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Animal Kingdom
vs
Six Flags Magic Mountain

On a typical day Six Flags Magic Mountain queues less: about 13 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 19 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyAnimal KingdomUnited StatesSix Flags Magic MountainUnited States
Average wait per ride 32 min13 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 637 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Avatar Flight of Passage58 minRoaring Rapids41 min
Shortest typical queue Wildlife Express Train7 minTaz’s Tazmanian Train Tours5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running92%94% (best of the two)

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 Six Flags Magic Mountain compared on live queue times
Right nowAnimal KingdomUnited StatesSix Flags Magic MountainUnited 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain queues less: about 13 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 19 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 13 at Six Flags Magic Mountain - for what Animal Kingdom has that Six Flags Magic Mountain does not
  • 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain if…

  • You want shorter queues: Six Flags Magic Mountain averages 13 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom
  • You want more to do: 37 rides here have recorded wait data against 6 at Animal Kingdom
  • Roaring Rapids is on your list - it is Six Flags Magic Mountain's longest typical queue at about 41 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Six Flags Magic Mountain'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

Six Flags Magic Mountain

Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California, holds the world record for most roller coasters at a single park - currently 20 distinct coasters. Highlights include X2 (a 4-D prototype), Twisted Colossus, Tatsu (a flying coaster), Full Throttle, Superman: Escape from Krypton, Goliath, and Wonder Woman Flight of Courage. The park's hilly footprint gives many rides dramatic terrain-following drops.

Magic Mountain's LA-area weekend visits, US school holidays, Fright Fest and Holiday in the Park events drive peak crowds. Weekdays outside school breaks can be dramatically quieter. Check live queue times for X2 and Twisted Colossus on arrival - they build up fastest - and use our crowd calendar to pick a lower-crowd midweek date if you want to ride all 20 coasters in a single day.

Six Flags Magic Mountain live queue times

05 · Questions

Animal Kingdom or Six Flags Magic Mountain?

Which is better, Animal Kingdom or Six Flags Magic Mountain?

If you are judging on queues, Six Flags Magic Mountain: it averages about 13 minutes a ride on a typical day against 32 at Animal Kingdom, roughly 19 minutes back on every queue you join. Animal Kingdom has 6 rides with recorded waits against 37 at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Six Flags Magic Mountain also runs its rides more reliably - 94% of opening hours against 92%.

Which has shorter queues, Animal Kingdom or Six Flags Magic Mountain?

Six Flags Magic Mountain, by about 19 minutes a ride. On a typical day Six Flags Magic Mountain averages 13 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Animal Kingdom and Six Flags Magic Mountain 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain for the full ride lists.

Is Animal Kingdom bigger than Six Flags Magic Mountain?

By rides we track waits for, Six Flags Magic Mountain is the bigger day out: 37 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 Six Flags Magic Mountain 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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