Rope dropping Animal Kingdom in 2024 should not be attempted without at least two cups of tea or a strong coffee. It should be a rule. The early alarm and inevitable power walking mass of visitors all charging in one direction can leave tempers frayed, so people should caffeinate.
Given sleep is not really an option on a Disney holiday because there is so much to see and do, people need to appreciate that this makes tempers shorter. It’s not a criticism, who wants to sleep and miss a single magical moment of Disney? But if you don’t sleep, be mindful enough to caffeinate.
Back to rope dropping Animal Kingdom. There are reasons you should consider it and reasons why you should definitely not bother. Let’s take a look at both to decide the verdict.
Reasons to rope drop
The promise of a shorter queue so you can get more done is appealing, as is the cooler temperature of a morning park experience.
Shorter queues
Queue times are short at this early hour of the morning. If you’re a thrill seeker this time of day may well be for you, as the chance of walking onto Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain is high at this time of day. Being able to walk around and do it a couple of times in succession is also high. The only thing to be mindful of is the vertigo effect, after a few rides it can leave you spinning
Other rides also have much shorter queue times at this time of the day. If there is a ride you want to experience that is not located in Pandora, then rope drop will help you out by providing a much shorter wait time.
Avatar: Flight of Passage
This is a ride which always has a wait time during normal park hours. Rope dropping this ride will usually snag you a lower wait time. Around the 30 – 45 minute mark is average at this time if day. That is substantially lower than the 1-2 hour wait you can find at midday, on busy days even 3 hours.
Rope dropping this ride will save you money as well as time as long as you don’t mind the wait. It’s the only ride in Animal Kingdom using the Lightning Lane Single Pass, a one off payment to get a smaller and faster wait time. Rope dropping can save you this cost which is around $12- $16 depending on the day and season. Saving yourself between £9 and £12 may not seem much, but it’s the cost of an average quick service meal per person.
Better animal experiences
When you’re visiting the park with over 2,000 species of animals you want to have an animal experience. Mornings in Florida are cooler and as Animal Kingdom is often closing at 6pm, this is your best chance to see the animals moving around. If having a great animal experience is part of your bucket list, then rope dropping is a great option. If your looking to find the best animal encounters to add to your Animal Kingdom bucket list, head here.
It has the added benefit that it is also cooler for you to enjoy the park too. If you rope drop in the Winter though remember to bring a zip-up for the morning as it can feel chilly, especially waiting in line at the entrance at 7.30am.
Cooler temperatures
The cooler temperatures benefit everyone, and in the Spring and Summer the cooler morning temperatures are reason enough for every to consider rope dropping Animal Kingdom. Once you overcome the hustle and bustle of the initial entry way, the park opens up and unless you head to Pandora you will feel cooler wandering around this park earlier.
Animal Kingdom has a reputation for being one of the hottest theme parks in Disney due to the beautiful open expanses of green areas. Exploring during cooler times, particularly during those first few days after you land from the UK is wise. Your body takes time to adjust to temperatures and humidity we simply don’t experience in the UK.
Pretty pictures
Animal Kingdom is an incredibly picturesque park, offering unique landscape shots that transport you to other countries and lands like Africa and Asia. The early hour of rope drop, especially in the late Autumn and Winter months, means that you can experience the sun rising over Animal Kingdom scenery. This creates beautiful and iconic images worthy of a screensaver or even your wall at home.
Group shots snapped at this time of day also have fewer people in the background and colours sparkle during that golden hour of photography which early morning rope drop at Animal Kingdom gives.
Reasons not to rope drop
The early morning start may be manageable, but are you just trading queue time in one space for queue time in another and are there a huge group of resort guests already 30 minutes in front of you in the queue?
Early entry queue impact
Guests who have chosen to stay onsite in Disney accommodation have the resort perk of Early Entry which means they enter the park 30 minutes before everyone else. Unlike in Magic Kingdom where Early Entry guests do not get access to all the popular rides, in Animal Kingdom there is only one incredibly popular ride. Most resort guests opting to do Early Entry head to Avatar Flight of Passage to make the most of their perk. This means when you come to rope drop the queue line is already hovering around the 30 minutes mark, without the influx of eager park goers hoping to ride with a shorter queue time.
Queue times aren’t always shortest in the morning
Shorter queue times can also be found during the last hour or so of opening in Animal Kingdom, so the need to rope drop to achieve shorter wait lines isn’t essential. You can have a rest and head in to ride later, which is probably an ideal strategy for adults and families with teens.
Rides like Expedition Everest which have shorter queues in a morning, also experience this towards the last couple of hours of park opening, where you can ride over and over with minimal wait times if you wish.
Early alarms
This is one of few holidays where you repeatedly put your alarm on to stand in a queue and go home thinking you need a holiday from all the early starts. Rope dropping Animal Kingdom probably calls for the second earliest rope drop alarm, depending on where you are staying.
People need coffee and forget
Grumpy people are everywhere during rope drop at Animal Kingdom, either that or they are very excited, usually from sleep deprivation. Either way grabbing a Joffrey’s coffee at the entrance or a Starbucks on your power walk will make your very early start better.
The verdict: should you rope drop Animal Kingdom in 2024?
Rope drop as a strategy works whether you head to Avatar: Flight of Passage or other Animal Kingdom rides. You can explore rope drop strategy options here, there are fewer choices at Animal Kingdom than at other parks.
Rope dropping involves an early start, but that is part of heading to any experience if you want to get your money’s worth and enjoy everything that experience has to offer. Going to any Disney Park, including Animal Kingdom is no different.
It’s not a zoo, but you can have the same experience
Rope drop is an experience that everyone should try to do once during their holiday and Animal Kingdom is perhaps the best park to rope drop. The atmosphere, the animals and fewer attractions mean that rope drop mornings can be slower paced if you want them to be. You do not need to focus on riding if you want a chilled morning where you can opt for more of a zoo experience.
Disney World is wonderful but Animal Kingdom mornings before 11am allow you to escape the overstimulation that parks tend to cause. This means it’s great for families with children looking for a quieter walk round, but one that also offers unforgettable animal experiences.
The enclosures, the educational information about both the animals in their habitats and conservation gives it a distinct zoo vibe. For any UK visitors who have been to Chester Zoo, it is quite easy to see similarities. The Islands in Chester Zoo has a particular Animal Kingdom vibe.
Although Animal Kingdom is not sold as a zoo attraction, animals are at the heart of the experiences and wandering around the enclosures to find your own individual encounter is a must do. Rope drop allows you to do when it’s cooler and quieter and for this reason alone, a tired rope drop in Animal Kingdom is worthwhile.
Attractions: Avatar Flight of Passage and Na’vi River Journey
Rope dropping Animal Kingdom for attractions is only worth it if you’re a morning person. Hopping onto Avatar: Flight of Passage about 20 minutes before closing is a great way to get a lower wait time as the queue is not slowed by Lightning Lane entrances to the same extent at this time of day.
Rope drop reduces your wait time for Avatar Flight of Passage which is the most popular attraction in the park. Rope dropping will save you money on a Lightning Lane Single pass, but you will also wait longer in a morning than you will if you get a Lightning Lane Single Pass.
For UK visitors however, getting that Lightning Lane Single Pass is an effort, and they are selling out in 2024 since the Genie queue system was put back in the lamp. Rope drop will save you money and the hassle of trying to book a Single Pass. For this reason, rope drop is worth doing and should be a consideration if you are looking to experience Avatar: Flight of Passage.
Na’vi River Journey is a ride which develops a long wait line, particularly during the peak of the day. Riding this attraction at rope drop will definitely save you time in the queue and is worth while doing. If you want to use rope drop to ride both Pandora attractions, this is something you can do and should have time to do before crowd levels increase further. Ride Avatar: Flight of Passage first as this attraction gets a long queue time fast, then head over to Na’vi River Journey.
Animal Attractions
Kilimanjaro Safaris and Rafiki’s Planet Watch Attractions are morning rides as they can close a little earlier than the park closing time at certain times of the year. If these attractions are high on your bucket list of experiences, then rope drop would be worthwhile for you. Neither offer fast-paced thrill and would fit more with the zoo vibes talked about above.
Any live animal attractions benefit from an early morning visit, although they can be equally magical later in the day. During Spring and Summer months, rope drop is the best way to experience Animal Kingdom.
Other Attractions and shows
Most of the must-see Animal Kingdom shows are live action and do not run constantly on a loop. They have show times. Very few of these shows start in the first hour of park opening and are not experiences you can rope drop. If you are looking to enjoy The Festival of The Lion King, Feathered Friend in Flight, or Finding Nemo, Into the Big Blue and Beyond, rope drop isn’t necessary. You can enter the park later on and still have the same show experience.
Attractions outside of Pandora all have low wait times at rope drop and continue to do so until around 11am on quiet days. During busier weekend days and through the holidays, you’ll find that queues get longer faster. Even then, rope dropping Animal Kingdom for the exact time it opens isn’t needed to enjoy lower wait times for attractions away from Pandora.
For every other Disney Park most rides benefit from being punctual and joining the queue to be first in the park. At Animal Kingdom, if you are ten minutes, half an hour late as long as you are not rope dropping to ride either of the two rides in Pandora, you’ll still get low wait times. It won’t make a huge difference to your strategy, like it would elsewhere. It’s the lowest risk rope drop park, unless you want Pandora rides.
Why rope drop for anything other than Pandora?
If you rope drop purely for ride experiences, then you will want to rope drop Animal Kingdom purely to be ride Avatar: Flight of Passage and Na’vi River Journey. Yes, it is worth rope dropping for these ride experiences, but it is not essential, and you can work around an early alarm.
The only time there may be an exception to this is Christmas Day, Memorial Day, Easter and other holidays, when the parks are busier.
The question of whether it is worth rope dropping for other attractions and experiences in Animal Kingdom, is tough, because it is far from being an essential thing to do to get the best experiences. If you like an early morning and you want to beat the Florida heat, rope drop, it is after all simply just heading to the park to be ready to go in at opening time.
If you aren’t a morning person, have had way too many late show nights, or simply need a lie-in because you are on holiday skip it. You can give rope drop a miss at Animal Kingdom without it impacting the chances of you riding everything you want and having a great experience.
Conclusion
Rope dropping Animal Kingdom is a fun experience to try and is definitely worth the effort for UK visitors. It is by no means essential to get the best from your Animal Kingdom day. The strategy works for the rides in Pandora, but you can use other ways to skip the queues if the early alarm and start is too much to face. Whatever you choose, rope drop with coffee.
