Last minute advice for a first timer

[Debima]

My family will be arriving to DL next Tuesday and I'm starting to get really stressed out about the trip. I've not been able to do a lot of planning and I got overwhelmed by all of the details so I had a hard time figuring much out. Anyway, DS is two, DD will be turning five on our first day at the park. Do any of you experts have any advice/tips for us on our visit? None of us have ever been to DL before so it's really tough to weed through all of the information to figure out what we should do to make our trip the most memorable.

-I bought 3 day park hopper tickets and we'll go there on Tuesday, March 10th (DD's birthday). So we would go two other days during that week too. (Wed, Thurs, Fri)

-We're going to Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast at 8:10am on Tuesday.

-We're staying at the Camelot.

Those are all of the details I have and I would love to hear what you think. Thank you so much!

 

[bumbershoot]

Oh gosh, where to start???


Well first, with your 3 day hoppers you should get access to one Magic Morning. That is offered on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday/Sunday, and it means that you can get into Fantasyland and part of Tomorrowland one hour before park opening.

If you didn't have the GK reservation (er, Priority Seating to be exact) I would recommend that you take part in that on Tuesday, since the time difference is going to work for you to get up and out EARLY. Not like us west coast people who have to drag ourselves out of bed earlier than normal or at the same time as normal...you'll be well rested! But since you made that GH reservation, you would want to take part on Thursday.

Since you'll be entering the parks closer to normal opening on Tuesday, you'll want to avoid Fantasyland that day, or at least that morning, because the lines will already be really long b/c the MM people had an hour head-start on building the lines. On Wednesday you can get there before park opening and head into Fantasyland, and you should do well with shorter lines since you'll be among the first in that day.

If you've been do WDW, find the "sticky" thread by HydroGuy; he wrote up a "DLR for WDW veterans" bit that's really good.

The Camelot is nice and close, and I've heard it's pretty nice! It's a good choice.

Now I'll let others chime in and see what they suggest...we all end up giving advice about different aspects!

What are you really concerned about for this trip?

 

[Debima]

I am just worried about seeing everything we're supposed to see. With the kids, I want to keep things relaxed. I don't want to do anything that is going to set us up for failure, kwim? And I don't want to waste a lot of time because we're not organized with a plan.

 

[DizNee Luver]

With children 2 & 5 make sure you venture all the way up into Critter Country (past POTC & the Haunted Mansion) to take the kids on the Winnie the Pooh ride & also do the character meet-n-greet up there. Fantasyland is a must, but you definately want to hit this very early. The lines for Fantasyland get long early & stay that way. The Jungle Cruise is usually a safe one for young kids & my kids love the Enchanted Tiki Room. Don't miss IASW, Nemo & Autopia (<---not my favorite, but little kids love it).
At DCA, take the kids to Playhouse Disney for the show....they'll love it! Also go to Flik's Fun Faire, this is where you'll find all "kiddie" rides. If you think they would sit still......Aladdin, The Musical is fabulous & a great way to relax for a bit mid-day.

Goofy's Kitchen is a blast & they should have fun. Make sure you have autograph books & your camera ready!!

Don't forget to get your son his birthday button at City Hall & since this is your 1st trip to Disneyland, you all could get a button with that on it!

Take a look at the daily schedule you can pick up when coming thru the gates in the morning & check out when you can see different characters in the park.

Most of all, just have fun....let the kids guide you on this adventure & you'll do just fine!!

 

[bumbershoot]

If you want a plan, you could check out ridemax. It's a paid program that can help you with an itinerary. I've never used it, but many have. And with a short but important first trip, you might find it helpful!



What I've done in the past is make a list of the things you really really really want to see. Then a list of other things you would like to see. Then things that can be dropped from your brains.

Check out allears.net for menus, if you haven't already, to find things you guys might like to eat and get an idea of how much things will cost. Luckily you have all weekend to think about it and talk to your family about it!

 

[toni1227]

I just got the ridemax software program a couple weeks ago. It really can help you plan and there are lots of tips. To me it was worth it being a planner and all. I may not even follow it exactly but it helped me to figure out wait times for everything approx. and what order woud be best.
I also have found so many tips on here too! I am fairly stressed myself and we are going on march 16th. We were going just do 1 day at disney originally then head down to san diego then I started reading these boards and HAD to change our stay to 2.5 days instead so we could do both parks and we even changed from marriott 1.5 miles away to a disney hotel and booked goofy! I was so suprised this was available at such short notice.
So my plans changed dramatically and it was stressful but I think I got most things figured out this week! Good luck! Try not to stress and have fun!

 

[abouley]

You've gotten some great advice already and sounds like your plans are well under way! I have a 2 year old and 5 year old...in fact we were there Feb 20th celebrating my son's 5th birthday! The hard part with kids this age is that they will want to repeat rides so we have a hard time just doing everything once! That eats a lot of our time!

I think 2 key things to really have a grasp on are:

1.Understanding fast passes (like why and how to use them, that you don't have to return by the end time on them, etc).
2. Knowing about baby swap.

If you have any questions regarding these, please ask!

Also, keep in mind that CA adventure tends to be less busy and is a great alternative for mid day when crowds are heavy at DL. We really feel getting a break mid day is key for us though even if we don't really rest but instead hit the pool. It just helps me feel revived in the evening.

Have fun!
Alison

 

[clairabell29]

With little ones, bring ear plugs for them. You will be suprised how loud everything is. My DS3 held his ears most of the time. A great place for little ones that age is Toon Town, not the rides, but the charactors and their houses. This was one of DS favorite things. I'm not sure it will be there when you are, but by toon town they have the princess fantacy fair a few times a day.

Don't miss Toy Story Midway Mania, Playhouse Disney, Turtle talk with Crush, Monsters inc, Tiki Room, Pooh ride, IASW, Buzz Astro Blasters, all of Fantasyland and Big Thunder Ranch to pet the goats and maybe see Woody and Jesse. Do the parades and the fireworks at least once. All the above is what my DS loved the most.

The hotel you are in is very nice, breakfast is just ok. Be sure to bring snacks for everyone. A stroller is a must as well, preferably one both of them can use like a sit and stand. For your DS2 you might consider an animal backpack with leash for the long waits in line. In the pack you can put bubbles, cars etc to occupy him and he won't run off.

And finally, go at their pace and enjoy seeing DL for the first time through your eyes and theirs! Remember you can ALWAYS upgrade your 3 day tickets to 4 if you feel you need it.

 

[Debima]

Thanks everyone! You've given me good things to think about. Anyone else?

Am I ok bringing food into DL? I know that the official line is that no outside food or drinks are allowed, but if I bring some bottles of water and a few snacks, will I be ok or will they take them away?

 

[charmama4]

Thanks everyone! You've given me good things to think about. Anyone else?

Am I ok bringing food into DL? I know that the official line is that no outside food or drinks are allowed, but if I bring some bottles of water and a few snacks, will I be ok or will they take them away?

No, they won't take your food away. If they are in a huge cooler they'll just ask you to get a locker outside of the turnstiles but, if they are in a backpack they look the other way. You'll need the snax and water bottles, that's for sure. Have fun, relax and enjoy the magic.

 

[DorkyDisneyMom]

I might start showing them ride videos on Youtube too. Some of the Fantasyland ride can be a little much. I showed my kids and talked about how fun it will be.

I can not stress how imoportant the Magical Morning is. You can really get so much done in that hour. You may feel like skipping because you're tired. Don't skip it, it will be so worth it. Also don't waste it on Nemo make sure you do Fantasyland.

You can also show them some of the movies that the rides are based on to get them excited.

We brought snacks too. They were great and saved us a bunch of money and also helped with the grumpy kids.

In California Adventure don't forget to see the zoetrope. My kids loved that thing.

 

[firefly87]

Thanks everyone! You've given me good things to think about. Anyone else?

Am I ok bringing food into DL? I know that the official line is that no outside food or drinks are allowed, but if I bring some bottles of water and a few snacks, will I be ok or will they take them away?

You will be fine bringing in outside food. When we go, we always take one of those soft collapsible coolers and pack it full with kids lunches, drinks & snacks. We have never had a problem with it......they do a quick search inside and let us through.

We esp. like bringing in the kids lunches because of many reasons.
1. When the kids are hungry, you can feed them immediately without having to look for a place to eat, figure out what they will eat, find a place to sit, etc. We usually do Fantasyland first thing and spend 1-2 hours there so when the kids got hungry (on the early side), that's usually where we were. We grabbed a table at the Hof Brau and ate our lunch and since it was before the lunch rush, we pretty much had the place to ourselves.

2. The kids meals at DL are BIG and can easily be split. We found this out at dinner and will not make that mistake again!!

3. The food inside the parks is quite expensive!! You will save tons of $$$$ bringing in your own.

4. We sometimes would pack lunches for the adults as well as the kids. Sometimes we did not and the adults would grab something to eat there. My DH is a big fan of the giant turkey legs!

5. Some of the things we brought in for lunches & snacks were: PB&J's (or Uncrustables), individual Pringles chips, some kind of fruit (grapes, sliced apples, bananas, oranges), Goldfish, trail mix, cookies, bottles of water (which are outrageously $$$ in the park!!!), Capri Suns.


Most importantly, let your family go at their own pace. It's easy to rush around and try to hit everything......but then you miss the little things and the magic of Disney! Besides, if you don't make it to everything the first time, that's a perfect excuse for a repeat trip!

 

[prncssmel]

Another option for a touring plan other than Ridemax is the Unofficial Guide to Disneyland. The book has several different touring plans which are actually very good.

 

[firefly87]

One more thing.........another place we have eaten our lunch is the outdoor seating of the Hungry Bear Cafe over in Critter Country. We sit in the back and look out over the water towards Tom Sawyer Island. The kids love watching the ducks and seeing the "secret" stuff hidden in the bushes, like an old indian canoe!