Disneyland in February 2013

[LizzyS]

My husband and I will be there 2/23 through 2/26 (our anniversary!) and I have heard nothing but good things about that time of year!

 

[Xenorye]

Sorry to necropost, but I'm currently trying to overplan and decide when we should go next year. We (Wife, Me, Daughter-3, MIL) are planning to go sometime between February - April. I'm having a hard time deciding what to do.

Late February sounds possibly appealing, however I'm concerned that the shortened hours mean we may not get to do as much. We're planning on 4.5 days in the parks, so that may not be much of a real concern, though. My daughter will be 3.5 at the time, so long lines are obviously something we want to avoid.

I'm not terribly concerned about shows, as we will make sure to include a weekend day as part of our trip to see Fireworks and/or Fantasmic, but one thing I'm curious about is World of Color. It seems to run at least one show every day, is that right?

The week we were originally planning was the second week of April, which is two weeks after Easter. I've been told to avoid the week after Easter, but I noticed that two weeks after still has the long hours as it's the tail end of Spring Break. Will the crowds make it not worth it, though?

Ugh... I know I can't be the only one to overthink and overplan, but this is driving me batty. TIA for any help.

 

[momsmail]

I am taking my 4 year old son to Disneyland California in February 2013! I am so excited, as this will be my first time as an adult. It will be just my son and I.

We are going to fly in on Saturday Feb 16th, we will fly out Saturday Feb 23rd. We'll be staying 7 nights and will have 5-6 days in the park.

I am trying to plan ahead as much as possible, and have loved reading these threads so far! I plan to take our time in the park, and don't want to worry about down time (naps, swimming pool, etc.) taking up park time.

How do you think the crowds will be during this time? I'm sure Sunday and Monday will be busier, but what about Tues, Wed, Thurs, etc.?

Any other tips/hints for me? I will be going it alone with my son, so I am open to all helpful suggestions! I am in the process of researching the best bags and shoes.

We will be staying at the Ramada -- anyone stayed there? Does Von's deliver there? Is Target walking distance?

Anyone else going at the same time?

So excited!!!

 

[MaloCS]

President's day weekend can get busy. I don't recall it being that bad when we went this past February.

What?!

We were there for President's Day (2012) and the following week. The crowds were horrible with extremely long wait times. I will never put my family through that again. Any holidays, no matter how small they may be, will be avoided like the plague.

If you thought that week wasn't that bad then I'd hate to see what you consider bad.

 

[dmband]

I am taking my 4 year old son to Disneyland California in February 2013! I am so excited, as this will be my first time as an adult. It will be just my son and I.

We are going to fly in on Saturday Feb 16th, we will fly out Saturday Feb 23rd. We'll be staying 7 nights and will have 5-6 days in the park.

I am trying to plan ahead as much as possible, and have loved reading these threads so far! I plan to take our time in the park, and don't want to worry about down time (naps, swimming pool, etc.) taking up park time.

How do you think the crowds will be during this time? I'm sure Sunday and Monday will be busier, but what about Tues, Wed, Thurs, etc.?

Any other tips/hints for me? I will be going it alone with my son, so I am open to all helpful suggestions! I am in the process of researching the best bags and shoes.

We will be staying at the Ramada -- anyone stayed there? Does Von's deliver there? Is Target walking distance?

Anyone else going at the same time?

So excited!!!

Crowds will be a 9 out of ten on Monday
7 tues
8 we'd and thurs
(if I recall correctly from another thread)

 

[Patrick in Oregon]

What?!

We were there for President's Day (2012) and the following week. The crowds were horrible with extremely long wait times. I will never put my family through that again. Any holidays, no matter how small they may be, will be avoided like the plague.

If you thought that week wasn't that bad then I'd hate to see what you consider bad.

haha I dont know. I guess the only time I "measure" the crowds is when they are obviously very low. We watched the parades twice and were able to get a bench seat 30-45 min ahead of time (we eat while we wait). So maybe we just had good timing/got lucky but that usually doesn't happen that close to the parade. We didn't once bring up that we thought it was particularly busy. But maybe we feel like busy is normal for DL and not busy is abnormal.

 

[MaloCS]

haha I dont know. I guess the only time I "measure" the crowds is when they are obviously very low. We watched the parades twice and were able to get a bench seat 30-45 min ahead of time (we eat while we wait). So maybe we just had good timing/got lucky but that usually doesn't happen that close to the parade. We didn't once bring up that we thought it was particularly busy. But maybe we feel like busy is normal for DL and not busy is abnormal.

Ahhh, I see.

After a few days at Disneyland back in February, 2012 I quickly learned that the vast majority of people there were locals armed with Annual Passes. That explains why the parades were comfy while the line at 'Indiana Jones', 'Star Tours' and 'Space Mountain' were still sporting 60+ minute wait times. 60+ minutes for E-Ticket rides during the week when I thought school was supposed to be in session. Hell, 'Peter Pan' at times was 90 minutes; 90 minutes for 'Peter Pan'.

When we asked employees if the excessive crowd size was common for a February week night they told us that President's Day week (not just the holiday or preceding weekend) was always busy. Always busy? This wasn't busy, this was obscene.

On the Thursday after President's Day the park was so crowded in the morning that you couldn't help rubbing shoulders with people in Tomorrow Land. We took an afternoon break at 'Pooh's Corner' across from 'Splash Mountain' and we couldn't even find a place to sit. We had to walk to 'New Orleans Square' in order to find an empty park bench to sit on. People were crowded around the occupied benches, people were leaning against fences, kids were playing in the walk ways; I honestly couldn't believe it.

When we got home I tried my hardest to find out why the park was so busy. I scoured Los Angeles school and government web sites looking for holidays, I tried to find conventions or special events. I didn't find anything that would explain why the parks were so busy. I honestly don't know if what we experienced was an anomaly or if it is what Disneyland has turned into.



To be fair, the Tuesday morning after President's Day was really light. However, by 4:00 PM or so the park was very crowded and it only got worse each and every day after that.

 

[momsmail]

Crowds will be a 9 out of ten on Monday
7 tues
8 we'd and thurs
(if I recall correctly from another thread)

Thank you so much for this info! It sounds like it will be busy, we'll just have to prepare ourselves and no matter what, we'll have fun.

 

[momsmail]

Ahhh, I see.

After a few days at Disneyland back in February, 2012 I quickly learned that the vast majority of people there were locals armed with Annual Passes. That explains why the parades were comfy while the line at 'Indiana Jones', 'Star Tours' and 'Space Mountain' were still sporting 60+ minute wait times. 60+ minutes for E-Ticket rides during the week when I thought school was supposed to be in session. Hell, 'Peter Pan' at times was 90 minutes; 90 minutes for 'Peter Pan'.

When we asked employees if the excessive crowd size was common for a February week night they told us that President's Day week (not just the holiday or preceding weekend) was always busy. Always busy? This wasn't busy, this was obscene.

On the Thursday after President's Day the park was so crowded in the morning that you couldn't help rubbing shoulders with people in Tomorrow Land. We took an afternoon break at 'Pooh's Corner' across from 'Splash Mountain' and we couldn't even find a place to sit. We had to walk to 'New Orleans Square' in order to find an empty park bench to sit on. People were crowded around the occupied benches, people were leaning against fences, kids were playing in the walk ways; I honestly couldn't believe it.

When we got home I tried my hardest to find out why the park was so busy. I scoured Los Angeles school and government web sites looking for holidays, I tried to find conventions or special events. I didn't find anything that would explain why the parks were so busy. I honestly don't know if what we experienced was an anomaly or if it is what Disneyland has turned into.



To be fair, the Tuesday morning after President's Day was really light. However, by 4:00 PM or so the park was very crowded and it only got worse each and every day after that.

Duuuude! This is scarin' the heck outta me! We will be there Sat 16th - Sat 23rd. Sounds like a pretty busy time! I am not a crowd person, but I expect it when going to Disney. I will have to prepare my son (and myself) to expect the worst and go with the flow.

Thanks for sharing your experience! Here's to hoping Feb 2013 is freakishly slow.

 

[momsmail]

I booked our airline tickets today. It's real now!

 

[dmband]

I booked our airline tickets today. It's real now!

Even more real when the bill comes lol

 

[momsmail]

Even more real when the bill comes lol

Hehehe! Already paid for the tickets. Plugging away at the hotel package. Was surprisingly inexpensive, which will allow me to take a significant amount for spending money. It is expensive all together, but so worth it. Right? LOL

Speaking of which... We will be there for 7 nights, not doing the dining package. Do you think $1800 for spending (hotel, air, transportation and park tickets paid for already) for my son and I will be sufficient? This would be just for food and souveniers.

 

[Disneydreamsdancer]

We'll be there Feb 4th -13th! Airline tickets booked and paid for (ouch!) hotel booked and paid for, stopping in San Francisco on way down. Doing Disney (of course!) seaworld, hollywood, the block at orange, longbeach/queen mary and companyD. Hope the crowds are low this time! Always hoping!

 

[momsmail]

We'll be there Feb 4th -13th! Airline tickets booked and paid for (ouch!) hotel booked and paid for, stopping in San Francisco on way down. Doing Disney (of course!) seaworld, hollywood, the block at orange, longbeach/queen mary and companyD. Hope the crowds are low this time! Always hoping!

That sounds like the funnest trip! Are you going to do Universal Studios? I hope the crowds are low for you too!!

Have you been to Disneyland before? We will be flying directly from Oregon with a quick stop (no plane change) and directly into Orange County. Flying Southwest.

Your trip sounds amazing, so much to look forward to!

 

[OnTheRoadAgain]

We're available to go to DL the Thursday (2/14) through Sunday (2/17) BEFORE President's Day 2/18. What were the crowds like last year the week before?

 

[Susie63]

Hehehe! Already paid for the tickets. Plugging away at the hotel package. Was surprisingly inexpensive, which will allow me to take a significant amount for spending money. It is expensive all together, but so worth it. Right? LOL

Speaking of which... We will be there for 7 nights, not doing the dining package. Do you think $1800 for spending (hotel, air, transportation and park tickets paid for already) for my son and I will be sufficient? This would be just for food and souveniers.

You will come home with some mighty nice souveniers and a full tummy with that budget

 

[MaloCS]

Duuuude! This is scarin' the heck outta me! We will be there Sat 16th - Sat 23rd. Sounds like a pretty busy time! I am not a crowd person, but I expect it when going to Disney. I will have to prepare my son (and myself) to expect the worst and go with the flow.

Thanks for sharing your experience! Here's to hoping Feb 2013 is freakishly slow.

I'm sorry if I scared you but I wished someone would have told me the honest truth about Disneyland during Presidents Day. I admit that I was a newb and didn't do the research to find out if the park had the capability of being over crowded that week. Regardless, what we experienced could have been an anomaly and your trip may be quite pleasant.

If I ever take my family back I will do my best to avoid holidays, school vacation days, government furlough days and special events. However, this preparation may not produce the expected results so I will prepare myself for the worst and be happy if the crowd levels are light.

I will also take advantage of every 'Early Entry' opportunity and utilize the 'FastPass' system like my life depended on it. I admit that during our February, 2012 trip we didn't take advantage of these perks because we were under the impression that "tomorrow would be better". We just didn't know any better because our perception of Disneyland was forged from two trips taken in the late nineties; a much different era in Disneyland culture.

As it stands right now I've learned that due to the saturation of local, Annual Pass holders there really isn't an off season anymore. From my experience this statement is true and I would plan any future trips around this recent phenomenon. I guess it boils down to this; when visiting Disneyland outside of summer, expect large crowds made up of local, Annual Pass holders instead of out-of-state tourists.

Good luck.

 

[momsmail]

You will come home with some mighty nice souveniers and a full tummy with that budget

Thank you for the reply! I am really glad to hear this. I always hear how expensive it is there, and hoped it would be enough. LOL I was also thinking of shopping at Target for snacks and meals and getting a locker each day for lunch. But heck, we might just have filet mignon each day, LOL! I kid. Saving some money would be great.

 

[momsmail]

I'm sorry if I scared you but I wished someone would have told me the honest truth about Disneyland during Presidents Day. I admit that I was a newb and didn't do the research to find out if the park had the capability of being over crowded that week. Regardless, what we experienced could have been an anomaly and your trip may be quite pleasant.

If I ever take my family back I will do my best to avoid holidays, school vacation days, government furlough days and special events. However, this preparation may not produce the expected results so I will prepare myself for the worst and be happy if the crowd levels are light.

I will also take advantage of every 'Early Entry' opportunity and utilize the 'FastPass' system like my life depended on it. I admit that during our February, 2012 trip we didn't take advantage of these perks because we were under the impression that "tomorrow would be better". We just didn't know any better because our perception of Disneyland was forged from two trips taken in the late nineties; a much different era in Disneyland culture.

As it stands right now I've learned that due to the saturation of local, Annual Pass holders there really isn't an off season anymore. From my experience this statement is true and I would plan any future trips around this recent phenomenon. I guess it boils down to this; when visiting Disneyland outside of summer, expect large crowds made up of local, Annual Pass holders instead of out-of-state tourists.

Good luck.

Thanks again for this info. I am doing research on fastpass, hope to use it as much as possible. The last time I was in Disneyland I was a kid, in the nineties, and I remember the long (2 hours+ wait) lines for attractions such as Splash Mountain.

The info about the annual pass holders is very valuable to me. I couldn't find info on this via Disney's site, but I will keep looking. Too late now, as the trip is all booked, but it will be good to know going into it what to expect.

That is partly one of the reasons I chose to stay so many days, because I felt we could get away from the park to rest as to avoid melt downs (for both myself and my 4 year old, lol). I don't want to feel guilty or like we're "missing out". KWIM?

I really appreciate your advice and feedback and am open to hearing suggestions and more advice if you have any to share!

 

[Disneydreamsdancer]

That sounds like the funnest trip! Are you going to do Universal Studios? I hope the crowds are low for you too!!

Have you been to Disneyland before? We will be flying directly from Oregon with a quick stop (no plane change) and directly into Orange County. Flying Southwest.

Your trip sounds amazing, so much to look forward to!

Thank you!! Yes this is our 5th trip, and I'm so excited!!! Ive spent far too much on trips to california (this is my 3rd this year and its a 26 hour round trip for us) but I am just hooked! Never done universal, part of me wants to wait till the new Harry Potter park opens, then I will be first in line! hope you have a great trip and Feb turns into a great park month for us all!