I've been back a couple weeks, but finally getting a chance to post! One of my best friends, Kevin, and I visited for 2 days (August 16-17). We're both in our 30s. I'd been to Disneyland a bunch as a kid, and once for a day a couple years ago- but never California Adventure. Kevin's a total West Coast newbie. We've both been to WDW a couple times, but we're not regular visitors. We did Disneyland on Wednesday and DCA on Thursday- didn't hop.
We stayed at Hotel Indigo, which was a fabulous choice. No complaints- everything worked great. We checked in on the evening of the 15th and left the car there until park closing on the 17th. Super comfortable beds, quiet, and nice and "grownup" feeling compared to some other properties in the area. Perfect for us and we got a great deal. It's not a short walk to the parks, but it's totally doable.
Maxpass was a great choice for us. We got on everything we'd hoped, with all the headliners (Space, Splash, Indy, Guardians, RSR, Cali Screaming, Toy Story) 2-3 times. Better than that, it saved us from running around like crazy people. I just made sure to always book a pass as soon as we were eligible. We did end up with 2 multiple experience passes in DL (HM went down, and I chanced it and booked another one when it was still down an hour later, which also converted) and one in DCA (Toy Story momentarily went down) which helped.
We stayed open-close both days, except a trip to Trader Sam's and Earl of Sandwich at dinnertime on our Disneyland day. We walked 11 miles on the first day and 9 the second, and I ended up with epic blisters. That's the last time I get a pedicure before a trip like this! That said, it was absolutely worth it.
MSEP was kind of lost on me, but I loved Remember... Dreams Come True. It was all my favorite parts of Wishes, plus the cool Disneyland Park Tour bit. Fabulous! And we both loved Fantasmic! As a bonus, we got into the seated section with our FPs, which saved our aching feet! Nothing beats the Columbia in that show, IMHO.
I was really surprised how much we loved DCA! It was probably the combination of more adult offerings, more space, booze, and just the fact that Guardians is a fabulous ride. Honestly, if I only had a day... I might just go to DCA. That feels like sacrilege!
Food-wise, Lobster Nachos were the clear winner! Corn dogs (and the cheese alternative) too. We really enjoyed Trader Sam's, Carthay Circle Lounge, Cove Bar, Al Fresco Tasting Terrace, and a twilight beer at Flo's while waiting for our nighttime RSR FP.
I'm sure I'm missing things, but that pretty much sums up the trip. Feel free to ask questions!
We stayed at Hotel Indigo, which was a fabulous choice. No complaints- everything worked great. We checked in on the evening of the 15th and left the car there until park closing on the 17th. Super comfortable beds, quiet, and nice and "grownup" feeling compared to some other properties in the area. Perfect for us and we got a great deal. It's not a short walk to the parks, but it's totally doable.
Maxpass was a great choice for us. We got on everything we'd hoped, with all the headliners (Space, Splash, Indy, Guardians, RSR, Cali Screaming, Toy Story) 2-3 times. Better than that, it saved us from running around like crazy people. I just made sure to always book a pass as soon as we were eligible. We did end up with 2 multiple experience passes in DL (HM went down, and I chanced it and booked another one when it was still down an hour later, which also converted) and one in DCA (Toy Story momentarily went down) which helped.
We stayed open-close both days, except a trip to Trader Sam's and Earl of Sandwich at dinnertime on our Disneyland day. We walked 11 miles on the first day and 9 the second, and I ended up with epic blisters. That's the last time I get a pedicure before a trip like this! That said, it was absolutely worth it.
MSEP was kind of lost on me, but I loved Remember... Dreams Come True. It was all my favorite parts of Wishes, plus the cool Disneyland Park Tour bit. Fabulous! And we both loved Fantasmic! As a bonus, we got into the seated section with our FPs, which saved our aching feet! Nothing beats the Columbia in that show, IMHO.
I was really surprised how much we loved DCA! It was probably the combination of more adult offerings, more space, booze, and just the fact that Guardians is a fabulous ride. Honestly, if I only had a day... I might just go to DCA. That feels like sacrilege!
Food-wise, Lobster Nachos were the clear winner! Corn dogs (and the cheese alternative) too. We really enjoyed Trader Sam's, Carthay Circle Lounge, Cove Bar, Al Fresco Tasting Terrace, and a twilight beer at Flo's while waiting for our nighttime RSR FP.
I'm sure I'm missing things, but that pretty much sums up the trip. Feel free to ask questions!
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