It’s A Small World
Opened: October 1, 1971
Location: Fantasyland
Extra Magic Hours: Morning, Evening
FASTPASS: No
Type: Dark ride
Similar To: Vaguely similar to The Great Movie Ride and Living with the Land
Requirements: None
Scary Factor: Zero, but you may lose your sanity
What to Expect: The queue for “it’s a small world” is covered and mostly indoors, but there isn’t a lot to see or do while in line. Once you make it to the front of the line you will board a slow-moving boat that seats about 20 people. The boat will take you through a number of scenes featuring about 300 audio-animatronic dolls dressed up in costumes from over 100 nations. Each of the dolls sings the same “it’s a small world” theme song non-stop throughout the ride while dancing to the tune.
When To Go: This is another good ride to visit in the afternoon or while you’re waiting for a FASTPASS time to become due for another Fantasyland ride. Riding this along with Mickey’s PhilharMagic in the afternoon should give you a nice break from the heat and crowds. Lines should also be nonexistent in the late evening and during evening Extra Magic Hours, which is an even better time to visit if you don’t get a chance to ride in the afternoon or don’t require a break
Expect to Wait: Waits are rarely longer than 20 minutes and should be ten minutes or less in the late evening.
Length: 11 minutes
Rating: 5/10
Closed for Refurbishment: “it’s a small world” will be closed for refurbishment from 8/1/10 to 10/22/10. It’s expected that Disney characters will be worked into the scenes, the boats will be replaced, and the costumed animatronics will be updated.
Commentary: This is another Disney ride that has been kept mostly the same since it opened nearly 40 years ago. It will be popular with kids and adults that appreciate classic Disney attractions, but won’t be enjoyed much by people who are looking for the latest in technology and thrills. It’s a perfectly pleasant ride and a nice relaxing break, but the repetitious song will likely get on the nerves of most by the time the ten minute ride is over. Even worse, chances are good that you’ll have to sit and wait for a few minutes to unload from your boat due to backups at the end of the ride, so you’ll have to sit and listen to the song even when there’s nothing to look at. All in all, I would recommend “it’s a small world” because it is one of those classic rides that people will ask about when you return home to tell them about your vacation. Even though it’s not particularly enjoyable for most, it should serve as a nice diversion in the middle of the day. If the line is long or you’re worried about completing your itinerary, then you may want to skip and visit rides with a higher rating.