My Disneyland Trip Turned Out To Be A Bit Of A Disaster

[disneychrista]

The walkways at DL are narrow but it seems they’re making improvements. I noticed there’s some fences up at the entrance to Tomorrowland and the corresponding sign says they’re making improvements to improve the landscaping and widen the walkways… so I’m assuming they’re reducing the landscaping.

Unfortunately, they have had those construction walls up for a couple years now.

 

[JerrodDragon89]

Things like Feliz Navidad and a few other holiday offerings moved to just having shows on over the weekend and not every day. All the entertainment in Avengers Campus was also axed big time and had limited days of show times which was a big disappointment. This was the first time my son experienced this area and it is so dead now. It used to be vibrant with lots going on, now it is like a ghost town with crowds gathered round Webslingers and a couple of meet and greet areas but thats it. There is no ambience at all. Quite disappionting.

True but the Encanto and Coco show are there on weekdays

I will say also the app does not list many smaller shows like those in the backlot and near the winery area. So they might have had more little shows but sadly you would have no idea unless you looked them up on the website and them stumbled upon there location.

Also sadly it might have been when you've gone because looking at the App today the Avanger shows are all playing the dance off, Haweye holiday show and Deadpool. So they might have more going on the last two weeks of the year vs the first weeks of the event on weekdays

I would just keep these in mind next time and it sucks when things don't work out but all we can do is learn from our bad trips on how to have better trips next time

 

[twodogs]

I know right I kept thinking the same thing. All the research I did before I left said that kids would be back in school that week straight after Thanksgiving so crowds would be more manageable. Go figure!!!!

I used to think I could "out-plan" the crowds at DLR and WDW. And that was actually somewhat true back then (15 years ago). Now, Disney's plan always defeats my plans! That is, Disney has become a lot more interested in and agile at controlling crowds so that there really are no slow times. Which is really frustrating!

I am sorry your trip didn't turn out as well as you hoped. I know you put 1000% effort into it, and I am sure your kids appreciate you and will have great memories of this trip (crowds are soon forgotten, which is probably why I am already planning the next trip, after having super high crowds on our trip in October!)!

 

[Pluto468]

I used to think I could "out-plan" the crowds at DLR and WDW. And that was actually somewhat true back then (15 years ago). Now, Disney's plan always defeats my plans! That is, Disney has become a lot more interested in and agile at controlling crowds so that there really are no slow times. Which is really frustrating!

This is so true! In the past you could count on slow times of the year, days of week etc. But now whenever crowds slow down Disney announces a new ticket special or after dark event. It's really frustrating. At least now they're mostly putting out a year's worth of events ahead of time so you can try to plan around it.

 

[JerrodDragon89]

I used to think I could "out-plan" the crowds at DLR and WDW. And that was actually somewhat true back then (15 years ago). Now, Disney's plan always defeats my plans! That is, Disney has become a lot more interested in and agile at controlling crowds so that there really are no slow times. Which is really frustrating!

I am sorry your trip didn't turn out as well as you hoped. I know you put 1000% effort into it, and I am sure your kids appreciate you and will have great memories of this trip (crowds are soon forgotten, which is probably why I am already planning the next trip, after having super high crowds on our trip in October!)!

I would say January after the Holidays and in June after grad nights the parks are pretty fun and calm

I've gone in june a few years now and got an insane amount of rides down and this is with going back to my room to nap and not saying past 0 PM

 

[Tinkaboo]

Yep, totally on board with you, Porsche and so sorry that you came such a long way to be so disappointed. I only came from CO but was greatly disheartened, expecting lower crowds due to block outs only to find they shipped in another 4,000+ of those stupid dancers on Saturday! I read a lot of posts prior and never saw a thing about that. Im sure Disney made a billion dollars off of that nonsense..That place was jammed...totally miserable. Sunday was better,
Monday even better, more normal.

Gave me some new perspective, back to not renewing key this year. Think Ill go to Iceland instead or maybe Europe.

 

[DizMe]

I'm sorry, Porsche! That must be so disappointing after all the time and money spent to plan the trip.

I just got home last night from my trip. We had a couple of times where the crowd crush was a bit overwhelming in places, but I have 2 things that save me from disappointment. One, I'm older, usually with my sister, no kids, and no particular agenda for rides. I honestly don't go to DLR for the rides--I mainly just hit my favorites. I like experiences and try to do one new one each visit. This year it was the F! Premium dining package which was WONDERFUL. My friends are like me--older women--so we take things at a different pace. I like to watch other people having fun. I always stay on site, because the hotel is a big part of my trip.

I know that doesn't help anyone else, especially if you're going with a family and are trying to maximize your time and money. I'm very sorry this didn't go the way you'd hoped, Porsche.

 

[disneychrista]

expecting lower crowds due to block outs only to find they shipped in another 4,000+ of those stupid dancers on Saturday!

Maybe I missed something but what dancers are you taking about?

 

[Tinkaboo]

See Lking's earlier post...there was some HUGE dance competition in OC, over 1,000 dancers from all over the world PLUS family members and all the dancers were in the parade and onstage. A lady in SB told us it cost her family $18,000 to come with the dance troupe from Melbourne, Australia. They also performed at UHS. Their dollar is worth half ours. I thought we would avoid crowds by not going CP weekend....this was just as bad.

 

[JerrodDragon89]

See Lking's earlier post...there was some HUGE dance competition in OC, over 1,000 dancers from all over the world PLUS family members and all the dancers were in the parade and onstage. A lady in SB told us it cost her family $18,000 to come with the dance troupe from Melbourne, Australia. They also performed at UHS. Their dollar is worth half ours. I thought we would avoid crowds by not going CP weekend....this was just as bad.

I went CP weekend, it has negatives like no main street vehicles but the rides at least were not that bad to get on....last weekend was just the start of the bad hoilday crowds and i assume will be here until Jan 6th

 

[Chili327]

Yep, they all moved over to DCA for their after hours party.

DCA has an Xmas After-Hours Party?

Since Thanksgiving was so late, I think you ran into more of the "first week of December" instead of the "last week of November."

Yep, we went Dec 1-4 and it was crowded, so just had to be strategic in planning.

When did you last visit Avengers Campus? Personally, I think it has been lackluster since the beginning. Hopefully the expansion will help.

Hopefully *fingers crossed*

Thanks for your kind words. We did definitely have some great moments and it was absolutely wonderful having my son with us who just makes us all laugh with his quirky sense of humour. He hasn't been to a Disney park in years and even though he found it overwhelming at times he now has the bug back again and says he really wants us to organise a trip to WDW in the next few years. That will be a challenge as I know it is even more crowded there than DL but I will plan that holiday a LOT differently. I guess I just had very different expectations going into this holiday which I realise now in hindsight were way off the mark. It will be some time before we get back to DL but never say never right.

Honestly, try January. Also WDW has a lot to do outside the parks so you can get away when needed.

I agree. And they could always put AstroOrbitor back on top of the PeopleMover (and bring that attraction back while there’re at it).

Yes Please!! I hate the whole steampunk vibe it gives off. (it makes WDW Tomorrowland feel so much more magical)

Unfortunately, they have had those construction walls up for a couple years now.

They're down!!! (Pixie Hollow is now open)

 

[DnA2010]

nother contributing factor to the overcrowding is the fact that multiple high capacity entertainment venues are sitting shuttered. Hyperion seats 2,000 people, so back when Frozen or Aladdin were running multiple shows a day that would be some 1.5K-2K people not in line at any one time for the (already limited number of) attractions at DCA. Similarly, at DLP, Fantasyland Theater seats 1,800 people and the old Captain EO theater seats another 500. Back when DLP was running both daytime and nighttime parades daily, these could suck another couple thousand people to watch (and thus meaning walkways for other parts of the park were emptier). I hope Disneyland gets the guest feedback that live entertainment is important, and not having these venues in use can have negative impact on crowding throughout the

This is so true, and drives me crazy! Those beautiful theatre spaces sitting empty...Disney makes so much money yet they begrudge paying their performers...I met a fellow on a cruise prior to our 2 days at DL (Dec 6/7) who was friends with a number of characters including Jack Skellington, and he was super frustrated by the cuts in entertainment as well; he has been in entertainment at DL for 15 years, so had enought work, but was sad to see areas of entertainment cut back...come on Disney!

 

[LKing]

DCA has an Xmas After-Hours Party?

The after hours party was specifically for Dance Magic participants and their families. The comment was that Disneyland was calm in the evening because the Dance Magic families left Disneyland and went to DCA for their party.

 

[Chili327]

The after hours party was specifically for Dance Magic participants and their families. The comment was that Disneyland was calm in the evening because the Dance Magic families left Disneyland and went to DCA for their party.

Gotcha, so it was like a private event?

I was thinking when did they add an Xmas party!! lol

 

[disneychrista]

They're down!!! (Pixie Hollow is now open)

Different walls, not the walls for the Pixie Hallow refurb. Walls that have been up near the entrance to Tomorrowland with artwork of the new entrance. These walls have been up for a few years now.

 

[disneychrista]

See Lking's earlier post...there was some HUGE dance competition in OC, over 1,000 dancers from all over the world PLUS family members and all the dancers were in the parade and onstage. A lady in SB told us it cost her family $18,000 to come with the dance troupe from Melbourne, Australia. They also performed at UHS. Their dollar is worth half ours. I thought we would avoid crowds by not going CP weekend....this was just as bad.

I know it is disappointing going expected lower crowds only to be hit with something like this. But these types of things, maybe not quite this scale, happen all the time. When I was there, there were several HS marching bands before the parade, which I know happens quite frequently. My daughter was suppose to perform at Disneyland when she was in middle school but the teacher cancelled it due to some bad behavior happening in the class room. Doesn't see fair that everyone got punished because of a few kids but that is what happens sometimes.

Honestly, one should always expect it to be crowded because it usually is.

 

[KimberMama]

Yep, totally on board with you, Porsche and so sorry that you came such a long way to be so disappointed. I only came from CO but was greatly disheartened, expecting lower crowds due to block outs only to find they shipped in another 4,000+ of those stupid dancers on Saturday! I read a lot of posts prior and never saw a thing about that. Im sure Disney made a billion dollars off of that nonsense..That place was jammed...totally miserable. Sunday was better,
Monday even better, more normal.

Gave me some new perspective, back to not renewing key this year. Think Ill go to Iceland instead or maybe Europe.

We were there Thursday 12/12 - Saturday 12/14 staying at the GCH and again Tuesday 12/17 (had to go back for a pin our DS requested that released 12/17). Saturday was the worst of it, I think, although the morning and early afternoon were fine — it must have picked up once the dancers were finished. We left around 3 and they were streaming through DTD on their way to the parks. Thursday and Friday were fantastic, even late into the night. Yesterday was probably best of all, although we left around 8 and did see a lot of people arriving.

 

[KimberMama]

I'm sorry, Porsche! That must be so disappointing after all the time and money spent to plan the trip.

I just got home last night from my trip. We had a couple of times where the crowd crush was a bit overwhelming in places, but I have 2 things that save me from disappointment. One, I'm older, usually with my sister, no kids, and no particular agenda for rides. I honestly don't go to DLR for the rides--I mainly just hit my favorites. I like experiences and try to do one new one each visit. This year it was the F! Premium dining package which was WONDERFUL. My friends are like me--older women--so we take things at a different pace. I like to watch other people having fun. I always stay on site, because the hotel is a big part of my trip.

I know that doesn't help anyone else, especially if you're going with a family and are trying to maximize your time and money. I'm very sorry this didn't go the way you'd hoped, Porsche.

DH and I the same way now, taking it slowly and really absorbing the atmosphere. Space Mountain is probably our only must do each visit. When I go with my son there’s a bigger emphasis on attractions, although he also loves to see the bands too. Saturday while DH and I were watching the Disneyland Band in Frontierland I saw Tiana come out, and rather than watching her I looked at the little girl near me, to catch her reaction when she saw Tiana — she absolutely lit up! Then Tiana brought her forward to dance — it was really cute. We love that kind of thing, especially the young children who are delighted and not jaded at all (of course they get grumpy sometimes but for the most part they are enchanted by Disneyland).

 

[KimberMama]

I went CP weekend, it has negatives like no main street vehicles but the rides at least were not that bad to get on....last weekend was just the start of the bad hoilday crowds and i assume will be here until Jan 6th

Yep, we were there Saturday 12/7 and it really wasn’t bad at all while we were there (rope drop to 3PM). We expected it to be mobbed, but crowds and wait times were reasonable.

 

[disneychrista]

We were there Thursday 12/12 - Saturday 12/14 staying at the GCH and again Tuesday 12/17 (had to go back for a pin our DS requested that released 12/17). Saturday was the worst of it, I think, although the morning and early afternoon were fine — it must have picked up once the dancers were finished. We left around 3 and they were streaming through DTD on their way to the parks. Thursday and Friday were fantastic, even late into the night. Yesterday was probably best of all, although we left around 8 and did see a lot of people arriving.

Just goes to show you that two people can experience the same thing and have different opinions. I was there Wednesday - Friday and thought the crowds were crazy, especially in the evenings.