Hey Howdy Hey Sarah and welcome to planDisney!
One thing that no one tells you about until you start planning your trip is Disney vernacular! There can be so many abbreviations and old terminology thrown in with the new terminology you may come across that may be confusing when planning a trip. Thank you for your question and let's talk about rope drop!
In the past, Guests wanting to get to the parks early could do so, scan their tickets and move to a waiting area outside of the parks with the front entrance of the park roped off and managed by Cast Members. When it came time for the parks to open, there used to be a big show with characters, songs and fireworks to build the excitement of the official park opening. Directly after the show, the ropes to the entrance would "drop" and the park would be officially opened. The process now is similar, but not quite what it was say 10-15 years ago. So this refers to the official park opening. You may hear Early Theme Park Entry rope drop vs rope drop for the general public, which is a little different.
Guests staying onsite at a Disney Resort Collection hotel or a partnered Good Neighbor location can enter the parks 30 minutes early with
Early Theme Park Entry. This is the "first" rope drop option. The general public can enter the parks at the
designated opening time and this one is usually with some level of a show to proclaim the parks are officially opened to everyone!
If you are a morning person, I would highly advise you to take advantage of the Early Theme Park Entry benefit. This will allow you access to the parks 30 minutes before the general public and will allow you to experience many of the highly popular attractions with minimal wait times. If you are staying onsite at a Disney Resort Collection hotel,
Resort Transportation will be there in time to get you to the parks! Resort transportation will start running approximately 45 minutes before the parks open to allow for ample time to get you where you need to go!
Best of luck as you continue to move forward on planning for your trip next year. Please feel free to reach out and let us know if you have any other questions, we would be happy to help!
Have a Magical Day,
Nick