Memorial Day Help

[GoofyforDisney3]

I'm finally getting around to finalizing dates and getting plans in order for my daughter's graduation trip in May and I realized that the time frame we are going has Memorial Day fall in middle of it. We are probably going to be flying out to CA from VA on Wednesday, May 20th for 7 nights probably. I'd like to do 4 days at DL, 1 day at USH and 1 day doing other stuff around LA area. I originally was thinking of doing DL at the end of the trip, but now I'm wondering if doing it at the beginning would be better. Or would USH be a bust on a holiday like that, especially being on a Monday? I've never been so I don't know what to expect on anything.

 

[Geemo]

I'm finally getting around to finalizing dates and getting plans in order for my daughter's graduation trip in May and I realized that the time frame we are going has Memorial Day fall in middle of it. We are probably going to be flying out to CA from VA on Wednesday, May 20th for 7 nights probably. I'd like to do 4 days at DL, 1 day at USH and 1 day doing other stuff around LA area. I originally was thinking of doing DL at the end of the trip, but now I'm wondering if doing it at the beginning would be better. Or would USH be a bust on a holiday like that, especially being on a Monday? I've never been so I don't know what to expect on anything.

I took my grandkids to USH the day after Thanksgiving this year.
It was busy.... But not so busy we could not get everything done. The ONLY thing we missed was the animal show.

Expecting crowds, I had planned on 2 full days. The first day we arrived about 10:15am and went until about 9:30pm.
With a nice long dinner break at the Hard Rock Cafe in the City Walk.
We rode ALL the rides, saw all but 1 show and even took the studio tram tour. All this with a general admission ticket.

The second day we began at opening 9am and re-did the rides they liked. They were done in a couple hours and asking when we get to go to Disneyland. USH is a one day park.

Here is my opinion on beginning or ending a trip at Disneyland...
I have been going to Disneyland for YEARS! And have done both in the early years.
I have come to the decision to ALWAYS end a trip at Disneyland. Ending a trip at another destination is not as satisfying as ending at Disneyland.

When a stop at USH is part of a trip, I like to fly into Burbank Airport. It is only a few miles from USH. If we are staying the night I have booked at the Sheraton Universal City. It is right across the street from the park entrance. They have a shuttle if you do not want to walk.

Geemo

 

[theluckyrabbit]

If Disney offers a SoCal promotional ticket next year like they have done the past few years, be aware of the end date for those tickets. The last few years the promotion has ended the week before Memorial Day Weekend, and that week and the weekend before MDW have been very busy in the parks as locals scramble to use their promo tickets before the expiration date. So far, there has been no official word whether any kind of promo ticket will be offered again next year, but keep watching this board to see if/when something is announced.

 

[GoofyforDisney3]

If Disney offers a SoCal promotional ticket next year like they have done the past few years, be aware of the end date for those tickets. The last few years the promotion has ended the week before Memorial Day Weekend, and that week and the weekend before MDW have been very busy in the parks as locals scramble to use their promo tickets before the expiration date. So far, there has been no official word whether any kind of promo ticket will be offered again next year, but keep watching this board to see if/when something is announced.

So in that instance I'd either need to plan for larger crowds or have my DL days at the end of the trip vs. the beginning?

 

[GoofyforDisney3]

I took my grandkids to USH the day after Thanksgiving this year.
It was busy.... But not so busy we could not get everything done. The ONLY thing we missed was the animal show.

Expecting crowds, I had planned on 2 full days. The first day we arrived about 10:15am and went until about 9:30pm.
With a nice long dinner break at the Hard Rock Cafe in the City Walk.
We rode ALL the rides, saw all but 1 show and even took the studio tram tour. All this with a general admission ticket.

The second day we began at opening 9am and re-did the rides they liked. They were done in a couple hours and asking when we get to go to Disneyland. USH is a one day park.

Here is my opinion on beginning or ending a trip at Disneyland...
I have been going to Disneyland for YEARS! And have done both in the early years.
I have come to the decision to ALWAYS end a trip at Disneyland. Ending a trip at another destination is not as satisfying as ending at Disneyland.

When a stop at USH is part of a trip, I like to fly into Burbank Airport. It is only a few miles from USH. If we are staying the night I have booked at the Sheraton Universal City. It is right across the street from the park entrance. They have a shuttle if you do not want to walk.

Geemo

Thank you for that information! I hadn't even thought of flying into a different airport and was only using LAX. I was looking into the Lowes hotel for USH so far, but hadn't gotten to far into the research on that one.

Did the studio tram tour seem like it was the same being the holiday like that or is it better for that on a regular "work" day?

 

[Geemo]

Thank you for that information! I hadn't even thought of flying into a different airport and was only using LAX. I was looking into the Lowes hotel for USH so far, but hadn't gotten to far into the research on that one.

Did the studio tram tour seem like it was the same being the holiday like that or is it better for that on a regular "work" day?

The Tram Ride was the same as I have seen on past visits to USH. Nothing is "Holiday" themed.
On Friday we rode it after the sun had gone down. So it was hard to see some of the features of the sets.
Saturday we rode it right before we left, to see if it would be better during the day.

Grandkids felt they like the night time tour was better. They weren't really impressed with the Tram Tour portion of USH.
Other than the got to sit the whole time and rest their feet.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

So in that instance I'd either need to plan for larger crowds or have my DL days at the end of the trip vs. the beginning?

It's definitely worth keeping in mind. If the SoCal promo isn't offered next year, then you would have more flexibility with your dates. But if the promo goes on as usual, then plan on much larger crowds the week before the promo expires or try to do the parks after the expiration date. And, just FYI, for the past few years, MDW has been pretty good crowd-wise in the parks. The weekend has been very good and the Monday is when things get busy. Keep an eye on the AP Blockout Calendar, too -- that is very important information at DLR.