Nap Times and closing for capacity

The adults don’t want to do the big rides? If you do, child swap will get you both on the ride in a decent amount of time.

Are you sure you have to go back to the hotel? That can take so long. Whenever we went back to a hotel for a nap it was SO hard getting moving again.

My son just napped in the stroller, we did what we wanted (one at a time of course), and it was better than having to go all the way back.

Is returning to the hotel during the afternoon less common at Disneyland? It seems like it is always the advice for WDW to take a break. My 8 year old will be fine but my youngest who just turned 5 last week I am worried about since he just stopped napping at preschool. I was assuming we'd need a break to get him through Fantasmic and Worlds of Color but maybe that isn't as practical for Disneyland? We also are adapting from eastern time which is another nightmare I am worried about though we do have a few days in San Diego until we head up to Disney.
 
Is returning to the hotel during the afternoon less common at Disneyland? It seems like it is always the advice for WDW to take a break. My 8 year old will be fine but my youngest who just turned 5 last week I am worried about since he just stopped napping at preschool. I was assuming we'd need a break to get him through Fantasmic and Worlds of Color but maybe that isn't as practical for Disneyland? We also are adapting from eastern time which is another nightmare I am worried about though we do have a few days in San Diego until we head up to Disney.
It can be very common at DLR, but it all depends on where people are staying and what's going on in the parks. And, of course, on what kind of napper your child is -- Has to be in a bed in a fully dark room? Has to have complete quiet? Can sleep anywhere at the drop of a hat? You get the picture. If you are staying on site or across the street on Harbor or at another nearby/walking distance hotel, then returning during the day for naps and maybe a swim break is no big deal. If you are staying further away, where it would take a while just to get back to your car or to catch a shuttle and then get back to your hotel, then it might not be so convenient to go back for a break. And with SWGE being such an unknown factor at this point, no one really knows if it will still be as easy to leave for a break as it has been so far. And, keep in mind that many guests are locals who drive in for the day -- there is no hotel to go back to -- so the kids nap in the park.
I suspect that pp are correct about the parks not being as horrifically crowded as predicted this summer. Yes, there may well be a few days where there are gate closures for a bit; but those don't last all day. And they don't happen day after day after day. So keep reading here on May 31st and afterward to see what the new crowd patterns will be.
 
Capacity closure generally happens on NYE. It can happen other times during Christmas/NY week, but it doesn't that often. I do expect it June 24th. But it is a wait and see for the rest of the summer.
Exactly. And if they do start happening more frequently than we're used to, I expect Disney to respond and adjust accordingly, not just to slam the gates shut and keep them closed.
 


I think Im in the minorty here and I will be happy to be proved wrong BUT I am expecting huge crowds June 24 onwards. This is not Carsland or Pandora. This is Star Wars, which has its own fan community, a fan community of adults who have the disposable income to travel to Disneyland from all over the world, not just USA. Think of us here on Dis and the other Disney websites, bloggers , vloggers Youtubers and social media people, we are a huge fan community. Well the Star Wars fan community is just the same.

This is a huge deal for the Star Wars fan community, its their world brought to life. There will be people in Disneyland for Star Wars Galaxys Edge who have never been to California, who have never been to Disneyland and who have waited all their lives for something like this.

A huge amount of Star Wars fans will come to Disneyland between June 24 and Walt Disney World opening in August. This is because they will want to visit Galaxys Edge at the first possible chance. It would be unbearable for many to wait until August for Orlando, when people are experiencing it in California and its all over social media and the Star Wars fan forums and websites.

I am expecting capacity closures, the type where the fire marshal closes Disneyland and no one gets in. Im expecting this to happen possibly twice a day, the first around 1pm and then again around 4 or 5pm.

Im preparing for this by
  1. doing 1 park per day, no park hopping
  2. arriving around 7am for 8am opening
  3. once Im in a park, not leaving until late at night
  4. table service or dining package on each park day
  5. Downtown Disney on arrival day, when I dont have a park ticket
 
When they do close, do they list that information anywhere? Like on the App? Or do you have to ask a cast member?
 


I think Im in the minorty here and I will be happy to be proved wrong BUT I am expecting huge crowds June 24 onwards. This is not Carsland or Pandora. This is Star Wars, which has its own fan community, a fan community of adults who have the disposable income to travel to Disneyland from all over the world, not just USA. Think of us here on Dis and the other Disney websites, bloggers , vloggers Youtubers and social media people, we are a huge fan community. Well the Star Wars fan community is just the same.

This is a huge deal for the Star Wars fan community, its their world brought to life. There will be people in Disneyland for Star Wars Galaxys Edge who have never been to California, who have never been to Disneyland and who have waited all their lives for something like this.

A huge amount of Star Wars fans will come to Disneyland between June 24 and Walt Disney World opening in August. This is because they will want to visit Galaxys Edge at the first possible chance. It would be unbearable for many to wait until August for Orlando, when people are experiencing it in California and its all over social media and the Star Wars fan forums and websites.

See...and I really feel like the REAL DIE HARD FANS would have gotten a reservation during the reservation period. I honestly, truly think that WDW Star Wars land will see much larger crowds than DL will.

FWIW, my husband is a HUGE Star Wars fan, but even then, he's only borderline excited about this land for the simple reason that the rides are based on the newer films and he's "meh" on those. Sure, we will be flying the Millenium Falcon, but the storyline is that we are fighting First Order Tie Fighters. Meh. This isn't Han's ship...

We live 15 minutes away and have the APs that will allow us to visit all summer and my husband has, to this point, not been particularly interested in any of the stories about merch, dining, nor the ride specifics. He is going overseas this summer for a year and isn't even bummed about missing the Rise of the Resistance Ride.

I think there is more hype for this land among Disney nerds than SW nerds...and I think Disney has overestimated the appeal of its newer film trilogy in basing both rides in this land on them.

The real die hard fan community isn't super gung ho about this land anymore. There are those who want to be "first", mostly for social media bragging rights, but IMO, the appeal over at DL is going to die down REALLY quickly.

FWIW, I think SW land at WDW is going to be an absolute cluster for many years to come, because that is how everything "new" plays out at WDW.
 
See...and I really feel like the REAL DIE HARD FANS would have gotten a reservation during the reservation period. I honestly, truly think that WDW Star Wars land will see much larger crowds than DL will.

FWIW, my husband is a HUGE Star Wars fan, but even then, he's only borderline excited about this land for the simple reason that the rides are based on the newer films and he's "meh" on those. Sure, we will be flying the Millenium Falcon, but the storyline is that we are fighting First Order Tie Fighters. Meh. This isn't Han's ship...

We live 15 minutes away and have the APs that will allow us to visit all summer and my husband has, to this point, not been particularly interested in any of the stories about merch, dining, nor the ride specifics. He is going overseas this summer for a year and isn't even bummed about missing the Rise of the Resistance Ride.

I think there is more hype for this land among Disney nerds than SW nerds...and I think Disney has overestimated the appeal of its newer film trilogy in basing both rides in this land on them.

The real die hard fan community isn't super gung ho about this land anymore. There are those who want to be "first", mostly for social media bragging rights, but IMO, the appeal over at DL is going to die down REALLY quickly.

FWIW, I think SW land at WDW is going to be an absolute cluster for many years to come, because that is how everything "new" plays out at WDW.
I see where you're coming from, but I'd say your husband probably is no longer considered the hardcore base... even if he once was. I'm in the same place: more hardcore back in the day, more casual toward the new stuff now. For awhile I thought that's how everybody felt, but I learned that all those "lapsed" or "now just casual" fans have been replaced by hordes of younger people who are as excited about the newer stuff as others were about the older stuff back in the day. So, I think it's hard to say that the fanbase isn't excited just because there is a segment of the fan base that is more casual than they used to be. I mean, just look at how many people are breaking down into tears just stepping into the land!

I do agree that this summer at DL isn't going to be the nightmare disaster that some people are speculating, and that it won't make DL impossible to visit for years and years... but I guess only time will tell!
 
I see where you're coming from, but I'd say your husband probably is no longer considered the hardcore base... even if he once was. I'm in the same place: more hardcore back in the day, more casual toward the new stuff now. For awhile I thought that's how everybody felt, but I learned that all those "lapsed" or "now just casual" fans have been replaced by hordes of younger people who are as excited about the newer stuff as others were about the older stuff back in the day. So, I think it's hard to say that the fanbase isn't excited just because there is a segment of the fan base that is more casual than they used to be. I mean, just look at how many people are breaking down into tears just stepping into the land!

I do agree that this summer at DL isn't going to be the nightmare disaster that some people are speculating, and that it won't make DL impossible to visit for years and years... but I guess only time will tell!

Well, he would not consider himself a "casual" fan, nor would our bank account, based on how much money he continues to spend on Star Wars Legos, collectibles like Funko Pops, clothing, special events (Star Wars conventions, etc). Our house is VERY obviously the home of a major, major SW fan. He's just very neutral on this land. And he is a big Disney fan as well, definitely not super hard core (like me), but he is all in on Disney theme parks.

The younger fans aren't the ones who have the money to spend on $200 lightsabers or $100 droids, though. The people making financial decisions are the ones Disney should have been targeting here.

And, I fully expect my husband to tear up when he walks into SW land, or at the very least, be speechless. It IS a childhood dream come true, sort of. He would have preferred to walk around Endor, or Tattoine, or a replica of the Death Star, but he will likely be impressed by the land's themeing none the less. What I am curious to see is how eager he is to go back after our reservation day. We are going back July 4th weekend and staying at the DLH, and when I mentioned that he could hang out in SW land some more, he was like "yeah, I guess.."
 
Is returning to the hotel during the afternoon less common at Disneyland? It seems like it is always the advice for WDW to take a break. My 8 year old will be fine but my youngest who just turned 5 last week I am worried about since he just stopped napping at preschool. I was assuming we'd need a break to get him through Fantasmic and Worlds of Color but maybe that isn't as practical for Disneyland? We also are adapting from eastern time which is another nightmare I am worried about though we do have a few days in San Diego until we head up to Disney.

I don't know what's common, but we are out of towners that stay at hotels within walking distance - 4 kids under 7. Three of them still take regular afternoon naps of about 2 hours. The number of times we have gone back to our hotel is zero. It's just too hard to get everyone going again. We have a double stroller, so we just kind of stagger naps for 2 at a time and kids take them as needed.
 
Well, he would not consider himself a "casual" fan, nor would our bank account, based on how much money he continues to spend on Star Wars Legos, collectibles like Funko Pops, clothing, special events (Star Wars conventions, etc). Our house is VERY obviously the home of a major, major SW fan. He's just very neutral on this land. And he is a big Disney fan as well, definitely not super hard core (like me), but he is all in on Disney theme parks.

The younger fans aren't the ones who have the money to spend on $200 lightsabers or $100 droids, though. The people making financial decisions are the ones Disney should have been targeting here.

And, I fully expect my husband to tear up when he walks into SW land, or at the very least, be speechless. It IS a childhood dream come true, sort of. He would have preferred to walk around Endor, or Tattoine, or a replica of the Death Star, but he will likely be impressed by the land's themeing none the less. What I am curious to see is how eager he is to go back after our reservation day. We are going back July 4th weekend and staying at the DLH, and when I mentioned that he could hang out in SW land some more, he was like "yeah, I guess.."
It’s funny, but my DH is the same way. He definitely would not consider himself a casual fan, and he’s loved all the new movies, even that last one that didn’t get great reviews. I picked DL for our vacation because I figured our son is the perfect age and DH would love SWGE, but so far he’s kind of “meh” on it. I don’t really get it. I’m not a SW fan at all and I think the pictures and descriptions are awesome! I might be the most excited one in our house! (Though my son is quite interested in building his own R2 unit :rolleyes:)
 
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Well, he would not consider himself a "casual" fan, nor would our bank account, based on how much money he continues to spend on Star Wars Legos, collectibles like Funko Pops, clothing, special events (Star Wars conventions, etc). Our house is VERY obviously the home of a major, major SW fan. He's just very neutral on this land. And he is a big Disney fan as well, definitely not super hard core (like me), but he is all in on Disney theme parks.

The younger fans aren't the ones who have the money to spend on $200 lightsabers or $100 droids, though. The people making financial decisions are the ones Disney should have been targeting here.

And, I fully expect my husband to tear up when he walks into SW land, or at the very least, be speechless. It IS a childhood dream come true, sort of. He would have preferred to walk around Endor, or Tattoine, or a replica of the Death Star, but he will likely be impressed by the land's themeing none the less. What I am curious to see is how eager he is to go back after our reservation day. We are going back July 4th weekend and staying at the DLH, and when I mentioned that he could hang out in SW land some more, he was like "yeah, I guess.."
Weird double post, sorry.
 
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I think Im in the minorty here and I will be happy to be proved wrong BUT I am expecting huge crowds June 24 onwards. This is not Carsland or Pandora. This is Star Wars, which has its own fan community, a fan community of adults who have the disposable income to travel to Disneyland from all over the world, not just USA. Think of us here on Dis and the other Disney websites, bloggers , vloggers Youtubers and social media people, we are a huge fan community. Well the Star Wars fan community is just the same.

This is a huge deal for the Star Wars fan community, its their world brought to life. There will be people in Disneyland for Star Wars Galaxys Edge who have never been to California, who have never been to Disneyland and who have waited all their lives for something like this.

A huge amount of Star Wars fans will come to Disneyland between June 24 and Walt Disney World opening in August. This is because they will want to visit Galaxys Edge at the first possible chance. It would be unbearable for many to wait until August for Orlando, when people are experiencing it in California and its all over social media and the Star Wars fan forums and websites.

I am expecting capacity closures, the type where the fire marshal closes Disneyland and no one gets in. Im expecting this to happen possibly twice a day, the first around 1pm and then again around 4 or 5pm.

Im preparing for this by
  1. doing 1 park per day, no park hopping
  2. arriving around 7am for 8am opening
  3. once Im in a park, not leaving until late at night
  4. table service or dining package on each park day
  5. Downtown Disney on arrival day, when I dont have a park ticket
But have you looked at hotel availability? Not just at the DL hotels, but the Good Neighbors, too? SO MUCH OPEN. The lower APs are all blocked out, so the local crowd just isn’t going to be there in droves - maybe the Flex Pass will take off, but even that will have reservation limits...
 
It’s funny, but my DH is the same way. He definitely would not consider himself a casual fan, and he’s loved all the new movies, even that last one that didn’t get great reviews. I picked DL for our vacation because I figured our son is the perfect age and DH would love SWGE, but so far he’s kind of “meh” on it. I don’t really get it. I’m not a SW fan at all and I think the pictures and descriptions are awesome! I might be the most excited one in our house! (Though my son is quite interested in building his own R2 unit :rolleyes:)
So I asked my DH, “for science”, to rate his interest in seeing the following theme park lands on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest:

Star Wars Galaxy Edge (DL) - 5
Super Hero Land (DL) - 4
Diagon Alley/Hogwarts Express (Uni) - he volunteered a 10
Super Nintendo Land (Uni - rumored) - 3

I asked why he rated Diagon Alley/Hogwarts Express higher than SWGE, because although he’s a Potterhead, SW is definitely his first and only true love. He said it’s because he’s already seen Hogsmeade at Uni and “knows it’s awesome”. I suspect his ranking will change once we get there and he actually gets to experience being IN Star Wars land, rather than just talking about it. I also think the anticipated rave reviews from actual guests will help pump him up too. FWIW, he said it makes no difference to him whether the land was based off of the old or new movies. So that’s just one Star Wars fan’s opinion :)
 
The younger fans aren't the ones who have the money to spend on $200 lightsabers or $100 droids, though. The people making financial decisions are the ones Disney should have been targeting here.

I think it depends what you mean by younger. I’m traveling there just for SWGE this summer with a group of friends that are all major fans, younger (early 30s) and are coming with money to burn. They’ve never been Disneyland people before this- they might be afterwards but the draw is SWGE.

Just throwing it out there that younger doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t have cash to burn. Us millennials have some funds these days. And if you don’t have kids, even easier to have money to burn!

Sadly for me I’ll be sharing that expensive lightsaber with my 9 year old because I can’t justify two. :rotfl2:

I am hoping though that you’re all right and it won’t be as busy as everyone’s been saying! We always like to take a 2-3 hour break in the afternoon to take a swim at the pool and refresh for the evening. I’d be bummed to not get that. And compared to WDW, I think it’s pretty convenient to take those breaks if you’re close by. And if not, use the ART!
 

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