How many days for Disneyland? First Visit

[Orsino]

Well technically it is my second visit, but my first visit was when I was one.

Anyway, I was lucky and scored some DVC rooms at the Grand Californian for February 2018. I have a reservation for 5 nights, but I'm not sure if that is too long or too short for a Disneyland Trip. I can drop nights, but I can not add nights (or at least it is very unlikely). How many nights do you think is a good amount? We could tack on cash rooms if added nights are warranted. We would also be interested in LA/Hollywood area tourist stuff, but I don't know what yet. That might affect how many nights we need, so suggestions on other things to do in the area would be welcome too.
Things on our To Do List:
1. Disneyland!
2. A Hollywood Studio Tour of some sort if they are available
3. suggestions welcome

Thanks!

 

[SteveMP]

Kind of depends on how much you like DL and DCA. I can easily spend 3 days straight in just DL even though i go a few times a year. I would say if you want to do other things in LA, then I would probably do 2 days in DL, 1 day in DCA, then a day doing universal studios or the WB tour and something else.

 

[mom2rtk]

We do 5 days at DLR and leave wanting more. It's really a matter of personal preference. I like having more time so we can slow down a bit.

 

[Khokhonutt]

We just returned from our first DLR trip (the last week in June). We were in the parks for 5 days and could have easily enjoyed a couple more days. That said, you may get more done in February than we did in June, due to lower crowds. Keep in mind that DLR sees more ride closures during the off season, so don't be surprised if rides are offline. Also, if fireworks are important to you, make sure you're in the parks on a weekend day. It's my understanding they only do fireworks on the weekends during the months when school is in session.

As others have stated, it's largely a matter of personal preference and touring style. We love to leave time for just wandering and enjoying the details. We also like having the option to ride our favorites multiple times. In our case, over our 5 days we rode pretty much everything we wanted to ride at least once, with a couple of minor exceptions. I can tell you we will be back, because some things were closed that I'd like to see and we just really enjoyed our trip.

If you're interested, my pre-trip report is in my signature, along with my post trip report, which I'm still working on. Good luck with your trip!

 

[tarheelalum]

5 nights is a good amount of time. February can be rainy so I wouldn't do less than 5. A chance one of two of your days could get rained out so five is a good amount.

 

[HydroGuy]

As others have said 5 days is a good length. As it will be Feb I would bet 4 days or maybe even 3 would work for you if you want to see other things. Check the Tips link in my signature for info on off-season visits and which days of the week are best. Basically you will want most or some of your days to over weekends to catch entertainment that only shows on weekends off-season.

 

[disneychrista]

For me 3 full days is right, after that it is too much. We have always did rope drop to park closing, only quick service meals and go go go the entire day. Park hopping as needed. 5-days will give you time to take is slower. Enjoy a few table service meals. Take afternoon breaks, if you want.

My next trip is going to be a 5 day non hopper (currently the same price as the 3-day hopper). I will spend mornings & evenings in the park with afternoons dedicated other obsession visiting local breweries. Not sure when this trip will be. Likely Fall/Winter 2018 or early Spring 2019.

 

[Davin_Felth]

I think it really depends on the size/type of group you're going with and the speed at which you do things.

When we take our kids, 5 days doesn't feel like enough time in the parks, we can easily spend at least a full week in there. My wife and I took a trip with just the two of us last summer (kids were gone, they still don't know) and 4 days in the park was too long because we could do things at a quicker pace.

 

[addiemon]

Are you bringing kids? If NOT, then five nights sounds like a lot to me! I've never done more than 1-2 days, even when I was DD to my own parents (though there was no DCA park back then). You may want to have some backup plans in case you find yourself ready to move on early, though if you're a fanatic then I bet you can fill the time no trouble.

If you ARE bringing kids-- I'm not a parent myself, but I imagine having the extra time to be able to say "_______ is too tired and grump to do any more today" without missing out on stuff sounds pretty nice!

And if you find yourself looking for stuff to do: a day trip down to San Diego could be fun, if you've got a car. I've heard Universal Studios is great (got any Harry Potter fans in your group?). And definitely check to see if there are any cool movie, art, theater, etc. events that interest you, as the Hollywood area is full of 'em.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

PPs are correct that this is totally up to personal preference, touring style, and your group size/age/needs/etc. We could easily do 5 days every time and still want more, but we enjoy a leisurely pace. Taking the time to see shows, parades, live music, etc. is a big part of our day. Be prepared that February may not be a slow time or low crowds. This last Feb. was very crowded for some reason. Shorter hours and ride closures added to that feeling. In that case, having more days could really help.

 

[Orsino]

Thanks for all the replies. I realize it is very much a personal preference thing, but I'm glad to know your input so I can put things into perspective. I didn't want to we wildly off in the length of our stay and it looks like 5 Nights is a good base. Now I just have to figure out how many days I want to be Disney and how many I want to do non-Disney. We are 2 adults so dragging kids around won't be an issue.

The tip about weekend fireworks is a good one. I hadn't thought about that. We are going M-Sat so will have a Friday Night, but no Saturday or Sunday Nights. I want to see World Of Color since that isn't available at WDW. I also want to see Fantasmic! since I hear it is better at DL than at WDW. I think that's it for Night Time Shows, Yes? (Don't need to see MSEP)

 

[peachiepie]

I think whether you are bringing kids is a big thing. Last year we did a trip that was two and a half days (the half was a Halloween party), we got everything on our must-do list done, but we were pretty park-commando about it. If we'd had kids we would def need more time. We're going back soon and I've got a 5-day ticket, although we won't getting there until the afternoon of the first day.
I think it's one of those places that you can spend as much or as little time as you want.
Staying at the Grand Californian will be amazing!

 

[Khokhonutt]

If you haven't seen it yet, I'd highly recommend HydroGuy's A DLR Guide for WDW Vets. It'll give you a bunch of good info, since it sounds like you're a WDW vet. I'd highly recommend World of Color. We loved it and saw it twice on our trip. We really liked the fireworks as well, since they gave us potentially one last taste of Wishes. Fantasmic! was not back online for us to see, so I can't speak to that.

 

[22Tink]

It's such an individual preference and what works for your family. We always do 5 day hoppers and I'm still not ready to leave! There's just so much to see and do and I just love being in the parks.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... The tip about weekend fireworks is a good one. I hadn't thought about that. We are going M-Sat so will have a Friday Night, but no Saturday or Sunday Nights. I want to see World Of Color since that isn't available at WDW. I also want to see Fantasmic! since I hear it is better at DL than at WDW. I think that's it for Night Time Shows, Yes? (Don't need to see MSEP)

Be aware that F! is also affected by the low season schedule. So during low season, fireworks and F! only show Fri.-Sun. During high season they show every night, with F! usually having 2 shows per night. It is not uncommon for fireworks to get cancelled at DL (due to winds at higher elevations and fire safety issues), so it would be better if you could give yourself more than 1 chance to see them. That way you'll have a back-up night to view them. WOC shows every night, unless it's being refurbed, but with only 1 show per night during low season. MSEP is leaving Aug. 20th. There is a rumor that PTN will be returning to DCA as the nighttime parade. If this is true, that parade is worth watching.

 

[Jedi Mouse]

I just spent 8 straight days in the park (to be fair two were half days and one was only for 1.5 hours) and I'm contemplating going this weekend just to ease the withdrawals...

I would say three days is the absolute minimum, four days is better and five is ideal.

 

[HydroGuy]

Thanks for all the replies. I realize it is very much a personal preference thing, but I'm glad to know your input so I can put things into perspective. I didn't want to we wildly off in the length of our stay and it looks like 5 Nights is a good base. Now I just have to figure out how many days I want to be Disney and how many I want to do non-Disney. We are 2 adults so dragging kids around won't be an issue.

The tip about weekend fireworks is a good one. I hadn't thought about that. We are going M-Sat so will have a Friday Night, but no Saturday or Sunday Nights. I want to see World Of Color since that isn't available at WDW. I also want to see Fantasmic! since I hear it is better at DL than at WDW. I think that's it for Night Time Shows, Yes? (Don't need to see MSEP)

THis may help:

"What You Should Know About Off-Season at DLR" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=18462889