HELP! Parking/security/timing Questions

[gsrieff]

SO MANY QUESTIONS!

• We will be driving from Fountain Valley, which google says is a 26 minute drive. I don't know California roads or California driving...should I assume that the drive will take double that?
• Is pre-purchasing parking passes online a time saver? should i do that?
• I know Mickey and Friends opens 90 minutes prior to park opening (so 7:30am in this case) BUT can we show up early and wait in a line for it to open? Is there a place for cars to wait?
• How long is does it take to get from parking lot to security check?
• When do the security lines open up?
• How long can upgrading a PH to an AP at the ticket windows take?

Basically trying to figure out what time we have to leave the house to be at the turnstiles for rope drop! My initial thought is 6:30 am (2 1/2 hours before park opening)...but that's just a complete guess.

TIA!

 

[figment_jii]

In terms of the upgrade, I would wait to do that until later in the day or at some point when you have a bit of time. It depends on how many people you are trying to upgrade tickets for, but I would allot about 30-45 minutes to get it done for a family of four because they have to enter the information for each person individually. It probably won't take that long, but ticket window lines can be long and it can be a time consuming process. So rather than do that, then try to get into the park and risk missing opening, I would do the upgrade at some point in the day when you're passing by the ticket booths and the line looks short.

 

[T0rrent]

California traffic is about as predictable as the weather. I'd say give yourself 45-60 minutes for driving. I'm not sure about lining up for Mickey and friends parking as I've never gotten there that early before.

 

[gsrieff]

In terms of the upgrade, I would wait to do that until later in the day or at some point when you have a bit of time. It depends on how many people you are trying to upgrade tickets for, but I would allot about 30-45 minutes to get it done for a family of four because they have to enter the information for each person individually. It probably won't take that long, but ticket window lines can be long and it can be a time consuming process. So rather than do that, then try to get into the park and risk missing opening, I would do the upgrade at some point in the day when you're passing by the ticket booths and the line looks short.

That makes total sense! I'm only doing one PH to AP. Just for myself. How much time does that save? The other thing is, my sister doesn't have a ticket yet at all, so I was going to just stand in line and do it with her, while she bought hers. Should she get an online print out ticket instead, so I can upgrade later in the day? or is the exchange from of her print out to actual ticket at the gates cancelling out the time saving? I will also add, we have a mid morning ADR at Carnation..i would like to get the AP discount off of that meal if I can.

I have to say, I just love these forums boards. I dont know how anyone does Disney without them. I'm so thankful for ALL of the information and/or advice I've received over the past few years.

 

[figment_jii]

If your sister purchases her ticket online from Disneyland.com, she can take the print out directly to the ticket gate and they'll exchange it for the credit card sized ticket right there. How many days is she going for? If you pre-purchase a 3-day or longer ticket from Disneyland.com, she'll be eligible for one Magic Morning. Tickets purchased at the ticket booths do not include this perk.

I don't have a good sense of how long one upgrade would take; it always seems like a pretty lengthy process when I've done it with my family, so I'd still allow at least 15 minutes from when you get to the ticket window to when you're done.

 

[gsrieff]

If your sister purchases her ticket online from Disneyland.com, she can take the print out directly to the ticket gate and they'll exchange it for the credit card sized ticket right there. How many days is she going for? If you pre-purchase a 3-day or longer ticket from Disneyland.com, she'll be eligible for one Magic Morning. Tickets purchased at the ticket booths do not include this perk.

I don't have a good sense of how long one upgrade would take; it always seems like a pretty lengthy process when I've done it with my family, so I'd still allow at least 15 minutes from when you get to the ticket window to when you're done.

we are only going for a quick last minute two day trip. so no MM either way. Thanks for the info, I'll talk to her and see what she would rather do!

 

[Imdboss]

I just upgraded my PH to an AP on my last trip. It took less than 10 min, I did stand in line for about 10 min also. That was around 11:30 on a Wed. Pre purchasing parking won't really save time once you enter the garage because all lanes go past the payment booth (unless there's some other area I'm not aware of). The lines do move quickly, they are very efficient in there! If the tram lines look really long when you first walk up just go down a bit, might find shorter lines. We had to wait for 3 trams (maybe 4) before we could get on and then picked the slowest security line so it took us 40 min to get from parking thru security. We were much more efficient on day 2 lol.

 

[Imdboss]

One other thing....are you upgrading to an AP level that includes parking? If so just show them your receipt at the ticket booth when you upgrade and you'll get your parking refunded.

 

[gsrieff]

One other thing....are you upgrading to an AP level that includes parking? If so just show them your receipt at the ticket booth when you upgrade and you'll get your parking refunded.

Thank you for your posts! Hearing about your timing is very helpful. I'm just getting the deluxe AP, so no parking.

 

[Angrose]

Here's what I would do: have your sister buy her ticket online so she can take her printout right to the turnstiles. 9am rope drops tend to be busy. When you get to the Esplanade, send your sister to the gates to get in line while you check out the ticket booth situation. If the lines at the booths aren't bad then maybe you can quickly switch your ticket to an AP then join your sister in line. If it's too busy then both of you should go straight to the gates and you can figure out a time to take care of the AP later. To be honest, the AP would only save you $3 or $4 off your breakfast. To me that's not worth it to miss valuable morning park time. Last month I went to the booths to upgrade to an AP at around 1:30 when I was hopping over to DCA anyway and it went very quickly.

 

[Airplanes]

FWIW Google Maps is usually very accurate about driving times here. You can adjust the departure/arrival time for a better estimate of traffic during those times. 45-60 min driving time from Fountain Valley would be during a heavy traffic period like morning rush hour, you shouldn't expect that if you're leaving at 6:30 am.

 

[gsrieff]

Here's what I would do: have your sister buy her ticket online so she can take her printout right to the turnstiles. 9am rope drops tend to be busy. When you get to the Esplanade, send your sister to the gates to get in line while you check out the ticket booth situation. If the lines at the booths aren't bad then maybe you can quickly switch your ticket to an AP then join your sister in line. If it's too busy then both of you should go straight to the gates and you can figure out a time to take care of the AP later. To be honest, the AP would only save you $3 or $4 off your breakfast. To me that's not worth it to miss valuable morning park time. Last month I went to the booths to upgrade to an AP at around 1:30 when I was hopping over to DCA anyway and it went very quickly.

Strategy...I like it!

 

[Jaylens Papa]

You can wait at Mickey and Friends . You will be waiting on the bottom level of the lot so no sunshine. There is no fast pass line for parking so you still have to wait your turn whether you have a pre paid pass or not.
Also keep in mind, some times of the day M & F is closed and they reroute you to Toy Story. You don't know til you get close. To avoid this, Look for the green arrows on the flyover. If it's open, use it and you go directly to the M & F lot. Stay in the left lane coming off the freeway.
Also, the M & F lot is big. You could get parked quite a ways from the escalators. It could be a pretty long hike. I would figure a good hour from parking, tram ride and security.

 

[gsrieff]

In terms of the upgrade,

...just triple checking on the PH to AP upgrade...I can use disney gift cards to pay the difference, correct? I assumed I could, because that's how I initially bought our PH's. I already have the money set aside on a card, so I sure hope so!

 

[DLgal]

From Fountain Valley, give yourself ONE HOUR from the time you leave your house until you are at the park entry gates. I would actually just recommend parking at the Toy Story lot since you are coming in from the south. Accessing M&F requires overshooting the park, exiting Lincoln Ave and then taking Manchester back to the flyover ramp entrance because the M&F structure will NOT be open to guests entering from Ball Rd at that time. The TS lot is smaller and the walk to the buses is shorter than from most places in M&F to the tram. The bus ride is less than 5 min and will drop you right at the security check.

Security early in the morning is always very quick.

Leave your house no more than one hour before park opening time, unless you enjoy just standing around waiting.

I drive to the parks from Irvine every single week. I am always IN the park less than an hour from the time I physically leave my house, which is about the same distance as FV is to DL. Usually, it is a 30-40 min thing.

 

[gsrieff]

The bus ride is less than 5 min and will drop you right at the security check.

really helpful information, thank you! This is probably a silly question, but does the bus for the TS lot to security cost money? Is it like ART that has a daily fee?

 

[DLgal]

really helpful information, thank you! This is probably a silly question, but does the bus for the TS lot to security cost money? Is it like ART that has a daily fee?

No, its a free shuttle operated by Disney.

 

[row]

I would wait until later in the day to upgrade your ticket. The booths usually have a super short or no line later in the afternoon/evening. If for whatever reason your sister does not want to purchase her ticket online, other stores like Safeway and the Disney store sell them as well. You can go straight to the gate with those tickets.

 

[PHXscuba]

I drive from Huntington Beach, which is just farther than Fountain Valley going to Disneyland. I would agree with the "allow one hour" for total time from leaving the house to standing at the turnstiles.

If you are going to use Toy Story, be aware that the buses from there don't start running until one hour before regular park opening (so 8:00 in your case). If you want to be at DL extra-early, I think the Mickey garage may still be a better option. That early, you'll likely park next to the garage closer to the trams (Pinocchio). My goal is always to be getting on a tram/shuttle one hour before park opening.

I believe security opens 30 minutes before the EMH, so probably by 7:30. It should move quickly if you arrive between 8/8:30.

DO NOT wait at a ticket booth first thing that morning. Have your sister buy her ticket online, even if it's the night before. If you have time before your breakfast, maybe. But that first hour is golden and probably not worth the few dollars saved as others have pointed out.

Kudos to you for planning ahead. Being there early makes such a difference. I tell friends they can get more done in the first hour than all afternoon!

PHXscuba