Leaving the park after Wishes?

[KLK622]

How congested is it leaving the park after Wishes? I will have my four year old with me and we will be heading back to POFQ via the buses. Would we be better off to hit up a few rides and then try to leave the park or should we head right out? My goal is to minimize waiting and maximize fun, while still trying to get my four year old to bed at a reasonable hour (ha!).

We will be in the Wishes FastPass+ area and it will be our first time in the parks with the plan to come back to the Magic Kingdom the next morning.

Thanks!

 

[tomatecerise]

It's like that

And The bus is like that

 

[Parker Clan]

Couldn't have said it better than the PP! Yikes it's bad! I guess depending on the time of year you go? We go in August during the "less" crowded time and we try to leave the park before Wishes and watch from the ferry. When we do stay, we just saunter to the gate or sit and wait at least a half hour for the horrific lines to die down

 

[nj disney family]

Right after wishes is probably the most crowded time to get on a bus back to the hotel. If you think your child can stay up later I would ride a few rides.

 

[kevgraub]

My experience has been that it is really, really bad. Massive number of people leaving, long waits for busses (there will be many running, but you will likely have to wait in line a while to get on one), etc.

I would suggest either (1) hitting a ride or two or (2) slowly browsing through the Main Street shops on your way out and let the crowd at the bus stops die down a little. There is no way we will ever head straight out to the busses following wishes again!

 

[AshleeH]

Terrible. It is the sole reason we stay in the Contemporary area resorts now - we loathe being at the mercy of Disney transportation to get out of there. Our very first family vacation, we got stuck in MK bag check for two hours, waiting for this massive congestion to thin out, just so we could actually join the crowd to the monorail without being crushed. After two hours, when the crowd finally ended at the bottom of the monorail ramp, we got up to join. Just as we got there, a CM redirected everyone to the exit ramp for different monorails - that put as at the front of the line, which worked in our favor, but to this day, I cannot imagine how livid the people who had just reached the top of the ramp must have been.

 

[MamaLema]

Our last trip was 5 years ago. My kids were pretty young. Whenever our family talks about ANYTHING being crowded, the kids ask " yeah, but was it like Magic Kingdom after the fireworks?" And we went during a slow week. I can't even imagine what's it like in peak season

 

[Ensusieasm]

How congested is it leaving the park after Wishes? I will have my four year old with me and we will be heading back to POFQ via the buses. Would we be better off to hit up a few rides and then try to leave the park or should we head right out? My goal is to minimize waiting and maximize fun, while still trying to get my four year old to bed at a reasonable hour (ha!).

We will be in the Wishes FastPass+ area and it will be our first time in the parks with the plan to come back to the Magic Kingdom the next morning.

Thanks!

I always watch Wishes from atop the train station, just when the grand finale is about to occur I go down the stairs and watch the last bursts, then immediately power walk to the buses. I always get a seat on the first bus that pulls up.

 

[CAS239]

Leaving right after wishes is a nightmare. If you can, stay in the park as long as possible and ride rides to let the crowds die down a little. During wishes and right after it's over, thousands are exiting the park. Usually the line for the monorail is wrapped down and close to the entrance and looks to be about an hour wait. The ferry isn't much better. And some nights the monorail is down so the ferry is the only option unless taking the buses.

Buses can be hit or miss. Your bus could have a huge line, or just 15-20 people ahead of you.

Since you're taking the bus, I'd say you could probably head out and not have TOO long of a wait. If you were taking monorail or ferry I'd say 100% stay in the park

 

[KLK622]

Does Fantasyland have low waits at that time (minus PP and SDMT-I know those always have waits)? Or would it be a good time to go to Astro Orbiter and Buzz?

That late at night I will need instantaneous entertainment vs lines!

 

[augrad1993]

Does Fantasyland have low waits at that time (minus PP and SDMT-I know those always have waits)? Or would it be a good time to go to Astro Orbiter and Buzz?

That late at night I will need instantaneous entertainment vs lines!

The wait times at those rides will likely be down during Wishes, but as soon as it's over, I'd power walk in that direction with a purpose! That's what we did during our last visit (we were watching near the bridge to Tomorrowland anyway), and we were able to get on Buzz with very little wait.

 

[jahber]

The wait for the monorail/ferry/bus after Wishes is the most miserable time of all. Worse than the heat, worse than anything, because everyone is tired. Especially kids--so your little one may need to be carried, or if she falls asleep in the stroller, you'll have to get her out to get on the bus. (Been there, done that.) Ugh. Either wait or watch from the park exit, as others have said.

 

[bbjunkie]

Another vote for staying in the park. Honestly, it is a great time to ride things. The giant mass of humanity leaving means most people will be gone. Have a great time on Buzz, Astro Orbiters, the TTA people mover, etc. give yourself at least an hour. If your son is really tired and you need to chill, have an ice cream from the Parlour and watch the 2nd Celebrate the Magic from the tables.

 

[204charity]

If your son is really tired and you need to chill, have an ice cream from the Parlour and watch the 2nd Celebrate the Magic from the tables.

This is what we do! Works wonders!

 

[shaunbabka]

it's my understanding art of animation has it's own bus system. is this true, and if so, does it work out any better if leaving after wishes?

 

[Maliboo]

Another vote for staying in the park. Honestly, it is a great time to ride things. The giant mass of humanity leaving means most people will be gone. Have a great time on Buzz, Astro Orbiters, the TTA people mover, etc. give yourself at least an hour. If your son is really tired and you need to chill, have an ice cream from the Parlour and watch the 2nd Celebrate the Magic from the tables.

The line at the ice cream place after Wishes is just as long as the bus line.

 

[KLK622]

Thanks for the tips! We are flying in that afternoon from the midwest so hopefully he will feel like it is one hour earlier (and will have napped on the plane)...we were just going to rest at our hotel the first night, but I couldn't pass up the MSEP and Wishes FastPasses I was able to secure in this past week

Our plan will be to enjoy Wishes and then probably head to Fantasyland...or if he is super tired to just chill and enjoy being at Disney!

 

[Mikie]

it's my understanding art of animation has it's own bus system. is this true, and if so, does it work out any better if leaving after wishes?

It doesn't share a bus with any other resort (like the All Star resorts may have one bus that stops at all 3) but it is otherwise still a regular Disney bus. You still walk to the same bus stop area that EVERYONE is walking to, then splitting off to the slot for each different resort bus. How long you'll wait depends almost entirely on luck and timing unless you do as a PP described and scientifically station yourself for quick exit.

 

[Linleedo]

It's so much better to just grab a cab back to the resort. Buses are jammed and you are just waiting and waiting for the next bus to come.

 

[Aunt Dani]

I'm confused...if the park hours are only scheduled until 10 PM, and Wishes is at 10 PM, how late are which rides running?