How Many Days for Disneyland?

[tarheelalum]

4 or 5 day park hoppers wold be what I suggest.

 

[brianerickson]

4-5 is definitely the sweet spot; last time I went for 5 and I rode all of the big rides at least 4 times each, and this was during the dog days of summer

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks for the replies. Makes me feel better. We're coming from Ontario Canada so wouldn't want to come all that way for 1 day. (We'll do other things in the area but the purpose of the trip is DL). I was thinking about it and my friend that commented they had enough after one day has younger kids, so especially their younger one only goes on x number of rides. Gonna take note too of all the shows (thanks Hydro Guy). Our family are show people so we'd want to hit them all. We saw Fantasmic at Disney World but I'm sure it's different can could always see it again. And it seems like there are lots of rides. Our plan is to come the end of August, so crowds should be less, but having said that, my DD and I love Haunted Mansion and I would back it up a week if it was still open just prior (ie so we could be dealing with crowds)

 

[ClaraOswald]

Just like most here, we like to do 5-day hoppers. We used to do 3 but that just didn't satisfy us. Especially not that we have a toddler....the more time, the better. Especially since we take afternoon breaks at the hotel. (For comparison, we do 7-8 days at WDW.)

In my opinion, hoppers are a MUST. Pull up Google maps and you can see how close the 2 parks (and Downtown Disney) are. There are also a bunch of hotels (Disney and non-Disney) within walking distance. It's so much easier to get around that at WDW.

 

[Baptist]

I'm in the 3-4 day range. It's not like DW (4 parks and soon to be 4 night-time spectaculars). You need 2 evenings to cover WOC at DCA and PTN and DL Fireworks at DL. Then, you need 1 day at DCA to see everything and 1.5 days to see everything at DL. That is only 2.5 days. Round it to 3 and hit your hotel pool mid-day.

Everything is closer in Disneyland. Attractions are closer to one another and the 2 parks are only a short walk away. This allows you to see more in a shorter time. Yes, it can be more crowded, but have you ever been to Disney World during spring break? It's crowded there too.

I understand the Disney fanatics. I'm one too! More days at Disney the better. However, trust me, 5 days is too much for the average family. Take those extra days and see other great places in Southern California.

Have a magical trip.

 

[mad hatter fan]

I'm in the 3-4 day range. It's not like DW (4 parks and soon to be 4 night-time spectaculars). You need 2 evenings to cover WOC at DCA and PTN and DL Fireworks at DL. Then, you need 1 day at DCA to see everything and 1.5 days to see everything at DL. That is only 2.5 days. Round it to 3 and hit your hotel pool mid-day.

Everything is closer in Disneyland. Attractions are closer to one another and the 2 parks are only a short walk away. This allows you to see more in a shorter time. Yes, it can be more crowded, but have you ever been to Disney World during spring break? It's crowded there too.

I understand the Disney fanatics. I'm one too! More days at Disney the better. However, trust me, 5 days is too much for the average family. Take those extra days and see other great places in Southern California.

Have a magical trip.

How much time you and your family need will depend on many things. For example, if you want, like Baptist, to have enough time to mostly see everything, 3 days may be enough. Or like my family and others who have posted, you may want 5 days so you can see everything and have time to redo favorites multiple times plus maybe have time to enjoy the little things that make Walt's park special.

 

[sheetz]

I feel 3 should be enough to do everything you want. More days if you want to do repeats or take it at a more leisurely pace.

 

[Frozen2014]

I'm in the 3-4 day range. It's not like DW (4 parks and soon to be 4 night-time spectaculars). You need 2 evenings to cover WOC at DCA and PTN and DL Fireworks at DL. Then, you need 1 day at DCA to see everything and 1.5 days to see everything at DL. That is only 2.5 days. Round it to 3 and hit your hotel pool mid-day.

Everything is closer in Disneyland. Attractions are closer to one another and the 2 parks are only a short walk away. This allows you to see more in a shorter time. Yes, it can be more crowded, but have you ever been to Disney World during spring break? It's crowded there too.

I understand the Disney fanatics. I'm one too! More days at Disney the better. However, trust me, 5 days is too much for the average family. Take those extra days and see other great places in Southern California.

Have a magical trip.

We would add some days to see sights nearby (especially since we're coming all the way from Ontario), but DL is the main reason for the trip.

 

[goooof1]

We have NEVER been to DLR for 3 days and thought that was enough or that we even saw near everything!! Even 4 days is still lacking! I can't even picture how someone could be thinking they saw/did everything in 3 days! Yes, the parks are smaller but there's about the same number of rides in the 2 parks as in all 4 in florida. Do yourself and your family a favor and relax and enjoy all that DLR has to offer and all the little details! It's amazing!

 

[snowybelle]

I was just there for my first time (LOVED it) and we had almost 3 days (arrival day, so mid afternoon until close, plus two full days) and my travel buddy and I spent almost every hour that we could in the parks. We got a LOT done, but in no way did we feel like we had done it all, and we were definitely trying to be efficient and strategic with our time. Next time I will get at least 4-day park hoppers, if not the full 5 days.

IMO 5 days would be perfect for doing "everything" and being able to take breaks and move at a very comfortable pace. Doing it in almost-3-days was super fun, but exhausting and slightly frustrating because we didn't quite accomplish all that we wanted.

 

[christygobar]

We just did 3 days (our first DL trip) and honestly I think we could have had 1 extra day. I am probably in the 4 day camp, especially for a first-timer!

 

[disneymom0104]

We miss the 6 day pass that we have done twice. Last time we went 5 days and it felt like things were cut short in some respects. At WDW we like to stay 9-10 days!

 

[BayouQueen]

I am in the 3-day league -- 1 day to include the night shows at DL, 1 to include WOC at DCA, and 1 just to not feel hurried. But after that, my family experiences Disney overload. We love it, but heads are spinning and we need a calmer environment.

 

[Baptist]

I agree with the Mad Hatter fan. It does depend on your family, mostly the ages of your kids. Our daughters are now 12 and 10 and we will be doing 3 1/2 days this June. Since our kids are a little older, we can get to the parks at rope drop and stay until close (with an afternoon trip to the pool). Plus, we don't do meet and greets anymore (except for the Disney Chase Visa one).

Also, we take full advantage of fast passes. Remember, you can hold fast passes for DL and DCA at the same time (I'm usually the fast pass runner).

Plus, we normally stay at a Disney hotel. This gives you early access to DCA. It's early, but you can do Cars Land all in the first hour!

Use the knowledge shared on this board. Through other's experiences, I have been able to maximize park time and overall enjoyment.

 

[Frozen2014]

Thank you all. It sounds like 4 days will probably be good for us, which is around what we did at Disney World (skipping Animal Kingdom) to get a full experience, see all the shows and not feeling rushes. Will definitely be posting more specific questions about show, rides, hotels, etc.

 

[justgrace]

We've done anywhere from 5 days to 12 days. We weren't bored at 12 days, because of how much there is to do there. We like to repeat rides, though. 2-3 days, IMHO, is not nearly enough to experience even half of Disneyland (for California Adventure that would be enough time, but not for Disneyland). I would say that 5-6 days is needed to really experience most of the parks once!

 

[EmmersIsTheMommy]

I thought 3 days was perfect before DCA came along. Now I don't go for less than 5.

 

[bigb83]

It really depends on the type of person you are and what you wanna do. We go every couple months and the more we go the less days we seem to take. Used to do 5 then 4 then 3 now we do quick 2 day trips every couple months and we see everything we want to see

 

[Bossy22]

I really miss the 6 day option!!! 5 just seems toooooooo short!!!

 

[mad hatter fan]

It really depends on the type of person you are and what you wanna do. We go every couple months and the more we go the less days we seem to take. Used to do 5 then 4 then 3 now we do quick 2 day trips every couple months and we see everything we want to see

This post made me think of another factor. How many days a family needs could depend on how far they live from DLR which affects how often they can get there to visit. It takes a 4 hour plane ride for us the get to DLR and we usually only get a trip to DL or WDW once every 1-2 years. That fact makes us want to squeeze as much Disney enjoyment as possible out of each trip. If we got to go a few times a year, we would probably feel differently

Oh, and we miss the 6 day option too.