One of the best kept secrets at Disney World and Disneyland is rope drop (with apologies to Disney Vacation Club for stealing your thunder). Rope drop is the time when the park opens. Arriving at the park for rope drop is one of the best ways to maximize your time at the Disney parks.
I know, you are thinking that the last thing you want to do on your vacation is to get up early and be among the “crazy” people that wait for the parks to open. Let me tell you, those “crazy” people are on to one of the best aspects of Disney planning. The first hour or two after a Disney park opens is the best time to walk onto whatever ride or attraction you want without much wait. You can usually knock out the rides in an entire section of the Magic Kingdom if you are willing to get up early and arrive right when the park opens. The crowd levels tend to start to get heavy about 2 hours after opening until everything slows to whatever the wait times will be for most of the day.
Disney Parks will publish their opening times a few months in advance on the calendar section of their website (https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/calendars/). Keep in mind that opening times can be altered closer to the actual date if the crowds might be heavier or lighter than initially anticipated, so these are not set in stone.
Staying at a Disney resort hotel gives you an additional perk that allows you to spend more time at the Disney parks. Disney has Extra Magic Hours or Magic Morning admission for guests staying at a Disney resort (or in California at a good neighbor hotel in limited circumstances). Extra Magic Hours or Magic Morning admission is a benefit that allows guests of Disney resort hotels to enter the park one hour early (or stay three hours later in the evening) to enjoy a subset of the park’s rides and attractions. Disney announces these extended hours on their calendars at the website noted above.
Our family tries to take advantage of extended park hours, especially in the mornings, whenever possible. We usually get up, have a quick breakfast in the room, and head out to the park. We try to arrive about 30 minutes before rope drop. Some of the parks will “soft open,” which means they open a half hour or so before their scheduled opening time. So, if you are “on time” — you may already be late.
If you arrive early, you have a better chance to be selected as the Family of the Day at that park. At the Magic Kingdom, the Family of the Day gets to participate in the park’s opening show, meet the Mayor of Main Street, and participate in special opportunities with Disney cast members. Sounds like a ton of fun!
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