Help me plan for September

[MommyMissy]

My family and I will be at DL 9/11-9/13 and possibly return 9/16 for Halloween time. I am trying to finalize some of the itenerary. Our group consists of myself (29) DH (29) DS1 (4 1/2), DS2 (almost 3), DD (almost 1), and my sister (30, and a SOCal resident) We want to do fireworks and F! so that will have to be on the 11th, we are also thinking of doing Goofy's Kitchen this night. Will we have time to fully enjoy it before heading to the fireworks? DS2 LOVES Mickey and says that Minnie is his GF! LOL so I am debating between the Surf's Up breakfast or Minnie's breakfast. We are staying at Sheraton Garden Grove but my sister has class the morning of the 12th so we are thinking breakfast will be on the 13th. If we eat at Minnie's will we possibly get into the park earlier even without the MM passes? How long does a character breakfast usually take? Am I correct in thinking that Mickey will only be at the Surfs Up breakfast? Any insight on which character breakfast to choose would be appreciated. I have read all of HydroGuy's tips and want to take full advantage of fastpass and get on as many rides as possible. Is FP really neccesary on the days we will be there? I was thinking to do DL on the 11th & DCA on the 13th. Not real sure about the 12th though. My sister won't be joining us until about 2 that day and has offered to keep the kids at the hotel that evening so my DH and I can have some time at the parks or Downtown Disney if we want. So..how would you plan your time if you were me? I have a few other random questions too...
Would Ridemax or Touringplans.com be helpful for our trip? Do you recommend one over the other? There are a few things (Disney Dance Crew, Phinneus & Ferb show) that are not showing on the calendar, does this mean that they will not be offered while we are there, or they just not posted yet?
Sorry this is so lengthy but I do appreciate any help I can get. Thank you

 

[HydroGuy]

There is a good chance that on Monday-Thursday FP will not be open for some of the rides - which is what happens in offseason. Will FP be necessary? There is a good chance it will not be. I would get them anyways just in case for the rides that have them.

Would RM or TP help? Again, probably not. But maybe. Depends on how much security you feel like you need.

 

[Sherry E]

Goofy's Kitchen opens for dinner at 5 p.m. All character meals have a 90-minute time limit. You could get the earliest seating for dinner and then head on over to DL with plenty of time for fireworks - that should work out okay.

Yes, the only character meal where Mickey appears is Surf's Up at the Paradise Pier. Minnie appears at her own breakfast, of course, but she is also sometimes at Goofy's Kitchen and at Surf's Up, so you may see her at more than one meal.

Lots of folks report being able to get into DL before it opens if they have a reservation at Minnie's, but I think the earliest time slot for Minnie & Friends differs, depending on when the park opens on any given day. This is one reason why the hotel character meals may be a good option - at least you know they all open at the same time every day (7 a.m.).

Minnie & Friends has the most characters out of all the meals - anywhere from 8 to 14 characters. The food gets mixed reviews. Goofy's Kitchen has a huge buffet and the widest variety of food, along with anywhere from 5 - 8 characters. Surf's Up with Mickey has been getting rave reviews for both character interaction (anywhere from 4 - 6 characters) and food (a smaller buffet than Goofy's, but has some interesting items mixed in with regular breakfast food).

 

[MommyMissy]

Thank you both sooo much!

I suppose it will not hurt to get ridemax just in case, I like to be prepared just in case.
Sherry, that is exactly the info I was looking for! I think we will do GK on Sunday and Surfs Up on Tuesday morning.

Can anyone answer my other questions? TIA

 

[JH87]

How cute that your DS2 thinks Minnie is is GF! I can kinda help with the character breakfast question. I just did the Minnie and Friends breakfast last week on a MM day without MM access on my ticket. (I have an AP). So yes, you can make reservations during MM time that way it doesn't cut into park time. Since it's off season, I believe the parks open at 10am on weekdays? So MM would be at 9. I loved this place for the character interaction. I think the allotted time they give you for the meal is 90 mins.

i thought the food was ok. Waffles, french toast, assorted pastries like muffins and danishes, cold cereal, eggs, omelets, fruit.... Honestly I barely ate because the characters just kept coming! It was me and my friend, both in our 20s, and we got excellent interaction. It was so fun to watch families with the younger kids because they got even better interaction! We saw Tigger, Eeyore, Minnie, Hook, Fairy Godmother, Max, Chip and Dale, and Rafiki. We only stayed for one hour and the same characters kept coming by multiple times. It was a lot of fun. It's also one of the less expensive options for character dining. Plus you are right there in the park, so right after your done you don't have to walk very far!

I have also heard that Mickey can only be found at Surf's Up but, you always have a guarantee of seeing him at his house in Toon Town as well.

I will also being making my first Sept off-season visit the week after you. I have done a January off-season visit and it was great. We only used FP maybe twice, and really didn't even need to. But if you like that extra bit of planning you can do one of those planning websites, although DLR is really pretty empty during off season so it's not needed too much. The only busy day would be Sept 16.

As far as the Disney Dance Crew and Phinneus & Ferb show, i don't know. You might wanna call them, or wait because the website usually doesn't update all the entertainment info too far in advanced.

Be prepared for ride closures: Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain closed until Sept 16 (if you decide to return on the 16th this should be no big deal), Pirates closed until November, and California Screamin, closed until Oct 14.

 

[MommyMissy]

Thank you! I can't wait to see the character interaction with my kids!

How far is Goofy's Kitchen and Surfs Up from the park? Do we walk from the resturants or take a shuttle?

 

[Sherry E]

Thank you! I can't wait to see the character interaction with my kids!

How far is Goofy's Kitchen and Surfs Up from the park? Do we walk from the resturants or take a shuttle?

The walks are easy. No need for a shuttle. From the Disneyland Hotel (where Goofy's Kitchen is), you would simply just walk straight through Downtown Disney, to the gates of either Disneyland or California Adventure.

Surf's Up with Mickey at the PPH is across the street. So you would take the "short cut":

From Downtown Disney, turn left into the Grand Californian Hotel. Follow the signs to the lobby/check-in area of the GCH, and walk straight through the lobby and out the front sliding door and then past the valet area.

Once you exit the GCH, veer to the left and walk down the tree-lined path to the crosswalk at Disneyland Drive. At the cross walk you will see the Paradise Pier Hotel directly across the street, and the PCH Grill (where Surf's Up is located) is right on the corner.

To get back to Downtown Disney, just cross the street from the PPH and go back through the GCH.

It sounds like it will take much longer than it actually takes, but when you see where you're going and how close the GCH is to the PPH and vice versa, you will realize how short of a jaunt it is! Easy peasy!

Have fun! I hope you enjoy your character meals and your trip to DLR!