Bad time for a first visit?

[RadekBonk]

Is it a bad time for a first time visit to Disneyland and DCA? With some of the entertainment closed and modified experiences, would all of you recommend waiting until more things return to normal? Thanks for the help!

 

[mdmost]

When were you thinking of going? By Spring, most of the entertainment like World of Color and Fantasmic should be back. If you're meaning meet and greets, those are probably forever changed to the distanced versions.

 

[Wesley815]

Personally I still think it's a good time to go, and have had fun visits each time since reopening. Slowly but surely the parks are feeling more 'normal' again. Having fireworks back and holiday decorations last month really helped things.

As mdmost mentioned, sadly Entertainment is what seems to be still the most impacted but if shows aren't a deal breaker for you than it's fine.

 

[RadekBonk]

When were you thinking of going? By Spring, most of the entertainment like World of Color and Fantasmic should be back. If you're meaning meet and greets, those are probably forever changed to the distanced versions.

February is the window. Which is likely before the Spring 2022 items return.

 

[gelatoni fan]

I'd wait until the nighttime entertainment schedule is out. I personally wouldn't bring someone to Disneyland to the first time on a day that they didn't have fireworks, Fantasmic and World of Color. If you plan to pay for Genie+, I'd wait even longer until masks are no longer required indoors so you can get your ride photos. I think a first time visitor would actually have more fun with the current meet and greets than the pre-pandemic ones where you'd wait in long lines for photos.

I would not recommend someone visit for the first time in February 2022.

 

[deedubb]

I would definitely wait if it will be your first trip. Don't pay Disney prices for a half-assed experience. The nighttime shows are amazing.

 

[disneylover102]

Is it a bad time for a first time visit to Disneyland and DCA? With some of the entertainment closed and modified experiences, would all of you recommend waiting until more things return to normal? Thanks for the help!

I think now is a great time to go! I was never big into the entertainment pre-covid and honestly Disneyland feels to me right now just like it always has except you have to pay for fastpass and wear masks indoors. If you’re a big ride person right now is just fine! Although since it’s “off” (more like slightly off lol) season some of the big rides like Splash Mountain are down. But give it a couple months and the rides will pretty much all be running.

As far as entertainment goes like others have said the big shows like Fantasmic and WOC are coming back soon so if you wanna see those maybe wait just a little bit. There is a fair bit of entertainment happening now but I understand it’s not as much as it used to be.

Character meet and greets are distanced but they are appearing and while I never did one pre-covid I’ve really enjoyed the character interactions I’ve had.

I say go and just enjoy what you can which is honestly a lot!

 

[RadekBonk]

We ended up deciding to go in February! We're bummed World of Color won't be showing, but another user pointed out that you never know what the future holds and travel while you can. Life can be unpredictable. That rung true, so here we come Disneyland and DCA! Thanks for all the advice.

 

[disneylover102]

We ended up deciding to go in February! We're bummed World of Color won't be showing, but another user pointed out that you never know what the future holds and travel while you can. Life can be unpredictable. That rung true, so here we come Disneyland and DCA! Thanks for all the advice.

You’ll have so much fun! Don’t listen to the people who say Disney doesn’t know how to run the parks anymore, they just find a reason to complain about everything

 

[AngPNW]

For what it's worth, we had our first trip to DL/DCA right after Thanksgiving. We ignored the "wait until it's back to normal" comments and we just went with the flow of what the parks had to offer. We had the best trip! Everything felt magical to us and if Disney can do better, then we are looking forward to experiencing that down the road. In fact, we are going again in March lol.

You're in for a ton of fun. I'm glad you decided to move forward with your February plans!

 

[RadekBonk]

Thought it was worth circling back to this. We just got back and had an AWESOME time. Even with some things missing, it was a blast. Cast members were great. Genie+ was far less of a headache compared to WDW and it was a top tier trip we've ever had.

 

[PlutoIsHere]

I think it depends on a couple of things, but mainly your frequency of attending. First off. You're always going to miss something. There will always be a discontinued parade, cancelled fireworks, or a broken down ride. Its inevitable. Now, the Covid stuff has definitely impacted things more than normal which brings me to my second point, which is how often you attend. If you're the type to got every year or every couple of years I would feel comfortable going right now. If this is a once in a lifetime or once in every 10 years kind of trip I would wait.

 

[smartlabelprint]

We ended up deciding to go in February! We're bummed World of Color won't be showing, but another user pointed out that you never know what the future holds and travel while you can. Life can be unpredictable. That rung true, so here we come Disneyland and DCA! Thanks for all the advice.

I just saw your other post. Glad you had an amazing trip!