First timer to DL and CA

[faireygod mother]

Please bare with me as this is my first time to DL. It is my fist trime to California as well.

I am flying in to Vegas and driving. My time is limited and it is my 50th birthday, so I want to make the most of this short trip.

I have been doing some research and reading some of the posts. Which has raised some questions.


1. Why do I need to get to the park 40 minutes early?

2. I am staying at the DLH. Do they let you in early (like WDW) if you are staying on property?

3. Where can I find a map of the parks so I can better plan my time? I will only be there 2 days and have a list of things I want to see.

4. I will be there on a Thursday and Friday ((/27 &9/28), should I expect long lines?

5. I was considering the Segway tour, is it any good?


6. I did book 3 character breakfasts (Story Teller, Plaza Inn and Goofy's Kitchen). Are these all the worth the time or should I reconsider becasue Iof my limited time there?

Thanks so much for any input. I also welcome ANY suggestions.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Please bare with me as this is my first time to DL. It is my fist trime to California as well.

I am flying in to Vegas and driving. My time is limited and it is my 50th birthday, so I want to make the most of this short trip.

I have been doing some research and reading some of the posts. Which has raised some questions.


1. Why do I need to get to the park 40 minutes early? Typically, there are huge lines at the main gates in the morning. If you are there early, you can be closer to the front.

2. I am staying at the DLH. Do they let you in early (like WDW) if you are staying on property? If you stay at DLH you can take advantage of EE every morning that it is offered. During your stay, it would be Thursday morning.

3. Where can I find a map of the parks so I can better plan my time? I will only be there 2 days and have a list of things I want to see. Go to the Disneylandresort.com for maps.

4. I will be there on a Thursday and Friday ((/27 &9/28), should I expect long lines? Friday will be worse than Thursday. If you are there early to take advantage of shorter lines, you shouldn't have a problem.

5. I was considering the Segway tour, is it any good? Sorry, don't know about this.


6. I did book 3 character breakfasts (Story Teller, Plaza Inn and Goofy's Kitchen). Are these all the worth the time or should I reconsider becasue Iof my limited time there? I think it depends on how much you want character interaction. If you get character breakfasts before the parks open, you should be fine with your time. Each breakfast has different characters. I don't think the parks have regular opening hours until 10:00 AM on those days.

Thanks so much for any input. I also welcome ANY suggestions.

Have a great trip, and Happy Birthday

 

[CoolPool]

Welcome to SoCal! Disneyfaninaz did a wonderful job explaining.

The thing you will love about Disneyland, once you get inside the gates, is that it is so compact. Rides are closer together and it has a more intimate feel overall than WDW.

40 minutes early? I don't know. For example yesterday (Sunday) we went right at opening and there was a line but you are in in like 5 minutes. No big deal to me as you then have to wait at the end of Main Street for the rope drop. At rope drop, the vast overwhelming number of people will veer toward Fantasyland and the beginning of the Nemo line. If you want to be right in the front of Nemo, then you'll have to book it hard to get there. Yesterday at rope drop I veered toward Adventureland. We walked on Jungle Cruise to the first boat, then veered to Splash Mountain. You could have shot a cannon through that area as there were no people. Needless to say SM had no line at all. We did that then Winnie the Pooh totally by ourselves. Then ran into Jack Sparrow - again nobody around - and had a fun character interaction. Off to BTMRR again with no line.

What's my point? My point is most people head to Fantasyland and Nemo. So if a quickie Nemo is the goal, by all means get there early and get there fast. If not, then you can relax a bit and still get on many rides before the crowds start to swell at 11ish.

My other suggestion about character meals. If you like the breakfasts, then I'd suggest doing them really early as per above poster. Otherwise with Plaza Inn you can reserve a table for the very last seating of the morning and use it as "brunch" instead. That way you do all the rides first thing - going hard and fast - then head to Plaza Inn right before they close to get your character interaction in. (Plaza Inn does not do characters at lunch.)

Have a great trip!

 

[Sk8Leigh]

5. I was considering the Segway tour, is it any good?

Yes, it's awesome! I did it last month, and I loved it and would recommend it. Although you don't have a lot of time there, and it would take away from some of your DL time. So you'll have to decide which is more important. But really, it's a great tour!

 

[HydroGuy]

40 minutes early? I don't know. For example yesterday (Sunday) we went right at opening and there was a line but you are in in like 5 minutes. No big deal to me as you then have to wait at the end of Main Street for the rope drop. At rope drop, the vast overwhelming number of people will veer toward Fantasyland and the beginning of the Nemo line. If you want to be right in the front of Nemo, then you'll have to book it hard to get there. Yesterday at rope drop I veered toward Adventureland. We walked on Jungle Cruise to the first boat, then veered to Splash Mountain. You could have shot a cannon through that area as there were no people. Needless to say SM had no line at all. We did that then Winnie the Pooh totally by ourselves. Then ran into Jack Sparrow - again nobody around - and had a fun character interaction. Off to BTMRR again with no line.

FWIW, the rope drop on Main Street is not an every day thing. If they do it, then I agree getting to the gates super early loses some (but not all) value.

Speaking to the OP, the only reason 40 minutes early is recommended is because of the new Nemo Submarine ride which has had horrendous crowds since June. Normally 15-30 minutes early to the gates is adequate and holds a similar benefit as to arriving early at WDW.

This next link will answer more questions and probably some you have not thought of yet but are worth knowing:

"A DLR Guide for WDW Vets" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

 

[DLR29]

With only 2 days (limited hours), I'd skip the Segway Tour (although I've heard it's good) and depending on the time, at least 1 of the character breakfasts. If the breakfasts are for 8 or earlier, I'd still keep them, considering DL/DCA don't open until 10. I also recommend getting to the gates by 9:30 so you can get on the new Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. Even with low crowds, lines might get up to an hour midday. Best to hit it at opening.

By staying at the DLH, you can use Early Entry for DL at 9 on Thursday (get there at 8:30 or earlier) to ride Fantasyland rides (none have FP) and select Tomorrowland rides (Space, Buzz, Astro Orbitor, Nemo-though I wouldn't waste my EE on it) with shorter waits. You should be able to do all of Fantasyland and a ride on Space and Buzz before that hour is up.

 

[flyinshirer]

Welcome to Cali!
Happy Birthday!!!
What an awesome way to spend your 50th!
Hope you have the best time! If you are going to go to DCA at all, don't miss the Aladdin show! It's amazing!!! It's worth just going in for that!

 

[MUDisneyCouple]

With only 2 days (limited hours), I'd skip the Segway Tour (although I've heard it's good) and depending on the time, at least 1 of the character breakfasts. If the breakfasts are for 8 or earlier, I'd still keep them, considering DL/DCA don't open until 10. I also recommend getting to the gates by 9:30 so you can get on the new Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. Even with low crowds, lines might get up to an hour midday. Best to hit it at opening.

By staying at the DLH, you can use Early Entry for DL at 9 on Thursday (get there at 8:30 or earlier) to ride Fantasyland rides (none have FP) and select Tomorrowland rides (Space, Buzz, Astro Orbitor, Nemo-though I wouldn't waste my EE on it) with shorter waits. You should be able to do all of Fantasyland and a ride on Space and Buzz before that hour is up.

We aren't staying on property and will only be at DL for 2 days, so won't have that extra time in the park...does the Nemo ride have FP? We like to see it, but don't want to miss other things. I'd rather get in and go to some rides instead of going to Nemo and waiting right away...so much to think about!!!

 

[HydroGuy]

We aren't staying on property and will only be at DL for 2 days, so won't have that extra time in the park...does the Nemo ride have FP? We like to see it, but don't want to miss other things. I'd rather get in and go to some rides instead of going to Nemo and waiting right away...so much to think about!!!

No FP at Nemo. And worse, it is a slow loading, low capacity ride (about 900 people per hour). IMHO it is not a "blow you away" type of ride. Fun? Yes. Cute? Yes. Awesome Disney ride? No, not really.

 

[faireygod mother]

Thank you all so much for the info. I booked the segway tour becasue it is at 715 am and will give me extra time in the park. I also booked a haunted tour when the park closes. I had no idea the hours would be so limited, so I am trying to make the most of it.

The character breakfasts are scheduled for 7 and 8 am, so we should not miss any time. We cancaelled the Plaza becasue the segway tour comes with breakfast.

My thought was to do DCA on Thursday becasue we will already be there on the segway tour and to do DL on Friday (which is a longer day) I also thought that as soon as the gate or rope drop we would head straight to Indiana Jones and then circle around from there. Does this sould like a good plan?

It seems that a lot of folks would be going right, so I am going left. I do not have nimo pn my plan of things to do.

We mapped everything out last night, but could not find the show with Abraham Lincoln. I think it is "Walts Story" or something like that. Has it stopped operating? I see the 50 year exhibt has.

 

[HydroGuy]

We mapped everything out last night, but could not find the show with Abraham Lincoln. I think it is "Walts Story" or something like that. Has it stopped operating? I see the 50 year exhibt has.

Abe's show stopped operating and they introduced a "Disneyland First 50 Years" show which is quite good BTW. Rumor has it that Abe will be back in 2008.

 

[faireygod mother]

Abe's show stopped operating and they introduced a "Disneyland First 50 Years" show which is quite good BTW. Rumor has it that Abe will be back in 2008.

Thanks for the info. The 50 years show is closed when we are there. I guess I will have to go back to Dl at a later date

 

[MUDisneyCouple]

Thank you all so much for the info. I booked the segway tour becasue it is at 715 am and will give me extra time in the park. I also booked a haunted tour when the park closes. I had no idea the hours would be so limited, so I am trying to make the most of it.

What is the haunted tour??? Could you point me towards some info???

 

[faireygod mother]

What is the haunted tour??? Could you point me towards some info???

Here is the link:


http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/parks/tours/detail?name=HappiestHauntsTourPage

 

[MUDisneyCouple]

Sounds interesting...wonder if I could talk my travel companions into it??

 

[faireygod mother]

Sounds interesting...wonder if I could talk my travel companions into it??

I talked my travel companion into it. In fact I just told her I booked it. I thought it would give us some extra time becasue the parks close early.

Good luck