MAY Countdown!! This is it, folks

[HappyHaunt]

We will be there April 28th-May 3rd! So excited. We're staying at the Tropicana.

 

[soaringirl]

We are booked from May 20-22 at the VGC. Never been to DL before but are grizzled veterans of WDW, having been DVC members since 1993.

Kind of bummed out about the Matterhorn being down but hoping for a soft opening of CL while we are there. Its likely we won't get back again so keeping our fingers crossed

Welcome! I added your dates on Post #1. You will love DLR, have you read Hidroguy's tips? They're fantastic for WDW vets like you.
Good luck on the Matterhorn! But if not, don't worry, Indiana will be there and it's a not-to-be-missed atraction, it's just excellent!

Since it is all new to me, I may not be the best one to ask. I'm going to Minnie and Friends breakfast, Goofy's Kitchen, Surfs up Breakfast, and I'll try to sneak in Storytellers Cafe. Other than that, I am open to suggetions. My 9yo just informed me that she mostly likes American or Asian foods. So I plan on grabbing snacks during the day, and eating an early dinner.

The idea is to share! How exciting about your character breakfasts! My kids have outgrown that, they had their share at WDW.

We will be there April 28th-May 3rd! So excited. We're staying at the Tropicana.

Welcome!!! Added you as well.

 

[rizzo0904]

Honestly, I don't have much interest in dining in the park. Most of it appears to be unhealthy and overpriced. We are doing Surf's Up though.

Outside: here are some places I want to try... Olive Tree (Middle Eastern), Wahoos (we don't have fish tacos in NH), La Palma Chicken Pie Shop, The Mad Greek, cortina's Italian Market, Katella Deli (Jewish), and Marri's for pizza.

 

[HockeyMomNH]

Honestly, I don't have much interest in dining in the park. Most of it appears to be unhealthy and overpriced. We are doing Surf's Up though.

Outside: here are some places I want to try... Olive Tree (Middle Eastern), Wahoos (we don't have fish tacos in NH), La Palma Chicken Pie Shop, The Mad Greek, cortina's Italian Market, Katella Deli (Jewish), and Marri's for pizza.

Rizzo I'm in NH too. We're going to be at the HOJO from the 11th-19th. My DS19 never goes anywhere without his Red Sox hat and my DD12 is planning on wearing her Indiana Jones hat. If you see us say hi!

As for restaurants, we are planning to do the Blue Bayou for our anniversary dinner. No other plans yet though.

 

[sbnjlovedisney]

Count us in for April/May also! We'll be there April 28th though May 5th, flying from PDX to LGB, and staying in a 2 bedroom villa at GCV! It'll be an awesome family trip including me, DH, DS6 and DD3. We'll also be meeting my in-laws (who live in Florida) there, for everybody's first trip (except mine) to Disneyland! (It will have been 12 years since I've been though!) We've done Disney World several times in the past few years since we only lived 90 minutes away from it up until about a year and a half ago. I was worried Disneyland might not live up to Disney World for me anymore, but we have so many spectacular things planned that I think it'll be even better! I am especially excited about getting to stay in a VILLA!...all thanks to my awesome in-laws who are DVC members. Did I get into the right family or what?! I (with a little help from DFIL) have taken on the planning for this trip, which I devote way too much time and energy too, or so DH says. He thinks that magical vacations "just happen"...yeah, right. And there will be surprises around every corner for everyone! I have dubbed this trip the "Fantastic Disney Adventure of Super Epic Amazing Awesomeness"! The kids can't wait and neither can I! Hopefully the rest of the adults have just as much fun as I plan on having! This is a trip that will also definitely require a Trip Report, so be on the look out for that as soon as we return!

 

[tony609]

Were there May 20-25.... 2 full days at each park and 1 half day extra at another. Can't wait.

 

[Royfam]

hi everyone
we'll be going may 10th-19th
were staying at the disney grand calif. in the villas. (were dvc members since 2006)
Cant wait. Sad my DH prob cant go but if I waited for him we might never go or have gone. my parents willl be there...cant decided if thats bad or good anyways it should be fun.

Anyone been there on one of the days before grad night? I have a 17 yr old boy im sure he'll love it

 

[Royfam]

any suggestions on getting to and from LAX to disneys grand calif

 

[prncesaurora21]

Going May 26-28 (Memorial Day Weekend). We are staying at the Hojo.

 

[LoveDisneyMom]

As for eating- Im just starting to look into places right now- We definitely want to do a character meal- Does anyone know if any of them have toy story characters? my DS is currently obsessed with the movie!!! I want to check out the Jolly Holiday after reading some delicious reviews of it and also I want to go to the place that sells the french toast cinnamon buns (cant remember where that is now!) I think I need to get on more planning. Do most people plan out each day where they are going to eat, what rides they are doing etc?

 

[dolphingirl47]

any suggestions on getting to and from LAX to disneys grand calif

We used Super Shuttle and will use them again to get from Grand Californian to Lax in May.

As for eating- Im just starting to look into places right now- We definitely want to do a character meal- Does anyone know if any of them have toy story characters? my DS is currently obsessed with the movie!!! I want to check out the Jolly Holiday after reading some delicious reviews of it and also I want to go to the place that sells the french toast cinnamon buns (cant remember where that is now!) I think I need to get on more planning. Do most people plan out each day where they are going to eat, what rides they are doing etc?

I did not see any and we did almost all of the character meals available apart from the two in the parks. At Storytellers Cafe we had Chip and Dale, Koda and Kenai, Terk and Meko. At Surf's Up Breakfast we had Mickey as we entered and then Minnie, Daisy, Pluto and Stitch coming to the table and at Goofy's Kitchen we had Goofy as we entered and then Cinderella, Suzy, Perla, Minnie and Pluto coming to the table. We had also been told that Peter Pan and Alice were around, but they did not come while we were there. This was the line up in early October last year.

Corinna

 

[soaringirl]

Count us in for April/May also! We'll be there April 28th though May 5th, flying from PDX to LGB, and staying in a 2 bedroom villa at GCV! It'll be an awesome family trip including me, DH, DS6 and DD3. We'll also be meeting my in-laws (who live in Florida) there, for everybody's first trip (except mine) to Disneyland! (It will have been 12 years since I've been though!) We've done Disney World several times in the past few years since we only lived 90 minutes away from it up until about a year and a half ago. I was worried Disneyland might not live up to Disney World for me anymore, but we have so many spectacular things planned that I think it'll be even better! I am especially excited about getting to stay in a VILLA!...all thanks to my awesome in-laws who are DVC members. Did I get into the right family or what?! I (with a little help from DFIL) have taken on the planning for this trip, which I devote way too much time and energy too, or so DH says. He thinks that magical vacations "just happen"...yeah, right. And there will be surprises around every corner for everyone! I have dubbed this trip the "Fantastic Disney Adventure of Super Epic Amazing Awesomeness"! The kids can't wait and neither can I! Hopefully the rest of the adults have just as much fun as I plan on having! This is a trip that will also definitely require a Trip Report, so be on the look out for that as soon as we return!

Yei!!! You're in! You're going my exact dates! (except I'll be in San Diego on the 28th) And you'll love the Grand! I know I did, but I stayed in a standard room, not in a villa, how lucky!
And about WDW, please read Hidroguy's "A DRL guide for WDW vets", it's amazing! My DH was not expecting to like DLR since we've also gone to WDW but only 5 times. He loved it! Maybe you would like to read my impressions (not as good as Hidroguy's, though) here.

Were there May 20-25.... 2 full days at each park and 1 half day extra at another. Can't wait.

Hi! you're dates are also now added!

hi everyone
we'll be going may 10th-19th
were staying at the disney grand calif. in the villas. (were dvc members since 2006)
Cant wait. Sad my DH prob cant go but if I waited for him we might never go or have gone. my parents willl be there...cant decided if thats bad or good anyways it should be fun.

Anyone been there on one of the days before grad night? I have a 17 yr old boy im sure he'll love it

Welcome!! Added your dates on post #1.

Going May 26-28 (Memorial Day Weekend). We are staying at the Hojo.

Welcome aboard! Added your dates too.

 

[soaringirl]

Honestly, I don't have much interest in dining in the park. Most of it appears to be unhealthy and overpriced. We are doing Surf's Up though.

Outside: here are some places I want to try... Olive Tree (Middle Eastern), Wahoos (we don't have fish tacos in NH), La Palma Chicken Pie Shop, The Mad Greek, cortina's Italian Market, Katella Deli (Jewish), and Marri's for pizza.

Hey rizzo! You can find salads and fruit stands in the parks. Yes, overpriced, but that goes with the package, I guess. For us, since we stay all day in the park, we definetly need to eat something! DS10 and me will get mad if we don't eat at our hours, . But since Downtown is so near, we will look for places out there for sure.

As for eating- Im just starting to look into places right now- We definitely want to do a character meal- Does anyone know if any of them have toy story characters? my DS is currently obsessed with the movie!!! I want to check out the Jolly Holiday after reading some delicious reviews of it and also I want to go to the place that sells the french toast cinnamon buns (cant remember where that is now!) I think I need to get on more planning. Do most people plan out each day where they are going to eat, what rides they are doing etc?

I'm not familiar with the character meals, but make sure to go to ToyStory Mania and I just forgot the name! the laser-game at DL... characters may be around! (go to the Visitor's Center when you arrive and ask them where you can find them).
About planning, when going to WDW I plan a lot.. I'm trying to let go for DLR now, and be more flexible. What I do plan though is what attractions to hit in the first 2 hours, we used to arrive late at the parks but no more! We arrive at park opening and hit as many atractions as we can, no more leisure strolling in Main St when arriving ! But I've found it's a great strategy, no wonder it's one of the Top 5 everyone talks about here. So yes, I'll plan which atractions to hit first, and also gather as many FP as possible.
Ooooh I so want to be there right now!!!

 

[sweetlovin']

About planning, when going to WDW I plan a lot.. I'm trying to let go for DLR now, and be more flexible. What I do plan though is what attractions to hit in the first 2 hours, we used to arrive late at the parks but no more! We arrive at park opening and hit as many atractions as we can, no more leisure strolling in Main St when arriving ! But I've found it's a great strategy, no wonder it's one of the Top 5 everyone talks about here. So yes, I'll plan which atractions to hit first, and also gather as many FP as possible.
Ooooh I so want to be there right now!!!

I'm glad you posted that. I don't have an attractions plan yet. At WDW, we go so often we know exactly when to get there (first thing) and which rides we do first. Since I have never been to DLR, we will get to the parks early for sure, but I have no idea what rides and attractions need to be done right away. I plan to do WOC May 23rd, but that is about all I have mapped out. I'll probably be a lot more focused after March or when a deal comes out and I have booked a hotel.

 

[sbnjlovedisney]

Yei!!! You're in! You're going my exact dates! (except I'll be in San Diego on the 28th) And you'll love the Grand! I know I did, but I stayed in a standard room, not in a villa, how lucky!

Yay! Thanks for adding me! So cool that we'll be there at the exact same time! Great minds think alike!

DH is pretty much anti-Disney, so I'm sure he'll hate both parks equally. However, he usually comes around a little when he sees how much fun the rest of us have.

Sounds like we have the same touring strategies...we'll be doing the morning commando thing as well. None of us are fond of crowds, so this is going to be crucial for us. Despite the fact that we'll be there for a week, we'll only have 4 days in the parks. We get in late the first day and leave early the last day, so that eats those up immediately. Sunday the 29th, my original plan was to relax in the morning, maybe do Downtown Disney and head into Disneyland around 3pm to focus on catching all of the entertainment....parade, fireworks, and Fantasmic, thinking that Sunday was probably our best bet to see any of the nighttime shows with as minimal crowds as possible (I'm hoping anyway) since they won't be shown on our preferred weekdays...but now I'm leaning towards utilizing the Magic Morning that day and taking only DS6 in to ride all of the "big rides" for the first time, just the 2 of us. I KNOW DH won't be getting up at 6am to make it down for MM by 7am, and DD3 will probably be rough to wake as well, so that's a new element I'm trying to figure out. If we do that, we'll literally just ride all of the "big rides" once and then head back to the room for a nap so that we can stay up until midnight for the rest of our time in the park that evening. Our other park days will be Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (Can you tell we're trying to avoid crowds at all costs?!)

Monday the 30th, we have a super exciting thing planned that just DFIL and I know about...about 9:30am we'll head down to the lobby, where a bright, shiny LIMO will be waiting to give us an all day tour of Hollywood and Santa Monica! We are not "luxury" people by any stretch of the imagination, so getting to stay in a Villa and ride around in a limo all day might just be enough to blow our minds! I am BEYOND excited for this and the kids are going to FLIP out! DS6 thinks only famous people and mayors are allowed to ride in limos. Anyhow, my dream experience for this trip will be sitting in a limo, looking at the Hollywood Sign, while biting into a nice double double from In N Out for lunch!!! That will make my LIFE! Anyhow, like I said, that will be a complete surprise and shocker to the rest of our party who are used to budget, budget, budget trips. We'll also be finishing up the night at Medieval Times, which will be awesome for DS6 who is enamored with knights and DD3 who loves horses! (TIP: Sign up for Goldstar.com...it's free!...if you want almost 50% off Medieval Times tickets...I was thrilled to make that find!)

Somewhere in there, we need to fit a lot of morning activities in to our 2 remaining MMs...Tuesday we'll start at Disneyland, Wednesday will be CA, and Thursday will be a half day at each, starting with Disneyland in the morning again. I need to come up with a schedule that will allow us to do Minnie's for breakfast, Toontown as soon as it opens, riding all the rides available during MM, and getting in line for the Rapunzel meet and greet. We might shoot for doing Minnie's on Sunday morning at around 9:30am to get that one take care of. The rest I think I can maneuver around nicely to fit them in the remaining 2 days.

Friday the 4th will be our only real free day. While I would have loved to have spent it in the parks, I figured I would give the rest of the adults the day to lounge around. DH and DMIL work endless hours in high stress jobs, so an extra day of relaxation will be much needed for the 2 of them.

Meals are also in the process of being planned. We're kind of doing a last minute decision with meals this time around, which is totally foreign to me, considering that I'm on the phone exactly 180 days out to make ressies for WDW. We won't be doing a whole lot of sit down meals this time around, as the goal of this trip is to maximize our park fun time! We usually go bonkers on character meals at WDW, just to avoid waiting in character lines for the little ones, but I think Minnie's will be our only one this trip. I'm confident we can see the rest of the characters in the parks without too much sacrifice. I really wish they had a Toy Story character meal too, as both of the kids LOVE it and watch it constantly... sad to say there isn't one though.

 

[lozzypop]

Our trip is 99 days away today!

Doin' the double digit dance......

 

[Honeybee1983]

So we changed our ressies. We found out that my husband's mom is coming too in addition to his little brother (which, on a side note, I am sooo happy about because she gets tired easily and will be more than happy to lounge around with the baby while we PLAY!). So anyway, we needed a bigger room. We were going to just get two adjoining rooms at HOJOs with the entertainment rate, BUT we actually found that the special rate Desert inn and suites is running for the first week of May for their 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom suite was a better deal! Now we will all be together AND we will all have real beds too, no floors for the kids or sofa sleepers for anyone! Plus, even though it sounds like nothing fancy, they DO offer breakfast there! We also rented our van yesterday and bought our tickets too!! It's all getting REAL!! I am so, sooooo excited!! Now onto looking for food coupons and planning each day!!

 

[VikingInMouseEars]

We are planning to be at DL from May 5th thru the 9th. Not sure of hotel yet, but will be one of the off-property hotels across the street from the park.

 

[soaringirl]

Our trip is 99 days away today!

Doin' the double digit dance......

Isn't that exciting!!!! Let's dance with you!

So we changed our ressies. We found out that my husband's mom is coming too in addition to his little brother (which, on a side note, I am sooo happy about because she gets tired easily and will be more than happy to lounge around with the baby while we PLAY!). So anyway, we needed a bigger room. We were going to just get two adjoining rooms at HOJOs with the entertainment rate, BUT we actually found that the special rate Desert inn and suites is running for the first week of May for their 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom suite was a better deal! Now we will all be together AND we will all have real beds too, no floors for the kids or sofa sleepers for anyone! Plus, even though it sounds like nothing fancy, they DO offer breakfast there! We also rented our van yesterday and bought our tickets too!! It's all getting REAL!! I am so, sooooo excited!! Now onto looking for food coupons and planning each day!!

I just noticed your hotel change! I will change it now, but I just wanted to tell you: "the more the merrier!" Breakfast is very important to us, we did find that the hard way on our first trip, we were spoiled by WDW fantastic dinning plan, that we didn't plan well enough then, and we had to split too many things Well no more! We loved Mimi's and plan to breakfast there at least twice and now I plan more $$ for snacks, we need to have our food people!

We are planning to be at DL from May 5th thru the 9th. Not sure of hotel yet, but will be one of the off-property hotels across the street from the park.

Hey there Viking!! Welcome to the thread, and your dates are on!

 

[soaringirl]

Did you noticed GrandBob thread? "Official" date is June 15th, with probable soft openings during the beggining of the month.
So, it's official. No Carsland for us May goers!!!
What do you think? or ??
For me is . Yep, you read well. no crowds!!!