How important is it to get to the parks early?

[pens4821]

I would try, but given the circumstances you may not be able to, and that's fine too. You can get so much accomplished being at the park a half hour (or even 10-15 minutes) before it opens. Especially if you have FP for the longer wait attractions later (things like FOP, SDD, 7D).

We went to HS for AM EMH MLK weekend. We were there about 20 minutes before it opened, but they were letting people in and holding at ropes from there. They started walking us down 5 to 10 minutes early. We rode RNRC, ToT, and were getting a picture taken at 8:24. After the picture we glanced down at RNRC, and it was listed at 45 minutes. That was around 20 minutes after we got in line for it. We had many other good morning experiences that week, but that one really stuck out to me.

 

[gharter]

There is nothing wrong getting to the parks early or getting there later.
You just need to have a different plan and expectations for the day.

As long as you plan for teh change, it will work.

 

[Babsy]

It's important to some people, not to others. If you go later you will be OK, but you won't get as much 'done'.

if you want to ride the most rides possible in a day, getting there at rope drop is the way to do it. My opinion, FWIW: If you want to have the best vacation ever, don't worry about doing everything or even getting the most possible rides - completely enjoy doing everything that you can comfortably do.

Sleep and rest are critical for our vacations. So we start late when tired, go early if we are up and ready. We enjoy our FP+'s in the late morning or early afternoon and we ride whatever we get (through a limited amount of refreshing) after that. I book as much a possible in advance. Plus, we enjoy activities that have no wait, such as a walk through Pangani Forest, shopping on Main Street, an Ice cream from Ample Hills, people watching, or relaxing at the pool, etc.

Have a wonderful vacation!!!!

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

It's important to some people, not to others. If you go later you will be OK, but you won't get as much 'done'.

if you want to ride the most rides possible in a day, getting there at rope drop is the way to do it.

I disagree. Knowing how to refresh and understanding the late night process will yield more results than getting there early.

 

[TangledHairDon'tCare]

We prefer to sleep in because going back to the hotel midday for a nap just makes us all feel groggy for the rest of the day. Plus, I love the parks after dark so I'd rather stay out until closing. Luckily, my 4yo can stay up late without making the next day miserable though. I understand a lot of kids aren't like that!

 

[Babsy]

I disagree. Knowing how to refresh and understanding the late night process will yield more results than getting there early.

Well, I disagree.

You can arrive early, use refresh and use the late night process on the same day. Tiring marathon day, yes. Insane, definitely. But you need to arrive early to get the absolute most done.

To have a really good day with lots done, sure you can arrive early or stay late. Either one of these may be difficult for someone with chronic illness.

However, it is still true that to get the absolute most done, you must arrive early (and stay late).

The point is not which of these is 'better' or allows the most rides/experiences, anyway. The question is: Will a late arrival have a negative impact on your day whether you leave early OR stay late?. IMO, it doesn't have to. Not riding as many rides nor getting less done necessarily means that you have less fun. We LOVE short days that 'accomplish much less' in some respects, but are at a level that WE enjoy to the full.

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

Well, I disagree.

You can arrive early, use refresh and use the late night process on the same day. Tiring marathon day, yes. Insane, definitely. But you need to arrive early to get the absolute most done.

To have a really good day with lots done, sure you can arrive early or stay late. Either one of these may be difficult for someone with chronic illness.

However, it is still true that to get the absolute most done, you must arrive early (and stay late).

The point is not which of these is 'better' or allows the most rides/experiences, anyway. The point is will a late arrival have a negative impact on your day whether you leave early OR stay late. IMO, it doesn't have to. Not riding as many rides nor getting less done necessarily means that you have less fun. We LOVE short days that 'accomplish much less' than many people would want, but are at a level that WE enjoy to the full.

I’ll agree that you can do the most by going from bell to bell, but most guests don’t do it that way. That does sound exhausting.

Time isn’t free, and those that arrive too early will tire out long before closing time.

I will say that we can do more in the last half of the day than the average rope dropper can in the first half, no matter how early they arrive.

 

[Babsy]

I’ll agree that you can do the most by going from bell to bell, but most guests don’t do it that way. That does sound exhausting.

Time isn’t free, and those that arrive too early will tire out long before closing time.

I will say that we can do more in the last half of the day than the average rope dropper can in the first half, no matter how early they arrive.

Fair enough.

You will undoubtedly do more than we do anymore, no matter how early or late you stay or don't stay. BUT When we were young I could have given you a run for your money! I had a schedule from rope drop to close that put us through our paces! Plus, when it became available, we would stay extra for E ticket nights. AND do resort Early Entry, often. Crazy! But that was decades ago when I had energy and health to spare. Fun, but busy times.

It was easier back then, because there were fewer people. It was less tiring somehow.

Today, it is still fun but slower times.

It's all good.

 

[mckenk]

I also want to recommend looking into DAS. I have a chronic illness that causes me to need extra rest, plus I have to do treatments in the morning, so we never make rope drop. I also have trouble waiting in long lines, so DAS makes our trip so much less stressful.

 

[CAQDaddy]

After reading through this thread I think it's pretty clear that most think arriving early is the best bet. You can get a lot done early. However, you will be fine if you don't get there early. If you have some in your group that want to go early you might consider having others meet up with them later. Just remember you are at Disney World and you are going to have fun regardless. I hope you have a great time

 

[Lothlórien]

Being there early during many times of the year has great value. Having said that....if you have auto-immune diseases or chronic illness and rest is of value, I would say that rest is of greater value. It is better to enjoy your entire trip and do less than to spend it run down and sick and not get to do anything other than lay in a hotel bed.

 

[Mome Rath]

In the past we were always a get to the parks by 9 if not earlier kind of family. But now we have teenagers and two chronic illnesses and rest seems a bit more important. We are going next week when the crowds are predicted to be low most of the week. Can we get there later and still be ok? In the past we were able to get more done from 9-12 than in the rest of the day so I'm wondering if we need to get going. Thanks!

There are different ways to do Disney, and as long as you plan for your way, you'll be fine. (I ignore all crowd calendars, as I find them useless.) In your situation you kinda have to adapt, or change, your expectations (not lessen). It's not going to be the exact same as it used to when you rope dropped, but that's ok, as long as you don't expect it to be the same.

The first thing to do is to learn about the refresh strategy if you haven't already. Riding rides later in the day is a lot easier if you have smartphones and are willing to use them to hunt for FP's.

The second is to perhaps shift your emphasis. You can still ride rides, but also slow down and just enjoy being at Disney and soak it all in. Take your time when you are eating, take in some shows, take the teens to some neat lounges and enjoy non-alcoholic offerings, etc... Rest includes more than just sleeping in.

The third thing is to be flexible in your plan; maybe instead of getting up every day early, you plan one or two days to do that, and rest later on the other days. Maybe add in a midday break. Be willing to change things up as needed.

 

[Tomh]

Prior to FP+, and the ability to book additional FP after using your first 3, I would say Rope Drop was essential if you wanted to ride any of the headliners. Now, while I still see advantages to Rope Drop, and I personally do so every park day, I don't feel that it is an absolute necessity. It is fully possible to show up later, take advantage of those prebooked FP, grab a 4th, and maybe a 5th, and hit up some less popular attractions, and have a wonderful day in the parks.

 

[chris benton]

I’ll agree that you can do the most by going from bell to bell, but most guests don’t do it that way. That does sound exhausting.

Time isn’t free, and those that arrive too early will tire out long before closing time.

I will say that we can do more in the last half of the day than the average rope dropper can in the first half, no matter how early they arrive.

I'm guessing "average rope dropper" is the key phrase here. Pretty sure the average rope dropper doesn't know how to work the system.
I rope drop because we get up early - getting to a park at 8am is not really even an issue. Our reward is crushing fastpasses all day, and being back in the pool to chillax during the hottest part of the day, then hopping to a park we'd like for just a few hours at night. Downside is that we're usually toast by 9pm, but with younger kids, that's ok with us. I'd tend to agree with the point that if you know what you're doing, a later start would probably yield better results than an early start for the average WDW guest tho. I can't believe how many ppl I talk to that say WDW is too crowded, and too many lines, and hot and horrible. We have an absolute blast, and the lines are never bad if you have a fastpass and know what you're doing to get more fastpasses all day.

 

[KenHutch]

I am a retired Marine. I get up at 04:30 every day without an alarm to wake up platoons I no longer have. So I get the girls up early and we hit the parks hardest before the crowds hit the parks. Now I stay in the parks from opening to close but they go back to the hotel when the parks get really crowded for the pool/nap thing. But if you plan carefully you can use fast passes to lessen the effect of a later arrival.

 

[goodeats]

Honestly, I think ropedrop is overrated at WDW unless you seriously get there an hour before true opening. We rope dropped everyday, which for our West Coast family (early risers, but time change affected us) meant we got to the parks about 15 minutes before the ropes dropped. We are not the types to "jockey" for position at the front of the rope. There were lots of bottlenecks and by the time we got to Space Mountain, SDD, or Soarin the line was 15-20min. If I were to do it again I would have morning FPs and head to less desirable rides in the first hour.

The last hour in the parks is really fun too. We rode Big Thunder umpteen times in a row during the fireworks - a great memory!

 

[JennP78]

Don't push it if you have chronic illnesses.

Like others have said, just adjust your expectations and enjoy what you can.

We never rope drop because we aren't morning people and just plain don't want to. It's not fun for us. We often plan relatively last minute and don't always stay on property so we always miss out on FPs for super headliners and we still have a blast. (Granted, we go once a year so we don't feel the need to see everything so it's doesn't matter that much to us.) With the exception of the headliners, most waits still aren't terrible an hour after opening.

If you are dying to do headliners and can't get FPs, this has worked for us: schedule your 3 FPs for mid afternoon - 1-4 ish. Then have a leisurely morning at your resort, get there in time for FPs, schedule a TS dinner, then try to do the headliners before close when waits drop.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Babe the Blue Ox]

I'm guessing "average rope dropper" is the key phrase here. Pretty sure the average rope dropper doesn't know how to work the system.
I rope drop because we get up early - getting to a park at 8am is not really even an issue. Our reward is crushing fastpasses all day, and being back in the pool to chillax during the hottest part of the day, then hopping to a park we'd like for just a few hours at night. Downside is that we're usually toast by 9pm, but with younger kids, that's ok with us. I'd tend to agree with the point that if you know what you're doing, a later start would probably yield better results than an early start for the average WDW guest tho. I can't believe how many ppl I talk to that say WDW is too crowded, and too many lines, and hot and horrible. We have an absolute blast, and the lines are never bad if you have a fastpass and know what you're doing to get more fastpasses all day.

Maybe “average rope dropper” wasn’t the right term. I’m talking about the groups that wait outside the locked gates for over an hour in the morning waiting to run to that first ride when you can wait until later in the day and ride most of those same attractions multiple times with less wait.

I agree that the parks are never too busy if you’ve got a good plan, and these new refresh strategies have made things even easier.

 

[maryj11]

I’ll agree that you can do the most by going from bell to bell, but most guests don’t do it that way. That does sound exhausting.

Time isn’t free, and those that arrive too early will tire out long before closing time.

I will say that we can do more in the last half of the day than the average rope dropper can in the first half, no matter how early they arrive.

I agree with this. Getting there early to make rope drop makes us worn out before evening. We also do not like to go back to the room for a midday break. Taking transportation back and forth takes a big chunk of time and adds to stress plus I can't relax after I get back to the room. I don't like swimming during the midday break either because it means taking a shower and redressing for the day.We like arriving in the afternoon use our 3 fastpasses then work the fastpass system for more. If it is hot and crowded we make a table service reservation and do some indoor shows or rides or rides with low waits when crowds are high and kind of take it easy. We enjoy being there at night because we go in the summer and it's cooler out. We also usually make a fireworks dessert party at MK. If we don't make a dessert party reservation we take advantage of the low wait times at rides while everyone is watching the fireworks.
Actually you can plan to do whatever is best for your group. Rope drop is a good time to ride but not good if you would like to stay for fireworks unless you can take a midday break. Midday breaks don't work for us, but they do for others.

 

[Jetta8300]

We are in the same boat as you. We always get there before parks open, and yes it's extremely important. However we are traveling with extended family next month, and they refuse to get up early. 8:40am breakfast at the hotel is even too early for them, but they are at least doing that. I'm assuming we will be at the parks after a leisurely breakfast each day, around 10:30- just in time for the crowds to arrive... oh goodie. But I'm going in with an open mind...we have already seen and done everything, they have not (it's their first trip). So whatever they miss, it's their loss, we've already seen it. Just going to relax and go with the flow and realize we will not get to see and do everything. It will be a different kid of vacation for sure! But fun because we are all together!