4. Epcot

Image: Disney

Estimated attendance: 12.2 million

While Epcot's Future World was once a realm of high-brow, high-capacity dark rides like the Lost Legends: Universe of Energy, Horizons, World of Motion, The Living Seas, Journey into Imagination, and Kitchen Kabaret that could quickly and effortlessly swallow enormous crowds with great efficiency, time has mostly shuttered those people-eater rides in favor of "brainless" technological E-Tickets, which quickly become totally swamped during busy periods. So what are you to do when visiting Epcot for its various festivals that can keep the park swamped around the holidays?

Image: Disney

Though we've been surprised to see its wait time balloon as of late, in general The Seas with Nemo and Friends make a perfect reprieve from crushing crowds. Its Omnimover ride system skillfully moves guests into the pavilion's central aquarium, where the exhibit is yours to explore at your leisure... the kind of experience other Disney Parks don't have in such quantity. Neaby is the perfect attraction to get a dose of Future World without the wait: Living with the Land, which is specialy lit for Christmas.

Technically, the once-glorious post-shows of Future World's pavilions have mostly disappeared or shriveled up to practically nothing, though you can still have some fun poking around ImageWorks in the Imagination pavilion, the Chevrolet Showroom in Test Track, the Advanced Training Lab in Mission: SPACE, and Project: Tomorrow inside the exit of Spaceship Earth. If any part of Innoventions is left, it also makes a fine place to wander during exceptionally crowded times.

Image: Disney

The real saving grace of Epcot for busy periods has to be World Showcase. Though only one pavilion has a headlining ride (Norway's Modern Marvel: Frozen Ever After), all are still rich with things to see, do, and taste. Mexico's Gran Fiesta Tour is a fun, classic aside, while Reflections of China, O Canada!, and Impressions de France are all beautiful (if dated) Circle-vision travelogue films that have no problem handling holiday crowds. Also see The American Adventure – a sensational and often-overlooked classic. As well, most of World Showcase's pavilions feature museum-like exhibitions that are rich with culture and meant to be absorbed in theme-park-time, like Noway's Stave Church Gallery (currently showcasing Norweigian mythology, loosely tied to Thor) and Japan's Bijutsu-kan, currently hosting "Kawaii Life: Culture of Cute."

3. Disney's Animal Kingdom

Image: Disney

Estimated attendance: 12.5 million

When Disney's Animal Kingdom opened in 1999, some early visitors criticized the lack of things to do at the park. Clearly, they just weren't looking around. Sure, Animal Kingdom opened with just two real rides (Kilimanjaro Safaris and the Lost Legend: Countdown to Extinction), but Disney's first 21st century park was also filled with unmarked trails; immersive animal exhibits; sensational entertainment. Like Disney's Hollywood Studios and Galaxy's Edge, it may be that Pandora propelled Animal Kingdom's attendance before it was really ready (the park bypassed both Hollywood Studios and Epcot in attendance as of the 2017 estimates), but at least the park's still-meager ride count (9) doesn't tell the whole story.

Image: Disney

If you find yourself at Disney's Animal Kingdom during the holiday season and opt not to wait your day away in line for the E-Tickets of Pandora, that's alright. Like Cars Land, Pandora: The World of AVATAR is an E-Ticket in and of itself, and must be seen both by day and by night to be believed. 

It's entirely alright to spend your day at Animal Kingdom just, y'know, enjoying the animals! Africa's Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail is a spectacular zoological journey through some of the most immersive animal exhibits ever; the same goes for Asia's Maharajah Jungle Trek. Both are trails through photo-realistic landscapes that are also plussed with Disney's deeply embedded storytelling and detail. In fact, all of the park's Africa and Asia (embodied in Harambe and Anadapur, respectively) are worthy of in-depth investigation, and a day with multi-hour queues for E-Tickets might be the perfect excuse to do it. A similar attraction, Cretaceous Trail, features reptiles like crocodiles and storks in Dinoland.

Image: Disney

Animal Kingdom's entertainment may be a savior on crowded days, too. Check out It's Tough to be a Bug (if you dare) or Finding Nemo The Musical, both of which are hosted in large theaters. Reportedly, visitors haven't warmed to the new Pixar-infused UP: A Great Bird Adventure animal show or the supposed spectacular Rivers of Light, which has helped keep the stands relatively open. (In fact, Disney will even pay you $5 to see Rivers of Light this season...). Otherwise, spend time meandering around the Tree of Life and the pathways there. Especially at night, the Tree of Life is perhaps the ultimate Christmas tree thanks to the "Awakenings" show that occurs there.