RD @ MK - Where to be to snack & see!

[BucsTex]

It sounds like of the 4 parks, MK is the one that not only lets you the furthest into the park before RD, but also has the RD ceremony that is the most worth watching....

I'm thinking we arrive close to 8:00 on a 9:00 opening day, go into Main Street, grab a snack at the bakery, and then watch the ceremony from the train station prior to getting on the train to Frontierland. Is that realistic? Where exactly can you see the RD ceremony from? And how much of Main Street is open before RD?

(How much you guys want to bet Robo answers all this with a map? )

 

[Rekenna]

For MK RD you congregrate in the area in front of the big Mickey floral motif-you can see the train come in with the family of the day, dancers/singers and characters. After that is over you are then allowed to walk under the train station through the tunnels and onto glorious Main Street. Sorry, you can't go to the Bakery and come back out to watcht the ceremony-they don't let you in until the ceremony is over-it's a good idea though!

I'm sure there are about a gazillion MK RD videos on youtube. Search for one and you will see what I mean-unless you don't want to ruin the surprise!

 

[WDSearcher]

It sounds like of the 4 parks, MK is the one that not only lets you the furthest into the park before RD, but also has the RD ceremony that is the most worth watching....

I'm thinking we arrive close to 8:00 on a 9:00 opening day, go into Main Street, grab a snack at the bakery, and then watch the ceremony from the train station prior to getting on the train to Frontierland. Is that realistic? Where exactly can you see the RD ceremony from? And how much of Main Street is open before RD?

(How much you guys want to bet Robo answers all this with a map? )

Not realistic at all. The farthest they let you go prior to the ceremony is up to the train station itself. You can't go through the tunnels into Town Square, and Main Street itself is not open. I'm afraid if you want a snack prior to the RD ceremony, you'll have to bring it in with you!

 

[imthatgirl]

Nope, as others have said you won't get in to MK before RD. You will stay in front of the train station.

I think DHS is actually the one that lets you in the furthest to wait for RD.

 

[BucsTex]

Well since I actually checked Robo's link before he responded, I found the map myself.

What about those who are eating at CP before RD? Do they not get to watch the ceremony? I thought people were allowed into Main Street before RD....

 

[MHSweb79]

If the folks eating breakfast at CP want to see the show, they'll have to exit the park to do so. Mickey and everyone else is facing out the back of the train station, towards the turnstyles.

Main Street is not open to the public until after the opening ceremony. I would never waste early morning time by getting a snack or breakfast at the bakery- head straight to Dumbo and skip the cinnamon roll until later in the day!

 

[Rekenna]

Well since I actually checked Robo's link before he responded, I found the map myself.

What about those who are eating at CP before RD? Do they not get to watch the ceremony? I thought people were allowed into Main Street before RD....

Not unless those who had early ADR's at CP, finish up and want to exit the park-you would have to really rush your ADR. You can't see the ceremony from inside the park. It's great having that early ADR b/c you get to walk onto Main Street with no one else there.

DHS lets you in some of the way-it's part of the mad dash for TSM FP's.

 

[BucsTex]

Hm... well as suggested, I checked YouTube. It may be considered blasphemous to say this, but I think we'll skip that!!!! The music was driving me nuts. DS6 isn't all that into the characters, and since we'll be seeing them at meals anyway I think I'd rather be in the park already!

So if we have 8:15 ADR at CP, how does RD work for us? Will they hold a rope at the exit to the restaurant or something?

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Shockingly, something seems off about Robo's map. My memory may be faulty, but I remember the rope being in the areas under the train station that open out onto Main Street.

 

[WDSearcher]

Hm... well as suggested, I checked YouTube. It may be considered blasphemous to say this, but I think we'll skip that!!!! The music was driving me nuts. DS6 isn't all that into the characters, and since we'll be seeing them at meals anyway I think I'd rather be in the park already!

So if we have 8:15 ADR at CP, how does RD work for us? Will they hold a rope at the exit to the restaurant or something?

If you have an 8:15 ADR at CP, you'll just about be finishing up at 9am, so the park will be open when you walk out of the restaurant.

 

[buffettgirl]

Hm... well as suggested, I checked YouTube. It may be considered blasphemous to say this, but I think we'll skip that!!!! The music was driving me nuts. DS6 isn't all that into the characters, and since we'll be seeing them at meals anyway I think I'd rather be in the park already!

So if we have 8:15 ADR at CP, how does RD work for us? Will they hold a rope at the exit to the restaurant or something?

if you actually finish at CP before RD you can sort of wander in the general area - but certain sections are roped off at the bridges. I remember being able to go into the gift store in liberty square, but not past that point. Mostly we don't get out of CP in time hahaha...

 

[mickeyluv'r]

If you have an ADR before the park opens, then you are allowed to enter one of the turnstiles. I'm pretty sure it is usually the one on the far right at MK CM's can direct you (Ask the bag check guys), and usually it is marked by an overhead sign.
For us, if we are going the small snack breakfast route - we've found that it works far better to either grab something to eat at our home resort QS before going to the parks - OR - you can pick up a muffin the night before. For MK, there is a coffee stand at the TTC, if you'll be using it. There is also a coffee bar outside of AK's front gate. I think both sell pastries. BUT - -if you try to go to eithre before the park opens, likely you'll encoutner a line. If you get a muffin the night beofre, usually there is a minimal line (er, I'll only do it if there is no line, or I'm getting a snack to eat then as well)

Like I said, if we wait until we get tot he park to eat, we either end up skipping it due to along line, or we end up waiting until 11 to eat anything (when the park gets busy).


One strategy we sometimes deploy for quick morning getaways I like to call, 'Send the Hubby!" I take a little longer to get rady in the mornign that DH does, so instead of waiting around tapping his foot, he'll run over to grab a little food in advance. Sometimes he brings it back to the room, sometimes we eat there, sometimes he just grabs a few snacks. The only thing you CAN'T do is eat/drink on the bus. but there's no reason why you can't have a closed water bottle on the bus.

That said, I don't think we've ever had an ADR before the park opens.

 

[threvester]

I have walked right through the tunnels and down main street before rope drop many times...we normally walk to the adventureland bridge where a rope is set up across it..then the pirate acadamy guys let us through at park opening

 

[dolphindan1]

Keep in mind there can be 2 RDs...I havent seen it happen in a couple years but I have seen it happen...the open the gates at RD then everyone rushes to the Rope at the land they want to go into then at official opening they will drop those ropes....like I said I havent seen it happen in a couple years

 

[Robo]

Shockingly, something seems off about Robo's map. My memory may be faulty, but I remember the rope being in the areas under the train station that open out onto Main Street.

They can string them that way, too.

The problem is that if they do, that clogs up the Locker Rental entrance and nearly runs guests into the Stroller Rental area.

But, the CM's can do it any way they want.

You have no idea how many times I re-build a map, only to discover that the "new way of doing things" has changed again,
and sometimes it reverted to the former method.

Suffice it to say that nothing always happens the same way every day at WDW.