I've never been to Disneyland

usd2bmd · Mar 30, 2015

My family and I are in the beginning stages of planning a trip out west and it will of course include a trip to Disneyland.

Since we have never been and I know pretty much nothing about Disneyland how many days should we plan on to properly visit the parks?

This may very well be our only trip out there so we want to make sure we hit as much as possible.

Thanks for your insight.

hootey · Mar 30, 2015

Go for as many days as you can! We have been going to DL for years and do not go unless we can stay at least four days. Stay onsite if you can, there are many many perks that go with staying at a Disneyland Hotel. Have at least two or more different carachter meals. Take your time and look at everything, go in every store, see every show and parade. Remember to have FUN and take lots of pictures!

SandyinMonterey · Mar 30, 2015

When we go, it's just for 3 to 4 days. Four days is kind of pushing it for us. Disneyland has just the two parks. Much more manageable than WDW. I agree with the previous poster about staying on site if possible. Enhances your stay as you continue the Disney theme into where you stay. Have a magical trip!

Imdboss · Mar 30, 2015

What time of year are you planning?

We always get a 5 day park hopper, last day is usually only partial though since we fly home that day. Last year we managed 6 days in the park since we attended MHP. I miss the days of the 7 day park hopper, we never have enough time to do everything. That being said there are several rides we do multiple times so if we didn't do that then we would have time for other things. I would say 3 days at the very minimum but 5 if feasible. We've only stayed on site once and wasn't impressed at all but that was before DLH was refurbished. There are plenty of hotels/motels within walking distance of the parks. The closest ones across the street are mostly motels I believe, not for us so I haven't paid too much attention. All of the area hotels run on the ART, which is the local shuttle service and each bus line has a few stops and they just makes continuous runs between hotels and DL all day long. There are also a lot of hotels within 1 mile of the park so definitely within walking distance if you don't want to use ART. The on property hotels come at a premium cost compared to being within 1 mile of the park. You just need to figure out what works best for your family. Also if you can fly into SNA I would do that over LAX.

Butterfly123 · Mar 30, 2015

I would say for a special, may be the only time trip, four days is okay, but five would be better. That way you don't have to rush, and can really enjoy all the "smaller" stuff that makes Disneyland so great. If you are going off season, four would be okay, but you would need some Fri/Sat/Sun time for fireworks and Fantasmic. Some time ago when they offered six day tickets we tried that (the sixth for a half day) but it ended up being too much for everybody...except me!

RemainSeatedPlease · Mar 30, 2015

I think that four days would be perfect. Three days would be the minimum I'd suggest for such a trip, and you can't get more than a five day park hopper ticket. It also depends on what you care about seeing. If you don't care much for the shows/parades/fireworks, then you probably don't need five full days in the parks since you will save a lot of time by skipping those things. If you are the type of family that like to go back to the hotel in the middle of the day for a nap or swim, then you may want more days. As for me, I try to stick to three days, with no going back to hotel, seeing maybe two shows, and going from rope drop to closing!

disneymom0104 · Mar 30, 2015

We love 6 days, but can't imagine less than 4. Since they don't do the 6 day hoppers anymore we are only going for 5 in May and I am a bit sad about it!

Camshell · Mar 30, 2015

We've been on the older 7 day pass and the newer 5 day pass. We never had a problem having things to do, see, eat, to fill our time. It takes us about 7 hours to travel to Disneyland so we treat our trip like a vacation. I would go for as long as you can (right now they only offer a max. 5 day pass). Be sure to get the park hopper so you can move in between the parks. It is a must a Disneyland as it is so easy to do (popping in between the parks throughout the day).

planningjollyholiday · Mar 30, 2015

I would do the most you can buy which is 5 days. Even at 5 days you will not see/do everything that the DLR has to offer.

Carolynleanne · Mar 30, 2015

If it's likely your only trip and you can spare it, do 5 days. It'll allow you time to see all you want to see without being rushed!

mom2rtk · Mar 30, 2015

They will only sell up to a 5 day ticket. If you have the time and budget, I would go for it. We have done 2 or 3 day trips before but usually left wanting more. We finally did 5 days in 2013 and it definitely did not feel like too much.

Keep in mind there are as many attractions in those 2 parks as there are in all of WDW. Add in fireworks, Fantasmic, Aladdin, WoC....... and it really does take a while to see it all.

TeresaR · Mar 30, 2015

I agree with all the PPs in saying you should go for 5 days if you possibly can. There is a lot more to see and do in the park than most people think there is. And don't forget about Downtown Disney.

GeminiAngel · Mar 30, 2015

4 days. 3 park hopper days. One pool day. Stay at DL Hotel and rent a cabana for the afternoon, you won't be sorry.

Canuck16 · Mar 30, 2015

We have always done the maximum number days which used to be 7 days but is now only 5. We also get hoppers so we can go from park to park.

We have never stayed on site as we have never found that the added expense to do so was worth it for our family.

Have fun as DL and DCA are such fun parks!

SplashMo · Mar 30, 2015

Five days with park hoppers. Take advantage of the early admission for onsite guests.

1 day is not enough
2 days is rushed
3 days is adequate but a bit rushed
4 days is solid
5 days is the best in my book...

That would be five full days. However we are on the West coast and so it is a short hop on the plane home... We often leave the parks at 5PM on the fifth day..

YukonMommy · Mar 31, 2015

I also would strongly recommend a 5 day park hopper.
There are tonnes of hotels just across the street that are half the price as the DL hotels if money is a concern or you just view the hotel as a place to store your stuff and sleep (like my family and I do!).

This site will be a wealth of information for you so ask away!!

Happy planning!

KeKy4 · Mar 31, 2015

I think 3 day hoppers is the minimum. We are usually pretty pooped out after 3 full days but if you had the time you could get 5 days and skip a day here and there?
I like the Magic passport app because you can check off shows/rides as you go.

Disneyland1084 · Mar 31, 2015

I agree with the others that say to stay at a resort hotel. If this is going to be your only trip to DL, you might as well make the most of it if it fits your budget. I've never done more than 3 days at DL in a row, but if you do 4 or more, it might be a good idea to have a couple of "break" days in between to just relax at the pool, or go on a little sightseeing.

luulu1999 · Mar 31, 2015

Our first trip we only had 3 days at Christmas so our second we did 5 park hopper days and it was AMAZING!! We actually split days up and didn't do 5 in a row and I think that helped a lot we did a couple of beach days in between some of the days and hopefully we will be going back next summer and will be doing 5 days again!! Depending on when you will be going and buying tickets and such Orbitz has get one day free with 3 and 4 day PH's so it makes it worth it

HydroGuy · Mar 31, 2015

SplashMo said:
Five days with park hoppers. Take advantage of the early admission for onsite guests.

1 day is not enough
2 days is rushed
3 days is adequate but a bit rushed
4 days is solid
5 days is the best in my book...

That would be five full days. However we are on the West coast and so it is a short hop on the plane home... We often leave the parks at 5PM on the fifth day..

I have never seen a summary like this - and have never done five days at DLR myself - but having done four days multiple times - plus, 1, 2 and 3 days - I think you nailed it.

As the OP appears to have visited WDW multiple times, I would compare 3 days at DLR to 5-6 days at WDW, 4 days at DLR to 7-8 days at WDW, and 5 days at DLR to 9-10 days at WDW.

:wizard:

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