Disney Paths Less Traveled

On a vacation to Walt Disney World, you can easily end up walking 10 miles a day. No matter how fit you are, there is likely to come a time that you want a shortcut. I've walked (almost) every square foot of these parks, and in this post, I'm sharing with you my favorite shortcuts and pleasant paths to avoid crowds in each of the four theme parks.

We'll start with the queen of them all...

Magic Kingdom

None of these paths are going to save you steps, sorry. But the Magic Kingdom has its own unique factors when considering a nice path. It's a smaller park, so saving steps isn't quite as necessary. But the main paths in this park are absolutely crowded, even on a moderate day. So these paths are aimed at saving you from the crowds.

Tomorrowland-Fantasyland path: Avoid returning to the hub and walk a meandering path along rolling green hills (which is really the berm) with the railroad on the other side. To take this path, with your back to Space Mountain, turn right. Or from Fantasyland with your back to the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, turn left. You are basically walking along the perimeter of the park.

Rivers of America Boardwalk: This path can be quite a bit busier, but it is almost always less busy than sticking to the pavement. If you are trying to make your way from Liberty Square to Frontierland quickly, go along the water. There is a boardwalk just off the paved path that is both scenic and usually less busy than the main path. It's not necessarily shorter, but it will save you some time not having to deal with the crowds on the main path.

Main Street Shops: This path is not quiet as you'll be going through shops. But at times, this is the only way to get back up Main Street and out of the park. During parades and shows, Main Street can close, relegating you to the very crowded sidewalks. The good news is, there is another way. Duck into the shops and work your way through to avoid the busy sidewalk. If you stick to the side of the street the Emporium is on, you can make it all the way from the Fire House to the Hub without going outside. If you choose the other side of the street, you will have to exit the shops to cross a side avenue once, which is usually not a problem, especially if these shops are less busy than the Emporium.

EPCOT

I have good news and bad news. The good news is EPCOT is large enough that it rarely feels body-to-body packed like some other parks can on full capacity days. The bad news is that EPCOT is the largest park of them all when it comes to walking, and there is no short way to walk all the way around the World Showcase which is 1.3 miles around. But I do have some tips.

Stay West: We don't know if EPCOT's re-imagining will change this dramatically, but right now, Future World West always feels a bit more open to us than Future World East. East is the home of "thriller" attractions like Mission: SPACE and Test Track that tend to draw large crowds. Future World West, while it has its share of major attractions, tends to be more sedate, in my opinion, and it's prettier with more water features.

Imagination Pavilion to Canada: Here's a lovely one no one seems to know about. You can bypass the World Showcase promenade that leads to the main entrance of World Showcase from Future World entirely. There are two ways, but one decidedly feels more "secret" than the other. From Future World West, walk past the Imagination pavilion. As you round the pavilion, there is a small path that passes the festival pavilion (used only sometimes) and opens up just outside of the Canada pavilion.

Test Track to Mexico: You can also bypass the main World Showcase promenade by taking a left to go under the monorail track as you leave Test Track. This path will take you to the old Odyssey restaurant pavilion (which is something of a misnomer as it isn't a restaurant anymore and is instead called "the EPCOT experience"). Follow the path around the restaurant/experience along the water for sweeping lagoon and monorail track views. The path will let out just outside the Mexico pavilion.

World Showcase Friendship boats: Did you ever make it halfway around World Showcase and think "no, I can't do this anymore". I have. This is where the Friendship boats come in handy. Boats leave from the World Showcase plaza and go either to Germany or Morocco pavilions, bypassing about 1/3 of world showcase either way. Note that the boats never cross the middle of the lagoon... they just travel along the perimeter of the lagoon, so if you want to get to Germany fast, take the boat toward the Germany side. Vice versa with Morocco.

Disney Hollywood Studios

Most Disney parks operate on a hub and spoke system, but Disney Hollywood studios is one of the crazy ones that over time has just become a web of paths. The good news is this keeps main paths a bit less congested. The bad news is there are very few shortcuts to speak of. But here is one:

Grand Avenue to Toy Story Land: With the construction of Star Wars Galaxy's Edge, you no longer have to return to the area in front of the Chinese theater to get to another land. You can also walk the path behind it, which will take you through Galaxy's Edge. This might save you steps if you are trying to get from one side of the park to another. However, Galaxy's Edge continues to be extremely popular, so it might not save you having to deal with crowds. Still, it's good to know your options.

Disney's Animal Kingdom

Ah, my favorite park when it comes to hidden paths! This park is just made for meandering. What we love best about this park is that it is a double hub and spoke system, meaning there is an inner hub (Discovery Island) and, unknown to some, an outer hub. We are big fans of sticking to the outer hub as many families will return to Discovery Island and the paths can be quite congested.

Pandora to Africa: This is my absolute #1 favorite hidden secret path... to the point that I sort of hate to give it away. Pandora is almost always crowded. Africa is not too far behind in terms of crowds. But somehow, the outer hub path (not returning to Discovery Island) is secluded and quiet. I have walked this path and come across literally no one the entire journey. It's lush, and the jungle sounds change slowly from the usual earthly sounds in Africa to the otherworldly hum of Pandora. It's a lovely transition. Sometimes you'll even come across musicians. To take this path, take a left when exiting Satuli Canteen. You will let out in the Festival of the Lion King area of Africa.

Tree of Life Gardens / Tough To Be a Bug Exit: My longstanding favorite path before Pandora was built is a path that takes you from one side of Discovery Island to another alongside and practically under the Tree of Life. You will walk under the giant roots of the tree, and even under a waterfall, and you will see several animals along this path. Some of the best scenes in the park, including the one below, can only be found on this path. One word of warning, though: half of this path is also the exit to It's Tough to Be a Bug. If you hit it at the wrong time, you will be swallowed up in a crowd that seemed to come from nowhere. My advice is if you get to the tree and see a big crowd on half of the path, just wait five minutes for the crowd to clear, and then you will have the path to yourself once more. To walk this path, from Discovery Island, take your last right just before the Africa bridge. I always recommend going in this direction due to the warning above. You will be let out just before the Asia bridge.

Rivers of Light Theater: This path is quieter but not necessarily shorter. If less crowds is what you want, or if you are avoiding a parade happening on Discovery Island, this is another way to get from Asia to Dinoland USA. The path is long but quiet, and during the day there is plenty of seating in the Rivers of Light theater if you want to take a quiet, but sunny, rest. On busy park days, I would take this path to avoid Discovery Island. On quieter park days, Discovery Island is probably a shorter way.

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We hope these tips save you some steps, or at least some sanity the next time you are in Walt Disney World. Do you have a shortcut we didn't talk about? Share it with us here or on our Facebook page! Until next time...