Weekly Park Report: January 11 - January 17, 2026
Guests who waited out the holiday rush were rewarded this week. January 11-17 delivered a resort-wide median wait of just 20 minutes—a 43% drop from the peak holiday week two weeks prior. Sunday and...
The Post-Holiday Crash: January 11-17 Delivered the Lightest Crowds in Six Weeks
Guests who waited out the holiday rush were rewarded this week. January 11-17 delivered a resort-wide median wait of just 20 minutes—a 43% drop from the peak holiday week two weeks prior. Sunday and Wednesday emerged as the standout touring days, with Magic Kingdom posting 10-minute medians on both. For a brief window, Walt Disney World felt almost empty.
Week at a Glance
This week registered as a 3-4/10 across the resort—solidly in Light to Comfortable territory and tied for the lightest week since early December. The contrast with the holiday period is striking: the December 28-January 3 week averaged 35-minute waits, while this week cut that nearly in half. Marathon Weekend wrapped up Sunday, the FETC education conference ran through Wednesday, and two After Hours events shaped evening patterns at Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Friday marked the opening of EPCOT's International Festival of the Arts, coinciding with cheerleading nationals and a soccer showcase that pushed weekend crowds noticeably higher. The headline: if you visited Sunday through Thursday, you experienced exceptional conditions. If you waited for Saturday, you paid the price.
Park-by-Park Analysis
Hollywood Studios: The Week's Widest Swing
Hollywood Studios told the most dramatic story this week, ranging from a 25-minute median Sunday to 50-minute medians on both Friday and Saturday. The weekly average of 35 minutes (4/10, Comfortable) masks a park that delivered genuinely light conditions early in the week before surging into Busy territory as the weekend approached. Wednesday's After Hours event compressed daytime demand, keeping that day's median at 30 minutes despite the ticketed evening crowd. Rise of the Resistance contributed to reliability concerns with 12 downtime incidents, frustrating guests who rope-dropped the headliner only to find it cycling unreliably. Toy Story Mania also logged 11 incidents—a pattern worth watching. Star Tours, meanwhile, ran beautifully and averaged just 7.2 minutes, 45% below its typical wait.
Animal Kingdom: Four Days of Near-Empty Conditions
Animal Kingdom quietly delivered the week's best touring. Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday all posted 15-minute medians—solidly Empty to Very Light territory. The park's 3/10 weekly average came in 20% below its 6-week baseline, making it the strongest performer relative to expectations. Flight of Passage averaged 57 minutes, down 33% from its typical 84-minute wait. Kilimanjaro Safaris dropped to 25 minutes (35% below baseline), and Zootopia: Better Zoogether averaged just 13 minutes. The weekend reversal was sharp—Friday jumped to 30 minutes and Saturday hit 35—but guests who prioritized Animal Kingdom early in the week found exceptional conditions. Kali River Rapids averaged under 6 minutes, though January temperatures likely contributed as much as crowd levels.
Magic Kingdom: Sunday and Wednesday Were Gifts
Magic Kingdom posted a 4/10 weekly average (15-minute median), running 25% lighter than the 6-week baseline. But the real story lives in the day-to-day variation. Sunday and Wednesday both delivered 10-minute medians—conditions where walk-on waits were common across Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. Tiana's Bayou Adventure averaged 18.5 minutes for the week, a remarkable 44% below its 30-day baseline, suggesting either operational improvements or guests prioritizing other attractions. Monday's After Hours event created predictable compression, pushing that day to 15 minutes. Saturday's 25-minute median represented the week's heaviest Magic Kingdom crowds but still landed in Comfortable territory. Reliability was mixed: Haunted Mansion logged 13 incidents, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train had 11, and the PeopleMover went down 12 times—all frustrating for guests building touring plans around these classics.
EPCOT: Festival of the Arts Arrived Without the Crowds
EPCOT matched Magic Kingdom's 15-minute median and 25% improvement over baseline, maintaining 3/10 (Light) conditions even as the Festival of the Arts launched Friday. The festival's first weekend barely registered in wait times—Saturday's 20-minute median was the week's only deviation from the 15-minute baseline that held Sunday through Friday. Spaceship Earth averaged just 10 minutes (48% below typical), Living with the Land came in at 11 minutes (46% below typical), and Remy's Ratatouille Adventure averaged 40 minutes versus its usual 58. Test Track's 21 downtime incidents made it the week's least reliable attraction, while Spaceship Earth (16 incidents), Journey Into Imagination (15 incidents), and The Seas with Nemo and Friends (13 incidents) also struggled. EPCOT's aging infrastructure showed this week.
Daily Pattern Analysis
| Day | Resort Trend | Busiest Park | Lightest Park | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1/11 | Very Light | HS (25 min) | MK (10 min) | Marathon Weekend finale |
| Mon 1/12 | Light | HS (40 min) | AK/EP (15 min) | MK After Hours |
| Tue 1/13 | Light | HS (30 min) | EP (15 min) | FETC midweek |
| Wed 1/14 | Very Light | HS (30 min) | MK (10 min) | HS After Hours |
| Thu 1/15 | Light | HS (35 min) | AK/EP (15 min) | Pre-weekend calm |
| Fri 1/16 | Moderate | HS (50 min) | EP (15 min) | Festival + events arrive |
| Sat 1/17 | Busy | HS (50 min) | EP (20 min) | Weekend surge |
The pattern is unmistakable: crowds built steadily through the week, with Friday and Saturday absorbing the cheerleading nationals, soccer showcase, and Festival of the Arts opening. Hollywood Studios bore the brunt of weekend demand, likely driven by families combining competitive events with park visits. EPCOT's festival, surprisingly, didn't spike waits significantly—early January visitors appear more interested in attractions than food booths.
Reliability Report
EPCOT's infrastructure struggled this week. Test Track led all attractions with 21 downtime incidents, creating unpredictable conditions for guests hoping to experience the recently-reopened attraction. Morning rope-droppers were particularly affected—multiple days saw Test Track go down within the first two hours, forcing pivots to Guardians or Frozen. Spaceship Earth's 16 incidents disrupted the classic "work your way back from the entrance" touring strategy. At Magic Kingdom, Haunted Mansion's 13 incidents hit hardest during evening hours when the attraction typically sees peak demand. Guests who planned evening Haunted Mansion rides found themselves redirected to Pirates or Big Thunder instead.
Next Week Outlook
The Festival of the Arts continues at EPCOT, and cheerleading nationals wrap up early in the week. Expect Monday through Wednesday to return to this week's light conditions as event crowds disperse. Hollywood Studios runs After Hours on Thursday (January 22), which will compress daytime demand but create opportunity at non-party parks. EPCOT should see slightly elevated crowds as festival awareness builds, but nothing approaching holiday levels. Animal Kingdom remains the safe choice for consistent light conditions. Saturday will again be the week's busiest day—plan accordingly or skip it entirely.
Find Your Window
This week proved that January delivers. But the 40-minute swing between Sunday and Saturday shows that timing still matters enormously. Lightning Brain's daily crowd modeling identifies these windows before they close—not after. Now available at lightningbrain.app and on the App Store.