Final Thoughts
Thanks to everyone who read along with my trip report! It was fun to write it all out and remember all the magical (and a few not so magical) trip moments. Now that I'm done, I thought I'd summarize some things about the trip.
Traveling with just one kid
If you are debating taking a solo trip with one of your children, do it! I only have one kid, but doing Disneyland with just the two of us was super special and fun. I was worried about managing on my own without another adult, but it was actually kind of easier. It reminded me of how much I like to travel solo in that there are less people whose needs you have to consider. Don't get me wrong, we've loved our trips with DH along and traveling with friends, but this time I could totally focus on whatever DS wanted to do. And we were able to channel the money that would have gone to a third person's tickets and food into some special experiences.
The one thing I might do differently though traveling with just one adult is being more careful with my stuff. Losing my wallet was really stressful, so having a back up plan if something happens would be a good idea (not having all your credit cards in one place, having a digital wallet, having an extra car key, etc.)
Nighttime Spectaculars
My favorite moments of the trip were seeing Fantasmic, World of Color, and the Main Street Electrical parade and I enjoyed each of the dining packages that we did. The WOC dessert party was DS's favorite. Mine was the Riverbelle Premium Fantasmic package just for the food and relaxed vibe. All of these felt like once-in-a-lifetime experiences and I'm not sure I'd repeat any of them again (especially with a larger group due to $$). I'm interested in trying some of the less expensive dining packages for WOC and Fantasmic to see what a closer up view is like. DS did much better waiting for the shows/parades to start than I expected so these now feel more doable to me.
Rides
Outside of seeing the shows, DS's big goal was to complete every ride at the parks that we hadn't done before. We didn't quite meet this goal, but had a lot of fun trying.
We took a relaxing pace each of our Disney days, so in total we rode 30 rides over 3 days (plus about 10 at Universal).
New rides this trip (for at least DS): Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes, Space Mountain/Hyperspace Mountain, Mater's Junkyard Jamboree, Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters, Golden Zephyr, Jumpin' Jellyfish, Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind, Jessie's Critter Carousel, Pixar Pal Around, Mad Tea Party, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Splash Mountain, Disneyland Railroad, Astro Orbitor
Attractions still to do: Casey Jr. Circus Train, King Author Carousel, Pinnochio's Daring Journey, Dumbo, Sailing Ship Columbia, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin (closed this trip), Gadget's Go Coaster (closed this trip), Guardian's of the Galaxy Mission Breakout, Silly Symphony Swings (we both felt too nervous to ride this), Turtle Talk with Crush, The Bakery Tour,
Food
This was a much better food experience at Disneyland than some of our previous trips – in part because DS was willing to be more adventurous. We tried plant-based dishes at several new Quick Service places (Docking Bay, Lucky Fortune, Paradise Garden Grill, Harbor Galley) and they were all so yummy. Mobile ordering was essential for us, especially with only one adult on the trip.
I think on our next trip I will do more dining reservations as I think DS might be able to handle it better now. Top of my list is Lamplight Lounge and Cafe Orleans.
Crowds/Wait times
I was prepared for the worst (all three days had been sold out before we left and first two days were grad nights) and was pleasantly surprised when things didn't feel nearly as bad as I expected. We didn't rope drop, but mornings were particularly nice. Things didn't really start to feel crowded until park hopping started at 1 pm (right when we would take a break usually) and then were pretty packed at night. My guess this was more local folks coming in with magic keys since they were not blocked the week we were there.
Most of ride waits with DAS were under 10 minutes when using the Lightning Lane (after having waited outside the queue as well). A few rides were more like 20 minutes, which was pushing it for DS but manageable.
Walking/Total Steps
We didn't walk nearly as much as probably most people do, but for DS it was a lot! I was worried about his ability to walk so much on our trip the year before coming out of a lot of couch potato time in the pandemic (on top of already having low muscle tone). He has been getting a bit more fit this year and didn't complain about the walking at all this time around.
Total steps over all 4 days: 65,096 (28.65 miles)
Universal Day: 19,064 steps (8.4 miles)
First Disneyland day: 12,481 steps (5.5 miles)
DCA day: 14,522 steps (6.4 miles)
Second Disneyland day: 19,029 steps (8.4 miles)
Universal Hollywood Studios
DS loved it, I still feel a little "meh" about it. I don't think it compares at all to Disneyland, but it was nice to at least go an see it once. I'm just not the hugest fan of all the simulator rides and the food was not great. DS wants to go back when Super Mario World opens.
COVID Precautions
This was our third trip since Disneyland re-opened and our first since masks are no longer required indoors (other than First Aid). We chose to continue wearing masks indoors and in really big crowds outside. The biggest thing I wanted to avoid was getting sick during the trip, especially with having to make the drive home by myself. For this reason we were the most careful at the start of the trip (outdoor dining only) and loosened up a bit at the very end.
We didn't see very many other people wearing masks, but I was totally fine with that. I actually enjoyed it more than our previous trips when masks were required and I felt stressed by people breaking the rules near us. I never felt like people were giving us odd looks or commenting on the mask wearing, so that was relaxing as well. Thankfully we never got sick on any of the trips (other than the tummy issues I had on the our last day this time). I'm seeing a lot more reports this month of folks coming home with COVID.
Fly vs. Drive
Driving alone for what turned out to be 9.5 hours was doable, but something I'd probably try to avoid in the future. So I kind of regret not buying airline tickets back when they were cheap. I'd consider flying in the future if the prices are good, if I can get direct flights, if COVID transmission isn't super high, and if flights aren't constantly getting cancelled. That's a lot of ifs though, so I'm still glad we live within driving distance. And with another adult along, driving is probably easiest if we have enough time off to do it.
What's next?
Speaking of time off, I'm already trying to figure out what our next Disney adventure will be. I just started a new job, so I'm not sure when I can get time off. Plus DS will be in middle school this coming year and I won't want to take him out of school.
I was toying with the idea of a very short trip for the Oogie Boogie Bash during our fall break/Columbus Day but missed out on tickets. DS would still love to go for Halloween. I'd prefer seeing the holiday decorations (Thanksgiving? Right after New Year's?).
I also have a hotel reservation for Caribbean Beach in early January just in case we decide we want to take the plunge on a WDW trip. It would be fun to try something new, but Disneyland just feels so much easier. I'm waiting to see if what the new magic key offerings might be before deciding.