5 Places You Don’t Want to Walk After Dark in Disney World

The fireworks are over, the crowds have cleared out, and suddenly it’s just you, a dimly lit path, and something rustling in the bushes. Welcome to Disney World after dark!

EPCOT

Let’s be honest, the Most Magical Place on Earth can be straight-up creepy sometimes. Between the scary villains, the 999 happy haunts in the Haunted Mansion, and a certain hotel elevator with a habit of dropping people into the Twilight Zone, there are some things about the parks that are surprisingly spooky. But the rides are only part of it. The parks and resorts at night are a completely different vibe than they are during the daytime, and if you find yourself out and about after sunset, there are some places in Disney World that you may not want to walk alone. Here are five of them!

Pathways from the Parks to the Hotels

Sure, they’re convenient, but the walking paths between the parks and the hotels (like the one from Magic Kingdom to the Grand Floridian, or the one from Hollywood Studios to the EPCOT resort area) can be downright creepy at night! Even with the lights, they can get pretty dark, and they’re eerily quiet because they’re (quite literally!) the paths less traveled. Plus, you’re pretty far away from other guests while you’re making the trek, and the Hollywood Studios path runs for more than a mile if you follow it all the way to EPCOT.

Grand Floridian Walkway

Of course, these paths are usually quite safe. We just let the dark and quiet get to our heads! But if you’d feel better staying with the crowds, there are more popular ways to get back to your hotel. Leaving Hollywood Studios, you can take the Friendship Boats to the Swan and Dolphin, the Yacht and Beach Club, or the BoardWalk. (The Skyliner will also get you to EPCOT’s International Gateway, but you’ll have to transfer at Caribbean Beach.) And if you’re exiting Magic Kingdom, just hop on the resort monorail or the boat to the Grand Floridian. The boat is usually not too busy, and depending on where your room is, the dock might actually be a shorter walk than the monorail station in the main building.

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Walkway at the Swan Hotel

Fantasyland

This may seem like an odd choice, but allow us to explain! We sometimes avoid walking through Fantasyland at night simply because it feels a little precarious. Parts of this land are SO DARK at night that it’s hard to see the ground where you’re walking. Pair that with the noise from the fireworks, the crowds, and the fact that everything is smushed close together, and you’ve got a recipe for bumping into other people (or getting run over by strollers and ECVs).

Fantasyland in Magic Kingdom

And Magic Kingdom nights are busier than they used to be! Happily Ever After draws a huge crowd to Cinderella Castle, and the Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away parade now steps off on most nights without a ticketed party, usually twice. Meanwhile, construction walls for Piston Peak National Park have closed off the Frontierland boardwalk, so there’s less room to spread out on that side of the park.

Magic Kingdom at night

We realize it’s pretty unrealistic to expect that you’ll never walk through Fantasyland at night. If you’re heading this way, just take extra care to be aware of your surroundings. Fantasyland is at its darkest and most chaotic around fireworks time, so if you can, plan your visit for earlier or later in the evening. Showtimes shift with the season, so check the My Disney Experience app before you go.

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Fantasyland at night

Value Resorts

Disney World’s value hotels are known for their larger-than-life theming, and it’s really cute and whimsical during the day. But at night…it can get a little unsettling. Have you ever walked by the giant Woody at All-Star Movies after dark? He’s more than two stories tall, and his eyes have an aura of foreboding, if you ask us. The same goes for the gigantic jack-in-the-box over in the resort’s Fantasia section. We’re instantly uncomfortable there.

He scares us!

If the enormous set pieces creep you out (or your kiddos, for that matter), make sure to explore your resort for the first time during the day. That’ll give you some level of comfort before you see it all at night. And if that doesn’t help, try walking around the back side of the buildings instead. There’s usually less theming back there!

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All-Star Movies

Fort Wilderness Trails

If you’ve ever been to Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground, you know that this resort is a bit more rustic than the others on Disney property. And what comes along with rustic charm? Yep, wildlife. We’ve encountered our fair share of wild animals while out on walks at Fort Wilderness, and let us just tell you, those wild turkeys won’t move for ANYTHING. The odds are not in your favor if you’re going solo up against a flock of wild turkeys after dark.

Fort Wilderness Entrance

For those staying at Fort Wilderness, we recommend doing your walks early in the morning or around sunset. (We know that walking in the middle of the day in the Florida heat is a recipe for disaster.) And if you decide to mosey around the campground at night, maybe take someone with you…ya know, for backup in the battle with the turkeys.

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Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue

World Showcase

Finally, let’s talk about World Showcase. This is an area that you want to avoid at night for a completely different reason. Why? Well, because in the evening, locals come to eat dinner, guests hop over from other parks, and there are usually quite a few inebriated adults milling about after a day of “drinking around the world.” In general, it gets CROWDED.

World Showcase

After dark, it’s often a challenge to maneuver through the pavilions due to the hordes of guests. It doesn’t help that there are typically people lined up for concerts at the America Gardens Theatre in front of The American Adventure (hello, Eat to the Beat during the Food & Wine Festival!) or staking out their fireworks spots around the lagoon.

Epcot

So when you visit EPCOT, it might be a good idea to hit up World Showcase midday. Try to avoid it during the dinner rush, and then come back a little while before the fireworks and claim your spot in World Showcase Plaza at the front of the lagoon. (Trust us, it’s one of the best places to watch Luminous The Symphony of Us!)

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Crowds in Germany

Basically, just pay attention to your surroundings when you’re out and about at night, even in Disney World. It’s best to travel in groups, especially when there’s an oversized jack-in-the-box lurking around the corner! Keep following DFB for all the tips on how to best conquer the parks during your next vacation. We’ve got the latest updates on changes in Disney World, special offerings coming soon, and tips on how to have the most delicious trip possible.

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Which Disney World spot do YOU typically avoid at night? Tell us in the comments!

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