Need some first time advice

[4inPink]

Hi all! I am so glad I just happened on this site because you all sound like pros. I'm in need of a little advice. DH and I are taking our 4 girls to Disneyland in about 2 weeks. We will in California from Feb 2-10th. What I am wondering is how many days do I really need for DL and DCA? We were thinking about going to Sea World too and wondered if we should or if we should just concentrate on DL? This is their first time, and our first time to DCA. My kids are 2, 5, 7, 9. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

As far as hotels go, we are staying at a time share in Newport Beach, so when we do go to DL we will have a little drive. Anyone know what the commute time will be like? Thanks again.

 

[BillyFan]

First off, Welcome!!!! You can find a lot of great info here. I think the perfect abmount of time, especially for a first trip is four days. You could probably do it in three, but could take a much more leisurely pace if you add an extra day.
As far as your commute, somebody else will have to come along to tell you about that.
If you have any more questions, feel free to post them. There are lots of people here who know a ton about Disneyland!

 

[mikayla73]

We have done the DLR/Sea World thing a couple of times. We usually go mostly for DL, so we spend most the our time there and usually drive to San Diego for a day and that is it. I'd say that especially if you are staying the entire time at the Newport Beach timeshare as it is about an hour and a half to drive to San Diego on a good day, well over two hours on a bad day. So you'd be looking at spending a lot of time in the car if you did more than one day at SW and were staying in Newport. I'd say at least 4 days at DL for your first trip so you aren't rushed and can see what you want to see.

I'd say the drive is about 25-30 min in good traffic, 30-45 min in heavier traffic from Newport to DL. Of course that depends on where in Newport, we usually spend most of our time around the Newport Pier area.

Have a great time and !

 

[mystic_path]

yeah to be comfy I would put it around 4-5 days to see the parks with your family

 

[ballarinamom]

Ditto on the 4-5 days. BUT DO YOUR BEST TO GET THERE FOR ROPE DROP!! You will ride so many more rides in the first hour or so, especially in Fantasyland. Brush up on the Fastpass rides so you are aware of where they are and always make sure to have atleast one at all times. Its a great backup in case the park gets really crowded and blows your plan

 

[blackjackdelta]

There are 6 of us and usually do 5 days and a day trip to San Diego. We do not kill ourselves that way. Make sure you read the sticky's.

Jack

 

[4inPink]

Thanks to all who have responded. I am so gald that I can get a 3 day hopper with two free days right now. I do have another question...

Say I go to DL and pay for parking, and then we decide that we are going to go somplace out of the park for lunch and want to drive there, when we come back do we have to pay for parking again, or is our parking pass valid for the whole day?

I'm just trying to figure out how to do this the least expensive way. Does DL offer a week parking pass, or is it just on a daily basis? We are driving from Newport Beach area everytime we go.

Thanks again in advance to your responses.

 

[4inPink]

Ok. I thought of another question besides the one about parking. What kind of clothing should we wear for our first week of Feb. trip? RIght now, I was planning on having the kids dress in jeans, a long sleve t-shirt, with a short sleeve t-shirt on top. Is this ok or do I need to think about sweatshirts? We are coming from Utah were the weather today is a high of 22 degrees. 60's is going to feel great to us. Thanks for any help.

 

[BillyFan]

I believe that as long as you keep your parking slip you are good to go for the entire day. I don't know of any weekly parking pass.

As for clothing issues, I always overpack, but I don't want to be cold at night. Jeans and a long sleeve shirt are probably fine for the day, but once the sun goes down, it can be pretty cold at night. JMO.

 

[Vala]

Say I go to DL and pay for parking, and then we decide that we are going to go somplace out of the park for lunch and want to drive there, when we come back do we have to pay for parking again, or is our parking pass valid for the whole day?

The parking pass is valid for the whole day. We did this twice during our last stay and had no problem at all.

 

[mindylovesmickey]

I think during the day you are going to be plenty warm enough. But during the night you might need a warmer jacket/sweatshirt.

 

[ILikeCheese]

Hi all! I am so glad I just happened on this site because you all sound like pros. I'm in need of a little advice. DH and I are taking our 4 girls to Disneyland in about 2 weeks. We will in California from Feb 2-10th. What I am wondering is how many days do I really need for DL and DCA? We were thinking about going to Sea World too and wondered if we should or if we should just concentrate on DL? This is their first time, and our first time to DCA. My kids are 2, 5, 7, 9. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

As far as hotels go, we are staying at a time share in Newport Beach, so when we do go to DL we will have a little drive. Anyone know what the commute time will be like? Thanks again.

WHATEVER YOU DO do not go on the sun wheel! It is the Evilest ride in the history of forever!
'throws sheep at sun wheel'
take that! evil ride!

 

[deej696]

We made our first trip to DL and devoted two full days to each park, and then had a spare day to fill in the holes on anything we missed. This was plenty of time for us, even during the new years holiday. Have a great trip!