The Disney World Crowd Calendar predicts the crowds at Walt Disney World for every day in the next 12 months, breaking down estimates by theme park: Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Magic Kingdom. In 2023, the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World in Florida, United States, reported over 17.7 million visitors. Despite welcoming more guests in 2023 than in 2022, the park experienced an all-time high of over 58,000 people.
To view potential crowds and wait times each day of the year at Magic Kingdom, use the 2024 Crowd Calendar. The average daily attendance at Disney World is around 52,000 people, and the park drew an estimated 17.13 million visitors in 2022, according to the annual index report released by Themed Entertainment Association/AECOM.
The Disney World Crowd Calendar helps visitors find the best times to visit Disney’s theme parks in 2024 and 2025. Lower crowd levels mean less time waiting in line, and the park drew an estimated 17.13 million visitors in 2022. In 2023, the United States’ Magic Kingdom (Walt Disney World) was visited by over 17.7 million people, making it the most visited amusement park worldwide.
📹 🔴 Live -Magic Kingdom Fireworks-Walt Disney World9.30.2024
Welcome, Disney fans! Join us for a magical evening at Magic Kingdom! We’ll explore the park, hop on some of your favorite rides …
What is the slowest day at Magic Kingdom?
Disney World is generally less crowded on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays year-round, with July and August being good times for vacationing Disney fans. The parks in Orlando are most likely to be less crowded during January 2nd until just before Presidents’ Day week, the month after Labor Day, the week following Thanksgiving weekend until the week before Christmas. Disney is also introducing a new holiday event amid returning fan favorites.
How often is Disney World at capacity?
Disney parks may temporarily stop accepting guests after reaching their capacity limit as a security measure, typically on dates that are easy to anticipate, such as Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s Eve. This does not mean that all parks will reach capacity, but it is usually only at the Magic Kingdom. Park hopping can also cause a specific park to reach capacity and temporarily prevent new guests from entering. However, most days should be fine.
To check the status of all parks and if the park you want to hop to has space, call 560-5000. As long as you have made a Theme Park Reservation for your park of choice, you should be fine. You can check availability for your planned dates by going to the Disney Park Pass Availability Calendar.
What is Disney’s least visited park?
In 2023, the Magic Kingdom theme park in Orlando, Florida, at Walt Disney World, attracted over 17 million visitors. The park welcomed 7 million visitors, making it the most visited Disney theme park in the United States. The lowest visitor numbers were recorded at Typhoon Lagoon, another Disney theme park, with just under two million guests. Access to over one million statistics, including source references, is available for $1, 788 USD per year.
How many people are in Magic Kingdom per day?
The daily breakdown for 2022 indicates that Disney parks collectively hosted 46, 731 guests at Magic Kingdom, 24, 712 at Animal Kingdom, 27, 397 at EPCOT, and 29, 863 at Hollywood Studios. It should be noted that these figures do not include guests staying at resorts or visiting Disney Springs. It is imperative to comprehend the capacity of the park in order to interpret these figures accurately.
How many visitors to Universal Studios Orlando per day?
On a daily basis, Disney World in Florida attracts 51, 000 visitors, with this number increasing on weekends and holidays. Universal Orlando records approximately 20, 000 visitors per day, while Disneyland and Disney Adventures in Anaheim attract 68, 000, and Universal Hollywood receives 40, 000.
How much money does Disney World make a day?
Disney World and Disneyland generated $5. 010 billion in revenues in the last quarter of 2022, resulting in an average of $55. 666 million per day. The theme parks at Disney World contribute to a larger share of these revenues, estimated at $35. 938 million per day. The park also earns between $800k and $1. 6 million from parking charges, assuming a daily average of 128k visitors and parking prices ranging between $25 and $50. This information is based on a daily average of 128k visitors and four people visiting with one vehicle.
What is the limit of people in Magic Kingdom?
Disney does not disclose capacity limitations, but estimates suggest Magic Kingdom can accommodate 85, 000 to 100, 000 guests before closing to new guests. In 2019, Magic Kingdom welcomed 20, 963, 000 guests, an average of 57, 433 per day, making it the busiest theme park in the known universe. However, it operated at roughly 57 capacity on an average day, indicating that it was just over half full on an average day. If the figures used are applied, Disney World would currently accept up to 35, 000 guests per day into Walt Disney World, compared to a pre-pandemic average of just over 57, 000 guests per day.
What is Magic Kingdoms full capacity?
Disney Parks are designed to handle massive crowds, with the Magic Kingdom capable of holding over 100, 000 guests. However, through phased closures, Disney limits park attendance to ensure guest safety and enjoyment. The most crowded times are around Easter and between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, with July 4 being particularly busy. To avoid these closures, consider joining Touring Plans and using the Crowd Calendar to find the best parks for each day of the year.
Arriving at park openings and having a Touring Plan are crucial for successful touring and sanity. Disney Resorts guests are guaranteed access to a Disney World theme park, but this does not guarantee access to the park of choice or enjoyment in crowded parks.
What are the top 3 Disney parks?
Disney World has three best parks: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and Animal Kingdom. Hollywood Studios is ranked fourth due to its busyness and long lines, making it better suited for teens. For first-time visitors, Magic Kingdom is the best park, as it offers the magic of seeing Cinderella Castle. This makes it an ideal starter park for newbies.
To plan a family vacation to Disney World, Disney travel experts can help with no-obligation quotes or calls at 321-966-4300. The Park Prodigy offers a dedicated planner who manages every aspect of the vacation, including assistance with dining reservations, navigating the Disneg Genie+ system, personalized park plans based on children’s ages and height restrictions, and price monitoring. The team of travel experts can take all the pressure off of planning your next Disney World vacation.
What is the busiest day at Magic Kingdom?
The best days to visit Disney World parks in 2024 are Tuesdays and Thursdays, as many families need an entire week for a Disney vacation and typically arrive on Saturday or Sunday. Weekends and Mondays are the busiest days at Walt Disney World. The best day to visit Magic Kingdom is Thursday or Tuesday, as it is the first thing on most families’ do lists and is the most important part of planning the best days to visit Disney World. The Magic Kingdom park holds a special place in the author’s heart, as they first worked at selling tickets at the front gate and have been tracking wait time data since.
Which Disney park is the busiest?
Magic Kingdom park is the most visited theme park globally, with the busiest days being Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. Families often start their vacations on Monday and end it on Saturday, which is influenced by statistical wait time trends and current Disney World Genie+ prices. The park is also the most popular during holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the Fourth of July weekend.
EPCOT, another Disney World theme park, is also highly busy on Tuesdays and Saturdays, especially when hosting a popular festival. This is due to the popularity of Magic Kingdom on Mondays and the popularity of EPCOT during the holidays, particularly during the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Fourth of July weekends.
📹 Why Do People… Hate the Magic Kingdom?
Magic Kingdom many not have the best versions of rides like Big Thunder Mountain or It’s a Small World, but they are definitely …
I think the hate is that it should be the best Disney park in the world. There is no excuse for building a worse version of a ride here, it has the biggest crowds, most space and brings in the most money of any Disney park. It should be treated like the flagship park with interesting and unique attractions that are the best of disney.
My Dad was 54 when I was born and had heart issues. At Magic Kingdom and Epcot there was plenty for us to ride or experience as a family. We went to Universal once and Dad spent most of the day sitting by himself waiting for us. We never went back because in that regard Universal was a waste of money. Disney will always hold a special place in my heart. It was a place all of us could have fun together. Dad died 6 years ago and Disney vacations are some of our fondest memories
Finally visited Disneyland this year as I have only visited Disney World since my youth. I have to say, Disney puts more love into Disneyland. It was cleaner, more detailed, and better ride experiences. The dark rides are a major plus to Disneyland as those are the soul of the park. When Magic Kingdom began removing those rides, it destroyed the charm it once had. Loved the fact many of the hollywood studios rides were in Disneyland. Hollywood studios alone is wasted money.
The hate is overblown imo, but I can see why people don’t like it as much. When you compare it to Disneyland, it’s clear that’s got a little more love from the company than Magic Kingdom. The rides primarily, but also just how preserved it’s been, even in its theming. Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland is pretty boring when you see how Disneyland has theirs. Also, the crowds have gotten so insane as of late. Last time I went I only got to do like 5 or 6 rides tops 💀 as a kid we coulda gotten the whole park done in a day, but not anymore. So poor crowd management is another issue… I still enjoy all the neat little details tho, like the ones you pointed out here 🙂
While I admire you coming to the ‘defense’ of the Magic Kingdom – I think most visitors to Orlando will agree that WDW is no longer the attraction it used to be. With the opening of Epic Universe, I think people will be putting the Universal Parks at the top of their list – and only visit WDW if they have time and money left over. BTW, I don’t think it is necessary for you to keep repeating the phrase ‘ in my opinion ‘ – I think most of us realize that these articles ARE your opinion.
Animal Kingdom is our favorite park! It has the perfect mix of rides, shows, streetmoshere, and great food- not to mention animal experiences & animation classes. Every detail is meticulously executed. With the subtle addition of Joe Rohde on the payroll again it seems they are committed to making this expansion as smooth as possible. (People were very opposed to pandora & look what we got!)
HEY PE – thanks for another great article essay. I absolutely love what you do! But I answered this question before even perusal the article and you never explored the #1 reason in my mind: the crowds!!! I don’t know when you got your b-role, but I cannot remember the last time I was in MK without it being shoulder to shoulder. When you add all of the context of your article together, and then wait in line on average 45-60 minutes to experience any of said attractions, plus an hour wait to get your hotdog at Casey’s Corner, then a 30 minute wait to find a table to eat, then another hour wait for an attraction, plus a 20 minute wait to buy your souvenir, and a 30-60 minute wait to get on transportation simply to leave the park: you’ve realized that you’ve spent close to $200 to dedicate more than 80% of your day to waiting in lines. It leaves me with a feeling or defeat and resentment, and that is why MK is my least favorite park. But Hate?? I don’t think I’ll ever “hate” a Disney park.
“If you have Disneyland, why go to Magic Kingdom”? Proximity? Have we forgotten that proximity is a thing? I’m on the East Coast. Specifically New York State. So, I’m a lot more likely to visit Magic Kingdom at Disney World than ever set foot in the State of California. So, I’ll take what I can get. Hell, Disney could set up a rinky-dink fake Disney park in an abandoned mall in Massachusetts or something and I’d be happy with it because I’d be more likely to visit that than either Florida or California.
For me, the dealbreaker about Magic Kingdom is the water quality (and its nearby hotels, including the Contemporary). It tastes so awful and ruins the fountain beverages as well. Tried to get some tap water, awful. Tried to get a Coke from Casey’s Corner, awful. You’d have to always drink bottled beverages to even make it through the park. Not to mention the whole Genie+ experience has left a bad taste in my mouth, especially for rides in Magic Kingdom itself. Nothing worse than having to pay an additional Lightning Lane fee for a ride you want to go on, only for it to shut down for rain. Worst part, I tried doing it AGAIN on the last day, but yet again it rained. At least I got refunded for that, but it still sucks. On a recent visit to the resort, I realized how much I like World Showcase. If I had to do it again, I’d probably spend most of my time in Epcot, but unfortunately would have to take a couple trips to Magic Kingdom simply cause there’s just too much material you have to do there (and maybe a half-day at Hollywood Studios, skipping Animal Kingdom).
I think people need to realise that not everyone is a local and if you’re travelling 16+ hours to get to the USA, and you want to go to Disney, you’re going to pick the park/s that have the most to offer size wise. As an Australian who has been to both, I love Disneyland but for pure value – Disney World was my pick
I think that part of the reason that Magic Kingdom gets so much hate is that, at least from my experience, it is the Disney World park that feels the most hamstrung by the replacement of FastPass with Genie+. In other parks, you may only ride 4 or 5 attractions known a day, but they have few enough attractions that you probably got to ride most of what you wanted to anyway, and you finish early enough to go to Disney Springs or hop to Epcot for dinner. In Magic Kingdom, you only ride 4 or 5 attractions if you spend all day there and are willing to walk away from the most in-demand rides, and you end up feeling like you barely did anything, as there is so much stuff you had to skip. It’s to the point where you really need to pay obscene money for one of those guided tours just to get the most out of a single day.
The best part of MK is that you can take a vintage wooden boat from the Polynesian to get there. Such a cool way to arrive at the park. I also appreciate that you can go in and ride the Haunted Mansion all year. Between the closures for the overlay and the overlay itself, riding OG haunted Mansion at DL is actually pretty difficult for a visitor
My issue with Magic Kingdom is that it used to be soooo much better. When I visited a few years ago it just made me sad. I could see remnants of things I remembered that were really cool and unique and represented the pinnacle of what WDP was capable of, but are now gone and replaced with stuff that is boring and uninspired.
Insanely crowded, super expensive, predatory fastpass system, hardly any stand out rides, IP’s milked dry over decades… To name a few? They should restrict the number of tickets that are sold on a single day to keep crowds under control and bring back the complimentary fastpass system, at the least. Whats the point at looking at individual rides if everything around it is just terrible? Plus, I dont think ” forcing” you through 5 star $600/night hotels on your way to the entrance is very customer friendly. Showing the peasants a glimpse of a better experience really starts your day on the wrong foot, especially since you’ve already spend an arm and a leg to be there in the first place. But sure, that opportunity to buy a mediocre $13 hotdog brings back that warm and fuzzy feeling.
I went within the last year and I think for me out of the 4 parks we went to, (both universals, Magic Kingdom and Epcot) Magic Kingdom was easily the least liked. The biggest reason why I can easily identify is ride condition. Its extremely clear the rides are not being well maintained and many parts of animatronics and lighting ques just flat out don’t work. You see it the most in fantasy land. And no joke, every single omni mover we went on stopped mid ride at least twice. Haunted mansion being the king with 6 times…in one ride. That combined with the long wait times, large crowds and not many rides for older adults, it leaves the park feeling very…hollow. And as mentioned, I don’t like how long it takes to get to the park itself, especially if your off property as having to go through multiple monorails eats a lot of time. Doubly stressful if your one of the first groups for say Tron. That and your paying Disney prices which just adds to the bafflingness of how the park is in that rough of shape.
Disney world still holds a place in my heart due to me not visiting Disneyland until I was 14. Also growing up in the Atlanta area, we always would drive down. Magic kingdom was always the first and last park we did to bookmark the trip and we did that last December for Christmas and I swear, I felt 10 again. Idk if it’s nostalgia blinding me from some of these problems or I just genuinely enjoyed it. Probably just take this opinion with a grain of salt since I don’t go every year, but I loved magic kingdom still.
The Walt Disney world railroad is bare bones compared to the Disneyland Railroad, where’s the Grand Canyon and Primeval World? And the fact we get to ride through it’s a small world, not to mention the additional tunnels, bridges, trestles, and lush vegetation that fits the theming to the land you go through, and there’s one additional stop at Tomorrowland so you don’t have to walk as far showing how good the walkability is in the park.
Magic Kingdom is the unfortunate “middle child” of the Disneyland clones. The only one built between 1955 and 1983. It lacks the charm and history of the original. And subsequent clones in Japan, France, and China basically had the benefit of learning from all of MK’s mistakes. Making it the odd one out.
I’ve never been to Disneyland but hope to in the next year or so.. but I absolutely LOVED Magic Kingdom when I went there for my first time in 2022… with no basis for comparison I totally felt the magic and it made me feel like a kid again. Pirates was easily my favourite ride.. which makes me look forward to Disneyland even more since I hear it’s longer and better!!
13:05 Just went to Disneyland recently, and they have those scents included on Disneyland pirates. I assumed it was a Disneyland only thing since is been years since I went to WDW, but maybe they updated all of them. They may have also modified the Disneyland ship reveal as well since it seemed more epic to me than WDW over 20 years ago, but thats childhood memories vs recent adult experience.
My biggest gripe about magic kingdom is the complete lack of sunshading as well as shelter from rain. Magic kingdom has been open for decades at this point and yet it is basically a ruined day for you if you happen to get rained on there. All the rides are pretty much outdoors except for a very few handful of them and all of them Get shut down immediately once it starts raining. Magic kingdom notoriously has a huge flooding issues when it rains too much and they have never fixed it. There is a massive lack of actual shelter in areas due to a lot of the stores and food areas being very small or just barely small enough overhangs to protect the large groups of people that are there. Compared to epcot, where there are large gift shops or large areas to stay sheltered in when it rains, Magic kingdom is Practically an outdoors only experience most of the time you’re there. I went two years ago with a moderately sized group of friends And we were even prepared for the rain yet We all still got soaking wet and our feet soaking wet as well Due to the flooding in many areas of the park. If anything the cast members there as well are the least nice of all the other parks had been to over the years And they actively do not help guests when they need it unless it’s a medical emergency. Not one crew member offered any help or protection to any guests even families with babies in strollers against the rain where on multiple Occasions when I’ve gone to epcot i’ve literally seen cast members take off their own ponchos and give them to park guests to protect them from rain before.
So last week, I went to Universal’s Islands of Adventure and then a few days later Disney’s Magic Kingdom. I guess as an adult who enjoys both themeimg AND thrill rides, you can’t really compare the two IN MY OPINION. At UIA I rode Velocicoaster for the first time. At Magic I rode Tron for the first time. One of these was amazing, and one was a big nothing.
I absolutely LOVED this kind of positive article. Do more of those if you can, please! I’ve been less into your articles talking about Disney recently because I was starting to see too many negatives on Disney stuff, so I think that also bringing positive subjects (even if attached to nostalgia) helps bring more balance to the website. Been perusal your articles for like 2 years now and they are truly something else. Greetings from Brazil!
To summarize for anyone who doesn’t have time to watch real quick but is planning on coming back later like i did at first: A lot of rides aren’t as good as the Disneyland counterparts but are still decent and they make up for it in atmosphere. Any unique rides to the park are also well made and offer a good experience for the most part. People just hate the park because they are stupid and think that if they hate a different park, it makes it okay that they defend DisneyLand and/or World despite them having a lot of the same problems. That, and they hear people saying it sucks and if something sucks from Disney it must suck a LOT so therefore it is the worst thing in the world and must be hated. Love the content, dude. Thanks for giving me a article to show to my friends to explain why i still love Magic Kingdom ❤❤❤
We went to WDW is 2022 and I dragged my kids to as many classic animatronics shows I as we could manage (Hall of Presidents, Carousel of Progress, etc). They are great. I am always nervous they will go away. In someways I feel they capture a more positive and aspirational take on what America is about than you can find anywhere else.
Hey Poseidon entertainment. I loved the article today and how you attempted to portray all sides to this issue fairly. I’m glad that there are YouTubers like you who try to look at all perspectives of these parks to give the most fair and nuanced opinion on the topic. We don’t have enough people like you in the theme park space and I can’t wait to see what you do next! 🔥
I recently went to Disney world and visited all the parks for the first time in one trip and honestly a half day at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood were all we needed, Epcot was fine for a full day but I was also drinking a lot, but magic kingdom we spent the vast majority of time in and I found it to really be the only park that I think I could spend more than just one day at.
I know people give Disneyland a lot of crap these days (and a lot of it is deserved) but it’s still undeniably the best Disney Park in the US. With how small it is compared to Walt Disney World, it manages to have more rides and entertainment overall. There’s no need for 4 separate parks because you can do everything you want in one day at Disneyland. I could enjoy a whole week at Disneyland whereas I couldn’t spend an entire day in a park like Epcot or Animal Kingdom. Also the weather in Florida is absolutely terrible.
Magic Kingdom is my favorite WDW park, it’s the most charming and classic of the four and still has its base theme in tact, unlike Epcot or Hollywood Studios. My fear right now though is with all the rumors about changes to Frontierland and Liberty Square that point towards possibly losing them entirely, and also the rumors that the Beyond Big Thunder expansion, while sticking to the “genre land” theme that Magic Kingdom has instead of making an IP land, is going to heavily feature clone rides from other parks (Radiator Springs Racers, which doesn’t fit Frontierland when you really think about it) and IPs that are much more needed in other parks (for example the rumor say there’ll be a Woody’s Round-Up attraction in the expansion that was originally planned for Toy Story Land, which makes no sense because Toy Story Land desperately needs more to do). I have no clue why Disney is so bent on giving WDW clones of other park’s rides instead of their own original attractions- I’m pretty sure Guardians is the only original attraction we’ve gotten in the last 6 years that hasn’t been cloned/is going to be cloned elsewhere.
Went to Epcot a few months ago and GOTG made the whole day for me and my group. The rest of the day was literally such a bummer. We waited in line for ratatouille for two hours for it to break down when we got to the front. We then went on 3 caballeros and it broke down while we were on the ride. The parks clearly are suffering and it made us not even want to go back at all. It’s awful to know they keep trying to take more money out of you yet refuse to put care into the parks. It also feels like Disney no longer has any sense of creative and would rather focus on things that are popular like Marvel (im aware they own the ip) but there is only so much you can do with superheroes.
100% agree with it having the best version of Space Mountain in particular. The ride being a bit rougher and less refined is part of the experience and what makes it enjoyable. The atmosphere of the queue and its stellar background music is another highlight along with the counterpart dioramas as you exit.
“I don’t understand why people enjoy going to EPCOT at all anymore.” Oooooooh this one’s for me. EPCOT actually is arguably my favorite park, not because of the rides (though they play a part), but because of how its planned and the history behind it. I’m getting my graduate degree in Urban and Regional Planning, and EPCOT has always fascinated me because of my love for planning human spaces. EPCOT’s history as a Garden Movement city shows its problems… some really major… but EPCOT always has been the most fascinating because it represents a continual effort towards international cooperation and planning for humans and communities. Its one of the few parks in the US where if you pay attention to it enough, you begin learning a lot more than just what’s on Living with the Land and such. The whole park is a unique experience itself BECAUSE of its history and clear efforts baked in by Walt himself as part of his original EPCOT vision.
I absolutely agree with your opening statement regarding Hollywood Studios but I disagree regarding Epcot. I understand Epcot was initially focused on educational dark rides BUT with the rise of smartphones, that’s a very difficult thing to make engaging these days. Epcot’s overarching theme is progress and the world in which we live. In that sense, I still feel like Epcot still works as a whole.
I agree but it’s a small world is basically falling apart. Every time I visit which is pretty regularly, more and more dolls seem to not be working. The mold/mildew is coming up the walls and boats and they clearly don’t get cleaned enough, the sets are looking dingy and peeling in some spots. It’s sad though because if they cared they could fix it and it would be an amazing ride but they clearly do not care.
My biggest problem with Magic Kingdom is the millions of strollers being pushed around by extremely rude parents. Last time I went there I had a full blown panic attack from the chaos. The rides are fine and nostalgic. I definitely prefer Universal since it skews older and guests are nicer and less stressed out.
Tbh, I honestly would plus the queue for WDW’s IASW with the boats going through a stylized Mary Blair-inspired mountain with some mythical animals like some mermaids and a sea serpent on the ride and a view of a miniature village and a train from Pinocchio Village Haus. This would be to act as an unofficial hello room before the ride begins and makes it unique enough from Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland. I think why lots of people do not like the Magic Kingdom are for what you mentioned above, though, I actually appreciate some of the unique stuff that’s found there versus than at Disneyland, like the Wedway Peoplemover and Carousel of Progress. I do think some of the newer stuff like Tron Lightcycle Run would be better suited at another park like Epcot. But aside from that, I honestly would treat the Magic Kingdom as something that’s unique and different enough from Disneyland (even though the Magic Kingdom really, really has a subpar Fantasyland which could honestly be better utilized for a double decker set-up like Disneyland’s, but that’s it.)
If they proceed with the rumored re theming at MK I will be completely done with that park. Epcot is over. I keep my pass just for AK but spend most of my park days at Universal. And I’m not happy to say that. There was a magic that only Disney had but that genie has escaped it’s bottle. Not to be found again. At least in Orlando.
I think the reason i dislike Magic Kingdom so much (aside from the obvious crowding issues) is simply due to the Seven Seas Lagoon. What was once a way to fully immerse yourself in the world of the Magic Kingdom has become a cumbersome and tetious slog to get in and out of the park. It puts a major damper on the beginning and ending of a day, and the last thing i want after being in a 8+ hour day in the heat is another hour+ wait to even get to my car.
The Magic Kingdom is a lot like early Simpsons. It’s the most classic and pure form of the appeal, so it’s the first thing you go for when you start going, but over time it becomes like reruns of those episodes. You can’t deny the quality, but you’ve seen it before, so it becomes a lower priority over time. I remember the late 80s wed go to MK first day, but by the mid 90s it was the last Disney park we’d go to, often after a trip off site to sea world or something else. Epcot soon became my favorite for it’s future themes and cool concepts, and I loved the movie parks a ton, but I’d still want to do one day at Magic Kingdom just for that classic Disney magic, and the nostalgia.
Despite being decades older Disneyland simply has the superior versions of many attractions. Pirates/Space Mountain/Haunted Mansion/Autopia/Small world all definitively worse and MK barely even has any Fantasyland dark rides to speak of. MK also has quite possibly the worst food of any Disney park which is saying something. I get they have to deal with the greatest volume of guests but would it kill to have quick service that isn’t county fair trash tier food anywhere? I will say MK is much more equipped to handle massive crowds with its spacing/layout and generally has better shows/fireworks, but it also loses points for generally being a nightmare to leave any time after dusk
One thing I notice about the Disney parks’ earlier versions is that they were a lot less IP-centered than they seem to be now. Space Mountain, the Jungle Cruise, and Pirates of the Caribbean for example weren’t based on any existing Disney films, even if Disney would later adapt them into movies. I don’t mind rides at Disney parks that are based on their movies (if anything, I expect such from a park with the Disney brand), but it would be nice if they went back to mixing in rides based on new stories instead of it all being IP-based.
I think one of the things that immensely bothers me about Magic Kingdom’s design is that it acts like it has the same limitations as Disneyland. Disneyland has historically had a capacity problem due to how the adjacent land got swamped early on to ride the wave of success with malls, hotels, gift shops, etc. that disney doesn’t own, so whenever the park has to replace a ride with a new one they (usually) are more purposeful about it. meanwhile Magic kingdom is surrounded by thousands of acres of land owned by Disney, is a bit physically larger than Disneyland, and yet has hardly more than disneyland. replacing rides in disneyland is done to accommodate new experiences and address capacity, without replacements there can’t be new rides, whereas in disneyland the option to simply expand the park is very much there, same goes for the other three parks at disney world (hell, Typhoon Lagoon managed to do this, why can’t magic kingdom?) so it just feels like cost cutting. replacing for money’s sake and not practicality’s sake, making the parks (ironically) less magical. this is coming from someone who really liked Magic Kingdom both times I visited, I think the criticism is justified
Never been to Disneyland. I did go to Disney World, though. The memories made in my youth give me a certain nostalgia for it. Unfortunately, the modern park no longer has many of the rides I liked, the new stuff is much less appealing to me, and it is severely overbooked. We were able to go on a dozen rides and barely had to wait in lines without a fast pass, but now you’re lucky to get on more than four with a festure you shouldn’t have to pay extra for.
Thanks for the great comparison article. I am not a diehard Disney park goer, but I have been to Disneyland a handful of times, and Disney World twice. I would never have had the eye for all the differences and details you pointed out, but here are some of my thoughts. 1. I can see where it would be impractical and tiresome for a regular attendee to have to access Magic Kingdom by ferry or monorail, but as an out-of-state visitor and as you have assumed, that monorail ride was just a thrill, and gliding through the hotel was magnificent. 2. Interesting to hear about the mediocre food. Very true from what I recall. Mediocre and very expensive. How can Disney as a company not do better than this? 3. I don’t remember thinking much of DW’s Main Street (very unmemorable). 4. I do remember being really disappointed — almost depressed — by the tragically boring and grim facade and launch of Small World. Disneyland’s Small World facade is a soaring, glorious masterpiece, whereas Disney World’s could be the kids’ play area in a fast food restaurant by comparison. I can’t speak of the differences inside either Small World as I can’t remember them well enough. 5. I was also disappointed in the DW version of Pirates — it probably didn’t help that it was nearly empty when we rode it, but the cavernous scope of it and the dearth of people and life created an aura of failure as an attraction. I will admit that the large room with the ship in it was impressive. 6. The Haunted Mansion is one of my favorite rides and themes anywhere, ever since I had the Disney vinyl record with storybook that came with it.
When it comes to Disney parks, I think, how can anyone have a good time? You’re surrounded by people, spending like $500 for one day at the Magic Kingdom, and you gotta wait 5 hours to get on a 60 second ride. It’s hot, it’s sunny, there aren’t enough shady places to sit; there is no possibility for peace, with rides making noise, and babies constantly screaming. You’re tired, hungry, you don’t wanna wait anymore for anything, but you have to wait in line just to go to a bathroom. You spend $40 on lunch, and hours later when thirsty, you spend $9 on a bottle of water. It sounds miserable!
I think the Magic Kingdom is a great experience for nostalgia and there’s very little I would change about it, but it’s always so crowded that it’s become more of a hassle than any kind of “magical” experience. I think theme park management truly underestimates how much long lines and fighting crowds all day leaves attendees with a very negative perception of their parks. If you pay almost $200 now just to get in, and your day is filled with hassle and you didn’t really get to do much but wait in line all day, you’re probably going to re-think going back anytime soon.
Great article while I cannot speak for others but the crowds and price are definitely my big Disney deal breakers. Yes I love the Walt Disney Resort theme parks and if I could afford to and healthy enough to I would definitely go every year and/or every other year, but Disney park have become definitely expensive and crowded. Not to mention the fact that for some of us who have gone to the Disney World parks before the pandemic; could not just show up without a park pass reservations. But as of January 9, 2024, I read they have done away with that.
I love Magic Kingdom’s space mountain. It feels like you’re getting shot and slung around in a 10×10 ft tangle of track in a box. (In the best way) My group stayed in the park way late, and I got to ride it like three times with little to no wait. Only ride in my entire Disney trip that caused a wardrobe malfunction (broke my decorative pants chain thingy)
I totally agree that there are a lot of good things about the magic kingdom. I also agree that it is an internet trend to highlight the negative, and as you said yourself, you do it yourself. Most of your articles are negative and complaining. I hope this self realisation will make you switch focus and make more positive angeled articles in the future, because until now you almost make me not go for another Disney trip 😉 Thanks for this article, I really liked it!
I grew-up on Disney. Starting in 1965 at Disneyland up until 2000 at Disney World. We won’t be going back. Although I’m 68, I still love theme parks; especially the coasters. However, the only way to feel “satisfied” upon exiting the parks is when you can enjoy many attractions. Sadly, between the “points”, “Genie+”, reservations everywhere and the necessity of a cell phone in the parks have caused us to switch to Universal (FL & CA). At Universal parks, they have ExpressPass. And you can leave your phone in your hotel room. How many here have been a victim of a Disney “phone zombie”, when someone is walking while using their phone and they don’t watch their step? Rudeness everywhere. We’ve developed an “elbow maneuver” that will accidently knock the zombies’ phones to the ground. But no more. We’re 100% Universal. Perhaps someday if it’s possible to easily procure rides at Disney, I’d like to ride Pirates & Haunted Mansion one more time.
I don’t understand Magic Kingdom hate, because sure, it’s not the original, but its pretty dang close, and for someone who lives in Florida and can’t regularly visit Disneyland, Magic Kingdom is amazing, it’s still a classic, it’s not as if it’s new, it’s still classic Disney, and you’re still experiencing Disney in its golden age. Also, there’s a reason Disney World is far more visited than Disneyland, people aren’t choosing one over the other for no reason. Clearly it still holds up and people still love it. I’d go on to argue Magic Kingdom is honestly more iconic in the public eye than Disneyland.
We live in Orlandoish area. We hit one of the theme parks at least once a weekend…. Usually for 4 hours. My kids are 5 and 11. We are not die hard disney people what so ever. We were at MK yesterday for 4 hours. And yes. It is boring for me. It’s not my first choice. Actually all 4 parks after 3 years of visiting are all boring imo. We just go because our kids love it
When I went to Disney World for the first time (as a lifelong california resident) I was both blown away and deeply dissatisfied with my experience with the parks. Epcott was this place I’d only ever heard of from my father in stories of him going as a kid, and seeing it for myself made me relive old childhood fantasies of going. For my mother and I who were there it was a grand experience in food. We did a park a day over the course of 5 days, and I won’t go into the whole trip but magic kingdom ended up being the only park we left early. That was due to the fact that 1. It was packed to the brim 2. I didn’t fit in half the rides as a 6’4″ young man. I think it pales in comparison to disneyworld, and for my birthday this year I’ll be at tokyo disney, so if I remember I’ll try and update this comment with my thoughts from there.
I am rewatching this in September 2024. I’d love to hear your take on MK after the D23 announcements. Destroying Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island to build a completely incongruous Cars land??? I will be visiting in May 2025, looking forward to Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival. I have six park days and think i will skip MK altogether for a second day at AK. What a monstrosity, destroying Frontierland. It was the change to Country Bears that really set me off.
I still can’t believe they put the hat box ghost by the endless hallway of all spots. If they can’t put the animatronic in the attic they could easily find a spot following the seance, like in the cemetery. Needless to say it conflicts with the narrative: Madame Leota’s seance is supposed to call forth the spirits to materialize and take visible form. Before you bring up the corpse in the coffin, said entity has a biological form, and even then the character is still mostly concealed for dramatic effect
I did enjoy the more positive tone of this article! Although I agree with most of your criticisms of the direction Disney has taken its parks, I still enjoy the parks immensely. And the fun I’ve had at the parks is what made me interested in your type of content in the first place. It’s always great to have a reminder of why I keep going to the parks and recognize the impressive theming, rides, and experiences!
I remember going to Magic Kingdom for the first time with our pass finally letting us able to go the it (Big mistake) Trying to navigate the park is hell, especially when leaving the park at night. There were poor workers navigating the crowds and even more people were at the subway trying to leave. I would never recommend going there in the most active months- Most que are too long, A-lot of technical issues plus the crowds is not worth a visit At All
“So why do people hate the most popular castle park in the world?” Well that ones easy, yes its partially due to what you said. It is also because being the most popular its the biggest target for the boiling anti-disney resentment that has been brewing for the past 20 years due to their continuous issue with their greed and soulless attitude towards beloved IPs.
I don’t hate MK, but Disneyland certainly has more to offer. Though Disneyland is also cramped – which is both good and bad. Good because you can get around Disneyland faster than MK but bad because it always feels more crowded. That said, MK has some unique things and has good versions of rides. I’d agree that Haunted Mansion is at its best there – minus the Haunted Mansion Holiday exception at Disneyland. There’s still a lot to do and enjoy. Though I would say Disneyland is the better Space Mountain and Disneyland Paris is the best one.
Out of all the Disney parks I’ve been to Magic Kingdom by far has the worst crowd. Not just in a capacity sense but the people are extremely inconsiderate. I used to visit at least once a year but at some point in the late 2010s I noticed the people at Magic Kingdom were extremely rude. I think part of this is in part to Disney World shifted to a list of things to do rather than a relaxing vacation. The overcapacity of the park makes the wait times long and family want to do certain things. I understand it’s upsetting to wait in line for hours and only get to do four things but it’s not okay to be rude to others just because you’re having a bad time. The amount of times I’ve been hit by strollers with overgrown children is ridiculous and most of the time they never say sorry and just shoot a mean look. There’s a sense of entitlement it’s like the guest feel like they are owed something from the other guests because they’ve paid so much to be there and nothing is their fault. Everyone just seems on edge at Magic Kingdom and it ruins the vibe. I went to Disneyland in 2020 right before the parks were shut down and the people were so nice and laid back. It was refreshing to not have the experience ruined by other people. I haven’t been since but I have a feeling the situation has gotten worse since the pandemic as Disney started nickel and dime-ing to an outrageous degree.
I know I already left a separate comment but I want to thank you for giving credit to the MK version of Space Mountain. Yes, the presentation is better at Disneyland. I acknowledge that. But as a coaster the MK version is just better. It has genuine airtime. Yes airtime on a Disney coaster. And the laterals are solid. And when the point of the ride is to feel like you’re speeding through space you need to feel some force in order for that to work thematically. So I agree that the MK version wins because it’s just a more fun coaster.
Nice article. Glad to see a balanced perspective on WDW. One additional consideration in terms of comparing MK to Disneyland is Cinderella’s Castle versus Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. The MK version is superior because, while both have some internal storytelling elements, MK’s version has Cinderella’s Royal Table. While expensive, it is a unqiue and well-themed experience, especially good for kids, and pretty good food for the adults.
I was almost ready to Waffle House square up over Haunted Mansion until you invoked “The Haunting of Hill House”/”The House On Haunted Hill”… and then I realized you had a very good point. But I still personally prefer the façade at DL… it’s just… pretty… and I would think the spirits would enjoy a pretty house. 😅 And I didn’t think so until I heard your arguments but yeah, WDW does seem to have a better HM ride INSIDE overall as well. BUT… there’s one thing WDW doesn’t have for their HM that MAGNETIZES me as a Tim Burton/Danny Elfman/ Henry Selick fan… Haunted Mansion Holiday, what is possibly the ONLY “Tim Burton” ride in existence… and I LOVE that. HMH is my FAVORITE theme park ride.
This is a weird take. MK is the original park, but Epcot, HS, and AK along with the resorts and DS make WDW a superior product overall. Why fly so far for 2 parks when I can fly 2 hours for 4? I’m not a fan of MK because it is mainly a kids park, with boring rides, and it’s always crowded for those same kid rides. I go to take pictures, ride BTMRR, and SM, and then I leave. 🤷🏾♀️
Ok, I’m just going to say this – the reason Epcot is so popular despite its glaring issues is because it flat-out has the best food out of any of the parks (not counting Disney Springs since it’s more of a free admission shopping and entertainment district), and the food at the other parks is just mediocre.
Magic Kingdom objectively needs about 2 more E ticket rides to be sustainable. It is expensive, packed with people, food is the worst of all WDW, and many aging rides. This expansion better have at minimum two E tickets and they need to fill the Alien Encounter space ASAP – I know it had mold in it from all the water on the floor. Magic Kindom night time aesthetic is legendary, far better than Disneylands, but the issue is nearly every experience is not as good. Having better fireworks and shows and parades mainly only works for us Florida residents who spend barely anything in the parks. A villian themed expansion would single handedly move Magic Kindom from worst castle park to best castle park in the world if done right.
I see so many praising Disneyland California over Magic Kingdom in Florida, and I’m on the direct opposite end of that. I’m from Denmark and have visited both DisneyLand and Disney World twice. I’d pick Magic Kingdom over Disneyland any day of the week. Besides an awesome Indy-ride and a slightly better Space Mountain, I dig Magic Kingdom way more. We also experienced horrible whether both times in California, while having nice whether both times in Florida.. But that was all some years ago now. As I see it, both Disneyland AND Disney World seems to be en B.A.D f’ing shape at this point! Constantly absurd price-increases are happening, and all the benefits of staying on-sight are practically gone. Plus no more FREE FastPass in the parks, and them getting rid of the free Magical Bus-transportation to/from the parks is so pathetic! The Disney Empire is sinking, and dumbass Bob Eiger and Co. aren’t even realizing it – yet! They seriously aren’t seeing how they’re ruining the parks more and more. It’s so sad 🙁
As a Florida resident there have been times where I would love to go to MK for just one day and ride Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, etc but the price to do so is seriously prohibitive to consider it. For example, next Sunday a one day MK ticket is $174/person…gross. Disney truly has priced out my family.
It’s odd I see a lot of comments hard core siding with Disney and its theming compared to universal but like. Speaking as a Florida native. Most of the people I know have gone to Disney once, not cared much for it and switched to universal/islands. Those parks while definitely more chaotic in design. Always feel like they lean in to their chaos well? And it’s kept most of us going time and time again over the years
Glad to see someone that agrees with me that disneyland is superior Sure, theres a Lot more to do at disneyworld, but its all super spread out, costs Way more, and requires visiting multiple parks across multiple days to feel like you got a full experience Disneyland everything is condensed and you can easily get a full experience in just 1 day, with its sheer number of rides and great variety. And if you Really want to do more, walk across to california adventure.
You guys are too hard on Tron. It didn’t replace something and is a pure expansion, also at the time it was announced was the biggest new ride in the foreign parks of the last few years. Don’t really get how everyone can be so high on it in Shanghai but then they bring it to MK and then all of the sudden everyone hates it. I get it’s a clone but there’s only 2 of them and it’s the only park with Tron and Space Mountain together.
I grew up going to Disneyland. So to me it will always be my favorite Castle Park. And the two times I’ve been to Disney World I wasn’t super thrilled with everything. But I wouldn’t go so far as to say I hated it. Epcot was boring, and Hollywood studios had only a few things going for it. Animal Kingdom is basically my favorite Disney World park personally. And while I do prefer the facade of it’s a small world in the haunted Mansion at Disneyland, I can see the charm and care that went into the Disney World versions.
The worst to best in terms of repeatability… animal kingdom, Hollywood studios, Epcot, magic kingdom. But my personal fav as someone who is past the point of going to the parks for the rides and going more for the atmosphere. Worst to best Epcot, Hollywood studios, animal kingdom, magic kingdom. Epcot is nice but they ruined it for me. I don’t drink and I have the pallet of a 10 year old. 😅 I’ve avoided going on maelstrom after they changed it to frozen. Perhaps this year I’ll accept it’s gone and try it 😔. Figment outdated. Bring back the live cast members for living with the land!!! I miss the old firework show. Guardians of the Galaxy best part is the pre-show effect.
Magic Kingdom looks like Six Flags when compared to Disneyland. Period. DL oozes charm, personality, and has a very distinct feel. MK looks like tons of concrete with some cute show buildings thrown here and there. Disneyland has tons of families that have visited the park for generations. WDW has lots of tourists who go there because it’s on their to do list and just go elsewhere the next year. If people want the true Disney experience, Orlando isn’t it. WDW is a huge theme park. Disneyland Resort is home.
Me and my entire family much prefer Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom over Disneyland. I’m someone that views these parks as an overall art piece. I think I have a really solid thumb on the pulse of what theme parks should do to improve. Hell, I even agree with most of your articles… I still much prefer WDW over DL. Now I will be the first to admit I went to WDW first so nostalgia may be playing a small role, but I’m generally pretty good at ignoring my nostalgia for an objective view, but I feel for sake of fairness: I should point out where I went first. But I feel it ultimately comes down to preference. For me, DL felt like a rough sketch: messy, but with good bones. WDW feels like the finished line work. There’s still work to be done with coloring, but it’s overall much more clear in what it’s trying to convey and has a cohesiveness and consistent quality that DL, I feel, lacks. My family went to Disneyland and were highly disappointed by our trip (this was pre Mickey And Minnie’s in fact all of toontown was closed when we went, we went in 2022). We felt there weren’t enough rides to keep us engaged and the overall look of the park felt overly cluttered and sloppy. Sure there’s details everywhere but it feels like a first draft of a film. Sure some of that stuff is really amazing! But Overall, stuff needs to be cut for a more cohesive and tight finished product. And maybe you can save those scenes you had to cut and rework it for another film someday. Overall it’s subjective.
The park that really deserves this hate is Paris. Everything good in that park is at least 30 years old, and they’ve even tried to ruin some of those rides by slapping half baked IP overlays onto them (looking at you hyperspace mountain). Most of the lands only really have one standout ride (fantasyland has none, and discoveryland’s was ruined by IP) with little to no supporting rides. Building an indiana jones coaster instead of the dark ride is one of the worst decisions disney have ever made.
My personal beef with MK is that it is always just stupidly crowded lol. I agree with just about everything you said, though. After around 8:00 in the evening when crowds have thinned out, MK goes from being one of my least favorite WDW parks to being one of my favorites. Timing rides on Big Thunder and Splash so that you can see the fireworks is so much fun. At that point you can basically walk on most rides, and seeing the fireworks while riding up the lift hills on BT is a great experience. So yeah, my dislike for MK comes from the ~11:00AM-6:00PM range lol. When it is less crowded and you catch that second wind after dinner, it is definitely one of the most fun parks to experience.
I’m actually the opposite, I love the newer updated rides over the older more clunky rides. Like one of my dreams is that they do the cool pirates ride over at Shanghi and put it in Disney World. Like I love the animatronics you find in Frozen then the clunky Jungle Cruise. The only reason why I would ride the jungle cruise is only for the skippers because the ride besides that is boring af with animatronics that have only 1 dimension.
This is an excellent article, but it won’t convince me to go to any of Disneyland’s cash grabs. Everything is meant to extract money on top of extracting money while they’re creating new ways to extract money, then adding fees to better extract more money while they’re extracting money and resting on their laurels. What’s next ? when you exit the park they turn you upside down and shake you so that every last cent will fall out and if nothing falls out, they won’t let you leave until you have money delivered from outside the park so that you can exit?
My biggest concern and thing I hate that Disney has been doing a lot and unfortunately they’re going to keep doing until enough people point it out is that they just keep cloning the same attractions; if Disneyland and Magic Kingdom become the same parks why would I feel desire or want to spend money when the same rides are being cloned at both parks! What I personally thought what made the Magic Kingdom charming and kept wanting to go back is the fact that there were so many differences between the parks that on the outside look identical but if you dive deeper and actually look from within they are two different apples that have certain flavors/ aspects that make one better than the other but in 3 years from now I can’t honestly say that there’s just going to be no need for why anyone should or is going to want to travel anymore because of Disney’s more quantity less quality attitude towards their parks. I agree I loved the Magic Kingdom because of their Tomorrowland attractions, hall of presidents, carousel of progress, Haunted Mansion, and Splash Mountain but they were unique because of their scenes, characters, settings, stories, music, and quality charm that only the Disney Difference could provide and one more thing as much as I loved Avatar: The World of Pandora I feel like that should strictly stay over in Florida bc if they bring it over to Disneyland why would anybody wanna travel to other Disney Parks when they’re cloning experiences with same everything with the exception of the track layout!
My problem, as a Califorbia resident, with Magic Kingdom is there isnt enoygh to do and the only unique aspect for me is Tron, a ride im lukewarm about. Each ither park has a few unique experiemces fkr me to make them worth visiting; Tower of Terrorvand Rockin’ Rollercoaster hor DHS, Spaceship Earth, Test Track, and Living with the Land for Epcot, and almostvall of Animak Kingdom. Magic Kingdom just offers a bigger and watered down version of Disneyland. While I like moments in Haunted Mansion at WDW, the queue, Hatbox Ghost, Hitchhiking Ghosts, and falseneas ofcthe facade just kills it for me. I just feel like all 4 of the Florida parks sufferr from veing spread too thin amd unfortunately most of the better additions to thr WDW resirt have gone to othrr parks while MK got a lukewarm Fantasyland addition that lacks an iconic attraction.
The Magic Kingdom is markedly inferior to the original Disneyland. Inferior attractions include It’s a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean (so short because 2/3 of the ride is missing), Jungle Cruise is better at Disneyland (just start with the queue and ambience, and no that dark tunnel in MK’s Jungle Cruise doesn’t make it better), lack of Fantasyland dark rides (no Alice in Wonderland, no Mr. Toad, no Snow White, no Pinocchio), Teacups are inferior (no charm like at DL), Inferior design of Fantasyland overall, no Indiana Jones, Space Mountain is an inferior ride. Main Street is a giant plush mall, I could go on. I will say that MK still has their People Mover, and a better Tomorrowland while Disneyland has had theirs destroyed, but Disneyland just has so much MORE. DL still has their subs. Star Tours is in Disneyland, Runaway Railway is in Disneyland, Galaxy’s Edge is in Disneyland, Tiki Room is better, Haunted Mansion is superior to MK. I could go on. Magic Kingdom is the absolute worst of the Disneyland Parks. Even little old HK Disneyland has more charm. Perhaps the only one worse than MK is Shanghai, which is a total abomination. Magic Kingdom just….sucks. P.S. New Orleans Square is leagues ahead of the dry, boring Liberty Square.
my experience at magic kingdom was great because I was able to ride nearly every ride apart from the flat ones in a single day. I also wanted to visit it since I was a kid because the castle was larger than Disneyland (which ive visited more) But my experience there makes me glad I live near Disneyland lol, I just wish they had Cosmic Rewind over here
While I do think Disneyland is the better of the 2 American castle parks, one has to remember that Walt Disney World is designed more about the overall resort and the space in takes up. It is meant to be an extended stay where someone visits multiple parks over multiple days. WDW and Disneyland Resort (including DCA) have the same number of combined rides. Because of this, Disneyland Park has substantially more rides packed into a much smaller space, and for a novel visitor, this can actually be overwhelming, while the general flow of Magic Kingdom Park is more pleasing (crowds notwithstanding). I feel a lot of the Magic Kingdom hatred comes from Universal Orlando lovers (and therefore WDW haters), while in California, there is not nearly as much competition between Universal and Disney.
As an Epcot fan, I can answer your question about why I still find enjoyment in the park. I love the culture aspects the World Showcase pavilions (sans the Norway one being slathered in Frozen IP). The Food and Wine Festival is always great dining. Also, the aquarium is 👌. I’ll be making the trip next week, so I’ll get to see where they pushed all the dirt, and hopefully my opinion won’t change too much.
Ok, one other interesting thing about the Magic Kingdom Railroad, and by extension the one at Disneyland CA as well, is that they are actually classified and certified as heritage railroads. Every single locomotive operated on both lines is an authentic 3ft gauge industrial locomotive that was previously used in revenue service and now operates in preservation.
I lived in Orlando for 8 years and went to Magic Kingdom probably 10x/year as an annual passholder. I enjoyed it quite a lot, but I didn’t really have any frame of reference. No comparisons. Now that I’ve relocated to Orange County (CA, not FL) and have been to Disneyland a handful of times, it’s clear to me that Disneyland is the superior castle park, and it’s not even close. I’ve also been to Hong Kong Disneyland a few times and I absolutely love that it’s different – especially the west side of the hub – and has a lot of unique things. It’s definitely not on Disneyland’s level. It’s probably a step down from Magic Kingdom on paper, but the lack of any crowds makes up for it, as it’s super relaxing and chill, with nearly zero wait times anywhere.
I don’t hate the Magic Kingdom…. but Disneyland is far superior over-all. Yes, the Fantasyland rides (of which there are more than in FL and NFL at MK), but you gave way too much credit to the MK rides that are simply “different” from those at DLR. Different ≠ better….no matter how you slice it. In the comparison, the rides at MK are “cheaper” than those at DL…because Roy was a miser, but Walt was a dreamer. Even newer rides like Buzz Lightyear….it’s better at DL, because your ray-gun is not attached to the table… unlike MK. DL has rides that don’t exist at MK, but you did not really mention those…. Indy, Matterhorn, and the submarine ride come directly to mind. The DL Railroad is an attraction, but it’s also it’s a mode of transportation, with 4 stops in the circle, instead of three. A guest can use it to “get around”, literally. The MK railroad is not immersive, nor a mode of transportation….it’s a “lame ride around the park”. There is very little that is “engaging” about it, other than “I’m on a train!”. I’ll stop here. Your assessment is busted…. but just because some guests prefer Disneyland over MK does not equal “hate MK”. MK has some redeeming qualities, but I can’t think of any, off hand.
I disagree on one of your main points. You say that Disneyland’s Main Street is more “intimately detailed” than the Magic Kingdom’s Main Street. I do know how you can qualify that statement. YES DL is more intimate, but the sheer detail in all the woodwork on all the facades is just not there. MK does not have quite the “miniature charm” but it has 100% more DETAIL in all the architectural decorations. It’s a clearly observable fact. Also, Disneyland Paris has a more detailed Main Street than MK & DL put together.