Disney World Walking Distances

Walking is a Big Part of Any Theme Park Vacation

Especially at Walt Disney World, walking distances between attractions can be vast. It’s important to be prepared to walk A LOT when visiting these parks. Knowing what to expect is a good first step to preparing for what will ultimately be a marathon of walking.

Want to find out about walking distances at Disneyland? Check out this post.

Audio tutorial

Go Informed Podcast episode 77 is a discussion of how to train for your Disney vacation. Find it on your favorite podcast app, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify.

How Many Miles Will You Realistically Walk at Disney World?

The distances listed below are just a sampling of how far apart things are in the Disney World parks. To set realistic expectations, keep in mind that you will inevitably do a lot of back-tracking. Plus you need to add in the mileage just getting to the park gate. For example, the walk from the Magic Kingdom bus stop just to the front gate is about a quarter-mile!

Underestimating distances is one of my top ten theme park touring mistakes. Get the list of what NOT to do here.

If walking these distances will be difficult for you, consider renting a wheelchair or scooter to help you get around. Be thoughtful about your abilities (and the endurance of your traveling companions too) so you can set realistic expectations and truly enjoy your Disney World vacation.

75-second Disney World Quick Guide

Train for Your Trip

One of the best things you can do to prepare for your Orlando theme park vacation is to start walking now. Luckily this is something we can all do just by walking out our own front door. Get your entire family in practice so they’ll be ready to handle all those miles.

Neighborhood Walk Bingo – Disney World Edition

Start thinking about your walking distances in terms of Disney destinations. For example, a half-mile walk in your neighborhood is the same as a walk from Epcot’s front gate to the Frozen ride.

I’ve created a fun Bingo card to help you turn your neighborhood walk into a virtual walk through the parks. Just track your miles then check off the corresponding distances on the card. On a typical walk you might pass Space Mountain, Mount Everest, and Big Thunder too!

You can get a free printable PDF of the Orlando theme park neighborhood walk bingo card right here.

Learn More About the Parks While You Walk

What’s a great thing to do on a walk? Listen to a podcast of course!

You can hear me describe all of the Orlando theme parks while you walk. The Go Informed Podcast archives include audio tours of all the Disney World and Universal Orlando parks, plus in-depth explorations of lands like Galaxy’s Edge and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Just search for Go Informed: Build a Better Vacation on your favorite podcast app. Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button!

I also highly recommend that everyone planning for a Disney World vacation get a copy of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. This book has tons of great info and will help you with everything from choosing your hotel to planning your park days. Here’s a link on Amazon.

Get the Right Gear

Another thing I recommend is to be sure you have the right gear for all this walking. That means good walking or running shoes, comfortable socks, and a way to track your distance. There are lots of free apps for your phone to track distance, or you can use a fitness tracker.

Be sure to try out your new shoes and socks BEFORE you go on your trip. It’s important to get some miles on them to ensure everything is comfortable and really working for you while you still have the chance to make adjustments.

And, just in case, pack a few blister bandages in your park bag.

Are you going to Orlando in the summer heat? Be sure to check out my summer gear guide here.

Magic Kingdom Walking Distances

Believe it or not, Magic Kingdom is one of the smaller parks at Disney World. (If you need some context about the overall scale of Disney World check out this infographic). Here are some of the places you will likely walk on your day at Magic Kingdom.

• Magic Kingdom front gate to Cinderella Castle: 0.2 miles
• Magic Kingdom front gate to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: 0.4 miles
• Magic Kingdom front gate to Space Mountain: 0.4 miles
• Space Mountain to Big Thunder Railroad: 0.4 miles
• Loop around Magic Kingdom park: 1.6 miles
• Walk from the Magic Kingdom bus stop to the front gate: 0.2 miles
• Walk from the Contemporary Resort to the Magic Kingdom front gate: 0.6 miles

Wondering how the distances at Disney World compare to Disneyland? Here’s my post with the Disneyland walking distances.

Epcot Walking Distances

At Epcot you can expect to cover a lot of ground on your own two feet. While there is boat transportation in the World Showcase end of the park, you’ll be walking the rest of the way.

Epcot has a unique design that gives it two park entrances. This expands the options for how to get around and offers a few shortcuts. Here are some of the walking distances at Epcot.

• Epcot front gate to Test Track: 0.3 miles
• Epcot front gate to Frozen (Norway): 0.5 miles
• Epcot front gate to Remy’s Adventure (France): 0.6 miles
• Epcot loop from front gate around World Showcase, back to front gate: 1.7 miles
• Test Track to Soarin’: 0.7 miles
• Epcot loop around World Showcase: 1.0 miles
• Epcot International Gateway entrance to Remy’s Adventure (France): 0.2 miles
• Epcot International Gateway entrance to Test Track: 0.5 miles
• Epcot International Gateway entrance to front gate: 0.7 miles

Disney’s Hollywood Studios Walking Distances

Hollywood Studios has a smaller footprint than the other parks, but you might find yourself back-tracking more often. So take these distances and double them to account for your round-trip to the attractions.

• Hollywood Studios front gate to Runaway Railway: 0.2 miles
• Hollywood Studios front gate to Slinky Dog Dash Coaster: 0.3 miles
• Hollywood Studios front gate to Millennium Falcon: 0.4 miles
• Hollywood Studios front gate to Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster: 0.2 miles
• Walk around most of Hollywood Studios: 1.2 miles
• Fantasmic theater seating to Skyliner gondola: 0.5 miles

Getting your feet, and your family, in condition for your trip is one of 8 tasks on my pre-trip checklist. Click here to find out what else to do before you go.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Walking Distances

Animal Kingdom is the largest of the Disney World parks, but a lot of the space is animal habitat. Nonetheless, you’ll find attractions spread out over a lot of area here. Be prepared to take breaks and give yourself lots of time to explore. Here are some of the walking distances at Animal Kingdom.

• Animal Kingdom front gate to Flight of Passage: 0.3 miles
• Animal Kingdom front gate to Kilimanjaro Safaris: 0.3 miles
• Animal Kingdom front gate to Expedition Everest: 0.4 miles
• Loop around most of Animal Kingdom: 1.9 miles

Walking Between the Disney World Parks

Disney World covers an area approximately the same size as San Francisco so you will not be walking between the parks, with the exception of a path between Hollywood Studios and Epcot. The walking distance from Epcot’s International Gateway to the Hollywood Studios entrance is about 1.1 miles.

Just for reference, here are some driving distances between the Disney World parks. Keep in mind that this is on major roads and freeways.

• Disney’s Animal Kingdom to Magic Kingdom driving distance: 5.5 miles
• Magic Kingdom to Epcot driving distance: 4.0 miles
• Epcot to Hollywood Studios driving distance: 4.3 miles
• Hollywood Studios to Animal Kingdom driving distance: 3.0 miles

Going from Disney World to Universal Orlando? Driving distance from Epcot to Universal is about 14 miles.

Universal Orlando Walking Distances

I personally think no Orlando vacation is complete without some time spent at Universal Orlando – especially for Harry Potter fans. Be sure to check out my 33 Things to Know Before You Visit Universal Orlando post for a ton of tips to help you go like a pro.

Universal Orlando has two theme parks right next to each other, both containing portions of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Here are some walking distances at Universal Orlando.

• Universal Islands of Adventure front gate to Hogwarts Castle: 0.5 miles
• Universal Islands of Adventure full loop: 1.2 miles
• Universal Islands of Adventure front gate to Universal Studios Florida front gate: 0.2 miles
• Universal Studios Florida front gate to Gringotts Bank: 0.5 miles
• Universal Studios Florida loop: 1.1 miles
• Walking from Gringotts Bank in Universal Studios Florida to Hogwarts Castle in Islands of Adventure: 1.2 miles (take the Hogwarts Express instead!)
• Universal Orlando parking garage to Universal Studios front gate: 0.8 miles
• Walking distance from the Universal Orlando Express Pass hotels:
  • Hard Rock Hotel to Universal Studios Florida gate: 0.4 miles
  • Portofino Bay Hotel to Universal Studios Florida gate: 0.8 miles
  • Royal Pacific Hotel to Islands of Adventure gate: 0.5 miles

Will this be your first visit to Universal Orlando? Be sure to check out this post and podcast episode loaded with Universal Orlando first-timer advice.

Free Printable Maps and Bingo Card

All of the maps you see here in the post, and the walk-in-the-parks bingo card are available for you to download and print!

• Click here to get the Orlando theme park walking distance maps
• Click here to get the Orlando theme park neighborhood walking bingo card.

Want a Disneyland themed walking bingo card too? You’ll find it here in my Disneyland walking distances post.

Additional Resources for Planning Your Trip to Disney World and Universal Orlando

• 55 Things to Know Before You Visit Disney World
• 33 Things to Know Before You Visit Universal Orlando
• Adding a Visit to Universal Orlando to Your Disney World Trip
• Disney World complete hotel guide
• Universal Orlando complete hotel guide

Get a 60-second jump-start on your vacation planning with my theme park quick start guides. Click here to see them all!

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What’s it like to walk at Disneyland Paris? Click here to find out!

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