DL Vets - Critique our plan!!

[KayKayJS]

Hi Everyone. We are a couple from Orlando (WDW AP holders) and I have only been to DL to once, him also once as a child. We are going to Disneyland/CA 10/6-10/11 and staying at the GCH through Friday.

Our general plan is:

Tuesday - Fly in @ Noon. Enjoy GCH & Downtown Disney
Wednesday - Disney's California Adventure
Thursday - Disneyland
Friday - LA (maybe Disneyland?)
Saturday - LA
Sunday - Fly Out @9AM

We only have 2 days for Disneyland resort but can maybe do a few hours on Tuesday when we get in or a half day on Friday morning to do things we may have missed. The current plan is take advantage of the extra magic hours on Wednesday and Thursday (so 7 or 8am) , take a 2-3 hour break midday then head back to the parks for the afternoon.

Major things I would like to do are Trader Sams, Blue Bayou, Paint the Night, Disneyland Forever, and WOC. I've already booked a reservation for Blue Bayou at 1130am Thursday.

Does anyone think we'll be able to accomplish much in 2 days with this plan? Any suggestions?

 

[gottalovepluto]

You can see a good chunk of the parks over 2 days concentrating on 1 park per day. Your park hours should be out in the next week or two, DCA may be busier during the night on Wed because it's a Halloween Party night (DL closes at 6pm). I see no reason why you won't be able to do all your main goals! Double check the entertainment schedule when it releases as well to make sure everything is showing when planned.
Tips:
-IF there is a late night showing of PTN watch that one as it's less crowded
-Do take advantage of EMH as you plan to, park crowds are always lowest earliest in the morning; do NOT use GCH entrance for early entry, it's very backed up then but it's great to use any other time of day
-As you made an 11:30 ressie I suspect you already know but just in case...Arrive 15-20 min early for your BB ressie and request waterfront seating
-Single Rider is your friend

Have a wonderful trip, the parks are beautiful for the 60th!

 

[Imdboss]

If those are the only things you must do then you should be able to accomplish that. Just know that between the two parks there's about the same amount of rides as in all of WDW so you'll get a sampling of the two parks but there will be a lot that you miss. I would recommend a minimum of 3 days and 5 to get the full experience, that said if 2 is all you can do then it's good to have a list of highlights to hit like you do. As PP stated with the MHP on Wednesday it will be super busy at DCA, been there done that.

Have a great time!

 

[4Siamese]

At bare minimum I would do 3 full days in the parks, but that me.

 

[KayKayJS]

Thank you for the info everyone. You're definitely making me think we might want to make Friday a full park day as well...

 

[ImDMous]

Trader Sam's is at the DLHotel, not in the parks. So you could go there Tuesday night after cruising DTD.

 

[Comicbookmommy]

Yeah, definitely a 3 day minimum, especially if you haven't been in a long time, but I never feel satisfied leaving Disney unless I have 5 days.

For example on your one Disneyland Day, you want to see the parade and go to Blu Bayou, both of which eat up major hours, leaving not much time to see/ride too many other things.

DCA (in my opinion) has less to do and see, so one day is adequate for that park.

If you are able to fit in one more day for Disneyland Park, I think you'll be more satisfied, and less stressed to see everything in one day.

Also if you go Friday, you could get a Blue Bayou Fantasmic package instead of going for lunch the first day.

 

[califlorican]

I would definitely extend Disneyland to Friday. DCA can possibly be done in a day, but to experience Disneyland I would say 2 days minimum!

 

[22Tink]

I agree with PP. Definitely a minimum of 3 full days in the parks! We do 4 or 5. Have a great trip!!

 

[jammyjam25]

Since your list of "must dos" is fairly short I think you could easily do all those things in the 2 days you have listed, especially since you could do Trader Sam's for dinner Tuesday night (it's at DL hotel not the parks) before you start your park days on W-Th.

For me personally I'd want Friday as well just to have the opportunity to do more rides, etc. but that's a personal call! One thing to note is that Friday is a Halloween Party night so if you did want to add that extra day, the latest you could be in DL would be 6pm or 7pm depending on when it starts unless you also bought tickets for the party.

Or another option could be sightseeing in LA during the day on Friday as planned and then attend the Halloween Party at night to get a few more hours of DL time in.