Suggestions for first timer's Day 1

[foolish-mortal]

My family will be going mid-June. We have 2 teens, it's a graduation trip for my daughter. I've been to DL but only when I was in CA for a conference, so just a couple times ever. We are staying at the DLH. We have 3 day park hopper tickets and got G Plus.

Our first day there won't be a full day. We will be traveling from Laguna to DLH in the morning and we're staying Club Level. Since it's everyone's first trip I don't want to rush into the park right away. And, I don't want us to try and squeeze rides in as soon as we get to a park. I really want to relax, enjoy the sights and sounds, familiarize ourselves, and just take it in. The next 2 days we will be rope dropping and pretty much in the parks all day.

So, Day 1 I want to check-in, explore the hotel, walk through Downtown Disney, maybe even swim for a while. But, then I want to walk through Disneyland because when we go the next morning we won't really be able to meander and take it in. So, what specifically would you do if you were taking your family for the first time and didn't want to rush? I'm thinking....explore main street and the castle, maybe walk do a full walkthrough of DL park, maybe a show or two or like Lincoln, mint juleps and beignets. Then I thought it might be fun to go over and see CarsLand at night since it's so unique. We'll go on a few attractions, I'm sure. But, I don't want to try to get as many in as possible.

Other thoughts or idea? Anyone else do something similar?

 

[Pluto468]

The first day you've described sounds great! I was going to suggest strolling down main street and going to fantasyland. I've told this story here before, but the first time we ever went to Disneyland we had literally no idea what was there. We wandered aimlessly through the park and just did whatever struck our fancy. It was probably the best visit we've ever had there.

The only thing I might consider is a dinner reservation. Also, depending on the day of the week, you could watch the fireworks or parade or world of color.

Have fun!

 

[mdmost]

Ride the train and vehicles of Main Street since your kids have never been? That's a nice leisurely way to see all of the park. Ride the Mark Twain Riverboat.

Your first day sounds pretty nice actually. Tiki Room could be a good show to add. Get some Dole Whips.

 

[ktlm]

With only 2 days after that you might be sorry if you don't spend a good amount of time in the parks on arrival day. You will walk through Downtown Disney to get to the parks. I would plan on getting there and either checking in or handing over the bags to bell services (don't forget to sunscreen before heading out), looking around the hotel a bit and then taking a leisurely walk through DTD to the parks. I would plan on just wandering Disneyland - exploring Main Street, go through the castle walk through, walking through the park, seeing what has shorter lines and doing those while you are there so you can knock a few things out. Your idea of mint juleps and Beignets is a good one. Your idea to walk over and see Carsland at night is also good. We have been in June several times. What day of the week are you arriving? In our experience Saturday and Sunday have been less crowded and Monday has been really crowded- that was pre-2020 so I don't know what this summer will bring--- but based on our history if one of our full days was Monday, I would want to try to knock some stuff out on arrival day. Also, if Disneyland closes after CA when you are there, Galaxy's Edge is really pretty at night and last October although the parks were packed, it wasn't that crowded in that area at night- Smuggler's run had a short line and no wait for single rider and Oga's was taking walk ups on a couple of our nights. The app said the walk up list was full, but people were walking up and they were letting them in. If you want to splurge for the graduation trip, you could even do the World of Color dessert party the first night-- if you haven't seen World of Color before, it is pretty amazing and it is pretty great to have seats at the dessert party. Also, with only 2 other days, that would save you a lot of evening time on one of your full days unless you aren't interested in WOC--- it can be a pretty big time investment to try to stake out a spot, even if you do the dining package.

 

[limace]

I personally would love such a leisurely first day-but I’m guessing my teens would not. I’d want to throw in Some rides for them at least, as soaking up the atmosphere and doing Lincoln sounds like an adult dream but perhaps not a teenager one .

 

[DisneylandFan22]

I prefer to spend the first day/night enjoying everything outside of the park and then spending three full days in the park (with a mid-day break). There is no need to rush around, flexibility and leaving space for magical opportunities is the key. Especially if it was a first park visit, I wouldn’t want to give up a morning since it is such a great time to experience rides at the parks.

 

[Kit Jackson]

I like your idea for a low key first day/night in the park. Since you mentioned that you may try a few rides, if you see something with a short wait time as you're walking around you could always hop in line. Enchanted Tiki Room is a great thing to do on the first day, since it ususally has a low wait time. If you see a long line, it's probably for the Dole Whip. You can get Dole Whip with a much shorter wait at Tropical Hideaway, which is close to the exit to the Tiki Room.

CarsLand at night is one of my absolute favorite things about the parks. Depending on how the long the line is (especially single rider may be an option for you), you may want to consider riding Radiator Springs Racers at night, because it is an amazing to ride at night, but I think the ride is worth riding twice if you have the time (once in the daytime and once after dark).

 

[smartlabelprint]

I’m in camp teen, especially since it’s their graduation trip. Wandering through the park sounds painful for me and I’m only 40 with 3 kids under 7. Besides, 2 full days isn’t enough. There’s nothing really to see at DLH, it doesn’t look much different than a Hilton imo. I agree with pp to walk through DTD to the parks, there’s not much to see there either. I’d get into the parks as soon as you can, you can easily have a 3/4 full day there.

I would ride a main st vehicle to the castle walk through. It could also help to do a train around the park the first day, to get your bearings-but personally it’s not my first thing activity.

I like to try to time riding BTMRR during the fireworks.

I’d get shows and parades done my first day, as that can stress me out about possibly missing something I really wanted to see.

RSR is a ride I really enjoy both during the day and night. Incredicoaster at night is nice.

Happy planning!

 

[foolish-mortal]

Thanks for all of the great feedback and suggestions! My graduating teen is a big Disney fan - we go to WDW a lot. Spending the first day this way is what she wants. She is very excited about the nostalgia aspect of staying at DLH and wants to enjoy her time there. And she loves staying CL - it's one of the things she requested and is looking forward to. So, this will definitely be our "laid back" day. We're not expecting to see and do everything there is in 2 days. We're totally OK with that. And, yes, I love the suggestion of just jumping on a ride if the line is low. That sounds great. I also like possibly seeing WOC that night. It's on our bucket list!

 

[foolish-mortal]

Does anyone know if they're projecting when POC is going to open again? I HOPE SO BADLY it's open by June 19th! It's one of our all time favorites so the DL version will blow them away!

 

[mdmost]

The rumor is done by the start of July but hopefully it's sooner than that. I'm going into our June 1-4 trip with the belief it won't be open for us. A shame as we all love it but we're getting Main Street Electrical Parade and Fantasmic which we weren't sure were going to happen when we're there so we'll be okay.

 

[hootey]

Be sure to take the time to enjoy being there! It is so easy to get caught up in the RUSH to see and do as many things as possible. Our first trip to DL was like that, every day was a giant BLUR to see everything, I hated it and said I would never go back! But, my wife nagged and dropped hints about going back and taking our time to see and explore every section of the parks til I gave in.
Pre-covid, we went twice a year for five days or so at a time enjoying every minute of it. There is so much to see and do it is amazing. Every trip was a lot of fun and so relaxing. Every trip home, we would be discussing dates in about six months or so to return!
Enjoy being there and remember to take pictures

 

[fivelittles]

Your ideas and the suggestions of others are all great! Since you're staying at The Disneyland Hotel, maybe see if you can get a Trader Sams reservation? It's so close to the hotel and would be a fun afternoon or evening break.

 

[ktlm]

I also like possibly seeing WOC that night. It's on our bucket list!

Then I would absolutely say splurge on the dessert party if you can and do it that first night. It will remove a lot of stress from your two full days, not to have to invest the time to try to stake out a spot. We have done it with the dining package staking out a spot with the masses (because it is standing only if you are remotely short- you still have to stake out a spot close to an hour ahead of time with the dining package masses), and the dessert party where you walk up, get escorted to your assigned table, and get to sit in a chair waiting for WOC to start with snacks and drinks in front of you. I love WOC so we have done both multiple times. Once we did the dessert party once, there was no going back to the dining package. If you do the dessert package, keep an eye on these boards, because the procedure used to kind of change a bit as to whether you were pre-assigned a table or assigned one once you got there. If they are doing table assignment when you get there (that is what they did with the Oogie Boogie parade dessert party last fall) you might want to get there early enough to get a front table since they have 2 rows. Back tables aren't typically too big of an issue, but one time we got back tables with extremely tall people in front of us so that was an issue for me. It wasn't an issue for DH since he is tall, and we were able to scoot DD to where she had no issue.

 

[Kit Jackson]

WOC desert party gives you a fantastic view. It's also a great way to end the first day in the parks on a high/special note. If you can afford it, it is absolutely worth doing. Not sure how into Disney history your teen is, but the Disney gallery has models and maps of Disneyland on opening day and sometimes concept art/models from various rides. On a similar note, stand near the partners statue in the hub and see the paths to the major lands eminating from the hub. Think about the fact that this was Walt Disney's vision. He planned it all, stood there, and it's still a place where we can visit and looks remarkably similar to what he envisioned/what was there shortly after the park opened.

 

[Matrixleos]

Thanks for all of the great feedback and suggestions! My graduating teen is a big Disney fan - we go to WDW a lot. Spending the first day this way is what she wants. She is very excited about the nostalgia aspect of staying at DLH and wants to enjoy her time there. And she loves staying CL - it's one of the things she requested and is looking forward to. So, this will definitely be our "laid back" day. We're not expecting to see and do everything there is in 2 days. We're totally OK with that. And, yes, I love the suggestion of just jumping on a ride if the line is low. That sounds great. I also like possibly seeing WOC that night. It's on our bucket list!

Great graduation gift and right call with going with what she wants and how she plans to spend the day. I do have a few recommendations...

• You'll want to enjoy the parks as much as possible and I'd recommend getting into the parks on your travel day as soon as possible. Since you mentioned you're rope dropping, the pool would be a great afternoon breaks, along with lunch at the Club Level on your full days in the park.
• Great suggestions above to stroll through Main Street shops and ride the vehicles. Especially a once through on the Disneyland train, good "sneak peak" at the park to make on a first time visit.
• On our last trip, we rope dropped Disneyland and had a blast as we did 21 attractions till park closing. Although the one item I had to cut out but wish we had time for was Tom Sawyer Island. I'd highly recommend adding a trip to TS island on your travel day. Fun thing to explore since you're planning for a stress free "laid back" first day.
• Once you park hop over to DCA on that first day in the late afternoon, think about some laid back type activities like Mickey's PhilharMagic, Animation Academy, Socerer's Workshop or Turtle Talk with Crush. Might also be a good time to stroll through Avengers Campus for the first time and take in some of the show's. GotG Dance Off and Dr. Strange's Mysteries of the Mystic Arts usually have later showings. The other Avengers Campus shows usually wrap up earlier by 4-5pm like Spider-Man, Warriors of Wakanda with Dora Milaje and Avenger's Assemble.
• Once you get into CarsLand, if your teens are good with Single Rider, I'd highly recommend using that on Radiator Springs Racer. This will be a ride you can use Genie+\Lightning Lane on your full days in the parks but it will be a ride you'll want to do multiple times. So if they are good with Single Rider, you'll be able to get through the que very quickly.
• Also as mentioned above, WOC is an option with the desert party. You will also want to explore and take pictures of both CarsLand and Avengers Campus when the sun sets and it's dark outside. Both lands have a ton of details and are stunning with the lights on with the nighttime sky.
• Disneyland is open an hour later than DCA, so then park hop back over and if it's in time for the fireworks, head to It's a Small World. It's usually less crowded over there and they show the same show projected on Small World, that is also projected on the castle.
• After fireworks, head to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. Which similar to Carsland and AC, SWGE is stunning to see at night with all the details. Good time to ride the MFSR or try for the Stand By line for Rise of the Resistance before park closure.

 

[foolish-mortal]

Disneyland is open an hour later than DCA, so then park hop back over and if it's in time for the fireworks, head to It's a Small World. It's usually less crowded over there and they show the same show projected on Small World, that is also projected on the castle.

Wait...really??? They show the same show projected on Small World? That's amazing!

 

[Matrixleos]

Wait...really??? They show the same show projected on Small World? That's amazing!

Everyone camps out in front of the castle for hours for the fireworks. Although if you get there later on, I'd recommend going to It's a Small World. A lot less crowded and in my opinion, with the white facade of the rides exterior, Mickey's Mix Magic shows better there. Plus the fireworks are launched right next to it where Toons Town used to be, so you're closer to the fireworks than being somewhere on Main Street. Here's a picture for reference...

 

[gelatoni fan]

Wait...really??? They show the same show projected on Small World? That's amazing!

Yup. It's closer but off to the left so I recommend going off toward the right rather than trying to look at It's a Small World head on.
They also used to do projections on water screens at the Rivers of America which I anticipate them doing once Fantasmic is back.

 

[foolish-mortal]

This is the best tip ever!!! I really enjoy the fireworks and castle shows but we almost never watch them because we don't like to spend hours staking out a spot and waiting. We'd rather be doing other things. So, this is perfect for us!