DLR Snowballing: A 3 in 1 PTR

[Hawleys]

Howdy Disers!

My wife Stephanie and I took our nephew to DLR in 2009, ended up getting APs and Disney snowballed into four trips in 2009 and 2010. We haven't been to DLR since June 2010. Our family has three (count 'em!) trips to Disneyland planned in the upcoming year. I would like to share my excitement about planning with all of you.

Here we are in Jan. 2010.

Sept. 30 - Oct. 2, 2011: Gays Days at DLR with our homeboy Ross. Ross is not gay but he is a wonderful friend (my wife's grad school roommate). Ross grew up in Fullerton and will be attending a wedding there on Sept. 29th. He invited us to fly down, spend a day or two at Disney and hang out with his awesome parents. Ross took us on our first ever trip to Disneyland in 2007.

Nov. 11 - Nov. 13, 2011: Operation MouseEars with our friend Katie. Katie is a post-doc at Caltech. We will be flying down for the 3 day Veteran's day weekend. Friday will be spent hanging out in L.A., visiting the La Brea tarpits. Saturday and Sunday we'll be hitting the parks commando style. It will be Katie's first visit.

June 26 - June 30, 2012: My sister, brother-in-law, their three children and my parents will be flying to California for an entire week. I am beyond excited. My sister and her kids have never been to California (and I've lived here for 5 years!). The kids and my parents have never been to a Disney park. My sister and BIL have visited WDW.

We will spend several days in San Diego, hitting the zoo and going to the beach. We will finish our trip at DLR. I should say we will probably finish our trip at DLR. If the opening of Carsland falls on our dates, we may switch and go to DLR first to skip the crowds.

More details to follow!

 

[Sherry E]

Yay! A 3 for 1 trip report!

Wow - you've got trips planned for all the key times. First, a Halloween Time trip, then a just-before-holiday-season trip (during which much of what the holiday season has to offer will be out!), and then a trip which should take place just in time for Cars Land and all the other DCA stuff to open! That's an action packed DLR agenda!

You will also be right in my neck o' the woods when you do your L.A. day - I could almost throw a rock into the tar at the Tar Pits from where I am and be able to hit it!!

 

[franandaj]

WooHoo! I'm in! We'll be at the VCG for Friday and Saturday nights for GDs! We're doing the Scavenger Hunt Saturday Morning and the visit with Carol Channing Sunday Evening, hopefully we can find some time over the course of the weekend that we all can get together finally!

If everything works out, hopefully on November 13th you'll be able to take 1/2 an hour out of your commando weekend and stop by our band performance! No guarantees yet, but that's our first choice!

Yay for a new TR! I enjoyed the previous one(s)!

 

[Hawleys]

Yay! A 3 for 1 trip report!

Wow - you've got trips planned for all the key times. First, a Halloween Time trip, then a just-before-holiday-season trip (during which much of what the holiday season has to offer will be out!), and then a trip which should take place just in time for Cars Land and all the other DCA stuff to open! That's an action packed DLR agenda!

You will also be right in my neck o' the woods when you do your L.A. day - I could almost throw a rock into the tar at the Tar Pits from where I am and be able to hit it!!

Hi Sherry! You are too right, we planned our trips to hit all the special times. In fact, I obsessed over the dates for our November trip because I wanted to see the Holiday offerings but avoid the crowds. Of course, I consulted your Holiday thread extensively. After all my waffling about dates, it turns out that my wife has Friday, Nov. 11th off for Veteran's Day anyways so the decision was made for us. I am a bit disappointed that we won't get to see the Holiday Parade. Getting over it by thinking about seeing IASW with the holiday theming for the first time. It should be up and running by then, right?

About the Carsland timing...well, I have to confess that I would much rather avoid opening day crowds! And Al Lutz was reporting that DCA might close entirely the day before Carsland opens, making Disneyland insane crowded. But again, that is the only week that my sister and her family can make it out to California so that's when we're going and we're going to make the best trip we can. I've already made a reservation at the Residence Inn Maingate to avoid scrambling for a hotel when the dates are officially announced.

How cool that we will be in your neighborhood in November. I have to confess. I'm a total idiot when it comes to L.A. geography. My friend Katie is actually a post-doc at Caltech...much closer to the Tar Pits then UC Irving.

WooHoo! I'm in! We'll be at the VCG for Friday and Saturday nights for GDs! We're doing the Scavenger Hunt Saturday Morning and the visit with Carol Channing Sunday Evening, hopefully we can find some time over the course of the weekend that we all can get together finally!

If everything works out, hopefully on November 13th you'll be able to take 1/2 an hour out of your commando weekend and stop by our band performance! No guarantees yet, but that's our first choice!

Yay for a new TR! I enjoyed the previous one(s)!

Hey Alison! We'll be at the GCH on Friday and Saturday night. We got a GREAT rate through the GD's website. And I have some gift cards saved up to offset the cost as well.

I tried to convince Stephanie that we should do the scavenger hunt but she is too commando for that. We'll be riding Star Tours repeatedly. And we have a "tradition" of going to the Bear's Lunch at the Hungry Bear. I know, I know...we're terrible lesbians. But yes, we need to find some time to finally get together. And we'll definitely be at your band performance in November (fingers crossed you get your date). Ever since I saw the pic of your solo in the Pride Parade, I've been hoping to hear you play.

 

[Sherry E]

Hi Sherry! You are too right, we planned our trips to hit all the special times. In fact, I obsessed over the dates for our November trip because I wanted to see the Holiday offerings but avoid the crowds. Of course, I consulted your Holiday thread extensively. After all my waffling about dates, it turns out that my wife has Friday, Nov. 11th off for Veteran's Day anyways so the decision was made for us. I am a bit disappointed that we won't get to see the Holiday Parade. Getting over it by thinking about seeing IASW with the holiday theming for the first time. It should be up and running by then, right?

About the Carsland timing...well, I have to confess that I would much rather avoid opening day crowds! And Al Lutz was reporting that DCA might close entirely the day before Carsland opens, making Disneyland insane crowded. But again, that is the only week that my sister and her family can make it out to California so that's when we're going and we're going to make the best trip we can. I've already made a reservation at the Residence Inn Maingate to avoid scrambling for a hotel when the dates are officially announced.

How cool that we will be in your neighborhood in November. I have to confess. I'm a total idiot when it comes to L.A. geography. My friend Katie is actually a post-doc at Caltech...much closer to the Tar Pits then UC Irving.

Yay! You've been secretly following along on the Christmas Superthread! I have started doing photo "theme weeks" in that thread as we count down to the start date of the season. It's a good way to build anticipation and showcase different areas of DLR's holiday highlights. This week's theme has been Main Street - in the daytime, nighttime and little details like window displays, etc. Last week was Santa's Reindeer Round-Up. In two days there will be a new theme - but it's a secret until Monday! Hee hee! Be sure to pop over and join us!

Anyway, about IASW Holiday... technically, since the season is starting 11/14 this year, DLR could get away with not running IASW Holiday until that exact date. BUT...all hope is not lost for your chances to ride IASW Holiday during your trip!

I've been saying on the DIS a lot lately that because the season start date is a Monday this time (as opposed to the usual Fridays they choose), and because Veterans Day weekend is leading up to the start date - I have a very strong feeling that IASW Holiday will have a soft opening on 11/12 or 11/13 - maybe even 11/11. So I think that if you are in Disneyland on 11/12 and 11/13, you will have a very good chance of catching IASW Holiday.

I think you might even catch the Christmas Fantasy Parade if it is being taped that weekend for ABC's annual Christmas Day TV special.

I just have a really strong hunch that things are going to start or soft open in that day or two leading up to 11/14. DLR is not stupid - they know they will have weekend and Veterans Day crowds in the parks, and that it would be a good time to start the holiday entertainment.

Actually, I wouldn't even be totally shocked if you see the Winter Castle light up in icicles before 11/14 too. If the season were starting on a Friday this year, I don't think that there would be any soft openings prior to it. But because of the weekend leading up to 11/14, I think that some things will quietly open.

Sadly, you will miss the Reindeer Round-Up and probably the snow on Main Street too. You will miss the holiday fireworks. You will miss the festive Grand Californian holiday atmosphere because the GCH decorations (and Santa, and all the holiday music) don't come out until Thanksgiving weekend. But you will get to see New Orleans Square and ToonTown all decorated, as well as 98% of all the trees and things that are found around Disneyland. Be sure to check out A Bug's Land in DCA too, as that has giant ornaments and lights!

From all accounts, the best time to get the full, complete array of holiday offerings around the resort while enjoying lower crowds is right after Thanksgiving weekend passes. Supposedly the parks are delightful at that time because everyone has gone back to work and school, and it's in between holidays.

But there are lots of people who say they love that early-to-mid November time because they get a sampling of some of the holiday offerings with much lower crowds! So I think you will have a great time!

Yep, I have a hunch that CarsLand is going to be a mob scene. I remember when ToonTown opened in 1993. That was a mob scene! New lands seem to really draw in the crowds. I have very little interest in CarsLand (other than just for the 'Disney details' aspect of it), but I'm hoping that everyone piles into CarsLand and leaves the Toy Story line vacant!! Hee hee!

You know, the La Brea Tar Pits are right next door to LACMA. I don't know if it's still going on, but there has been a Tim Burton exhibit at LACMA this year, and some of the pieces in the Burton exhibit are Nightmare Before Christmas pieces and Alice in Wonderland pieces. I don't know if you guys are NBC fans (or Tim Burton fans in general), but since you will be right next door, it would be a good thing to see. The topiary from Edward Scissorhands has been on display outside of LACMA - it's cool!

Also, try to grab some good food and watch for celebrities at the Farmers Market/The Grove, which is just a quick jaunt up Fairfax (it's a couple of minutes away from LACMA and the Tar Pits).

 

[Hawleys]

Anyway, about IASW Holiday... technically, since the season is starting 11/14 this year, DLR could get away with not running IASW Holiday until that exact date. BUT...all hope is not lost for your chances to ride IASW Holiday during your trip!

I've been saying on the DIS a lot lately that because the season start date is a Monday this time (as opposed to the usual Fridays they choose), and because Veterans Day weekend is leading up to the start date - I have a very strong feeling that IASW Holiday will have a soft opening on 11/12 or 11/13 - maybe even 11/11. So I think that if you are in Disneyland on 11/12 and 11/13, you will have a very good chance of catching IASW Holiday.

I think you might even catch the Christmas Fantasy Parade if it is being taped that weekend for ABC's annual Christmas Day TV special.

I just have a really strong hunch that things are going to start or soft open in that day or two leading up to 11/14. DLR is not stupid - they know they will have weekend and Veterans Day crowds in the parks, and that it would be a good time to start the holiday entertainment.

My fingers (and toes) are crossed that there are some soft openings on Veteran's Day weekend, especially IASW Holiday!

Also, try to grab some good food and watch for celebrities at the Farmers Market/The Grove, which is just a quick jaunt up Fairfax (it's a couple of minutes away from LACMA and the Tar Pits).

I remember seeing lots of pictures of the Farmers Market/The Grove in your trip report. I didn't realize it was so close. We'll try to check in out.

 

[Hawleys]

Gay Days Trip Update

Here is a brief outline of our plans for Gay Days.

Friday: Arrive at LAX around 4:30pm. SuperShuttle to the Grand Californian where we will meet Ross, check-in and change into our AMAZING Halloween costumes.

We will be going as .... drumroll... Huey, Looie and Dewey. Disneyland opens for party goers at 4pm so we will head over just as soon as we can.

Party plans include some candy, fireworks, lots of rides and hopefully, a picture with our Uncle, Mr. Donald Duck himself. Any thoughts on where to find him?

We plan to stay at the park until we drop!

Saturday: Up early for Magic Morning. Priorities include a couple rides on the new Star Tours. Lunchtime will find us at the Bears Meet at the Hungry Bear. (It's a tradition, don't ask.) Saturday night we head to Fullerton to have dinner with Ross' parents then back to the park for some nighttime entertainment. I'm hoping we can convince Ross to see WOC with us.

Sunday: Up early again for Magic Morning and a full day of park hopping. Our flight leaves from Santa Ana at 8:45pm.

It's going to be a very busy and very fun weekend. Oh and we're going to meet up with Diser franandaj at some point, yea!!

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Yay!!! Now this is making me want to subscribe.

 

[franandaj]

: And we'll definitely be at your band performance in November (fingers crossed you get your date). Ever since I saw the pic of your solo in the Pride Parade, I've been hoping to hear you play.

Well you remember what happened last year! We have three Saturday nights in November booked at the VGC, so I hope we find out in time to cancel with no penalty. We might just have to cancel the first one without knowing! I'll let you know when we do!

Gay Days Trip Update

Here is a brief outline of our plans for Gay Days.

Friday: Arrive at LAX around 4:30pm. SuperShuttle to the Grand Californian where we will meet Ross, check-in and change into our AMAZING Halloween costumes.

We will be going as .... drumroll... Huey, Looie and Dewey. Disneyland opens for party goers at 4pm so we will head over just as soon as we can.

Party plans include some candy, fireworks, lots of rides and hopefully, a picture with our Uncle, Mr. Donald Duck himself. Any thoughts on where to find him?

We plan to stay at the park until we drop!

We will hopefully already be checked in when you get there. I'd love to see you in costume before you head to the parks, we should see if it works out. Sounds like such a cute idea! We plan on heading over to Trader Sam's for dinner in the bar there that night.

Saturday: Up early for Magic Morning. Priorities include a couple rides on the new Star Tours. Lunchtime will find us at the Bears Meet at the Hungry Bear. (It's a tradition, don't ask.) Saturday night we head to Fullerton to have dinner with Ross' parents then back to the park for some nighttime entertainment. I'm hoping we can convince Ross to see WOC with us.

We haven't quite figured out our Saturday except that we signed up for the scavenger hunt which pretty much rules out lunch at a TS because we have a 6PM dinner reservation. If the swing band is playing that night we'll probably go listen to that after dinner. I know I want to get on Star Tours a couple times that weekend too!

Sunday: Up early again for Magic Morning and a full day of park hopping. Our flight leaves from Santa Ana at 8:45pm.

It's going to be a very busy and very fun weekend. Oh and we're going to meet up with Diser franandaj at some point, yea!!

We're open all day but will be sticking around the parks because we signed up for the 6PM with Carol Channing. Sunday might be the best day to meet up! I'm really looking foward to this trip! I need a mini vacation!

 

[Hawleys]

We will hopefully already be checked in when you get there. I'd love to see you in costume before you head to the parks, we should see if it works out. Sounds like such a cute idea! We plan on heading over to Trader Sam's for dinner in the bar there that night.

I hope I haven't oversold the costumes. We have matching hats and shirt and cute duck bills. Thats's it. Put us all together we will look good. We would love to say "hi" before we hit the parks. I'll PM you my info.

We're open all day but will be sticking around the parks because we signed up for the 6PM with Carol Channing. Sunday might be the best day to meet up! I'm really looking foward to this trip! I need a mini vacation!

I wish we could see Carol Channing but sadly our flight gets in the way. Stupid 9-5 job. It does sound like Sunday is the best day to meetup. Let me know what you and Fran are interested in doing. We're pretty flexible.

 

[Hawleys]

Yay!!! Now this is making me want to subscribe.

Welcome! You should definitely subscribe.

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

I will.

 

[Hawleys]

Today is Day 10 of our 10 day countdown.


Here's some totally unexciting pre-trip report news. This morning I booked our SuperShuttle reservations from LAX to the Grand Californian and from the Grand to SNA. Boring, I know but it had to be done. This trip will be the first time we've taken the SuperShuttle from LAX. In the past, we've taken the Disneyland Express. I'm hoping the SuperShuttle will be faster. It's definitely cheaper, at $13 compared to $17 for the Disneyland Express. Plus, the Disneyland Express runs hourly starting at 4:30pm and we arrive right at 4:30pm. I don't want to wait an HOUR to get to DLR. Anyone have any experience?

Still on my to do list:
--Transfer my Disney Visa Rewards points to a gift card.
--Find all my red shirts

 

[franandaj]

Wow! Are we almost to the single digit dance? That's cool! We went yesterday and are definitely looking forward to going back!

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Yay!! I'm so excited that it's almost here.

 

[Hawleys]

Wow! Are we almost to the single digit dance? That's cool! We went yesterday and are definitely looking forward to going back!

My crystal ball shows the single digit dance in the near future for this PTR! What did you guys get up to in the parks?

Yay!! I'm so excited that it's almost here.

Tell me about it!

 

[Hawleys]

Today is Day 9 of our 10 day countdown.

Today is a very special day. It's time to do the single digits dance!



In about 15 minutes the wife will wake up and we can boogie down in celebration. Then our house will look like this:

 

[Hawleys]

Today is Day 8 of our 10 day countdown.

Good Morning Disers!

Just 8 days until our long awaited return to Disneyland.

Last time we visited, DW was on a strict medical diet which limited our food options. Since then, her health has improved immensely banana:). She eats almost everything now. We're looking forward to trying some of the revamped counter service restaurants. I've been drooling over the pictures of the fried green tomato sandwich at the Hungry Bear. However there is ONE food item at DLR that we will not leave without eating. Corn Dogs! We've always been loyal customers at the little red wagon but we just might branch out and visit the newly reopened Corn Dog Castle at DCA. Check out this video (and try not to drool all over your keyboard).

Corn Dog Castle

 

[franandaj]

My crystal ball shows the single digit dance in the near future for this PTR! What did you guys get up to in the parks?

We did quite a bit! I'm always amazed at how much we've been doing when we go out there. It's amazing what new knees and a hip can do for you!

I rode Star Tours, Space Mountain, the Matterhorn, Nemo Subs and we both went on the Haunted Mansion. She did a lot of shopping and we had lunch at Cafe Orleans. I was exhausted by the time we got home at 9PM and it has thrown me off for the whole week!

My parents are coming down today and we're having dinner at Napa Rose tomorrow night!

Yay! For DW being to eat normal foods again! BTW we're going to be in the Bay Area for Thanksgiving.

 

[julsmom]

Subscribing!