Help, I have no idea where to start

[Miniefan]

You guys are all so helpful, I spent all last night reading Hydroguy's post. I really enjoyed reading about the differences between the two resorts even in some of the same attractions. My hubby told me last night that he was not interested in packing up and going across the United States to do the same stuff we have been doing for years, then I had to explain to him how they are both different. I am thinking that I will probably stay at an offsite hotel, possibly HoJo- looking at the map it looks like it is really close to DL, or Candy Cane Inn. I am not sure about the car rental, I guess it is going to depend on if we want to visit other stuff too. I am confused about the dining though, do you have to be at a DL hotel in order to recieve this and what exactly are you getting?

TIA

Kim

 

[mikayla73]

We always book our stuff separately. The only advantage I have found to booking a package is convience, I'd personally rather save more $

We usually use Expeida for booking all of our hotels, flights, and rental cars. Once we choose a hotel though, I always check with the hotels website, sometimes they have a little better deal than even Expedia, like the web only deals. I use trip advisor for researching any hotels that we have not stayed at before as well as checking with the folks on here for more info. As someone mentioned, you do have to weed out the people that complain just to hear themselves complain when researching.

I agree with the others that flying into SNA is the way to go. The time savings and headache of driving from LAX is worth the extra $ to fly into the smaller, closer airport.

Depending on how you like to "do" the parks, I'd say at least 4-5 full days to do the parks without feeling rushed. You could do it in 3, but I dont think it would be very relaxing. Add on a couple more days to enjoy some of the other stuff in So Cal, like the beaches which are an easy drive from DL.

As for hotels, if you can afford to stay onsite, I would, nothing like not having to "leave" Disney at the end of the day. However, if you are looking for more budget friendly hotels or won't be spending enough time in the room to enjoy it, then staying on Harbor is a great option. Much cheaper and in some cases closer than the DL hotels.

Feel free to ask more questions, as you can tell we all LOVE talking DL planning and let us know how it works out!

 

[cccdisney]

You guys are all so helpful, I spent all last night reading Hydroguy's post. I really enjoyed reading about the differences between the two resorts even in some of the same attractions. My hubby told me last night that he was not interested in packing up and going across the United States to do the same stuff we have been doing for years, then I had to explain to him how they are both different. I am thinking that I will probably stay at an offsite hotel, possibly HoJo- looking at the map it looks like it is really close to DL, or Candy Cane Inn. I am not sure about the car rental, I guess it is going to depend on if we want to visit other stuff too. I am confused about the dining though, do you have to be at a DL hotel in order to recieve this and what exactly are you getting?

TIA

Kim

The Dining Plan at DLR is NOTHING like the plan at WDW. Most don't recommend it, including myself. You receive vouchers that you turn in for meals and snacks. However you don't receive change back so you could end up losing money. The Dining Plan at DLR does NOT save you $$ like the one at WDW does. Some who want to pre-pay for meals will load Disney Gift Cards or buy Disney Dollars to use when in the parks.
I have been to WDW a few times and love their Meal Plan. I wish DLR could do a similar plan but I don't think that DLR has enough restaurants to make it work.

 

[Miniefan]

The Dining Plan at DLR is NOTHING like the plan at WDW. Most don't recommend it, including myself. You receive vouchers that you turn in for meals and snacks. However you don't receive change back so you could end up losing money. The Dining Plan at DLR does NOT save you $$ like the one at WDW does. Some who want to pre-pay for meals will load Disney Gift Cards or buy Disney Dollars to use when in the parks.
I have been to WDW a few times and love their Meal Plan. I wish DLR could do a similar plan but I don't think that DLR has enough restaurants to make it work.

It is really hard to understand what they mean by meal voucher for this and that, we have been on DDP almost every trip to wdw unless it is just a spur of the moment trip down there, but I am thinking that in DL we will probably just end up paying OOp for all our meals, it just seems a little confusing with their terminology and I am not sure if that would account for 2 or 3 meals pp per day. Any fabulous must try restaurants at DLR?

Thanks
Kim

 

[disneyfaninaz]

You must do the Blue Bayou for lunch or dinner. The ride is located inside Pirates of the Caribbean and the ambiance cannot be beat!

 

[wdhinn89]

If you stay on-site (GC) and you purchase your park tickets through AAA, how many MM do you get? Through the DL website it appears to be only one but I could swear someone wrote that if you stay onsite you could go to all MM available during your stay

 

[disneyfaninaz]

If you stay at a DL resort hotel, like GCH, you can get MM any morning that it is offered during your stay. You will get a charge slip from the resort to use for MM entry along with your park ticket.

 

[wdhinn89]

Thank you!

 

[bluegrizzlies1]

Please check into the long beach airport LGB because it really is only 4 miles futher then SNA and can be had cheaper by a lot depending on where you fly out.

 

[Grim_Grinning_Girl]

..........We are flying into SNA airport. I was very confused about which airport. SNA (John Wayne airport)is closest to DLR. You can also fly into LAX. SNA is going to be easier to navigate, but you may get better deals into LAX, I would check both.
QUOTE]

Yes, SNA is a lot closer compared to LAX. I've arrived into SNA for a Disneyland trip, and have dropped someone off at LAX from Disney. If possible, definitely try for SNA. I took the Disney Express shuttle bus thing from SNA, took about 15 minutes to arrive to the Disney area - but it was also at night so there wasn't much traffic.

 

[Quest4fun]

SNA is very, very close and requires little navigation if any to get to the park. It's very small and user friendly as well. Avoid LAX as it is never worth the extra money. Everybody I know that goes the LAX route ends up spending more money due to the greater distance and time lost.

With regards to Long Beach, indeed it is only 4 miles farther than John Wayne airport but those 4 miles are a killer. Anybody who knows about traffic on the 405 knows what I'm talking about. For you math fanatics out there just figure 4 miles at a speed of 10 to 20mph. Once you hit the 22 in Garden Grove it gets even worse.

Food

You will notice almost immediately that Disneyland has more expensive food than Disney World. Be smart when choosing restaurants. The Blue Bayou is great but families on a budget can find better deals at the quick serve restaurants like Hungry Bear or Village Haus. The most food for the cash remains Pizza Port. Seating can be at a premium from time to time so ask for a lid to keep your pasta warm while you search for a table.

Keep the questions coming.

 

[JaneJetson]

SNA is very, very close and requires little navigation if any to get to the park. It's very small and user friendly as well. Avoid LAX as it is never worth the extra money. Everybody I know that goes the LAX route ends up spending more money due to the greater distance and time lost.

With regards to Long Beach, indeed it is only 4 miles farther than John Wayne airport but those 4 miles are a killer. Anybody who knows about traffic on the 405 knows what I'm talking about. For you math fanatics out there just figure 4 miles at a speed of 10 to 20mph. Once you hit the 22 in Garden Grove it gets even worse.

Food

You will notice almost immediately that Disneyland has more expensive food than Disney World. Be smart when choosing restaurants. The Blue Bayou is great but families on a budget can find better deals at the quick serve restaurants like Hungry Bear or Village Haus. The most food for the cash remains Pizza Port. Seating can be at a premium from time to time so ask for a lid to keep your pasta warm while you search for a table.

Keep the questions coming.

Another problem I've had at the Pizza Port is that people don't know how the lines work.

If you want a salad, wait in the salad line.
If you want pasta, wait in the pasta line.
If you want pizza, wait in the pizza line.

Get it? You don't have to wait in one long line for what you want. Just get in the line for the food you want. If more people understood this, things would be much smoother on those busy days.

 

[bluegrizzlies1]

With regards to Long Beach, indeed it is only 4 miles farther than John Wayne airport but those 4 miles are a killer. Anybody who knows about traffic on the 405 knows what I'm talking about. For you math fanatics out there just figure 4 miles at a speed of 10 to 20mph. Once you hit the 22 in Garden Grove it gets even worse.

Never had a problem with traffic out of long beach both times I have done it. I will report in oct how traffic is.

To save 50 to 75 bucks on airfare per ticket is well worth some traffic I have never encountered maybe Im lucky.

1 day I will have to fly into SNA and see just how not hyped this place is. It is not worth 200 bucks more then long beach no way.

But everyone has a differnt vue on things so go what works for you

 

[JaneJetson]

Never had a problem with traffic out of long beach both times I have done it. I will report in oct how traffic is.

To save 50 to 75 bucks on airfare per ticket is well worth some traffic I have never encountered maybe Im lucky.

1 day I will have to fly into SNA and see just how not hyped this place is. It is not worth 200 bucks more then long beach no way.

But everyone has a differnt vue on things so go what works for you

My time is precious.

Also...Long Beach isn't always cheapest for everyone. I searched for the days we're going in January. John Wayne is cheaper. And only requires one stop.

For Long Beach, it's more expensive and I'd have to stop twice (unless I wanted to pay even MORE money for one stop.)

It really depends on where you're flying from. Long Beach is sometimes worse than John Wayne.

Oh...I also just checked car rental prices...Long Beach is more expensive.

 

[Quest4fun]

Never had a problem with traffic out of long beach both times I have done it. I will report in oct how traffic is.

To save 50 to 75 bucks on airfare per ticket is well worth some traffic I have never encountered maybe Im lucky.

1 day I will have to fly into SNA and see just how not hyped this place is. It is not worth 200 bucks more then long beach no way.

But everyone has a differnt vue on things so go what works for you

I should have noted that this varies depending on the city you fly out of. There are most definitely some caveats.

1. Less direct flights into John Wayne (SNA)
2. Not all airlines fly into John Wayne (Sorry JetBlue lovers)
3. If you come in on a weekend, traffic isn't an issue with Long Beach and it will only take you an extra 10 minutes or so to use Long Beach.

John Wayne is popular because it is the closest Airport to Disneyland and many people can find cheaper flights through most airlines. Frontier, United, and American all fly from most major destinations and hit John Wayne for less if you take a connection using their hub. Frontier and United are through Denver and American through Dallas. If you prefer another carrier or travel through Phoenix or Salt Lake City then Long Beach is a better airport. It all depends on where you're coming from.

In essence both airports are fantastic. It just depends on where you're flying from and who is selling you tickets.

 

[JaneJetson]

I should have noted that this varies depending on the city you fly out of. There are most definitely some caveats.

1. Less direct flights into John Wayne (SNA)
2. Not all airlines fly into John Wayne (Sorry JetBlue lovers)
3. If you come in on a weekend, traffic isn't an issue with Long Beach and it will only take you an extra 10 minutes or so to use Long Beach.

John Wayne is popular because it is the closest Airport to Disneyland and many people can find cheaper flights through most airlines. Frontier, United, and American all fly from most major destinations and hit John Wayne for less if you take a connection using their hub. Frontier and United are through Denver and American through Dallas. If you prefer another carrier or travel through Phoenix or Salt Lake City then Long Beach is a better airport. It all depends on where you're coming from.

In essence both airports are fantastic. It just depends on where you're flying from and who is selling you tickets.

SNA or LAX would probably be best for the original poster since she's from Pensacola, FL. Long Beach would be more expensive and would require more stops. And if SNA and LAX are similiar in price...SNA is the way to go! Even if SNA is slightly more expensive, I think it's worth it to avoid LAX.