Daily Park Report: May 5, 2026

Tuesday, May 5: Animal Kingdom Went Quiet While Big Thunder Came Back

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad returned to Magic Kingdom on Tuesday, and if you were looking for the guests who specifically showed up for that reopening, Animal Kingdom is probably where they weren't. The park posted a 3/10 crowd level — 20-minute median waits across the board, with Expedition Everest averaging just 20 minutes and Kilimanjaro Safaris barely nudging past that. For a clear Tuesday in May with temperatures in the low 80s, that's a remarkably quiet day at a park that typically runs closer to 30-minute medians. Three of four parks came in below their 30-day averages. No school breaks in play, no separate-ticket events. Just a mid-week Tuesday with one significant variable: a popular attraction returning to service at a competing park.

Animal Kingdom: 3/10 — The Quietest Park on the Day

Animal Kingdom's 20-minute median was its most comfortable recent showing. Expedition Everest, which typically posts around 35 minutes, averaged just 20. Kilimanjaro Safaris matched that. Kali River Rapids ran well below its own baseline — on a warm afternoon where getting splashed wouldn't have been unwelcome, waits were minimal. Whether BTMRR's return actively drew guests toward Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom simply had a soft Tuesday is hard to isolate from the data alone, but the combined picture suggests at least some crowd redistribution. Either way, guests who chose Animal Kingdom on Tuesday found an unusually open park.

Hollywood Studios: 6/10 — Steady, But the Headliner Had a Long Day

Hollywood Studios was the busiest park on the day, holding at a 38.5-minute median and peaking at 50 minutes around 11:00 AM — essentially on par with its 30-day average. That's a 6/10, manageable but not light, and consistent with HS's characteristically high baseline pressure.

What complicated Tuesday at HS was Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway going offline twice. It was unavailable from 10:00 to 10:59 AM, pulling the park's flagship during the morning ramp-up. Then it closed again from 5:21 to 6:25 PM, right as guests were looking for evening anchor experiences ahead of Fantasmic. Neither window was short enough to simply wait out. Slinky Dog Dash also missed the first 35 minutes of the day, though it was back before the park hit full swing.

Tower of Terror was one of the day's better surprises. It averaged 30 minutes when it typically runs 45 — and with Runaway Railway unavailable at key moments, some guests who would otherwise have anchored on the headliner likely spread across the park instead. In this case, that worked in their favor.

Magic Kingdom: 5/10 — BTMRR is Back, Parks Still Ran Light

Magic Kingdom posted a 17-minute median — below its 30-day average — despite Big Thunder Mountain Railroad's reopening. Guests clearly came for it, but Tuesday's volume was measured enough that it didn't push the park into uncomfortable territory. Noon was the peak hour at 25-minute medians, which leaves plenty of room to tour effectively.

The morning, however, tested early arrivals. Haunted Mansion was offline from 9:13 to 10:23 AM. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train missed its first hour, down from 8:42 to 9:41 AM. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was unavailable from 8:40 to 10:04 AM. Three of the park's highest-demand attractions were either closed or just recovering during the first 90 minutes of operation. Rope-drop guests who planned to stack early credits had a narrow menu to work with.

"It's a small world" added a longer mid-afternoon closure — offline from 3:27 to 5:39 PM, a 132-minute stretch that removed one of Fantasyland's most accessible and high-capacity rides during peak touring hours. Neighboring Fantasyland attractions likely absorbed that displaced foot traffic, though you wouldn't see it in the park-wide median, which remained flat.

EPCOT: 5/10 — Festival Guests Prefer Food Booths to Queues

Flower & Garden Festival continued to drive foot traffic to EPCOT on Tuesday without driving queue demand. The park ran at a 5/10 with 17.7-minute median waits, slightly below its 30-day average, peaking around 11:00 AM at 30 minutes. Festival guests consistently come for outdoor kitchens and topiaries — not to anchor on rides — and Tuesday's data reflected that pattern clearly.

Remy's Ratatouille Adventure had a rough evening. It was closed from 4:51 to 6:03 PM and again from 7:44 to 8:34 PM — two separate outages totaling close to two hours on one of the park's most popular attractions. Frozen Ever After also missed the first hour of the day, and Mission: SPACE was unavailable for 40 minutes in early afternoon. The Seas with Nemo & Friends averaged just 5 minutes, reflecting genuinely thin demand in Future World East. With Remy down during both evening windows, there wasn't a clear alternative drawing similar pressure.

Downtime Report

Tuesday was a high-downtime day across the resort. Magic Kingdom took the worst of it: Haunted Mansion, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Winnie the Pooh were all offline within roughly the same 90-minute morning window, then "it's a small world" was unavailable for over two hours in the afternoon — removing Fantasyland's most reliable crowd-absorber during the busiest touring stretch. Hollywood Studios lost its headline attraction twice. EPCOT lost Remy's Ratatouille Adventure twice and Frozen Ever After for an hour at park open. By any measure, it was an above-average downtime day, and guests touring without a backup plan likely felt it.

Today's Prediction: Wednesday, May 6

Yesterday's forecasts held up well — EPCOT and Hollywood Studios landed exactly where called, and Magic Kingdom came in slightly lighter than the 6-7/10 range, finishing at 5/10. A strong overall read.

For today: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad remains newly reopened, and guest interest in a returning attraction typically sustains for a few days. Disney After Hours runs tonight at Hollywood Studios — but that's a late-night event starting after regular park close, with early entry at 7:00 PM. It has no meaningful effect on daytime touring at HS. Flower & Garden Festival continues at EPCOT. Temperatures push to 89°F this afternoon, which tends to compress guest energy into morning and evening windows and shift midday demand toward indoor, air-conditioned attractions.

Best move for today: Animal Kingdom in the morning while temperatures are still in the low 70s. If Tuesday's trend holds, waits should be minimal before 11:00 AM. For Magic Kingdom guests targeting Big Thunder, get there at rope drop — freshly reopened attractions draw their sharpest interest in the first several days, and afternoons at 89°F will push crowds toward shade and air conditioning anyway.

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