With Test Track 3.0 having been open for five days, I thought today might be a good chance to look at its wait times and Lightning Lane availability. If you’re visiting EPCOT in the next few weeks, this is important data for you, so let’s get to it!
With the ride only recently having reopened, we’re still in a bit of a transition phase. There’s hype for the ride, and it always takes some time for guests to settle down into more “normal” patterns.
As those patterns change, you’ll want to make sure your EPCOT rope drop and EPCOT Lightning Lane strategies are properly tailored to your needs. In short—if you want to ride Test Track, have a plan.
As always, when it comes to Test Track I’m obliged to remind you the ride does have a single rider line. Single rider lines are always subject to availability, but if it’s open it can offer a possibly shorter wait for guests willing to ride separately.
How Popular Has Test Track 3.0 Been?
Since it reopened, Test Track has been the most popular ride in EPCOT, as measured by both wait times and Lightning Lane availability. The data in this post can be found on the excellent site Thrill Data.
Test Track Lightning Lane Availability
We’re going to start with Lightning Lane availability. Remember, guests of Disney and partner hotels can book their Lightning Lanes seven days in advance of the start of their stay for the length of their stay (up to 14 days). Other guests book Lightning Lanes 3 days in advance.
Lightning Lane times tend to book in the morning first, though there’s no reason this has to be so. That said, the earliest available time tends to be a good indicator of overall availability. Here are the earliest ranges of availability for future dates as I write on July 27:
July 27 to August 2 - No Availability
August 3 (+7 days) - 8PM
August 4 (+8) - No availability
August 5 (+9) - Afternoon availability
August 6 (+10) - Afternoon availability
August 7 (+11) onward - Morning availability
Guests who aren’t staying at a Disney resort will this find it hard to book Test Track in advance. Guests of Disney resorts are still limited for the first day or two of their visits, but later days are looking good.
Even when advance booking isn’t available, you’ll sometimes luck into times popping up while you’re in the park. This is either due to guests cancelling bookings or Disney opening availability same-day.
Here’s a look at the last time availability popped up on recent days:
July 26 - 8:45AM
July 25 - 8:45AM
July 24 - 1:30PM (also 8:50AM, then nothing in between)
July 23 - None
July 22 - None
So you can see that same day availability has been limited, too. I should point out that while the data from Thrill Data is the best available, it might not capture every single incidence of availability (sometimes a time that pops up will get booked before their system sees it).
That said, you’d be on the safe side assuming you won’t be booking Test Track same day these days. It’s probable that 8:45AM availability is being created by Disney, but there’s no guarantee that will continue.
Bottom line—if you don’t book a Lightning Lane for Test Track around 9 days in advance, you’ll probably not be able to book it at all. Hopefully this situation improves bit by bit as time progresses.
For what it’s worth, same-day Lightning Lane availability for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (the second most popular ride at EPCOT right now) on Single Pass is not exactly easy to come by, and you’ll have to pay for just that one ride, but it is easier to get your hands on than Test Track.
Test Track 3.0 Wait Times
In terms of wait times, Test Track waits are starting to level out with Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Here are the last five days of average waits, in reverse order (starting yesterday):
July 26 - 86 minutes Test Track vs. 78 minutes Guardians
July 25 - 89 Test Track vs. 77 Guardians
July 24 - 90 Test Track vs. 70 Guardians
July 23 - 85 Test Track vs. 76 Guardians
July 22 - 93 Test Track vs. 77 Guardians
This difference really isn’t too significant, and there have been plenty of times this week when Guardians had a longer wait than Test Track. Test Track has been slightly more popular at rope drop.
Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure consistently takes the third place slot in wait times, usually between 45 and 60 minutes.
What This Means For Epcot Strategy
Let’s start with a bigger picture. For the best day at EPCOT, it’s a good idea to plan to have either Lightning Lane Multi Pass or the Single Pass for Cosmic Rewind. Historically, it was easy to say Multi Pass was better value, but the return of Test Track complicates that.
Thrill seekers will need to get on Test Track and Cosmic Rewind. With Test Track availability on Multi Pass very limited, the best approach for just these two rides would be to rope drop Test Track and buy the Single Pass for Cosmic Rewind.
Conversely, guests with younger kids will probably still value Multi Pass more, as it will greatly simplify the task of getting on Frozen Ever After and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
If you have Lightning Lane Multi Pass, Test Track is definitely the highest priority to book. The only possible exception would be if you’re also buying the single pass for Guardians and entering EPCOT via the main entrance (not the international gateway). In that case, starting with Test Track at rope drop is a fine way to start your day, and you’ll have a better range of choice for Remy’s or Frozen with your first Lightning Lane pick.
If you do book Test Track in advance in this case, you’ll be able to make a more leisurely start at Frozen Ever After, or deal with a more clunky, across-the-park start at Remi’s Ratatouille Adventure to cross that off your list.
If you don’t book Test Track in advance, you’ll probably want to head there at rope drop, particularly from the main entrance. As you might guess, your main alternative is Cosmic Rewind.
Based on wait times, Test Track has been the slightly better pick to start your day, but it’s a small edge over Cosmic Rewind. You’ll probably be just as fine starting with either.
One way to think about the question of which to start with is to ask which is the better backup plan for you—single rider on Test Track or hoping you can spend $$$ to get the Guardians single pass if you can’t otherwise fit it into your day.
Overall, you’re probably looking at one longer (90 minute) wait in your day. This isn’t a huge problem for touring EPCOT, but it’s something you’ll need to plan for. If your rope drop strategy doesn’t include either Test Track or Cosmic Rewind, you’ll definitely want to have a Lightning Lane for one of them, or you risk spending 3+ hours of your day in line.
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