My plan for next week's trip

[Scully12]

I'm going to Disneyland and California Adventure with my mom next week as a graduation trip! We're doing one day at each, with no hopping.

Disneyland 5/18; Park hours: 9-9
1. Space Mountain
2. Buzz Lightyear
3. Indiana Jones
4. Jungle Cruise
5. Haunted Mansion
6. Tom Sawyers Island
7. Explorer Canoes
8. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
9. Castle
10. Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
11. Pinocchio
12. Alice
13. Mad Tea Party
14. Matterhorn
15. Small World
16. Roger Rabbit
17. Finding Nemo
--Parade thrown in there somewhere? Is it worth it for a 20something and 50something?

California Adventure 5/19; Park hours: 10-6

1. California Screamin’
2. Toy Story Mania
3. Monsters Inc
4. Muppet Vision
5. Disney Animation
6. Grizzly River Run (Maaybe)
7. Parade
8. Golden Vine Winery
9. Pacific Warf
10. Paradise Pier
--It's the food and wine festival so I KNOW my mom will want to do a lot of that stuff. She loves her wine.

Is this doable? I've never been to Disneyland before before so I have nooo idea what timing is like!

 

[CrazyDuck]

Is that the order of the rides you want to do? If so I'd swap 1 and 2 in CA, or even grab FP's for Screaming on your way to TSMM... Also... No Tower of Terror? Peter Pan? any why would you see Muppet Vision and not It's tough to be a bug?

 

[Scully12]

Yeah that's the order I was thinking.

I first want to do things we haven't done at Disney World and then go back if there's time for other things.

As for the attractions you mentioned: I hate hate hate hate hate Tower of Terror. I really dislike It's Tough to be a Bug. And I enjoy Muppets and would like to do it.

 

[skiingfast]

I'd grab FP's as much as you can, start with getting one for either Space or Indy. If it is busy and you don't the return time will be noon really fast.
Also in general use FP but get one for Roger Rabbit, even if you have are waiting on another FP. Some one will confirm but it's not connected to the other FP machines so you can get this ride and another at the same time.

Also I would do BTM before Tom's Island. Or do it at night.


Also you should definitly go on the Finding Nemo submarine Voyage. I don't know if you have it last because you don't know if you will get to it. It's also in tommorow land so you might want to do it early rather than late. Maybe the Matterhorn it's near by and if the line is short take it while you are there.

Don't forget POTC it is hands down better in DL.

I agree with the PP about grabbing the screemin FP on the way to TSMM this will save you 30 minutes of wait time on Screemin at least. You might want to get one for GRR if its return time is in the pm when it's warmer. Also ToT is different in DCA so you might want to check it out.

 

[disneynerd420]

Just a suggestion... it is only 7 dollars more to get a 2 day park hopper rather than 2 - 1 day single park tickets. And this way you can buy them online and not have to wait in line at the main ticket booths, which can take forever!

Park hopping makes things easier. You can start the morning in DL and as it gets more crowded you can move over to DCA where the crowds are usually lighter. Once the evening hits, you can make your way back to DL to finish the night out there. That way you get to experience the magic of the original DL park both days, instead of one.

Whatever you decide to do, I am sure you will have a great time though!

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

I second the suggestion to parkhop since the two parks are so close together. If you are unable to parkhop due to ticket or financial constraints, you obviously have plenty to do in each park each day. Parkhopping just adds some flexibility.

I would suggest altering your ride order a bit. While it's true that since Tuesday is a magic morning many people will have entered the park an hour ahead of you, chances are that much of Fantasyland will still be fairly uncrowded at regular opening time of 9 AM. If you are in line outside the park before 9 AM, that will help you get a jump on things. You might do best to do your Fantasyland rides first; Alice, Tea Cups, Matterhorn, Toad, and Pinnochio. Then grab a fastpass for Space or Indy. Mid-week at a non-peak time of year I imagine the crowds and lines are not what I am used to at peak times, but I do know those Fantasyland lines can really build throughout the day and you can always take advantage of fastpass on the big rides.

Unless the Roger Rabbit line is long, it's not worth two trips, one expressly to get the fastpass and one to return to ride. You can overlap your RR fastpass though with another that you already have, so if you are already in the vicinity it doesn't hurt to grab one for later. You might do best to dart in for a RR fastpass before riding Small World for instance, but I wouldn't drop what I was doing in Adventureland, for example, to troop all the way back to Toontown to get a RR fastpass.

Know that California Adventure usually opens its gates at 9:30. At that time, the only ride open is Soarin'. I noticed that ride isn't on your list presumably because either you don't like it or have ridden it at WDW. If you love it though and were only skipping it for time, 9:30 is a great opportunity to ride it. If you still don't want to do it, your best bet with your itinerary is probably to wait at rope drop by the Grizzly River Run so you can walk straight to the back of the park for Toy Story and Screamin' first thing.

 

[rentayenta]

No Soarin'?


Hop, hop, hop. Disneyland is nothing like WDW with regards to park hopping. It takes all of 2 minutes from Disneyland's gate to DCA's gate tops.

 

[bnbheartdisney]

If possible, I would recommend buying a PH! Sometimes things don't go as planned and you end up missing some attractions on your list. At least with the FP, you can see/go on what you missed the day before. If you can't do PH's, then definitely take advantage of FP!!! Especially since you have a long list of to-do's. Lastly, do Toy Story Midway Mania first thing in the morning!

 

[DisneyMomma81]

If you don't park hop *you really should* you'll want to switch days ~ visit DL on a non MM day unless you'll have MM access, you'd have to stay on site for that since you're only visiting for 2 days ~ most 3 day hoppers come with 1 MM.

What does this mean ~ --Parade thrown in there somewhere? Is it worth it for a 20something and 50something? *oh your ages I'm guessing, sure but with only 2 days *why only 2??* maybe not.

 

[Hound 109]

If you don't park hop *you really should* you'll want to switch days ~ visit DL on a non MM day unless you'll have MM access, you'd have to stay on site for that since you're only visiting for 2 days ~ most 3 day hoppers come with 1 MM.

.....

DisneyMomma (& all the other posters above) is 100% correct on each point.

I'd hate to try to plan all those attractions in DL (in one day) without Park Hopping (& w/o TWO early days in DL to accomplish them all). DCA is doable though.


What hotel are you staying at (a DLR hotel??)

&/or why not a 3 day hopper?

 

[Scully12]

DisneyMomma (& all the other posters above) is 100% correct on each point.

I'd hate to try to plan all those attractions in DL (in one day) without Park Hopping (& w/o TWO early days in DL to accomplish them all). DCA is doable though.


What hotel are you staying at (a DLR hotel??)

&/or why not a 3 day hopper?

We only have two days. It isn't a Disney only trip...We're also doing Universal, LA/Hollywood and then the Glee tour (That's the real reason we're going to CA woo!!). We aren't staying in Anaheim. I know we SHOULD do hoppers, but we're trying to save money. I think it would be better, especially because DCA closes earlier than DL and we could go over there after DCA closes...

Thanks for all the suggestions and help! I'm so excited! I just watched my old Disney Vacation Planning DVD, even though it's out of date

 

[chrissiecutie]

We only have two days. It isn't a Disney only trip...We're also doing Universal, LA/Hollywood and then the Glee tour (That's the real reason we're going to CA woo!!). We aren't staying in Anaheim. I know we SHOULD do hoppers, but we're trying to save money. I think it would be better, especially because DCA closes earlier than DL and we could go over there after DCA closes...

Thanks for all the suggestions and help! I'm so excited! I just watched my old Disney Vacation Planning DVD, even though it's out of date

I'm going to go against the crowd and say don't park hop- especially saving money is your priority.

I never end up park hopping and like to just stay put. With a 5 yr old and cranky DH in tow- even if DCA closes a few hours earlier then DL, we are all still tired and ready to call it a day. I would never be able to get them to park hop and stay out another few hours. So do what's right for you, your family, your budget, etc. Park hopping can be great and a good way to really maximize all your time- but if you don't think you'll use it- then why bother?

Oh and one other thing- as a 15+ yr Disney vet, the canoes are kinda a waste of time. However, that's just my opinion and I'm sure lots of folks love em. They are a Disney original after all....but a canoe is a canoe is a canoe. Get my drift?

With only 2 days and 1 day for each park, then I would suggest you do things that you wouldn't be able to do at home/local fair, etc. So that means you can pass on the carousel, Autotopia (it's just a different version of bumper cars), the treehouse (ah the climbing...), the canoes, etc.

Have fun!

 

[Scully12]

Thanks for all the help! We have decided to stay two nights in Anaheim and get a park hopper (I'm very good at talking my mom into things...) We leave in the morning!!

 

[raftislander]

I am glad that you are park hopping. Also you must see PoC in DL. It is not the same as in WDW. You MUST see this ride, trust me.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Thanks for all the help! We have decided to stay two nights in Anaheim and get a park hopper (I'm very good at talking my mom into things...) We leave in the morning!!

Have a great time! Since you are park hopping, make sure to head into Disneyland first thing each morning (try to be in line at the gates 20-30 minutes before opening). Use fastpass to maximize your time. You can get a DL fastpass and then a DCA one before your window opens up since the 2 parks are on separate fastpass networks.

 

[bnbheartdisney]

Thanks for all the help! We have decided to stay two nights in Anaheim and get a park hopper (I'm very good at talking my mom into things...) We leave in the morning!!

Hope you have the best time!!!

 

[Scully12]

Thanks for all your help. We had a great time! I loved Disneyland a tooooon! I was shocked at just how small Sleeping Beauty's Castle is compared to Cinderellas! It was my one disappointment. Walking down Main Street didn't have quite the same impact.

We never followed a plan, but that's nothing new for me. I plan and then would rather throw the plan out the window and do what feels god at the time. We never waited more than 15 minutes for anything anyways.

The Disneyland Hotel was beautiful (the headboard lit up with fireworks and played music!) and the beds were so comfortable.

I loved LA in general and didn't want to leave!

 

[CrazyDuck]

I was shocked at just how small Sleeping Beauty's Castle is compared to Cinderellas! It was my one disappointment.

A lot of WDW vets mention that..... But I think the much larger size of Disneyland's Matterhorn mountain vs the size of the Magic Kingdom's Matterhorn mountain more than makes up for the size of the castle!