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The Smiler

About The Smiler

The Smiler at Alton Towers held the Guinness World Record for the most inversions on a roller coaster when it opened in 2013, with 14 loops, corkscrews and dive drops over its 1.16km layout. The theming centres on a fictional 'Ministry of Joy' and the trains tilt riders through repeated barrel rolls between station and finale. Top speed 53 mph, ride duration around two and a half minutes.

The Smiler is one of Alton Towers' big four headline rides, so live queue times often top 50 minutes mid-day. The throughput is decent for its complexity but never matches demand on peak days. Ride at opening or pair with a Fastrack. The first row delivers the strongest sense of speed, the back row the most aggressive whips.

Queue Time Trends

Thursday, 14 May 2026

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Hour by Hour

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Today vs Average

Thu 14 May
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Reliability

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Downtime History

14 May 2026

No downtime recorded
The ride ran without interruptions

The Smiler - Frequently Asked Questions

What's the current wait time for The Smiler?

The live wait time for The Smiler at Alton Towers is shown at the top of this page and refreshed directly from the park's own ride system. Check live The Smiler queue times.

What's the best time of day to ride The Smiler?

For most flat rides, the queue is shortest in the first hour after park opening and the last hour before close. Midday is the busiest window. The hour-by-hour heatmap on this page shows The Smiler's specific pattern once a few days of data have been recorded.

How long is the queue for The Smiler usually?

Wait length depends more on cycle capacity than crowd size. Even a long-looking queue often clears in under 20 minutes. This page shows today's live wait time, the day's average, hourly breakdowns and the full history of peak queues for The Smiler at Alton Towers.

Is The Smiler often closed or broken down?

We track The Smiler's uptime and downtime history automatically. See the "Reliability" and "Downtime History" panels on this page for its record over the last 30 days - including any current closures and how long they've lasted.

Where can I find The Smiler at Alton Towers?

The Smiler is at Alton Towers - see the park map and full ride list for its exact location. The Alton Towers page also shows which rides nearby have the shortest queues right now.

Can I get queue time alerts for The Smiler?

Yes - create a free alert and we'll notify you when The Smiler's wait time drops below your chosen threshold (for example, "tell me when The Smiler is under 20 minutes"). Great for timing your sprint from across the park.