CA or not?

[Tandyc]

A friend of mine has asked me if she should buy a hopper tix or only do DL. She has 2 dd 3 and 8. The 8yo and both her parents are not ride people at all. She said if the only thing to do in CA is Flik Fair it wouldn't be worth the $. What do you think? I said the atmosphere and parades would be worth the minimal extra expensive of a hopper IMHO. The 3yo is not very tall and would not be able to do GRR and I doubt the rest of the family would be willing anyway. Soaring is out of the question. They hate flying. Heights are a big concern for all of them so no Ferris wheel. Am I forgetting other things at CA that they would all enjoy?

Also is there a list somewhere of the rides that have a height restrictions?

It's ben so long since my ds's were this young I feel like I'm not giving the best advice.

Tandyc

 

[DangerMouse]

I'd suggest they avoid the Pier area if they really aren't into rides. Not much to interest them down there. Other things they might be missing:

Monsters, Inc. ride (very, very tame)
Muppets 3-D
Aladdin
Animation Studio
Playhouse Disney
Electric Parade (depending on if its running or not)
Block Party Bash (FUN and LOUD)
Ft. Wilderness Play Area

 

[victorandbellasmom]

Here's a link to hieght requirements at DL & DCA http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/help/gsDetail?name=HeightRequirementsGSDetailPage . I'm voting for getting the parkhoppers. Aladdin & the ELP are awesome. Don't know that if the girls are into HIgh School Musical but the my dd and neice love the pep rally.

 

[Amy&Dan]

If you go to the Disneyland website, it will give all the height restrictions for each and every ride in DL and DCA. I would never recommend missing out on DCA, the Aladdin show alone is worth the price of admission in my book. And if the Electrical Parade is running, that is another HUGE reason to go there. DCA is a great supplement to Disneyland, which was what it was intended to be. Its not quite a stand alone park (although it continues to improve) but its a great place to spend a few hours. When Disneyland gets crowded and it does, especially on the weekends all year long and every day during the peak months, DCA is never as crowded. Its a great place to dine and shop, and there are some fun rides (Dangermouse's list is a good example of what this family could enjoy at DCA). I would also add the Bugs Life 3D show to that list and Turtle Talk with Crush. My kids love the Animations studio, they can spend hours in there. And again, the Electrical Parade and the Aladdin Show are worth it even if thats all they do. Just the two parades, the Aladdin Show, Animations and Turtle Talk could keep them busy for a whole day or parts of several other days. I would really try to encourage them to get the park hoppers, I think it would be a big mistake if they didn't.


And that Redwood Creek Challenge Trail (I think that is what Dangermouse is referring to with the Ft. Wildnerness Trail) and the Brother Bear show righ near it could keep those two girls busy for quite some time. Also the three year old would likely love the Playhouse Disney Show and all the characters from those shows that hang out in DCA.

Also the princess themed lunch/dinner at Ariel's Grotto is a little girls dream and that is located only in DCA and is the only princess only meal in all of Disneyland.

 

[DangerMouse]

And that Redwood Creek Challenge Trail (I think that is what Dangermouse is referring to with the Ft. Wildnerness Trail)

Doh! That's what's it's called. I couldn't remember the name of it.

I would disagree about the Bug's Life 3-D show if your friends' girls are timid. None of my kids will go to that show, and my oldest is 10. They are completely freaked out by it, and they all LOVE the scary rides (ToT and Screamin are their favorites). I make it a point to warn my friends about it so they don't have to leave the theater with crying kids.

 

[lilsprstr]

There were lots of things that my kids enjoyed at CA. Playhouse Disney, Monsters Inc, Alladin, The Muppets show. Plus we got to meet Sulley, Mrs. Incredible and the Cars (Lighteneing McQueen and Mater)! Oh, and my son (4) loved the ride Soarin Over California. I'd say we spent 3/4 of a day there and we didn't do any big rides.

 

[KelsiesMommy]

MOnsters Inc, MuppetVision, Animation Station and Turtle Talk with Crush, Aladdin show, BPB, Playhouse Disney (for the 3yo), Redwood Creek Trail, Mission Tortilla and Boudin walk throughs.... These are all things they would enjoy!!

Totally worth the hopper pass, especially when DL is way crowded, it's nice to walk over to DCA for a little break.

 

[Amber15]

I know this has been mentioned, but MuppetVision is the highlight of my visit to Cal Adv. It's like being in the audience on the Muppet Show. A must see.

 

[DLR29]

Just letting you know, the only ticket that is not a hopper is a 1 day. So if you plan on going for more than a day, you will get a park hopper. Why not go if you have the opportunity? There's plenty of stuff for the kids to do. And if it takes you less than a whole day, you can just hop back to DL.

 

[kuusimo]

Just letting you know, the only ticket that is not a hopper is a 1 day. So if you plan on going for more than a day, you will get a park hopper. Why not go if you have the opportunity? There's plenty of stuff for the kids to do. And if it takes you less than a whole day, you can just hop back to DL.

This is what I was thinking. If they are planning on spending more than 1 day they need to get a park hopper. If they are only planning on spending one day, I would just do Disneyland. Last time we were there, I think we spent more time at CA than Disneyland.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I would disagree about the Bug's Life 3-D show if your friends' girls are timid. None of my kids will go to that show, and my oldest is 10. They are completely freaked out by it, and they all LOVE the scary rides (ToT and Screamin are their favorites). I make it a point to warn my friends about it so they don't have to leave the theater with crying kids.

Yes, it is too much for some kids, I can see the 3 year old especially being scared by this one. However, my kids have been doing it since they were 6 and 8 and its a favorite of theirs. So while the 10 year old might think its creepy, at that age, they would know enough to just close their eyes and realize it isn't real. So I think for that one, its definitely worth a try. I have never seen kids above pre school age crying and can only remember a time or two in 17 trips to DL/WDW when a kid left hysterical. And one of those made me mad because she had been begging her daddy the whole way in not to take her and he did anyway. What a moron he was!

 

[bumbershoot]

If they are only doing one day, just stick with DL.

But like others have said, if they are going more than one day, they'll get a hopper anyway!

Just the possibility of seeing the Cars, um, cars (don't know if they'll still be doing their thing by the time of our trip) and the Incredibles character would be worth the cost of admission for us, however. BUT we didn't know they were there on our one-park, one-day blasts!!!