Grandpa’s last trip to Disneyland CA

[RoxyMouse]

Hello fellow Mousekateers,

So my family and I are planning a trip to DLR for New Years eve and day, and it is mainly to enjoy one last vacation with my grandpa. He has been very sick and weakening lately, and it’s a stretch trying to get him to go on this trip at all.

All in all, he probably won’t be able to stay all day at the park. Is it possible, knowing that it gets super full, to get special permission to have him enter the park midday on Christmas Eve to see the shows and things or is it impossible to request this?

I want to help make his last vacation as magical as possible, so any tips or suggestions are welcome!

 

[dansdad]

Hello fellow Mousekateers,

So my family and I are planning a trip to DLR for New Years eve and day, and it is mainly to enjoy one last vacation with my grandpa. He has been very sick and weakening lately, and it’s a stretch trying to get him to go on this trip at all.

All in all, he probably won’t be able to stay all day at the park. Is it possible, knowing that it gets super full, to get special permission to have him enter the park midday on Christmas Eve to see the shows and things or is it impossible to request this?

I want to help make his last vacation as magical as possible, so any tips or suggestions are welcome!

You might get more help on the Disneyland board.

https://www.disboards.com/forums/disneyland-california.26/

 

[RoxyMouse]

Hello fellow Mousekateers,

So my family and I are planning a trip to DLR for New Years eve and day, and it is mainly to enjoy one last vacation with my grandpa. He has been very sick and weakening lately, and it’s a stretch trying to get him to go on this trip at all.

All in all, he probably won’t be able to stay all day at the park. Is it possible, knowing that it gets super full, to get special permission to have him enter the park midday on Christmas Eve to see the shows and things or is it impossible to request this?

I want to help make his last vacation as magical as possible, so any tips or suggestions are welcome!

 

[RoxyMouse]

Oh okay, thank you!

 

[ButterflyKisses77]

You should call guest services to be sure. That’s going to be a special trip! You guys will have some great memories!

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Christmas Eve does not generally hit capacity, so I don't think you'll have a problem.

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[Malcon10t]

Are you going New Years Eve or Christmas Eve.

No, they will not allow a special entry. If they did, everyone would try to use this.

One way to guarantee would be to book a VIP tour on that day.

You will not have a problem on Christmas Eve. New Years Eve, you probably won't have a problem til late afternoon. However, shows will be crowded, so you will need to get there early to have a spot.

Honestly, taking someone like this on NYE is not going to be fun for them. New Years Day would be better, but still quite busy.

 

[Lynne M]

I'll move this to the Disneyland board.

 

[RoxyMouse]

Christmas Eve does not generally hit capacity, so I don't think you'll have a problem.

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

You should call guest services to be sure. That’s going to be a special trip! You guys will have some great memories!

Thank you!

 

[RoxyMouse]

Are you going New Years Eve or Christmas Eve.

No, they will not allow a special entry. If they did, everyone would try to use this.

One way to guarantee would be to book a VIP tour on that day.

You will not have a problem on Christmas Eve. New Years Eve, you probably won't have a problem til late afternoon. However, shows will be crowded, so you will need to get there early to have a spot.

Honestly, taking someone like this on NYE is not going to be fun for them. New Years Day would be better, but still quite busy.

It is New Years Eve (stated in post).

I am simply asking for options, considering we are planning ahead. My grandpa is a sickly man, and this is just for him, not as an excuse to get in with special treatment.

He loves Disneyland and he wants to go. Saying it won’t be fun for him is selfish to say.

 

[RoxyMouse]

Christmas Eve does not generally hit capacity, so I don't think you'll have a problem.

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

Thank you

 

[RoxyMouse]

I'll move this to the Disneyland board.

Thank you!

 

[Nonsuch]

It is New Years Eve (stated in post).

I am simply asking for options, considering we are planning ahead. My grandpa is a sickly man, and this is just for him, not as an excuse to get in with special treatment.

He loves Disneyland and he wants to go. Saying it won’t be fun for him is selfish to say.

NYE is likely the worst possible day to visit DL with a "sickly man". It's not selfish to say he won't have fun, just the reality of the park on NYE.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Your post does say Christmas Eve in your actual question (middle paragraph), so that's what I answered for.

New Year's Eve DOES hit capacity. It's a WHOLE different ballgame and is not a day I would take someone sickly.

People are trying to be helpful, not trying to be rude...

 

[Niltiac]

It is New Years Eve (stated in post).

Your original post says both New Years Eve and Christmas Eve, so that's why you're getting mixed responses. New Years Eve is much more crowded than Christmas Eve from what I've heard.

I believe when they do gate closures they do it in stages. First they stop selling new tickets, then they stop activating tickets for people who haven't yet entered that day, then they stop allowing readmittance. So one possibility would be to bring your grandpa in earlier in the day to activate his ticket, then take him back to the hotel to rest. It's inconvenient, but you have a better chance of getting in later if they've stopped activating new tickets but are still allowing readmits. I seem to remember disney giving notifications via twitter when they were starting gate closures in the past, so maybe you can monitor that throughout the day. I hope you have a hotel nearby.

 

[felice]

NYE is certainly * very * crowded, particularly into the evening time. Just be aware of this and you should be fine. Maybe try to get a decent seating area (say for World of Color) quite early on, then things should be good.

 

[SteveMP]

Not to be a downer, but someone who is truly "very sick and weakining" I would personally try to take ASAP, and not wait a few months, if its something they want to do. I speak from experience here.

 

[Malcon10t]

It is New Years Eve (stated in post).

Your post reads "Is it possible, knowing that it gets super full, to get special permission to have him enter the park midday on Christmas Eve to see the shows and things or is it impossible to request this?" Thus my question to clarify.

I am simply asking for options, considering we are planning ahead. My grandpa is a sickly man, and this is just for him, not as an excuse to get in with special treatment.

My answer is simply if they allowed this, everyone would expect the same treatment, which is why I explained why they do not allow for this. I'm not saying you were trying to use it as an excuse, just that they can't do it for one and not for others.

He loves Disneyland and he wants to go. Saying it won’t be fun for him is selfish to say.

It will be very hard on him if he is sickly and weakening. Have you been on NYE in the past? If so, you already know how bad it can get. If not, I have every year for the last almost 20 years. Two years ago, it was so crowded, it took us almost 40 mins just to walk (more like a mere shuffle) just from Haunted Mansion to the exit of Pirates. It was just that crowded. People start staking areas for fireworks by noon. Not sure which shows you want him to see, but parades, fireworks will be crowded early. I am not comfortable taking my mom (77yo) on NYE and she is very active, but tends to get lost easily, and it is hard to keep us together is such huge crowds. If he is using a wheelchair, also be aware of walkway rage! (My own name for it.) People will think the wheelchair is moving too slow, will jump in front of the chair (that 4 inches of space will give them that extra 1/100th of a second to get where they are going faster), they will step on the person in the chair (ask people here who have wheelchairs or strollers...) and more.

If he goes in realizing it will be exceptionally crowded, he should be great. Just you, him, your family and 60,000 of your closest friends in the park. (DCA isn't as bad, we've enjoyed it on NYE.

And like I posted above, one thing that could really help would be using a VIP tour. You will get him in the park, and you get to use expedited entry on most rides. Plus you can get seating to a night time show.

 

[Malcon10t]

NYE is likely the worst possible day to visit DL with a "sickly man". It's not selfish to say he won't have fun, just the reality of the park on NYE.

I have friends who will say "We are going to go to DL for the first time, and we are thinking about the week after Christmas." I try to have a frank discussion explaining Dec 26-Dec 31 are the 6 worst days to consider a trip for a first time, or other important trip. If you haven't been there on those days, you don't realize just how crowded it really can be. We go, BUT we don't expect to ride many rides, we use a VIP tour on NYE, we relax and people watch or hang out with friends. It is a time for our family to hang out and just enjoy the sights together.

 

[Niltiac]

You know, I've never even considered a VIP tour before, but after seeing the suggestions here, I think this is one scenario where it would be worth it. If this trip is important to him and he's weak, that's really the only way to make sure he gets to do what he wants to do with minimal stress.