Sometimes, you reach that point on your Disney vacation when your two-year-old refuses to stand still for one more minute, your five-year-old is complaining about any lines longer than, well, zero minutes, and you yourself are sweating through your clothes and desperately need some AC (Been there!).  When you find yourself more excited about leaving the park than standing in another queue, it might be time to ditch the agenda for the day and head to an attraction that involves no waiting in line.  If you’ve reached that point, I’ve got you covered.  Today, let’s talk about some minimal-wait options at Magic Kingdom.

1. Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse: This walk-through attraction located in Adventureland features a life-sized tree and tree house belonging to the Swiss Family Robinson.  Here, kids and adults alike can walk the paths and stairs through the tree house to discover hidden rooms and treasures built by the Robinson Family, according to the story.  I have never seen or waited in a line to walk through this attraction, and with plentiful shade and no set pace for walking through, this is a great spot to take a slow stroll or to allow your kids to burn off some energy as they explore.  Do note that this attraction has limited accessibility for those requiring mobility assistance, as it involves many flights of stairs, both up and down.
2. Carousel of Progress: This typically wait-free attraction is found in Tomorrowland just past the entrance to the Peoplemover and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.  A piece of Disney history in and of itself, this attraction was originally a part of the 1964 New York World’s Fair before being moved to Disneyland in California and subsequently to Walt Disney World in Florida.  Here, guests sit in a cool, indoor rotating theater for a 20-minute audio animatronic show that follows a family through the decades of the 20th century in the United States.  Kids will enjoy the lifelike audio animatronics (including my kids’ favorite, the family dog, Rover!), and adults will love the nostalgia, the fun history lesson, and the ability to rest their feet for 20 minutes while taking a break from the Florida sun!
3. Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room: An opening day attraction at Walt Disney World, this show featuring audio animatronic birds and flowers was originally developed for Disneyland by Walt Disney himself, offering another piece of Disney history.  Here, birds sing words and flowers croon to fun, catchy tunes that guests of all ages will enjoy.  Guests will also enjoy the shade and cooler temperatures inside the theater, as well as the opportunity to rest their feet and tap their toes for about 15 minutes.  Note (and small spoiler!): The show does involve some very brief periods of darkness within the theater as well as the sound of thunder towards the end of the show.  If your kids are afraid of thunder (like my youngest is), you may want to cover their ears as the music speeds up during the song with the chanting tiki statues!  That being said, as long as I cover her ears during the thunder, even my 3-year-old loves this show and does not otherwise find it to be at all scary.
4. Water misters: During the warmer months (which is most of the year in Florida!), several fun water misters can be found throughout Magic Kingdom, which can provide both fun for kids and relief from the heat for adults.  In Tomorrowland, the Cool Ship looks like a giant spaceship and contains both classic water misters as well as a refreshment stand serving beverages and snacks.  For a little more water fun, the water misters outside of the entrance to Jungle Cruise in Adventureland feature both misters and sprayers.  Kids can definitely get pretty wet playing in this one, so if you don’t have a change of clothes or you have kids who don’t like walking around in wet clothes (like my kids!), be sure to keep an eye on how wet they are getting!
5. Casey Jr. Splash ‘n’ Soak Station: For the ultimate water play experience (and the ultimate soaking of your kids’ clothes), the Casey Jr. Splash ‘n’ Soak Station in the Storybook Circus part of Fantasyland includes numerous water misters and sprayers themed to a circus train, complete with fun music and moving (pretend) circus animals.  Kids will definitely need a swimsuit or extra clothes after playing in this one unless they are ok with walking around in fully soaked clothes.  Honestly, in June-September, clothes will dry pretty quickly, but definitely consider bringing a change of clothes if you’re planning to play here in the early spring or late fall months.  During cooler periods in the winter, the music will be playing here, but the water features will be turned off.

So, there you have it!  If you’re at Magic Kingdom and your kids (or you!) just cannot wait in another line, check out some or all of these fun options.  These are honestly attractions that we as a family go out of our way to do, not just when we are looking for something wait-free, so they are absolutely worth checking out even if the park is not super busy.  Let me know in the comments if you found this helpful and if there is anything you’d like included in my next post covering no-wait attractions at Epcot.  I’ll see ya real soon!