Hi Danny, and thanks for your question!
I am a
Magic Key holder and always visit the parks
without Early Entry. Although I rarely rope drop, I still try to enter the gates no later than 9AM, and even then, I still find arriving at the park during early morning hours to be highly effective at riding multiple attractions with a minimal line.
The thing to note about Early Entry is that only some attractions are open for that experience. If you were to rope drop, you would have the same advantage for a shorter wait time on certain attractions like
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance or
Radiator Springs Racers, which are
not open during Early Entry. You can find a list of attractions available for Early Entry on the
Disneyland Resort website. This may help you in planning for rope drop.
One tip I have for rope drop – use
Mobile Food and Beverage Ordering for a quick grab-and-go breakfast around 9:30AM. For example, I may order a quick breakfast at the
Galactic Grill before making my way to the
Matterhorn Bobsleds or
Space Mountain.
Best of luck rope dropping – it truly is a fun way to get the day started.
Happy adventuring,
Lola