First Visit - Which of these 3-day itineraries would you pick?

[PixelFlipper]

Hi all,

I'm taking the fam (wife, kids 3, 5, and 7 yr, all over 40") for our first visit to Disneyland/DCA on the week of June 9. We have a three day park-hopper with 1 Magic Morning. Which of the below itineraries would you choose, and why?

Thanks all!

Monday thru Wednesday options:
1) Mon (DL), Tues (DCA), Wed (DL)
2) Mon (DL), Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DCA)
3) Mon (DCA), Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DL)

Tuesday thru Thursday options:
4) Tues (DCA), Wed (DL), Thur (DL w/Magic Morning)
5) Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DL), Thur (DCA)
6) Tues (DL), Wed (DCA), Thur (DL w/Magic Morning)
7) Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DCA), Thur (DL)

 

[shocker]

I don't care which one you pick, really. What I would care about is when you plan to rest? Are you planning mid-day breaks each day? I don't see a rest day on the itinerary and if you are not planning breaks for each day you are setting up for MAJOR meltdown and revolt by day 3 so just decide which park you'd like to have that in .

My only other minor suggestion would be to do one park one day and then the other park the next day, then you can pick which park you liked best or need more time in and make that your third day. If you don't alternate parks and end up doing the same park for 2 days the kids may wonder why we're here again and wanting to at least try the other park first.

 

[ultraawesome]

I kind of agree with shocker, I would go with option number 7 except decide which park you prefer and go to that one on Thursday and if you're staying on site then go back to hotel and eat lunch there each day as a rest and if you're staying offsite I would go to a disown restaurant in downtown disney as a bit of a break.

 

[mikana876]

I vote for option 7... It uses your MM and alternates park days.

 

[ronandannette]

May I suggest Option #8? I'd go with starting on Tuesday at DL with MM - it's your first day and you'll be raring to go! Wednesday do DCA. On both theses days pace yourself so you are not exhausted. Don't go commando to the point that you miss the magic of everything around you. Take an afternoon break if you need to and be sure to save enough steam for the evening shows. Use Thursday as a "hopper" day with a little bit of forethought to do anything at either park that you missed the first day and/or loved so much you want to do again. By the third day you'll be much more comfortable with how things work and a little less in awe of the surroundings. It will be a very productive time. Good luck!,

 

[PixelFlipper]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Schedule 7) does sound the best, and we'll plan to head back to the hotel each day for an afternoon break to rest and refuel.

 

[abouley]

I agree with #7 with the option of hopping the last day as desired. It'll be easier to get up and getting going early that first day unless you are travelling late the day before.

The only other thing to consider is that both Tues and Wed are grad nights at DCA. I'd say you prob won't notice much earlier in the day but maybe not the best night for trying to catch any shows or for spending the evening hours there. Likely it'll start getting busier late afternoon/evening.

MM are great. You can pretty much bang out fantasyland first thing which with your kids' ages would be a good thing! Then you can utilize FP on some of the bigger rides and ride the higher capacity rides, take in shows, etc later in the day.

Definitely be sure to take some breaks so you can least the 3 days and be in the parks early each day!

 

[Girimama33]

I guess I am in the minority because I do not like option 7. Each day you are fighting the masses already in the parks.
I would choose option 4 for the following reasons...
If you are there for rope drop, you will have a few hours in the morning to walk on the rides if you start at the park that does not have EMH/MM. You will be able to get a lot done the first few hours at DCA on Tuesday and DL on Wednesday. If you are able to knock out FL on Wednesday, you can skip your MM and start again in DCA on Thursday.
MM at Disneyland can be very, very crowded...and sometimes not worth it.

 

[Cats2]

Hi all, I'm taking the fam (wife, kids 3, 5, and 7 yr, all over 40") for our first visit to Disneyland/DCA on the week of June 9. We have a three day park-hopper with 1 Magic Morning. Which of the below itineraries would you choose, and why? Thanks all! Monday thru Wednesday options: 1) Mon (DL), Tues (DCA), Wed (DL) 2) Mon (DL), Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DCA) 3) Mon (DCA), Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DL) Tuesday thru Thursday options: 4) Tues (DCA), Wed (DL), Thur (DL w/Magic Morning) 5) Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DL), Thur (DCA) 6) Tues (DL), Wed (DCA), Thur (DL w/Magic Morning) 7) Tues (DL w/Magic Morning), Wed (DCA), Thur (DL)

I also think that option 7 isn't a good choice.

If I had to pick, I'd go with #5. Why? Because you do MM on your first day. Parks open at 8am, so MM will be at 7am. Yes MM can get crowded, but the earlier hour of the MM will likely discourage at least some guests. Compare that to "off season" MM when the parks open at 10am and MM is at 9am (much more likely to be crowded). In my experience Mondays have been busy (so would cross off # 1, 2, 3)

After using your MM, then I'd avoid the Disney hotels' EMH. So, Wed that would mean going back to DL and then to DCA on Thursday.

On ALL of these days, I would expect park hopping--this is just a suggestion of which park to START with. And, in all cases would recommend getting there before RD. Regular park hours start at 8am for both parks, Tue through Thurs of that week. Oddly I saw that the parks both open at 9am on Fri that week.

My family tends to be early risers-we like the cooler/less crowded time in the early AM's, hit the popular rides that will build a line first, then go for the fast loader rides. We eat a slightly late lunch, then head back to the hotel to nap. After nap, we might sneak in a little pool time, and then dinner. We rarely make it back in the evening to the parks, EXCEPT on our last night. Late nights make it difficult to make RD the next day, especially with young kids. (We've done this approach the past 3 y from the time my twins were 3y/o). Two disclaimers though: we stay at a DLR hotel, and so have EMH options daily, and we have AP's so we take things at a leisurely pace after the morning hustle of EMH. We don't always park hop, but on the other hand, we typically have 6 park days on our vacation. If on limited time such as a 3d hopper, I would definitely be hopping.