24 hours of Disneyland

[jordan13402]

From what I'm reading, the 24 day might be the Saturday before Memorial day this year (when we'll be there)...is this what others are seeing?

 

[figment_jii]

I have not seen any official information that the 24-hour day will be happening this year. DLR and WDW have had the 24-hour day on the same day historically and the latest rumors from the WDW-side of things is that it's not looking good for the 24-hour day due budget issues around Shanghai Disneyland. I'm still hopeful there will be a 24-hour day. For the past few years, the 24-hour day has started at 6:00 am on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend and ended at 6:00 am on Saturday.

 

[my*gracie*girl]

Oh, I really want to know about this!! I so hope we get one this year while we have annual passes.

 

[sherilaine]

Last years event was announced March 11th about 10 weeks prior to the event date. So if you don't hear anything by mid March then I'd say it's likely not going to happen.

 

[jordan13402]

so here's a followup question: if we buy a 4 day park hopper and this 24 hour day is the 2nd day we're there, would we need to buy a 4 day hopper? would we be able to get a 3 day?

 

[figment_jii]

When it has happened, the 24-hour day was considered one operating day (basically, Friday's operating day had really long hours). You could get in for the entire 24-hours using just one day's admission from the ticket regardless of when you entered. Then Saturday's operating day started around 9:00 am, when the parks re-opened after closing.

The Operating Day schedules from last year:
Thursday (8:00 am to 6:00 pm - they closed early due to special activities for the 60th kickoff)
Friday (6:00 am to 6:00 am)
Saturday (9:00 am to midnight)
Sunday (8:00 am to midnight)

So, if they're doing the same thing this year, you would need a 4-day park hopper if you wanted to enter the parks for all four operating days.

 

[sherilaine]

so here's a followup question: if we buy a 4 day park hopper and this 24 hour day is the 2nd day we're there, would we need to buy a 4 day hopper? would we be able to get a 3 day?

I don't think so - on the 2nd day you'd be able to enter the park at 6AM and then you'd have to leave the park by 6AM the 3rd day - if you want back in at regular opening time the following day, then you'd have to use another day of your park hopper - you can't just stay in the park between 6AM and regular park opening - or at least from what I read you cannot.

 

[Drusilla99]

If you stayed all 24 hours, would you be up to going again on Saturday, or just wait until Sunday? Leaving during the 24 hour event is risky, they locked the gates to entry around 2 pm last year and it didn't reopen until around 4 am on the dl side. I think dca gates stayed open.

 

[GenGen22]

When it has happened, the 24-hour day was considered one operating day (basically, Friday's operating day had really long hours). You could get in for the entire 24-hours using just one day's admission from the ticket regardless of when you entered. Then Saturday's operating day started around 9:00 am, when the parks re-opened after closing.

The Operating Day schedules from last year:
Thursday (8:00 am to 6:00 pm - they closed early due to special activities for the 60th kickoff)
Friday (6:00 am to 6:00 am)
Saturday (9:00 am to midnight)
Sunday (8:00 am to midnight)

So, if they're doing the same thing this year, you would need a 4-day park hopper if you wanted to enter the parks for all four operating days.

This is true. We had PH's last year and went to the event.

 

[figment_jii]

If you stayed all 24 hours, would you be up to going again on Saturday, or just wait until Sunday? Leaving during the 24 hour event is risky, they locked the gates to entry around 2 pm last year and it didn't reopen until around 4 am on the dl side. I think dca gates stayed open.

It's hard to say what will happen this year. Last year (2015), they debuted two nighttime shows in DL, plus a lot of other things for the 60th anniversary, which really seemed to increase attendance from early on. The crowding was not distributed how you would normally expect it...the attraction lines were long, but nothing like they can be during Christmas week and there was plenty of room to move around once away from the parade route. Folks were camping out on the parade route from park opening and I honestly think they closed the gates because the parade route had reached/exceeded "capacity". The 24-hour day in 2014 was quite different; it was busy, but not really that much different from what you'd expect on a Friday of a holiday weekend. So, if they don't debut new evening shows and they still do another 24-hour day, I'm inclined to think/hope that it will be more like 2014 that 2015 (allowing for the fact crowds have just increased in general).

I would go again on Saturday, but that would be after taking a nap back in the hotel room. I think we got back to DLR around 2:00 pm or so on Saturday after staying the whole 24-hours+ in DL.

If folks are curious about the 2014/2015 events, I wrote up trip reports for both and the links are in my Signature.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

...I think dca gates stayed open.

I believe DCA's gates closed starting sometime around 3pm or 4pm. Disney wanted to clear the esplanade for safety and stop guests from trying to hop to DL, where the gates were already shut (happened around 1pm). We squeaked through into DCA and managed to get into DL just before DCA shut their gates.

 

[DoughR]

I kind of expected them to bring back "One More Disney Day" for Leap Day but I guess that's not happening!

 

[starshine514]

I believe DCA's gates closed starting sometime around 3pm or 4pm. Disney wanted to clear the esplanade for safety and stop guests from trying to hop to DL, where the gates were already shut (happened around 1pm). We squeaked through into DCA and managed to get into DL just before DCA shut their gates.

I think the DCA gate remained open, but security closed. We exited DCA around 6:00, hoping to visit DTD. We then assessed the situation, with security closed and huge lines on both sides) and instead opted to go back into DCA to shop instead. The gates were open.

 

[starshine514]

I kind of expected them to bring back "One More Disney Day" for Leap Day but I guess that's not happening!

I'm so glad they didn't! We just planned a last-minute trip for then. I'm hoping to avoid last year's fiasco. With a toddler, we aren't staying all night anyway.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

I think the DCA gate remained open, but security closed. We exited DCA around 6:00, hoping to visit DTD. We then assessed the situation, with security closed and huge lines on both sides) and instead opted to go back into DCA to shop instead. The gates were open.

Security did close, but the DCA gates closed, too, because we had friends who got stuck inside and could not exit to the esplanade. They were not allowed to exit DCA for at least several hours, which was weird.

 

[starshine514]

Security did close, but the DCA gates closed, too, because we had friends who got stuck inside and could not exit to the esplanade. They were not allowed to exit DCA for at least several hours, which was weird.

This was not our experience. That doesn't sound possible that they wouldn't allow them to exit. I think they may have embellished their story for effect. They may have felt like they had to stay or exit the esplanade entirely, but I don't believe they couldn't exit DCA. I'm not recounting second-hand experience of my friends; I was actually there. We were allowed to exit, and re-enter DCA, while security and Disneyland were both closed, between 6:00 and 7:00. After we finished up our shopping, we were again allowed to exit DCA (and return to our hotel).

 

[SMD]

My experience around 11pm was that we were told we had to exit on a path to DTD. We explained to CMs that we were parked on the other side. They told us we'd have to go back through security to cross, but that line was hours long. We decided to stay a while longer to see what happened after the midnight PTN. Round 1am they had closed security, at least briefly, which I guess effectively closed DCA. I also believe they closed DCA for a few minutes when alcohol sales were suspended. When we left DCA the CMs were trying to direct people to DTD but it wasn't as bad so we were able to get to the TS shuttles. Although the that line was over an hour and they were turning people away who parked in lot K, even though that was the correct shuttle. I waited a little while with some friends I ran into on the esplanade to see if DL reopened. They told me later that CMs were escorting people over from DCA in small groups. But just before they were still encouraging people to exit to DTD instead of crossing the esplanade. I imagine it was very confusing at that point and what some people thought was not being allowed to exit was really 2 different sets of crowd control. If there is another 24 hour day this year I think DL might reach capacity, but I don't think it will be quite as bad as this year.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

This was not our experience. That doesn't sound possible that they wouldn't allow them to exit...

There was a short period in the afternoon (between 3pm and 4pm?) when DCA shut their gates and wouldn't allow entry or exit. I think this must have been when management didn't know what to do and hadn't yet commited to a plan with DL management. When the crowds in the esplanade, at bag check, and through DtD were so bad, the MiceChat report made it sound like management panicked before deciding on a plan. My friends aren't the kind who would embellish their story (so please don't assume since you don't know them) and, since it isn't unusual for CMs to act on different directions (happens all the time, and that was a crazy day), I'm not surprised that different guests had very different experiences.

Regarding SMD's experience, I think my friends were finally escorted to DL after a very long wait. So, yes, eventually they were allowed to exit. But without an escort, they were not allowed to go through to DL.