HELP - Never been before and only have one day...

[Orion33]

Like the title says I have the grand total of ONE day to spend in Disneyland California - I'm staying in a Hostel in Hollywood and intend to get the metro there. it's the 2nd weekend in June I'll be there so prob the saturday or sunday.

Never been before and only have however long I have to stay there according to the metro schedule... so lets say 1 day.

What would you reccomend I do? I practically live in Disneyland Resort Paris so know what to expect from a park, but what rides are an absolute must - what can I discount due to waiting times, what shows would you reccomend how much can one do in a day there?? and what's this about there being two parks?? I just thought there was one but the othe looks more like a traditional funfair...reccomend?

All help very much appreciated

 

[McCall]

You are right California Adventure park is more of a traditional amusement park for the most part.
I would do Disneyland first. Do Pirates for sure, Haunted mansion Matterhorn
really depends on what sort of things you like.

 

[DizNee Luver]

You can do & see quite a bit in one day, but definately have a plan in mind when you step thru the gates. Make sure to take advantage of the fastpasses. Do Pirates of the Carribean, Indiana Jones, Splash Mt, & Space Mt for sure......there are tons more that we feel are a must, but look thru the stickys on the top of these forums & research all you can, so you can have an idea of what you really want to see & do. Yes, plan on some lines but it will still be doable.
Have fun planning!!! Hope you have a memorable day at Disneyland!!

 

[Mike_M]

There are a couple ways of looking at it. Read the DLR for WDW sticky since in a way, that is the closest kind of experience to what you have being a DLP regular.

The E-Ticket rides are quite different from the ones at DLP (Pirates, Haunted Mansion(Phantom Manor), Space Mtn, Big Thunder) and for many, seeing the difference is fun. There are also a few rides that don't exist in Paris that would be fun to experience (Jungle Cruise, Nemo Subs (Long line), Mr. Toad, Indiana Jones (Completly different that the DLP one), Splash Mtn).

You'll have a great time. You should do a trip report afterwards. It would be cool to hear what a DLP vet thought of DLR their 1st time.

 

[Hound 109]

Like the title says I have the grand total of ONE day to spend in Disneyland California - I'm staying in a Hostel in Hollywood and intend to get the metro there. it's the 2nd weekend in June I'll be there so prob the saturday or sunday.

Never been before and only have however long I have to stay there according to the metro schedule... so lets say 1 day.

What would you reccomend I do? I practically live in Disneyland Resort Paris so know what to expect from a park, but what rides are an absolute must - what can I discount due to waiting times, what shows would you reccomend how much can one do in a day there?? and what's this about there being two parks?? I just thought there was one but the othe looks more like a traditional funfair...reccomend?

All help very much appreciated

I very much agree with the posters above. Lots to see & definitely have a plan. If at all possible get there 30 - 40 minutes prior to opening.

Weekends are crowded so it's best to zig when others are zaggin & of course use FP properly. I would print a couple of Maps of DL & DCA & read the following links thoroughly (Hopefully S.S. Columbia will post his great MAP links):

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=885132

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1107718

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1491961

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1975805

& here are the rest of HydroGuy's tip links....all are worth a read:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1520483


After reading these links, you'll probably have specific questions on how to best tour DLR in one day (based on your preferences).

Have a great time planning a visit to Walt's Park.

 

[S. S. Columbia]

... Hopefully S.S. Columbia will post his great MAP links) ...

Maps ahoy!

DL
http://adisneyland.disney.go.com/media/dlr_v0200/en_US/map/images/DLPLowbandMap.pdf

DCA
http://adisneyland.disney.go.com/media/dlr_v0200/en_US/map/images/DCALowbandMap.pdf

DL (Wikimapia)
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=33.8125464&lon=-117.9182768&z=17&l=0&m=a&v=2

DL (Virtual Earth from Microsoft)
http://local.live.com/default.aspx?...t=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=6773065&encType=1

Parking and Transportation
http://adisneyland.disney.go.com/media/dlr_v0200/en_US/map/images/ParkingLowbandMap.pdf

Good Neighbor Hotels (this map may be somewhat out of date)
http://adisneyland.disney.go.com/media/dlr_v0200/en_US/map/images/GNHLowbandMap.pdf

Guest Services*
http://adisneyland.disney.go.com/media/dlr_v0200/en_US/map/images/GuestServicesLowbandMap.pdf

* Guest Services: ATMs, Baby Centers, First Aid, Kennel, Lockers, Lost & Found, Smoking Areas, Stroller Rentals, Typewriter Phones

DLR Map (official web-site)
http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/map/map?bhcp=1

WillCAD (DL, DCA, DTD, DLR Hotels, Pirates Lair):
www.willcad.org/disney_maps.shtml#dlr

Pirates Lair
http://www.willcad.org/maps/dlr/misc/2008-03/dlr_pirates_2008-03_front.jpg

WillCAD (Theme Park Maps)
www.willcad.org/disney_maps.shtml

Old Theme Park maps (old DL maps)
http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/mainmaps.html#ad

HTH

Like the title says I have the grand total of ONE day to spend in Disneyland California - I'm staying in a Hostel in Hollywood and intend to get the metro there. it's the 2nd weekend in June I'll be there so prob the saturday or sunday.

Never been before and only have however long I have to stay there according to the metro schedule... so lets say 1 day.

What would you reccomend I do? I practically live in Disneyland Resort Paris so know what to expect from a park, but what rides are an absolute must - what can I discount due to waiting times, what shows would you reccomend how much can one do in a day there?? and what's this about there being two parks?? I just thought there was one but the othe looks more like a traditional funfair...reccomend?

All help very much appreciated

 

[fairycat]

While I agree that you can do the park in one day I seriously worry about how much time train travel will eat from your day. I wonder if maybe some one knows of a Bus Tour that might make it easier for the OP to get to the parks and have more time to enjoy them.

 

[avalon451]

However you get there, get there early, at least a half-hour before the gates open.

The guidebook, "The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland" has a pretty good one-day itinerary, kind of a "Do it All or Bust" thing that gets all the major attractions in, in an order to keep the wait times to a minimum. You can usually find the guide at your local library, and it's ok if it's not this year's guide-- they don't change too much from year to year. Just copy the one-page itinerary out of the back. It has a lot of great tips, too.

 

[Orion33]

thank you so much everyone for these; plenty of food for thought

 

[MichaelColey]

You might also consider using RideMaxx to plan out your day. There are some reviews of it here.