But if EVERYONE gets to RD, then....?

[Robo]

now I beleive they actually start letting people in ahead of time. so they kind of slowly seep in. but at MK, Ithink they still have the "rope drop" on the mornings they have the opening show.

Here's what's been happening with Theme Park Openings:

Only MK still offers an actual Rope Drop SHOW along with an inside-the-gates holding area.
MK Gates open approx. 15-20 min. "early."
But, the Rope Drop show is timed so that guests will actually enter the PARK very near the actual opening time.

MK's Rope Drop Ceremony called "Magic Kingdom Welcome" (see location HERE.)

Guests are usually admitted starting about 15-20 minutes before
the posted opening time, to WAIT just inside the gates, in front of the train station (near the "flower Mickey face.")

The ceremony lasts 6-7 minutes or so and starts 6-7 minutes before the scheduled opening time.
There is also a "mini" version (far less "hoopla") that lasts about 2-3 minutes.
There is also an "AUDIO ONLY" version (no characters at all) that lasts under minute.
Which one you will see can be tough to guess.

----------------------------------

DAK no longer offers a Rope Drop SHOW,
AND recently, no longer has an inside-the-park guest holding area.
DAK Gates open approx. 15 min. "early," and guests can enter the park and head
for their attractions of choice at that time.

Epcot does not offer an internal Rope Drop SHOW,
AND no longer offers an inside-the-gates holding area.
There might be a "Welcome to Epcot" audio recording played as a chosen family waves "hello"
to other guests, maybe some confetti involved. (But, it is far below what could be called a "Show.")
Epcot gates (including the International Gateway) will likely open approx. 15 min. "early."
(Sometimes, on rare occasions when the park is very busy... as much as 30 minutes early.)

DHS no longer offers a Rope Drop SHOW.
DHS Gates likely open approx. 15 min. "early."
(DHS has opened as much as 30 min. early, but that's not been the case every day.)

AM EMH entrance times seem to not be affected (figure entering 2-10 minutes before the AM EMH time, as usual.)
On AM EMH days, MK will offer some form of their Rope Drop Show
(may or may not be the "full show")
only for AM EMH guests,
and no show at all for the regular hours open time that morning.

As always, for better positioning in the crowds, arrive well before the posted opening time at all parks.

If staying at a WDW resort, plan to be at the bus stop about 45 min. before you want to ARRIVE at a given park.
(Arriving far too early beats arriving just a minute or two late.)

 

[eangel12]

I'm all about rope drop but my kids are up at 5:30am every single day. Disney just gives me a place to go that early! Once my boys are older we will not be rope drop people...I'm sure they will want to sleep in and it is vacation, so we will do what we can at that point!

 

[CharmedLife]

When my kids were younger, DH and I did the "Dumbo or die" plan. Get there at RD, head straight for Dumbo. We could get on almost everything in Fantasyland in the first hour with almost no waits. Totally worth it, especially if you have little ones who need to go back for naps.

 

[Disneylover99]

As always, for better positioning in the crowds, arrive well before the posted opening time at all parks.

I think this is key.

Many people show up right at 9am thinking they are early, only to be stuck in the back of a wave of crowds trying to enter the parks.

We get to the parks 45 minutes to an hour before parks open so we are ahead of all those crowds. We bring breakfast with us to eat while waiting, we apply sunblock, plan our attack and hit the ground running (I mean at a brisk walk ).

 

[SkylarKD]

Only MK still offers an actual Rope Drop SHOW along with an inside-the-gates holding area. MK Gates open approx. 15-20 min. "early." But, the Rope Drop show is timed so that guests will actually enter the PARK very near the actual opening time. MK's Rope Drop Ceremony called "Magic Kingdom Welcome" (see location HERE.) Guests are usually admitted starting about 15-20 minutes before the posted opening time, to WAIT just inside the gates, in front of the train station (near the "flower Mickey face.") The ceremony lasts 6-7 minutes or so and starts 6-7 minutes before the scheduled opening time. There is also a "mini" version (far less "hoopla") that lasts about 2-3 minutes. There is also an "AUDIO ONLY" version (no characters at all) that lasts under minute. Which one you will see can be tough to guess.

This is really helpful; I had no idea that there were different RD shows! I won't mention anything about the show to my kids, just in case we don't get one. If we do, it will be a nice surprise for them to start the day!

 

[ArwenMarie]

I think there is more potential for people to RD, and people do seem to be catching on of late, somewhat. People are reporting earlier and longer lines then "usual"

I think the more important aspect will be the availability of afternoon FP+ ... because I am guessing this WILL be very common ... the people who RD will want afternoon FPs, and the people who sleep in will want afternoon FPs ....

This really depends on whether off site guests get pre-book ...

I don't think the demand for afternoon will be as high as one might think. I could see families with little kids using them in the mornings. And then going back to the hotel for naps and swimming.

 

[momofboyz3]

We did the same thing as a previous poster. Very busy crowd lever 9 day at MK we left our room to catch the bus 90 minutes before scheduled RD. When we got there only 5 other families were waiting. Once the opening show started my son said. "Ma turn around!" I had never seen so many people! I was afraid we would get trampled walking in. It was amazing though we rode ALL our must do's by 11:30 including having some dole whips & relaxing). Most were walk on with a few maybe 10-15 min closer to 11ish. The park did not feel crowded at all & we did not have to use a FP at all during this time. We had a 12:00 ADR @ a resort for lunch. When we got back around 2 (leisure, relax lunch) it was BUSY! But, we had done all our musts so everything else was gravy. We stayed for WIshes as well. Next time I would do either the dessert party or FP+ since it was hard for me to find the perfect spot.
DHS was the only other park where we used the RD strategy only because of Jedi Training. I think no matter what happens RD will always be the best strategy esp for MK days. So many families would rather just sleep in during there vacations

 

[shalom]

Seconding (thirding, whatever we're up to) the point that making rope drop means being there earlier than opening. If the park opens at nine and you arrive at nine, there's going to be a mob well ahead of you and you could be trailing them all day. OTOH, if you time it right, sometimes there's a lull with some of the rides after the rope drop crowd goes through and has moved on, a situation some people can work really well (doesn't happen as much with the thrill rides, but PP or ETwB have that lull sometimes).

I suspect rope drop may be even more effective on busy days than it does off season, because the crowds are going to really build starting at ten or ten thirty whenever the park opens, so getting in at eight gives you two hours of the lower crowds that someone getting in at nine has for their first hour. But if you get going good on a day with a 9 a.m. opening, you can get a lot done before lunch.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Occasionally someone will start a thread that's something like "Is Rope Drop absolutely necessary?" and you'll get pages of people saying they never do RD and have a great time. So between the people who don't know about RD and those who do but choose not to, RD still is not packed most days.

 

[jco_direwolf]

In my experience everyone intends to do rd right up till the 6:45a wake up call.

Why 6:45?
9a park opening
-20 minutes so you are up front
-40 minutes for bus transit.
-10 minutes for resort to bus stop
-30 to 40 minutes to get ready (shower/clothes)
-10 minutes breakfast
-15 minutes to rouse everyone

I can't tell you you how many trips with other family's I've done that at 8p dinner the answer to "are you going to do rope drop" is "is getting there at 8:40 early enough?" Followed by the call to the room at 8ish being answered as "can we just meet you there? We aren't ready. "

 

[glamdring269]

Like many things in life where there is capacity it is much better to be there early. You have to strike a balance though, there isn't a whole lot of value being the person actually touching the rope but there is value in being there a bit before it drops.

I know there are many who like to sleep in on vacation but theme parks have always been one place where we have always been there for open. I don't know any other way. I don't want to know what it's like to walk in and see everything is already packed. This has never failed me so I don't see a reason to change.

It's kind of like going to a popular movie on opening weekend. Are you going to buy the ticket early on Fandango and then show up at show time? Don't be that person. You know who I'm talking about. The one who walks in the theater as the previews are playing looking around with disbelief that the only seats available are the ones on the front row.

 

[mom2rtk]

Human nature is human nature. Not even Disney can change that. It is vacation after all, and they deserve to sleep in.

I think that for every new person hitting rope drop because of the limitations of FP+ there will be another holding back because their first return time isn't until later.

 

[princessekrus]

It is so funny, the ONE thing I tell everyone I know going to Disney is "Get there before rope drop."

However, my good friends went last May, and I gave them all my usual advice, which they totally ignored. But, you know what, they found a plan that worked for them. They are just NOT RD people!

We are. That's how I grew up touring (way back before FP-), and I how I always assumed I would do it. Now, I have two DD's who are up every morning by 6am, so it's not a struggle.

Last trip I even tried to plan a "late arrival day," and we were still there before opening just because they were already awake!

To the OP - if you are there before RD, you will absolutely be able to get that list done. I went to MK in 2012 on Thanksgiving day, which was a "10" (although not as bad as Christmas, still pretty darn crowded)... and RD was totally reasonable. We rode all of our musts, saw at least one princess, had snacks and down time, and were on our way out of the park by 11am. I literally almost could not get down mainstreet at that point because I was going against the flow.... but I was leaving, and everyone else was just arriving.

Now, with FP+ - I may actually come late a couple of days, just because I can, and still know I can do the favorite rides, but RD is a tradition that I love, and so will keep doing it. Old habits are hard to break!

 

[Love Tink]

Why 6:45?
9a park opening
-20 minutes so you are up front
-40 minutes for bus transit.
-10 minutes for resort to bus stop
-30 to 40 minutes to get ready (shower/clothes)
-10 minutes breakfast
-15 minutes to rouse everyone

That's a choice, though. We make rope drop every day, every trip and we get up at 8:00. Our schedule looks like:

8:00 Get up
8:10 Leave the room (we showered and laid everything out the night before)
8:30 Arrive at park (we drive there, and eat convenient breakfast on the way)
8:35 Arrive at turnstiles (that early, parking is very close)*

*The exception is MK, because of the TTC - we might get up at 7:45 that day.

 

[glamdring269]

I think that for every new person hitting rope drop because of the limitations of FP+ there will be another holding back because their first return time isn't until later.

That's actually one of the things I'm hoping for. Perhaps more folks will sleep in now knowing that they already have FP+ reservations waiting. Could end up making the whole system a wash for the RD crew.

 

[Masonmj84]

We're what some people might refer to as rope drop junkies.

For starters, our kids never sleep much past 6 am, regardless of when they go to bed. So if they're going to wake up that early, we might as well take advantage of it.

Unless we're doing a pre-park opening character breakfast, my goal is to get to the park at least 45 minutes before opening. I like being one of the first people behind a turnstyle and actually enjoy just standing there, listening to the music while peering into a mostly empty park (builds up the anticipation).

In that regard, I'm a big fan of the changes at EP and HS (holding guests behind the turnstyles instead of a rope) because it gives us a better advantage for TT or TSM than the old system (we can now walk at a leisurely pace and still have no wait because 99% of everyone else at the park has yet to get through the turnstyle).

Finally, I'm appreciative that so many would prefer to sleep in while on vacation. Makes my rope drop experience all the more worthwhile. In any event, it's their vacation and they can sleep in as long as they want as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Magpie]

In my experience everyone intends to do rd right up till the 6:45a wake up call.

Why 6:45?
9a park opening
-20 minutes so you are up front
-40 minutes for bus transit.
-10 minutes for resort to bus stop
-30 to 40 minutes to get ready (shower/clothes)
-10 minutes breakfast
-15 minutes to rouse everyone

I can't tell you you how many trips with other family's I've done that at 8p dinner the answer to "are you going to do rope drop" is "is getting there at 8:40 early enough?" Followed by the call to the room at 8ish being answered as "can we just meet you there? We aren't ready. "

Our schedule looks more like this:

Stay at Pop Century.

Wake up naturally between 7 and 7:30 am, to the light coming through our curtains. My husband really can't seem to manage to sleep past 7:30. It's practically a miracle if he makes it to a quarter to eight.

Heat up some hot water while people use the bathroom and brush their teeth. Make instant porridge with nut and raisins. Eat.

Mosey on out the door at 8am or a little after, grabbing some coffee or hot chocolate on the way.

8:20, step on board a bus.

8:40, arrive at our destination, just as they're letting everyone in through the gates (they seem to do that early these days).

Following this schedule, we were in and out of Toy Story Mania before it was even 9am! And we never feel rushed in the morning.

 

[DemonLlama]

That's actually one of the things I'm hoping for. Perhaps more folks will sleep in now knowing that they already have FP+ reservations waiting. Could end up making the whole system a wash for the RD crew.

Our first day in the parks we did what we always do and got there pretty much first, ahead of the rest of the world. MK opened at 7:00 AM and we were off the bus at MK bag check at 6:20. I still don't know how that happened, but the bus was a POFQ at 6:00 on the dot and our bus was the first to show up at the park. It was dark and cold and foggy and since park opening was at 7:00, I'm sure that dissuaded most people.

But a funny thing happened after that first morning...

We got up early, excited to be back, on that first day, took a midday break/nap, came back and stayed late and then, on setting the alarm for the next morning, everyone agreed that, "since we have our FP+, why not get a little extra sleep after such a long day?"

And it stayed that way for the rest of the time.

Strangest vacation ever. I've never gotten so much sleep!

 

[pilferk]

So what I'm hearing from these boards is that the best (only?) way to maximize ride time at the parks is to hit rope drop in the morning. Here's my concern. If it's really such a time saver then don't most people do this? And if everyone decides that it's a good idea, then don't the parks fill up pretty quickly?

I guess what I want to know, from people who are RD regulars, is how many rides can you typically get on before the lines start to get long? Is it just one or two, or can I expect to ride a few? Specifically, I'm planning to hit RD at the Magic Kingdom and taking my DD (2.5) straight to Fantasyland. It would be great to ride Peter Pan and Pooh and Dumbo and even meet a Princess with little to no waiting. Is this really possible? Or is RD too good to be true?

RD has always been the most powerful tool in the arsenal when it comes to touring.

Granted, it's a bit more "powerful" now, though in different ways.

But, up until now....you'll notice it still remains very powerful entirely because people simply can't/won't/don't want to get there at that time.

I don't see that changing. This MIGHT get a few more people to the entrance early, but not enough to make a difference.

Because it hasn't, til now...no matter how good an idea it was to get there.

 

[summermac]

We normally get there within 15 minutes of the park opening if not by park open (9:00 for the most part) on our trips and have been more than fine touring that way. I don't think it's necessary to be there at 8:15 to effectively utilize RD touring strategies.

In particular if you are RD'ing MK and aren't really into Fantasyland consider going to Adventureland. It is D-E-A-D in my experience at RD. Or even go ride BTMR, HM and then come back to Adventureland. Still dead. A lot of RD'ers hit Fantasyland and then by default Liberty Square/Frontierland or Tomorrowland after (closest) or at the very least hit FL or TL first for a mountain.