Weekly Park Report: February 15 - February 21, 2026
If you visited Hollywood Studios this week, you felt it. A resort-wide median of 25 minutes doesn't sound alarming until you realize Hollywood Studios alone averaged 55 minutes — that's 37.5% above ...
Hollywood Studios Hit 10/10 — President's Day Weekend Delivered the Year's Heaviest Crowds
If you visited Hollywood Studios this week, you felt it. A resort-wide median of 25 minutes doesn't sound alarming until you realize Hollywood Studios alone averaged 55 minutes — that's 37.5% above its already-elevated 6-week baseline, pushing the park to a full 10/10 Extreme rating. This wasn't a single bad day. It was seven consecutive days of Hollywood Studios running hotter than any week we've measured in 2026.
Week at a Glance
President's Day weekend collided with a perfect storm of school breaks — NYC, Boston, Atlanta, and Louisiana districts all out simultaneously — plus two ESPN sporting events pulling thousands of families into the parks. The result: this week ranked busier than 65% of all days measured this year, and the 6-week trend ticked up from a steady 20-minute median to 25 minutes. Hollywood Studios bore the brunt, but EPCOT also surged to 7/10 territory while hosting the Festival of the Arts. Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom ran heavy but manageable, proving once again that park selection matters enormously during holiday weekends.
Park-by-Park Analysis
Hollywood Studios: The Pressure Cooker
There's no sugarcoating it — Hollywood Studios was overwhelmed. A 55-minute median with peaks hitting 165 minutes meant even standby-averse guests couldn't escape the crush. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster averaged 74 minutes, 35% above its 30-day baseline. Tower of Terror wasn't far behind at 69 minutes, up 44% from typical. The culprit wasn't a single day but sustained pressure across the entire week: Sunday and Monday both hit 60-minute medians, Tuesday climbed to 65 minutes, and even the "lighter" days Wednesday through Saturday held at 45-50 minutes.
Toy Story Mania's 17 downtime incidents didn't help. When a capacity-eater like Mania goes down repeatedly, those guests redistribute to an already-strained lineup. Star Tours, often a walk-on, doubled its typical wait to 16 minutes — still short, but a sign of just how few pressure valves the park had.
EPCOT: Festival Crowds Without Festival Waits
EPCOT's 7/10 week tells a split story. The Festival of the Arts packed World Showcase with guests browsing food booths and art installations, but that foot traffic didn't translate proportionally to ride queues. Guardians of the Galaxy held steady. Test Track's 19 downtime incidents — the most of any attraction resort-wide — created frustration but also suppressed its average wait. Remy's Ratatouille Adventure ran 35% above baseline at 65 minutes, likely absorbing some of that displaced Test Track demand.
Thursday's After Hours event had no effect on daytime crowds (by design — these events start at park close), but the day still ran a 25-minute median as school breaks kept the pipeline full.
Magic Kingdom: The Holiday Escape Valve
Magic Kingdom delivered the week's most consistent touring. A 7/10 rating sounds busy, but the 20-minute median meant most attractions remained accessible. Tiana's Bayou Adventure ran 64% above its baseline at 49 minutes — still modest for a marquee attraction during a holiday week. Space Mountain's 16 downtime incidents were the park's biggest operational headache, but Peter Pan (14 incidents) and Winnie the Pooh (13 incidents) also contributed to an unusually glitchy week for Fantasyland.
Friday and Saturday both dropped to 15-minute medians. By the end of the holiday weekend, crowds had clearly shifted toward Hollywood Studios and EPCOT, leaving Magic Kingdom as the relative refuge.
Animal Kingdom: Early Week Surge, Late Week Relief
Animal Kingdom's 5/10 average masks dramatic day-to-day swings. Sunday hit a 50-minute median — the park's heaviest day of the year so far — as President's Day weekend arrivals flooded in. By Wednesday, the park had dropped to 25 minutes. Kilimanjaro Safaris ran 72% above baseline at 56 minutes, suggesting morning safari demand remained strong even as overall crowds eased.
Kali River Rapids posted the week's most dramatic outlier: 37 minutes versus a typical 10 minutes, a 257% spike. February isn't peak rafting season, but unseasonably warm days and limited ride options at an early-closing park concentrated guests onto whatever was available.
Daily Pattern Analysis
| Day | Resort Avg | Busiest Park | Lightest Park | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 2/15 | 40 min | HS (60 min) | MK (20 min) | Holiday weekend arrival surge |
| Mon 2/16 | 36 min | HS (60 min) | MK (20 min) | President's Day — peak of holiday |
| Tue 2/17 | 38 min | HS (65 min) | MK (25 min) | School breaks sustain crowds |
| Wed 2/18 | 31 min | HS (50 min) | MK (20 min) | Midweek drop begins |
| Thu 2/19 | 31 min | HS (50 min) | MK (20 min) | EPCOT After Hours (no daytime effect) |
| Fri 2/20 | 30 min | HS (50 min) | MK (15 min) | Holiday departure wave |
| Sat 2/21 | 29 min | HS (45 min) | MK (15 min) | HS After Hours; lightest HS day |
The pattern is clear: Hollywood Studios absorbed disproportionate demand all week while Magic Kingdom stayed relatively stable. Sunday through Tuesday represented the true holiday crunch, with Wednesday marking the inflection point as families began departing.
Reliability Report
Test Track's 19 downtime incidents made it the week's most unreliable headliner. Guests who built their EPCOT day around an early Test Track ride frequently found themselves pivoting to Guardians or Frozen — both of which saw elevated waits as a result. Toy Story Mania's 17 incidents at Hollywood Studios compounded an already-difficult situation at the resort's busiest park.
Magic Kingdom's Fantasyland had a rough week operationally. Space Mountain, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, and Prince Charming Regal Carrousel combined for 54 downtime incidents. For families with young children counting on a smooth Fantasyland morning, the repeated closures meant constant replanning.
Next Week Outlook
The school break wave is receding. NYC and Boston students return to class, and the President's Day surge has passed. Expect a meaningful drop in overall crowds — likely back toward the 20-minute resort median we saw in early February. Hollywood Studios should ease from 10/10 toward 7/10 territory, though it remains the most crowded park by default.
EPCOT's Festival of the Arts continues through February 24, so World Showcase will stay busy, but ride queues should normalize. Animal Kingdom's early closes (typically 6-7 PM) make it a strong morning option if you want to stack headliners before lunch and park-hop elsewhere.
Best bet: Target Magic Kingdom early in the week. Monday and Tuesday historically run light after holiday weekends, and this week's data suggests MK handles crowd pressure better than Hollywood Studios. Avoid HS until the school break effect fully clears.
The Bottom Line
President's Day weekend delivered exactly what the calendar predicted — heavy crowds concentrated at Hollywood Studios, sustained by overlapping school breaks from major feeder markets. The 37.5% jump in HS waits versus baseline wasn't a fluke; it was the natural result of a federal holiday, five simultaneous school district breaks, and two ESPN tournaments all converging on the smallest-capacity park.
This week proved that park selection during holiday weekends isn't optional — it's the difference between a 65-minute median and a 15-minute one. Lightning Brain's event-aware predictions show you where crowds shift when holidays and breaks collide. Now available at lightningbrain.app and on the App Store!