The Necessary EVIL That Confuses Magic Kingdom Visitors Every Day

While Magic Kingdom is magical just by being what it is, there are some aspects of the park that…aren’t as magical.

At the top of that list is GETTING to this park. If you’ve never been to Disney World before, or it’s been a while since you’ve visited, you may be caught off guard to walk up after parking your car and see, not the front gates of Magic Kingdom, but the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC). You look at your watch, confused, because the park opens in 20 minutes and you thought that was plenty of time, but now there’s a massive security line AND you’ve got to take another mode of transportation to the park. Yep, that’s the TTC for you.

Magic Kingdom is the ONLY park at Disney World that has you park, walk or take the parking tram to the security, only to find that you have to hop on a Monorail or a ferry to the ACTUAL Magic Kingdom gates.

This is because Walt wanted Magic Kingdom to really feel like you were totally apart from the “normal world.” By placing Magic Kingdom beyond the parking lot, it really feels like you’re headed into another world — the world of Disney, for lack of a better phrase.

While this does work, in a way, for people not expecting this extra transportation trip, they arrive and feel frustrated that now their timing is ALL off, and they’ll be late to rope drop/a dining reservation/etc. Starting off on the wrong foot like this isn’t ideal, so that’s why we recommend researching the parks thoroughly ahead of time and allowing for at least an hour to get where you need to go.

Not to mention that these security lines can be LONG on extra busy days, such as holidays and during summer vacation, especially during rope drop (or, about half an hour before rope drop). So you wait in a line for security, THEN wait in another line to get on the Monorail or Ferry, and THEN you’re finally at the front gates…where you may have to wait in another small line to get into the park. That’s a lot of lines before you even tap into the park!

HOWEVER, there’s a caveat here — if you’re taking transportation from a Disney World hotel, such as a bus or a boat, you will NOT be dropped at the TTC, you’ll go straight to the front gates. If you’re taking a rideshare though, or on transportation from the Swan and Dolphin Resorts, you’ll be dropped at the TTC. See? It’s confusing! Bottom line, if you want to get to the front gates faster and not have to worry about the TTC, take transportation from your hotel when you can, but remember that lines to get ON that transportation may also be long.

Our tip? If you are going through the TTC, just think of the Monorail or Ferry (whichever you choose to take) as another ride! When you think about it, it kinda is, and if you don’t let yourself get frustrated, the magic really starts there. Seeing the castle come into view on either one of them is the moment the excitement starts to flood your veins, a smile lights up your face, and you know a magical day is about to be had.