This guide provides information on starting your day at Magic Kingdom, including where to start with and without Multi Pass, planning to get on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and eligibility for early theme park entry. The guide also covers ride rosters, the perk works, and tips for using extra morning time. Buying Lightning Lanes allows for a more laid-back start to Early Entry at Magic Kingdom. It is recommended to arrive at Magic Kingdom 45 to 60 minutes before Early Entry if you have Early Entry and plan to rope drop Seven Dwarfs Mine. Presenting your theme park admission at the turnstiles will allow you to enter the main entrance area. If you arrive at the bus stop at 6:30am, you will be among the first to enter. Early entry at Disney World is only available for guests staying at Disney resort hotels or select partner hotels. The Early Theme Park Entry program allows guests to access select attractions in the four Disney World theme parks for 30 minutes.
📹 2024 Early Entry Guide to Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World
Not sure where to start or what to expect when you do early entry at Magic Kingdom? We compared two different options on the …
Can anyone do rope drop at Disney World?
Rope drop is a popular method for guests to arrive at Disney Theme Parks early to enjoy the shortest wait times and cool weather. This is open to anyone with valid admission and usually takes 45 to 60 minutes. Early Theme Park Entry is a perk for guests staying at Walt Disney World Resort Hotels and select other hotels in the area, allowing them to enter the parks 30 minutes before their opening time. For example, guests can ride attractions at 8:30 AM, allowing them to explore more in an extra half hour.
Extended Evening Theme Park Hours are available for guests staying at a Disney Deluxe Resort. These hours occur once a week at Magic Kingdom Park and once a week at EPCOT. This is a favorite benefit of staying at a Disney Resorts Collection Hotel and is often chosen by those with a budget to take advantage of this extra time. The extra magic at the Theme Parks at night makes it feel special to have that extra time to make memories.
In conclusion, rope drop is a popular method for guests to arrive at Disney Theme Parks early, allowing them to make the most of their day. If you have any further questions about planning your magical vacation, feel free to ask.
What are the best hours to go to Magic Kingdom?
The Magic Kingdom park takes about two hours to fill up, with a surge of early birds arriving before or around opening time. After absorbing the initial wave, there is a lull lasting about an hour after opening. The park is inundated for about two hours, peaking between 10 a. m. and noon. Arrivals continue in a steady but diminishing stream until around 2 p. m., with lines longest between 1 and 2 p. m. For touring purposes, most attractions develop long lines between 10 and 11:30 a.
M. Guests are equally distributed among all lands, but they concentrate in Fantasyland, Liberty Square, and Frontierland in late afternoon. Adventureland’s JungleCruise and Tomorrowland’s Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain are crowded, but most other attractions are easily accessible. Most visitors are first-time visitors guided by friends or relatives familiar with the Magic Kingdom, while repeat visitors usually head straight to their favorite attractions.
What time should I get to Magic Kingdom for rope drop?
To maximize your experience at Magic Kingdom’s Rope Drop, arrive 30-60 minutes before the park’s official opening to avoid long waits. Off-site guests should arrive 30 minutes before the park’s official opening on all days. Most rides in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland are running, while Adventureland, Frontierland, and Liberty Square may start operations closer to the park’s opening time. Larger shops like the Emporium and Main Street Bakery (Starbucks) will be open during admission for sunscreen, ponchos, and aspirin, as well as coffee and breakfast items.
Can I get into Magic Kingdom early?
Magic Kingdom Park opens at 8:00 am for guests not staying at a Disney Resorts Collection or select hotel. Early entry hours allow entry at 7:30 am. To reach the park, arrive by 7:00 or 7:15 am, as Spring Break is a busy time with many schools on Spring Break. From the parking lot, walk or take a tram to the Ticket and Transportation Center, where you will undergo security screening and hop on the Disney Monorail to the Magic Kingdom. Once the clock strikes 8, you can scan your ticket or MagicBand+ and walk under the Walt Disney World Railroad – Main Street U.
S. A. tracks to leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow, and fantasy. To ease the security process, avoid bringing prohibited items, such as Swiss Army knives, and take metal water bottles or objects that may trigger security screening out of your bag to reduce the likelihood of bag checks.
What is the earliest you can park at Magic Kingdom?
Disney parking lots open 60 to 90 minutes before the park opens, allowing early entry to start at 6:00 AM. The Disney World Crowd Calendar provides information on park crowds, hours of operation, ticket prices, and average temperature. The best time to visit Disney World is based on specific times of the year and special events. To plan your next Disney World trip, speak with a Disney World Travel Agent for the latest deals and promotions. The Park Prodigy offers a free quote for all Disney World vacation packages and can help save up to $20 per ticket.
Special events like Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Tickets and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Tickets also offer promotional discounts. For new Disney vacation planning, visit the Walt Disney World Planning Page and read the Walt Disney World Hotels Review page.
What is the difference between rope drop and early entry?
The term “rope drop” is used to describe the official opening time of the park. “Early entry” is an official perk that allows Disney resort guests and select hotel guests to access rides 30 minutes before the park’s official opening time.
How does early entry work for Disney?
Guests of the Disneyland Resort who are staying at one of the resort hotels are permitted to enter a designated theme park 30 minutes before the general public. This allows them to enjoy select attractions, dining options, and shopping locations.
Is early entry worth it at Disney World?
Early Theme Park Entry is a popular perk for Disney Resort hotel guests, allowing them to experience attractions with minimal wait times or enjoy the ambiance of a less crowded morning. Guests are allowed entry to the parks about 30 minutes before Early Entry officially begins, starting at approximately 8:00 AM. After scanning to verify their Disney Resort hotel reservation, guests can move to the queue for their chosen first attraction of the day.
To maximize time, it is recommended to arrive at the park at least 30-45 minutes ahead of Early Entry. If using Disney Resort Transportation from your hotel, most options begin running 45-60 minutes ahead of Early Entry. If taking a Disney bus, check the bus wait times under your Hotel Reservation tab in the My Disney Experience mobile app. This will ensure you know when the bus is expected to arrive and provide you with the estimated arrival time at your destination.
Is Disney World early entry worth it?
Early Theme Park Entry is a popular perk for Disney Resort hotel guests, allowing them to experience attractions with minimal wait times or enjoy the ambiance of a less crowded morning. Guests are allowed entry to the parks about 30 minutes before Early Entry officially begins, starting at approximately 8:00 AM. After scanning to verify their Disney Resort hotel reservation, guests can move to the queue for their chosen first attraction of the day.
To maximize time, it is recommended to arrive at the park at least 30-45 minutes ahead of Early Entry. If using Disney Resort Transportation from your hotel, most options begin running 45-60 minutes ahead of Early Entry. If taking a Disney bus, check the bus wait times under your Hotel Reservation tab in the My Disney Experience mobile app. This will ensure you know when the bus is expected to arrive and provide you with the estimated arrival time at your destination.
What is the 120 minute rule for Disney early entry?
The Genie 120-minute rule allows for multiple Genie+ Lightning Lane reservations at a time, with the rule allowing two hours since the last reservation or two hours since park opening. If you’re holding a reservation when the 120-minute rule applies, you can have two at a time. This is called stacking.
Cancellations of individual Lightning Lane reservations are not possible, but if the ride is down during your reservation window and you cannot use it later, it can be refunded after the park closes. To cancel a reservation, click on the reservation and select Cancel. You can choose to cancel only some members of your party or all of them.
Modifications to a Lightning Lane reservation are not possible, but they can be made to change the time or to a different attraction in the same park. However, modifying a Lightning Lane reservation may change the time when you can book a new one, as there are two times that govern when you can make a new reservation: when your return window opens and the time you made it.
If the start of your return window was within two hours of when you made the reservation, the time you can book again might change. Modifying a reservation won’t affect your eligibility if it wasn’t the one blocking your eligibility.
At this time, you can only modify a Lightning Lane reservation to an attraction in a different park.
Can I just show up to Magic Kingdom?
Guests with date-based tickets no longer need to reserve a theme park to enter the magic. If they chose a start date when purchasing their ticket, they can head straight to the entrance. If you have an annual pass or ticket without specific date parameters, you typically need to make a theme park reservation for the park you want to enter first. The Park Hopper option allows you to go to additional theme parks without needing reservations.
If you’re unsure which ticket type you have, you can try making a theme park reservation by signing into your account. The system only allows reservations if their linked ticket requires it. For more information, contact the Existing Tickets line.
📹 Early Park Entry Tips for Magic Kingdom: How to Make the Most of this Disney World Hotel Perk
Guests at Disney World Resorts and select partner hotels get early park entry. For 30 minutes, only these guests are allowed to …
You are literally a GODSEND. Your articles are top tier, full of great practical advice, and I love how you show each step so we know what to expect visually. Like none of the blogs I read actually EXPLAINED what rope drop looked like or what the etiquette is (I would have totally been kicked to the back of the line by the cast because I didn’t know you’re not supposed to walk ahead of them!). Thanks for the thorough explanations and sharing your thought process behind each recommendation. I watch you more than DFB guide now :p
ANOTHER fantastic article! It plainly shows that YOU CARE about INFORMING us, rather than pleasing yourself hearing your own voice! I swear THAT’S the impression I get from perusal most everyone else! I do have a suggestion. Your articles are interspersed with so much information that I often find myself scrolling foreword and backward through them to recall some specific tip. It might be helpful to end each article with a “Bullet Point” summary of the major tips, all in one place. Keep up the great work!
I couldn’t agree more with some of the comments below. Thanks so much for actually showing what rope drop actually looks like and the etiquette with the cast members! With all I’ve read that wasn’t ever clearly explained. Also, thanks for offering the other strategies for 2nd rope dropping in Frontierland – we were thinking of this strategy during Christmas time and doing ILL for 7DMT and skipping Peter Pan as it’s not one of our top do rides. I’ve learned so much from your articles! Thanks so much and I hope I can execute as well in a few weeks!!
Really appreciate these tips. I hadn’t considered how lightning lane can be problematic on rides that go down frequently so those are better prioritized during the first hour of park entry. I consider myself a seasoned vacationer and had not considered this prior to now and I think this is going to change our strategy a bit. I
Just wanted to say THANK YOU, just got back from MK with my girlfriend and it was the best time ever thanks to you! Did early entry and got Genie Plus and was able to get on pretty much every ride thanks to you! Barely waited in any lines and still had the time to sit down at restaurants for lunch and dinner! On a busy Saturday too!
I have a question – let’s say we are going to magic kingdom and will have access to it all, early park access and will be utilizing genie plus and any other individual lightning Lane pay to play services. The catch is I’m going with a 4 1/2 year-old and a two year old. After perusal this article I’m wondering what your opinion is on how to use early entry and early access to genie plus at 7 AM and what your strategy would be for the kids. Meet and greet Mickey and Minnie at Townhall. Princesses shows are probably going to be our number one thing. TIA ❤
Thank you for these articles. I’m going to 3 of the Disney Parks this week and plan on using these tips. One question though, when I am using Genie+ to make a lightning lane reservation, can I edit it so that it’s only some of my party? We have 5 in our group but 2 don’t want to go on the tower of terror. Would it be more efficient to make the reservation for all 5 and then just have everyone scan in but the 2 can exit the ride or is there a way to only reserve for the 3 who are going on that ride? Thanks in advance!
Thanks for this article. We are doing a one day MK surprise trip with our adult daughters and this has been my exact question, Should I do SDMT or Peter Pan first. I have never seen what rope drop looks like without fast pass. I am glad you made this article. You were speaking to me. Now I know if we are not in the front half of that line for mine train then we will go straight to Peter Pan and hope to do mine train as our last ride for the night.
You should change your name to “Mr. Magic”! 😂 Your articles can’t be beat! Can you do an in depth article on Galaxies Edge? Start with the virtual que, and make a day of the different things that you can do? With your take on it, no one will be able to top your article! Thanks again for ALL that you do! 🙏🏼
Thank you so much for your articles! I have learned an immense amount of important park knowledge since I have been subscribed to your website. I was in the same spot as you when I started waiting in line for Peter Pan last summer and it was over an hour! Now I know that if the lightning lane is not running, then the line moves quickly. I really didn’t want to use a lightning lane and skip the que because like you that is my favorite part of the ride. You have an awesome sense of humor and you are very good at explaining all of these complicated rules in a simple, easy to understand manner. I look forward to perusal your new articles in the future! Great job!
I love your content – you are SO helpful, kind, and positive! I have been a Disney fanatic for years and have taught myself how to do the parks from reading books and perusal lots of other YouTubers, but you, my Friend, are the new Gold Standard- thank you for your lovely content – so helpful, fun, and informative! 🤗🦋⭐️
Another fan of your rope drop article! I had been scouring for anything that would help me know WHEN to get from the resort to the park and all the details in between and THIS is truly the essential article!! Your articles are full of tangible information and tips that fill in the gaps that others miss plus being informative. I finally feel ready to rope drop MK in June. Now off to binge all your other articles!
We were wondering about why reservations to eat were earlier than park opening but now I see it’s because you can get into Main Street! It’d be awesome if you offered food reservation tips and tricks, especially because of park hopping and resort restaurants. I love the format of your articles and am excited for your content!
Your articles are helpful! You provide clear explanations. I’ve watched many other articles and read blogs that don’t clearly step through the expected experience. Your explanation of rope drop and which attractions to hit and even just when to show up at the park for early park admission exceeds every other explanation by all those other blogs and vlogs.
Yes you still have to wait in the morning and are still technically waiting in line for the one big attraction you are starting with. However, I would argue you still save a lot of time in line throughout the day this way. The people who didn’t do this in the morning will be absorbed by the big rides you already did, allowing you to get on some other things very quickly in the morning that have very high waits in the afternoon ( splash mountain, big thunder, haunted mansion etc.) while they are waiting to get on mine train. it’s a domino effect throughout the day- you end up having the attractions left that have the shortest wait times during peak park hours 😊.
We can’t thank you enough for these early entry articles – for first timers, just knowing what to expect with early entry was so great. But we followed your advice and it was perfect! On our trip we got to ride Remy, Frozen, and Guardians one morning; 7 Dwarfs and Peter Pan another; and Rise of the Resistance (which was lucky because it was temp closed most of the rest of the day), Smugglers Run twice, and M&M Railway! Your advice worked so perfectly! Our Epcot day we were the second family at the gate! We did MK two days and both were able to ride 7 Dwarfs with no wait. It really made our vacation and we were singing your praises every day. Thank you so so much!!
Thank you so much for your article! I have a question. I don’t have a vehicle and lives in on of the resorts that only have buses as the transportation. However, according to the official website, it says that the bus service from resorts to theme parks begins 45 minutes before the theme parks opens. So for example if Magic Kingdom opens at 8 a.m, the first bus from resorts to MK is 7:15. However, the early entry starts at 7:30, so in this case is it like even taking the first bus doesn’t allow me to enter the park early? Thanks.
I love your articles so much and used them to help me last week BUT came across a problem you might want to mention. I was in the front of the line waiting to go to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train pushing my 3 year old in a stroller. Once the park let us through, I went from first in the crowd to last because I had to take the time to park my stroller then stand in the long line. I highly recommended taking a stroller for future articles so parents can get a better idea of how it works. Parent swap also slows you down on getting parks done faster. We still did everything we wanted and had a blast. Love your articles
Dear parents! Let the kids choose their favourite Disney Parks souvenirs!!! When the kids are very good, then they deserve more souvenirs. Every good behaviour kid should have 1-2 bags of Disney Parks souvenirs: plush toys, toys, mini figures, bubble blower, Mickey ears, t-shirts, jacket, drinking bottle, and some pins or magnets and etc. Please buy only those Disney Parks souvenirs, what the kids very want!!!! I know many Disney souvenirs are very expensive, but when the kids are very good all the times, then sometimes they deserve these things!!! Please be kind parents and make Your kids very happy with these Disney Parks souvenirs, what the kids have chosen and don’t say NO all the times, when the kids very deserves those Disney Parks souvenirs for good behaviour!!! Respectfully, Astra Viil 🥰🙏
I am loving your articles! You have a a great way of explaining the complexity of Disney. Great articles and can’t wait to see more. It would be great to see a article on navigating disney ( M/K and HS especially) if you are NOT a resort guest but will still $$$ for Genie + and ILL. Edited to add – I 😍😍😍 all your different ears!!!! I’m super jealous of your collection!
I want to say that I really appreciate the information that you share. I followed your recommendations here and it worked perfectly getting on Seven Dwarfs and being able to complete Peter Pan as the park opened. However, I came across an issue that I hadn’t expected. At 7 AM, I had grabbed Splash Mountain as my first LL for 8:10 AM, which I figured would be great timing. When we completed Peter Pan, we actually decided to do Its A Small World, on the way to Splash Mountain, since it has no wait. Getting off Its A Small World, I checked Splash Mountain and it was down, so we got the special experience LLs in its place. I kept those to use later, but the issue was that, even though Splash Mountain LL had been removed, I had to wait until 10 AM before getting the next ones. I did save them until Splash Mountain came back up around noon and was able to do Jungle Cruise which only had a 20 minute wait at the time, but it threw me for a bit. Any thoughts on why I couldn’t do any before 10, since it treated it like one made for a later time in the day?
Thank you SO much for being on YouTube! Idk why it was so hard to find clarifying information on rope dropping, you’re super helpful! I was worried resort buses wouldn’t leave the resort early enough to get there at 7:30ish, but it seems like they do? Correct me if I’m wrong though! Thank you again 🤗
“I have just met you. And I love you” 🐶 DUG Ha! Seriously though- After you have finished a ride with Genie plus, does the app take that ride listing out of your possible options for interests? Like – does it start using process of elimination so that when you get to the end of your day and you only remain with three genie plus rides left …. like those will be the only ones listed with LL option times? (If available)
Once again, thanks so much for your article. This one has been a lifesaver! I didn’t know that during rope drop only certain parts of the park are available, nobody ever mentioned that in the other websites I’ve seen, so I’ve planned to rope drop Haunted Mansion 😰luckily I’ve watched your article! I hope you’ll make articles also for the other parks before my trip!
Great article! Thank you for making it. Rope dropping at other parks for similar tips (which sections are open, étiquette, etc., would be great! You’ll have to find a sponsor to help fund your overnight stays 🙂 Question: I know the early entry is best for taking advantage of rides, but are the photographers available then? Thanks!
If I’m willing to pay to ride Mine Train would it be a good idea to do rope drop but wait at adventure land and hit up Jungle Cruise first and then work my away around that side of the park? That way I don’t have to necessarily be in the first wave and could just take my time getting over there? I feel that would be less hectic but maybe it’s not?
While you make it seem Fun,all the restrictions, stay behind the rope drop and behind cast members or you’ll be sent to the back of the line . Really ! ? After the castmembers know what time you got up in the morning to get there seems controlling and cruel . This Genie+ bean counting thing makes it no so much fun but a lot of Work