Disneyland in 10 hours?

[Swann5]

I'm brand new to this board, but need some help from all you experts! Hubby wants to surprise our kids (20, 18, 16) with a 1 day trip to Disneyland prior to our cruise (Jan.2/10) I know this will put us right in the middle of high season (Dec. 28th or 29th), but one busy day @ DL has got to better than no days! Only hubby has been to DL before, but that was when he was very small so is of no help planning what will be a very full day! Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

 

[ballarinamom]

You definately can get quite a bit done in that time. No DCA though. Stick with DL. First off all, familiarize yourself with the fastpass rides. They will be your friend.
Hydroguy has a tps in a sticky on how to get the most out of one day at Dl and the order of collecting fastpasses. That should help!!!

 

[Eeee-va]

Will you be able to get to the park at (or preferably, even before) the gates open? If so, you can hopefully get a lot done! If not, I think you might have some challenges with crowds/etc.--you could still have a lot of fun but you'll have a somewhat harder time getting on the big rides. Fastpass is very helpful but if the park is packed, then return times start getting late really quickly.

Of course, crowd flow is different this year than previous years, so it is POSSIBLE (though probably not likely) that the crowds will actually be lower than previous years. (Long story short, the most frugal locals and even some frugal out-of-towners won't be in the park because only the most expensive annual passes are valid for your dates, and annual passholders make up a large proportion of guests. So I say, plan for huge crowds but keep your fingers crossed.)

Have a great time on your trip! It sounds like you have a wonderful attitude so I think you'll be fine.

 

[vettegirl]

Good luck to you. We did DL Paris and Walt Studios all in one day. We even saw the parade and rode some of the rides twice. Just get there when it opens and don't look back. It will be fun! We did DL in California all in one day back in 2000 and were able to ride all the rides.

 

[NVDisMom]

My advice - Be there for rope drop, and know how to get the most from Fastpass. Hydroguys tips are a lifesaver for trips like these.Set your priorities and realize you will not see everything. Have fun!

 

[Swann5]

Thanks so much for your positive responses, tips, and nod to Hydroguy's sticky! Wow! What a ton of information! It will definitely help us make the most of our limited time at DL. Hopefully we'll have such a good time that we just have to go back to do the things we missed!

We love to cruise (the main purpose for our trip to San Diego) and we get all our best tips from fellow cruisers on Cruisecritic.com, so if any of you need cruise info, head on over there!

Thanks again!

 

[aprincess@mail.com]

You can get tons of stuff done like the previous posters said, so use fastpasses and single riders... that will guarantee you see more rides than none. Have a great time!!!

 

[Swann5]

Read somewhere that if its your first trip to DL you should go to Town Hall for a free pin that says "First Visit" on it and that you often get recognition from cast members and characters just like you do with the birthday pin. Does anyone have any experience with this? Just wondering how long the line may be at Town Hall or if its just better to run to the fast pass dispenser!

Happy Friday, everyone!

 

[LavenderPeach]

Read somewhere that if its your first trip to DL you should go to Town Hall for a free pin that says "First Visit" on it and that you often get recognition from cast members and characters just like you do with the birthday pin. Does anyone have any experience with this? Just wondering how long the line may be at Town Hall or if its just better to run to the fast pass dispenser!

Happy Friday, everyone!

I usually try to avoid city hall if I can because the line is always long but you can get the buttons from other places too. Some of the stores have the buttons. Try the big Emporium on Main Street. That's where we got my b-day button last year and DS's first visit button. Just go in and ask one of the CMs if they have any. If they are out then just try different stores as you see them. We got our anniversary ones in the little toy store next to small world.

Hope you have a great time and thanks for the tip on the cruise website. I've always wanted to take a cruise but haven't had the opportunity yet.

 

[NVDisMom]

I usually try to avoid city hall if I can because the line is always long but you can get the buttons from other places too. Some of the stores have the buttons. Try the big Emporium on Main Street. That's where we got my b-day button last year and DS's first visit button. Just go in and ask one of the CMs if they have any. If they are out then just try different stores as you see them. We got our anniversary ones in the little toy store next to small world.

Hope you have a great time and thanks for the tip on the cruise website. I've always wanted to take a cruise but haven't had the opportunity yet.

The little candy store in Critter Country have them too! Definitely avoid City Hall if time is an issue.

 

[csaj]

Get there at least an hour to an hour and half before the park opens. As soon as it opens to the public (hotel guests will be in there for EMH). As soon as the rope drops on Main Street, one of your party should go straight to one popular attraction (with everyones tickets to the park) to get FastPasses while the rest strolls to another popular attraction. Stroll leasurely and wait at the line que for the one who went to get the FP. Hold on to the FP's even if the hour has expired. They are good all day. As soon as the time comes up for that FP, you will be allowed to obtain another FP for a different attraction. Keep doing that throughout the day, as soon as possible. Send one person ahead while the rest stroll. (This is why I have teens). If the first set of FP's are good from 9 to 10, at 9, you get another set. Again, if you don't use the FP during the time, they can still be used. We do this and usually end up with at least three or four sets of FP's by noon. We also would obtain FP's, then get in line for the same attraction. This lets us enjoy the line que and then ride again later. Visit Fantasyland first, it gets crowded fast and stays crowded, with no FP attractions. Good luck, and with a little planning and strategy, you will be able to see everything.