Universal Studios Hollywood Runs Hot; Two Parks Are Nearly Empty This Week

Universal Studios Hollywood is posting 21-minute average waits, more than double the network average, while Knott's Berry Farm and Dollywood are running with skeleton-crew lines.

By Level Up Adventurestheme-parks · family-travel · weekly · week-2026-44Filed under Theme Parks
Photo: Gabriel McCallin · Unsplash

Universal Studios Hollywood is posting 21-minute average waits, more than double the network average, while Knott's Berry Farm and Dollywood are running with skeleton-crew lines. Where should a family actually go this week, and what does the broader refurb picture mean for your October plans?

Massive seasonal closures are reshaping the lineup

Late October brings heavy maintenance windows across the national park calendar, and this week's snapshot shows the scale. Cedar Point has 80 rides down, Hersheypark 54, and both Six Flags parks appear to be in off-season closure. Universal Studios Hollywood and Disneyland each have a dozen or more attractions offline. This level of simultaneous refurb work is typical for the shoulder between Halloween and the winter holiday season, but it means your ride roster will be thinner than summer or Christmas week.

Check the live status for each park before booking: a favorite ride may not be running when you arrive. If you're flexible on timing, the first full week most parks reopen from seasonal closure tends to offer both short lines and a fresh lineup of newly maintained attractions.

Universal Studios Hollywood is the crowded outlier; consider midweek there instead

Universal Studios Hollywood is running a 21-minute network average across just 12 open rides, with Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift hitting 70 minutes. That's not the busiest absolute number we see, but it's severe for a park with so many attractions offline. The rest of the Universal and Disney network is running at or below the 9-minute network average.

If you have a fixed Hollywood trip planned for this week, shift to a Tuesday or Wednesday: the pattern across both Universal coasts shows mid-week dips of 30 to 40 percent. If your schedule is flexible, the next major shoulder window for Universal (late September, mid-January, or early May) will give you shorter lines and a full operating roster.

Two parks are running bare-bones short right now

Knott's Berry Farm is posting 2-minute average waits across 34 open rides, and Dollywood is at 5 minutes across 33 rides. Both are well below the network average and sitting in that sweet spot where a same-week trip makes sense if you can pull it together. GhostRider and FireChaser Express (the longest waits at each park) are still under 15 minutes. These aren't typically the slowest parks of the year, so this is either mid-week quiet or a genuine lull before holiday season ramps up. If October or early November works for your family, book now.

Holiday merchandise and seasonal events are live

Walt Disney World and Disneyland are both running 2026 holiday merchandise guides, and Six Flags Magic Mountain is hosting Holiday in the Park. These are anchors for families planning a holiday trip in November or December, though they don't materially affect this week's crowd picture.

This digest is editorial, not a booking platform. Verify ride availability, park hours, ticket prices, and travel-advisory status with the official park / operator before traveling.

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