2 Day Park Hoppers - Help me plan!

[Mastiff]

So we will be driving up from San Diego on the morning of Aug 6th. We are staying at Disneyland Resort and we have 2 day park hoppers that we plan to use on Aug 6th and 7th.

Can someone tell me realistically how long it will take to get from San Diego to Disneyland. mapquest says 1 1/2 hours is that about right?

We have never been to Disneyland so I will take all the help I can get! I am guessing we will probably leave San Diego around 8:00 a.m. Getting checked in to hotel and then off to park. So which park would you do first?

I have been a crazy WDW planner for years but for some reason this is throwing me for a loop. I think I am trying to get in as much as possible!

We are family of 4 Kids are 15 and 11
Help please.

 

[JasonShannon76]

I think it's crucial to get to park at opening. You can get so much done in the early morning hours before it gets crowded. It's 90 minutes from SD to Disneyland with no traffic, but on a weekday morning you will hit So Cal rush hour traffic. I would leave very early.

Have fun!

 

[Mastiff]

I know you're right but this trip I am trying to take a more laid back approach. Getting there at park opening is 8:00 am, that means leaving San Diego by 6:00 a.m to check in to hotel too, which means getting 4 people up around 4:30/5:00 a.m. to all get showered and ready to go! Doesn't sound very "Magical"!

I was hoping some DIS experts could help with a plan of which park to do on our first day getting in a little later. We have never been to Disneyland so both parks are new to us.


Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

[sunflare]

I know you're right but this trip I am trying to take a more laid back approach. Getting there at park opening is 8:00 am, that means leaving San Diego by 6:00 a.m to check in to hotel too, which means getting 4 people up around 4:30/5:00 a.m. to all get showered and ready to go! Doesn't sound very "Magical"!

I was hoping some DIS experts could help with a plan of which park to do on our first day getting in a little later. We have never been to Disneyland so both parks are new to us.


Any help is appreciated. Thanks

Do whichever park does NOT have EMH. That will at least mean the crowds would be building for less time.

I would probably think that doing DL on the first day would be easier on everyone, since it has longer hours at night AND you don't have to worry too much about headliners (i.e. RSR) running out of FPs before you get there.

Make sure you use the carpool lane if you can do it from SD. However, I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend leaving earlier in the morning. I did that drive daily (Oceanside to Downey, so slightly further up) for a year. It's hell. It'll be worth it to get everyone up.

Conversely... if you MUST leave later...check into the trolley/train combo. It might be worth the slight bit of extra effort.

 

[bryanb]

Nothing wrong with taking a more leisurely approach. I would be a little bit concerned about hitting weekday traffic by leaving at 8 a.m.. If you get stuck in rush hour, you could be in for a very long wait on the freeway.

I'm not a morning person, so I personally wouldn't wake up at 5 a.m.. But 90 minutes isn't a typical drive during rush hour.