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Park Queue TimesPQT

Disney California Adventure
vs
Silver Dollar City

On a typical day Silver Dollar City queues less: about 17 minutes a ride against 24 at Disney California Adventure, a difference of roughly 7 minutes on every queue you join.

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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.

Disney California Adventure and Silver Dollar City compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyDisney California AdventureUnited StatesSilver Dollar CityUnited States
Average wait per ride 24 min17 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 2027 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Radiator Springs Racers65 minElephant March58 min
Shortest typical queue Jessie's Critter Carousel5 minRoyal Tea Party6 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running88%90% (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.

Disney California Adventure and Silver Dollar City compared on live queue times
Right nowDisney California AdventureUnited StatesSilver Dollar CityUnited 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 Silver Dollar City queues less: about 17 minutes a ride against 24 at Disney California Adventure, 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 Disney California Adventure if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 24 minutes a ride here against 17 at Silver Dollar City - for what Disney California Adventure has that Silver Dollar City does not
  • Radiator Springs Racers is on your list - it is Disney California Adventure's longest typical queue at about 65 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Disney California Adventure's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Silver Dollar City if…

  • You want shorter queues: Silver Dollar City averages 17 minutes a ride against 24 at Disney California Adventure
  • You want more to do: 27 rides here have recorded wait data against 20 at Disney California Adventure
  • Elephant March is on your list - it is Silver Dollar City's longest typical queue at about 58 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Silver Dollar City's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Disney California Adventure

Disney California Adventure sits directly opposite Disneyland Park across the Anaheim esplanade and is the more thrill-led of the two. Its big draws are Radiator Springs Racers in Cars Land, the Incredicoaster on Pixar Pier, Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT! and Avengers Campus with WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure. Grizzly River Run and Soarin' Across America round out a line-up that leans older than the classic park next door.

Radiator Springs Racers is the ride that sets the pace here: it draws the longest queue times in the resort most days, often from park opening. If you are visiting both parks, the crowd calendar will show you which day to give to California Adventure, and the live wait times will tell you whether to head for Cars Land first or leave it for the evening.

Disney California Adventure live queue times

Silver Dollar City

Silver Dollar City is a 1880s-themed park in Branson, Missouri, sitting above the famous Marvel Cave. It mixes a traditional craftsmen village with a strong modern coaster line-up: Outlaw Run (one of the world's best wooden coasters), Time Traveler (a record-breaking spinning coaster), Powder Keg, and the newer Wildfire and Mystic River Falls. Live music and period crafts are core to the park's identity.

Silver Dollar City's peak periods are the US summer break, the extremely popular Pumpkin Nights and Old Time Christmas events, and weekend visits from Branson tourists. Weekdays in May, September and early December stay calmer. Check live queue times for Time Traveler and Outlaw Run first thing, and use our crowd calendar to plan around peak event weekends.

Silver Dollar City live queue times

05 · Questions

Disney California Adventure or Silver Dollar City?

Which is better, Disney California Adventure or Silver Dollar City?

If you are judging on queues, Silver Dollar City: it averages about 17 minutes a ride on a typical day against 24 at Disney California Adventure, roughly 7 minutes back on every queue you join. Disney California Adventure has 20 rides with recorded waits against 27 at Silver Dollar City. Silver Dollar City also runs its rides more reliably - 90% of opening hours against 88%.

Which has shorter queues, Disney California Adventure or Silver Dollar City?

Silver Dollar City, by about 7 minutes a ride. On a typical day Silver Dollar City averages 17 minutes against 24 at Disney California Adventure. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Disney California Adventure best time to visit and Silver Dollar City best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Disney California Adventure and Silver Dollar City 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 Disney California Adventure and Silver Dollar City for the full ride lists.

Is Disney California Adventure bigger than Silver Dollar City?

By rides we track waits for, Silver Dollar City is the bigger day out: 27 rides against 20. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Silver Dollar City 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.

Disney California Adventure calendarSilver Dollar City calendarCompare other parks