Your Favorite Disney World Ride Closed Unexpectedly. Now What?

We’ve all been there. You arrive at Disney World only to find out your favorite ride or even your favorite park is closing early for the day. Nooooo! Thankfully, there are a few ways to prevent you from walking away with any regret.

Magic Kingdom Close Early Sign

In addition to temporary closures that happen sometimes, there are also times that Disney Parks and rides close early for a variety of reasons. Sometimes you can find out about a closure ahead of time, such as when Magic Kingdom recently closed early at 4:30PM, but sometimes you don’t know until you get to the park. And recently, another ride closed early in Disney World, and we’re here to break down how to handle this, as well as what to do about it!

Recently, we visited Magic Kingdom and discovered that the classic Ariel dark ride Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid would be closing at 7PM. For reference, that day, Magic Kingdom closed at 11PM.

Under the Sea Closing Early Sign

This is not the first time we’ve discovered a ride was closing early only by walking past the ride. Test Track has closed early in EPCOT several times over the past few months due to routine maintenance.

Test Track Close Early Sign

So what’s the solution here to prevent you from walking up to your favorite ride only to find that it closed early? You can check the My Disney Experience app for Disney Park hours and occasionally you might see a pop-up announcing early ride closures, but that’s not always a guarantee. You generally can’t see early ride closures in the app, either, but you can see which rides are currently open.

My Disney Experience notification

One way to maximize your chances to ride your favorite ride is to purchase Genie+ and book your Lightning Lanes as early as you can. (You can begin booking Genie+ Lightning Lanes as of 7AM on the day of your visit.) Prioritize your favorite rides first and set an alarm so that you don’t forget when you’re eligible to book your next reservation. Remember, you can book your Lightning Lanes either two hours apart or as soon as you scan into your existing reservation.

Everest Lightning Lane

If you don’t want to buy Genie+, you can also make sure to get in line for the ride well before closing time. Note that we said you need to get in line BEFORE the early closing time. There’s no guarantee when exactly Cast Members will close the line, so make sure you get in line as early as you can.

Storybook Circus Close Early Sign

This experience isn’t specific to Disney World, either! It happens in Disneyland and other Disney Parks as well, which means it’s important to consider all your options so that you don’t have to go home from your visit with regret.

Not just Disney World!

And possibly the easiest thing to do is take a stroll around the park! Grab a Mickey Bar and snack while you walk past your favorite rides, and keep an eye out throughout the day for any early closing signs. You can also check with DFB throughout your day for any news!

We love Mickey ice cream bars

So basically, there are a few things you can do before your visit, and a few to do during. Before you visit, you can do the following:

Check Disney World’s refurbishment and park hours calendars
Research Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lanes
Get familiar with the My Disney Experience app

Tomorrowland Close Early Sign

And once you arrive in Disney World, you can do one or several of the following:

Walk past your favorite ride to look for early closing signs
Check My Disney Experience to see which rides are currently open
Prioritize your favorite rides with Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lanes
Set an alarm to maximize your chances for Lightning Lane availability
Get in line for your favorite ride before they cut off the line for the day

Hopefully, you won’t have to skip your favorite ride because of an early closure! Keep following DFB for more Disney Parks news and tips!

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Have you ever come across a ride closing early in Disney Parks? Tell us in the comments!