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Animal Kingdom
vs
Seaworld Orlando

On a typical day Seaworld Orlando queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 12 minutes on every queue you join.

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Animal Kingdom and Seaworld Orlando compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyAnimal KingdomUnited StatesSeaworld OrlandoUnited States
Average wait per ride 32 min20 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 617 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Avatar Flight of Passage58 minALL NEW! - Expedition Odyssey Fire & Ice47 min
Shortest typical queue Wildlife Express Train7 minSuper Grover's Box Car Derby7 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running92% (best of the two)54%

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Animal Kingdom and Seaworld Orlando compared on live queue times
Right nowAnimal KingdomUnited StatesSeaworld OrlandoUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Seaworld Orlando queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 12 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Animal Kingdom if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 32 minutes a ride here against 20 at Seaworld Orlando - for what Animal Kingdom has that Seaworld Orlando does not
  • You would rather not find rides shut: Animal Kingdom's rides run 92% of opening hours against 54% at Seaworld Orlando
  • Avatar Flight of Passage is on your list - it is Animal Kingdom's longest typical queue at about 58 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Animal Kingdom's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Seaworld Orlando if…

  • You want shorter queues: Seaworld Orlando averages 20 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom
  • You want more to do: 17 rides here have recorded wait data against 6 at Animal Kingdom
  • ALL NEW! - Expedition Odyssey Fire & Ice is on your list - it is Seaworld Orlando's longest typical queue at about 47 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Seaworld Orlando's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Animal Kingdom

Disney's Animal Kingdom blends a full theme park with a working zoo. The park sits at Walt Disney World and is the largest of the four by area. Signature attractions include Avatar Flight of Passage, Na'vi River Journey, Expedition Everest, Kilimanjaro Safaris, and the Festival of the Lion King show. Pandora – The World of Avatar regularly posts the longest wait times in the park.

Animal Kingdom is usually less crowded than Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios, but Avatar Flight of Passage still routinely exceeds 60-minute queue times. Early mornings are best for the safaris when animals are most active. Check live wait times on arrival and head to Pandora first. Use our crowd calendar to pick a quieter date outside US school holidays for a more relaxed visit.

Animal Kingdom live queue times

Seaworld Orlando

SeaWorld Orlando is the Florida flagship of the SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment group. Beyond the marine animal exhibits, the park has a strong coaster line-up: Mako (one of Florida's tallest coasters at 200 feet), Manta (a flying coaster), Ice Breaker, Kraken (a floorless coaster), Pipeline (a surfing-style stand-up coaster), and the newer Penguin Trek.

SeaWorld Orlando is usually less crowded than Disney and Universal, but Florida school holidays, Halloween Spooktacular and Christmas Celebration push peak attendance higher. Weekdays in September, October and January are dramatically quieter. Check live queue times for Mako and Pipeline on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for shorter waits across the coaster line-up.

Seaworld Orlando live queue times

05 · Questions

Animal Kingdom or Seaworld Orlando?

Which is better, Animal Kingdom or Seaworld Orlando?

If you are judging on queues, Seaworld Orlando: it averages about 20 minutes a ride on a typical day against 32 at Animal Kingdom, roughly 12 minutes back on every queue you join. Animal Kingdom has 6 rides with recorded waits against 17 at Seaworld Orlando. Animal Kingdom also runs its rides more reliably - 92% of opening hours against 54%.

Which has shorter queues, Animal Kingdom or Seaworld Orlando?

Seaworld Orlando, by about 12 minutes a ride. On a typical day Seaworld Orlando averages 20 minutes against 32 at Animal Kingdom. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Animal Kingdom best time to visit and Seaworld Orlando best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Animal Kingdom and Seaworld Orlando in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Animal Kingdom and Seaworld Orlando for the full ride lists.

Is Animal Kingdom bigger than Seaworld Orlando?

By rides we track waits for, Seaworld Orlando is the bigger day out: 17 rides against 6. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Seaworld Orlando is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

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