Clueless in TEXAS!

[GymboAddict]

Hello fellow Disers!

Seriously looking at taking a trip to DL for the family....we are DVCer's and have been to WDW a million times it seems (haha) but now I feel REALLY clueless when looking at everything for DL!!! (now I know how overwhelmed others feel when planning that 1st WDW trip!)

So.....I'll start with basics and go from there. Interested in the new buy 3 nites get 2 free. My DH and I have been to DL 1x - back in the "day" when we were 1st married....I think around 1996? We did stay at DL hotel, so I am familiar with that property. So, 1st question - where to stay?

I know it will either be DL hotel or Grand Cali - my ? is which hotel would be better for the kids? (4 and 10) I'm sure each property has its pros/cons for every family, so any opinions out there?

Next question - when to go? My DD gets out of school on May 20th - yeah! But if we left that day, that would put us into the Memorial Day holiday. I'm thinking it would be crowded then. So.....looking at the calendar, for crowd purposes, would it be better to arrive on a Sunday, say May 31st and have the week to visit? That way we would avoid the holiday and the wine festival crowds for the weekend....at least I'm thinking along those lines. I just remember when I went a long time ago that weekends seemed to get packed with locals, more than I remember at WDW.

Next question.....what about DCA? We have never been to this park, have heard on podcast and read a "little" (haven't done ALL the research, I admit!) about things changing.....how much is closed? Will we be disappointed?

Final question for this post - dining plan opinions???? We love the dining plan at WDW....but doesn't look like the same plan at DL. Yay or nay? My DH is a foodie - the 3 of us not so much - but this could be a selling point for him. But a $5/$10 food voucher isn't going to do much for him. We would prob be interested in 1 character meal and thats it. Don't need to do the princess thing....at least I don't think so at this point. So debating on whether doing this or just eat where we want kinda thing.

Any and ALL suggestions/opinions are greatly appreciated......like I said, I feel a little overwhelmed just trying to read some of the threads and figure this out!!!

Wendy

 

[Disney Dreams]

As someone who is a long-time DLer and went to WDW last October for the first time in 12 years, let me start by telling you Disneyland Resort is VERY simple by comparison. Do not over-complicate what truly is simple.

That said:

DCA: It is about a 3 minute walk from the gate of DL to the gate of DCA. If you decide to buy PHs (which I would since you have never been), you can very easily go back andd forth. It is NOT AT ALL like WDW where you have to deal with busses or driving/parking/tramming to park-hop. You literally walk across the esplanade. Same is true with getting to DtD.

Dining Plan: Again, more o at WDW vacation way of thinking. The DP at DLR really ins't anything at all like a DP that you are thinking of being used to WDW. It is more of a pre-purchased voucher system. Most people do not use the DL DP unless they are just trying to pre-budget the money. It is NOT the incredible dining program that WDW has. Why? Well, again, it's not a ginormous resort with umpteen places. It's a cozy, wonderful resort with lots of options, but not like WDW's endless food smorgasbord.

Dates: I would avoid Memorial Day weekend if your plans allow. People come from AZ, OR, No. Cal, ID, and NV for long weekends. Locals come all the tme, but on holiday weekends, many others come too.

We live locally so I will let others advise on hotels. I will just say that we LOVE the GCH overall feel and atmosphere, but we are 2 adults with no kids.

Have fun planning - and remember, it's DLR. MUCH simpler that WDW.
- Dreams

 

[Hound 109]

Welcome to the left side of the board.

I'm a fellow texan who visited WDW 5 times but now I far prefer Walt's park.

The first place to start is with Hydroguy's tip threads (found in the link below). Print the first one & then start reading them (starting with the DLR for WDW vet) essential reading for all WDW vets & DLR newbies.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1520483

I'll offer other opinions below:

Hello fellow Disers!

Seriously looking at taking a trip to DL for the family....we are DVCer's and have been to WDW a million times it seems (haha) but now I feel REALLY clueless when looking at everything for DL!!! (now I know how overwhelmed others feel when planning that 1st WDW trip!)

So.....I'll start with basics and go from there. Interested in the new buy 3 nites get 2 free. My DH and I have been to DL 1x - back in the "day" when we were 1st married....I think around 1996? We did stay at DL hotel, so I am familiar with that property. So, 1st question - where to stay?

I know it will either be DL hotel or Grand Cali - my ? is which hotel would be better for the kids? (4 and 10) I'm sure each property has its pros/cons for every family, so any opinions out there?

If money is no object I'd go with the GCH. It's "fancier" & it's location makes it easier for touring & especially for park hopping. (which you should do each day).

Next question - when to go? My DD gets out of school on May 20th - yeah! But if we left that day, that would put us into the Memorial Day holiday. I'm thinking it would be crowded then. So.....looking at the calendar, for crowd purposes, would it be better to arrive on a Sunday, say May 31st and have the week to visit? That way we would avoid the holiday and the wine festival crowds for the weekend....at least I'm thinking along those lines. I just remember when I went a long time ago that weekends seemed to get packed with locals, more than I remember at WDW.

DLR in the summer doesn't start picking up until mid June. BUT....Texas & Arizona folks start visiting the first & second week in June. (the last week in May might be a good time). I recommend you include a visit on a Sunday (or memorial day monday) or a Friday so you can enjoy the fireworks, Aladdin (& possibly other attractions) that might be dark during the week.

Next question.....what about DCA? We have never been to this park, have heard on podcast and read a "little" (haven't done ALL the research, I admit!) about things changing.....how much is closed? Will we be disappointed?

DCA is great. & DCA is a great place to "hop" to when DL gets crowded from noon to 5-7pm. (& one should hop thru DCA everday....especially if staying next door in the GCH ).

I think DCA has 3 of the best 5 attractions at DLR (Screamin', Soarin' & Griz Rapids)....plus it has Monsters Inc., Toy Story Mania, TOT, Corny Dogs, the cute Bugs life area, Crush & dozens of other things to do & see. It isn't Walt's park....but it's right next door & it's a darn good place to visit 3-4 hours a day (for 3-4 days).

Final question for this post - dining plan opinions???? We love the dining plan at WDW....but doesn't look like the same plan at DL. Yay or nay? My DH is a foodie - the 3 of us not so much - but this could be a selling point for him. But a $5/$10 food voucher isn't going to do much for him. We would prob be interested in 1 character meal and thats it. Don't need to do the princess thing....at least I don't think so at this point. So debating on whether doing this or just eat where we want kinda thing.

The DLR dining plan is NOTHING like the WDW dining plan (which i enjoyed twice). Not as good & not worth comparing. But.....there are plenty of places to eat from fancy to counter service for folks to enjoy for a 3-5 day visit. (nothing like WDW, but enough to enjoy a nice or fun meal at a different place each day.

Any and ALL suggestions/opinions are greatly appreciated......like I said, I feel a little overwhelmed just trying to read some of the threads and figure this out!!!

Wendy

Start with reading HG's tip threads & you'll feel a little bit less overwhelmed.

Have a great time planning a visit to Walt's Park.

 

[Dsnylndlvrs]

As far as hotel goes, you and your kids might really like GCH because the kids could sleep in bunkbeads! (make sure to request them just to be sure, but there seem to be lots of rooms with them anyway.) GCH is the closest hotel to the parks and even has it's own entrance directly into the DCA park.

DH is nice too and still really isn't far from the parks in terms of walking, and it's so close to the monorail station anyway.

Have never done the dining plan at DL so can't help you there. In terms of restaurants that you might want to get advanced reservations, there's Blue Bayou in DL, a place called Wine Country Trattoria(I think!) in DCA and then character meals that are the only ones that you would consider doing reservations for (and then you should be fine making them even as late as a week out I think.) As another poster mentioned, no need to worry over the planning stuff for DL! This past week we made reservations for Blue Bayou with only 2 days notice, we had to take a 4:30 dinner slot, but that was fine. For the place in DCA we walked up, waited about 10 minutes and then got seated (the patio seating was all reserved, but that was fine too!) Not all bad despite being a super busy week!

Hope you and your family have a ton of fun!

 

[bumbershoot]

Ds's b'day is on the 26th, so last year we started our trip that day, which was the holiday Monday, and our trip was GREAT. Seems that everyone left on Monday and I didn't know it had been crazy-busy until I read reports on the board. We're doing the same trip this year.

I might be causing more crowds for our dates, but I would recommend that week, based on last year.


DCA is great! Any ticket over a one day is a hopper anyway, so you might as well hop.

 

[GymboAddict]

Thanks everyone for all the GREAT tips! I've been reading the sticky threads and trying to "educate" myself on the ins/outs of DL parks!

So far still debating between GCH or DLH.....price difference is only $300 - but then that $300 could go towards food or an airline ticket!

I appreciate the feeback on the dining plan.....looks like we will skip that. But I was glad to see that DVC offers some great discounts on dining for DL restaurants - so that was nice....will definitely take advantage of those.

Another question I had - someone mentioned making sure we are at the parks during a weekend so we can take in the fireworks and night shows. Do they not have fireworks every night like at WDW? Even in summer? I tried to pull up park hours for end of May/June, but official website doesn't list anything yet. Maybe time difference affects the light???

Thanks for all the love....enjoying the "left" side of the boards so far!

Wendy

 

[S. S. Columbia]

... arrive on a Sunday, say May 31st and have the week to visit.

…someone mentioned making sure we are at the parks during a weekend so we can take in the fireworks and night shows. Do they not have fireworks every night like at WDW? Even in summer? I tried to pull up park hours for end of May/June, but official website doesn't list anything yet.

At DLR, the peak summer season is usually from mid-June to late-August, and during the peak summer season DLR has fireworks, Fantasmic, and Disney’s Electrical Parade (in DCA) showing every night. But for some reason, DLR does not consider the first week or two in June to be “peak.” I’ll explain this further down.

Early-June this year is a bit of a toss-up, because the Remember…Dreams Come True fireworks are being replaced by the Magical! fireworks. And Fantasmic and the Electrical Parade are currently getting refurbed.

On April 24 a big official announcement is expected about the new Magical fireworks, Fantasmic, and the Electrical Parade, and the official opening and return dates should be known at that time.

The official calendar has been getting updated about 6 weeks ahead of time. By April 24 the official calendar should hopefully be updated to include Friday, June 5.

I would wait until April 24 for official information.

In the first week of June in 2007 and 2008, fireworks were not shown Monday through Thursday. In 2007, fireworks were not scheduled for June 4, 5, 6, and 7. In 2008, fireworks were not scheduled for June 2, 3, 4, and 5.

In 2007, the fireworks started showing nightly for the summer on Friday, June 8.
In 2008, the fireworks started showing nightly for the summer on Friday, June 6.

Unofficially, Fantasmic and the Electrical Parade are expected to return on Friday, June 12.

Here are calendars from June ’07 and June ’08.
http://www.laughingplace.com/guide-cal-DLR2-200706.asp
http://www.laughingplace.com/guide-cal-DLR2-200806.asp

HTH

 

[S. S. Columbia]

Another question I had - someone mentioned making sure we are at the parks during a weekend so we can take in the fireworks and night shows. Do they not have fireworks every night like at WDW? Even in summer? I tried to pull up park hours for end of May/June, but official website doesn't list anything yet.

Disney announced that the Magical fireworks, Fantasmic, and the Electrical Parade (in DCA) will start on Friday, June 12.

They will be shown nightly from Friday, June 12, to Sunday, August 23.

http://www.disneylandnews.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=407

Whether or not the Remember...Dreams Come True fireworks will be shown on the weekend of June 5 to 7 is still up in the air.

http://disneyland.disney.go.com/dis...an=3&parkDCA=false&parkDLP=true&parkDTD=false

HTH

 

[pixiewings71]

Just a quick FYI, any tickets you get over 1 day are park hoppers automatically. So unless you purchase single park single day tickets every day you'll be park hopping. Trust me, hopping is the way to go at DL! Have fun!!!!