Animal Kingdom
vs
Universal Islands Of Adventure

On a typical day Universal Islands Of Adventure queues less: about 25 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 7 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right now Compare other parks

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 Universal Islands Of Adventure compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	Animal KingdomUnited States	Universal Islands Of AdventureUnited States
Average wait per ride	32 min	25 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits	6	18 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue	Avatar Flight of Passage58 min	Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™68 min
Shortest typical queue	Wildlife Express Train7 min	Storm Force Accelatron®6 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	92% (best of the two)	89%

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 Universal Islands Of Adventure compared on live queue times
Right now	Animal KingdomUnited States	Universal Islands Of AdventureUnited 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 Universal Islands Of Adventure queues less: about 25 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom, a difference of roughly 7 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 25 at Universal Islands Of Adventure - for what Animal Kingdom has that Universal Islands Of Adventure does not
You would rather not find rides shut: Animal Kingdom's rides run 92% of opening hours against 89% at Universal Islands Of Adventure
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 Universal Islands Of Adventure if…

You want shorter queues: Universal Islands Of Adventure averages 25 minutes a ride against 32 at Animal Kingdom
You want more to do: 18 rides here have recorded wait data against 6 at Animal Kingdom
Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™ is on your list - it is Universal Islands Of Adventure's longest typical queue at about 68 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Universal Islands Of Adventure'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

Universal Islands Of Adventure

Universal's Islands of Adventure is widely regarded as one of the best theme parks in the world. Its line-up blends record-breaking coasters with detailed themed lands: Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, VelociCoaster, The Incredible Hulk Coaster, Pteranodon Flyers, and the classic Jurassic Park River Adventure. The Wizarding World's Hogsmeade is the park's most iconic area.

Like its sister Studios park, Islands of Adventure stays busy year-round, with Hagrid's and VelociCoaster consistently posting the longest queues. Peak periods are US school holidays, Halloween Horror Nights and Christmas. Check live wait times immediately on arrival and head to Hagrid's first. Use our crowd calendar to pick the quietest possible date for your trip.

Universal Islands Of Adventure live queue times

05 · Questions

Animal Kingdom or Universal Islands Of Adventure?

Which is better, Animal Kingdom or Universal Islands Of Adventure?

If you are judging on queues, Universal Islands Of Adventure: it averages about 25 minutes a ride on a typical day against 32 at Animal Kingdom, roughly 7 minutes back on every queue you join. Animal Kingdom has 6 rides with recorded waits against 18 at Universal Islands Of Adventure. Animal Kingdom also runs its rides more reliably - 92% of opening hours against 89%.

Which has shorter queues, Animal Kingdom or Universal Islands Of Adventure?

Universal Islands Of Adventure, by about 7 minutes a ride. On a typical day Universal Islands Of Adventure averages 25 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 Universal Islands Of Adventure best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Animal Kingdom and Universal Islands Of Adventure 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 Universal Islands Of Adventure for the full ride lists.

Is Animal Kingdom bigger than Universal Islands Of Adventure?

By rides we track waits for, Universal Islands Of Adventure is the bigger day out: 18 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 Universal Islands Of Adventure 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.

Animal Kingdom calendar Universal Islands Of Adventure calendar Compare other parks