Alien Swirling Saucers

Alien Swirling Saucers: attraction at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World — live wait times, operating status, and planning data on MouseHub.

Wait time history

Historical wait patterns for Alien Swirling Saucers accrete daily as MouseHub records waits every 15 minutes. Charts appear here once enough history exists.

Visitor sentiment

4.4· 1,808 Google ratings

Visitors say this ride offers fun spinning and swirling, with colorful, cute spaceship vehicles and entertaining Toy Story theming and music. They also highlight it's a great quick ride for kids and adults, especially when wait times are short. Some reviews mention there can be a long wait for a short ride.

Summarized with Gemini · Report summary

The MouseHub take

Alien Swirling Saucers opened with Toy Story Land on June 30, 2018, and the story is that you're riding a toy Andy won at Pizza Planet. You board a rocket towed by a flying saucer piloted by one of the Toy Story aliens, and the saucers whip the rockets around a series of turntables to electronic renditions of Toy Story tunes. The Claw hangs overhead, picking out an alien. The whip is the whole ride: each turn slides you along the bench and into whoever you're sitting with. A roof shaped like a flying saucer covers the turntables, so the riding portion stays out of the sun.

In Toy Story Land, Slinky Dog Dash takes the crowds, so this one usually posts a shorter wait through the afternoon. The 32-inch minimum is low enough for most toddlers, and small kids ride the bench next to a parent instead of alone. The guests who come off disappointed are the ones who stood in the sun for a cycle that ends about as soon as it gets going. Ride it in the first hour, or after dark once the saucers and the canopy light up.

At a glance

Best for
Families with toddlers who clear 32 inches, and anyone who wants a short, silly break between Toy Story Land's bigger rides.
Skip if
Spinning rides get to you, or you have one day at Hollywood Studios and a list of headliners still to get through.
Ride type
Whip-style spinner, toy rockets towed around turntables
Intensity
Mild. Fast lateral turns and loud music, no drops, no darkness.

The good

  • Most toddlers clear the 32-inch minimum
    Anyone 32 inches or taller rides, and small kids share the bench with an adult rather than sitting alone. That keeps a young family together instead of splitting at the entrance.
  • The playset theming rewards a look up
    The Claw hangs over one of the turntables with an alien in its grip, and the center of the ride platform is built as half a Pizza Planet. Andy won the whole set on a trip there, which is the joke the land is telling.
  • The whip catches riders off guard
    The saucers tow the rockets around the turntables instead of spinning them in place, so each direction change slides everyone down the bench into each other. Kids find that funnier than the spinning itself.
  • Waits stay short while Slinky Dog Dash fills up
    Most of Toy Story Land queues for the coaster, which leaves this one with a manageable standby line through the afternoon. It fills a gap between bigger rides without costing much of the day.
  • The soundtrack is Toy Story, remixed
    Disney wrote new electronic space music renditions of the film's themes for the attraction. It's loud, it's upbeat, and it runs the whole cycle.
  • The roof keeps the sun off the ride
    A canopy shaped like a flying saucer covers the turntables, borrowing the Googie architecture of the 1950s and 1960s. The riding portion stays shaded even at midday.

The bad

  • The cycle ends about as soon as it starts
    Riders come off saying it was over before it registered. That lands hardest on anyone who spent a long stretch in the standby line first.
  • The line bakes in the sun
    The standby queue runs outdoors with little shade and no air conditioning. An afternoon wait here in summer is the part guests complain about most.
  • The whip turns can turn stomachs
    The lateral snap around the turntables gets to riders who are sensitive to spinning. Anyone who avoids carnival whip rides should treat this as one.
  • There's nothing to do but hold on
    Toy Story Mania! next door has targets and a score. This ride has neither, and older kids tend to be done with it after one cycle.

Veteran tips

  • Ride it in the first hour or after dark
    Standby is shortest at rope drop, while the rest of the land queues for Slinky Dog Dash. After dark the saucers and the canopy light up and the ride shows better than it does at noon.
  • Check the posted wait before you commit
    The cycle is short enough that a long line rarely pays off. Past about half an hour we'd walk away and check again on the My Disney Experience app later in the day.
  • Save your Multi Pass for something bigger
    This sits in the second Lightning Lane Multi Pass group at Hollywood Studios, competing with Tower of Terror and Toy Story Mania! for the same two picks. Standby here usually stays short enough that those two win.
  • Everyone transfers out of a wheelchair or ECV
    Disney lists this one as Must Transfer from Wheelchair/ECV, with a Transfer Access Vehicle available to help. Build the extra minutes into your timing if transfers take your party a while.
  • Rider Switch covers whoever can't board
    The attraction is on Disney's Rider Switch list, and service animals are not permitted to ride, so one adult can wait outside with the animal or a child under the height and still ride afterward. Only two people go on that second turn.
  • Kids under 7 need a rider 14 or older
    Disney's guest policies for this attraction require it, so a group of young siblings can't ride through on their own while the adults wait. Factor that in before you send them ahead.
  • Pocket everything before the saucers start
    The turns push riders sideways along an open bench, and hats and sunglasses go with them. Hand loose items to whoever isn't riding, or zip them into a bag first.

MouseHub editorial, written from visitor reports and official Disney sources. Last reviewed .

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