Typhoon Lagoon vs Blizzard Beach: which Disney water park to pick, and which is open

Which one is open right now?

Only Blizzard Beach. Typhoon Lagoon closed for its annual refurbishment on 9 September 2026, and Disney's calendar shows it closed with no reopening date. Blizzard Beach is open 10am to 5pm, and Disney says at least one water park is open every day except in bad weather.

The same ticket gets you into whichever one is open, so for now the choice is made for you.

When Typhoon Lagoon comes back is disputed. Most outlets expect spring 2027, when Blizzard Beach closes for its own refurbishment, going by recent years: it reopened on 19 March 2023, 17 March 2024, around 1 May 2025 and 12 May 2026. One long-running blog says a winter reopening is typical.²³ Neither date is Disney's.

Winter adds its own catch. The park that is open closes on cold days: Typhoon Lagoon shut four times in January 2026 alone.

Does it cost more to go to one than the other?

No. Disney sells one water park ticket for both: $74 for ages 10 and over and $68 for ages 3 to 9, before tax, or $64 and $58 with blockout dates. It admits you to whichever park is open that day. The Disney Water Park Seasonal Pass is $89 plus tax and runs to 15 May 2027.

The Water Park and Sports option or Park Hopper Plus on a theme park ticket adds water park visits. In summer 2026, Disney Resort guests got one free visit on their check-in day. Disney's page says the benefit returns in summer 2027, excluding the Fort Wilderness campsites, with dates still to come.

Which park has the better slides?

Blizzard Beach, and every outlet we read agrees, including those that prefer Typhoon Lagoon overall. Its headline is Summit Plummet, a 12-storey body slide Disney calls "the tallest, fastest freefall body slide around". Disney's own ticket page says only "one of the world's tallest", and two sources rank it third in the world.

Four sources give its top speed as 60 mph and one as 55; Disney gives none.

Blizzard Beach has four slides with a height minimum against Typhoon Lagoon's two, plus Teamboat Springs, a 1,200-foot family raft ride. Typhoon Lagoon's answer is Crush 'n' Gusher, a 400-foot water coaster, and Humunga Kowabunga's five-storey drop in the dark. Humunga Kowabunga has been closed since 20 January 2026 and Mayday Falls since earlier that season, with a permit filed for rebuilding work.

No report says either reopened this summer.

Which park has the better wave pool?

Typhoon Lagoon, and nobody we read argues otherwise. Its Surf Pool throws 6-foot waves, about every 90 seconds by most counts, into what Disney calls North America's largest wave pool. Surf lessons run in three-hour sessions outside park hours.

Blizzard Beach's Melt-Away Bay is a heated one-acre pool with gentle, continuous waves rather than surf. That suits small children and poor swimmers better, and anyone who came for body surfing will be disappointed. Disney heats the pools at both parks to about 81°F.

Which lazy river is better?

Close to a tie. Blizzard Beach's Cross Country Creek is 3,000 feet with seven places to get in and out; Typhoon Lagoon's Castaway Creek is 2,000 feet with five.

A full lap takes a little over 28 minutes against about 21 and a half.²⁸ Cross Country Creek rates slightly higher with TouringPlans' readers, and Castaway Creek is often called the more scenic and the better one for relaxing.

Which is better with small children?

Most outlets say Blizzard Beach. It has two children's areas: Tike's Peak, rethemed around Frozen in November 2022 with Olaf and Snowgie wading pools and an igloo fortress, and Ski Patrol Training Camp for older children. Melt-Away Bay's gentle waves help too.

Two outlets pick Typhoon Lagoon for toddlers, because Ketchakiddee Creek, for children under 4 feet, is larger and has more to do. If your children are 5 to 12 and like slides, the case for Blizzard Beach is stronger.

Which is better for adults who want to relax?

Typhoon Lagoon, by a clear majority. The tropical theming and the Surf Pool win out, and TouringPlans' survey data backs it: seniors rate Typhoon Lagoon 4.27 against 3.72 for Blizzard Beach. The asterisk is Summit Plummet.

An adult who wants the biggest thrill has to go to Blizzard Beach for it.

How do food, cabanas and lockers compare?

Disney lists nine places to eat at Blizzard Beach and seven at Typhoon Lagoon, two of them bars at each. Which food is better splits the outlets, so it should not decide your day. Towels and life jackets are free at both.

How crowded do they get, and when should you go?

Both parks can fill up. Typhoon Lagoon stopped admitting guests at 1pm on 7 August 2024, and Blizzard Beach closed at capacity several times in spring 2025. Neither Disney nor any outlet publishes a capacity figure.

The advice on timing splits. Arrive at opening for shade and a chair, or go in the last few hours when families leave. Monday to Wednesday are quieter than weekends.²⁶ Most waits run 5 to 15 minutes, with some 30-minute waits for the big slides on the busiest days.²⁸

How do you get to each park?

Parking is free at both. Disney Resort buses run to both, usually with a change of bus. Blizzard Beach is the only one with direct buses all year, from Coronado Springs and the All-Star resorts, and summer 2026 added more direct routes to both.³⁵ Typhoon Lagoon sits near Disney Springs, which makes an easy evening after a water park day.

Blizzard Beach is near Animal Kingdom, next to Winter Summerland mini golf.

What do guests say?

Reviewers split the way the outlets do. People who come for thrills, and families with teenagers, lean Blizzard Beach; people who come for the waves, the river or the atmosphere lean Typhoon Lagoon. "You can't go wrong with either" comes up again and again.

On Tripadvisor, Typhoon Lagoon holds 4.5 out of 5 from 9,220 reviews and Blizzard Beach 4.4 from 6,675.

The complaints repeat too. There are stairs at both, with one visitor counting 125 up to Runoff Rapids, and at Typhoon Lagoon you carry your own tube up to Crush 'n' Gusher. Afternoon lightning closes slides, and one reviewer paid $157 for a day that ended at noon.

A late-August 2026 review found Blizzard Beach old and tired, with some big slides shut.

So which one should you pick?

Pick Blizzard Beach for slides and thrills, and for children from about 5 to 12. Pick Typhoon Lagoon for the wave pool, the river and a slower day, and probably for adults on their own. Neither wins on price, food or lazy rivers.

Until Typhoon Lagoon reopens there is nothing to choose: Blizzard Beach is the only Disney water park open. If you are going next spring or later, check Disney's calendar for which park will be open on your dates.