Me, Myself and ... Mickey!!! My 1st Trip to Disneyland ... and I'm Solo! A 7/14 PTR

[Keels]

Hi, everyone!

I was planning to do a (mostly) live TR from my upcoming two-day trip to DLR - my first time ever! - but, figured why not go ahead and start it now?

So, here goes! The PTR part of this soon-to-be TR!

The Links:
The Intro!
The Planning: DCA and Ariel's Grotto? Or No?
The Planning: A Little Ditty About RideMax

 

[Keels]

The Character:
Hi - I'm Keels! No, that's not my real name - it's a nickname - but it's what everyone calls me. I'm a 30-something WDW diehard and a former MK Parades entertainer. I was born in Texas but raised in Orlando, only to return to Texas with my one true love after I finished college. And the rest is history!

My Benefactor:
And by that, I mean my sweet DH! I left the cutthroat consulting industry last year to start my own little business. Luckily for us, he works for a great internet company based in California that allows me to mainly work as a SAHW while I pursue other interests, but I get the fun perks of traveling with him!

The Trip!
We're celebrating our 7th anniversary (that's just in married years - we've been together for … 15!) on the 21st. However, he needed to take a trip to the home office in Santa Monica so - Happy Anniversary to me!

I'll be in the L.A. area from the 22nd until the 28th, staying at the beautiful Le Meridien Delfina in Santa Monica, on the beach and near the pier.

I currently have two-day PH tickets for DLR, so I'm hoping I'll be able to accomplish everything, but I'm thinking about extending to three-day so I can get the early hour.

It's like the stars have aligned for a couple different reasons on this trip that have helped me originate the most AMAZING itinerary! So - here goes!

Tuesday, July 22: Hop off the plane at LAX with a (Disney) dream in my cardigan! I hope to see the Hollywood sign!

Wednesday, July 23: Will spend the bulk of the day doing two different routes on the Starline Hop-On, Hop-Off buses through Hollywood, etc. - ending at The Grove. I'll have a late lunch/early dinner at The Grove before heading down the street to CBS Television City for … THE LIVE TAPING OF "SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE"!!!!!!! I'm a HUGE SYTYCD fan, so to be able to see a live show while I'm in town at this last-minute juncture is … amazing.

Thursday, July 24: Wake up early, grab the rental car and brave the SoCal freeways to experience DCA! I plan to get there as close to rope drop as I can and stay through WoC.

Friday, July 25: Rinse and repeat - this time for DLP!

Saturday and Sunday, July 26-27: I've been told to keep these days open for a drive up and down the PCH with special dinners and an overnight stay somewhere secret.

Monday, July 28: I'm leaving this day open in case I increase my park tickets to three days. DH has to work, so I can easily hit the park(s) again for shopping, last minute rides and good-byes before we head to the airport to head home!

 

[Keels]

So, I'll begin my DLR adventure with a day at DCA (and maybe crossing over to DLP - I have a hopper AND some yellow areas of free time).

Below is my current plan -- you can see I have some free time. Like I said, I'm a DLR newbie, so if anyone has advice on what to pop out of DCA over to DTD or DLP to do during that time, please let me know!

I have a reservation for lunch at Ariel's Grotto that I can easily cancel and go for CS instead. The only reason I booked that was to have the princesses sign various birthday cards for the littles in my life that love them, so I can give them to them with the gifts I bring home.

My other option is to move the AG reservation to Friday for lunch, so I'll leave DLP to go to DCA for lunch and then pop back. Thoughts anyone?

 

[Keels]

So, since this trip came together in about three weeks - and since I have never been to DLR and have very few friends who have in recent years - I decided to purchase a short-term subscription to RideMax (roughly $15) to familiarize myself with what an optimized touring plan would look like.

While I found RideMax to be helpful overall, I don't think I would use it again in an instance where I'm traveling by myself.

I found it was a lot easier to receive a plan without the trial-and-error of trying to fit in too many attractions by scheduling arrival time and actual times of parades and shows myself. RideMax allows for the MAX amount of waiting time for things like Soundsational, Aladdin, Animation, Fantasmic!, WoC and fireworks. It's just me, and honestly? There's no way that I'm going to waste 90 minutes standing in a spot for WoC when it's really just me and I can squeeze in wherever.

Example: I filled in all attractions I wanted to see during a rope drop through park close at DCA, including all shows scheduled as "breaks". RideMax returned an error message saying that I had too many attractions scheduled - I had every attraction chosen to schedule, minus all shows and parades (which were scheduled as breaks). By simply choosing not to schedule a historically low-wait ride (in this case, Flik's Flyers), I was able to receive a touring plan that included a 3:15 "free time" period. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to squeeze in Flik's, along with a couple other rides and an hour or so to hop out of the park to meet a friend for a drink at ESPNZone.

So, I have two RideMax plans for my park days. Will I follow them? Eh. We'll see. I've printed out park maps to familiarize myself with where I should head as my RideMax plan dictates. However, the plans that I've done leading up to this haven't really matched up with what is showing on both MouseWait and the wait times on the Magic Guide app. I know it's better to be cautious and overestimate wait time - and for a group, that would be extremely helpful. But I'm really trying to focus on optimizing this trip for a solo traveler.

 

[Keels]

So this is it! The last day that this is a pre-trip report before it becomes the official thing!

Bags are (almost) packed. Tickets printed. Electronic devices charging.

Just a few last-minute decisions to make!

Like dining - I've decided to pass on TS restaurants this trip in favor of being able to swoop in and try as much CS and QS as I can (read: corn dogs!) as well as having as many Dole Whips as I can. Some food that I'm targeting:

Beignets at French Market - Since this is an anniversary trip (even though I'm going to the parks solo), I'd like to have a list reminder of past anniversary and birthday trips to my favorite city, New Orleans!
Fried Green Tomato sandwich at Hungry Bear - I love all tomatoes, especially fried tomatoes! It's like this sandwich was made for me!
Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup at Jolly Holiday - Grilled Cheese is basically my favorite splurge food, so why not snag one and carb-load for more walking through the parks?
Tri-Tip Sliders at Cove Bar - I'm really excited that my plan for DCA allows multiple times to relax and enjoy the pretty weather at so many venues with craft beer or delicious wine. I'm planning on the Cove Bar being my DCA lunch spot!
Cheddar Cheese Stick and Corn Dog Castle - Ever since I was a little girl, this was my FAVORITE fair food! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find one for years since moving to Texas. This is a sign that DLR is the place for me!
Wine Flight at Tasting Terrace - For our anniversary last year, we enjoyed a trip through Sonoma to taste wine. What better way to celebrate another anniversary (again, solo for the park days) with a mini wine tasting? Yes, please!
Lobster Pad Thai Imperial Roll at Carthay Circle Lounge - I love lobster, I love sushi ... why not?

And yeah, I just decided right now that I plan on having a Dole Whip for "breakfast" every day. It's basically like a breakfast smoothie, right?

 

[RHMH]

OMG - Finally found your PTR

You are all set !!! Love your PTR.

Keep in touch and have a super time.

Bob

 

[Keels]

Live, from DFW! I'm enjoying a little guacamole and a cocktail waiting to board my flight!

 

[RHMH]

Live, from DFW! I'm enjoying a little guacamole and a cocktail waiting to board my flight!

OMG - You are living it up Disney Style....