In this post we give an overview of Peter Pan’s Flight, a dark ride at Disney’s Magic Kingdom theme park in Walt Disney World. We cover the basics of the ride, how to ride it, and our thoughts on the experience before closing with an FAQ. Read on to learn more!
Related Posts
This post is a quick guide to Peter Pan’s Flight, but we have related content that dives deeper into topics. Our Magic Kingdom Genie+ and Lightning Lane post covers Lightning Lane strategy in deep. The Magic Kingdom Rides and Entertainment Guide gives brief introductions to all the park’s offerings. For putting together your day at the park, we have a One Day Plan for Magic Kingdom.
Peter Pan’s flight Basics
Peter Pan’s Flight is a dark ride at Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. The ride
does not offer rider switch
has a Lightning Lane that is a part of Genie+
does not have a single rider line
is a part of Early Entry at Magic Kingdom
is about 3 minutes long
Where is Peter pan’s Flight located?
Peter Pan’s Flight is located in the western portion of Fantasyland, opposite “it’s a small world.” Entering the park, you’ll proceed directly through (or around) the castle and take a left at Prince Charming Regal Carrousel. “It’s a small world” will be on your right and Peter Pan’s Flight on your left.
If you’re riding it first at rope drop as part of Early Entry, you’ll queue with the guests heading into Fantasyland (along the right side of the castle, not the group heading into Tomorrowland). Follow the crowd, and most will go to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. You’ll go past that ride and past the carrousel to Peter Pan’s Flight.
How to Ride Peter Pan’s Flight
If you have Genie+, Peter Pan’s Flight is one of the top priorities in the park, along with Jungle Cruise and Space Mountain. If you have Early Entry, you can potentially ride Peter Pan’s Flight immediately and still plan to be on Jungle Cruise when that side of the park opens, taking care of two headliners without using Lightning Lanes (this assumes you have some plan for getting on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, like buying an Individual Lightning Lane).
Without Early Entry or Genie+ you’re left in a tough situation. Simply put, I won’t wait for this ride in the middle of the day anymore. There are situations where waiting 60 minutes or more for a ride in the middle of the day makes sense. But the Peter Pan’s Flight queue can move incredibly slowly, and some of the spaces are woefully cramped. I can’t bring myself to be stuck in that queue for any amount of time.
Part of the problem is just that the ride isn’t really special enough to justify its outsized waits. It’s a fine dark ride, but if you have other things to do and don’t wind up fitting it into your day, I don’t know many people who would say you really missed out. That is, it isn’t a must-do, but it has must-do waits and Genie+ demand.
I’ll still consider riding it late, particularly if the park has, say, an 11PM close and I can get to it sometime after 10:30PM, but I’m done considering this one with a 60-minute wait at 1PM.
If you’re visiting Magic Kingdom with small children the same advice applies, with the caveat that maybe your kids will get more of a thrill out of “flying” above the scenes. Personally I don’t think my kid much cares whether we’re on Peter Pan’s Flight or Under the Sea or Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh or playing Peek-a-boo in Emporium. Some children may go through a phase where the dark rides scare them, though Peter Pan has never actually upset our little one.
Peter Pan’s Flight Ride Experience
Peter Pan’s Flight is a “flying” dark ride through the scenes of Peter Pan. It’s a great dark ride, maybe even one of Disney’s best, and the experience of flying over the scenes adds a nice layer. Instead of being in a traditional on-the-ground dark ride vehicle, you’re in a flying pirate ship suspended from above. You can view a video of the ride here.
Peter Pan’s Flight FAQ
Why is Peter Pan’s Flight so popular?
Well, I don’t think it’s because the ride is that good. My guess is that Peter Pan’s Flight is popular because of two factors. The first factor is coincidence / system design. However Genie+ (and former FastPass+) are designed contributes to the problem. There’s lot of variables at play in how these systems are designed, and whether it’s intentional or simply a quirk of the system, I think Peter Pans’ Flight winds up with outsized wait times. Related to this is that the ride doesn’t have a height requirement, and so appeals to more guests.
The second factor is a bit of self-fulfillment. Most any Disney planning site is going to tell you to prioritize Peter Pan’s Flight. For most of us, it’s not because we think it’s something special, but rather that we’re trying to get you on as many of the rides as possible and Peter Pan’s Flight—because of the factors mentioned above—requires special attention to fit in.
The ride is at least in the top half of the rides at the park, and if you can get on all of those with the right strategy (you can), we’re going to deliver that strategy. So we wind up telling everyone to prioritize this ride, which keeps it popular.
When did Peter Pan’s Flight open in Disney World?
Peter Pan’s Flight was not quite ready for opening day and debuted October 3, 1971, two days after Magic Kingdom opened.
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