Early Character Breakfast vs Rope Drop

[lightwyear]

I have read through several older threads on the topic, and have had conflicting information on other boards so I am desperately looking for help.

I will be taking my family to WDW at the end of November/early December this year. I have already made ADRs for the restaurants, and have 8am Character Breakfast reservations in the parks so we can be there before the parks open at 9am (carefully avoiding 8am breakfasts on EMH mornings). No late nights are scheduled the night before a character breakfast AND I am planning on taking a taxi to the park in the morning to avoid having to get people up too early or possibly missing the bus - although if I see the bus working well for early character breakfasts I will do that instead.

However, several people have blasted the notion of multiple early character breakfasts as too early AND they have said that Rope Drop is more important and allows you to rest more.

We are not big breakfast eaters, it is more for the experience, so I don't think it will take too long to eat at the buffet. I am hoping to arrive at the restaurant a few minutes early for an 8:00/8:05am reservation and still be out by around 8:45/8:50am.

1. What do people think of Character Breakfasts versus rope drop? What are the odds that we will be able to make rope drop with an 8am breakfast?

2. Where are the rope drop locations if you are having the Character Breakfast? We have reservations at Hollywood and Vine (Hollywood Studios), Crystal Palace (MK), Cinderella's Royal Table (MK) and Tusker House (AK).

3. Will we be behind the crowd if we leave breakfast at rope drop? Any information at the specific breakfast locations are appreciated (i.e. at Hollywood Studios breakfast, are you held at the same rope drop line, or are you held at a different line to go through the park?).

4. Anything else you can share.

 

[jmm476]

In my situation, I've already seen the rope drop show at AK, so this year, we have 8:20 AM reservations at Tusker House. However, I've never seen rope drop at MK and I very much want to see the show part of it, so I am not scheduling a breakfast in MK this trip.

The way I think is that if the rope drop show is important to you, there's no way we could have breakfast and be out of there to see the show. If rope drop is important to you so you can get on the rides first, then your post breakfast rope drop might be further into the park (in MK it is), then you are ahead of everyone at regular rope drop at the front of the park.

Hope that all makes sense, but like everything else in Disney, it's subjective and personal opinions that help make the itinerary. Hope you have a wonderful trip!!!

 

[Robo]

I have read through several older threads on the topic, and have had conflicting information on other boards so I am desperately looking for help.

I will be taking my family to WDW at the end of November/early December this year. I have already made ADRs for the restaurants, and have 8am Character Breakfast reservations in the parks so we can be there before the parks open at 9am (carefully avoiding 8am breakfasts on EMH mornings). No late nights are scheduled the night before a character breakfast AND I am planning on taking a taxi to the park in the morning to avoid having to get people up too early or possibly missing the bus - although if I see the bus working well for early character breakfasts I will do that instead.

However, several people have blasted the notion of multiple early character breakfasts as too early AND they have said that Rope Drop is more important and allows you to rest more.

We are not big breakfast eaters, it is more for the experience, so I don't think it will take too long to eat at the buffet. I am hoping to arrive at the restaurant a few minutes early for an 8:00/8:05am reservation and still be out by around 8:45/8:50am.

1. What are the odds that we will be able to make rope drop with an 8am breakfast?

2. Where are the rope drop locations if you are having the Character Breakfast? We have reservations at Hollywood and Vine (Hollywood Studios), Crystal Palace (MK), Cinderella's Royal Table (MK) and Tusker House (AK).

3. Will we be behind the crowd if we leave breakfast at rope drop?

4. Anything else you can share.

1- OK odds at DHS, the least important of the 3 parks that offer a Rope Drop Ceremony.

2- (See the info below #4.)
You may be able to get to see the "show" at DHS (it's not one of the better "shows," however.)
Very unlikely at MK.
Definitely not at DAK.
There's no specific "show" at Epcot.

3- It varies.
At MK, you'll be ahead of the masses.
At Epcot, if you were at Akershus in Norway, you'd be somewhat behind the main crowds.
At DHS, you'll likely be right with (maybe a bit behind) the main crowds.
At DAK, you'll be way, way ahead of the crowds heading to Safari, but behind the crowds headed to Expedition Everest.

4- Have a magical trip!


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


"Rope drop" is a term that generally means, "Releasing guests into the park--or specific area(s) of a park-- so that they can visit the attractions."
Guests usually line up behind an actual rope (or ropes) and, after a countdown, the rope
is "dropped" (usually it is actually removed by CM's and not actually dropped) and guests
can then walk to the area they prefer to visit first.

Here's an excerpt from my Coffee Table Novella, "Rope Drop Wars: Ep. IV- A New Rope."

I arrive at the park gates 30 minutes before opening time at any park, on any day.

MK's Rope Drop Ceremony called "Magic Kingdom
Welcome" (see link below) is, by far, the best and
most elaborate.

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. (See link below.)

There is really only one more "formal" Rope Drop Ceremony featuring a presenation
with primary Disney characters.
It happens at DAK , and is called "The Adventure Begins"(see link below.)

Guests are usually admitted starting about 15-20 minutes before
the posted opening time, and they re-group to wait just inside the gates.
This "just inside the gates" info is new (as of Feb.2010) and I don't know if it is a temporary
or permanent change. (For years, guests would line up behind ropes set up near the Tips Board.)
I'll leave the info this "new" way until I hear otherwise.

The ceremony lasts 6-7 minutes or so and starts 6-7 minutes before the scheduled opening time.


The above two shows feature Disney characters with "speaking
roles".
MK: (called "Magic Kingdom Welcome") at the train
station (with lots singing and
dancing, and a guest family).
DAK: (called "The Adventure Begins") just inside the Main Gates (no singing, but cute).

Epcot allows guests to "re-group" near Innoventions
and, on certain mornings, some of the characters show up
to quietly shake hands with a few of the folks standing at the rope.
CMs "hold" guests until scheduled open time, then
allow folks to go either way towards Soarin' or Test
Track/Mission Space.

At DHS the CMs usually have ropes across the street near the
Call-board/Tips-board/Starring Rolls eatery.

There may be a short (about 3-4 minutes) "show" which
will include a couple of*DHS "Streetmosphere" characters,
and a few selected Guests from the waiting crowd.
After a brief "set-up" and countdown, the
ropes are dropped and everyone walks briskly
STRAIGHT AHEAD (with CM escorts)
towards the new Toy Story Midway Mania...
or turns RIGHT, and walks
briskly (with CM escorts) to ToT and/or RnRC.

At MK, if you have attended Cindy's Royal Breakfast
early, they do have a rope to hold you from FL until
"opening time".

If (IF) they perform a Rope Drop Ceremony at a given park, it will ONLY be ONCE per day (not twice.)

They might not perform it at all.

If (IF) they do perform a Rope Drop Ceremony at a given park on an AM EMH day, it will ONLY be performed for the EMH opening crowd and not at the "regular" opening time that day.

If (IF) they do perform a Rope Drop Ceremony at a given park, it will begin about 5-8 minutes before the scheduled opening time.

But, guests will be let into the park about 10-20 minutes before the scheduled opening time to get ready for the Rope Drop Ceremony.

To see if they will be performing the ceremony, look at the Steve Soares site.
(see link below)

Note: Like everything else at WDW, not EVERYTHING will
happen the same way or the same time (or even happen
at all) every day.
The best you can hope for is for what USUALLY happens.

Rope Drops are no exception to this.

I never miss being there before opening, EMH or
regular, but not just because of the "Rope Drop
Ceremonies"... its because you can do SO MUCH MORE
before the throngs of folks (who simply will NOT get
up early on vacation, bless their sleepy little
hearts) arrive later in the mornings.

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

LINK Below-


The following site posts the stage shows, in-park and
other on-property shows and their times for the
CURRENT week.
(It is updated every weekend.)
The times may be "similar" for other dates as well.

Near the top of the page,
click on the colored links for the various
parks
and their show times.

http://pages.prodigy.net/stevesoares/index.htm

Be sure to check back to the site as the actual dates
of your trip get closer.

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

On many mornings, guests (B) are held for Rope Drop near the HAT (#2)
before being released into the park at opening time (Regular of AM EMH.

On some days following Rope Drop, the CMs will direct guests to enter thru the "Alternate Path" via the Animation archway.

 

[lightwyear]

WOW! Thank you for that thorough rope drop analysis! I am very impressed and extremely appreciative.

I will have to evaluate how important the actual rope drop ceremony is to the family. I think Hollywood Studios is the big question, particularly since the Star Tours will be offline at that time I am not sure what impact that will have on TSM lines.

So with HS, we should be at, or perhaps a little behind the crowds at rope drop? The others make more sense to me as far as the location of the restaurant and location of attractions, but HS seems like you are just exiting right with the crowd.

Are you able to go left around echo lake/toward sounds dangerous rather than right into the crowd in front of the hat?

 

[wdwfann]

Here's one plug for early ADR at Crystal Palace: We always eat an early breakfast at the Crystal Palace because we love to get a family picture in front of the Castle with virtually an empty park. Whether we take it before we eat or after we're finished we always get a picture. It's magical to us to stand in front of the castle early in the morning with just a handful of people around.

 

[DisGal520]

I have gone to MK for the rope drop train ceremony, then exited the area right afterward to hop the monorail for the GF breakfast with Alice & Madhatter & Mary Poppins.

It was doable. You just need to check the date for MK opening time before you make the ADR for Park Fare. GF PF opens at 8 AM.

After breakfast I hopped the monorial back to MK.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Also remember if you want to get in / out of breakfast quickly - ask for your check first thing - before the food arrives. If you can get that settled early on you can depart as soon as you want to - no waiting around for the check etc.

 

[jmm476]

Also remember if you want to get in / out of breakfast quickly - ask for your check first thing - before the food arrives. If you can get that settled early on you can depart as soon as you want to - no waiting around for the check etc.

Well that is good advice that I've never thought of! I'll be doing that on my next trip at the buffets for sure!

 

[DisDayz]

My concern would be the number of early mornings that you try to squeeze in. If you are looking at four early breakfasts and no EMH mornings across a week long trip you should be okay. However, if you are looking at four early breakfasts and a couple of EMH mornings that means every day is an early morning and that could be trouble.

Another thing to consider is that the early morning with have an impact on both the evening before and the evening of the early morning. Typically when we do an early morning we spend more time at the resort during the afternoon which shortens our park time for the evening. It also has a significant impact on how late that night may be. We may plan a night time show or parade for that evening but we seldom manage to stay out late enough to follow through with the plans.

As a rule of thumb I try to schedule about half the trip to involve early mornings. That allows for catch up mornings and a late night thrown in here and there.

 

[Billipsimo]

Keep in mind you don't "have" to keep your ADRs (except for CRT). MK doesn't even check your name off the list when you come through the gates. They just ask "do you have a breakfast reservation." So, technically, you can get to the ropes inside the park with or without an ADR. As for the other parks, you don't have to keep your ADRs, but you must have one to get through the gate (they check your name off a sheet of paper).

 

[Robo]

1- So with HS, we should be at, or perhaps a little behind the crowds at rope drop? The others make more sense to me as far as the location of the restaurant and location of attractions, but HS seems like you are just exiting right with the crowd.

2- Are you able to go left around echo lake/toward sounds dangerous rather than right into the crowd in front of the hat?

1- That's correct.

2- You won't be allowed to enter anywhere into the closed park areas before the rope drops.

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

We have had the first seating at Tusker House the past two trips and ended up on the first safari truck both years. We don't do Everest so that wasn't a big deal for us. I agree the MK show in the morning is really cute, we try to catch that once a year. Never seen the AK one and the DHS one is 'meh. We are just focused on it ended so we can hoof it to TSMM!

You know your family best ... will all the early mornings work for you? We usually do at least 3 breakfasts and then we skip or just snack for lunch.

 

[AuroraMeansDawn]

Also remember if you want to get in / out of breakfast quickly - ask for your check first thing - before the food arrives. If you can get that settled early on you can depart as soon as you want to - no waiting around for the check etc.

I just learned a new trick. Brilliant! Thank you!

 

[AuroraMeansDawn]

To the OP, I wouldn't worry too much about anyone blasting you for making too many early reservations. You know your family best. It may work better if you're early risers and only you know how your family is in the morning. I also enjoy early breakfasts because it cuts down on character stops during the time in the park.

I am an early riser so I like to do early character breakfasts and my best advice to you (though Robo covered most everything) is to arrive early so you're in the first seating group.

We did a very early breakfast (7:05 am) at Cape May in Dec 2008 and found that by being one of the first families seated in the restaurant we were also one of the first tables that the characters visited. We were full, happy and strolling over to the IG by 7:55 and were on Soarin' with FPs in hand by 8:15.

Hope you have a magical time and enjoy!

 

[lightwyear]

We are not doing any EMH in addition to Character Breakfasts. We are trying to balance out the late nights and early mornings so that there is no late night before an early morning, and plenty of hotel/resort time in afternoons. Staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge and hoping to make the most of resort time.

As for the photo in front of the castle, how early are photopass photographers there if the park is opening at 9am?

 

[Robo]

As for the photo in front of the castle, how early are photopass photographers there if the park is opening at 9am?

Around 8AM, for the early breakfasts and the BBB appointments.

 

[mom2rtk]

Just understand that if being out into the park when it opens is important to you, there is a chance you might miss some of the characters you paid a lot of money to see. You can eat as fast as you want at a buffet, but you can't make the characters come by any faster.

It will also be critical that you get TO the park to be near the front of the line of people waiting to get in for their ADR's. It can take a while to get that first crush of people actually seated.

Still, as long as you're doing the ADR in the park you intend to stay in for the day, it's pretty efficient.

The people who leave disappointed are the ones that structure ADR's at too many places away from the parks they are visiting. It can really detract from the flow of the day to have to leave for another park or resort in the middle of the day, unless you were planning to leave for a break anway.

 

[MelissathePooh]

I just wouldn't bank on being done by 8:45 - our last few experiences at CP with an 8:10 adr left us in the dust for park opening. Took a while to be seated, restaurant was crowded and server was slow. Couldn't get our check to get out in time. Had to send dh on to Dumbo while I stayed back and took care of cashing out.

As for the poster who talked about not keeping the adr - just using it to get in early. MK does not let people wander all over, the various lands are roped off and you may or may not be asked once in the park as to where you are supposed to be. DH had let the kids run around one am while I waited at CP for our table. He was told to go back to the area by CP. Aside from that its inconsiderate on a TON of levels. But I suppose some people are and don't have a problem with that. Personally I think its trashy.

 

[CathieArms]

I can only tell you about my experience with an 8:05 ADR at Crystal Palace on a 9:00 a.m. rope drop day.

We got to Crystal Palace about 15 or 20 minutes early, were seated immediately, finished eating at about the same time or just slightly before rope drop, and then were right in with the rest of the crowd when the park opened. I liked it so much, I'd do it again.

I know people here love rope drop, but I really didn't care for it. I found the crush of people all waiting to get in rather smothering. And then, I just wanted to GO IN. I didn't want to stand there for 5 or 10 minutes for their pre-rope drop show.

Maybe I'm just missing something. I've been there and done that and it just didn't do all that much for me.