A few questions I have regarding upcoming trip...

[MacMama0930]

Hello!

I was hoping some of you could offer some insight into some questions I have regarding my upcoming trip in October =)

I will try my hardest to be concise and not ramble!

1.) We had booked the DLH for the 11th-14th, standard room. Once I decided that it made more sense for us to leave home Monday afternoon, the standard rooms were booked. So, I booked a room Monday night at the Marriot, just so we can leave after the kids get out of school and DH gets off work and be able to wake up and go to the park first thing Tuesday! I did call and ask DHL if my EMM applied for the 11th even though technically check in time isn't until 3pm and she said yes...so yeah! I'll have kids up and at 'em first thing to utilize that 7am-8am time. However...I have actually purchased So Cal APs that will need to be activated. So two things...should we try to go and activate them Monday night (even though it'll be late and the kids will be tired and we won't really be utilizing the park), or should we wait and do it on Tuesday. And if so, how long is the process and will it totally put a damper on the whole EMM thing? I've only been to DLR once so I barely know the entry protocol as it is, let alone trying to activate a AP at EMM time!

2.) We are going to MHP on Wed, the 12th. We plan on spending the morning in DCA, taking a nice long break at the hotel and then entering DL for the party. I've heard about the pre-party in Toon Town. Is it worth going to? If not, we'd likely just eat dinner at Goofy's Kitchen or something before entering the park at 6pm. But if the party is awesome, then I want to go! Also, is there still a Monsters Inc dance party somewhere? I don't see any posted times on DLR website?? That sounds like fun, too.

3.) We are doing the WOC dessert party on Thurs, the 13th. We'll have four kids with us. One child has an allergy to food dyes (not like a physical allergy but a really bad "behavioral" issue with it). I called to ask about a possible food-dye free plate and at first the CM said "I don't think so but hold on". When she came back she simply asked for the details again and said "ok, it's noted, thank you!" After I got off the phone I realized I wasn't 100% sure as to whether that meant "yes" or "maybe, I noted it".

4.) Has anyone used the personalized touring plans on touringplans.com? I paid for a subscription in order to maximum my time at the park and while I want to trust it, it seems off to me. Seems like the EMM touring plan conflicts with other things I've heard (about which to ride first, etc.). And also, it says that like Pirate of the Caribbean has only a 5 min wait at 9am on Tuesday. Does that seem right?

Thank you for any and all feedback. I am BEYOND excited for this trip and I want to make as PERFECT as possible!!!!

 

[ParkHopper1]

If you wanna use the EMM on the 11th, you need to go check into the DLH first and get your rooms keys to utilize the EMM. They will hold your bags, check you in, issue your room keys then text you later in the day with your room # when it is ready.

I would knock out the AP's and get them active the night before if that first hour is important to you. Would hate to get up that early, make the move to DLH only to get stuck in a line or other hangup for part of that hour. Ticket windows can be backed up in the AM.

 

[KeKy4]

I would definitely activate the night before, between the line and activating the passes it took us about an hour which would waste your magic hour.

Toontown is awesome if you like the characters. There are a lot of them out, in their costumes, with short lines to meet them.

I don't think touring plans does a great job organizing the plans. I have a friend that loves ride max but I haven't looked personally.

A 5m wait on Pirates first thing in the morning on a weekday sounds accurate. It's usually a walk on.

 

[MacMama0930]

Thank you for the feedback!
Since we'll be arriving in Anaheim around 8 or 9pm, MHP will be going on at DL - can I activate the AP at DCA? That may be a silly question, but I just want to make sure before we drag the kids over there. And I'm assuming everyone has to be present to activate them, right?

 

[princessebird]

Re: Touring Plan. I just returned yesterday, and I found it to be inaccurate. During the extra hour, it has us being able to do 6 attractions. We managed to do three: Peter Pan was down, so we did Alice, bobsleds, and Nemo subs (technically, we didn't finish nemo's sub until 10:15). I used touring plans more as a list of things to do, but I wound up tossing it after the second day. The wait times in touring plans were woefully under-estimated (and I would say that typically the Disneyland app itself was off...waits were usually 5-10 minutes longer than what the app showed). Now I might have had the problem that the park didn't open until 10, so the magic hour was only at 9, so more people took part in it than would take part at 8am in October.

 

[ParkHopper1]

Thank you for the feedback!
Since we'll be arriving in Anaheim around 8 or 9pm, MHP will be going on at DL - can I activate the AP at DCA? That may be a silly question, but I just want to make sure before we drag the kids over there. And I'm assuming everyone has to be present to activate them, right?

You go the the ticket booths in the Esplanade...no need to go into the parks to active the AP's any more. On your first entry through the gates they will take you picture with their handheld devices. There is no delay doing the pictures so you can do that in the morning.

 

[lalasmama]

1.) We had booked the DLH for the 11th-14th, standard room. Once I decided that it made more sense for us to leave home Monday afternoon, the standard rooms were booked. So, I booked a room Monday night at the Marriot, just so we can leave after the kids get out of school and DH gets off work and be able to wake up and go to the park first thing Tuesday! I did call and ask DHL if my EMM applied for the 11th even though technically check in time isn't until 3pm and she said yes...so yeah! I'll have kids up and at 'em first thing to utilize that 7am-8am time. However...I have actually purchased So Cal APs that will need to be activated. So two things...should we try to go and activate them Monday night (even though it'll be late and the kids will be tired and we won't really be utilizing the park), or should we wait and do it on Tuesday. And if so, how long is the process and will it totally put a damper on the whole EMM thing? I've only been to DLR once so I barely know the entry protocol as it is, let alone trying to activate a AP at EMM time!

Yes, your EMM will count on the 11th, but, as another poster pointed out, ONLY if you check in and have your room key before that. Which means that for a EMM at 7am, you need to be checking in by 6:00am. They will definitely allow it... It's just if you can get your party up and ready to go, and checked in at the hotel early enough to make use of it. For my family, that would mean getting up at 4:30 to be showered by 5:15, packed by 5:45, checked out by 6:00, and over to the DLH by 6:30ish... And that would probably cause a mutiny with my crew And would make it a really (really, really) long day!... The good news is that a EMM at 7:00am on a Tuesday should be "fairly" quiet. Not 100% empty, but nothing like a 9:00am EMM either, since fewer people will be checking in at the crack of dawn on a Tuesday for that EMM.

As far as activation of the APs, I would do this the night before. It can take some time to get them activated, and if there's only 1-2 windows open, then the lines at the ticket windows could be long. However, you have to balance this with the idea of trying to make that daybreak check-in and EMM.

2.) We are going to MHP on Wed, the 12th. We plan on spending the morning in DCA, taking a nice long break at the hotel and then entering DL for the party. I've heard about the pre-party in Toon Town. Is it worth going to? If not, we'd likely just eat dinner at Goofy's Kitchen or something before entering the park at 6pm. But if the party is awesome, then I want to go! Also, is there still a Monsters Inc dance party somewhere? I don't see any posted times on DLR website?? That sounds like fun, too.

I'd definitely go to the pre-party for a few reasons: (1) Characters in costume with shorter lines, and (2) The two Toon Town rides will be open as well. While Roger Rabbit rarely has a long line, Gadget's Go Coaster's line tends to stack up quickly. Consequently, I rarely make it over to do it, because I don't want to waste the time. So, I'm looking forward to that. (3) Treat Trails! While I'm not really going to the party for the treats, I'm looking forward to getting a little without the longer lines of the general party. Now, granted, I've never been to the MHP or it's preparty, so I may be underestimating the crowds. But it seems like I've heard a lot of people being kind of wish-washy about it. (4) For the price of those blasted tickets, I'm going to make use of every single minute that I can! We don't have APs (not worth it when we are a retired military family, and can get Salute tickets), and we aren't local, both of which probably color my thought process on this as well.

3.) We are doing the WOC dessert party on Thurs, the 13th. We'll have four kids with us. One child has an allergy to food dyes (not like a physical allergy but a really bad "behavioral" issue with it). I called to ask about a possible food-dye free plate and at first the CM said "I don't think so but hold on". When she came back she simply asked for the details again and said "ok, it's noted, thank you!" After I got off the phone I realized I wasn't 100% sure as to whether that meant "yes" or "maybe, I noted it".

This is similar to how my DD's dye allergy started. First, she would just act possessed. I couldn't get near her because she was so completely out of control with her kicking and biting, and she was only 3. She was just filled with so much rage, but only the days she was on antibiotics for her infections! At any rate, we figured out when it was happening, and went dye-free for her (first red dye, then yellow, then blue). Then, like 3 years later, someone gave her some cake with red dye while at a "manners class" at church one day. They didn't consider checking it for dye, because "why would they put dye in a cake? It had white frosting!" And then DD's face started swelling... It was fairly minor; minor enough that I felt a "is it or isn't it?" for a little bit, and then a neighbor pointed it out, having no idea of what had transpired earlier. Took her to the urgent care, and now we carry an epipen that (thankfully!) we haven't had to use!

So, admittedly, I was overcautious when we were getting ready to head to DL for our first time. The good news is that, at DL, very few things overall have dyes in them. Most often, it will be "obvious" things: frosting on desserts and treats. She hasn't ever reacted to the chocolate cakes. I can't remember what else the dessert party comes with... but there should be something safe. When I was still new to DL foods, I would ask the server, and they would often get the cook/chef for me to talk to, since they would know all the ingredients. Its wonderful to be able to take her somewhere like DL and not have to worry much about what she can and can't eat. She's now old enough for me to just saw "nothing with fake red" and she can choose her own treats and desserts.

4.) Has anyone used the personalized touring plans on touringplans.com? I paid for a subscription in order to maximum my time at the park and while I want to trust it, it seems off to me. Seems like the EMM touring plan conflicts with other things I've heard (about which to ride first, etc.). And also, it says that like Pirate of the Caribbean has only a 5 min wait at 9am on Tuesday. Does that seem right?

Touring Plans doesn't get much love on the DL boards. Generally, they use historical data for predictive purposes. This works well at WDW, where it's a "destination" instead of a "local" park, and people are most likely to be there for specific things (ie, spring break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, not just for a random Monday night). However, at DL, there are a few big differences. First, of course, is that DL is in the middle of a city, and locals pop in for a few hours. Touring plans doesn't account for school days off, or "ski week" (President's Day week, when CA schools are usually out), or marathons, or other times when more locals would be visiting. I remember they had horribly low predictions for the summer of 2012 at DCA... because they didn't account for the Carsland opening or the general grand re-opening of the "new and improved" DCA. So, people were looking at TP, seeing seriously low numbers, and then walking into a very busy park. So, how many Oct x with MHP do they have historically to use for predictive purposes? Not too many. So, maybe 1 year was raining horribly, and the parks were pretty quiet... but if we get a day in the mid-70s, the crowds may be predicted to be a 3-4 and really be a 7. However, that being said, they say the top 10% of days are a 10, another 10% are a 9, etc., however, when you look at the actual numbers of days rated as such, their numbers don't add up. If the top 10% of days are a 10, there should only be 36 days (maybe 37 to account for a fraction of a percentile somewhere)... But if you look at how many are actually rated a 10, it's not 36 or 37. They talk a good game, and maybe they are working on improving their accuracy, however, yours isn't the first mention of how inaccurate it appears to be. Sorry for my little soapbox there! I always feel bad for people who pay for it, and then find out it isn't very accurate for our park

 

[MacMama0930]

Yes, your EMM will count on the 11th, but, as another poster pointed out, ONLY if you check in and have your room key before that. Which means that for a EMM at 7am, you need to be checking in by 6:00am. They will definitely allow it... It's just if you can get your party up and ready to go, and checked in at the hotel early enough to make use of it. For my family, that would mean getting up at 4:30 to be showered by 5:15, packed by 5:45, checked out by 6:00, and over to the DLH by 6:30ish... And that would probably cause a mutiny with my crew And would make it a really (really, really) long day!... The good news is that a EMM at 7:00am on a Tuesday should be "fairly" quiet. Not 100% empty, but nothing like a 9:00am EMM either, since fewer people will be checking in at the crack of dawn on a Tuesday for that EMM.

As far as activation of the APs, I would do this the night before. It can take some time to get them activated, and if there's only 1-2 windows open, then the lines at the ticket windows could be long. However, you have to balance this with the idea of trying to make that daybreak check-in and EMM.


I'd definitely go to the pre-party for a few reasons: (1) Characters in costume with shorter lines, and (2) The two Toon Town rides will be open as well. While Roger Rabbit rarely has a long line, Gadget's Go Coaster's line tends to stack up quickly. Consequently, I rarely make it over to do it, because I don't want to waste the time. So, I'm looking forward to that. (3) Treat Trails! While I'm not really going to the party for the treats, I'm looking forward to getting a little without the longer lines of the general party. Now, granted, I've never been to the MHP or it's preparty, so I may be underestimating the crowds. But it seems like I've heard a lot of people being kind of wish-washy about it. (4) For the price of those blasted tickets, I'm going to make use of every single minute that I can! We don't have APs (not worth it when we are a retired military family, and can get Salute tickets), and we aren't local, both of which probably color my thought process on this as well.


This is similar to how my DD's dye allergy started. First, she would just act possessed. I couldn't get near her because she was so completely out of control with her kicking and biting, and she was only 3. She was just filled with so much rage, but only the days she was on antibiotics for her infections! At any rate, we figured out when it was happening, and went dye-free for her (first red dye, then yellow, then blue). Then, like 3 years later, someone gave her some cake with red dye while at a "manners class" at church one day. They didn't consider checking it for dye, because "why would they put dye in a cake? It had white frosting!" And then DD's face started swelling... It was fairly minor; minor enough that I felt a "is it or isn't it?" for a little bit, and then a neighbor pointed it out, having no idea of what had transpired earlier. Took her to the urgent care, and now we carry an epipen that (thankfully!) we haven't had to use!

So, admittedly, I was overcautious when we were getting ready to head to DL for our first time. The good news is that, at DL, very few things overall have dyes in them. Most often, it will be "obvious" things: frosting on desserts and treats. She hasn't ever reacted to the chocolate cakes. I can't remember what else the dessert party comes with... but there should be something safe. When I was still new to DL foods, I would ask the server, and they would often get the cook/chef for me to talk to, since they would know all the ingredients. Its wonderful to be able to take her somewhere like DL and not have to worry much about what she can and can't eat. She's now old enough for me to just saw "nothing with fake red" and she can choose her own treats and desserts.


Touring Plans doesn't get much love on the DL boards. Generally, they use historical data for predictive purposes. This works well at WDW, where it's a "destination" instead of a "local" park, and people are most likely to be there for specific things (ie, spring break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, not just for a random Monday night). However, at DL, there are a few big differences. First, of course, is that DL is in the middle of a city, and locals pop in for a few hours. Touring plans doesn't account for school days off, or "ski week" (President's Day week, when CA schools are usually out), or marathons, or other times when more locals would be visiting. I remember they had horribly low predictions for the summer of 2012 at DCA... because they didn't account for the Carsland opening or the general grand re-opening of the "new and improved" DCA. So, people were looking at TP, seeing seriously low numbers, and then walking into a very busy park. So, how many Oct x with MHP do they have historically to use for predictive purposes? Not too many. So, maybe 1 year was raining horribly, and the parks were pretty quiet... but if we get a day in the mid-70s, the crowds may be predicted to be a 3-4 and really be a 7. However, that being said, they say the top 10% of days are a 10, another 10% are a 9, etc., however, when you look at the actual numbers of days rated as such, their numbers don't add up. If the top 10% of days are a 10, there should only be 36 days (maybe 37 to account for a fraction of a percentile somewhere)... But if you look at how many are actually rated a 10, it's not 36 or 37. They talk a good game, and maybe they are working on improving their accuracy, however, yours isn't the first mention of how inaccurate it appears to be. Sorry for my little soapbox there! I always feel bad for people who pay for it, and then find out it isn't very accurate for our park

Thank you SO much for that detailed response. The story about your daughter was right on the money with my niece! People tend to get a little eye-rolley when we say things like "no food dye please". But the behavior that results is extreme - like you described it - being possessed. She gets a different look in her eyes and in her face and she become irrational, and mean. It's quite a trip. She also went through an episode when she was 5 where she was put on antibiotics and she was a disaster. Screaming, crying, flailing her body. We were scared it was actually early onset of mental illness. No joke. She's 8 now and is really good about avoiding food dye, and luckily a lot of companies are integrating dye-free products, but sometimes, like you said, dye is in WHITE frosting and other UNexpecting things!

Anyways, again, thank you for your input and advice!!

 

[MacMama0930]

Yes, your EMM will count on the 11th, but, as another poster pointed out, ONLY if you check in and have your room key before that. Which means that for a EMM at 7am, you need to be checking in by 6:00am. They will definitely allow it... It's just if you can get your party up and ready to go, and checked in at the hotel early enough to make use of it. For my family, that would mean getting up at 4:30 to be showered by 5:15, packed by 5:45, checked out by 6:00, and over to the DLH by 6:30ish... And that would probably cause a mutiny with my crew And would make it a really (really, really) long day!... The good news is that a EMM at 7:00am on a Tuesday should be "fairly" quiet. Not 100% empty, but nothing like a 9:00am EMM either, since fewer people will be checking in at the crack of dawn on a Tuesday for that EMM.

As far as activation of the APs, I would do this the night before. It can take some time to get them activated, and if there's only 1-2 windows open, then the lines at the ticket windows could be long. However, you have to balance this with the idea of trying to make that daybreak check-in and EMM.


I'd definitely go to the pre-party for a few reasons: (1) Characters in costume with shorter lines, and (2) The two Toon Town rides will be open as well. While Roger Rabbit rarely has a long line, Gadget's Go Coaster's line tends to stack up quickly. Consequently, I rarely make it over to do it, because I don't want to waste the time. So, I'm looking forward to that. (3) Treat Trails! While I'm not really going to the party for the treats, I'm looking forward to getting a little without the longer lines of the general party. Now, granted, I've never been to the MHP or it's preparty, so I may be underestimating the crowds. But it seems like I've heard a lot of people being kind of wish-washy about it. (4) For the price of those blasted tickets, I'm going to make use of every single minute that I can! We don't have APs (not worth it when we are a retired military family, and can get Salute tickets), and we aren't local, both of which probably color my thought process on this as well.


This is similar to how my DD's dye allergy started. First, she would just act possessed. I couldn't get near her because she was so completely out of control with her kicking and biting, and she was only 3. She was just filled with so much rage, but only the days she was on antibiotics for her infections! At any rate, we figured out when it was happening, and went dye-free for her (first red dye, then yellow, then blue). Then, like 3 years later, someone gave her some cake with red dye while at a "manners class" at church one day. They didn't consider checking it for dye, because "why would they put dye in a cake? It had white frosting!" And then DD's face started swelling... It was fairly minor; minor enough that I felt a "is it or isn't it?" for a little bit, and then a neighbor pointed it out, having no idea of what had transpired earlier. Took her to the urgent care, and now we carry an epipen that (thankfully!) we haven't had to use!

So, admittedly, I was overcautious when we were getting ready to head to DL for our first time. The good news is that, at DL, very few things overall have dyes in them. Most often, it will be "obvious" things: frosting on desserts and treats. She hasn't ever reacted to the chocolate cakes. I can't remember what else the dessert party comes with... but there should be something safe. When I was still new to DL foods, I would ask the server, and they would often get the cook/chef for me to talk to, since they would know all the ingredients. Its wonderful to be able to take her somewhere like DL and not have to worry much about what she can and can't eat. She's now old enough for me to just saw "nothing with fake red" and she can choose her own treats and desserts.


Touring Plans doesn't get much love on the DL boards. Generally, they use historical data for predictive purposes. This works well at WDW, where it's a "destination" instead of a "local" park, and people are most likely to be there for specific things (ie, spring break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, not just for a random Monday night). However, at DL, there are a few big differences. First, of course, is that DL is in the middle of a city, and locals pop in for a few hours. Touring plans doesn't account for school days off, or "ski week" (President's Day week, when CA schools are usually out), or marathons, or other times when more locals would be visiting. I remember they had horribly low predictions for the summer of 2012 at DCA... because they didn't account for the Carsland opening or the general grand re-opening of the "new and improved" DCA. So, people were looking at TP, seeing seriously low numbers, and then walking into a very busy park. So, how many Oct x with MHP do they have historically to use for predictive purposes? Not too many. So, maybe 1 year was raining horribly, and the parks were pretty quiet... but if we get a day in the mid-70s, the crowds may be predicted to be a 3-4 and really be a 7. However, that being said, they say the top 10% of days are a 10, another 10% are a 9, etc., however, when you look at the actual numbers of days rated as such, their numbers don't add up. If the top 10% of days are a 10, there should only be 36 days (maybe 37 to account for a fraction of a percentile somewhere)... But if you look at how many are actually rated a 10, it's not 36 or 37. They talk a good game, and maybe they are working on improving their accuracy, however, yours isn't the first mention of how inaccurate it appears to be. Sorry for my little soapbox there! I always feel bad for people who pay for it, and then find out it isn't very accurate for our park

Oh and luckily my kids do tend to be early risers, often times waking up at 5:30 on their own, so while the early morning time isn't necessarily ideal, I'm forcing them to get up and take advantage of that hour. Plus, our plan is to leave the park for a chunk in the afternoon, from like 12-4 to rest/nap before returning to the park. We'll have four days at the park so I'm hoping to take a more relaxed approach with lots of breaks!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

I would do Goofy's Kitchen on a non-party night. Character meals can take a while (which would cut significantly into your party time), and you want to relax and enjoy the food and interaction. The party is full of things to do, and there is no way you can do everything in one party. So I would spend the party night focusing on the party, doing the things that are important to you. Then have fun at a character meal another time.

 

[Disney_Alli]

I'll be the loan Touring Plans supporter - we found them to be very accurate for our trip in August. For a group your size with children I'd set the walking speed to the slowest speed and limit criss-crossing the park. You can use the DL app to double check their estimates. If you already have the premium subscription I HIGHLY suggest their "Lines" app - it will load your customized plans and you can check them off as you do them and re-optimize to get real time updates on wait times (you can even submit your own "actual" wait times if you'd like!)