DLR Newbie- need advice

[awalker1015]

Hello,
I am traveling to Anaheim for work 10/7-12. Plan to do one day at DL. WDW veteran here, never ever been to DL. Was toying with going either 10/8 or 10/11. Saw 10/8 falls on Gay Days so I'm guessing that will make it more crowded me 10/11 may be better bet? Also, only planning to do DL, not California Adventure. Will I regret that? I'll ride anything but I love the nostalgic Disney rides. Staying at Anaheim Marriot and hoping it's close enough to walk to the park. I'm used to WDW where you can't walk from any hotel pretty much.

TIA for the feedback!

 

[ktlm]

I would do a hopper and hit the highlights of both parks. Unlike WDW, hopping takes about five minutes. We have literally been from the back corner of DL to the back corner of CA in 10 minutes. The parks are separated by a small plaza. It is about 100 yards (the length of a football field) to walk between the parks. You do not have to go through security to hop. Security is on the outer edges of the plaza- you go through security and then turn right or left depending on which park you wish to enter.

If you hop, you will be able to see Carsland which is very impressive (our family doesn't even particularly like the Cars movies), and you can single rider Radiator Springs Racers which is one of the best Disney rides ever in our opinion. RSR is FAR superior to Test Track. If you are interested in any evening entertainment at DL (Fantasmic; fireworks) be aware that in the off season they often only runs on weekends. So while the 8th may be more crowded, it may be the only time you can see fireworks or Fantasmic if that is important to you.

We haven't stayed at the Anaheim Marriott, but I think it is a pretty short walk. Our favorite thing about Disneyland is how close together everything is as compared to WDW. The parks are also right next to DTD so it is an easy walk as well.

Our first DLR trip since DH and I were kids (and it was supposed to likely be our only, but we have now been every summer for the last 7 years), I was out for 1 day on a business trip and he came with me and we did hoppers and stayed open to close going at breakneck speed. We had a great day! Have fun!

 

[chickapin parterre]

Wednesday the 11th wednesday morning is the best block of hours the entire week because of the demographics of visitors. You should have all the nostalgia done by noon. If you have the money, and your are true fan, then you need to see Raditor Springs at night. I wouldn't invest time RSR. But Raditor springs at night is currently the best visual attraction from both parks. Also, DCA has better, atmosphere places to eat. And if you are photographer, then one day will not be enough at Disneyland..Main street alone, the windows, lamp posts, cannons, flag lowering, street entertainment, the light bulb...even the sewer pipe. plus all the main street attractions,

 

[awalker1015]

All great advice, thanks. I think you have me convinced to do a hopper ticket. Also leaning towards going Wednesday. That will be the day before I go home so I can do a marathon park day and not have to attend a conference the following day completely exhausted. Thanks!!!

 

[Elima2015]

I also agree with Wednesday over Sunday and park hoppers. I really like DCA as it is a little more spread out, decent food options, and some of our favorite rides. RSR single rider line works great - especially in the late morning/early afternoon. The single rider line was pretty long in the evenings, so could consider a FP for it if your ride plans allow. RSR at night is the best. If you are a roller coaster fan, California Screamin is a blast!

 

[ktlm]

If you are going Wednesday with a hopper and there is no DL evening entertainment, or at least none you want to see, you must see Carsland at night! It is gorgeous. We also like to ride RSR once in the daytime and once at night because it is a different ride at night and just beautiful. We go in July and even then find plenty of times when the single rider line is 10 minutes.

Also, if you decide you want to splurge and spend the time on it, the World of Color Dessert package is great. Originally, I did not expect to be that impressed with World of Color and it blew me away. There is nothing like it at WDW. I think usually in the fall on weekdays, the start time for the show is often just after park close. With the dessert package, you are seated at a table and you have dessert and drink brought to you. You don't have to put in a lot of time waiting in line or standing around waiting for the show to start. All the tables have decent views, so you can just go right at the entry time on your pass, enjoy dessert and drinks while waiting for the show to start and then have a great view of the show.

Wednesday might be a Halloween party night at DL (in 2016 Wednesdays were party nights), so DL might close at 6:00 p.m. CA usually closes at 8:00 on weekdays in October. So, if it were me, I would probably either splurge on a Halloween party ticket, or splurge on the WOC dessert package at CA to get every last minute I could. Having been to MNSSHP party at WDW multiple times and loving it, I would probably opt for the Halloween party, especially since that could keep you in the parks until midnight.

 

[awalker1015]

Awesome advice everyone! Last question- any suggestions for a solo diner for dinner? I just made my hotel reservations and am staying at Hyatt Place, not Marriott. But I think they are adjacent.

 

[chickapin parterre]

cove bar....has to be the strangest Anahiem disney place to eat....unless you like faux sardines......and who knows, you might meet some characters.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

What kind of food do you like? Look into the lounge at CCR (fun cocktails and appetizer menu) or the lounge at NR (you can order off the bar or full menu here). If you get to the NR lounge right when it opens (5 pm; they start serving at 5:30), you can have a drink and relax for a bit before getting back to the parks. BB might be fun -- how often do you get to dine inside POTC? Reserve an early dinner time so that you don't take too much away from your park time. If you do go to MHP, TS restaurants in DL will stop serving early, so keep that in mind. Solo dining at DLR is lots of fun -- you can eat wherever you like and no one will think anything of it. DLR menus can be found at allears.net.

 

[ktlm]

In my opinion, DLR has a whole lot better CS choices than WDW. I could go a week at DLR and be perfectly happy if I was restricted to just eating their CS; however, the same can not be said for WDW. If I only had 1 day and was trying to cram in as much as possible, I don't think I would spend time on a TS meal. I would stick to CS. Allears has the DLR menus, just like it does for WDW. You could browse around and see what appeals to you.

 

[Nevada Jen]

If Wednesday ends up being a Halloween party night you could skip the park hopper and buy a regular ticket for the day and do DCA and then buy a Halloween ticket for the evening. You would definitely be able to hit the classics with no wait during the Halloween party as you can enter the park on the Halloween ticket a few hours before the party starts. You may be able to buy twilight tickets through your convention if you wanted to try to hit the parks one evening for a few hours (but they are usually only slightly discounted. Otherwise, buy the hopper. Carsland really shouldn't be missed. Especially at night. And if you can handle to drop rides GOTG is supposed to be fabulous as well.

 

[Sherry E]

The announcement with the dates of the Halloween Time season and the dates of Mickey's Halloween Party should be coming out next week -- most likely on Wednesday, July 12th, but possibly one of the other weekdays. Not only will that announcement contain dates, but it will also have details as to anything new that has been added in to the seasonal offerings in either of the 2 parks (this is where I will mention that there is a very strong, albeit not-yet-confirmed, rumor about new Halloween overlays on the GOTG ride and also on Radiator Springs Racers in DCA), or in to the party itself.

So I would suggest possibly waiting -- if you can -- until the Halloween Time/Mickey's Halloween Party news breaks in several days, then taking a look at whether the party will impact either of your possible dates. The news could sway you one way or the other, to avoid a certain date or choose that date, what kind of ticket to buy (regular ticket vs. Hopper vs. Halloween Party ticket), etc. On a party day, you'd have up until 6 p.m. or 7 p.m. to stay in Disneyland with just a regular ticket or Hopper, but if you have a party ticket you could stay in Disneyland until it closed (the end of the party).

 

[bcla]

Awesome advice everyone! Last question- any suggestions for a solo diner for dinner? I just made my hotel reservations and am staying at Hyatt Place, not Marriott. But I think they are adjacent.

Ruth's Chris. It's right next to your hotel. Happy Hour is 4:30-6:30 Sun-Fri (no Sat) but only at the bar area which is open seating. The prices have gone up (it used to be $6 or $7) over the years, but $9 is still a bargain for what you get.

https://www.ruthschris.com/restaurant-locations/anaheim/
https://www.ruthschris.com/menu/happy-hour

There used to be a location near where I was working a contract job. I'd go there and spend $12 on a steak sandwich with fries and maybe the Ahi tuna. It was typically packed, and sometimes I was worried that I wouldn't get a seat before the Happy Hour time was up.

The Marriott is pretty close. However, Ruth's Chris is even closer.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Rut...af8718ce03!2m2!1d-117.9157323!2d33.798028!3e2

 

[pblack]

You also have to consider the park hours for when you are going. I believe during the week they will close at 8 or 9 (according to prior years). Fri/Sat/Sun should still be midnight closures.

 

[awalker1015]

All great ideas! Park closing st 8 or 9 is probably good for me as I plan to hit rope drop. Solo i would prefer to sit at the bar to eat. All great ideas. Thanks so much - looking forward to this!

 

[pblack]

Hope you have a great time! I'll be there the week before.

 

[bcla]

All great ideas! Park closing st 8 or 9 is probably good for me as I plan to hit rope drop. Solo i would prefer to sit at the bar to eat. All great ideas. Thanks so much - looking forward to this!

Cool. I suppose you already know that Hyatt Place locations all have included breakfast. I haven't been to the Anaheim location but have stayed at other locations. It's a really nice concept - kind of a laid back vibe. The staff wears T-shirts.

As far as Ruth's Chris goes, their menu has changed a bit over the years, but that steak sandwich was great for $6 and is still an excellent value for $9. The menu seems to have changed (I remember burger sliders, spicy lobster, and a lobster roll) but they still have the steak sandwich (made with filet pieces) and the Prime burger. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

 

[awalker1015]

Cool. I suppose you already know that Hyatt Place locations all have included breakfast. I haven't been to the Anaheim location but have stayed at other locations. It's a really nice concept - kind of a laid back vibe. The staff wears T-shirts.

As far as Ruth's Chris goes, their menu has changed a bit over the years, but that steak sandwich was great for $6 and is still an excellent value for $9. The menu seems to have changed (I remember burger sliders, spicy lobster, and a lobster roll) but they still have the steak sandwich (made with filet pieces) and the Prime burger. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

that sounds awesome. Haven't been to Ruth Chris in years but always enjoyed it. I switched to Hyatt Place from Marriott for the free breakfast. I get a per diem when I travel and not paying for breakfast leaves more $ for cocktails!

 

[bcla]

that sounds awesome. Haven't been to Ruth Chris in years but always enjoyed it. I switched to Hyatt Place from Marriott for the free breakfast. I get a per diem when I travel and not paying for breakfast leaves more $ for cocktails!

I may be wrong about the T-shirts. That was the uniform when I stayed at their locations in the Sacramento area, but it could have been a local thing or it was a while ago. Here's a photo I found of several employees (at a Texas location) and their toy drive:

I remember getting it on Priceline for $50 a night opaque. Then I figured I might get it again and booked another room for my brother in law. We packed 8 people into two rooms, and each one had a king size bed and a king size sofa bed. They also brought in portable cribs (Graco commercial playpens actually) that we used for the toddlers/infants. My wife and I actually got one room to ourselves while six were in the other room including our kid.

I've traveled enough on business where the company theoretically would hold back part of the per diem if breakfast was included. I stayed in a room once where they said it wasn't included when I booked, but I was given breakfast instructions when I checked in. I've also stayed where breakfast was specifically included but somehow I still got the same per diem.

 

[awalker1015]

Luckily my company doesn't care about inclusions. Per diem is the same regardless.