4 or 5 days?

[pnwsurfer]

We (Dad, Mom and 10 year old son) are thinking of taking our first trip to Disneyland for spring break the first week of April 2013. I believe we need 5 days, but DH thinks 4 would be fine (Monday-Friday vs. Monday-Thursday). We would be flying in from Portland, OR, so would able to have half-days for the parks on travel days.

DS was raised on Pixar, so Carsland will be big for him. He loves rides, roller coasters, etc. I don't think he will be interested in spending much time on character experiences or parades, but I could be wrong. We plan to stay at Best Western Park Place Inn right across the street.

We aren't planning to do anything but Disney during our stay - Disney from sun-up to sun-down with a break back at the motel for an afternoon rest, if necessary.

Is it possible to get all the rides in in 4 days without being panicked about missing something? I'm sure 5 days would be great, but is it necessary to get the experience considering the extra expense?

Thanks!

 

[Blue32]

The character meet and greets suck up a bunch of time, so if you are staying out of those lines, you should have plenty of time for rides. What about some shows? Alot of people highly reccomend the night shows(WOC, Fantasmic!, Fireworks) at DL and those do take some time dedication to see. If you are going during Spring Break, expect the parks to be VERY crowded. It makes arriving early to the parks and taking afternoon breaks a good idea. More crowds=longer lines but also longer hours and more entertainment. My vote would be 5 days, but you should be able to do plenty in 4. These next couple threads might help a bit...

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=36509602

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1345319

 

[interstate70s]

Our family has done both 4 and 5 days. We have 2 kiddos 7 and 9. To us both DH and agreed after our 4 day trip (plus 1/2 day arrival) felt rushed. Our 4 day trip was before Carsland opened too, so I would definately consider doing 5 full days. As pp said, meet -n -greets suck up lots of time, as do shows, parades, and sit down character meals. Some people are satisfied with less time, but if you want to do everything and have time to relax a little and repeat the favorites (especially during a crowded time) I would reccomend 5.

 

[Sherry E]

I moved this thread to the main Disneyland planning forum, and out of the Trip Reports section.

 

[mouseymommy]

5 days seems to take a lot of the stressed/rushed feeling out of our trips. We take our time a bit more and it makes it more fun, especially for me. I really recommend 5 days if you can swing it.

 

[Carolwoodpr]

We used to do 4 days and could never come close to doing it all and there are just my 10 year old, my husband and me. We now do 5 days and it helps us get more done, but we still have things we missed during the trip. We are going for Christmas and spending 6 days because we plan on it being so super busy.

I voted for 5 because of all of this.

 

[scrapshappen]

It depends. When are you arriving/departing. The difference between a 5 day ticket and a 4-day ticket is $15. So if you are getting in mid day or leaving in the evening, than I think $15 is worth for even half a day at Disneyland.

Before our trip in October 2011, we had only ever done 3 days. But for that trip, we had three hotel nights in Anaheim and were getting in early enough on our arrival date and leaving late enough on our departure date (just going to San Diego that evening) that we did a five day pass instead. Back then, I believe it was $20 to go from a 3-day to a 4-day and then $5 to go to a 5-day (per person).

We loved it so much that we bought six day passes (before they stopped selling them last spring) for or trip in a few weeks. In fact, my oldest said that he would prefer to do the entire trip at Disneyland instead of going to San Diego or anywhere else at all.

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

I say make if five days unless you know you will be back again soon. We are arriving from Portland, Or as well for our trip in December. Our first day we arrive at 3 and will spend the remainder of the day exploring Downtown Disney and eating dinner at Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland hotel. The next 4 we will be in the parks sun up to sun down. After our four days at Disney we are going to spend one day at Knott's Berry Farm and then our last 1/2 days relax and visit the Garden Walk Shops until we head back to the airport for our flight back to Portland. If it were my choice the entire week would be spent at ONLY Disney, however my husband seems to get his fill after about 4 or 5 days.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

5 days for sure! I'd say 6 if they still had the 6 day hoppers!!

 

[PoohsFan1]

I voted 5 days because that is what we are doing for our first DLR trip. We are actually staying 7 nights (we are DVC members so will be staying at VGC) but will be doing the parks for 5 days. I thought 4 would be enough (2 days each park) but DH wants to have the extra day for hopping back and forth on our last park day so we can do our favorites again. Good luck and have a great trip .

 

[scoker]

We usually do 4 days but we don't feel "rushed" because we know we will be back. We don't do "everything" every trip. We will be headed for our 3rd trip in a 30 month span in February and we still won't have done everything I'm sure. If Disneyland is not going to be a frequent destination I would go for the 5 full days for sure. You can spend your travel days exploring Downtown Disney and maybe stop in at the Grand Californian and/or the Disneyland Hotel. If you are staying at the BWPPI the incremental cost of one additional day won't be much. Go for it!!!