We Weren’t Ready For the CROWDS In Disney World Today

In the past, late January and February were great times to visit Disney World, since the holiday and runDisney crowds had died down by then, and many people were waiting for warmer weather for their vacations.

Big Crowds in Magic Kingdom today!

Apparently, someone forgot to tell the crowds about that late January lull. Even though it’s chilly outside (well, chilly for Florida), a lot of people have bundled up and headed into the parks. Check out the BIG crowds and long lines in Disney World today!

Before we freak you out with pictures of the big crowds today, we’d like to note that we have seen lower crowds lately. Last week, wait times were definitely a little shorter than weeks previous, and we’ve seen a noticeable decrease in the amount of people in the parks when compared to the holiday time.

Cinderella Castle Hub Area

The recent lull is part of the reason that today’s big crowds surprised us. When they were heading into Disney World this morning, our reporters noticed that the parks were strangely crowded for a random Monday in late January. There were BIG crowds at the entrance for Magic Kingdom.

LOTS of people heading into Magic Kingdom

And of course those crowds continued down Main Street, U.S.A., and into the park. We noticed higher wait times than normal, with both Jungle Cruise and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train having 120-minute waits as of writing (at 12:40PM in the afternoon).

Jungle Cruise

Even the smaller rides were busy. Magic Carpets of Aladdin (which often has a wait time below 20 minutes) had a 55-minute wait, and PeopleMover was at 35 minutes. For a low-key attraction that moves continuously, that’s a pretty high wait time. (Although we can’t really blame everyone in line — PeopleMover is a fantastic ride.)

PeopleMover line

And of course the ever-essential coffee shops were crowded as well. Take a look at the line for Joffrey’s in Tomorrowland!

Gotta get that coffee

Crowd levels have also been high in the other parks. The entrance to EPCOT was very full when we arrived…

EPCOT entrance

…and the ride wait times were similarly high. The Seas With Nemo and Friends (often a walk-on attraction) had a 25-minute wait with the queue extending past the entrance.

Queue for the Seas With Nemo and Friends

At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, there was a sea of people on Hollywood Boulevard.

Lots of people here!

And the most popular rides were even busier than usual. Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance had a 135-minute wait when we last checked…

Rise of the Resistance

…and Slinky Dog Dash has consistently stayed around 80 to 90 minutes.

Slinky Dog Dash line

Disney’s Animal Kingdom is similarly busy, although the layout of the park and attractions usually make this park seem less crowded.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

But the attraction wait times show that there are still a lot of people here, with a 105-minute wait for Avatar: Flight of Passage and a 50-minute wait at Kilimanjaro Safaris.

Kilimanjaro Safaris

We saw evidence of the cold weather’s impact when we checked one ride’s wait time, though: If you’re willing to get soaked on this chilly Florida day, Kali River Rapids only has a 5-minute wait!

This ride has a very low wait time!

The parks aren’t the only places you’ll find long lines in Disney World. We stopped by Disney Springs this morning, and we waited in a 45-minute line to get into the Marketplace Co-Op store.

A LONG line in Disney Springs

This long line was due to the new merchandise that Disney just released today. There’s a new spirit jersey, amazing crocs, and Disney x Harveys bags that feature vintage Magic Kingdom maps, as part of the 50th Anniversary Vault Collection.

This is so retro!

These items are selling out fast, with most gift shops already running out of the Harveys bags.

Magic Kingdom Bag

This new merchandise might have contributed to the bigger crowds in the Disney World parks as well. Or maybe everyone just chose January 24th as the day they would visit Mickey! Either way, there are definitely more people here than we expected to see today.

A crowded hub

If you’re visiting Disney World during a busy time, check out some of our best tips for avoiding the crowds and getting on as many rides as possible.

Click Here to See 12 Tips for Avoiding the Crowds in Disney World

Keep following AllEars for more tips and updates as you plan your Disney World vacation.

Click Here to Find Out Which Times of Year Are Usually Less Crowded in Disney World

Are you heading into Disney World soon? Let us know in the comments.

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8 Replies to “We Weren’t Ready For the CROWDS In Disney World Today”

  1. We just returned from a week at the parks, 2/19-2/26/22 and I would say the parks were immensely overcrowded with wait times for every single ride, at or more than the states times in this article. Any food/ice cream stand had long wait times also. All I can recommend is the genie app for booking rides and mouse dining for booking lunch/dinner reservations!

  2. We visited Disney Jan 27-feb 2 and I found this article actually googling if crowds during these times were unseasonably high because it seemed packed for the “slow season”. it was only my 2nd time here so not much to compare to. Not sure what peak season is like but all the big rides consistently had a 90-150 min wait. And it was SO COLD really was a bummer.

  3. I was also here on this day and brought my husband and daughter for the first time. My parents and I wouldn’t stop gasping at how horrendously crowded the park was. And it was so cold! Barely got up to 60 at the warmest part of the day. Sadly it wasn’t the Disney experience we were hoping for at this time of year, and we decided to not come again anytime soon. The amount of crowds had my head spinning.

  4. This was likely due to the weather this week. We’re here and had planned on going Sunday and Tuesday or Wednesday this week during our week Vaca. Weather ended up showing cold and rain for Tuesday and Wed so we hit the park on Monday instead, was chilly but at least sunny. I really think that brought in many who originally planned for the few following days.

  5. We went to Magic Kingdom that day & the only time we’ve seen it that busy before is 4 July! We hopped to Epcot at 2pm & that was fine. Went back to Magic Kingdom today (the next day) & because it was rainy & closed at 4:30 it was almost empty & it gave us the opportunity to do everything.

  6. I suspect it’s due to delayed vacations, new merchandise, and FL resident 2 Day $149 park tickets special that is valid weekdays until April