First Family Trip with a little- need perspective

[nightmaremama]

Hello Everyone!
I have been doing a ton of research and am starting to plan our first trip as a family to Disneyland next October- too excited!
I have been to DL several times but never experienced Halloween or the Haunted Mansion Holiday- which I have been dying for- Nightmare is my favorite movie of all time. The plan is for me, my husband, our daughter (2.5 at travel), and my parents to go on the trip.

A few things we have decided on:
-We plan to travel in the 2nd week of October, and will probably stay for the beginning part of the week.
-We will do Mickey's Halloween Party and not go into the park before ticket access that day.
-We are going to stay on site- probably doing the GC, although I waver back and forth between it at DLH... with the little one, we will probably be spending some good time in the hotel.
-We plan to take it slow- we will definitely do the rides for littles and I have some favorites that I will have to hit doing rider swap or letting the grandparents spoil the little princes monster.

So, with the 2015 prices being released this coming week I need your amazing wisdom on where to go from here.

I don't know if we should do a 2 or 3 day tickets- we will do hoppers since I like the flexibility- I want to have enough time but I don't know if it would be a waste.
My original thought is that we would do our first day at DL, 2nd day chilling at the hotel/dtd and then go in for the party, then do 3rd day in the parks... I just don't know if a 3rd full park day will make or break the trip. Thoughts?

Also, I think I want to book our trip before the end of summer, does that seem too soon? I want to get a good rate if we go with GC and I've heard those dates fill up...

Thank you all for your thoughts!

 

[chabelita545]

I have never regretted having one more day at DLR. I don't think 2 full days is enough, not with how big DCA has become. When my DS was 2 (DCA was brand new) we spent 4 days in DL alone and it was wonderful. I never felt sick of it and neither did he. Adding a third day is more expensive hotel-wise, but not that much more in park tickets. I'd go for it.

 

[planningjollyholiday]

I think you need to buy at least a 3 day pass plus Halloween party. Even then you will not get to see and do everything. With such a young one more time is better so that you can go at a slower pace.

 

[YukonMommy]

I would get the 3 day hopper's. There is no such thing as to much Disney If you want to take your time and experience as much as you can I think the 3 day is the way to go!

Have a magical time!

 

[seatrav]

We went in February when my son was 2.5 and originally bought 2 day park hopper tickets. Once there, we ended up upgrading to 3 day tickets. Our son had a hard time waiting in line for more than 10 minutes so with the extra day we weren't feeling as rushed. We wished we had bought the 3 day originally so we could have taken advantage of the early hour (it wasn't included with the upgrade). I say go for the 3 days!

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

I agree with everybody else that I would do the 3 day hoppers. It will allow you freedom to go back to the room for breaks or early nights if you needed without feelings stressed. There is so much to do and take in, I don't think you'll find it wasted time at all.

 

[superme80]

We took my boys last year they were 4 and 2. I am so glad we did 4 days. I actually wished we had another day. Our first day it was just my immediate family, we met my parents and sister's family for the rest of the trip. We were able to take things at a much slower pace. Enjoy sitting down and explore Toon Town and Fantasyland. Enjoy your trip!

 

[talentedmummy]

Plan for more days at a slower pace. Last year we did 3 days (no hopping) with my 2yo & 6yo. We let the kids set the pace. In the parks at EMH each day, had lunch and then I took out 2yo back to the hotel to nap, while my husband and 6yo followed a hour or so later. Naps, down time In the room, back to the park for supper and stayed until close.
Next trip we are planning 4 days at the same pace. This felt more vacation like and less like a race to do as much as possible in a short time.

 

[larina]

With a slow pace for your little, do at least 3 days, more if you can swing it. Two will just feel rushed and you will leave feeling like you missed things.

 

[JandD75]

With a slow pace for your little, do at least 3 days, more if you can swing it. Two will just feel rushed and you will leave feeling like you missed things.

Amen!! When it comes to Disneyland, more is better!

 

[bethy]

I have 3 kids and have travelled to DLR regularly with them their whole lives - both with just our family and also with extended family and friends. You need a Park Hopper for every day you are there - even for the partial days.

I agree with everyone else - with young children it's more days, slower pace. That is the KEY!

 

[nightmaremama]

Thank you everyone! We will definitely do the 3 days in the parks!

Now to wait for the 2015 prices...

 

[meggles]

Just to chime in: we went last fall with our then 6 and almost 2 year old kids. We are going back this fall and they'll be 7 and almost 3. Last time we did 2 day park hoppers and one halloween party. This time we will have 4 day park hoppers. A halloween party is scheduled during our trip but we won't be attending. Honestly, it's too late for my kiddos to truly be worth it and we'd rather spend the $ by adding a couple days to our park hoppers. (I realize there are some that love the halloween parties, but we weren't into trick or treating and it seemed like a lot of rides were shut down and crowds were heavier than expected.) Anyhow, we'll happily hop over to DCA on the party night and maybe have a nicer dinner in DTD. Back to the point...with kids you can't rush unless you want to stress everyone out. We thought we'd have enough time with 2day park hoppers and that might have been true if we were there alone sans kiddos but as it turned out, it rained one afternoon so that changed up things and the following day our toddler had a cranky spell and a too late nap. So much easier, in my opinion, to have even four half days in the parks (so, buying the 4 day park hoppers) than 2 full days. Kids just can't do it and enjoy it. This time we will be leaving the parks midday for 3-4 hours for nap/swim/quiet time. Even with the shorter fall hours it's still 3-4 hours of park time in the morning and then four more hours (longer on weekends) in the evening.
Utilize fast pass and rider swap so that you get to do the things you want as well. The rider swap is cool because it kind of works like fp in the old days when return times weren't enforced. Do RSR in the morning with rider swap and save the pass until you return to the parks in the evening!

 

[bayoulife4me]

3 day Hopper pass definitely. Also, find the baby care centers in Disneyland and DCA. Those places are the best for your daughter.

 

[NiceOneSimba]

We went to a Halloween party when my DD was about 2.5, and we had my mom with us. My mom and DD just barely made it to the fireworks, which were amazing, but they were both very tired. They went back to the hotel right after and my DH and I stayed in the parks. (We were in the parks that morning, as well, which accounts for the tiredness, but it is late for a little one.)

If I had it to do over again, I would have just purchased the party tickets for me and DH. Everyone would have spent the day (up until the hour non-party guests have to leave) together in the parks, and then I would have had my mom take DD back to the hotel for a swim and an early night's rest.

I don't know if this is an option for you (maybe your parents are gung-ho about the Halloween party), but it's what I would do if I had it to do over.