Dorney Park
vs
Universal Studios Florida Park

On a typical day Dorney Park queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida 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.

Dorney Park and Universal Studios Florida Park compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	Dorney ParkUnited States	Universal Studios Florida ParkUnited States
Average wait per ride	20 min (best of the two)	23 min
Rides with recorded waits	13	15 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue	Wild Mouse42 min	Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™42 min
Shortest typical queue	Dominator Red9 min	Ollivanders™ Experience in Diagon Alley™5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	90% (best of the two)	84%

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.

Dorney Park and Universal Studios Florida Park compared on live queue times
Right now	Dorney ParkUnited States	Universal Studios Florida ParkUnited 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 Dorney Park queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida 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 Dorney Park if…

You want shorter queues: Dorney Park averages 20 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park
You would rather not find rides shut: Dorney Park's rides run 90% of opening hours against 84% at Universal Studios Florida Park
Wild Mouse is on your list - it is Dorney Park's longest typical queue at about 42 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Dorney Park's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Universal Studios Florida Park if…

You will accept a longer queue - 23 minutes a ride here against 20 at Dorney Park - for what Universal Studios Florida Park has that Dorney Park does not
You want more to do: 15 rides here have recorded wait data against 13 at Dorney Park
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™ is on your list - it is Universal Studios Florida Park's longest typical queue at about 42 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Universal Studios Florida Park's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Dorney Park

Dorney Park sits in Allentown, Pennsylvania, about 90 minutes north of Philadelphia. It's a mid-sized theme park with a strong coaster line-up for its size: Steel Force (a 200-foot hyper coaster), Talon (an inverted coaster), Hydra the Revenge (a floorless coaster), and Possessed. A Wildwater Kingdom water park is included with park admission during the summer season.

Dorney Park's season runs May to October, with peak crowds on summer weekends and during the Halloween Haunt. Weekdays in May, September and October are dramatically quieter. Check live queue times for Steel Force and Hydra on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek visit - most of the coasters stay under 15 minutes of wait time on quieter days.

Dorney Park live queue times

Universal Studios Florida Park

Universal Studios Florida is one of two major parks at the Universal Orlando Resort, themed around film and TV. Highlights include Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, Revenge of the Mummy, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, Fast and Furious, and Transformers: The Ride. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter's Diagon Alley connects to Universal's Islands of Adventure via the Hogwarts Express.

Universal Studios Florida is busy year-round, with peak crowds during US school holidays, Halloween Horror Nights, and the Christmas season. Mid-January and early September are the quietest periods. Check live wait times across both parks on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a lower-crowd date - the extensive Wizarding World areas regularly top 60-minute queues.

Universal Studios Florida Park live queue times

05 · Questions

Dorney Park or Universal Studios Florida Park?

Which is better, Dorney Park or Universal Studios Florida Park?

If you are judging on queues, Dorney Park: it averages about 20 minutes a ride on a typical day against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park, roughly 3 minutes back on every queue you join. Dorney Park has 13 rides with recorded waits against 15 at Universal Studios Florida Park. Dorney Park also runs its rides more reliably - 90% of opening hours against 84%.

Which has shorter queues, Dorney Park or Universal Studios Florida Park?

Dorney Park, by about 3 minutes a ride. On a typical day Dorney Park averages 20 minutes against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Dorney Park best time to visit and Universal Studios Florida Park best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Dorney Park and Universal Studios Florida Park 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 Dorney Park and Universal Studios Florida Park for the full ride lists.

Is Dorney Park bigger than Universal Studios Florida Park?

By rides we track waits for, Universal Studios Florida Park is the bigger day out: 15 rides against 13. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Dorney Park 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.

Dorney Park calendar Universal Studios Florida Park calendar Compare other parks