Arriving early to Universal Islands of Adventure can be a game changer when it comes to efficiently getting on the rides. In this post I will share my strategy for how to rope drop Islands of Adventure, including what rides to start with and what you need to know.
I’ve always been the kind of person that is okay waking up early on our theme park days if it meant short wait times and more rides. I like being ahead of the crowds and accomplishing a lot by 11:00am.
It makes for a much more enjoyable day knowing you got the most popular rides done while others wait hours. This is where rope drop comes in.
At Islands of Adventure rope drop consists of the rides at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter as well as Jurassic World VelociCoaster.
Let’s get into all the details of what you need to know and how to plan your day rope dropping at Islands of Adventure.
Insider Tip: Purchase tickets before you arrive to get the best deal and save time!
Rope Drop Islands of Adventure
Rope Drop is when the park opens to guests and the Team Members “drop the rope”. In actuality there is not usually a rope but the name has stuck amongst the theme park community.
At Islands of Adventure it means being at the gate before park opening to be the first people in the park once it opens.
There are usually two rope drops happening on any given day at the parks. The first rope drop is for Early Park admission guests and the second is for regular guests that enter the park at official park opening.
Early Park Admission Rope Drop
Early Park admission rope drop is the one we always do and you must be staying at a Universal Hotel or be a preferred or premier annual passholder. I highly recommend staying at a hotel on Universal property and early entry is one of the perks.
Typically Universal offers Early Park admission to one or more of their parks to guests staying at a Universal Hotel. Currently it is being offered at Islands of Adventure and Epic Universe.
Second Rope Drop
Second rope drop starts at official park opening and includes all guests as well as most areas of the park not open during early park admission.
Guests staying at a Universal hotel can take advantage of both rope drops if you time it right and crowds are low. It is not easy to do though and will mean you will miss a few Harry Potter attractions. More on the best strategy for this later in the post.
Early Park Admission at Islands of Adventure
Guests can enter Islands of Adventure 1 hour prior to park opening. This means if the park opens at 9:00am, early park admission would start at 8:00am.
The best tip for this is to arrive 30-40 minutes before early entry starts. It will be busy at these times and showing up between 8:00am-9:00am will not really get you ahead of the lines.
Islands of Adventure Rides Open During Early Park Admission
For June 18th-July 31st 2025 the following rides and attractions are open:
- Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey™
- Flight of the Hippogriff™
- Jurassic World VelociCoaster
- Ollivanders™
- Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™
Updated park and ride availability can be found here.
Strategy for Rope Drop at Islands of Adventure
Arrive at Islands of Adventure gate by 7:15-7:20am. This is 40 minutes before the gates will open. The closer you are to the front gates the better.
Once they open the gates you will walk through Port of Entry and towards Seuss Landing. At Seuss Landing there will be team members checking for hotel keys or your annual pass that includes early entry.
When you are through those gates you are guided behind Seuss Landing through Lost Continent and at the start of the line for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure. If you are headed to Jurassic World VelociCoaster you will go left after Mythos Restaurant across the bridge to queue for that.
Team Members are there to guide you in the correct direction if you need help.
Hagrids or VelociCoaster
We do Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure first. The queue is always the longest at any given moment through the day making the early park admission hours the best time to ride it.
VelociCoaster is usually about a 20 minute wait once we are done with Hagrids. If you plan to ride Hagrids it is best to do it first.
Our Experience with Rope Drop
On our most recent visit we did the following:
- 7:46am: Arrived at Islands of Adventure Gate, this is actually 10-20 minutes later than I would like but our bus took longer than expected.
- 7:53am: Enter the park
- 7:59am: Enter the Queue for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure
- 8:30am: Boarded the Ride
- 8:37am: Off the ride, Wait time at this point for Hagrid’s was posted at 110 minute wait, VelociCoaster was 25 minutes.
- 8:45am: Get in queue for Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, ride this and Hippogriff
- 9:00am: Ride VelociCoaster
- From there we took time to explore a quiet Camp Jurassic.
On other visits we have done both rope drops by skipping Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and Flight of the Hippogriff.
The plan for this would be: Hagrid’s, VelciCoaster, get in rope drop line for The Incredible Hulk and then The Amazing Adventure of Spider-Man. Second rope drop is located to the left of Port of Entry when you are entering the park.
Rope Drop Can Be Chaos
We have rope dropped Islands of Adventure dozens of times and it is the best way to ride Hagrid’s but it is not predictable. At times Hagrid’s is delayed and the rest of the wait times increase quickly, other times it is fast and we are able to get 3-5 rides done in the first two hours or park opening.
It is also a lot of people moving to get on this ride and can feel a bit like the running of the bulls – minus the bulls! Team Members do ask guests to walk but a lot of speed walking will be happening.
Be prepared to move quickly when the gates open but don’t worry too much about people moving faster. For Hagrid’s they start the queue far out so you claim your spot fairly quickly.
You will also need to put large bags in a locker. The small lockers are free for guests riding but be prepared to do this. Large backpacks will not fit! I suggest a small crossbody that can be turned into a fanny pack. My theme park store has our preferred choice.
It is important to be flexible with your Islands of Adventure itinerary and check the Universal app often to plan your next move. If there is a ride on the list you don’t want to ride skip it and go on to the next.
You may not care for Hagrid’s and would prefer to ride VelociCoaster first with a few rides before it gets busy. Do what works best for you!
What About Universal Express Pass
Universal Express Pass is a paid upgrade that allows guests to skip the lines. There are two ways to get Express Pass: Pay for the add-on (prices start at $119.99 in addition to your park tickets) or stay at a Universal hotel that includes Express Pass.
If you have an unlimited budget you should consider the Universal Express Pass. We do not budget for express pass but have used our Annual Passholder hotel discount to stay at the Hard Rock Hotel. This included unlimited express pass and was awesome to have.
Guests with Express Pass do not have to make reservations for the rides and can walk on whenever they would like. Express Pass is offered at almost all the rides at the park including all of the rides available during rope drop.
If you have express pass you do not need to rope drop if you prefer sleeping in. Express pass gives guests the freedom to tour the park anyway they want without much planning.
It is a great perk but comes at a steep price and each family is different when planning their trip. Only purchase if it makes sense for your budget, if you don’t want to spend money on the upgrade you can still have an incredible day.
Final Thoughts
I am team rope drop- it always saves us so much time and when we sit down for lunch knowing we accomplished a lot of rides it makes for a much easier day.
Rope dropping Islands of Adventure is an good strategy for guests that want to stay ahead of the crowds and get a lot done before the park starts to get busy.
If you are overwhelmed with planning or just want someone to make all the reservations for you consider using a travel agent. Our friend Nikki at Royal Treatment Travel is amazing and has helped us plan and book many of our trips. She finds the best deals and her service is complimentary for most theme park vacations! It is a win-win. Learn more here.
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Leah has been planning and writing about Universal trips since 2016. She loves finding the best places to eat and stay during her visits to the park. Leah enjoys the little details that make visiting the parks so immersive and special, and sharing that with her readers.
