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Wait times Universal Epic Universe, Knott’s & Thorpe

Universal Epic Universe led the 24-hour wait-time averages, Knott’s Berry Farm brought monster coaster queues, and Thorpe Park was Britain’s busiest park in this report.

W8baan redactie 5 min read
Universal Epic Universe Disney California Adventure Park Aquatica Orlando EPCOT Knott's Berry Farm Universal Studios Hollywood Disney's Hollywood Studios Universal Islands of Adventure Thorpe Park
Wait times Universal Epic Universe, Knott’s & Thorpe

Wait times recap: 18 June 14:30 - 19 June 14:30

The last 24 hours delivered a properly nerdy wait-time mix across British and American parks: big headline queues in Orlando and California, a solid British showing from Thorpe Park, and a few surprisingly calm windows for sharp planners.

The busiest park by average wait was Universal Epic Universe, with an average of 39.1 minutes and a peak of 175 minutes. Knott's Berry Farm followed at 34.7 minutes on average, while Universal Studios Hollywood landed at 30.8 minutes.

Average wait time by park

The longest queues: Hagrid, Mine-Cart Madness and GhostRider

The biggest individual wait of the day came from Universal Islands of Adventure: Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™ averaged a hefty 95.6 minutes and peaked at 195 minutes. That is serious wizarding-world demand.

Universal Epic Universe had three attractions in the top five by average wait:

  • Mine-Cart Madness™ averaged 93.2 minutes and reached 110 minutes.
  • Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry™ averaged 83.6 minutes and peaked at 135 minutes.
  • Mario Kart™: Bowser's Challenge averaged 80.1 minutes and hit a huge 175 minutes.

Knott's Berry Farm also had a proper coaster-fan headline: GhostRider averaged 90 minutes and reached 120 minutes. Over at EPCOT, Test Track averaged 72.0 minutes, with Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind close behind at 67.1 minutes.

Britain check: Thorpe Park led the UK pack

Among the British parks in this report, Thorpe Park stood out most clearly: 21.5 minutes average wait, with a maximum of 80 minutes. That is a lively but still very workable day if you plan the headline rides smartly.

There were also some practical British notes:

  • At LEGOLAND Windsor, Autumn's Riding Adventure first appeared open around 13:01 after a scheduled 10:00 start, and Scarab Bouncers around 12:20.
  • At Thorpe Park, Ready Player One 4D Experience | Age Rating 12A appeared later too, around 12:16 after a scheduled 10:00 opening.
  • At Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Big One reached 60 minutes and ICON reached 50 minutes during the day. Around scheduled closing, both still appeared to have positive queue signals, with Big One at 20 minutes and ICON at 5 minutes just after 17:00. Treat that as a handy closing-time observation, not an official extension.

Quiet surprises: early and evening windows mattered

There were no separate low-wait park or quiet-window highlights supplied for this 24-hour report, but the hourly tip signals still reveal some very tasty planning moments.

A few parks had calm windows around the 5-minute mark before the day really kicked up:

  • Universal Epic Universe: around 13:00, the average was 5 minutes, before a much busier 14:00 average of 148.5 minutes.
  • Knott's Berry Farm: around 10:00, the average sat at 4.3 minutes, while 13:00 jumped to 120 minutes.
  • Universal Studios Hollywood: around 09:00, the average was 5 minutes, compared with 71.3 minutes around 15:00.
  • Disney's Hollywood Studios: around 08:00, the average was 5 minutes, rising to 74.2 minutes around 15:00.
  • EPCOT: around 18:00, the average was 5 minutes, while 15:00 was the busy point at 99.6 minutes.

That is the kind of pattern theme-park fans love: a short calm spell can make a huge difference if you are already inside the gates.

Data-driven signs of possible longer evenings

A few American parks showed strong post-closing wait-time signals. These are data-driven indications that operations probably continued longer than the scheduled close because there were still meaningful waits after closing time. They are not official changed closing times.

The clearest examples:

  • EPCOT: scheduled close was 21:00, yet qualifying waits appeared as late as 22:57 — about 117 extra minutes. Evidence attractions included Test Track up to 65 minutes, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind up to 40 minutes, Remy's Ratatouille Adventure up to 30 minutes, and Soarin' Across America up to 25 minutes.
  • Disneyland Park in California: scheduled close was 20:00, with qualifying waits visible until 21:57 — also about 117 extra minutes. Space Mountain and Indiana Jones™ Adventure were the key proof points.
  • Universal Volcano Bay: scheduled close was 17:00, with a later qualifying signal around 18:56, roughly 116 extra minutes. Krakatau™ Aqua Coaster was the post-close evidence attraction.
  • Knott's Berry Farm: scheduled close was 22:00, while HangTime still showed qualifying waits until 23:46, about 106 extra minutes.

For fans, that is fascinating — especially because the same parks had major daytime peaks.

Around closing: queues still looked alive

Separate from the longer-evening signals, several parks had queues that appeared open right around scheduled closing, within just a few minutes. This is best used as a practical fan tip, not as proof of an official extension.

Useful examples:

  • Universal Studios Hollywood had multiple queues around 19:02, including The Simpsons Ride™ at 40 minutes, The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash at 40 minutes, and Mario Kart™: Bowser’s Challenge at 25 minutes.
  • Knott's Berry Farm still showed GhostRider at 90 minutes, Sol Spin at 60 minutes, and HangTime at 45 minutes around 22:01.
  • Disney's Hollywood Studios had Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets at 55 minutes and Slinky Dog Dash at 35 minutes around 18:01.
  • Universal Islands of Adventure still showed Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™ at 90 minutes just after 22:00.

Maintenance and attraction availability notes

Some availability notes are worth separating carefully: maintenance is not the same as a temporary ride fault.

Unavailable minutes by park

At Aquatica Orlando, Omaka Rocka, Whanau Way, Tassie's Underwater Twist, and Taumata Racer were in maintenance throughout the full 24-hour measurement window. At Flamingo Land, Little Monsters Wacky Races was also in maintenance for the whole period.

At Disney California Adventure Park, Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind and Silly Symphony Swings were in maintenance throughout the full window, while Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland Park was also listed under maintenance for the full period.

Temporary ride interruptions were most notable at Carowinds, where Gear Spin and The Flying Cobras were affected throughout the 24-hour window, and at Cedar Point, where Rougarou and Cedar Creek Mine Ride were affected throughout the same period.

Final fan tip

If you are chasing big-name rides, the pattern from this report is clear: use those early calm windows hard, keep an eye on late-day queue signals, and always separate maintenance from temporary interruptions when building your plan. For today’s crowd-watchers, Universal Epic Universe, Knott’s Berry Farm and EPCOT were the parks to study first.