HELP! First Timer to DL & CA & DL Thread/Some Q's

[bellenbuzz]

Our family of 4 is traveling to California for the 1st time ever......Want to visit Disneyland of course...
Been to WDW in FL several times but know nothing about DL, other then it's smaller
We are staying at friends home 25 mins away from DL so not on property
QUESTIONS:
Since we are not Property Guests can we still get Fastpasses?
Can DL & CA be done in one day / Or 1 day for each?
Can you "park-hop" ?
Are lines hours & hours long?

PLEASE HELP ME with any suggestions or ideas to ease my mind that it will be fun and okay.....
I usually have EVERYTHING planned out for a WDW trip, but this is diff, cause not actually staying there or doing dining plan or using Disney transportation
THANKS SO VERY VERY MUCH DIS'ers !!!!
From: An excited, yet anxious Disney Freak Mom

 

[gottalovepluto]

Our family of 4 is traveling to California for the 1st time ever......Want to visit Disneyland of course...
Been to WDW in FL several times but know nothing about DL, other then it's smaller
We are staying at friends home 25 mins away from DL so not on property
QUESTIONS:
Since we are not Property Guests can we still get Fastpasses?
Can DL & CA be done in one day / Or 1 day for each?
Can you "park-hop" ?
Are lines hours & hours long?

-Yes, they two are not related
-No to 1 day, yes to 2. You won't see everything but you'd get the highlights
-That's why they sell "park-hoppers"...
-Depends on when you go, go at a high time the lines will be long and the hours will be long, go at a low time and the lines will be shorter but the hours and entertainment schedules will be correspondingly shorter as well

 

[rentayenta]

What city are you staying in? 25 min away can be very different things in So Cal depending on the time of day.

You can get FPs.

I would do a day for each.

Park hours will depend on when your trip is. Did I miss the dates?

 

[Winnowill]

Disneyland requires far less planning that WDW does. It does not have a dining plan. Park hopping is much easier that at WDW. If you use Fastpasses strategically, you won't have to wait long for most things. We've been on trips there where we've ridden everything and waited no longer than 20 minutes for anything.

 

[twitch]

Similar to WDW, starting early in the morning pays great dividends. We live about 1 hour away, and when we go up, we plan to leave home about 2 hrs before park opening. Typically that gets us to the turnstiles after they have opened, but before rope drop. (Similar to WDW, the turnstiles typically open about 30 minutes before the actual advertised opening time, at which point there is a rope drop at the hub).

If this is the only time you will visit, I would consider 2-day hoppers. Unlike WDW, park-hopping requires little planning or time... you just walk a couple-hundred yards. If you can swing the funds and will use it, consider the MaxPass $10/pp/pd upgrade. It allows you to maximize FPs and still have great flexibility. The best part is being able to book fastpasses without crossing the park, finding the FP kiosk, and standing in line to get the FP.

While "smaller" is true, it might be more true to say "more densely packed." You will likely be surprised at how many people and rides can be fit into such a small space. We were most surprised by how many rides don't have nice queuing areas like in WDW. I don't think Walt ever imagined the size of the crowds.

Make a list of what's important to you -- seeing things that aren't in WDW? Seeing things that are in both parks but significantly different? Or simply trying to experience the park without comparing it to WDW?

We went yesterday, and saw 20 attractions between 8AM and 10PM. That included Fantasmic! and the Fireworks. We used 9 Fastpasses (Maxpass) during the day, in addition to the F! paper fastpasses.

 

[azdisneylover]

If you can do 3 days, that would be better. Even though Disneyland is much smaller (area wise), there is a lot to see,do and eat.

 

[chickapin parterre]

what is the date, that will help us give your more help

and now to address "Disneyland is smaller......maybe.....it has more calories, thick like a grandma' quilt, gooey like in-n-out animal fries, a chameleon at every corner, like John Godfrey Saxe elephant.....and American Pharaoh....well he was purchased over the phone....when his owner was at Disneyland.......so don't freak out when you find out that there is nothing small about Disneyland

 

[bellenbuzz]

BIG THANKS for your feedback, much appreciated
We are leaving this Sunday, August 6th- August 13th
Staying at friends home in Diamond Bar
Haven't picked which two days we want to go yet
Chickapin: Love your way with words!!
Twitch: Helpful info, thanks

 

[figment_jii]

Can DL & CA be done in one day / Or 1 day for each?

This really depends on what you mean by by "done". I think you can get a lot done in one day per park, but there is no way that you could see everything and do everything in one day per park. You will need to prioritize which attractions, shows, characters, etc. you want to see/do the most and go from there. Things like parades, Fantasmic!, fireworks, etc. tend to be considerable time sinks if you want the best possible view, so you might have to consider which you want to see (if any).

Can you "park-hop" ?

DLR offers the option to add park hopping to your ticket. It costs $45 to add it to a two-day ticket. In terms of getting from DL to DCA, it's very easy. The parks are about 100 yards apart. Kind of think of DL like Epcot's FW, DCA like Epcot's WS, and the esplande (the area between) like the bridge between FW and WS. DTD is just outside of the Esplande. So all in all, it's very easy to park hop, but it can take time if you opt to hop when the line to get into a park is long.

Are lines hours & hours long?

Attraction line lengths will vary considerably during the day. In general, lines are shortest first thing in the morning and then build from there. Just note that if you go to the park that has MM/EMH, some attractions will already have lines when the park opens to the general public (MM/EMH at DL is usually on Tue, Thu, and Sat, while DCA has EMH on Sun, Mon, Wed, and Fri). You're going when it's still considered summer, so there will be crowds. You can see the posted park hours on the Disneyland.com website:
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/calendars/five-day/2017-08-06/

I usually have EVERYTHING planned out for a WDW trip, but this is diff, cause not actually staying there or doing dining plan or using Disney transportation

Disneyland doesn't take as much planning on WDW, but regarding dining...if you know you want to eat at a specific TS, I would consider making a reservation. There are often quite good reservation times available day of or week of, but if you try walking up, there is a chance that you'll either have to wait quite a while or be turned away (I've been there when both has happened).