Last Day Question on ABD BSM Tour/DL

[scottmel]

On the final day of the ABD Backstage Magic, how long would you think I would need at the park? Obviously this is the day you are on your own etc. so I can rope drop but we are party of 3, me dh and dd16. After this we are headed to Newport Beach for 2 nights and I am just unsure how long I will need to spend at the parks this day. I have read some people don't go, some stay until their flight leaves at night etc. etc. How long of a day would you plan if you could plan any depature time? Thanks!

 

[pudinhd]

Personally, I would plan a late departure to get the most value out of the ticket you are provided with.

I guess it would depend on how much you were able to do on your own time and what you wanted to repeat that you did with the tour. We spent time with another couple who were visiting Disneyland for their first time. I think we did a lot, but not everything, by the mid-afternoon on the last day.

Here are the things, not including backstage specialties, we did with the group: Indiana Jones, Tiki Room, Pirates, VIP seating for Soundsational Parade, Soarin', Radiator Springs Racers, Toy Story, and VIP area for World of Color.

FYI - We also received admission to the Halloween party. We had VIP seating for the cavalcade and the parade. We rode Haunted Mansion Holiday.

 

[scottmel]

Personally, I would plan a late departure to get the most value out of the ticket you are provided with.

I guess it would depend on how much you were able to do on your own time and what you wanted to repeat that you did with the tour. We spent time with another couple who were visiting Disneyland for their first time. I think we did a lot, but not everything, by the mid-afternoon on the last day.

Here are the things, not including backstage specialties, we did with the group: Indiana Jones, Tiki Room, Pirates, VIP seating for Soundsational Parade, Soarin', Radiator Springs Racers, Toy Story, and VIP area for World of Color.

FYI - We also received admission to the Halloween party. We had VIP seating for the cavalcade and the parade. We rode Haunted Mansion Holiday.

Thank you for the response. Can you clarify a little more? I have never been to DL and the way I am ASSUMING ABD is working is that I will get to do everything in both parks just with the tour group days. So I will have completely exhausted the parks in the 2.5 days spent with the tour group. My waking up on the last day is just for us to repeat stuff we have already done. Is this correct? If so, would you recommend staying the ENTIRE day at the parks and sleeping another night at the ABD hotel THEN waking up and heading over to Newport Beach for a few days OR would you stay at the park until dinner THEN Head to Newport Beach. I guess I am just having trouble determining how much time I will NEED on this extra park day....

 

[pudinhd]

Thank you for the response. Can you clarify a little more? I have never been to DL and the way I am ASSUMING ABD is working is that I will get to do everything in both parks just with the tour group days. So I will have completely exhausted the parks in the 2.5 days spent with the tour group. My waking up on the last day is just for us to repeat stuff we have already done. Is this correct? If so, would you recommend staying the ENTIRE day at the parks and sleeping another night at the ABD hotel THEN waking up and heading over to Newport Beach for a few days OR would you stay at the park until dinner THEN Head to Newport Beach. I guess I am just having trouble determining how much time I will NEED on this extra park day....

If I understand what you are saying, it is that you will do and see everything with the ABD tour group. That is not how it works. I listed the items we did as a group, but did not include the "special" things we did during our trip: Walt's Apartment, Carthay Circle Restaurant tour, 1901 tour, backstage at Indiana Jones, backstage at Radiator Springs Racers, backstage at Soarin', a talk after hours outside Haunted Mansion Holiday, the Dream Suite.

You will do certain things with ABD, but then you are also given "free time" to do what you want when you want. If you have already been to Disneyland you may not feel the need to do "everything". However, if you feel this is an only trip to Disneyland, you may want to experience everything.

I hope this is a more helpful explanation. If not, please let me know. We can go for take 3!

 

[scottmel]

If I understand what you are saying, it is that you will do and see everything with the ABD tour group. That is not how it works. I listed the items we did as a group, but did not include the "special" things we did during our trip: Walt's Apartment, Carthay Circle Restaurant tour, 1901 tour, backstage at Indiana Jones, backstage at Radiator Springs Racers, backstage at Soarin', a talk after hours outside Haunted Mansion Holiday, the Dream Suite.

You will do certain things with ABD, but then you are also given "free time" to do what you want when you want. If you have already been to Disneyland you may not feel the need to do "everything". However, if you feel this is an only trip to Disneyland, you may want to experience everything.

I hope this is a more helpful explanation. If not, please let me know. We can go for take 3!

TAKE 3! Ok now I got it. So the extra day on departurne day could be valuable it sounds to fill in the pieces of what I didn't get to do earlier with group and without group. Having said that what time would you IDEALLY depart from the parks on that final day? Could I keep going till 9 pm or is that pushing it? We have been to WDW many many times, first trip to DL. Not sure if a full day there is overkill...just dont' know what to expect. Don't want to plan to leave at 3 and kick myself for not staying longer but don't want to depart at 10 pm and have been ready to go for hours...

 

[pudinhd]

TAKE 3! Ok now I got it. So the extra day on departurne day could be valuable it sounds to fill in the pieces of what I didn't get to do earlier with group and without group. Having said that what time would you IDEALLY depart from the parks on that final day? Could I keep going till 9 pm or is that pushing it? We have been to WDW many many times, first trip to DL. Not sure if a full day there is overkill...just dont' know what to expect. Don't want to plan to leave at 3 and kick myself for not staying longer but don't want to depart at 10 pm and have been ready to go for hours...

Yay! Glad I made sense!

It's hard for me to answer your question because we have been to Disneyland so many times and will be back many times...

Even saying that, for us personally, I would stay an extra night to make sure we were able to get the full value of that last day. That way we have that full day and night to do anything we missed and repeat our favorites!

We just took this trip earlier this month and I will be posting a trip report soon!

 

[scottmel]

Yay! Glad I made sense!

It's hard for me to answer your question because we have been to Disneyland so many times and will be back many times...

Even saying that, for us personally, I would stay an extra night to make sure we were able to get the full value of that last day. That way we have that full day and night to do anything we missed and repeat our favorites!

We just took this trip earlier this month and I will be posting a trip report soon!

Great. I understand about it being hard to answer, I would feel the same if someone asked me about WDW! I could stay at the MK everyday even though I have been a ton! I like your idea and so does DH. So you are saying wake up that last day, rope drop, use the breakfast voucher and put in a full day between both parks filling in the blanks of what we didn't do earlier in the week.

I like this b/c then I have a hotel room to return to on and off and heck even if done early I can get to bed decent, wake up and know I have two full days at Newport Balboa Island...I think extending the trip a day makes sense...THANK YOU!

 

[pudinhd]

Great. I understand about it being hard to answer, I would feel the same if someone asked me about WDW! I could stay at the MK everyday even though I have been a ton! I like your idea and so does DH. So you are saying wake up that last day, rope drop, use the breakfast voucher and put in a full day between both parks filling in the blanks of what we didn't do earlier in the week.

I like this b/c then I have a hotel room to return to on and off and heck even if done early I can get to bed decent, wake up and know I have two full days at Newport Balboa Island...I think extending the trip a day makes sense...THANK YOU!

It's my pleasure! Glad I could help!

Just one thing... The final breakfast is not a voucher. It is a group character breakfast at Storytellers Cafe.

 

[scottmel]

It's my pleasure! Glad I could help!

Just one thing... The final breakfast is not a voucher. It is a group character breakfast at Storytellers Cafe.

oh no I have a rope drop to be at! What time is this breakfast?

 

[pudinhd]

oh no I have a rope drop to be at! What time is this breakfast?

For our trip, the final breakfast was 7:30 am to 8:30 am. Both parks opened at 8:00 am that day, but California Adventure had early entrance at 7:00 am. It is an optional meal, as I think they all are, but we had so much fun with the other guests that we did not want to miss it!

 

[White Rose]

Not sure if this helps - our last day in DL/CA (not on ABD) we went to the park for a bit and then decided to just relax by the pool - I'd suggest 'plan to be flexible' so, if that morning you decide you don't need to do any more park time, you have another option - or the other way around, you are not ready to leave yet, you can spend more time in the parks.

I had never been to DL/CA before that trip and was so surprised by how much we were able to accomplish! The rides are so close together, there is not a major hike to go to each area of the park, that we were able to do more without the humid FL sun baking on us as we treked from Tomorrowland to Adventureland, etc.

We are doing Southern California this upcoming October, and we are staying all day the last day, and adding TWO extra days! Then changing hotels...so if we want to leave early on that second day, we just go to the other hotel early, but knowing us, we're going to want to stay at DL as long as possible. I'm expecting we won't be checking into our 'after ABD hotel' till well after dark...if I'm wrong, well we will just enjoy the pool.