danceintherain
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2007
I have only been once before in May 2019, when I decided I want to take all my kids on Mommy and Me trips. My Dad attended a conference at the Hilton Anaheim, so I decided to tag along. My thoughts.....
Airport - SNA - John Wayne
We flew into LAX the last time, and I much preferred SNA. It's just easier. We had a 7:55AM flight, and if we had been going to LAX, we would have had to practically leave to drive right after we left the parks the night before. For SNA, we woke up at about 5:30AM, walked to the car around 6AM, made the 30ish minute drive with one wrong turn detour, and were through security by 7AM (probably a little bit earlier). The gate was right there, so we had time to grab some breakfast pastries, before boarding our plane. My Dad did have a rental car, and handled our transportation to/from the airport, but I'll definitely be balancing out the costs for SNA in the future.
Hotel - The Hilton Anaheim is definitely a conference hotel. It's nice because there's a sit down restaurant (we didn't try it) and a few counter service type restaurants. We would have tried the pool bar, except it closed at 5 on Sunday, and I didn't realize that was going to happen. It's only open on the "weekend." DS got a slice of pizza at Crave pizza for about $8, and didn't complain. We got quesadillas at Coastal Mexican Grill and they were good. Big and came with chips, guac and sour cream for $15.
Everything was about as expensive in the hotel as it was at the parks, so we ended up stopping at CVS on the way back one day for water and Dr. Pepper. The difference was like $3 for a gallon of water vs $4 for a liter. If we hadn't been up for that stop, then I would have dealt with the hotel prices, so it's nice the options are there.
The room was clean. The hotel is enormous though. We ended up being on the 11th floor facing East toward the pool (Room 11414) and probably would have been able to see some fireworks if we had ever been in the room at that point. A west or north facing room would have had a better view, but I wasn't there when my Dad checked in and didn't tell him to request anything in advance.
It did end up being further from the parks than we wanted to walk. I probably would have done it alone, but DS is pokey. In the future, I'll probably try to be within a half mile of the esplanade, but won't obsess over it if we get a good deal further afield.
The ART buses - I was happy with the service. We only waited more than about 10 minutes once, because we tried to get on the "wrong" bus first. The Hilton Anaheim is on the Grand Plaza route. The whole loop takes about 20 minutes, so if you just miss a bus it could take as long as walking, but you're not walking. There is very limited seating in the waiting area, but this was only really a problem late at night. We did the $16 3-day pass, which was reasonable for two people. If I was going with my whole family, I'd have to really balance the difference between paying for the bus for 6 people vs just reserving a closer room.
The lines....
We bought Genie+ on May 1. I tried the FISHing trick for Lightning Lane Experience Passes, and couldn't get it to work, so that was frustrating, but we did everything we wanted to do. We bought Individual Lightning Lane for Rise of the Resistance and Radiator Springs. The former because it was new to me. The latter because it's my favorite and I wanted to ride with DS for his first ride. We started at DL arriving at about 7:30 and they were already letting people in. I stopped at a podium to ask about rides that were rumored to be down at opening, but she just said there would probably be an announcement at park opening. There wasn't.
This is probably in the FAQ, but in order to book Genie+ you have to have a payment method saved. We were standing next to someone who was having trouble with it and my Dad suggested this solution.
We waited at the rope closest to Frontierland, so we could do Thunder Mountain first. There were a TON of people heading that direction, but most of them continued on to ROTR. We did Stand By, because I was trying to FISH for experience passes unsuccessfully. Both Indiana Jones and Haunted Mansion were down, but I guess they came back up too fast. My Dad also didn't understand what I was doing, and he was the one who paid for Genie+ so I didn't push too hard. I don't remember what we did next, but the lines weren't very long, and we got LL as needed.
We did
Thunder Mountain
Indiana Jones
Millennium Falcon
Rise of the Resistance
The Matterhorn
Space Mountain
Star Tours
Buzz Lightyear
Lunch at Bengal BBQ. Really good, but each skewer is very small. It was fine, because I ordered the breadstick for DS and I do share and we got ice cream after, but next time I'll probably order 2 skewers per person.
We hopped right at 1PM and there were quite a few people moving over to DCA with us.
We did Soarin
Radiator Springs Racers
My Dad also did Guardians of the Galaxy and Incredicoaster. We got a Lightning Lane for Monster's Inc while my Dad did Guardians, but DS didn't want to do it. I got a Bacon Mac and Cheese cone from the Cozy Cone, but it was really too hot out for me to enjoy it properly. It just felt heavy. They had ONLY mobile order there, which was frustrating, because when we walked up DS said he wanted a drink, but there wasn't the option to add to my order. Fortunately, the churro cone had an immediate order time, but I still had to put the order in, then wait in line to pick it up. Super cute concept, but a central order pick up location would likely be more efficient.
By this point, DS and I were tired, and my Dad needed to get back to the hotel to check in to his conference.
DS wanted to go to the pool, so I took him for about an hour. It's a decent size. The loungers were more crowded with sunbathers than the pool was crowded with swimmers. There's a splash zone too, which is fun.
We went back to Disneyland after my nap. I don't remember exactly what we did, but we had Thunder Mountain and Matterhorn lightning lanes left. I also remember doing Star Tours.
I tried for World of Color virtual line, but forgot to check right at noon, and they were all gone by 12:10.
Day 2
We had Disneyland reservations again, so that's where we went. I decided to skip Genie+ and it went well. I made DS do the slow rides with me in the morning. I love Alice and Peter Pan in particular. Peter Pan had a 30 minute wait, since we weren't at the head of the pack at Rope Drop, but everything else was under 20 minutes. I wanted to head over to the Pirate's Lair, but we didn't end up fitting that in. DS wanted to do his favorites again - Matterhorn, Thunder Mountain, Millennium Falcon and Star Tours. This was our earliest return for a break, because we had a Lamplight Lounge ADR at 5PM and I did manage to get WOC.
We did almost 2 hours at the pool and it was less crowded earlier in the day.
I wasn't particularly impressed with Lamplight Lounge. The décor is fun, but we were seated outside, and after about a 30 minute wait I didn't feel like requesting something different. I didn't really feel like lobster nachos, so I ordered both the potato skins and the al pastor pork chop. They were both spicy. The potato skins were beyond my tolerance, so I only managed to eat one. I did enjoy the pork, but it was too much for me, especially on a warm day. The server did ask if I wanted him to get something taken off, because I ate so little, but I ordered the food, so I paid for all of it. I do wish they offered a half order of all the "small" bites, because there were only 2 of us, and DS doesn't eat potatoes. He actually ordered chicken off the kid's menu.
I also got the 2319 off the non-alcoholic menu, and it was very good, but didn't cut the spiciness of the food very well.
We both really enjoyed World of Color. The entry organization isn't as well structured as it was pre-COVID, but we managed to get in practically first, and secured spots at the 3rd tier railing right off the center circle. There was a bit of obstruction, but the bushes provided a nice amount of shielding from the wind while we waited.
I don't know if a lot of people are snagging times and not using them, if they're limited capacity, or what, but it wasn't really crowded at all. My memory of last time is foggy, but I remember there being more people around me, and we were all the way up at the railing against the water where we got soaked.
Anyway, the show was great. Getting soaked last time was a more immersive experience, but we were already chilly without the sun, we didn't need to add water to it.
Day 3 - Our only day we planned to start at DCA
We headed to Web Slingers first, because it was pretty much the only thing we hadn't tried. I thought about getting ILL for it on Day 2, but knew it could be pretty much the only thing we did on Day 3, and be happy. We waited for around 30 minutes. Man, that ride is a work out. I feel as if I should do Tae Bo in the weeks leading up to my next trip, because it takes some serious energy and strength. DS and I kept up pretty well with the other two people in our car, and the joint score was 6th for the day, but it was early, so when we went back in the evening, we were blown out of the water.
After that, we did Soarin, and Toy Story Midway Mania. The latter we were conned into by the Disneyland app. It said the posted wait was 10 minutes. When we got there it was posted at like 45 minutes, and we waited just under 30, I think.
Then we went into Bing Bongs, and got some "breakfast." ODS really wanted a caramel apple. He got the sorcerer mickey one. It was a bit tough to get into, but I figured out that the marshmallow "ears" didn't have any chocolate under them, so I cut a chunk of apple out from there, then it was a lot easier to cut through the chocolate on the side with the plastic knife they gave us.
I got a churro cookie, and it wasn't very good. Dry.
Then we went to Radiator Springs, and rode it 3 times via the Single Rider Line. The regular line was posted at about 30 minutes or something, but we only waited about 10 as single riders. DS loved this.
At this point, we just started killing time. DS didn't want to ride any of the smaller rides or go watch the Marvel shows, but we had an hour to kill before our Wine Country Trattoria ADR. We did the Redwood Trail. It was a lot more extensive than I expected, and another good work out.
Wine Country was a lot less spicy, and the service was a lot quicker. DS got the Shrimp Alfredo and I got the Chicken Parm. Both were satisfying.
After we ate, we went to Grizzly River Rapids, because I promised ODS that we could as the last thing, so we didn't have to walk around wet all day. It didn't get above about 74 degrees during our trip, so I wasn't excited about it.
Of course I got the wettest, but then we walked out of the park and to the bus stop.
We took a very short break and my Dad met us to go back to the parks, during a break from his conference.
We did Disneyland first because it was closing for the Star Wars party. Things were fine at first, then it started to get VERY crowded. We did Star Tours, then Matterhorn, then headed over to do the Millennium Falcon. The posted wait was 25 minutes, so we opted for the Stand By line, which was a mistake. We ended up waiting 45 minutes and missed our mobile order window at Docking Bay 7. At this point it was packed, but DS wanted to ride the Matterhorn one more time, since it was his favorite, and we tried to find something else to eat on the way. We did single rider line. It didn't take too long, but I was getting very tired and hungry.
We decided to get food at Smokejumpers after we hopped over to DCA.
I got the chicken sandwich, and it was spicy too. It filled me up though. Then we went back over to Radiator Springs, and got into the Single Rider Line. It was long. After waiting for about 10 minutes, I decided that my feet just couldn't handle standing on concrete anymore, so I bought ILL. So we waited for maybe 10 more minutes. I don't think I'd ever ridden the ride at night before, so that was wonderful.
The last thing for us to do was take my Dad on Webslingers, but when we got there, it was closed, and they weren't letting anyone get on line. So we went into the web store. When we came out, it was open again, so the line was building, but fortunately, it hadn't build too much. We did single rider and got in very quickly.
After that I finished shopping for souvenirs for my kids, then we left....but it was almost 10PM so tons of other people were leaving with us.
Overall, the crowds weren't really bothersome until after 5PM on the party day. If I had been alone, I probably would have just gone to DCA at 5PM then left entirely by 8PM. Since I wasn't alone, we went against my planning a little, which was fine. None of it made us miserable. But, my main priority was an 11 year old. He's at least mostly rational, so I could talk to him about our options, and he generally chose well. This is the main reason I wanted to take my kids one by one when they're about his age. I love going to Disney with my little kids, but they already get a ton of attention, so it was nice to focus on my oldest and his feelings for once. The hardest part was getting him to tell me what his feelings actually were. He is tall enough to ride everything, and doesn't need constant supervision, which was nice when I needed to use the restroom.
My second is already chomping at the bit to go on her own trip, so hopefully I'll be able to plan that in the next 18 months.
Airport - SNA - John Wayne
We flew into LAX the last time, and I much preferred SNA. It's just easier. We had a 7:55AM flight, and if we had been going to LAX, we would have had to practically leave to drive right after we left the parks the night before. For SNA, we woke up at about 5:30AM, walked to the car around 6AM, made the 30ish minute drive with one wrong turn detour, and were through security by 7AM (probably a little bit earlier). The gate was right there, so we had time to grab some breakfast pastries, before boarding our plane. My Dad did have a rental car, and handled our transportation to/from the airport, but I'll definitely be balancing out the costs for SNA in the future.
Hotel - The Hilton Anaheim is definitely a conference hotel. It's nice because there's a sit down restaurant (we didn't try it) and a few counter service type restaurants. We would have tried the pool bar, except it closed at 5 on Sunday, and I didn't realize that was going to happen. It's only open on the "weekend." DS got a slice of pizza at Crave pizza for about $8, and didn't complain. We got quesadillas at Coastal Mexican Grill and they were good. Big and came with chips, guac and sour cream for $15.
Everything was about as expensive in the hotel as it was at the parks, so we ended up stopping at CVS on the way back one day for water and Dr. Pepper. The difference was like $3 for a gallon of water vs $4 for a liter. If we hadn't been up for that stop, then I would have dealt with the hotel prices, so it's nice the options are there.
The room was clean. The hotel is enormous though. We ended up being on the 11th floor facing East toward the pool (Room 11414) and probably would have been able to see some fireworks if we had ever been in the room at that point. A west or north facing room would have had a better view, but I wasn't there when my Dad checked in and didn't tell him to request anything in advance.
It did end up being further from the parks than we wanted to walk. I probably would have done it alone, but DS is pokey. In the future, I'll probably try to be within a half mile of the esplanade, but won't obsess over it if we get a good deal further afield.
The ART buses - I was happy with the service. We only waited more than about 10 minutes once, because we tried to get on the "wrong" bus first. The Hilton Anaheim is on the Grand Plaza route. The whole loop takes about 20 minutes, so if you just miss a bus it could take as long as walking, but you're not walking. There is very limited seating in the waiting area, but this was only really a problem late at night. We did the $16 3-day pass, which was reasonable for two people. If I was going with my whole family, I'd have to really balance the difference between paying for the bus for 6 people vs just reserving a closer room.
The lines....
We bought Genie+ on May 1. I tried the FISHing trick for Lightning Lane Experience Passes, and couldn't get it to work, so that was frustrating, but we did everything we wanted to do. We bought Individual Lightning Lane for Rise of the Resistance and Radiator Springs. The former because it was new to me. The latter because it's my favorite and I wanted to ride with DS for his first ride. We started at DL arriving at about 7:30 and they were already letting people in. I stopped at a podium to ask about rides that were rumored to be down at opening, but she just said there would probably be an announcement at park opening. There wasn't.
This is probably in the FAQ, but in order to book Genie+ you have to have a payment method saved. We were standing next to someone who was having trouble with it and my Dad suggested this solution.
We waited at the rope closest to Frontierland, so we could do Thunder Mountain first. There were a TON of people heading that direction, but most of them continued on to ROTR. We did Stand By, because I was trying to FISH for experience passes unsuccessfully. Both Indiana Jones and Haunted Mansion were down, but I guess they came back up too fast. My Dad also didn't understand what I was doing, and he was the one who paid for Genie+ so I didn't push too hard. I don't remember what we did next, but the lines weren't very long, and we got LL as needed.
We did
Thunder Mountain
Indiana Jones
Millennium Falcon
Rise of the Resistance
The Matterhorn
Space Mountain
Star Tours
Buzz Lightyear
Lunch at Bengal BBQ. Really good, but each skewer is very small. It was fine, because I ordered the breadstick for DS and I do share and we got ice cream after, but next time I'll probably order 2 skewers per person.
We hopped right at 1PM and there were quite a few people moving over to DCA with us.
We did Soarin
Radiator Springs Racers
My Dad also did Guardians of the Galaxy and Incredicoaster. We got a Lightning Lane for Monster's Inc while my Dad did Guardians, but DS didn't want to do it. I got a Bacon Mac and Cheese cone from the Cozy Cone, but it was really too hot out for me to enjoy it properly. It just felt heavy. They had ONLY mobile order there, which was frustrating, because when we walked up DS said he wanted a drink, but there wasn't the option to add to my order. Fortunately, the churro cone had an immediate order time, but I still had to put the order in, then wait in line to pick it up. Super cute concept, but a central order pick up location would likely be more efficient.
By this point, DS and I were tired, and my Dad needed to get back to the hotel to check in to his conference.
DS wanted to go to the pool, so I took him for about an hour. It's a decent size. The loungers were more crowded with sunbathers than the pool was crowded with swimmers. There's a splash zone too, which is fun.
We went back to Disneyland after my nap. I don't remember exactly what we did, but we had Thunder Mountain and Matterhorn lightning lanes left. I also remember doing Star Tours.
I tried for World of Color virtual line, but forgot to check right at noon, and they were all gone by 12:10.
Day 2
We had Disneyland reservations again, so that's where we went. I decided to skip Genie+ and it went well. I made DS do the slow rides with me in the morning. I love Alice and Peter Pan in particular. Peter Pan had a 30 minute wait, since we weren't at the head of the pack at Rope Drop, but everything else was under 20 minutes. I wanted to head over to the Pirate's Lair, but we didn't end up fitting that in. DS wanted to do his favorites again - Matterhorn, Thunder Mountain, Millennium Falcon and Star Tours. This was our earliest return for a break, because we had a Lamplight Lounge ADR at 5PM and I did manage to get WOC.
We did almost 2 hours at the pool and it was less crowded earlier in the day.
I wasn't particularly impressed with Lamplight Lounge. The décor is fun, but we were seated outside, and after about a 30 minute wait I didn't feel like requesting something different. I didn't really feel like lobster nachos, so I ordered both the potato skins and the al pastor pork chop. They were both spicy. The potato skins were beyond my tolerance, so I only managed to eat one. I did enjoy the pork, but it was too much for me, especially on a warm day. The server did ask if I wanted him to get something taken off, because I ate so little, but I ordered the food, so I paid for all of it. I do wish they offered a half order of all the "small" bites, because there were only 2 of us, and DS doesn't eat potatoes. He actually ordered chicken off the kid's menu.
I also got the 2319 off the non-alcoholic menu, and it was very good, but didn't cut the spiciness of the food very well.
We both really enjoyed World of Color. The entry organization isn't as well structured as it was pre-COVID, but we managed to get in practically first, and secured spots at the 3rd tier railing right off the center circle. There was a bit of obstruction, but the bushes provided a nice amount of shielding from the wind while we waited.
I don't know if a lot of people are snagging times and not using them, if they're limited capacity, or what, but it wasn't really crowded at all. My memory of last time is foggy, but I remember there being more people around me, and we were all the way up at the railing against the water where we got soaked.
Anyway, the show was great. Getting soaked last time was a more immersive experience, but we were already chilly without the sun, we didn't need to add water to it.
Day 3 - Our only day we planned to start at DCA
We headed to Web Slingers first, because it was pretty much the only thing we hadn't tried. I thought about getting ILL for it on Day 2, but knew it could be pretty much the only thing we did on Day 3, and be happy. We waited for around 30 minutes. Man, that ride is a work out. I feel as if I should do Tae Bo in the weeks leading up to my next trip, because it takes some serious energy and strength. DS and I kept up pretty well with the other two people in our car, and the joint score was 6th for the day, but it was early, so when we went back in the evening, we were blown out of the water.
After that, we did Soarin, and Toy Story Midway Mania. The latter we were conned into by the Disneyland app. It said the posted wait was 10 minutes. When we got there it was posted at like 45 minutes, and we waited just under 30, I think.
Then we went into Bing Bongs, and got some "breakfast." ODS really wanted a caramel apple. He got the sorcerer mickey one. It was a bit tough to get into, but I figured out that the marshmallow "ears" didn't have any chocolate under them, so I cut a chunk of apple out from there, then it was a lot easier to cut through the chocolate on the side with the plastic knife they gave us.
I got a churro cookie, and it wasn't very good. Dry.
Then we went to Radiator Springs, and rode it 3 times via the Single Rider Line. The regular line was posted at about 30 minutes or something, but we only waited about 10 as single riders. DS loved this.
At this point, we just started killing time. DS didn't want to ride any of the smaller rides or go watch the Marvel shows, but we had an hour to kill before our Wine Country Trattoria ADR. We did the Redwood Trail. It was a lot more extensive than I expected, and another good work out.
Wine Country was a lot less spicy, and the service was a lot quicker. DS got the Shrimp Alfredo and I got the Chicken Parm. Both were satisfying.
After we ate, we went to Grizzly River Rapids, because I promised ODS that we could as the last thing, so we didn't have to walk around wet all day. It didn't get above about 74 degrees during our trip, so I wasn't excited about it.
Of course I got the wettest, but then we walked out of the park and to the bus stop.
We took a very short break and my Dad met us to go back to the parks, during a break from his conference.
We did Disneyland first because it was closing for the Star Wars party. Things were fine at first, then it started to get VERY crowded. We did Star Tours, then Matterhorn, then headed over to do the Millennium Falcon. The posted wait was 25 minutes, so we opted for the Stand By line, which was a mistake. We ended up waiting 45 minutes and missed our mobile order window at Docking Bay 7. At this point it was packed, but DS wanted to ride the Matterhorn one more time, since it was his favorite, and we tried to find something else to eat on the way. We did single rider line. It didn't take too long, but I was getting very tired and hungry.
We decided to get food at Smokejumpers after we hopped over to DCA.
I got the chicken sandwich, and it was spicy too. It filled me up though. Then we went back over to Radiator Springs, and got into the Single Rider Line. It was long. After waiting for about 10 minutes, I decided that my feet just couldn't handle standing on concrete anymore, so I bought ILL. So we waited for maybe 10 more minutes. I don't think I'd ever ridden the ride at night before, so that was wonderful.
The last thing for us to do was take my Dad on Webslingers, but when we got there, it was closed, and they weren't letting anyone get on line. So we went into the web store. When we came out, it was open again, so the line was building, but fortunately, it hadn't build too much. We did single rider and got in very quickly.
After that I finished shopping for souvenirs for my kids, then we left....but it was almost 10PM so tons of other people were leaving with us.
Overall, the crowds weren't really bothersome until after 5PM on the party day. If I had been alone, I probably would have just gone to DCA at 5PM then left entirely by 8PM. Since I wasn't alone, we went against my planning a little, which was fine. None of it made us miserable. But, my main priority was an 11 year old. He's at least mostly rational, so I could talk to him about our options, and he generally chose well. This is the main reason I wanted to take my kids one by one when they're about his age. I love going to Disney with my little kids, but they already get a ton of attention, so it was nice to focus on my oldest and his feelings for once. The hardest part was getting him to tell me what his feelings actually were. He is tall enough to ride everything, and doesn't need constant supervision, which was nice when I needed to use the restroom.
My second is already chomping at the bit to go on her own trip, so hopefully I'll be able to plan that in the next 18 months.
