DL touring plan advice

[dlawallace]

My husband and I are going to spend 1 day in Disneyland...Sunday 7/12. My plan is to arrive well before opening, then ride Peter Pan first (since it is about to reopen from refurb), then Matterhorn, Nemo Subs, fastpass Indiana Jones, ride Pirates and HM, then lunch. Does that sound like a good plan to avoid lines? Then I plan on doing Space Mountain late at night or with FP.

Also with it being a weekend in July will it be impossible to squeeze the two of us in a spot for Paint the night and Forever around 8?

Thanks for any advice! I am a WDW vet and haven't visited DL since 2009!

 

[figment_jii]

I think it's an ambitious plan to accomplish all of those attractions before lunch. Assuming the park opens at 8:00 am, that only gives you about 4 hours to do all of those things. If you don't mind riding separately, I would strongly consider using the Single Rider Line for the Matterhorn if the standby line is fairly lengthy (which my guess is it will be). The other long (slow moving) line tends to be the Nemo Subs, so I would consider skipping that one if the line is really long. I would also keep an eye on the FP times for Space so you don't miss out on getting a FP (you can call Ask Otto to get current FP return times).

In terms of PtN, I think it depends on what you mean by finding a spot. If you're okay with being further back or having a somewhat obstructed view, I think you'll probably be able to find a viewing spot somewhere along the route. However, if you're looking for a great view, I think you're cutting it way to close. Check out the Viewing Strategies for some thoughts and advice.

 

[Angrose]

You can definitely get it all done. Sunday mornings are blissfully quiet. I think it's my most favorite time to be in the park. I put your ride list into Touring Plans and it has you getting everything done by 10:30am! That is great because it's about that time when the parks start to get busy. I do agree that you may want to ride Matterhorn single rider. Also, in my experience, the Nemo subs often do not open right away. Sometimes they don't open until closer to 9am. Not sure why that is.

I have read on here that many people seem to have good luck getting a last minute spot for the parade over in the Small World area. Two weeks ago when we were there we lucked out and were able to sit curbside just in front of some benches in Town Sq. I think that is still a good area to try for, especially if you can find some standing spaces behind benches or strollers, but afterwards you have to hustle into Main St. for a good view of the fireworks.

Hope you have a great time!

 

[VandVsmama]

My husband and I are going to spend 1 day in Disneyland...Sunday 7/12. My plan is to arrive well before opening, then ride Peter Pan first (since it is about to reopen from refurb), then Matterhorn, Nemo Subs, fastpass Indiana Jones, ride Pirates and HM, then lunch. Does that sound like a good plan to avoid lines? Then I plan on doing Space Mountain late at night or with FP.

Also with it being a weekend in July will it be impossible to squeeze the two of us in a spot for Paint the night and Forever around 8?

Thanks for any advice! I am a WDW vet and haven't visited DL since 2009!

I think you should do it in this order:

1. Peter Pan
2. Matterhorn
3. get FP for Indiana Jones
4. Nemo subs
5. pay attention to Indiana Jones return time! At start of the IJ return hour, get a FP for Haunted Mansion. THEN go on Indiana Jones.
6. Pirates
7. HM

 

[chickapin parterre]

scroll down to UPDATED, WHAT ORDER OF RIDES, those folks did great with their plan before lunch, on a weekend none the less!!!!

 

[MouseEXP]

Peter Pan will be the one attraction that will take the most time unless you are lucky to be going on a non Early Entry day and at the front of the rope drop. With it having new features I expect that line to build fast. So think 30 minutes easily.

Nemo Submarines is a sloooow loading attraction plus the ride itself is about 15 minutes long.

Like others have said if you can use the Matterhorn Single Rider line, then do it. It's really not that big of a deal since you are riding separately anyways.

So this is how I would do it...
- Get to the park entrance 30-15 minutes before it opens. As soon as they let you into Main Street, head to the hub and wait for rope drop. Try to get as close as you can to the rope. I tend to notice that the right side of the hub seems to be fastest during rope drop (Only by a few seconds since more people will be lining up near Frontierland and Tomorrowland).
- When rope drops head immediately towards Peter Pan through the castle.
- Ride Nemo Submarines or save it for a night ride as line is very low after 7pm.
- Use Single Rider for Matterhorn. I would avoid riding Matterhorn after Peter Pan because they usually have only one side open. By the time you are done with Nemo both sides would be open and you should be able to ride both sides pretty quickly with Single Rider
- Grab a FP for Indiana Jones
- Then Big Thunder (if you want to ride no need for FP), Splash Mountain (if you want to ride no need for FP), Haunted Mansion (if you want to ride no need for FP).
- Grab a FP for Space Mountain before you use the FP for Indy
- Use FP for Indy, then ride Pirates. Pirates may look like a long line by this time, but it will move fast.
- Then Lunch
- After Lunch head to Tomorrowland. You should be able to use your FP for Space soon after lunch if not ride Buzz, Autopia and the train to waste time until you can use the FP. Before you use the FP for Space you can get a FP for Star Tours, or a FP for any other attraction. Space Mountain FP's tend to run out at around 3pm.

You may be able to get an ok standing spot for PTN and the fireworks near It's a Small World at 8pm, but if you get to that area by 7pm-730pm you will have a even better spot.

ME

 

[dlawallace]

Thanks for the great advice everyone! It helps a lot!!