Disneyland with no LL

[Wendysofftoneverland]

Planning our first Disneyland trip- 3 days, a Fri-Sun. We are not planning on buying any LLs due to cost along with the inconvenience of having to be on the app instead of in the moment..but will that make our first trip not enjoyable? We aren't rope droppers, but have been to Disney World several times and have never bought LL since the free FastPass went away (though we do holiday parties and extended evening hours). We are planning on prioritizing rides and attractions that aren't in Florida/aren't in Florida anymore. The kids are excited for attractions like the Finding Nemo submarines, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Pixar-themed rides, to name a few. We can handle a 30 minute wait or so, but more than one 45+ minute wait for the kids will put a damper on the day.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

If you aren’t rope droppers and don’t have LL you will have many 30- to 60-minute waits for attractions that offer LL. It depends on the attractions you want to ride. I suggest looking at the list of attractions that offer LL and deciding how many of those are priorities for you.

As a local Magic Key holder who visits frequently, we rarely buy LL but we also only go on a few rides per day unless it’s unusually low crowds. When I go with infrequent visitors I always recommend LL.

You could buy it on your first day only and see how much value it has for you. You could make that a “ride heavy” day for LL attractions and use another day for attractions that don’t offer LL and other experiences like Pirates Lair on Tom Sawyers Island, the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail in DCA, shows, etc.

 

[twodogs]

What time of year are you planning to go, as crowds can vary a lot at different times of year? Will your kids make it to park closing to take advantage of lower crowds at night?

The first few hours of the day will likely be manageable, but then it will be some long lines.

Thrill Data shows all kinds of stats for wait times. Scroll all the way down to see all of the different data sets:
https://www.thrill-data.com/waits/park/dlr/disneyland/

 

[hardcorestitch]

Planning our first Disneyland trip- 3 days, a Fri-Sun. We are not planning on buying any LLs due to cost along with the inconvenience of having to be on the app instead of in the moment..but will that make our first trip not enjoyable? We aren't rope droppers, but have been to Disney World several times and have never bought LL since the free FastPass went away (though we do holiday parties and extended evening hours). We are planning on prioritizing rides and attractions that aren't in Florida/aren't in Florida anymore. The kids are excited for attractions like the Finding Nemo submarines, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Pixar-themed rides, to name a few. We can handle a 30 minute wait or so, but more than one 45+ minute wait for the kids will put a damper on the day.

You made the right call to pinpoint attractions ahead of time! You’ll have a wonderful time despite no LL.

 

[maleficent55]

I disagree. You’ll spend more time in lines…and yes some will be longer than 30 minutes

You didn’t say when you plan to visit, that makes a difference.

Is your time worth more or your money? To me it’s always worth seeing more attractions and spending less time in line…so I always get the LLMP.

Plus Disneylands ability to stack a bunch for later in the evening/night, or when rides go down and getting the multi experience passes which let you ride a favorite twice or more… plus LLMP come with photo pass…

So many reasons to get it

 

[VGCgroupie]

I appreciate not wanting to be on your phone and in the moment. I crave to have this back.

Lines can be pretty long. I am not a rope dropper but at DL you can get so much done in the early morning (I didnt find rope dropping worth it at Magic Kingdom). The hour before closing you can get a lot done also

 

[BrianL]

Keep in mind that at DL not every ride is on LL, unlike at WDW where nearly every ride is. If you are prioritizing those Fantasyland rides that are no longer at WDW, they don't use them at all. I believe It's a Small World does, but Mr. Toad & Snow White (both formerly at MK) do not, nor do Peter Pan and Pinocchio (PP is an easy skip since they are very similar). The Storybook Land Canal Boats and Alice in Wonderland don't use them either, both unique to DL. I would recommend checking out the list and going from there.

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

Adding to the advice that getting LL is a must do. For perspective, Ive watched the cm's manage the standby and LL sections. For every 10 to 15 people they pull from the LL section, they pull 4 max from standby section. Locals dont buy LL as they go for a few hours and do one or two rides and don't mind queuing for 60 minutes or longer.

Ive been going to Disneyland for almost 15 years. I do 2 or 3 park days and LL are a must do. To me its a false economy to not get them , especially for a first time visit.

 

[Wendysofftoneverland]

How hard is it to use Lightning Lane? I rarely use apps, but I used to get Fastpasses in the My Disney Experience website circa 2019 and I have used the WDW app for checking wait times and managing dining reservations/ordering. How is it for the not tech-savvy? Like I am not really sure what stacking LLs means.

I had no idea that there were Lightning Lane rides and non-Lightning Lane. I don't know if maybe we should just get it for one day. Going in February but over President's Day/Valentine's weekend.

It seems like such a waste to buy LL, like buying carnival tickets to ride after you already paid admission. But maybe that's more of an analogy for individual Lightning Lane. Only riding a few rides in a day would definitely also be a waste of money.

Redwood Creek Challenge Trail sounds like something the kids would like, too. I will definitely have to look and see what are "must-dos" for us. Not sure that we will make it to park close, since we are coming from Central Time zone.

 

[VGCgroupie]

How hard is it to use Lightning Lane? I rarely use apps, but I used to get Fastpasses in the My Disney Experience website circa 2019 and I have used the WDW app for checking wait times and managing dining reservations/ordering. How is it for the not tech-savvy? Like I am not really sure what stacking LLs means.

I had no idea that there were Lightning Lane rides and non-Lightning Lane. I don't know if maybe we should just get it for one day. Going in February but over President's Day/Valentine's weekend.

It seems like such a waste to buy LL, like buying carnival tickets to ride after you already paid admission. But maybe that's more of an analogy for individual Lightning Lane. Only riding a few rides in a day would definitely also be a waste of money.

Redwood Creek Challenge Trail sounds like something the kids would like, too. I will definitely have to look and see what are "must-dos" for us. Not sure that we will make it to park close, since we are coming from Central Time zone.

That weekend is very busy. I would watch you tube videos on how to use LL and Disneyland and see how comfortable you would be using it. It's different than at WDW so make sure you are watching the correct videos.

 

[BrianL]

I had no idea that there were Lightning Lane rides and non-Lightning Lane. I don't know if maybe we should just get it for one day. Going in February but over President's Day/Valentine's weekend.

Yes, at Disneyland they did not add nearly every ride to LL like they did at WDW (WDW did this when they launched FP+). Some rides that aren't suited for it don't get it. I think the only thing without it at WDW is PeopleMover, and some of the shows like Country Bears, etc.

The following rides are available on Lightning Lane Multi Pass:

Dieneyland:

• Autopia
• Big Thunder Mountain
• Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
• Haunted Mansion
• Indiana Jones Adventure
• It's a Small World
• Matterhorn
• Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway
• Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
• Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin
• Space Mountain
• Star Tours
• Tiana's Bayou Adventure

California Adventure:

• Goofy's Sky School
• Grizzly River Run
• Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout!
• Incredicoaster
• The Little Mermaid - Ariel's Undersea Adventure
• Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
• Soarin'
• Toy Story Midway Mania
• WEB Slingers

Note that Rise of the Resistance and Radiator Springs Racers are not included in Multi Pass but have Single Pass instead for a separate charge. Also note that Radiator Springs Racers is like Test Track and has a pretty good Single Rider line if that works for your party. It moves relatively fast compared to other SR lines.

 

[maleficent55]

You are going at a very busy time. CA kiddos have presidents week off and therefore it’s packed

 

[VGCgroupie]

You are going at a very busy time. CA kiddos have presidents week off and therefore it’s packed

When we went there were also cheer/dance comps which made the crowds even higher. Im unsure the comps are the same weekend every year though

 

[disneylover102]

I agree that LL for at least one day is probably a good idea. Most of my favorite rides have LL and I like to repeat those rides so I almost always get LL every day. You don’t have to spend all day on the app unless you’re determined to use as many LLs as possible (like modifying to get a better time). You also don’t need to spend that much time on your phone. Book on the app and you don’t have to be on your phone again until you’ve used your LL or 2 hours have passed (or technically if the last one you booked expires before that 2 hour mark)

 

[LKing]

How old are your kids?

 

[disneychrista]

When we went there were also cheer/dance comps which made the crowds even higher. Im unsure the comps are the same weekend every year though

I've checked because my tentative trip is this weekend and it appears to be the weekend after President's Day not the weekend of President's Day this year.

I'm still not convinced of the "it's packed' is true since the lower MK's are blocked and tickets are priced at the higher end. Typically it seems that means that it won't be packed. Everything that used to be true doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I've checked because my tentative trip is this weekend and it appears to be the weekend after President's Day not the weekend of President's Day this year.

I'm still not convinced of the "it's packed' is true since the lower MK's are blocked and tickets are priced at the higher end. Typically it seems that means that it won't be packed. Everything that used to be true doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

That is good to know. I can say I really noticed the dance comp families at the park so I do think they played a big part in the crowd level, an upside is they tend to get to the park later in the day so thats another +1 for rope dropping.

 

[irlandaise]

I had no idea that there were Lightning Lane rides and non-Lightning Lane. I don't know if maybe we should just get it for one day. Going in February but over President's Day/Valentine's weekend.

Ouch. I was going to suggest that you try your first day without LLMP and see how that goes, given your understandable reluctance to pay more if you don't have to. Then if you don't accomplish as much as you hoped, you could buy LL for one or both of your remaining days. But that's going to be a busy weekend. Any chance you can stash away some more Disneyland trip money between now and February.[

BTW, as a native Californian, I love the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail and the whole Grizzly Peak Recreation Area. Yes, I can visit the real thing elsewhere in the state, but I'm pleased that there's such a beautiful and relaxing part of the Disneyland Resort that emulates our natural forests.

 

[maleficent55]

I've checked because my tentative trip is this weekend and it appears to be the weekend after President's Day not the weekend of President's Day this year.

I'm still not convinced of the "it's packed' is true since the lower MK's are blocked and tickets are priced at the higher end. Typically it seems that means that it won't be packed. Everything that used to be true doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

I wouldn’t trust the crowd calendars as much. Also it’s almost always busy.

You’ll want LLMP, trust me. Even the weekend after presidents weekend is busy

 

[SFMommy]

We usually buy LL for 2 days out of 4. We just plan and do the non-LL rides on the days that we don't have it. And we ride all the LL rides on the days that we have purchased it. We rope drop Jungle Cruise or Fantasyland (non-LL rides) and start stacking the LL attractions starting for late morning.

I also have a list of who will ride which LL rides. For example, when we went with why mom, I did not buy her LL because she was only going to use it on IASW. So we all rode IASW in the morning without LL and then the rest of us used our LL throughout the day. Another example of making the most out of a LL purchase...there were 4 of us and only 2 of us ride the Inredicoaster. So 2 people were able to ride that twice using all 4 LL's.

Hope that makes sense!