Best Time to Ride "it's a small world"

Magic Kingdom · Based on 3871 real wait time data points

One of the most iconic attractions in Disney history, "it's a small world" takes guests on a gentle boat ride through colorful scenes featuring audio-animatronic children from cultures around the globe singing the famous Sherman Brothers theme song. Originally created for the 1964 World's Fair, this Fantasyland classic is perfect for all ages and offers a cool break from the Florida heat. The queue features a whimsical clock tower facade that puts on a show every 15 minutes.

Family Ride ~11 min Fantasyland Indoors Lightning Lane Multi Pass
10PM
Shortest average wait for "it's a small world"
Arrive around 10PM for an average wait of just 5 minutes. That's 8 minutes shorter than the peak time (12PM, 13min avg). Best day of the week: Tuesday (7min avg).
9m
Average Wait
5m
Best Time Wait
13m
Peak Time Wait
45m
Record High

Hour-by-Hour Wait Guide

7AM 5m Best
8AM 6m Good
9AM 6m Good
10AM 7m Good
11AM 11m Busy
12PM 13m Peak
1PM 13m Peak
2PM 10m Busy
3PM 13m Peak
4PM 12m Peak
5PM 11m Busy
6PM 10m Busy
7PM 9m Busy
8PM 7m Good
9PM 6m Good
10PM 5m Best
11PM 5m Best

Wait Times by Hour

Best Day of the Week

Wait Time Heatmap: Day × Hour

"it's a small world" averages 23 minutes at 8 PM on Saturdays but only 5 minutes at 2 AM on Sundays.

7a 8a 9a 10a 11a 12p 1p 2p 3p 4p 5p 6p 7p 8p 9p 10p 11p
Mon 5 6 6 10 12 10 8 11 11 9 6 8
Tue 6 6 6 8 9 7 8 6 6 6 7 6
Wed 5 7 8 13 17 14 13 16 14 12 8 8
Thu 5 6 7 12 17 20 14 19 14 11 9 9
Fri 6 6 7 5 8 9 8 6 7 6 7 6 5
Sat 5 6 7 8 13 15 17 15 19 23 20 18 17
Sun 6 5 7 9 11 14 13 10 12 11 12 12 8

Tips for Riding "it's a small world" with Minimal Wait

"it's a small world" at Magic Kingdom averages a 9-minute wait, but timing makes a huge difference. The data shows waits are shortest around 10PM (5min) and longest around 12PM (13min) — a 8-minute difference just by choosing the right time.

Tuesday is typically the lightest day of the week with an average wait of 7 minutes. Avoid Saturday if possible — waits average 12 minutes.

Pro tip: Arrive at Magic Kingdom before opening and head to "it's a small world" first. Early-morning waits are consistently the shortest across all days of the week.

Predicted wait for "it's a small world" — next 7 days

Our forecast of the average standby wait, built from this ride's historical patterns, day-of-week trends, and the seasonal calendar.

Today
17min
Tomorrow
12min
Mon 14
7min
Tue 15
7min
Wed 16
12min
Thu 17
10min
Fri 18
6min

Forecasts are estimates of the daily average and update as new data arrives — actual waits swing by hour, so use the hour-by-hour chart above to pick your window.

"it's a small world" — ride facts

Location
Fantasyland · Magic Kingdom
Type
Gentle ride
Ride length
~11 min
Setting
Indoor (climate-controlled)
Lightning Lane
Lightning Lane Multi Pass

One of the most iconic attractions in Disney history, "it's a small world" takes guests on a gentle boat ride through colorful scenes featuring audio-animatronic children from cultures around the globe singing the famous Sherman Brothers theme song. Originally created for the 1964 World's Fair, this Fantasyland classic is perfect for all ages and offers a cool break from the Florida heat. The queue features a whimsical clock tower facade that puts on a show every 15 minutes.

Plan Your Perfect Day

Add "it's a small world" to your itinerary and let our optimizer find the best order.

Start Planning