For those of you that like to plan

[carmel]

A few days ago, I read a posting of a few people who were sad because they had planned everything for their vacation. I think we can strike a mutually beneficial deal!

I'm COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED. I've been to DL twice and both times have had NO luck in getting to ride things. I've posted before that I only got about 5 rides per day. It was horrible. So, I'm hoping I can turn this over to some of you experts out there who can help me have a good trip. I'm having computer issues right now and Ridemax is not an option.

Here are the specs, LOL.

We are going to be there on a Monday, Tuesday and Thursday (8/18, 8/19, 8/21). On Monday, we have a Libbylu appt at 3pm and a Carnation Cafe PS for 4:10 (it is our youngest's birthday and we are celebrating there). Other than that, our days are free. We do have two MM with our Getaway Today tix. Here are the things that we want to ride:

DISNEYLAND
Mad Tea party
Tarzan Tree House
BTMRR
Indiana Jones
Matterhorn
Space Mtn
Splash Mtn
Star Tours
Astro Orbiters
Buzz Lightyear
Tiki Room
Haunted Mansion
Jungle Cruise
Mr Toad
Pirates
Snow White
Alice
Dumbo
Winnie the Pooh
Peter Pan
Pinnochio
Monorail

CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE
Zephyr
Orange Stinger
Sun wheel
Mulholland Madness
Soarin
Tower of Terror
Tough to be a bug
Jumpin Jellyfish
Monster Inc.

It would make ya'll cry to know that my girls and I haven't ridden about 90% of the list above. I'm just a horrible planner. I've read HydroGuy's stuff a bazillion times and though I get it in theory, I freeze when I have to put it into practice. So, I need some guidance.

THANK YOU SO MUCH to those of you who reply. I know I'm asking a lot - I think I have some sort of true block when it comes to being able to do what I want once I get in the parks. If I have a tangible thing I can reference, I can do it. I end up getting there and just going around with no direction and no plan and get frustrated and overwhelmed.

Again, thanks so much. My girls send hugs to those of you who help to make this birthday trip special (last year hubby was in chemo and birthday celebrations were very subdued but he is healthy again and we are ready to CELEBRATE!!!)

 

[carmel]

Hubby's cancer left certain parts of his spine weak and he can't ride jerky, bouncy rides. He will be with us on Monday and Tues but will not be going to the parks on Thurs (has to limit sun exposure and he tires easily). I didn't know if that makes a difference for what rides for what days.

THANKS again!!!

 

[Leofoenget]

I seriously suggest you use RIDEMAX this time around. If you use it, you will avoid the "wondering in circles" syndrome. Plunk in what you want to ride, and it will make a custom plan for you to avoid as many lines as possible. Google ridemax.com

 

[missxjess]

I don't know how much help I can be because I'm definitely no expert but I've never gone with a plan and I've managed to ride almost all the rides there.

The main thing I do is split the rides up that I know for sureeeeee are going to have long line ups. If you're going to be there for three days there is no hurry to get on and see everything in the first day. So Indiana Jones, Splash and Space, maybe you can try and hit those first thing in the morning when they are the least busiest. also consider opting not to do a ride like Nemo. It sucks that you might not get to do it but in the time you wait in line for that one ride, you may be able to get on 3 or 4 others.

Take advantage of fastpass.

Map out the area...figure out busy/slow loading rides are located next to rides that have short line ups or fast loading capacity. That way if you for example go and fast pass Space mountain, you will be able to go next door to Honey I Shrunk the Audience and only have to wait a relativly short amount of time since HISTA has a large capacity.

I don't know if I helped or not, like i said I'm definitely no expert but there are so many different things you can do to maximize your experience.

I hope you have a good trip and get everything figured out (ride wise)

 

[XTinabell]

Okay that is a lot of information and I can see why you're overwhelmed. When I plan I always start with my dinner reservations. I see you've only made one so far, were you not planning to do another sit down the other days or what was your plan for that?

I think your hubby should avoid the following rides:
Indiana Jones
Matterhorn
Space Mountain
Splash Mountain (it's not jerky but can hurt the back bumping around)
Space Tours (This is only my opinion, others may disagree with me)
Tower of Terror

I think Monday you could take things a little slower. It's not an MM day and I would save your FL rides for Tuesday. Grab fast passes throughout the day to use at your leisure, meet some characters, take some pictures.

Tuesday is MM day and you can hit all your FL rides. There is a list somewhere in which order to do it in I can't remember exactly but here is a rough list:

PP
Alice
Dumbo
Toad
Snow White
Tea cups
Buzz
You could do Matterhorn during MM but if you want to include your hubby I would avoid it, you can do it on Thursday.

Hopefully that helps you out a bit, I'm sure others will come along with their ideas too. And relax, it'll all work out.

 

[Danauk]

Edit: Just read about your computer issues so can't use RideMax, shame really as this would have worked well for you.

 

[CrazyDuck]

My real general tips: Get the fantasy land rides out of the way early on a MM and Fast Pass the Fast Passable rides!!!!

 

[Queenbillabong]

I'm no expert either, but I agree with doing the Fantasyland rides on the MM mornings.

Get there early on Monday and make use of FastPass. We don't use Ridemax - I personally don't think it's necessary! If you have a basic plan of what you want to do and are able to be flexible within that plan (meaning if you want to ride something but the line up is too long, go do something else).

Pick up FastPasses in the a.m. to use later in the evening. I would save the bumpier rides for Thursday when your husband won't be there. Figure out if/where/when you want to eat and if you need to make PS for that. This way you can plan your activities in the same area to avoid wanting to do rides in one area and having to rush to a completely different area for eating. For example, if you want to do NOS in the late morning, plan on eating lunch somewhere nearby - French Market, Cafe Orleans, etc.

DL is open 8 a.m. to midnight on all the days you will be there and it has a full parade/fireworks/Fantasmic schedule. MM will be at 7 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday. The only closure seems to be It's a Small World.

Go and have fun with your family - don't stress about everything! Have a loose plan on what you want to do and then be flexible if it doesn't work out (too long lines). That's what we do and we've done about 23-24 rides in a day (also using single rider lines!!) plus the shows we wanted to see.

Have fun!!!

 

[princessLoLo'smom]

You don't need to purchase ridemax... that is a gimmick for people that are really afraid of standing in lines. My husband and my 16 year old niece and I went to WDW with my daughters who are 3 1/2 and 1 1/2 in May. What we did that worked great was to split up a bit. My husband would run and get a fastpass for splash, space, whatever and then meet us in FantasyLand during EMH(MM in DL). We would ride everything in Fantasyland then start using fastpasses for the rest od the day. We would have someone go get the fastpass for another ride once the hour for our existing fp arrived. If you keep moving from one fp to another you'll never stand in line. We couldn't believe all the people in line and we never stood in line for more than 10 minutes! We even gave away quite a few fastpasses that we weren't going to use. The worst thing to do is wait until lunchtime to start getting fp's b/c the return time will be really late if they are even still giving them out anymore at all. Our first day was at Hollywood Studios and we got there after lunch and all the fp's for Rockin' Roller Coaster were already gone! USE FASTPASS AND YOU'LL BE FINE!

 

[splash5]

Don't worry you've come to the right place..... Definitely do your Fantasyland rides on magic morning (we've gotten in 9 rides in the first hour). On EE days, usually Buzz Lightyear is open, sometimes the matterhorn. If you want to ride Nemo, you need to do that first thing on one of your regular mornings. You will want to get fastpasses for Splash Mountain early in the day (as the weather will be warm and fastpasses go quickly) - I would plan to hit this part of the park when you want to do Winnie the Pooh. If it is early enough, you could probably do big thunder mountain without much wait. 2 really good rides (and fairly quick to do in this area) are Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion (these take larger amounts of people and load quickly). We spend most of our time in this area of the park as we are huge Pirates fans (and I love splash mountain).

Check out which rides have fastpass and plan accordingly (ie. pick the one you want to do the most and get that fastpass first, as soon as you can, grab another fastpass to whichever ride is next on your list) You will see the time that you can get another fastpass printed on the bottom of your fastpass ticket.

If you feel like you want to park hop, then stay at Disneyland until DCA opens and then hop over there and get fastpasses (you can get a Grizzly river fastpass and another fastpass at DCA at the same time, as Grizzly is not networked with the other passes). If you plan to ride TSM, you should do this as soon as the park opens. I would say that you should probably get Soarin over California passes first (as those go quickly). We've never had much of a wait for TOT, but if it looks busy, get one for it.

Usually a good rule of thumb is to not wait in any lines that are longer than 20 minutes (just get a fastpass- where available).

The main thing is to prioritize what you want to ride and try to stay in that section of the park instead of criss-crossing. Less tiring.....

I grew up in Disneyland, so if you have any questions, just ask!

 

[princessLoLo'smom]

BTW- i totally know how you feel because we were all screwed up on our first trip... not knowing about fp and thus stuck in lines and not getting to do everything we wanted. While in MK one afternoon a family arrived and looked totally frustrated about not being able to get on any rides without dealing with 30-45 min wait times. I tried to help them out telling them about fp and that they should just try to enjoy as much as possible since it was already 4pm and not likely that they'd get much done and plan on an early start the next day. They were so disenchanted about how busy it was and I really felt bad that I didn't have an fp to give them at the time as I was just running to get a couple of coke slushies from Ariel's Grotto while my husband and niece got fp's for another ride. It does seem really overwhelming, but you have to conquer that fear or your trip will be terrible! You didn't mention the ages of your girls... is either old enough to be trusted to go get the fastpasses for your group while the rest stand in line or go on a ride? You can always go get the fastpasses while your husband and kids do something else. You will have to divide and conquer to maximize fp's and time. I don't know any other way to get it all done and many others I know swear by our method. Also, if you ever notice a short wait time... get on that ride and don't plan on ever seeing that short wait time again... that is a gift so take the gift and get on the ride that at that moment isn't busy. You also have to realize that it will be this way and not allow the "stress" to get to you. Disney is not about showing up and the "sea parting" for you... you have to plan it to some extent and have fun while being proactive about what to do next. We didn't have a ride by ride plan and we had a great time. If your kids are little you can use riderswap also. We would have 2 of us go on the ride while one waited with the kids, then the person who didn't get to go on the ride would get to go as well as one who wanted to go again and the other would stay with the kids. So the 3 of us got to ride, the girls got to nap in the stroller, and one person actually went twice without waiting in line even once! Just take a deep breath when you get there and remember to take it seriously so that you get to do what you want.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

ok question were the last two times also in the summer?
DISNEYLAND
Mad Tea party-MM
Tarzan Tree House-havent done
BTMRR-i didnt do this it was the longest line 2hours
Indiana Jones-(do at night id say, i waited 30mins and it seemed so fast in nov last year)
Matterhorn-MM
Space Mtn-if its open for MM if not go like right after MM
Splash Mtn-as early as you can
Star Tours- right after MM or diering it. this was one of our first rides
Astro Orbiters-didnt do it
Buzz Lightyear-we only waited about 20mins and that was mid day
Tiki Room-havent done but never looks to be long wait
Haunted Mansion- umm prety much walk on in anytime ive never waited out in the outside line
Jungle Cruise-we did it at night and was walk on
Mr Toad-didnt go
Pirates-walk on about 4times though out our 5days in nov-dec
Snow White-MM
Alice-MM
Dumbo-MM
Winnie the Pooh-didnt go on
Peter Pan-MM
Pinnochio-MM
Monorail-didnt go on

CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE- I dont do much here dont like alot of it but it will get better in the next few years
Zephyr-I dont do
Orange Stinger-I dont do
Sun wheel-never in my wildest dream lol
Mulholland Madness-another never and also this is gona be gone soon with the refurb. when i see lines there long
Soarin-catch a FP ticket early
Tower of Terror-FP ticket and try to go on (love this ride, didnt get to go last tiem tho)
Tough to be a bug- umm we wont go back but its prety much walk on
Jumpin Jellyfish-walk on
Monster Inc.-I havent seen this ride maybe it was closed when i was there.
The new Toy stoy ride id say get to early like rope drop for CA

 

[bumbershoot]

How old are your kids, and how tall are they?

Will you be able to leave the kiddos with hubby to get FPs (since it doesn't sound like hubby can really be a "runner" for the FPs)?

Will you have to take naps?


This ended up incomplete b/c I lost my brain along the way. Sorry 'bout that.

I have a really hard time setting out an entire plan, so maybe splitting things into little chunks, to do when you can, might help. Or at least we'll chunk it out so you can think about it without getting so overwhelmed.

Oh, this might not be the most time-effective plan. But it's something I would do, so that's the best I can do for ya. I'm sure much of it could be criticized, but that's where the chunks come into play, b/c you can move around chunks to what works for you.

Chunk:

For the libby lu appt, since you want to ride the monorail, I might be in Tomorrowland around 2:30 and get in the monorail line at least by then. So you'd take the monorail out to DTD, get off, then walk back to Libby Lu for the appt. Once you're done, then walk towards the esplanade and go into DL again for Carnation (are you sure that's enough time, by the way?)


Chunk for MM:

Peter Pan (1st always and forever, LOL)
Dumbo (2nd in my opinion and maybe other's opinions too but I don't recall)
Mr Toad's (it's possible that should be second)
Teacups
Alice

Semi-Chunk for Fantasyland:

Snow White
Pinocchio

That's a semi-chunk b/c those don't tend to get long lines, in my experience, and you can do them just about any time.

May I add Casey Jr's train into your list? It looks like a baby ride, but I found it to be quite fun, and it goes much faster than you'd expect!


Because you'll have two MMs, you can either play in Fantasyland again, or you could ride Nemo on the other MM!


Chunk for Adventureland and beyond:

Assuming you'll get to the parks before opening on Monday, when you get there, I suggest you go in and go towards Adventureland! People tend to turn right, or so I've heard, leaving the "left" side a bit emptier.

So while in there, you can grab FPs for Indy *just in case*, and ride Jungle Cruise.
Ride Indy if the line is short and save the FPs for later if you wish, or use your FPs (the return time should be quick if you're getting them that soon) if you want to do that instead.
Do the Tarzan's treehouse...in my experience, if it's open when you walk by, GO FOR IT. I've put it off too many times, only to come back and find it closed (if it starts raining they close it FAST, and things have to dry off before it opens), so if it's open, go on it.

I don't know how long those will take, so I'll move to another chunk now.

Chunk:

As you leave Adventureland, it's only natural to go past Pirates, so you can ride that then!

OR you can send someone off to Splash OR BTMRR, assuming you can get a FP at that time, and grab FPs. Then come back and ride Pirates.

After Pirates, then Haunted Mansion, assuming the line is acceptable.

After HM, it's normal to head towards Critter Country, where you could ride Splash and Pooh.



IF you've used the Adventureland and beyond chunks on Monday, for sure it's going to be time to head over towards Tomorrowland. It might even be time to jump on the monorail for LL!

If not, well, I'd say sit and rest for awhile, you've done a lot. If you can get another FP by this time, grab one for Space or Buzz!


If you've done these things on that Monday, when you get done with Carnation, you could move along to do the Tomorrowland things.

Or you could go to DCA. Chunk

Unfortunately you've mentioned 3 rides I haven't been on, Orange Stinger, Mulholland, and Sunwheel, so I do NOT know where to add those in.

Hubby and son had good luck once on the Zephyr, waiting only 2 ride cycles to get on. The next time they went, however, winds had picked up and they closed down the ride.


OK I'm sorry, my creativity just died! Hopefully that helped a little bit and maybe you can think of more? Or I'll come back later...

It's HARD for me to do lots of "if thens", b/c i never know what we might want to do at that point. Not that we let that sort of thing rule our days, but immediate wants are sometimes indulged, just b/c we're not perfect at following schedules (I've forgotten my notes in the room, I've forgotten all about them even though they are in my backpack, and so forth, but I have the info in my head, so we rarely just sit and think "uh, what do we want to ride next, ooh let's stand in that hour long line". )


What you have left:


DISNEYLAND
BTMRR
Matterhorn
Space Mtn
Star Tours
Astro Orbiters
Buzz Lightyear
Tiki Room

CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE
Zephyr
Orange Stinger
Sun wheel
Mulholland Madness
Soarin
Tower of Terror
Tough to be a bug
Jumpin Jellyfish
Monster Inc.

 

[avalon451]

I'm looking at your days and plans, and have a few questions:

How old are your girls? Do they want to ride the "big" rides, too? I'm just wondering because you left a few out that surprised me.

--Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin? (disconnected FP; easy to grab at any time)
--Look around Mickey's toontown and maybe meet Mickey in his house?
--Disneyland Railroad? It's a fun, relaxing 20 minute break and nice way to see the park.

In CA:
--Grizzly River Run? You had Splash in there; GRR is so fun. My DD6 loved it, in fact liked it better than Splash
--MuppetVision 3-D? It's cute and a nice air-conditioned break
--California Screamin? You have ToT on there, which in my opinion is scarier. Screamin' is smooth and fun-- I have a 5 y.o. niece who loved it. (although admittedly my DH nearly had a heart attack)
--Animation Building, especially Turtle Talk with Crush? Lotta fun.

If your DH can't ride some of these like Indy, Mulholland, Screamin', BTMRR, he might be willing to be your FP runner, go get FPs while you ride. Or, if one or both of your daughters are too young or don't want to ride some of those big rides, he can be your custodial parent while you ride.

One other suggestion: I'd suggest you see if you can switch Libby Lu back to 2:00 or maybe 2:30, just because you don't know what the crowds will be like, and just getting through security and the gates and walking up main street might take longer than you think. So you will be anxiously watching the clock while you're in Libby Lu, in order to make your PS's at Carnation. If you end up done early, there's always time to dawdle along DTD and Main street, window shopping, watching a character that might show up, etc., but if you are rushing it doesn't feel relaxed. Just an idea.

I'm looking at ridemax and at your list, and it looks to me like you can have a very relaxed time in 3 days, and ride everything you want, along with breaks back at your hotel. Where are you staying?

 

[carmel]

Here are some answers to the questions - Thanks so much for the suggestion. I'm finally starting to feel excited instead of being overwhelmed.

DDs are 6 and 10 and I barely let them in a bathroom stall by themselves so getting FPs won't work. Hubby can't do the running either. I think I will be a runner while hubby sits and rests with the girls.

I think I'm gonna make one more PS for Rainforest cafe for Thursday afternoon but otherwise, we will be eating elsewhere (hubby is an ex-local and his family is still out there).

Thanks again. I need to go home and consult my UG to find which rides need fast passes and look at the map and make a plan of action with the tips.

Oh, I'm staying at HoJos.

My daughters are of Asian descent so they are tiny. My 6yr old only weighs 29lbs and is short, short, short. I'm just afraid she would slip out California Screamin - she's a bone.

Keep 'em coming if you are so inclined. It really does help tremendously.

 

[bumbershoot]

CA Screamin' is 48 inches, so if your 6 year old is THAT short, she might not even be OK to go on it. If she is tall enough, it's an over the shoulder restraint that is rock solid and fits tight. Just so ya know.

If YOU want to go on that ride, by the way, but no one else does, or if your 10 year old does and you're OK with her not sitting next to you and maybe not being on the same ride cycle, you can do the Single Rider line for it. Especially if it's just you who wants to go, it makes things much faster. You get a single rider pass from the cast member at the entrance to the line, then go away from the line, to the accessible entrance. You end up on the other side of the loading platform, and they pull the single riders to fill in empty seats caused by odd numbers of people in the regular and FP lines.


FP:

Indy, Splash, BTMRR, Space, Buzz...Screamin', TOT, Soarin', Grizzly River Run, maybe Mulholland Madness? Incomplete list, darnit!


Most people get Soarin' FPs at the very opening of DCA. It opens at approx 9:30, though official opening time is 10. Only Soarin', as far as I know, is open to ride, then.

Avalon's right, Grizzly is definitely worth riding! Half of my "tags" are because of Grizzly. You'll very likely get wet though, so wear ponchos, and put your stuff in the free lockers near Grizzly.


Tiki Room is so nice to go into during the hotter moments of your trip. Squishy seats, air conditioning, and no one really cares if you take a little snooze if you're so inclined.

Can I suggest trying to fit in the movie Disneyland: first 50 years? It's "hosted" by Steve Martin and Donald Duck, is funny and silly, and makes you feel good about being there. And it's air conditioned as well.

 

[camouseketeer]

Couple of questions for the OP:

Are your kids tall enough to ride all rides? (They need to be 48 inches.)

Do they (or you) have any problems riding without an adult next to them on the bigger rides?

Do you want to include any shows or parades (Aladdin, Playhouse Disney, DCA or DL parade etc.) on your schedule?

Do you want to do the new Toy Story Mania ride?

Do you want to ride Nemo?

Is it ok for you husband to miss some of the rides you listed (besides the jerky ones)?

Do you want to visit characters and rides in Toontown?

I love making schedules and can give you some ideas, but the answers to these questions will help me out.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

look at the top of the page look atthe fp tip one (i forget what its called but its up there, and It tells you everythign you need to know.

Happy bday to your bday kid. Have a grate trip and take lots of pics use the photo pass if you can the cd is only 59 dollers right now all those memories to last a life time *hugs*

 

[carmel]

Couple of questions for the OP:

Are your kids tall enough to ride all rides? (They need to be 48 inches.)

Youngest is a hair taller than 42". Older one is > 48
Do they (or you) have any problems riding without an adult next to them on the bigger rides?

The older one would probably be okay as long as she was near us or within sight
Do you want to include any shows or parades (Aladdin, Playhouse Disney, DCA or DL parade etc.) on your schedule?

I wouldn't mind seeing the parades and Fantasmic and the fireworks. Shows would only be if we had downtime and needed to rest but not a must

Do you want to do the new Toy Story Mania ride?
Not a must
Do you want to ride Nemo?
No - I think I will get sick looking through that little window
Is it ok for you husband to miss some of the rides you listed (besides the jerky ones)?
Absolutely
Do you want to visit characters and rides in Toontown?
We were actually able to spend lots of time in Toontown on previous trips so I've marked it off in favor of concentrating on other areas.
I love making schedules and can give you some ideas, but the answers to these questions will help me out.

Answers imbedded in quotes - Thanks~!

 

[Jenn1116]

For Nemo - You can use the viewing room they have to experience the ride without getting on a sub. I've heard this is much faster, and your kids will probably enjoy it.