Why You'll Always Find Me in Fantasyland at 5PM on a Disneyland Day

If you’re looking for Disneyland hacks, you’ve come to the right place!

Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland

You can find us at the Disneyland Resort EVERY WEEK, and we always make it a priority to check out Disneyland Park each visit. Over the years, we’ve picked up TONS of park hacks, but there’s one in particular that has been relevant for decades.

Disneyland’s Fantasyland is THE land at Disneyland. Embodying the early days of the park and Disney’s classic animated films, this is one of the busiest lands in all of Disneyland — if not the busiest. Ooozing Disney nostalgia and fan-favorite attractions, guests pack up this land all day, but there is a way to avoid the heaviest of crowds.

Fantasyland

The land itself features Peter Pan’s Flight, Pinnochio’s Daring Journey, Snow White’s Enchanted Wish, Sleeping Beauty Castle and its walkthrough, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, Storybook Land Canal Boats, Mad Tea Party, Matterhorn Bobsleds, Alice in Wonderland, Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, Casey Jr. Circus Train, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Fantasy Faire, “it’s a small world”, AND King Arthur Carrousel.

Whew. No wonder so many people flock to this land — it has EVERYTHING!

Fantasyland is full of fun attractions!

Also, everything aside from Matterhorn Bobsleds is very family-friendly, so families with small children can spend hours upon hours in this land alone!

Keeping that in mind, that’s where our hack comes into play.

Dumbo at Disneyland

When you walk through Fantasyland, you’ll see plenty of small kids and families filling up the bottlenecked area. The land really doesn’t allocate for much walking room and can be a nightmare to traverse. The fact that it’s the most popular land at Disneyland makes matters worse.

However, the land does eventually let up in traffic. Around 3 PM, families with small kids start to wind down, especially if they came in the morning around rope drop. Families begin to take off back to their hotel for naps, dinner, or relaxing pool time. By 5 PM, Fantasyland crowds are MUCH more manageable since the demand has decreased.

Fantasyland

The wait times are usually better at night, there’s less shoulder-to-shoulder interaction, and the land is really pretty when it’s lit up.

The land still has its design flaws and can feel overly crowded, but trust us when we say it’s infinitely better at night versus the morning/afternoon rush.

Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride

We mentioned that the wait times are better as well and that’s enough reason in itself to bide your time. The Fantasyland rides later in the day will usually have waits between 5 and 20 minutes, give or take.

Good luck riding Peter Pan’s Flight, though. That line stays busy throughout the day.

Peter Pan’s Flight Disneyland

When is your favorite time to visit Fantasyland? Let us know and continue to follow us right here at AllEars for more Disneyland updates, tips, tricks, and reviews!