Lineup times on least busiest days

[anaconda]

Edit - Five days with LL (kids are 7 and 4) and now starting at DCA for a half day.

Prior visit to California was in 2012.

 

[carriep]

You’ll need to purchase lightning lane for all 5 days. They do not allow you to break it up

 

[anaconda]

Thank you for the info.

 

[foolish_mortals]

Thanks for the reply.

I may be mixed up with Walk Disney World then, I thought it could be decided upon park entry whether to add multi pass LL on a day by day basis.

Edit - it appears you are linking to a WDW article.

You are correct, you can decide on the day. If you want wait times under 15 minutes every time, buy LL.

You say you're going during the low season. When are you going? There isn't really much of one anymore. The lighter days are now a random Saturday or Sunday. Even then still expect 45 min for popular rides Space Mountain and RotR

 

[KPeterso]

Agree with above. You do not say when you are going. There is no true low (slow) season at Disneyland. There are a lot of locals with passes and they will come any and all days of the week. You will definitely see many rides with waits longer than 15 minutes.

In your case, I would definitely be buying the LL each morning and utilizing it through the day. Even with LL, there is a strong chance that the LLs may be longer than 15 minutes (Racers is one I have had long LL waits). Also go with a strong plan to rope drop some of the longer wait rides and plan to go late evening for some other ones.

 

[anaconda]

I appreciate the replies. We are coming in early May and staying on Harbor within walking distance.

 

[carriep]

Sorry, I am not even sure how the Walt Disney world link got in my reply lol!
Edit: oh I see. It’s automatic. Sorry!

I could be wrong, but when I went to add LL my 2 day tickets, I didn’t have the option to do just one day. I was also told you would have to pay for all days for the pass. Just what I was told

 

[Howry]

You’ll need to purchase lightning lane for all 5 days. They do not allow you to break it up

This is and isnt true. If you add it to your 5 day park passes when you purchase them you will need to get it for all days, however if you dont add it at all you can add it yourself each day if you want to when you enter the park.

 

[disneychrista]

You’ll need to purchase lightning lane for all 5 days. They do not allow you to break it up

This is only true if you purchase it with your ticket. If you buy it day of, you can buy it for just the day.

 

[Tinkaboo]

As others have stated, there is no such thing as a”low season” anymore.
I would get park hoppers and plan on rope dropping. You and the littles ones can get a lot done before the locals get there.

 

[LKing]

Something to keep in mind.... May is grad night season. On grad nights, DCA closes early. Many grads buy full-day tickets which makes the parks more crowded during the day. Also, the weekend of May 4 is often busy with Star Wars fans.

what are the lowest wait times for the popular rides?

What would you consider popular for your family? Is your four year old tall enough to go on all of the rides?

Rarely are wait times for rides less than 15 min. Shoot, even if a ride is "walk on" it can take 15 min to walk through some of the queues.

 

[carriep]

good to know!

 

[foolish_mortals]

We have penciled in for early May.

Someone already mentioned Grad Nite but Star Wars Nites are early May and late April as well.

The wait times around the park during Star Wars Nite are pretty short, usually under 30 minutes (excluding Rise) so that might be something you should keep an eye out for tickets if it interests you.

 

[DumboLover111]

We typically do 18 to 22 rides in one day, rarely waiting more than 15 minutes and usually less than that. This is accomplished by:
1. Visiting on slower days (Friday before Labor Day, mid-week in February, Thurs/Friday in mid-April)
2. Rope dropping
3. Lightning lanes
4. Experience that allows us to eyeball the lines and know whether the posted times are accurate. Last Friday, Rise had a posted wait time of 45 minutes but the queue wasn't even sticking out of the caves. We got in line and waited 15 minutes standby.

Happy to discuss strategy in more detail, but the basic answer is that you can pretty much walk onto Space or Indy right out of the gates. Space will be at least a half hour, often more, a half-hour after opening. Indy will likely stay close to walk on for the first hour. On slower days, Big Thunder will typically remain 15 minutes or less for the first hour. Outside of rope dropping and/or Lightning Lanes, my sense is these are typical wait times on a slower day, but you can absolutely beat these times with strategy/paying more $.

Indy: 25-50 minutes
Pirates: 10-20 minutes
Jungle Cruise: 5-25 minutes
Big Thunder: 15-30 minutes
Haunted Mansion: 15-30 minutes but currently walk-on due to virtual queue
Space: 30-60 minutes
Mickey & Minnie's RR: 10-45 minutes
Roger Rabbit: (I would only ride this one early in the morning or with Lightning Lane) 20-50 minutes
Dumbo: 10-20 minutes
Mr. Toad: 10-15 minutes
Matterhorn: 20-45 minutes
Rise: 25-50 minutes
Smuggler's Run: 5-30 minutes

Anyway, the lowest possible times for the big rides are basically: no wait at all! But this is never guaranteed, even with lightning lanes. Your best strategy for minimizing waits is to show up at opening and use lightning lanes as the park gets busier toward midday.

 

[LKing]

In my experience, the posted times for Rise include the pre-shows and the second queue after the stormtroopers. When I time it, it is generally from when we get in line until we load the vehicle. Guardians is similar.

@anaconda you have a 4 year old and a 7 year old. Is everyone tall enough to ride Indy (46") and Incredicoaster (48")? Height requirements. Are both of your kids okay with rides like Guardians (similar to Tower of Terror), Space Mountain and Matterhorn? If not, then we need a better definition of what you consider to be a "popular ride."

You have five days. How much do you want to pack in all of the rides or ride them multiple times? Are there other priorities such as parades and character experiences? Will anyone in your family need a nap? How comfortable are you with hoofing it across the park to get to a ride with a lower wait time or LL? For example, Bayou Country (Pooh) to Toontown is quite a trek.

You mention that you don't want to have to think about rope drop. What about the end of the day? How late do you plan on staying in the parks?

Edit to add: In order to use LL, you have to first scan into the parks. If you are going to a character breakfast or something else first, you won't be able to book your LL until after you scan in.

 

[carriep]

Whoops, you tagged me by accident

 

[LKing]

Whoops, you tagged me by accident

Thanks! I fixed it.

 

[twodogs]

If you really like data, this site tracks the waits in great detail:
https://www.thrill-data.com/waittimes/disneyland

 

[anaconda]

Hello @LKing. Thank you for making me think things over a little in these questions you’ve given.

Based on heights there are two rides the youngest will not be allowed to do: Indy and Incredicoaster.

 

[LKing]

Thanks for sharing more info about your family.

Sunday DL arrival at 4pm. If you are ready to tackle the park and want to ride the thrill rides, you might get LL for that day. Personally, I would save the money and introduce your kids to Disneyland. Take your time walking into the park, maybe do photos with the floral Mickey, meet characters on Main Street, etc.

In May, there should be two parades. The first parade is around 3 pm - starts at Small World and ends at Main Street. The second parade is around 6 pm. It starts at Main Street and ends at Small World. It might be nice to stake out a spot along Main Street and watch the 6 pm parade.

Take the train from Main Street to Toontown. Take time to explore Toontown and get a feel for if it is something your kids will want to do again on another day. If not, it is kind of out of the way and isolated. Take the train to Tomorrowland and ride Autopia. Go on Small World while you are on that side of the park and, if they are still awake, watch fireworks from next to Small World.

If you can tackle Runaway Railway, Small World and Autopia on the first day without a LL, that's a good start.