Is there such a thing as too much Disneyland?

[KrazyForTheMouse]

We just bought our Annual passes and hvae a 7 hour drive to get to Disneyland. I hope to wear those passes out in my year of use! i dont see how you could have too much Disneyland!

 

[ktlm]

It will be great! Go for it! She is such a fun age for it. Every trip is special in its own way. There is always some sort of Disney Magic somewhere!

Pre-DD, DH and I went to WDW about every 3 years, and I also had gone to WDW around once every 4 years as a kid and had one trip to DL as a kid. DD was born in 2006, and I just couldn't wait until she was old enough for WDW. Had a business trip in Irvine and DH went with me and we spent one day at DL/CA without her in July 2008. We fell in love with DL/CA. We felt guilty about being at Disney without DD so got back and immediately booked WDW for December 2008. I will never forget that first trip with DD, and how excited and amazed she was. WDW had some great discounts in 2009, so went there in May 2009 and December 2009. DD had never seen the Aladdin show at DL/CA (in my opinion the best show at any Disney theme park ever) and it was supposed to be closing (it got indefinitely extended), so we just had to go to DL/CA in June 2010. UH OH- that family trip got us completely hooked on both WDW and DL, so now we are in alternating mode. It was off to WDW in December 2010 and back to DL/CA in June 2011. So you can see, DD (5) has already had several trips in her young life! We aren't sick of Disney yet. We would get on a plane and go to either one tomorrow if we could! She is excited for every trip and never wants to leave when it is time to go home.


I haven't been lucky enough to go to DL during the Christmas season yet, but based on WDW at Christmas, I would say that Disney at the holidays will make plenty of new magic for you. I would LOVE to see Small World and Haunted Mansion Holiday! HMMM...maybe I need to plan a trip! If you are lucky enough to be able to take another trip this year, I say do it!!!

 

[KBelle5]

As someone who is fortunate enough to have free entry to the parks, I go to Disneyland a lot. Yes, I have been on Space Mountain so many times that I've memorized the track, and sometimes just skip it. However, Disneyland has this atmosphere about it that allows you a different experience each time you visit, even if you've been there 90 times in one year. There's never a time when I will decline a chance to visit the park.

I personally like to take time to do things that a lot of regular guests can't, because of time, budget, etc., and that is watch the park atmosphere talent. The Dapper Dans are a favorite, and Billy Hill and the Hillbillies is not to be missed. Sometimes I'll plop myself down at Coke Corner to listen to the piano player or quiet area of the park and people watch. That's where the (and here's that word again!) magic of Disney really comes into play. Seeing little kids run excitedly down Main Street never gets old. Watching their face light up as they see a character is one of the most rewarding things, even though they're not my kids. Even getting into the parade and being excited to see your favorite characters is fun.

There's always something new to explore, and like others have said, don't go in with the mindset that this trip has to be absolutely perfect, because then it won't be. You probably didn't realize that your last trip was perfect until you looked back at it, so this trip can have the same outcome, even if things don't go as planned.

 

[spacemermaid]

There's just no way you'll be disappointed...Disneyland during the holidays is the opposite of disappointing! It's the best time of year to go, IMO...

 

[blackjackdelta]

As someone who is fortunate enough to have free entry to the parks, I go to Disneyland a lot. Yes, I have been on Space Mountain so many times that I've memorized the track, and sometimes just skip it. However, Disneyland has this atmosphere about it that allows you a different experience each time you visit, even if you've been there 90 times in one year. There's never a time when I will decline a chance to visit the park.

I personally like to take time to do things that a lot of regular guests can't, because of time, budget, etc., and that is watch the park atmosphere talent. The Dapper Dans are a favorite, and Billy Hill and the Hillbillies is not to be missed. Sometimes I'll plop myself down at Coke Corner to listen to the piano player or quiet area of the park and people watch. That's where the (and here's that word again!) magic of Disney really comes into play. Seeing little kids run excitedly down Main Street never gets old. Watching their face light up as they see a character is one of the most rewarding things, even though they're not my kids. Even getting into the parade and being excited to see your favorite characters is fun.

There's always something new to explore, and like others have said, don't go in with the mindset that this trip has to be absolutely perfect, because then it won't be. You probably didn't realize that your last trip was perfect until you looked back at it, so this trip can have the same outcome, even if things don't go as planned.

Lucky you, very nice post and so true.

Jack

 

[LisainCalifornia]

We typically go 3 times a year (summer, spring break, Christmas season) so I am not one to discourage you! The only thing that stuck out to me in your post is that you went in May (low-season) and are planning on going Thanksgiving week. I am the first to say that there is never a "bad" time to do Disney, but we went Thanksgiving week (Mon-Wed) last year, and I wouldn't do it again--even if I was paid to do it! It was that bad as far as crowds. And as you can see from my first sentence--I don't shy away from crowds at Disneyland! It was the worst trip ever--and it wasn't because we weren't trying to have fun. It was just too crowded to have a decent time. Just a heads up about that Thanksgiving week time frame.

 

[Faithful Raider]

We also took our 5 year old for the first time in May, and we're heading back next week. She's super excited to be going back. We did 6 days in May and it still wasn't enough for us.

I grew up in LA and remember having $149 AP's with no blockout dates and free parking, and going every weekend. But now I live out of state and the few times a year I get to go now simply isn't enough.

We're also lucky enough to have family and friends come with us. In May was my brother for all the days and my sister for a day. This time its my sister for 3-4 days and we have several friends going down at the same time that we're planning on meeting up with. So while our trip in May was the "all out vacation" this time it'll be slower paced, hanging out with friends and family, and basically kicking back and having fun. I think mixing things up and having differently paced trips keeps Disneyland fresh, so there's always something fun and interesting to do.

 

[jacs1234]

I don't think going twice a year would be too much.

 

[taaren]

We take a long trip each fall, and the last few years have added on a quicker trip in late spring/early summer. This year we did a 3 day trip in May with my son, and have just gotten back yesterday from a Disney cruise followed by a 9-park-day trip. Getting off the cruise ship was heartbreaking, and when I stepped foot in Disneyland I thought maybe we had overdone the parks this year since I was disappointed by Space Mountain being Ghost Galaxy again ...
Then we spent a few days doing a few rides/fastpasses, spending some time in the monorail pool or at our villa, and our friends arrived, and we forgot about how much we missed the cruise ship and started to remember why we love going to Disneyland every year. Now I can't wait to get back to our villa and am missing the park. We are taking next year off from the Land to go to the World instead, but from someone who Disneylands a lot (though not as much as we would like), my advice would be this:
If you find yourself tired of the rides, and you're staying onsite take some time to revel in the wonderful service your hotel provides and some of the spectacular pools, and some of the cool restaurants in DTD like Rainforest Cafe (just had lava flow cake for the first time this trip!). Also, pick a few of your favorites from the last trip, then pick a few of the things you missed last trip and make those your priorities this trip. Can you over-Disney? Yes, but each trip is different and DLR's wonderful service will win most Disney fans over every time.