Disneyland Park
vs
Dollywood

On a typical day Dollywood queues less: about 15 minutes a ride against 18 at Disneyland Park, a difference of roughly 3 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.

Disneyland Park and Dollywood compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	Disneyland ParkUnited States	DollywoodUnited States
Average wait per ride	18 min	15 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits	35 (best of the two)	31
Longest typical queue	Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance43 min	NightFlight Expedition79 min
Shortest typical queue	Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes5 min	Lucky Ducky5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	84%	87% (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.

Disneyland Park and Dollywood compared on live queue times
Right now	Disneyland ParkUnited States	DollywoodUnited 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 Dollywood queues less: about 15 minutes a ride against 18 at Disneyland Park, a difference of roughly 3 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 Disneyland Park if…

You will accept a longer queue - 18 minutes a ride here against 15 at Dollywood - for what Disneyland Park has that Dollywood does not
You want more to do: 35 rides here have recorded wait data against 31 at Dollywood
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is on your list - it is Disneyland Park's longest typical queue at about 43 minutes, so it is the one to do first

Pick Dollywood if…

You want shorter queues: Dollywood averages 15 minutes a ride against 18 at Disneyland Park
You would rather not find rides shut: Dollywood's rides run 87% of opening hours against 84% at Disneyland Park
NightFlight Expedition is on your list - it is Dollywood's longest typical queue at about 79 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Dollywood's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Dollywood

Dollywood is Dolly Parton's theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, tucked into the Smoky Mountain foothills. It's a large park with a strong coaster line-up: Lightning Rod (a wooden-launched coaster, since converted to a steel track), Wild Eagle (the first wing coaster in the USA), Thunderhead (a GCI wooden coaster), and Mystery Mine. Southern-style food, craftsmen and live country music are integral to the park's character.

Dollywood's season runs March to early January, with peak crowds during the Smoky Mountain Christmas event and US summer school holidays. Weekdays in spring and autumn stay far calmer. Check live queue times for Lightning Rod and Wild Eagle on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a quieter date - the mountain weather also affects ride availability day to day.

Dollywood live queue times

05 · Questions

Disneyland Park or Dollywood?

Which is better, Disneyland Park or Dollywood?

If you are judging on queues, Dollywood: it averages about 15 minutes a ride on a typical day against 18 at Disneyland Park, roughly 3 minutes back on every queue you join. Disneyland Park has 35 rides with recorded waits against 31 at Dollywood. Dollywood also runs its rides more reliably - 87% of opening hours against 84%.

Which has shorter queues, Disneyland Park or Dollywood?

Dollywood, by about 3 minutes a ride. On a typical day Dollywood averages 15 minutes against 18 at Disneyland Park. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Disneyland Park best time to visit and Dollywood best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Disneyland Park and Dollywood 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 Disneyland Park and Dollywood for the full ride lists.

Is Disneyland Park bigger than Dollywood?

By rides we track waits for, Disneyland Park is the bigger day out: 35 rides against 31. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Dollywood 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.

Disneyland Park calendar Dollywood calendar Compare other parks