Oh well welcome to the
Disneyland fanatic area on the board. You have come to the right place to ask the questions. First off thats so exciting your getting to experience DL now and are going to be able to compare and experience so many new things.
I need to ask a few questions first...
1) Are you going anywhere else besides DL? Do you want to go to Sandiego Zoo, Sea World, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc?
2) How long do you plan on staying?
3) Are you on a budget for hotels?
Ok well on with what I can tell you... Bare with me
:
Airports & Shuttles:
The closest one to Disneyland is John Wayne (SNA) or there is the Las Angeles (LAX) which is about a half hour or so drive from Disneyland. Some people like to fly into LA which is sometimes cheaper. I myself like to save some time and fly into the John Wayne
As for Shuttles both airports have the Disneyland express bus that will take you to DL or there is taxi, or my favorite "Super Shuttle" the cost from John Wayne is $11 per adult one way from Airport to your hotel, and you can also get Super Shuttle to pick you up at your hotel the day you leave and take you back to the air port for another $11 per adult.
Disneyland Park & Passes:
Disneyland can be seen in about 4-5 days as everything is so compact and close together, even down town Disney. Insted of walking like 5 min to DTD at WDW you can walk out of Disneyland gates and its about 100 feet to your right.
As for passes, there are many places to get them. I dont recommend the Disney stores as they are pricey, the gates are the same thing. I would look into
AAA, Costco, or my favorite place
www.getawaytoday.com the tickets there are wicked cheap and over a 3 day pass comes with an early entry.
Hotels:
Unlike WDW there are only 3 resort hotels at DL: The Grand Californian, Paradise Pier, and the Disneyland Hotel. If you are willing to spend the cash and stay at a resort, any of those are fabulous. BUT if your are on a budget then walking distance on the strip just outside of Disneyland are a bunch of great hotels with much cheaper rates, and some being even closer then the Disneyland parking lot. The fav strip hotels that are mentioned frequently on Disboards is : Howard Johnson, Carousel Inn and Suites, Camelot, Tropicana, Park Place Inn, Park Vue, Desert Inn and Suites.
Check out this link which gives you the map of the hotels:
http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/DisneylandLinkMap
Where it says "Entrance Plaza" on the map is the cross walk from the hotels that take you right into Disneyland. Staying on the strip I prefer much better because some of those are even closer then the resort hotels, and when your tired, need a break or want to go back to the hotel and change or swim, its an easy walk of about 5 -10 minutes max.
Shuttles for hotels:
The hotels that are not on the strip, nor are the resort hotels do have transportation to the park. Its called ART (Anaheim Resort Transportation). Its $3 a day per person to take the bus to Disneyland and the busses run about every 20 minutes. I do not care for the ART very much personally because the busses hardly are ever on time and if they are full they bypass you and you have to wait another 20 minutes. The busses stop running for an hour around 1:00 for lunch break, and will stop running an hour after the park closes. When you want to wander DTD after park closing, its hard to catch a shuttle especially if its full. Then you have to walk, take a cab or something back to your hotel. Also when you want to go back to your hotel mid day you have to wait for the bus to come pick you up at the Disneyland bus loop, drop off people along the way and then you have to wait for it to pick you up at your hotel later. Its more hassel then its worth. But thats my opinion. Others love it. So the Harbor strip is recommended as its walking distance.
Getting Around without a car:
If you would like to go to Universal, Sandiego Zoo, Sea World etc. I HIGHLY recommend Gray Line
http://www.coachamerica.com/citypages/index.cfm/location/anaheim
If you buy your tickets through them it comes with bus transportation. The prices may seem slightly higher on the Gray Line bus link then buying tix else where, but thats cause your paying for $10 round trip bus fair as well. Its still cheaper then paying for taxi etc. The bus picks you up from your hotel, drives you to that park, picks you up at the end of the day and will take you right back to your hotel. Its fabulous. With Gray Line they have many different locations to visit so I would check it out.
Dining
There are loads of places to eat at DL. The prices in the park have gone up slightly but here is the link to the updated prices and menus
http://www.allearsnet.com/dlr/din/menu/menus.htm
Some restaraunts require you to make priority seating. Some of those restaraunts are: Blue Bayou, Cafe Orleans, Plaza Inn Minnie & Friends breakfast, Ariels Grotto, Wine Country Trattoria, Vineyard room, Goofy's Kitchen, Napa Rose, Story Tellers Cafe.
Disney Dining reservation number: 781-3463
If you dont eat in the park the restaraunts that I LOVE are the Rain Forest Cafe in DTD, or for the Sports fanatic the ESPN sports bar. Or on the strip by the hotels there are also loads of places to eat such as Ihop, Mimi's, Tony Romas, Quiznos, McDonalds, Millies, Denny's.
If you are into pirates or knights in shining armor, then I would definately recommend either the Pirates show or the Medieval Times dinner and tournament. Gray Line bus has the tix and transportation for those.
My Favorite time to Go:
My favorite time to go is the first week of June. The weather is amazing, the schools are still in, the park is open late every night till 11:00 DL 8:00 DCA on Week Days & 12:00am DL and 9:00 on weekends, apposed to DL closing at 8:00pm on off season. Most shows are up and running (Fantasmic, electrical parade etc), and if there were any big ride referbs the chances are they wont be happening during this time.
