Thorpe Park was the British park that refused to be swallowed by the American giants yesterday. While Orlando and California were throwing around the biggest numbers, Hyperia still climbed to 140 minutes — and honestly, seeing a UK coaster barge into that company always makes the wait-time graphs more fun.
Epic Universe still had the heavyweight queues
Universal Epic Universe again behaved like the park everyone wanted to test their patience against. The overall average sat around 43 minutes, but the real drama was in the headline rides: Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry spent the day in properly serious territory, averaging 116 minutes and peaking at 165, while Mine-Cart Madness was not far behind with an average just over 110 minutes.
That makes the early part of the day extra interesting. Universal Epic Universe wait times had Extra Hours on 28 June 2026, a one-hour early-access period from 09:00 to 10:00 for eligible visitors. The funny little wait-time nerd detail? Around 10:00, the park still looked surprisingly gentle on the graphs, with the quietest hour hovering near 5 minutes on average, before the evening rush turned the place into a very different beast. By 18:00, the busy-hour average was pushing 160 minutes. That is not a curve; that is a launch coaster.
SeaWorld Orlando had a similar “don’t relax too early” feel. The morning was beautifully calm, with the 09:00 hour close to walk-on levels, but by late morning the park had turned into a proper planning puzzle. Pipeline: The Surf Coaster and Journey to Atlantis both touched 120 minutes, while Penguin Trek, Manta and Infinity Falls helped keep the park’s overall average up near 42 minutes.
SeaWorld and Flamingo Land gave visitors bonus park time
SeaWorld Orlando gets a big thumbs-up from me for the end of the day. The park was scheduled to close at 18:00, yet wait times kept moving until 19:59, so visitors effectively got almost two extra hours of useful park time. Pipeline: The Surf Coaster and Penguin Trek were still carrying waits up to 60 minutes after closing, which is exactly the kind of late-day movement I love spotting in the graphs. If you were still in the park, that was not dead time — that was bonus ride-hunting time.
Flamingo Land did a smaller but very charming version of the same trick. The planned close was 16:00, but Mumbo Jumbo and Flamingo 1 were still showing real queues up to 16:59, giving Sunday visitors roughly an extra hour to play with. For a British park, that is a lovely little win, especially on a weekend day without a school-holiday or public-holiday boost in the background.
Busch Gardens Tampa also deserves a nod. After a planned 22:00 close, Cobra’s Curse was still alive on the graph until 23:47, after a day where SheiKra hit 160 and Iron Gwazi reached 120. I know this recap is mainly about the UK-versus-big-US picture, but extra late movement like that is too tasty not to mention.
Thorpe Park had the UK headline, but the start was bumpy
Thorpe Park’s average wait of about 29 minutes put it right among the stronger parks in this report, and Hyperia was the obvious magnet. A 140-minute peak for Hyperia is the kind of number that makes you immediately rethink your route from the entrance plaza.
The park also had a slightly awkward morning-to-midday pattern. Samurai first appeared open at 12:48 after a 10:00 scheduled opening, while Ghost Train and Ready Player One 4D Experience both appeared around 12:32. I would not call that day-ruining, but if those are on your personal must-do list, it is exactly the sort of thing I’d want to know before marching straight across the park with too much confidence.
Knott’s and Magic Mountain were pure coaster chaos
Knott’s Berry Farm had one of those wonderfully intense coaster days where the big names just kept pulling people in. GhostRider averaged almost 93 minutes and reached 120, while HangTime also hit 120. The best twist, though, came later: the 18:00 hour looked far calmer, around 5 minutes on average, even after a 16:00 rush that was much heavier. I love these weird late dips; they are the wait-time equivalent of finding an empty row on a packed train.
Six Flags Magic Mountain went even more extreme on individual rides. Goliath peaked at 200 minutes, X2 reached 160, and both still mattered right at the end of the night. Around the scheduled 22:00 close, X2 still had a 160-minute wait showing, with Goliath and CraZanity also still carrying hefty queues. That is not an official extension moment in this report, but for closing-time hunters it is a very useful reminder: Magic Mountain can stay intense right up to the final minute.
Disney had early access, but the afternoon still bit back
Disney’s Hollywood Studios had Early Entry on both 28 and 29 June 2026, a 30-minute head start from 08:30 to 09:00 for eligible guests. Even with that early advantage, the park was not exactly sleepy later on. Disney’s Hollywood Studios wait times averaged about 34 minutes, with Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets reaching 115 and Slinky Dog Dash hitting 85.
What made me smile was the evening contrast. Like Knott’s, Hollywood Studios had a much softer 18:00 hour near 5 minutes on average after a much busier late afternoon. If you only looked at the big headline rides, you might assume the whole day was a grind, but the graphs had that lovely “wait, there was a gap!” moment later on.
Over at EPCOT wait times, Early Entry also ran on 28 and 29 June 2026 from 08:30 to 09:00. Test Track reached 95 and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind hit 80, and both still had queues right around the scheduled 21:00 close. That makes EPCOT another park where I would not spend the whole day assuming the evening automatically means empty walkways and instant rides.
The best little quiet surprises
The calmest useful pockets were not full-park ghost towns, but they were absolutely worth spotting. SeaWorld Orlando’s 09:00 hour was the prettiest early gift, with the park barely above walk-on territory before the midday queues arrived. Universal Studios Hollywood also had a soft 10:00 hour around 5 minutes on average, helped by Extra Hours on 28 June 2026 from 08:00 to 09:00, where eligible visitors could get in before the regular crowd pattern really settled.
Knott’s Berry Farm and Disney’s Hollywood Studios both had that curious early-evening dip around 18:00, and those are the moments I get weirdly excited about. Not because every ride is guaranteed to be empty, but because they remind you not to treat a busy afternoon as the full story. Sometimes the graph blinks, and if you are nearby, you pounce.
My practical wait-time tip
If I were planning from these past 24 hours, I would rope-drop carefully at SeaWorld Orlando, keep a very close eye on Hyperia before committing at Thorpe Park, and save some stamina for late chances at Knott’s Berry Farm or Universal Epic Universe. Personally, I would not assume the morning solves everything: yesterday’s best little surprises were just as likely to appear late in the day.
The day in charts
