At DLR now, some thoughts

[alvernon90]

We are at DLR for a five-day daddy-daughter trip featuring me and DD10. As is my practice, I wanted to leave some thoughts for future searchers. We drove from Phoenix and are staying at DLH, which is our favorite.

1. We had reserved a cabana for the afternoon of our arrival. We got lucky that a room was ready for us when we arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, and we went to the cabana at 2:00. As it turns out, the weather was quite cold and windy, and a good part of our afternoon was wasted as both the E Ticket pool and the splash pool were closed due to pooping incidents, which made the D Ticket pool and water slide insanely crowded. Fortunately, we were able to have a snack delivered, but at least today (warmer and less crowded) would have been a better cabana day. There were unused cabanas at the pool today, so you might consider making same-day cabana reservations to make sure the weather and crowds are right.

2. It was super easy to get RSR fastpasses this morning -- we went around half an hour after opening and there was no wait except the time to walk through the queue. We didn't even use our FP because we changed up our plan, but we're confident we can ride again. I would not waste time waiting for the FP line to open, just go shortly after opening.

3. We went on Soarin' Over California because I read here they did a partial refurb. I had previously said I would not ride again until it was upgraded. Unfortunately, it still desperately needs a digital projector upgrade like the one that saved Star Tours, but at least the screens were in good repair and the film was looking as good as I have ever seen it. The ride is restored to its full 1990s glory, which is good enough for now. Can't wait for the digital projector and new film, though.

4. Mac and cheese hot dog. Enough said.

5. Crowds were surprisingly low for early entry today, at least at first. The crowds really picked up by noon, and it was quite hot. Thank goodness for the DLH pool, which was empty and poop-free for an afternoon break. We were also grateful for a big splash on POTC.

6. We were disappointed to see that ESPN Zone has removed the individual TVs in the booths in the main dining room. The surround speakers in those booths was one of my favorite parts of the restaurant.

We will continue to update this thread so future searchers can read about a late July trip.

 

[Misskitty3]

Thanks for sharing! Looking forward to reading more about your trip!

 

[nolenbelledavis]

Yay for no afternoon poop in the pool!

 

[2tinkerbell]

Mac & Cheese Hot Dog - where did you get it? Sounds perfect for my DD.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Mac & Cheese Hot Dog - where did you get it? Sounds perfect for my DD.

Not the OP, but my son has gotten the mac & cheese hot dog at Coke Corner in DL. Don't know if it is offered anywhere else.

 

[madasax12]

Glad to hear that other than the poop incident the pools at DLH are good! Counting the days! I will be following this thread!

 

[Disney Dider]

You can get the Mac n cheese on the side too which works great for my kiddo. Coke corner...

 

[2tinkerbell]

Thanks for answering my question. Also, thanks for posting your thoughts and experiences live. I like live reports.

 

[Malcon10t]

4. Mac and cheese hot dog. Enough said..

My daughter and a friend of ours order a cup of chili to go with it, and add that on top of the mac and cheese. They say it is excellent. (They split the cup, one cup is too much for 1, but just right for 2.)

 

[SoonerSean]

Enjoyed the report... we arrive tomorrow afternoon and will be in the parks tomorrow hopefully by 5:00 and then all day Friday and Saturday. We're old Disney pros and have decided to just roll with things this trip, i.e. no major plans and we'll just go with the flow. We'll see how long that lasts. LOL.

Tomorrow night it's DL... then Friday we'll probably hit CA to start the day and then head to DL again after lunch... then maybe back to CA for the show. Then we'll open and close DL on Saturday since we're heading home on Sunday.

Can't wait. It's hot... but it's almost 100 here in Oklahoma and the humidity is near 90%. So upper 80's in California sounds like winter to us.

 

[djmeredith]

Thanks OP! These real time reports from the parks really help me. We leave Thursday so I am now looking for the most up to date info.

 

[rentayenta]

My daughter and a friend of ours order a cup of chili to go with it, and add that on top of the mac and cheese. They say it is excellent. (They split the cup, one cup is too much for 1, but just right for 2.)

That sounds incredible.

 

[Nonsuch]

...both the E Ticket pool and the splash pool were closed due to pooping incidents...

South Park episode -- Pee

 

[pinkhart]

Thanks for the info.
Could you tell me what the return time on your RSR fast passes was?

 

[Viva Las Disney]

Can't wait. It's hot... but it's almost 100 here in Oklahoma and the humidity is near 90%. So upper 80's in California sounds like winter to us.

I'm driving down Thursday from Las Vegas and as much as I love DL I think I'm just as excited about the weather. I'm doing a 10k in Cypress on Saturday and after training in 100+ heat for the last month 80 degrees sounds like heaven.

 

[alvernon90]

Sorry that we didn't maintain the live report, we were just too busy and too tired from being so busy at DLR.

I see the answer for mac and cheese hot dog (Coke Corner) was already posted. Our unused RSR fast passes were for about 12:30. On Wednesday we got in the RSR FP line about 2 minutes before park opening and got FPs for about 9:10. That worked out great.

Some more thoughts from the trip, which ended on Thursday morning:

1. The heat was quite bad and the crowds were also pretty bad. The wait times for big attractions were only moderately bad but unbearable if it meant standing in the heat. The key, as always, was being there at rope drop for early entry and visiting at night -- still warm, but lack of direct sun made it much more bearable.

2. We saw Aladdin and it was better than we remembered. Best seat is front row mezzanine. The wait for it was tough, though -- no breeze in that waiting area.

3. Saw World of Color for the first time. Followed HydroGuy's tips and it worked perfectly, except I don't think we needed to wait so long. If you want to fight the stampede -- and it will be a pushing, shoving, yelling stampede -- for the central rail viewing areas, go for it. But we calmly strolled over to the bridge, where we were guaranteed nobody would put their kid on their shoulders to block our view. It was a perfect view, and the spots right next to us on either side would have still been available 30 minutes later. If you want to watch from the bridge, look at HydroGuy's image and try for a spot between the two northernmost yellow stars on that bridge.

4. One more on World of Color -- the show is great when it does fountain "interpretations" of the music but the water screen segments are pure padding. If you don't care to watch fuzzy movie clips, you can probably enjoy the show from anywhere on the bay, but be sure you can see the surface of the water to fully enjoy the amazing lighting effects.

5. For the rest of the week, nobody else pooped in the pool. That we know of.

6. Top two tips for Grizzly River Run: (1) Use the free lockers -- they are still free, notwithstanding what the CM at the line entrance told us; and (2) plant your feet over the brass drains in the boat and don't move them unless a big wave comes over and you need to drain the boat. If those are uncovered when you hit the bottom of a drop or a big wave, water shoots up and soaks your feet. When we covered them, we all escaped with only getting moderately wet.

7. We were so excited that Peter Pan was open. It has been officially scheduled for a four-day refurb in the middle of July, on the exact days were visiting. I was disappointed because I missed Peter Pan on my last trip and because it makes no sense to do a short, scheduled refurb of a headliner in the middle of summer. Obviously wiser heads prevailed at Disney, because it was open. We jump in line and sweated it out for 35 minutes because we were afraid it would be closing the next day. Turns out it was open the entire time.

8. It was good to see the park in peak operating efficiency. Most rides seemed to be working at almost 100%, which was especially good to see on Splash Mountain. The smoke effect on BTMRR didn't work either time, I don't think, but I don't know what it is supposed to look like.

9. Speaking of BTMRR, before going I thought some people on these boards were crazy for complaining that the new track is too smooth. How can a roller coaster be too smooth? Turns out I can understand the point. It no longer feels like a train, it feels like a hovercraft or magic carpet. But still awesome.

10. The improved effects in Alice in Wonderland were truly spectacular. If they upgrade the other Fantasyland rides with similar effects it will be amazing. And anyone complaining about the new safety railings is all wet, they are fine. That ride has never been better.

11. The crowds were on the heavy side, but not unbearable except for the heat, as noted above. I do believe that if you can stand it, summer is a good time to go. Early morning and late night are fine -- though late nights are not nearly as fun now that FP return times are enforced. BOO!

12. Another big thumbs up to Disneyland hotel. If you want to take a mid-day pool break, head back to the hotel by noon. At around 2:00 it starts getting crowded. Similarly, if you want a quiet half-day cabana experience, go for the morning.

13. Walked through Princess Fantasy Faire to look at it (it's quite nice) and found the awesome shortcut to Frontierland. (Shh, don't tell anyone.)

14. I now realize that I enjoy the Muppetvision pre-show much more than the actual show. The implications of that movie -- from the creation of sentient life in a lab disaster to the subsequent efforts to enslave and/or murder that creature -- are darker than I like from Kermit. Time for something new in that space.

Now that we are back, I will try to be better about answering questions. If none, I hope this is useful for future searchers. Thanks to everyone for making this the best source of info on enjoying Disneyland.

 

[SoonerSean]

Great comments/tips.

We've only been in DL for one day. It is amazing how hot the sun has been. But at least there's no humidity.

My only complaint is that the wait times don't seem to be even close to accurate. Star Tours said 20 minutes and we waited close to 40 and when we came out the line was longer and wait time still said 20. Buzz said 10 and the line was maxed out. When we did our BTMRR via FP it said 20 for standby but seeing where the line ended it was obvious it was 40. The only one that was right all day was HM which said 5 and we walked right in.

 

[lifeguardette]

What time did you get in line for WOC? What time would you advise to get a spot on the bridge?

 

[alvernon90]

What time did you get in line for WOC? What time would you advise to get a spot on the bridge?

We grabbed blue FPs first thing in the morning while on our way to California Screamin' during early entry -- I don't know if they always make the FPs available before official park opening but it was very convenient, as a line formed for FPs later in the morning.

We went to the red spire a little more than 90 minutes early and sat on a bench waiting for the line to form. They set up the ropes about 90 minutes before showtime, and then we stood waiting for half an hour until they let us into the viewing area. Once we had our spots we could sit again until show time. There was a lot of jostling when the line was established, and once people ran for seats it was crazy -- rather unsafe really, but not for us because we turned left when everyone else ran right.

Since we were the first ones on the bridge we asked a CM where the best spot was and she told us. The spots next to us were not taken until about 45 minutes before showtime. However, there were other spots on the bridge which stayed open until about 30 minutes before showtime. I believe those other spots would be fine. Finally, a woman and her teenage daughter came and sat "behind" us about 25 minutes before showtime -- they saw DD10 and realized they'd be able to view the show over her head, but that was pure luck for them.

I have only done this once, but if my experience was typical you could get a good bridge spot about 50 minutes before show time and not have to stand in line at all -- just stroll up to the Blue FP entrance after the crowd has shoved its way into the main viewing area. However, to be "dead bang certain" of getting a rail spot, you can't go wrong with 90 minutes. As usual, HydroGuy was right!

 

[alvernon90]

Great comments/tips.

We've only been in DL for one day. It is amazing how hot the sun has been. But at least there's no humidity.

My only complaint is that the wait times don't seem to be even close to accurate. Star Tours said 20 minutes and we waited close to 40 and when we came out the line was longer and wait time still said 20. Buzz said 10 and the line was maxed out. When we did our BTMRR via FP it said 20 for standby but seeing where the line ended it was obvious it was 40. The only one that was right all day was HM which said 5 and we walked right in.

I think the "no humidity" is a relative thing, because coming from Phoenix it seemed to me that the parks were extremely humid and sweaty. I've seen worse (I lived in D.C. for 10 years) but I definitely would not say there was no humidity. I would DEFINITELY agree that it was amazing how hot the sun was, like it was closer to the ground or something. In any event, I'd take 100 degrees in Phoenix over 90 degrees in Anaheim.

As for wait times, that reminds me of another important tip: Ask Otto! It worked great for us, though it only uses the official wait times. Those times are only estimates and little things can throw them off (a slow loading party, or maybe a large group that enters all at once because a nearby show just ended). But we found they were generally pretty close.

So that is another tip: don't wander around looking for a ride with a good wait time, grab a seat in a quiet spot and call the Ask Otto line. Slower than the old official app, but more reliable.