Credit: Inside the MagicLast weekend, hundreds of guests were stranded 65 feet up in stiflingly hot Monorail cars after the Walt Disney World Resort transportation system broke down unexpectedly. It took so long to rescue the Disney Resort guests that paramedics responded to treat overheated victims.
Related: Tokyo Disney Resort Condemns American Guests From Booking Future Vacations, “Stay Home”
The Monorail system transports Disney Park guests to and from Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT, the Transportation & Ticket Center, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Monorail Resort hotels offer the quickest and easiest form of Walt Disney World Resort transportation, outpacing busses, watercraft, and the Disney Skyliner.
Unfortunately, the iconic transportation system experienced multiple failures last weekend. In one incident covered by Inside the Magic, lightning struck a moving Monorail, and Disney cast members were forced to break windows to evacuate guests.
On July 12, hundreds of guests were stranded in broken-down Disney Monorail cars for over an hour. According to one of the guests on board, it was 94 degrees that day, and the air-conditioning wasn’t working.
Alysha (@mamabear_alysha on TikTok) was on board the Walt Disney World Monorail with her husband, two toddlers, and four other party members. She shared this video from the incident:
@mamabear_alysha Never again will i ride that damn thing disneymonorail disneymomsoftiktok
Hundreds of Disney Park guests were trapped in the small, quickly overheated Monorail cars. Alysha said her husband pushed out one of the windows to increase airflow in their cabin. They were reportedly stuck from around 12:23 p.m. to 1:40 p.m., during some of the hottest and sunniest parts of the day in Central Florida.
Based on Alysha’s clips, the Monorail appears to have stopped somewhere between Magic Kingdom Park, Disney’s Contemporary Resort, and the Transportation & Ticket Center (TTC). Once Disney cast members got the Monorail moving again, they evacuated guests at the TTC.
Paramedics were waiting at the TTC and evaluated all guests on board. Alysha’s family faced no lasting injuries, but she stated that she would “never again” ride the Monorail.
Alysha told horrified commenters that Walt Disney World Resort compensated her family with 16 $25 Disney gift cards, totaling $400 or $50 per person.
Disney Parks fans felt Walt Disney World Resort owed guests much more.
“I’d be emailing corporate,” @michelle__2987 wrote. “I complained about a few minor things and they gave me two free nights at Pop for a future stay.”
“The way the police will take you to jail for leaving your kid in a hot car for an hour and they just pay you $400 and say have a nice day?” said @lucky_number_6. “NO WAY!”
Still, others felt that Walt Disney World Resort didn’t need to compensate guests for an accident.
“I feel like $400 is plenty of money to make me realize things unfortunately happen even in the ‘happiest place on earth’ & go eat a fancy paid for dinner & turn it into a good day rather than complain,” @bay.dawn argued.
The Monorail opened shortly after the incident on July 12 and operated normally at the time of this article’s publication.
What’s the wildest thing that’s happened on your Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland Resort vacation? In the comments, share your story with Inside the Magic.
Please note that the story outlined in this article is based on a personal Disney Parks guest experience. No two guest experiences are alike, and this article does not necessarily align with Inside the Magic’s personal views on Disney Park operations.