When to queue
Go at 9am.
- Typical wait at 9am
- 6min
- At 12pm, its worst hour
- 27min
Dollywood
Lightning Rod wait times
- Typical wait
- 27min
- At its busiest
- 48min
- Shortest queue
- 9pm
- Running
- 93%
27minTypical wait
A typical day, opening to close
Lightning Rod at Dollywood averages 27 minutes. It is shortest at 9pm and worst at 12pm. It has run 93% of the park's opening hours recently.
Lightning Rod queue times, day by day
Every reading through the day, against what Lightning Rod usually does at that hour. Pick another day underneath.
Lightning Rod over recent weeks
Typical waits from this ride's own recorded readings
Lightning Rod has averaged about 27 minutes of queue across its recorded readings, peaking around 48 minutes, with the longest queues near 12pm, and the shortest near 9pm. Pick a date below to see that day minute by minute.
- Typical
- 27min
- Peak
- 48min
- Running
- 93%
- Busiest at
- 12pm
Last 14 days, tap one
Which day
Pick a Wednesday.
- Typical wait on a Wednesday
- 15min
- On a Friday
- 54min
Does Lightning Rod break down?
Rarely.
It was running 93% of the time Dollywood was open over the last two weeks, so it was down about 4 minutes in every opening hour.
- Running, share of opening hours
- 93%
- Queue readings recorded
- 14,070
The record
110 minutes.
The longest queue Lightning Rod has held, on Friday 16 October.
Every ride at Dollywood →When is the Lightning Rod queue shortest?
Usually at 9am, about 6 minutes, against 27 at noon. Turning up at the right hour saves 21 minutes on a single ride.
Lightning Rod queue times by hour
Typical wait, last 90 days · minutes
69a
1410a
2511a
2712p
251p
212p
193p
184p
165p
136p
147p
108p
89p
Walk on under 10 minShort 10-19 minModerate 20-34 minLong 35-59 minVery long 60 min and up
Best time to ride Lightning Rod
9am on a Wednesday
Lightning Rod averages 6 minutes at 9am. The longest queue it has ever held is 110 minutes.
27maverage
Which day is quietest for Lightning Rod?
Wednesday, at 15 minutes on average, against 54 on Friday.
Lightning Rod by day of the week
14 days with a recorded queue
- Mon25m
- Tue20m
- Wed15m
- Thu26m
- Fri54m
- Sat38m
- Sun23m
Does Lightning Rod break down?
It ran 93% of Dollywood's opening hours across 14 recorded days, and is improving. It ran without a recorded stop on Friday 23 Oct.
Uptime and closures
93% of opening hours · 14 days recorded
↑ improving93%
Good
Running 93% of the minutes Dollywood was open.
Each square is one day, its share of opening hours running. Tap a day to open it above.
How long can the Lightning Rod queue get?
The worst queue recorded for Lightning Rod was 110 minutes on Friday 16 Oct.
Longest Lightning Rod queues on record
Peaks in the last 14 days · Every one a real date
- 1Friday 16 Oct110m
- 2Friday 9 Oct90m
- 3Saturday 17 Oct90m
- 4Monday 12 Oct65m
- 5Thursday 15 Oct60m
- 6Thursday 22 Oct55m
- 7Saturday 10 Oct50m
- 8Sunday 11 Oct45m
Which months are busiest for Lightning Rod?
December runs longest at 42 minutes on average, and September is quietest at 13.
Lightning Rod through the year
All-time average by month · minutes
15Nov
42Dec
26Jan
31Mar
29Apr
23May
27Jun
25Jul
17Aug
13Sep
29Oct
About Lightning Rod
Lightning Rod at Dollywood is a launched wooden coaster opened in 2016, the world's fastest wooden coaster at 73 mph at the time. The layout includes a magnetic launch up the lift hill (rather than a traditional chain) and a steep first drop into multiple airtime hills. Top speed 73 mph, ride duration about 90 seconds.
Lightning Rod has had reliability issues over the years with frequent closures for maintenance - check the live ride status before heading over. When it is running, queues can hit 60-90 minutes. Located in the Jukebox Junction 1950s-themed area.
Lightning Rod has averaged about 27 minutes of wait over recent weeks, and is typically busiest around 12pm and quietest around 9pm. Over the last two weeks it has been open around 93% of the park's operating hours. It's typically quietest on Wednesdays and busiest on Fridays.
How we measure
- Readings
- The queue time Dollywood publishes for this ride, read every few minutes while the park is open.
- By hour
- This ride's own last 90 days, within opening hours.
- Day by day
- Its last 14 days.
- Running
- The share of the park's open minutes the ride was running.
Frequently asked
What's the current wait time for Lightning Rod?
The live wait time for Lightning Rod at Dollywood is shown at the top of this page and refreshed directly from the park's own ride system. Check live Lightning Rod wait times.
Is Lightning Rod open right now?
The live status badge at the top of this page shows whether Lightning Rod is open or closed right now - it updates automatically from Dollywood's own ride system. Over the last couple of weeks, Lightning Rod has been open around 93% of Dollywood's operating hours. You can also see the live status of every ride at Dollywood.
What's the best time of day to ride Lightning Rod?
Based on historical wait time data, Lightning Rod is typically quietest around 9pm. For most rides the queue is shortest in the first hour after the park opens and the last hour before it closes, with midday through mid-afternoon the busiest window.
What is the best day to ride Lightning Rod?
Lightning Rod is usually quietest on Wednesdays, and busiest on Fridays based on recent weeks - visit on a Wednesday for shorter waits.
How long is the line for Lightning Rod usually?
Over recent weeks, Lightning Rod has averaged about 27 minutes, with lines usually longest around 12pm. Wait times usually build through the morning, peak from midday to mid-afternoon, then ease off before close. Weekends and school holidays run noticeably longer than quiet weekdays. This page shows today's live wait time, the day's average, hourly breakdowns and the full history of peak lines for Lightning Rod at Dollywood.
Is Lightning Rod often closed or broken down?
Over the last two weeks, Lightning Rod has been running about 93% of the time. We track Lightning Rod's uptime and downtime automatically - see the "Reliability" and "Downtime History" panels on this page for its full record over the last 30 days, including any current closures and how long they've lasted.
Where can I find Lightning Rod at Dollywood?
Lightning Rod is at Dollywood - see the park map and full ride list for its exact location. The Dollywood page also shows which rides nearby have the shortest lines right now.
Can I get wait time alerts for Lightning Rod?
Yes - create a free alert and we'll notify you when Lightning Rod's wait time drops below your chosen threshold (for example, "tell me when Lightning Rod is under 20 minutes"). Great for timing your sprint from across the park.
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Other rides at Dollywood
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