Usually I use heart attack hill and the bridge to get to the back of the park and be ahead of the crowds. But Pantheon's opening will probably change that to bee lining to Italy.
Mine depends on the season. If it is late spring/summer I will go straight to Pompeii because nothing says BGW for me like the drop and the ride music. If it is HOS season, I usually head for Killarney and check out the decor, although I may alter that if the 2020 layout is the same as last year's. For CT I go back to Pompeii and check out the lights. Unfortunately I am a slave to routine.
Usually Killarney, it just feels correct to start out that way, Plus the vibe of that hamlet is my favorite, its a great way to really start my trip. Though if I'm really itching to get on rides I'll go towards Italy first.
We change it up most of the time, but we've gotten into a bad habit/tradition(?) of heading to Killarney for Jameson shots to start the day. I'm only slightly ashamed of this though.
If my sister is with us or we are riding Nessie, we go to Heatherdowns. Otherwise we head to Killarney 95% of the time. Clockwise around the park just feels weird at this point.
I generally head towards Killarney most of the time but it's not a set in stone habit. Last year I actually headed toward San Marco most of the time as I wanted to get pictures of Pantheon's construction progress.
As long as it doesn’t interfere with catching my first show; I almost always head to Nessie first.
Otherwise, Ireland is my favorite place to start. I love seeing the morning dew on the flowers in that area; plus the cooler temps. Also, maybe it’s because I think of eating Lucky Charms at that time of the day, but I dunno.