Any flaws in my plan?

[SFMommy]

I can't believe that we are flying down to SNA in 5 days!

I always like to have a plan and be organized. But I'm also willing to throw the plan out the window and enjoy myself if things seem to go another way. So don't think that I will really follow this to the letter. And I haven't included that we will be stopping to shop and eat yummy treats throughout the days too! None the less...here is my plan for our 2.5 days in the parks.

It is me, DH and DD5. We want to experience the special Christmas things, eat at places we've never eaten at before and hit our favorite rides. But we also want to do the less crowded, less-of-a-wait type of experiences/shows too.

Let me know what you think! Thanks!


Day 1 – Friday 11/25

• Arrive at PPH at 12 noon-ish. Drop bags.
• Grab lunch at White Water Snacks on way into DCA.
• Get fastpasses for Soarin’.
• Ride Little Mermaid and any other rides as we can fit in.
• Aladdin Show at 2:20 with Preferred Seating.
• Ride Monsters, Soarin’.
• Assess lines on other rides. Maybe ride, maybe see Muppets 3D, Animation Academy, Turtle Talk or Redwood Creek if ride lines seem too long.
• Back to PPH to get settled in room.
• Dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen at 6:10 p.m.
• Maybe see the Fireworks in DL if we aren’t too tired.

Day 2 – Saturday 11/26

• Wake up early and be at gates by 6:45 for 7:00 Magic Morning.
• Fantasyland rides.
• Toontown Morning Madness at 8:00.
• Take train from Toontown Station to NOS Station.
• Grab fastpasses for Haunted Mansion.
• Ride Pooh, Canoes.
• Go to Big Thunder Ranch…see reindeer and maybe Santa.
• Lunch at big Thunder Ranch BBQ at 11:50 a.m.
• Ride Haunted Mansion, Tiki Room, Pirate’s Lair.
• Back to PPH for rest.
• Dinner at Rainforest Café at 6:30 p.m.
• See Fireworks if we didn’t see them last night.

Day 3 – Sunday 11/27

• Wake up early and be at gates by 6:45 for 7:00 Magic Morning.
• Finding Nemo, Buzz Lightyear, Small World.
• Get fastpasses for Autopia.
• Maybe some other Fantasyland rides, depending on time…Storybook Canal, Carousel, Mr. Toad, Pinocchio, Casey Jr, Snow White are some possibilities.
• Minnie’s Breakfast at Plaza Inn at 10:30 a.m.
• Ride Autopia.
• Take train from Tomorrowland Station to NOS Station.
• Ride Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Mark Twain (or Columbia).
• See Parade at 2:30 p.m.
• Free time – rest at hotel, or do things we didn’t get to yet.
• Dinner at Tortilla Jo’s at 5:00 p.m.
• Pack-up and set the alarm for our early flight home tomorrow!

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

The only thing that stuck out is that Autopia has a horrible FP system. It onl shaved 10 minutes off a 45 minute wait in standby. Also i don't think a small world is open during MM. But they may change that during the holidays.

 

[skiingfast]

I would make a big effort to see the fireworks the first night and not try to make excuses to skip it for later. See WoC or F! too.

I would be very agressive with getting FPs. You don't seem to be listing many rides, for the sake of missing crowds. While that is fine FP will save you a lot of time. BTMRR is disconnected. Use it for Star Tours, Space and Indy, I'm not sure if you are ommiting these because of the 5yo.


Remember TSMM will have a long line all of the time if you see it at under 45 minutes, it's short.

Always walk from the PPH through the GCH.

 

[taaren]

I would do the Little Mermaid ride on either your second or third day at 9:30 am rather than in the middle of the first day when there's lines. I think they still have the Disney Collection Hotels early entry for that ride only through GCH entrance. Even if you do Magic Morning at DL, you can always exit DL, then cross over through GCH after MM rides are done to do LM with no line (we were able to ride 2x in about 10 minutes) just before DCA opens.
We really enjoyed the new rides so on our weekend days when time was at a premium and had the kids we went into DL for MM, grab ST FP's at 8a on the way out of DLR, then cross over through GCH for the LM ride, then be at rope drop for TSMM and hit several rides over on Paradise Pier (DS5 loves the swings, zephyr, etc). Then used the ST FP's in the afternoon/evening. We got a lot done before 11a those days then went back to the hotel for pool time.

 

[starshine514]

I like your plan. I think it makes sense that you are jumping in to some of the shows and less crowded attractions on the first afternoon.
Some say that you should arrive 30 minutes early for MM, rather than 15. We always shoot for 30, but rarely achieve it...

One thing that's jumping out at me is the canoes. If it's cold, I would skip them. It's been a really long time since I rode them, but I remember getting wet and that the water was a funny shade of green and sort of peeled off when it dried... hmm, maybe that's why I haven't ridden them again!

I think the Little Mermaid ride line will be hit or miss, I wouldn't completely discount it mid-day, but wouldn't wait more than 20 minutes for it. My girls also LOVE the Silly Symphony Swings, which usually has a pretty short line in my experience. Your DD would probably need to ride in a tandem swing as DD7 just made the single swing HR on her birthday trip. We also love TSMM - even with a 45 minute wait, it still feels worth it.

Autopia, we've only ridden once, but I've heard what 3Minnies said about the FPs several times on these boards, so you might want to hit that right after (not during as I originally posted) MM, especially if IASW isn't open then.

 

[SFMommy]

Thanks everyone!

We do not do roller coasters. Neither my DH nor I like them and my DD5 is still too scared to try one. So that's why we don't Fastpass BTMRR, Star Tours, Space, Splash or Indy.

Just to clarify, 3Minnies1Mickey, are you saying that you still waited 35 minutes for Autopia when you had a Fastpass and you would have waited 45 minutes through the regular line? I've never heard of waiting 35 minutes when you actually are using a Fastpass! That is crazy!

Agree with you, starshine514, about the Canoes. When we were there in May, ROA was totally closed because of the POTC premiere, so my daughter wants to do everything that we missed last time. But I don't want to get wet, so maybe I can convince her to skip it!

I agree that we might hop over to DCA on our second day after a few hours in DL. Especially if we didn't get a chance to do much there on our arrival day in the afternoon.

Can anyone confirm if IASW is open during MM during the holidays? Is Autopia open during MM too?

Thanks again for all of the tips and help! I love this board!!!

 

[raftislander]

Lots of people go from Aladdin to Monsters, Inc. which creates a line where usuallythere is none or a short one. If you are at the front of the pack exiting Aladdin, you will be OK but if you are not, then come back another time.

 

[starshine514]

Can anyone confirm if IASW is open during MM during the holidays? Is Autopia open during MM too?

OK. Looked it up, Autopia is not open during MM, but IASW holiday probably is. I would do Autopia right after it opened. (Stolen from the MM superthread):

What attractions are open for MM?
Well the rides open are technically "subject to change", but here is a list of rides that can be open during this hour.

In Fantasyland:
-Peter Pan's Flight
-Dumbo
-Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
-Alice in Wonderland
-Mad Tea Party
-Matterhorn Bobsleds
-King Arthur Carousel
-Snow White's Scary Adventures
-Pinocchio's Daring Journey
-Sleeping Beauty's Castle Walkthrough
-It's a Small World Holiday (only November-January)

NOTE: It's a Small World (non-holiday version), Casey Jr. Circus Train and Storybookland Canal Boats are NOT open for MM and open at official park opening. Pixie Hollow and Princess Fantasy Faire are also not open during MM, but they open later than most other attractions, often an hour after official park opening.

In Tomorrowland:
-Space Mountain
-Buzz Lightyear Astroblasters
-Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
-Star Tours 2
-Astro Orbitor*

*Not as consistently open as others. They might be open if large crowds warrant it.

 

[Disneyland 1951]

Day 1 – Friday 11/25

• Assess lines on other rides. Maybe ride, maybe see Muppets 3D, Animation Academy, Turtle Talk or Redwood Creek if ride lines seem too long.[/COLOR]

Things in DCA that are worth the short time they take:
Turtle Talk: Starts every 1/2 hour on the 1/2 hour. 12:00 - 12:30 - 1:00 etc. No need to line up early, 5 minutes before the show is OK. Takes about 15 minutes.

Ltl Mermaid: The lines are now short. Visit anytime it shows less than 20 minutes. The line goes faster than posted.

Other Shows:
The Phineas & Ferb Dance Party is fun for small kids, especially if they are a fan or like to dance. Lasts "14-1/2 " minutes.

Wilderness Explorer Ceremony: Very cute, short (8 minutes) Get your Map and Sr. Explorer merit badge, then meet Russell from "UP". "UP" was shown on Disney Channel last night! (Dug the Dog is out in between the shows behind the entrance sign.)

Disneyland:
During the middle of the day when going through the Castle, take the side paths, as you will often run into a Princess or other Characters with little or no line. They are a lot of fun to talk to.

 

[sonnyjane]

Thanks everyone!



Just to clarify, 3Minnies1Mickey, are you saying that you still waited 35 minutes for Autopia when you had a Fastpass and you would have waited 45 minutes through the regular line? I've never heard of waiting 35 minutes when you actually are using a Fastpass! That is crazy!

:

Yeah...many here (myself included) would call the Autopia FP pretty useless. I've only used the FP twice, but one time when I went to hand my FP to the CM taking them, he didn't even take it from me - said the FP line was so long that I shouldn't waste my FP and could keep it for later lol! I waited about 30 minutes when the regular line said 40 for standby.

 

[Sherry E]

I would make a point of riding the Storybook Land boats (I notice you have it listed as a "depending on time" consideration). There are teeny tiny Christmas decorations strewn around on the cottages, etc. on that ride, and it is worth riding just for that alone. That line can tend to get long very fast, so try to work it in at a time when the park is not as crowded.

I'll address the IASWH during MM issue because I've had personal experience with that.

IASWH being open (or not) during MM seems to be one of those cases where, if the CM's working the ride are feeling generous and if the ride is ready to run, they will sometimes open it (unofficially) during the MM hour, though they will not announce it beforehand. It might also depend on the specific day. You have to just kind of linger around the IASWH area and stalk it to see if the music starts and the ride looks like it's going.

I have been on IASWH during a MM hour (a Saturday morning, if I recall) - and it was wonderful! We were the only ones in our boat, there was no one in the boats around us, and we didn't have to wait in line at all. In fact, IASWH was the very first thing we rode during MM, if I recall correctly, and we did all the other Fantasyland rides after that.

Now, last year we thought we would have luck again with getting on IASWH during MM, since we'd had luck with it before. This time it was a Sunday morning and we marched back to IASWH, only to notice a barricade. It was not open. We chatted with a very nice CM, who told us to listen for the music and then we would know it was about to open.

We wandered off to hit some other Fantasyland stuff that was open, and there was still some time left in our MM hour by the time we were through - probably about 20 minutes left of the hour. We were about to go off to Goofy's Kitchen when I suggested - just on a whim - that we poke our heads back where IASWH was to see if it looked like it was open. It was!!! So we got on IASWH while it was still during the MM hour, although towards the end of it.

So that is two times I have been on IASWH - in 2 different years - during MM, but once it was at the beginning of MM and the next time was near the end of it. I suspect that sort of scenario probably happens quite a bit, that the CM's will play it by ear and sometimes open IASWH during MM...but as to when during the hour it would be, who knows? And they won't officially announce it because they probably don't do it all the time and don't want to promise it! But it does happen!