The Best Days to Visit Each Disney Park 2024

Planning a Walt Disney World Trip doesn’t have to be rocket science. In this post we share the best days to go to Disney World no matter what time of year you vacation. Thankfully, as creatures of habit, humans have some tried and true patterns, that help us, and everyone else, figure out when the best days to visit Disney World are. So never fear, if you’ve planned a holiday vacation at Disney during the busiest time of year, you can still find some tips here to help. Let’s get started.

 

The Best Days to go to Each Disney World Park

The Best Days to visit Disney parks are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The middle of the week sees fewer crowds, with typically cheaper ticket and hotel prices too. 

If you’re traveling over the weekend, then Sundays have fewer crowds than Saturdays and Sunday evenings are great options for both Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. And of course there are certain parks that are simply more crowded during certain times of the week, which we get into below. However if you’ve already booked your vacation, and are checking how busy the Disney Parks will be, then be sure to check out the Disney Crowd Calendar for historical wait time data that shows you traditionally what to expect. There are a few things to keep in mind about how families vacation at Disney World, that can help you stay out of the crowds.

The typical family vacations at Disney World for one week.

From Sunday- Saturday. With Monday being the first day in the parks, and Friday being their last day in the parks. If you’re wondering how many days to spend at Disney World, we typically aim for 7-10 days so that we have time to get to everything we want to do. This time period is perfect for an annual vacation, and we never feel like we’re missing out. And of course,  a longer stay means more flexibility when it comes to choosing which days you’re at which parks. 

Monday is ALWAYS the busiest day. And it’s the Worst Day to visit Magic Kingdom.

Why is this? Well, for one thing, most families usually arrive at Disney World for a week long vacation, on Sunday. As such, on Sunday, they settle into the resort, maybe grab dinner, and then are up early the next day to head to the most popular Disney park, Magic Kingdom. This is true for about 80% of vacationers. In fact, Disney data has shows that Lightning Lane Purchases are the highest on Mondays at Magic Kingdom, for just this reason. Also consider this; Magic Kingdom is Disney World smallest park, but it’s also the park with the most rides.

The parks are always busiest after 4 PM.

Another trend that we see at Disney World all the time is that Florida locals pretty much own the place. As a result, locals often come to the parks straight after work, around that 4-5 PM hour. Thursday and Friday evenings are the worse for after work crowds, and EPCOT is usually packed as soon as 4 PM hits. For the BEST Disney vacation experience, we also recommend aiming for your most important Disney Must Dos before 4pm.

Saturday at any Disney Park is always busy.

The weekends at the parks are terrible, but Saturday is particularly horrid. This is the result of both locals, and vacationers filling the parks. If you’re hoping to get to the parks on a weekend, aim for Sunday night, as most everyone leaves the parks early on Sunday, in anticipation for the week ahead. 

What Days of the Week are Best for Disney Parks?

The best days to visit each park at Disney World are in the middle of the week. And are typically Disney World’s slowest days.

• Tuesday
• Wednesday
• Thursday

These days at Disney Parks have the fewest crowds, because working adults ( aka almost everyone), tries to maximize the weekend days, so that they can miss less work. As a result, planning a Disney Vacation for a Long Weekend is popular. This typically means an Thursday to Monday trip, or a Friday to Tuesday trip. Either way, those middle days of Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are always less crowded, especially during the school season, from September- May.

As the least busy time at Disney World, the middle of the week is always your best bet. And will allow you to do more, ride more, and experience more magic in your Disney vacation.

Okay, so now that you know to aim for the middle of the week in terms of fewer crowds at Disney World, let’s jump into the best days of the week to visit Disney World Parks in 2024. While this year has seen inconsistent crowd levels, both higher and lower on certain days than expected, there are still a few things that hold true. Families typically start and end their Disney vacations on Saturday or Sunday. As a result, Weekends and Mondays are the Busiest Days at Walt Disney World.

However, in 2024, we’ve been seeing Saturdays become less crowded. Most likely due to a combination of factors. Generally, if a family is starting or ending their vacation on a Saturday they are not in the parks that day, because that’s primarily a travel day, and is more about settling into their resort, or packing up. Additionally, the new park pass reservation requirement for Annual Passholders, means that locals would have had to make a park pass reservation to be able to visit a park. And frankly, it’s just a lot of extra work.

What are the Best Days to Visit Each Park at Walt Disney World?

Thankfully, even if you don’t pick a vacation during the best time to visit Disney World, you still have control over which days you go to which park. THIS is just as important. If you’ve made your dining and Lightning Lane reservations already some of these decisions may have already been decided for you. These are your best days to be in the parks with minimal crowds and minimal waits.

Note that the Best Days to Visit each Disney Park are always Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. But for practical purposes, we’re covering all the days here so you can plan out your week or two of vacation. Covering all the Disney parks; Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom. If you need a few days to choose from these days at Disney World have the lowest crowds. 

The Best Days to Visit Each Disney Park all fall during the middle of the week, at every park. This is due to locals being at work, or school, and vacationers often extending a long weekend, meaning that Tuesdays- Thursdays at Disney Parks typically has the fewest crowds. 

• Magic Kingdom: Wednesday and Thursday, Sunday Night
• EPCOT: Monday- Thursday
• Hollywood Studios: Wednesday and Thursday, Sunday Night
• Animal Kingdom: Monday- Friday

What Disney Parks Are OK to Visit on the Weekends?

As you can see the weekends at Disney World are always going to have more crowds. That said, there are some exceptions to the rules here.

• Saturdays
  • Animal Kingdom is the only park that is okay to visit on a Saturday at Disney World. This is due to its large size, and the fact that it doesn’t feel crowds as much as the smaller parks. That said, Animal Kingdom also typically closes early, so you will want to plan to arrive early, and stay until closing to make the most of your day. As ride lines will still be long on a Saturday.
• Sundays
  • Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios are okay to visit on Sunday Evening, given that locals tend to return home early, to prepare for work the following day. And arriving vacationers typically wait until Monday to visit Magic Kingdom.
  • Animal Kingdom is okay on a Sunday, if you planning to arrive early and stay late, because, much like Saturdays, there is a lot of ground to cover, and ride waits will still be long.

What are the Worst Days to Visit Each Park at Walt Disney World?

As you can see from this lineup of Worst Days to Visit Disney World, the weekends win out at every park, except Hollywood Studios. That said, you’ll also notice Mondays, and Tuesdays are getting a bad rap here. This is due to vacationing families flooding the parks early in the week and locals flooding the parks late in the week. 

• Magic Kingdom: Saturday, Monday, Tuesday
• EPCOT: Saturdays and Sundays
• Hollywood Studios: Monday and Tuesday
• Animal Kingdom: Saturdays and Sundays

What is the best day to visit Magic Kingdom?

The best days to go to Magic Kingdom are Wednesday and Thursday, and sometimes Sunday evenings. As Disney’s most popular, and most magical park, Magic Kingdom is on every family’s Disney Must Do List and, in a week-long vacation is typically visited twice.

• Wednesday and Thursday

With over 25 attractions, and some of the best in all of Disney World, you will need as much time here as you can get. As the smallest park, Magic Kingdom also is the one to hit Disney Capacity Limits first during the busiest of times. Know that the worst day to visit Magic Kingdom is Monday, so avoid that at all costs. 

When is Magic Kingdom least crowded 2024?

Wednesdays tends to be the best day of the week to go to the Magic Kingdom.

What is the Busiest Day at Magic Kingdom?

Magic Kingdom Mondays is a thing in the Disneyverse for a reason. Because the busiest day at Magic Kingdom is almost always Monday. This is the result of many vacationing families often getting the best travel deals on Sundays and Mondays, leading to an influx of guests into the park. Even without a deal, most families will want to Start their Disney Vacation at the Castle…aka, at Magic Kingdom. It’s magical, fun, and completely gets you in the mood for a Disney Vacation. Hence the largest Magic Kingdom crowds are always on a Monday.

Is Magic Kingdom better on a Sunday or Monday?

If you’re hoping to avoid Disney crowds, Magic Kingdom is less crowded on Sunday, than Monday. This is due to the fact that most families coming in for their week-long Disney Vacation, won’t head to the parks on their travel day and typically arrive on Sunday. Making Magic Kingdom their first park, on their first full day of vacation.

(On a side note, you can still make Magic Kingdom the first park of your Disney Trip…just pick a different weekday to arrive! We typically take advantage of cheap Tuesday or Wednesday Flight deals which allows us to have our first full park day at Magic Kingdom on a Wednesday or Thursday, making it a less crowded day to visit.

The Worst Days to Visit Magic Kingdom are Mondays and Saturdays 

For many, this is the first park they visit, and most vacations begin on Mondays, so it is the busiest day to visit. And for many, Saturday is their last full day in the parks, before heading home on Sunday, which means Magic Kingdom is the park they give a second day to, and it’s usually their last day before leaving, Saturday. Additionally, the longer hours at Magic Kingdom on Saturday, means many park hop there as their second park, making it even more crowded. 

What is the best day to visit EPCOT?

The best day to visit EPCOT is Monday- Thursday. These days are tied at the moment. And even then, that’s with the understanding that it naturally gets more crowded around 4 p.m. when the locals get out of work. For this reason, we sometimes lean more towards Epcot on Monday, since the start of the work week is typically busy for everyone. Epcot is also Disney’s largest park, and handles crowds best, even during festivals. However, if you’re visiting during festival season, aim for a Tuesday or Wednesday. And try to avoid the first week of any festival, as it’s usually packed with bloggers, influencers and media during the first week. 

• Monday- Thursday

By far one of the best parks for Adults at Disney World, EPCOT is always busier in the evening hours, when locals come out to play. That said, during the daytime is best time to visit EPCOT. Plan an early day, and head to the park for rides, festival foods and shopping. Then plan a break at the Disney Boardwalk and come back at night for the LuminoUS Nighttime Show at EPCOT. While EPCOT gets rap for having limited things for kids, this is simply not true. Check out all the reasons why you should Bring Kids to EPCOT Park.

The Worst Days to Visit EPCOT are Friday Nights, Saturdays, and Sundays.

This is due to EPCOT  being a hotspot for locals and a drinking playground. Saturdays and Sundays don’t do EPCOT

What is the Best Disney Park to Visit on a Monday?

In our experience, EPCOT Park is the best Disney Park to Visit on a Monday. Simply because while everyone else is starting their Disney vacation seeing Cinderella’s Castle over in Magic Kingdom, EPCOT tends to have fewer crowds as a result. Even during the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival, you can typically find Mondays to be slower than days later in the week. And as EPCOT is a favorite of locals it’s no surprise that Mondays would most likely call people away for work obligations, as opposed to later in the week when they begin to show up after their work shifts. As such, Tuesday and Wednesday at EPCOT are also great days to visit. 

What is the best day to visit Hollywood Studios?

The best days to visit Hollywood Studios is Wednesday and Thursday, and often have the fewest crowds. This park has some of the best rides on property and they see the highest waits, so be prepared to have a Disney Ride Strategy at your fingertips for your Hollywood Studios day. 

• Wednesday and Thursday

While we typically recommend you avoid parks on the weekends if you’re visiting Disney on a weekend, Sunday evenings are a good time to visit Hollywood Studios.

The Worst Days to Visit Hollywood Studios are Monday and Tuesday

Hollywood Studios is a small park, so feels crowds more often than the other parks. That said, It’s also one people skip on the weekends in favor of EPCOT or Magic Kingdom. As a result, vacationing families head to Hollywood Studios on Mondays and Tuesday, making it more crowded. We’d recommend skipping Monday and Tuesday at Hollywood Studios if possible. 

What is the best day to visit Animal Kingdom?

Animal Kingdom is Disney’s largest park and therefore has the most room to spread out. As a result, even when it’s crowded you don’t totally feel it. The best days to go to Animal Kingdom has changed over the last couple years. In 2024, the best days to go to Animal Kingdom are Mondays- Fridays. And due to other parks being so crowded certain days, we typically recommend Monday and Fridays at Animal Kingdom. Mainly because in addition to Animal Kingdom having lower crowds on Fridays, they sometimes also have extended hours, for evening shows at Disney World. This means you may get to experience the Tree of Life Awakenings show which is such a treat. 

• Any Weekday

As girls who almost always start our Disney trip with a visit to Magic Kingdom, our last trip fell with arrival on a Monday so we chose Animal Kingdom instead. And we couldn’t have been more pleased! Not only was Animal Kingdom the best park for our first day of a Disney Vacation, with hardly any crowds, it really got us into Vacation mode! Blame it on the trees, or the wide-open spaces, or the Nomad Lounge lunch, it was such a great Disney park for the first day of our trip.

The Worst Days to Visit Animal Kingdom are Saturday and Sunday

Animal Kingdom is the biggest park and can accommodate crowds more than any other park. That said, we’d still recommend weekdays unless you can strategize an early morning or late evening during the weekends when Animal Kingdom has longer hours. 

What are the best days to visit Disney Water Parks?

Disney Water Parks include Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, which are open on rotating schedules, due to maintenance and rarely open together at the same time. As such, depending on your visit the Disney Water Park you get to visit, may already be chosen for you. Weekdays are the best times to visit Disney Water Parks, and any times outside of the hot summer months. 

• Weekdays

Blizzard Beach, and Typhoon Lagoon are the least busy during the late spring and early fall on weekdays. Note, that Parking is Free at Disney Water Parks, making it an easy visit for locals too. 

What are the best days to visit Disney Springs?

Disney Springs is the Disney World shopping center in Orlando, Florida, and draws crowds every day for the shopping. However, just like anywhere else the best days to visit Disney Springs are during the day, Monday- Thursday, when most people are at work. Parking is Free at Disney Springs, and also allows a great opportunity to park your car and visit the Disney Boardwalk, via the use of the Disney BoardWalk Inn Bus at the Disney Springs bus station. 

• Mondays- Thursdays

Disney Springs is least busy in the morning and afternoons. As the place to be for live music and dinner and drinks in the evenings, Disney Springs can get crowded. You’ll find it’s busiest during the busiest times at Disney World; holidays, weekends, and summertime.

Tips & Tricks for Picking The Best Days to Go to Each Disney World Park

In addition to knowing which days at Disney Parks have the lowest crowds, it’s also important to remember  some basic strategies too. These tips can help you maximize your vacation by saving money and Saving Time at Disney World. 

Avoid Annual Passholder Good to Go Days 

Here are the 2024 WDW Passholder Good to Go Days to AVOID, if you’re hoping for fewer crowds.

• July 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 21,  22, 27, 28, 29, 31
• August 4

In 2024, Disney Annual Passholders and Cast Members still need to make park pass reservations. Each Passholder must have both valid admission and a park reservation for the same park on the same date they plan to visit. However, Passholders may enter a park after 2:00 PM without a park reservation, except Saturdays or Sundays at Magic Kingdom park. In addition, good-to-go days do not require a park reservation.

• Annual Passholder Good to Go Days at are Disney World are typically Tuesdays- Thursdays, with the random Sunday thrown in. As such, if you’re hoping for the lowest crowds, typically Tuesday- Thursday across all parks, be sure to AVOID Good to Go Days at Disney World.
• Disney Good To Go Days are EXTRA CROWDED. The ability for locals and even out of state passholders to visit the parks without a reservation on Good to Go Days, means Disney has no idea how many people to expect each day. As such, staffing is too low and lines are too long. Avoid Disney Good To Go Days if you’re hoping for average crowds. 
• Passholder Good to Go Days at Disney World means that Disney Lightning Lane Multi Pass COSTS MORE! Yes, you read that right. On a typical Tuesday in January, typically one of the best days to visit any park, Disney Lightning Lane can spike from $21 to $29 per day per person if it’s a Disney Good To Go Day. 
•  Magic Kingdom is typically MORE CROWDED than the other parks, and will reach Disney Maximum Capacity Levels first. 

Visit During the Cheapest Time

The best time and worst times to visit Walt Disney World are based on crowd levels AND costs. As a result you can use ticket prices, and resort prices as an indicator on the best day of the week to go to Disney World in 2024. This is because during slower times, Disney will lower prices, have special offers, or make the Free Disney Dining Plan available. And if you’re looking at the Ticket Prices Calendar you can clearly see when tickets are cheaper. Over the last several years, the Cheapest Walt Disney World Tickets are offered during Weekdays in September.

One of our favorite new hacks we learned on our DVC tour was that there is actually a calendar that shows the cheapest times to visit Walt Disney World. And frankly, until there is an update to this pricing schedule we’re gonna treat it like the gospel it is. If you’re looking to visit Walt Disney World on a Budget the Cheapest Time to visit Walt Disney World is during Adventure Season, in the months of January, September and early December. 

• Jan 1-31: January sees great weather at Disney and lower costs all around.
• Sept 1-30: Post summer vacation, and before Halloween, September is a cheap and lower-crowd month to visit Disney.
• Dec 1-14: Early December is much cheaper than you would think and offers the chance to experience the holidays at Disney World.

Arrive Early for Early Entry

If you’re hoping to make the most of your Disney Day Itinerary, then plan to maximize your time by staying at a Disney Resort. Disney Resort guests are allowed to arrive at park gates 30 minutes before opening. This gets you closer to ride lines and gives you the chance to use your early entry for the most popular rides, or can even just allow you time in the parks to get the best Disney photos, before everyone else shows up.  By getting into the park early, you can get a head start on some of the busiest days at Disney World. 

Days with Early Theme Park Entry are for Disney Resort Guests ONLY and allow you to enter the park 30 minutes before it opens. This offers opportunities to maximize your time! Morning magic hours are still pretty light when it comes to crowds so we definitely recommend, if you’re a morning family, to get up early and take advantage of the extra hours. Early theme park entry is now available every day.

Stay Late for Extended Evening Hours

A perk for Disney Deluxe Resort Guests are extended evening hours. Which not only gets you extra time in the park after closing, helping you to avoid crowds, but also gets you a 3^rd chance to score a Virtual Queue Boarding Pass, for rides like Guardians of the Galaxy. If you’re staying at a Disney Deluxe Resort, be sure to check the 5-day Disney  Calendar for the days that you may be able to stay later. 

Avoid the weekends

We get that not every day at Disney World can be a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. And we say this as girls who love our Non-Park Ticket Days at Disney World. As such, adding Epcot onto a Monday, or Animal Kingdom onto a Friday is completely okay. And sometimes even Sundays at Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios work out okay.

But when it comes to Saturdays, we’d recommend doing something else instead. While Hollywood Studios can sometimes be okay on a Saturday, if you can avoid the Weekends at Disney World altogether, it’s your best bet. Instead, take time to ride the surrey bikes at your resort, or go to the Disney Boardwalk instead. Get in some arcade time, or ride the skyliner and explore other resorts. There is so much to do at Disney World outside of the parks, that battling crowds on the weekends just makes for a bad vacation.

Plan for the Festivals

Disney World hosts four festivals every year at EPCOT park. Each comes with it’s own flavor and flair, and they are ALWAYS busier on the weekends and Thursday- Saturday evenings after 4:00 PM. We can blame this on the locals near and far, because the Epcot Festivals are amazing, and they’re fun to be at, so why wouldn’t everyone show up? Consider this you’re heads up. If you’re visiting during festival season, aim for weekdays instead to avoid the crowds. The best day to visit Disney parks always falls in the middle of the week. As such, it’s best to plan your busiest Disney Days on a weekday so you have a good chance of getting in everything on your Disney To Do List.

Avoid major ( and minor) holidays

Believe it or not many, many people spend their holidays at Disney World. And not just the ones you would expect either! While July 4^th at Disney World should naturally be crowded, Thanksgiving crowds are often just as bad. Thinking of visiting on Presidents Day or Labor Day? Those are busy too. While you can still plan a great family trip to Disney World during any holiday, keep in mind that crowds almost always negatively affects your vacation time. Whether it’s waiting an hour or more at the Disney bus stop, or not being able to get those popular Disney Dining Reservations, or paying the highest costs of the year for tickets and a hotel room, there are reasons we say AVOID visiting Disney during the holidays.

Need to visit before the kid’s get back in school? Don’t wait till Labor Day, plan for late August instead. Want to visit Disney World for Christmastime? Early December has some of the cheapest and least crowded weeks of the year. Aiming for a February vacation at Disney World to get some respite from the cold weather where you live? Plan for early February instead of Presidents Day. If you can work around the holidays it’s always a better trip.

Is Disney Busy Labor Day Weekend?

Walt Disney World is busy on all holidays. Even ones you wouldn’t expect, like Columbus Day. The combination of both adults being off work, and kids being off school, draws not only locals to the parks but also out-of-state visitors taking advantage of the long weekend. If you’re looking to Avoid the Crowds at Disney World, we recommend you skip the holiday visits to the parks. 

The Best Days to Visit Disney World at Each Park

There you have it! Our best tips on the Best Days to Visit Each Disney World Park no matter when you vacation. Know that these trips and tricks hold true even during the busiest times of year. Armed with this information, and your My Disney Experience App to show you wait times, mobile order, and grab your next lighting lane pass, you should be ready to tackle to the most crowded days at Disney. Here’s hoping you have the best vacation.