How many days for adults?

[proud mom]

I am planning a trip to Disneyland. It will be me and my 26 year old daughter, who has never been -- although she has been to WDW a number of times. We will be staying off property, but close by. How many days would you suggest in mid May 2025. I'm going to be in town on a business trip from May 18 to 21 and I was thinking I would come into town early to visit Disneyland.

Your thoughts appreciated.

 

[Wedgeout]

5 if can plan it to really enjoy at your own pace. 3 will pretty much still get a good visit. Wouldn’t go less than 2. At 2 you may even feel rushed and worn out by the end.

 

[disney-inspired]

I think three days is enough.

 

[disneychrista]

3 days is good. 2 days for Disneyland and 1 day for DCA.

 

[katyringo]

I'd go for 5 every trip if I could.

1 day is a nope, 2 is never enough. 3 is fair. 4 is better. 5 is great.

That's my scale.

 

[Dr. G]

3 is the minimum if you want to do all/most rides, see some shows, and go at a pretty constant pace. Less than 3 would not fly for me but you could get a good taste with 1 day at DL and 1 day a DCA. 4 gives breathing room. We prefer 5 days when we can to really absorb the atmosphere, try food, see whatever shows we want, maybe take a mid-day break from the park crowds back at the hotel, etc.

 

[kikismom]

I like 5 days personally. If we go 3 I don't watch any shows or parades. 4 I'll watch a few and 5 as many as we can fit in. I also like to take my time and we eat a sit down meal each day so I may not be the best person to answer unless you your the same way.

 

[Mle8308]

Three if buying Genie+/ILL (or whatever they are calling it in DL). Nice thing about DL is it's open LATE! But only fireworks on weekend nights when it's not summer. Definitely check the schedule if you are interested, I think it's Fri/Sat nights for fireworks. I was there Mon - Friday (left on a Friday afternoon) so we missed them. We did 3 days with GP and it was enough, however I would not have minded another day!

 

[Geemo]

I am planning a trip to Disneyland. It will be me and my 26 year old daughter, who has never been -- although she has been to WDW a number of times. We will be staying off property, but close by. How many days would you suggest in mid May 2025. I'm going to be in town on a business trip from May 18 to 21 and I was thinking I would come into town early to visit Disneyland.

Your thoughts appreciated.

Keep in mind May begins 2025 Grad Nights.
The parks will be inundated with graduating high school seniors.
Grad nights for 2025 are May 9th, 12th, 18th, 21st, 27th, 28th and 30th.
More information on grad nights can be found here.

 

[Disneyhanna]

If you're big Disney parks fans (which I assume if your daughter has done WDW multiple times), I'd say 3 days is a nice amount to be able to do things more than once. I'd compare it to spending 4-5 days at WDW. Park hoppers are a must imo. I'd say two days is still enough to do most things once if you're more casual fans but don't want to turn it into a longer trip.

 

[maleficent55]

3

 

[DLandgirlie]

Some things to consider, is this a one time opportunity trip?
What's your typical travel energy? Soak it in and go slow, or burn through as much as you can in a day?
If you like to go slow: 4 day 1 park per day vs. burn through: 2 day park hopper. Generally the more days you spend the cheaper the price per day becomes, but if money isn't a factor only time, then a 2 day park hopper is doable (with LL). You'll be tired but it is possible, imo.
Hopefully during May, there will be more entertainment parades, shows etc.

Honestly, if I'm from out of state, or out of town, and I know I won't be visiting for a looong time, I'd go with 4 days (2 days each park) This may be an unpopular opinion, but as easy as the park hopper is, I don't think it's needed for longer trips. There's something really nice about committing to one park, and exploring it as much as you can. Now, if there's grad night, yes, go ahead and park hop.

5 days is a-lot of repetitiveness imo, but this is coming from a native local, so for someone out of town, it may seem just right.

 

[fly girl]

Three is our sweet spot. Two feels rushed for a first visit. Four is a lot better than two, but by mid day four we feel it is getting repetitive.

 

[disneychrista]

Keep in mind May begins 2025 Grad Nights.
The parks will be inundated with graduating high school seniors.
Grad nights for 2025 are May 9th, 12th, 18th, 21st, 27th, 28th and 30th.
More information on grad nights can be found here.

You mean I could go for my birthday this year and avoid Grad Nights? I figured I would never be able to do that being my birthday is Mid-May. May 13-17 would be perfect. Of course no birthday trip for me this year.

 

[Howry]

3 Days is enough but I always prefer 5 so you can take things slow, do shorter days if you want to and don't feel like you are rushed to get your moneys worth.

 

[LKing]

Interesting. I find that grad nights impact my visits less than OBB nights.

 

[twodogs]

Interesting. I find that grad nights impact my visits less than OBB nights.

Agreed. We did OBB the last several years, as well as our first grad night this year, and honestly I didn't think the grad night made much difference to me at all. A few groups of teens but nothing problematic other than some yelling in line. The October crowds make May look like a dream, even with the grad night.

 

[disneychrista]

Agreed. We did OBB the last several years, as well as our first grad night this year, and honestly I didn't think the grad night made much difference to me at all. A few groups of teens but nothing problematic other than some yelling in line. The October crowds make May look like a dream, even with the grad night.

The impact I saw was mostly at how uncrowded DCA was in the morning and early afternoon. Grads didn't really seem to make much of an impact until around 3pm. And then there was the 3 hour line for Guardians around 8pm. This was a Wednesday grad night.

A Friday grad night at DL was a little more crowded and at 10pm I was over the crowds and left. Of course this could just be normal Friday night crowds and not Grad Night crowds. I just don't like crowds.

 

[Nonsuch]

…I'm going to be in town on a business trip from May 18 to 21 and I was thinking I would come into town early to visit Disneyland.

The weekend following your business trip is Memorial Day, the start of Summer schedules.
Hard to predict, but some 70th anniversary features might start in Summer.
In particular, Paint the Night might return Memorial Day weekend (although I hope it returns earlier)

 

[BrianL]

I find 3 days ideal for DLR, personally.