Coming back to Disney after 15 years going to need some help :)

[matsterrocks]

We did Disney when the kids were little but has been 15 years so looking for some help in figuring out the new Disney. We are thinking of doing Disney for 4 days Jun 26-29. There will be 4 of us(2 young adult kids). My wife's favorite restaurant is Blue Buyeo so have researched that I will have to wake up early to book a reservation for that 60 days out. What other "cool" atmosphere restaurants are a must? We will buy hopper with Genie+ tickets. Do we all need to have our cell phones with us or can I book our rides just from my phone? From Canada so will I need to have my data on or is there good enough wifi in the park to use Geni +? I am having a hard time finding park hours to know which days we want to start in which park. I see you have to reserve a starting park now. We are late night people so will be in the park start to finish I would think. What all things do you have to pre reserve eg shows rides? I was looking at WDW a few months ago and it seemed like you had to be up at 7 to book the Star Wars Ride. We are more into rides then shows but if we want to catch a show can you do it without buying a dinner package easy enough? We will be staying at a hotel close by but not on property so won't have early access can you still do rope drop? Are there any updated rope drop itineraries available? I see Photopass is included with Genie+ right now will that still be the case in June? Are you limited to using Geni+ only once per ride per day? How do you get into Disneyland now that you don't have hard tickets? Does it take a long time to switch between parks do you have to do security each time? Thinking the phone battery won't last a day do most people bring a battery pack?

 

[Pluto468]

Sounds like a fun trip!

When I went with my family of 4 last time I booked all the rides on my phone. But if you all have cell phones it could be handy for people to have the app installed in case you want to split up sometimes.

Good idea getting up early to book Blue Bayou, those reservations go fast. Oga's in Galaxy's Edge is a cool Star Wars themed place, and alot of people like Lamplight Lounge at DCA. Kind of depends on what kind of restaurant atmosphere you're looking for.

The park hours for your dates may not be up yet, but summer hours are usually early, like 8am. You can pick your park even before you know the hours, though.

If there are shows you know you want to watch like World Of Color or Fantasmic, they both have dining packages where you can sit/eat and watch the show, or buy a meal early in the day and then get a voucher for a standing viewing area at show time. You can still find standby areas to watch if you don't want to buy a package.

If you want to book a lightning lane for Rise Of The Resistance, you can buy that the day you're in the park.

The resort hotel guests get in half an hour earlier, but you can still rope drop if you're not on-property.

You'll buy your ticket online, then put it on the Disneyland app on your phone. You take that to the gate on your first day and they'll scan you in. When I was there last summer they were still giving hard tickets, but if they aren't now you probably just use your phone every time.

Once you enter the security checkpoint you won't need to go through security again unless you leave the Downtown Disney area and come back.

Park hopping is really easy because it's so close. Just leave whichever park you're in and walk across the esplanade, and they'll scan your ticket when you enter the other park. Sometimes there's a line to get in to the next park, depending on the time of day but I wouldn't expect it to take very long.

Definitely bring extra battery packs for your phone. I needed to use mine every time I was in the parks.

Have fun!

 

[Kit Jackson]

A portable battery pack is a great thing to bring. At Disneyland, PhotoPass is part of Genie+ and has been for awhile (for some that's a huge perk). At Disneyland, you cannot book a ride until you are scanned into the park.

This book was really helpful when I planned my first trip. It will probably have information on all the new stuff you would want to know about it.

https://www.amazon.com/Unofficial-G...a4-9ce4-b8ce8dfbe2dc&pd_rd_i=1628091339&psc=1

 

[matsterrocks]

Do I only need the Disneyland app or is there a separate app for Genie + ect.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

Do I only need the Disneyland app or is there a separate app for Genie + ect.

Just the Disneyland app

 

[DLgal]

Blue Bayou isn't what it was 15 years ago. Just be forewarned about that.

 

[kj2mom]

Just wanted to say thanks for asking all of my questions! Following along for sure! I hope you have a fantastic trip! We will be arriving shortly after you leave!

 

[matsterrocks]

For dinning reservations that are gone in a few minutes of opening do you just have to take what is offered or is there a bit of a selection for timing?

 

[Disney0010]

If you want specialty dining, get it fast. The reservations go very quickly.

 

[matsterrocks]

Park reservations now available for my dates any disadvantage to buying tickets to reserve this far out?

 

[DLgal]

Park reservations now available for my dates any disadvantage to buying tickets to reserve this far out?

No disadvantage. Prices can go up anytime so it's smart to lock them in.

 

[matsterrocks]

If you want specialty dining, get it fast. The reservations go very quickly.

Just wondering what the bookings look like when you try to book one? Do they list all the available times or just the next available time?

 

[DizMe]

Just wondering what the bookings look like when you try to book one? Do they list all the available times or just the next available time?

The best thing to do is download the app if you don't already have it and practice making dining reservations. Just don't complete the last step. You'll be able to see how it works and get the hang of timing etc. There are a couple of methods depending on which type of device you're using; on my desktop, it looks different from the way it presents on the app on my phone.

It's recommended by most to look at reservations by each time given (I think it's in 1/2 hour increments, like 9:00, 9:30, etc), rather than by meal (breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner). I've done both and can't really say if one worked better or not.

If you don't get the dining you really want, don't give up. Just keep checking and you can also sign up for free dining alerts that will let you know if a reservation has come back into the system. You set up an alert for a time period (breakfast, lunch, dinner) on a given day. You can set up to 6 alerts or something like that. I was trying for Blue Bayou in Jan for a last minute trip, so I set a dining alert for lunch and dinner for all 3 days of my stay (6 alerts). I did eventually get one but they go really fast so you have to be ready to jump on it when you get an alert.