Disneyworld vet Disneyland rookie

[FSU Girl]

You'll want to download the Official DisneyLand app.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiYtMe05bjVAhVE3WMKHdnXDeoQFggyMAA&url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.disney.wdpro.dlr&hl=en&usg=AFQjCNH9WywdumRUOLOYLVk--mTNvWVwyQ

You can log into your Disney account from it, and purchase your tickes. When you go through the entrance on the first day, they'll scan the bar codes from your phone and give you physical tickets at the turnstyle (You don't have to visit the ticket booths).

Thanks! So I can have both tickets on my account without my boyfriend making an account?


Also, does anyone know if Disney offers a bus service to LAX? They are the only airport that has direct flights home for me and since it's winter time I think that'll be the better option to leave. Or should I just rent a car?

 

[Davin_Felth]

Thanks! So I can have both tickets on my account without my boyfriend making an account?


Also, does anyone know if Disney offers a bus service to LAX? They are the only airport that has direct flights home for me and since it's winter time I think that'll be the better option to leave. Or should I just rent a car?

Yup, you can buy multiple tickets on your account. Once you arrive there, one of the tickets will be assigned to each of you and your pictures will be taken at the gate to associate each ticket with you.

Disney has a shuttle service contracted out that goes to LAX and Orange County (seperate busses, they don't make a round trip to both on the same bus). You'll want to watch for big coach busses with Disney characters on the side that say DisneyLand Resort Express. Someone runs a knock-off Disneyland Express that uses shuttle vans, don't use those.

http://dre.coachusa.com/

You can pre-pay on their website, but it's not required. They also have a pamphlet on the website that shows when the pickup times are for each hotel in the area.

Mostly, people just use it if they have kids. The California laws for car seats and boosters don't apply to busses. Once our kids are big enough, we'll probably just use SuperShuttle (cheaper and shuttles leave more often).

 

[FSU Girl]

Yup, you can buy multiple tickets on your account. Once you arrive there, one of the tickets will be assigned to each of you and your pictures will be taken at the gate to associate each ticket with you.

Disney has a shuttle service contracted out that goes to LAX and Orange County (seperate busses, they don't make a round trip to both on the same bus). You'll want to watch for big coach busses with Disney characters on the side that say DisneyLand Resort Express. Someone runs a knock-off Disneyland Express that uses shuttle vans, don't use those.

http://dre.coachusa.com/

You can pre-pay on their website, but it's not required. They also have a pamphlet on the website that shows when the pickup times are for each hotel in the area.

Mostly, people just use it if they have kids. The California laws for car seats and boosters don't apply to busses. Once our kids are big enough, we'll probably just use SuperShuttle (cheaper and shuttles leave more often).

Omg you're the best! I was really stressing out about how to get to LAX and even though it's probably pricier the bus looks so much less complicated. Normally I'd ask my boyfriend with help planning such an extensive trip and trying to figure out everything on my own is a lot lol.

Really everyone on here has to be so helpful! I'd be completely lost without all of your great advice

 

[Rabb it]

Well if you have the money Grand Californian is the nicest hotel and the closest to both parks. In fact it has a private entrance into California Adventure. Disneyland hotel is on the opposite end of Downtown Disney from the parks. So if you stay there you need to walk a couple blocks to get into the parks, or you can take the monorail into Disneyland which lets you off in Tomorrowland. The line is a bit long in the mornings I've heard because you can't get on the monorail until the park opens.. That being said many people stay off property, there are many hotels along Harbor blvd that are in walking distance of the parks, and you'd be paying about 75% less if you did. The Disneyland hotels are not like WDW hotels, none are "Value Resort" pricing

You CAN do both parks in the same day if need be, but one day in each park is typically the minimum in my eyes. You don't want to miss either of the big nighttime shows. Fantasmic in Disneyland/World of Color in DCA.

 

[FSU Girl]

Well if you have the money Grand Californian is the nicest hotel and the closest to both parks. In fact it has a private entrance into California Adventure. Disneyland hotel is on the opposite end of Downtown Disney from the parks. So if you stay there you need to walk a couple blocks to get into the parks, or you can take the monorail into Disneyland which lets you off in Tomorrowland. The line is a bit long in the mornings I've heard because you can't get on the monorail until the park opens.. That being said many people stay off property, there are many hotels along Harbor blvd that are in walking distance of the parks, and you'd be paying about 75% less if you did. The Disneyland hotels are not like WDW hotels, none are "Value Resort" pricing

You CAN do both parks in the same day if need be, but one day in each park is typically the minimum in my eyes. You don't want to miss either of the big nighttime shows. Fantasmic in Disneyland/World of Color in DCA.

Thanks! At the moment I'm leaning more towards a Disney hotel, but I'll take a look at the other hotels nearby first. I just went through flight info and I'm going to have to leave early on my third day there so will really only have two days to do the parks. Are the night time shows shown at all during the week? It will be a holiday weekend so I'm not sure if that makes a difference.

 

[Davin_Felth]

Omg you're the best! I was really stressing out about how to get to LAX and even though it's probably pricier the bus looks so much less complicated. Normally I'd ask my boyfriend with help planning such an extensive trip and trying to figure out everything on my own is a lot lol.

Really everyone on here has to be so helpful! I'd be completely lost without all of your great advice

You'll want to make sure to save their phone number and call them the day before you go to LAX, that way the know to stop at the location you need to be picked up. 800-828-6699

 

[FSU Girl]

You'll want to make sure to save their phone number and call them the day before you go to LAX, that way the know to stop at the location you need to be picked up. 800-828-6699

Even if I make the reservation online prior to my stay?

 

[Davin_Felth]

Even if I make the reservation online prior to my stay?

To be safe, yes. I just took a look at my receipt for my upcoming trip, it doesn't list dates/times on it. It's a pre-bought ticket that is good for 1 year after purchase. When I bought mine, I was able to use a promo code AOC to get $10 off per person. I think I've seen in a thread that it may not work anymore though.

 

[FSU Girl]

To be safe, yes. I just took a look at my receipt for my upcoming trip, it doesn't list dates/times on it. It's a pre-bought ticket that is good for 1 year after purchase. When I bought mine, I was able to use a promo code AOC to get $10 off per person. I think I've seen in a thread that it may not work anymore though.

Oh good point they won't know when in that year I want to use it. I saved it in my phone I'll see if the promo code works and if not oh well. thanks

 

[5forMickey]

Thanks! At the moment I'm leaning more towards a Disney hotel, but I'll take a look at the other hotels nearby first.

Since you typically stay at deluxes, I would recommend on site for sure-but then again I love on site. If your looking offsite though, I would stay with the newer chain Hotels; Marriott Courtyard, new Springhill Suites or maybe the hotels on convention way. It all depends on what's most important to you, some people just want a cheap, clean, close place and if that fits the motels on Harbor might work. For me, I like a little more out of my lodging and would rather pay more or be further away. A bad or uncomfortable room ruins my stay. I haven't stayed at Paradise Pier, but with the three onsites it gives you a little choice in pricing. Hope you have a great trip.

 

[FSU Girl]

Since you typically stay at deluxes, I would recommend on site for sure-but then again I love on site. If your looking offsite though, I would stay with the newer chain Hotels; Marriott Courtyard, new Springhill Suites or maybe the hotels on convention way. It all depends on what's most important to you, some people just want a cheap, clean, close place and if that fits the motels on Harbor might work. For me, I like a little more out of my lodging and would rather pay more or be further away. A bad or uncomfortable room ruins my stay. I haven't stayed at Paradise Pier, but with the three onsites it gives you a little choice in pricing. Hope you have a great trip.

Thanks! Do you know if there are ever room discounts for the Disney hotels in February?

 

[5forMickey]

Thanks! Do you know if there are ever room discounts for the Disney hotels in February?

I think they are kind of hit and miss. I would go ahead and book now and then if the discounts come out you can always call and get the discount.

 

[FSU Girl]

I think they are kind of hit and miss. I would go ahead and book now and then if the discounts come out you can always call and get the discount.

ok thanks

 

[ktlm]

Another WDW vet here. I would say that I disagree that the only on property hotel that gives you the "escape" feeling is the Grand Californian. To us, the Grand Californian is nice, but is just a scaled down version of the Wilderness Lodge at WDW (with the added bonus of the closeness to the parks). We prefer and love the Disneyland Hotel. The rooms are bigger than the GC rooms, and for us it is different than anywhere else we stay at WDW and is full of Disney Magic (you might even see Goofy wandering around the lobby). FYI- if you are familiar with Trader Sam's which is all the rage at the Poly-- DLH had it first. We also feel like we are totally in the Disney bubble there, because you never have to leave Disney property, the walk to the parks is a short pleasant walk through Downtown Disney- for perspective it is just slightly longer than the walk from Yacht Club to the EPCOT international gateway at WDW. (We rent a car because we usually drive to San Diego after DLR, but once we park it at DLH, we have never once gotten in it again until we were checking out to leave the DLH). If you don't want to make the full walk to the park, you can take the monorail inside DTD, but unlike WDW, it doesn't let you off at the front gate, you get off in Tomorrowland at DL (so if you don't have hoppers you could not take the monorail if you wanted to go to CA- it only goes to DL). Security to get into Downtown Disney and the parks is right as you exit the hotel and are entering DTD, so everything else feels like one big Disney area (the security move was a new change this year from our 2016 visit and we loved it). The lines were never that long for us in security. For perspective, at WDW we have stayed at WL (multiple times); YC (multiple times); Poly (multiple times); GF (multiple times); BC and POR. Last year, at DLR we would up staying at the Fairfield Inn for one night as we wound up having to come in a day early and DLH was full that night. We had no issues with the Fairfield at all (the staff was nice, it was guest oriented, and we would have no issues staying there again, but I would compare it to a WDW value), but as WDW vets, being at a Good Neighbor hotel as opposed to never leaving property was a big difference. You are definitely outside the Disney bubble until you get into the parks. Also, I don't know how it is this year, but last year it took us 30 minutes to get through security on that side, and we weren't even there are park opening. Being WDW vets, we did not like being outside of the Disney bubble. I would do it again if we had to for money reasons, but we strongly prefer DLH.

We love DLR. I would say for 2 adults a 3 day hopper would be good. You definitely want hoppers because you don't even go through security between parks and there is just a plaza between them. Hopping takes 5 minutes. We go back and forth a lot. Also, I do not know what time of year you are going, but unlike WDW, be aware that at DLR, nighttime entertainment, such as Fantasmic and Fireworks often only takes place on Friday - Sunday in the off season.

 

[FSU Girl]

Another WDW vet here. I would say that I disagree that the only on property hotel that gives you the "escape" feeling is the Grand Californian. To us, the Grand Californian is nice, but is just a scaled down version of the Wilderness Lodge at WDW (with the added bonus of the closeness to the parks). We prefer and love the Disneyland Hotel. We also feel like we stay in the Disney bubble there, because you never have to leave Disney property, the walk to the parks is a short pleasant walk through Downtown Disney- for perspective it is just slightly longer than the walk from Yacht Club to the EPCOT international gateway at WDW. If you don't want to walk, you can take the monorail inside DTD, but unlike WDW, it doesn't let you off at the front gate, you get off in Tomorrowland. Security to get into Downtown Disney and the parks is right as you exit the hotel and are entering DTD, so it feels like one big Disney area (the security move was a new change this year from our 2016 visit and we loved it). The lines were never that long for us in security. For perspective, at WDW we have stayed at WL (multiple times); YC (multiple times); Poly (multiple times); GF (multiple times); BC and POR. Last year, at DLR we would up staying at the Fairfield Inn for one night as we wound up having to come in a day early and DLH was full that night. We had no issues with the Fairfield at all, but at WDW vets, being at a Good Neighbor hotel as opposed to never leaving property was a big difference. You are definitely outside the Disney bubble until you get into the parks. Also, I don't know how it is this year, but last year it took us 30 minutes to get through security on that side, and we weren't even there are park opening.

We love DLR. I would say for 2 adults a 3 day hopper would be good. You definitely want hoppers because you don't even go through security between parks and there is just a plaza between them. Hopping takes 5 minutes. We go back and forth a lot. Also, I do not know what time of year you are going, but unlike WDW, be aware that at DLR, nighttime entertainment, such as Fantasmic and Fireworks often only takes place on Friday - Sunday in the off season.

Thanks this is really helpful. I've been looking into the off-site hotels, but I think I'm going to go with a Disney hotel. The Disneyland hotel is currently in the lead, mostly because the Grand Californian is almost $700 a night and I can't spend that with everything else I'm booking for this trip. We are going to be there over President's Day. (Don't really have a choice my boyfriend's birthday is that Sunday)


So my plan so far for this trip is leave Friday night (2/16) after work and flying to Las Vegas. Still haven't decided what hotel to stay at there. Then on Monday fly into John Wayne airport in Orange County. There are multiple flights throughout the day. I think I'm going to go with a 9am flight so it'll let us sleep in a little and still get us over to Disney in the morning. Originally I was going to go home Wednesday, but with flying it's going to basically take up my entire day so I've requested an extra day off from work and fly home on Thursday (2/22) instead. So that way I'll have most of Monday, all day Tuesday and Wednesday to enjoy the parks and not feel rushed. I'm on the fence about the park hopper since it bumps up the cost more, but will do the three day pass for sure.

I'm also on the fence about buying the fast pass thing. It hurts me to pay for something that is free at WDW. But it might come in handy since I don't know where any rides are and I can just book the fast pass on my phone. Am I correct you can only have one fast pass at a time? Are all the rides on it? Also can I buy it for one or two days instead of the whole trip?

I've been looking into the restaurants to book while there. I think I'll do Blue Bayou because that seems pretty cool to see the pirates ride while dining. I want to do a nice meal too to celebrate his birthday there so was thinking Napa Rose or Steakhouse 55. I noticed these can't be booked until 60 days out so I have to wait a while. Are restaurants as hard to book there as it is for WDW?

I can't say enough how much this board has helped me with planning. I would have been so lost without everyone's great advice. Now the tough part of keeping it a secret from him and getting more of his friends to agree to go to Vegas lol.

 

[5forMickey]

Another WDW vet here. I would say that I disagree that the only on property hotel that gives you the "escape" feeling is the Grand Californian. To us, the Grand Californian is nice, but is just a scaled down version of the Wilderness Lodge at WDW (with the added bonus of the closeness to the parks). We prefer and love the Disneyland Hotel. We also feel like we stay in the Disney bubble there, because you never have to leave Disney property, the walk to the parks is a short pleasant walk through Downtown Disney- for perspective it is just slightly longer than the walk from Yacht Club to the EPCOT international gateway at WDW. If you don't want to walk, you can take the monorail inside DTD, but unlike WDW, it doesn't let you off at the front gate, you get off in Tomorrowland.

I'm high jacking this thread a little here. It sounds as if we are of the same mind set about the Disneyland Resort Hotels. To that, I am trying to plan a Disneyworld trip next year and talk about overwhelming. If I wanted to stay somewhere most like the Disneyland Hotel where would you suggest?

 

[ExcitedMama]

That's interesting about security! So it's before you get to DTD? Then you just wait to scan your ticket to the park when you ge there?

 

[pblack]

I'm also on the fence about buying the fast pass thing. It hurts me to pay for something that is free at WDW. But it might come in handy since I don't know where any rides are and I can just book the fast pass on my phone. Am I correct you can only have one fast pass at a time? Are all the rides on it? Also can I buy it for one or two days instead of the whole trip?

I've been looking into the restaurants to book while there. I think I'll do Blue Bayou because that seems pretty cool to see the pirates ride while dining. I want to do a nice meal too to celebrate his birthday there so was thinking Napa Rose or Steakhouse 55. I noticed these can't be booked until 60 days out so I have to wait a while. Are restaurants as hard to book there as it is for WDW?

I believe that with MaxPass you can only purchase it a day at a time right now, but i'm not 100%. So you could easily buy it for one of your days and not the other two. Blue Bayou is great, get there a few mins before your reservation and ask for a waterside table. You might have a bit of a wait, but it's worth it. Booking does begin at 60 days-ish. I've heard it's not always opened right at 60 days, but it's not as crucial to book that early at Disneyland vs. WDW. For instance, you can sometimes make same day reservations for most of the restaurants in DL/DCA/Hotels. Needless to say, if you are for sure wanting to book something, still book it early. You can always cancel if needed. (Charged $10 per person if you cancel within 24 hours.)

 

[pblack]

That's interesting about security! So it's before you get to DTD? Then you just wait to scan your ticket to the park when you ge there?

That is correct. They moved the security sometime last year. The security on Harbor is still in the same place, but now you have to go through security before you get into DTD. Which is actually really nice, because then you can park hop or go into DTD throughout the day without having to go through security again.

 

[FSU Girl]

I believe that with MaxPass you can only purchase it a day at a time right now, but i'm not 100%. So you could easily buy it for one of your days and not the other two. Blue Bayou is great, get there a few mins before your reservation and ask for a waterside table. You might have a bit of a wait, but it's worth it. Booking does begin at 60 days-ish. I've heard it's not always opened right at 60 days, but it's not as crucial to book that early at Disneyland vs. WDW. For instance, you can sometimes make same day reservations for most of the restaurants in DL/DCA/Hotels. Needless to say, if you are for sure wanting to book something, still book it early. You can always cancel if needed. (Charged $10 per person if you cancel within 24 hours.)

Thanks! I might trying the MaxPass the first day and see if I want to add it for the other days or not. Good to know about the restaurants, I think a water seat would be good and I wouldn't mind waiting. WDW does the $10 fee too if a no show.