Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Turns into a ‘Ghost Town’

Walt Disney World is infamous for its crowds, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth for visitors today.

Pick any of the four Theme Parks at Walt Disney World Resort — Magic Kingdom Park, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, or the Animal Kingdom. Visitors planning a visit there know to expect long wait times and stay prepared with Genie+. Especially considering the recent summer months, the descriptors “frustrating” and “stressful” have proven to be apt, when considering Guests dealing with crowds at the Disney Parks.

Today, the crowds have vanished; rope drop is quiet; and Genie+ has been rendered unnecessary because who needs a planning system when wait times are unusually low?

This is after an unprecedented crowd at the start of 2022, so much so that it was practically like Disney World’s slow season took 2022 off. But looking at Magic Kingdom today, maybe it just decided to come late.

Check out some photos:

After the start of the 50th Anniversary Celebrations last October, The World’s Most Magical Celebration at the Disney Parks commenced with new nighttime shows like Disney Enchantment at Main Street, U.S.A. and Cinderella Castle, and daytime experiences like Disney KiteTails over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Amid the festivities, Disney World also welcomed the Resort’s newest attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in EPCOT’s World Discovery neighborhood.

Earlier in the year, social media was abuzz with updates of unusually large crowds at “The Most Magical Place on Earth” on weekdays in the middle of January — so much so that they seemed like “summer crowds.”

However, the end of summer tells a different story. This morning, the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, usually one of the Resort’s most popular rides, posted only a 20-minute wait. Earlier today, per the My Disney Experience app even over at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance attraction which has seen 5-hour wait times — is at 60 minutes.

Is it that the divisive Park Pass reservation system, Disney Genie+ and Lightning Lane that are supposed to help manage attraction flow, and continued increase in prices are finally having an impact on crowds?

Possibly.

But we would be remiss to not mention that the Parks are also just coming out of a busy summer period, with schools reopening and schedules coming back into full throttle. Tonight also features Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party takes place at Magic Kingdom with Party Guests able to enter the Park from 4 p.m., suggesting that non-Party Guests may likely be staying clear for now.

Whatever the reason for this strange sudden dip, the Guests who are at the Parks today don’t seem to be complaining.

We at Disney Fanatic will continue to keep you updated about this, and all other Disney news as more updates come to light.