a good time to mention that a Lightning Lane Multi Pass is a good idea at DCA. You’ll only stand in line a fraction of the time.
That’s helpful, because I’ve already mentioned three rides that require wait times of four hours between them.
The Other DCA Rides
Then we have five rides that average waits of 40 minutes or longer.
These attractions are:
- Goofy’s Sky School
- The Incredicoaster
- Monsters, Inc.: Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
- Toy Story Midway Media!
- WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure
Photo: Disney
During the summer, Grizzly River Run should creep into this range as well. So, that’s a total of nine attractions that will have you waiting in line for extended periods.
Long story short, if you weren’t planning to spend the entire day at DCA, you may want to adjust your itinerary. Otherwise, you’ll miss some experiences.
Grizzly River Run
Most of the other rides at DCA will average a wait of 30 minutes or less. In many instances, you can live without doing them, though.
The exceptions are:
- The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
- Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters
- Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree
- Mickey’s PhilharMagic
- Pixar Pal-A-Round
Overall, you’ll probably need a day and a half at DCA unless you splurge for a Lightning Lane Multi Pass.
The Most Popular Rides at Disneyland Park
Since Disneyland Park owns and operates roughly 60 attractions, the lines typically aren’t as long.
Presuming you give yourself two full days here, you should still be able to experience almost everything, though I’d argue that three days is preferable.
Disneyland
You’re likely to wait the longest for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, but it’s worth the effort.
This is Disneyland’s most advanced ride.
Rise of the Resistance
I also recommend Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, an even newer arrival that is pure joy. You’ll typically wait 45-50 minutes for this one on all but the most crowded park dates.
I’m not delving too deep into the mechanics of wait times, but that is a factor I should mention.
Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway in Toontown
The wait time for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run may increase now that the new mission starring the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda is up and running. The day you visit will impact how large the crowds are.
If you’re lucky enough to show up on a less crowded day, you’ll get a lot more done.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
When the park is fuller, you’ll face more competition for the best rides.
Here’s the rest of the list of Disneyland rides that typically require a wait of 40+ minutes.
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Haunted Mansion
- Indiana Jones Adventure
- Matterhorn Bobsleds
- Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run
- Space Mountain
- Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Haunted Mansion Holiday
Space Mountain has featured the longest wait recently.
In fact, it crept up near Rise of the Resistance last month.
Space Mountain in Disneyland
Indiana Jones Adventure’s wait time typically can get high because it’s a Disneyland exclusive.
Then, we have Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, which is technically the park’s newest ride, presuming you don’t count the Splash Mountain version.
Indiana Jones Adventure Sign
Everything else at Disneyland Park is a beloved classic with a relatively static wait time.
Disneyland Park’s Other Attractions
The park does have a newer attraction than Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Walt Disney – A Magical Life recently opened and is a can’t-miss experience.
An Audio-Animatronic of Walt Disney himself tells the details of his incredible life as the creator of Disneyland.
This show is hard to miss since it’s right beside the entrance to Disneyland Park on Main Street, U.S.A. It’s not the only priority, though.
Walt Disney — A Magical Life
Here are a few other attractions you shouldn’t miss during your Disneyland Park visit.
- Astro Orbitor
- Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
- Davy Crockett’s Explorer Canoes
- Disneyland Monorail
- Disneyland Railroad
- Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
- “it’s a small world”
- Jungle Cruise
- Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Snow White’s Enchanted Wish
- Storybook Land Canal Boats
Photo: Disney
Fans of Walt Disney World should definitely try Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. You’ll be shocked by how familiar some of it is.
I also prefer Astro Orbitor at Disneyland over Astro Orbiter at Disney World, and yes, those are the correct spellings for some reason.
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Honestly, if you have the time, you should sample everything at Disneyland Park.
Many of these attractions have been open since 1955, yet they remain entertaining to modern crowds.
