Loved it! Loved it! Loved it! Thanks for your help!!

[carj]

I guess it is obvious that I LOVED DLR! I have to say, I was was prepared to be underwhelmed after visiting WDW, but that was totally not the case!

We had an amazing time. The first night we drove in, June 25, and went to CA. We were standing outside the silver kiddie rocket things, debating our next move and a CM came up to my kids and gave them first visit buttons. That was awesome enough, but then she also gave my daughter a brand new Tinkerbell pin and let my son pick a pin from her lanyard! How cool is that?!?

THe next day was Friday June 26th and our first attempt at DL. We were at the security tables at 7:20, tickets in hand and the most amazing thing for us Texans, WE HAD JACKETS ON! Unbelievable! We went straight to Dumbo, after deciding that it was more important to us than Peter Pan. Then my husband and son rode the Matterhorn while my daughter and I rode the teacups and Alice. My daughter and I walked to Tomorrowland hoping to get FP for Space for later. Space was down, so we went to Buzz, got FP and rode it. By then, Space was up, and our FP window was almost open so my daughter and I rode Astro Orbitor, then got FP for Space while my son and husband rode Star Tours.

It was off to Indy but the wait was about 40 minutes. Son and husband went to BTMRR while daughter and I visited the Tiki Room. (I love the original version so much better than the WDW, updated version!) By this time, we had another FP window open, so we picked up FP for Indy. We never ended up using these sadly and missed this attraction for this trip.

By this time, it was about 9:50 or so and we knew we wanted to try to get our son into the Jedi Training Academy. The kids and I staked out a spot and my husband picked up breakfast and we sat and ate it while we waited for the show to start.

There were probably close between 80-100 kids who were actively trying to get picked. Our son was the third one picked. He was wearing a Disney shirt and had a sign just written on plain Manilla paper. It said "Use the Force, Pick me!" I had made a sign for our daughter too, but she was too intimidated by the whole thing to participate. My husband laughed at my sign, until he saw about a dozen other kids with them! After our son got picked, we gave our signs to a mom and kids beside us. One of their kids got picked too!

After the Jedi Academy, my husband rode Space with son with FP and then we went to Innoventions and then picked up FP for Autopia on our way out of the park. We sent my husband to pick up FP for Soarin' and the kids and I started walking to McDonald's.

I won't go into all the rest of the details but that night we came back and used our FP and saw the second Fantasmic and the fireworks.

I was still a little unclear about how to get a spot after the first show. We ended up standing near a churro wagon for the end of the first show. We were able to get closer after the show ended and watched the fireworks. Then, once those were over, moved down right by the river. I thought we were so luck to get a great spot. Then, I realized we were in the designated smoking area! It actually turned out to be a pretty decent spot. We were off to the side, but that we still had a great time, plus we were at the water''s edge.

I could go on and on! We went to DL for part of 6 days, probably spent 2 full days and really did almost everything that we wanted to. We also went to Lego Land and The Aquarium of the Pacific (amazing also!), and the beach twice.

Here is what we loved!
Service: We had great experiences in and outside of the parks. My 5 year old daughter even said that waiters in California were nicer!
DLR- I felt very safe, even when my husband was gone for 5 days to San Francisco.
Hojo-Very comfortable, especially for a long stay. Friendly staff,terrific price, excellent housekeeping, great pools and decent location.
Meeting new people- We met people from all over!
Minnie and Friends breakfast- My goodness, there were a FLOOD of characters playing with my children. So much fun!

Here is what I didn't like as much
Signage on highways and cities-Many of the signs are in disrepair and hard to read. I also think that the signs don't give you enough specific information. They often don't specify what lane to be in, until it is almost too late. I wasn't really bothered by the traffic or the assertive drivers, I was expecting that and we did our best to minimize our traffic experiences by avoiding rush hours.
Panhandlers- We were approached 3 times in Anaheim. Once at the bus stop near Captain Kidd's, twice at McDonald's. All 3 incidents occurred on Friday, June 25. My husband was approached several time in San Francisco. I guess that is a problem in all major cities. It was really strange because 2 of the 3 times we were approached, the person asking for money looked pretty nicely dressed. Very strange.
Neither of those was a Disney related issue but worth mentioning in case you are planning a trip to Anaheim.
Thanks so much for all the tips and hints here. I really appreciated have the insider information!
We loved it! I can't wait to come back. My husband's conference is in Las Vegas next year. Just 4 short hours from DLR!! We are already planning to come back!

 

[PinkBudgie]

I'm so glad you had a great time! We were there then too! Never saw any panhandlers in Anaheim but see them all the time in SF.

I know what you mean about the road signs. They are nuts! Just trying to stay on the current freeway is hard. Sometimes you need the left lane and then 5 miles later you need to keep to the right, just stay on the same road! The drive between my sister's house and DLR is about an hour but uses about 5 different freeways. Last time I rode with her I took notes about what lane to be in and when. Knowing that was a huge help for us when we visited her after our DLR trip this time. I also make notes as we drive around so I won't forget what we did for next time. Places to stop, etc.

 

[DLR29]

We were there on that Friday too! And we rode Peter Pan and Matterhorn that morning!! We probably crossed paths somewhere and didn't realize it. How could you go to DLR for parts of 6 days and not go on Indy! Oh well, something for next trip.

 

[pixiewings71]

I was there that Friday too. Later in the day but still there. We actually didn't ride anything that evening, we were exhausted from our drive. LOL We ran into a panhandler too, outside the gas station, DBF was getting the gas, I was getting us some water and he asked me for money when I went in, I told him I didn't know, he'd have to wait until I was done with my purchases. I went in, grabbed my water and left, handing him some change on the way out....not much but some. Most times they don't even talk to me if I'm with DBF, I guess he intimidates them....

 

[Amy&Dan]

So glad you had fun at DL! Now when you see someone on the WDW side of disobards ask if DL is as good, you can answer that it most certainly is!

Nicely dressed panhandlers are a sign of the times I'm afraid. So sad.

Glad you enjoyed the Hojo as well, its a great hotel and for longer stays the nice sized rooms cannot be beat.

Thanks for posting the review, glad your trip was so magical.

 

[mystic_path]

Those Panhandlers are still there??? Were they for the timeshare thing? In Mid to late May we had timeshare people right in front of the Quizno's by the Carousel inn and suites who were always approaching us and reapproaching to see if we had become interested in this free lunch/seminar thing. Even after we said we werent interested they told us we were making a huge mistake. LOL we then got into a big argument with them after 3 days of this constant "HAVE YOU THOUGHT MORE ABOUT IT YET"...

Glad you had a fantastic time. Its such an amazing place and its probably a totally different kind of atmosphere then WDW but not less magical for sure. Thanks for sharing your stories.

 

[Eeee-va]

That sounds like a great trip! I'm glad you had so much fun! Sorry you didn't get the perfect seats for Fantasmic! but it sounds like they were pretty good, at least.

 

[DizMe]

Sounds like a great trip!!! I just love to hear people tell their fun stories about DL . It makes me want to be there!!

 

[Golfing Goofy]

I am glad that you had a fun trip.

 

[SilverCeladon]

What a great trip report! How are the lines for Nemo? Should I do that first thing in the morning or has the novelty of the new ride worn off and I can go anytime?

 

[Sherwin]

We were there on that Friday too! And we rode Peter Pan and Matterhorn that morning!! We probably crossed paths somewhere and didn't realize it. How could you go to DLR for parts of 6 days and not go on Indy! Oh well, something for next trip.

Haha, I was also there early in the morning on Friday. We actually ended up at the rope drop without knowing it, so we were all probably mixed in there, unawares.

I'm so glad you had a lot of fun, your trip sounded like a blast.

 

[Eeee-va]

What a great trip report! How are the lines for Nemo? Should I do that first thing in the morning or has the novelty of the new ride worn off and I can go anytime?

I went a few days before the original poster. The ride was definitely busy, but I found the wait to be manageable at night. We tried to see it Friday shortly before close, per Ridemax, but it was closed. Saturday, we got in line after fireworks (maybe 9:50 PM) and it said the line was 30 minutes or less. It took us about 30 minutes even. But since it was Saturday, they had a live band playing at Tomorrowland Terrace, so we got to enjoy the music while we waited. The line did NOT go through all of the area that they had for a line, but it did pass through a lot of it--so it was almost certainly shorter than it had been earlier in the day.

If you like the band/music that is playing at night, it can be a pleasant enough wait. The best part was, no sun!

 

[kailuagirl]

We were there at the same time!!! Alot of us on Friday it seems (we were there Tue - Friday). Sorry you didn't get to ride Indy We completely forgot about fantasmic, hello??? how did I do that??? Was it any good?

In answer to the Nemo question, it was always crowded when we were there, although I never checked it first thing in the morning so I'm not sure for that time zone. We got on I think Thursday night around 11 and waited about 30 minutes (about what the line said).

We were approached by a panhandler sitting at the bus stop just passed BWPPI. He was kinda freaky so we didn't give him any money. We also was approached at the gas station near the car rental return area. He was very nice and DH gave him $2 and he went right in the little store and bought something to eat (which is what he asked for money for).

I miss Disneyland so bad I can't stand it......... major withdraws.....

 

[carj]

Yes, we missed Indy but we only had a day and a half to do all the scary rides. DD5 is not a fan of scary things and DH left for San Francisco on June 28 and didn't return until July 2 at midnight. We got a lot done in a short amount of time.

Fantasmic was great and the seats were good for us. The kids were not disappointed at all. They loved it. (They are not aware that they missed the dragon though!)

The timeshare people were there, but they were obviously selling something, not the panhandlers. The great thing about the timeshare people is that they only bothered couples! Once my husband left town, I got a pass!

We also got asked by two teenage girls for our tickets. I assume, that they were going to try to get an AP or something. I don't know, but they were really disappointed when I said no. (We still had 5 days on our tickets!)

We had so many little magical moments. We walked into the Brother Bear show about 30 seconds before it started and ended up sitting in the floor behind a pole. The kids got picked to "blow" on something and summon the spirit. That was really cool!

On the bakery tour, they gave out pieces of sourdough bread and my daughter loved hers. She asked me for mine, but I had already eaten it. I told her she could ask the lady for another piece. She not only gave her another piece but an entire Mickey loaf! So sweet! I don't think that my daughter even asked for another slice, she just looked up at the lady and smiled, too shy to ask.

Also, so many CMs and other people in other parks thanked us for coming. It was very nice. Our waiter at Macarroni Grill gave us the best advice about the beach.

It was an amazing trip!

 

[carj]

We rode Nemo on our Early Entry day. We arrived at the parks about 10 minutes before 7 and went straight to Nemo. We waited for one sub to load and got on the next one. The ride is looong! No wonder the line is so slow! It was probably 7:25 by the time we got off the ride. We went to FL and rode Dumbo and most everything else except Peter Pan. We never managed to do that.

I thought that the FP return for Autopia was confusing. You wait with the regular line until a certain point. I wasn't sure we were in the right spot and we almost left. I thought that it was a little hard to determine if you were in the right place.