1st Time on the DL side. Need some help for upcoming DL trip!

[ixmnrs]

After being on the WDW side for so long, I somehow managed to slip in the idea of a DL trip into our summer vacation plan! So now, I need help on DL planning.

1) CGH vs DLR : We have stayed at DL resort about 10 years ago; it was pretty convenient to get places and used the monorail to enter the park. We usually stay at the monorail hotels in WDW ; not really the RD type (can't get the teens out of bed!) Usually book CL rooms. CGH thread is 280 pages long so I haven't had a chance to get through it. Any recommendations?

2) Is CL service the same at DL vs WDW (with the exception of the MDE stuff) in terms of food offerings, etc.

3) We traditionally go end of August or the week before labour day and have found the crowds manageable at WDW. How are crowds usually at DL for this time period?

4) I'm usually the FP runner in the past before Magic bands and FP+; any suggestions back in the non-FP+ land of DL and CA?

Thanks so much for any help you guys can provide!

 

[figment_jii]

1) CGH vs DLR : We have stayed at DL resort about 10 years ago; it was pretty convenient to get places and used the monorail to enter the park. We usually stay at the monorail hotels in WDW ; not really the RD type (can't get the teens out of bed!) Usually book CL rooms. CGH thread is 280 pages long so I haven't had a chance to get through it. Any recommendations?

My only comment is that most folks use the monorail as an attraction, but it's not necessarily the most efficient option for entering the park. The monorails are smaller at DLR, so they take less guests per trip, so if there is a line, you might have to wait for more than one monorail.

3) We traditionally go end of August or the week before labour day and have found the crowds manageable at WDW. How are crowds usually at DL for this time period?

The crowds are generally fairly light to moderate at that time of the year because it's after the summer season, but before HalloweenTime. It's worth noting that Haunted Mansion is usually closed at the end of August/start of September to get the overlay installed. The park will be transitioning to Halloween (assuming this year is like last year). Given the time of year, the park will probably be operating on short hours and fireworks and F! will likely only be presented on Fri-Sun.

It's worth noting that at this point, we do not know how the 60th anniversary events will impact the various "seasons" at DLR. It might mean the schedule is very different, so keep that in mind when trying to guess how things will be in the fall/winter of 2015.

4) I'm usually the FP runner in the past before Magic bands and FP+; any suggestions back in the non-FP+ land of DL and CA?

The parks are disconnected from each other, meaning you can hold FPs in both parks with them interfering with each other. All attractions within a park are connected to each other (meaning you can't get a RSR FP and then immediately get a Soarin' FP, but you could immediately head to DL and get an Indy FP). DLR does enforce return times. It's also worth noting that as long as your ticket has been used in one park, you can get FPs in both parks.

There are also show passes, which look like FPs, but aren't quite the same. There are also return tickets, which (again) look like FPs, but aren't quite the same. The show passes are used for WoC and F! (they're more like tickets to see the show). Return tickets are used primarily for the Frozen stuff. They are also not linked to the FP system, but they are linked to each person's ticket.

This thread has useful information about FPs:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3094011

 

[ixmnrs]

Thanks for your reply...I hope HM will be open when we go as that is one of our favorites, but we'll survive without it. FP running between 2 different parks, I don't think I will attempt that and risk a heart attack but good info to know. Thanks again!

 

[figment_jii]

Thanks for your reply...I hope HM will be open when we go as that is one of our favorites, but we'll survive without it. FP running between 2 different parks, I don't think I will attempt that and risk a heart attack but good info to know. Thanks again!

It's not quite clear when HalloweenTime is going to start this year. Based on past history, the most likely date would be 9/11/16. But given the significance of 9/11, it seems less likely that they'd opt to official start the season on that day. Personally, I'm leaning towards a 9/12 start (the next day). I don't quite think they'd wait a full week to start on 9/18 or start much earlier because of Labor Day. Despite that, I do still think HM will likely close around the 24th of August and then re-open somewhere around the 11th.

In terms of park hopping, the parks are only about 110 yards apart (one football field). So going between the two parks is pretty easy. Often times, my group will send one person to be a runner to get RSR and WoC FPs in DCA, while everyone else stays in DL.

 

[ixmnrs]

Yeah, you are right about HM being closed starting on the 24th of Aug; apparently so is Nemo's Submarine Voyage also. Oh well, trip dates are not flexible so it is what it is!

 

[figment_jii]

Yeah, you are right about HM being closed starting on the 24th of Aug; apparently so is Nemo's Submarine Voyage also. Oh well, trip dates are not flexible so it is what it is!

Disneyland generally does not release their refurbishment information to far in advance. So, as far as I know, there is no official announcement about when HM will be closed at this point. Likely, it won't be confirmed until summer. Likewise, I haven't hear anything about a Finding Nemo closure for 2015. It was closed for much of 2014.

 

[HydroGuy]

After being on the WDW side for so long, I somehow managed to slip in the idea of a DL trip into our summer vacation plan! So now, I need help on DL planning.

1) CGH vs DLR : We have stayed at DL resort about 10 years ago; it was pretty convenient to get places and used the monorail to enter the park. We usually stay at the monorail hotels in WDW ; not really the RD type (can't get the teens out of bed!) Usually book CL rooms. CGH thread is 280 pages long so I haven't had a chance to get through it. Any recommendations?

2) Is CL service the same at DL vs WDW (with the exception of the MDE stuff) in terms of food offerings, etc.

I know most of the acronyms but CL is not common around here. Is that concierge?

3) We traditionally go end of August or the week before labour day and have found the crowds manageable at WDW. How are crowds usually at DL for this time period?

Most folks say late August is decreasing crowds. But it also is often decreasing park hours and entertainment. As Figment said, the DL 60th anniversary celebration could tilt away from some of the historical things we know about DLR.

See "Historical DLR Park Hours, Entertainment and Refurbs" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2291124

Also, there will likely be a bigger impact on AP blockout lifting in August this year than the past couple years.

See "Understanding AP Blockouts and Impact on Crowds" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2365983

4) I'm usually the FP runner in the past before Magic bands and FP+; any suggestions back in the non-FP+ land of DL and CA?

DLR adopted the WDW pre-FP+ rules where FP windows are enforced. Otherwise it is the same old legacy FP as WDW more or less.

My thoughts on this are summarized here: "Thoughts on Maximizing FASTPASS in Today's Disney Parks" http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=50089263

 

[figment_jii]

I know most of the acronyms but CL is not common around here. Is that concierge?

Over on the WDW board, folks use "CL" to refer to Club Level at the resorts. I'm guessing that's what's the OP is asking about because they were using it in reference to the Grand Californian.

 

[Rebekkap]

Have you thought about skipping the Disney hotels completely? They're very expensive compared with other hotels in the immediate area, and as the main advantage they offer is early access to the parks and you don't need that as you're not early risers, you could save quite a bit and have more for meals/souvenirs etc! The hotels opposite the main entrance are as close as the Disney hotels.

The two parks are incredibly close together, I always run (well, walk, as we all know running isn't allowed ) between the two for fastpasses, and I'm not super fit or anything but I've never felt like I might have a heart attack! My usual first thing plan is ride Space Mountain, fastpass Space Mountain, then head to DCA for a Radiator Springs Fastpass for later that day (this won't work if you're not there at park opening though!) I basically hop from park to park all day to use and get more FP.

I love to eat at the Blue Bayou, think Space Mountain is vastly superior to the WDW version, and Fantasmic is not to be missed as it's also vastly superior to the WDW version!

 

[ixmnrs]

Oh crap,

I clicked on the disboards link above to the calendar but it must have given me 2014. Now that I checked the 2015, it shows matterhorn as being down as well as haunted mansion. That's disappointing.

 

[ixmnrs]

Might have to delay my flight to San Fran to later as matterhorn is scheduled to reopen Sept 2, the day we leave.

 

[figment_jii]

Oh crap,

I clicked on the disboards link above to the calendar but it must have given me 2014. Now that I checked the 2015, it shows matterhorn as being down as well as haunted mansion. That's disappointing.

The Disboard calendar projects the future based on the past. It often just repeats closures from one year to the next (until newer information is released). At this point, I would take any refurbishments listed on the wdwinfo August/September 2015 calendars with grain of salt.