Park Hopper Tickets VS. Regular Tickets?

[disneygogetter]

Sorry if this has been asked before but can someone explain to me what the difference is between these tickets for the parks? I live in Los Angeles, California, so if I went to these parks I would always just go to one park but have heard about the Park Hopper countless times, but what is it exactly?

 

[mom2rtk]

The park hopper lets you move between DL and DCA over the course of the same day. With a regular ticket you are limited to only one park per day (although you can leave and return to that same park as needed).

 

[disneygogetter]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea? Its like you waste all this money and you should just stick to one park right? Why go between parks if your going to be going back and forth and missing out on certain things at each park?

 

[sherilaine]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea? Its like you waste all this money and you should just stick to one park right? Why go between parks if your going to be going back and forth and missing out on certain things at each park?

Then there are a lot of lame people who visit DLR every year - park hoppers are very popular. The parks are VERY close together. You can go to DL early in the morning at rope drop, then once it gets busy around lunch time, head over to DCA and enjoy some rides there. As long as you are not afraid of a little walking - park hoppers are great and we'd never consider a trip to DLR with anything less!

 

[mom2rtk]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea? Its like you waste all this money and you should just stick to one park right? Why go between parks if your going to be going back and forth and missing out on certain things at each park?

The parks are side by side, so it's not that hard to go from one park to the other.

Some people are only there a short time and need to move between parks to get in all the shows and rides they are interested in. Or maybe the park they are in is slammed with crowds and they want to go to the other where it's less crowded. Maybe they spent the day in DCA but haven't seen the fireworks at DL yet so hop over at night.

Maybe they missed the Aladdin stage show earlier in the week and need to hop over just to see that.

Lots of good reasons for hopping.

I'm generally not a big fan of hopping at WDW where the parks are farther apart. But at DLR we always buy (and use) hoppers.

 

[disneygogetter]

Well what about getting to Disneyland/DCA itself, like I remember seeing people walking from the Anaheim Convention Center area to the park, can you do that? Or do you need to get on one of those Disney buses to get to the park?

 

[theluckyrabbit]

You can walk to the parks from the Convention Center or take a shuttle from your hotel or a Disney shuttle from the Toy Story parking lot or a tram from the Mickey & Friends parking lot. There are many different ways of getting to the parks. It just depends on your location and your preference.

Park hopper tickets are a good idea when it comes to Fast Passes. The systems in the two parks are not linked, so you can hold FPs for rides in DL and DCA at the same time. Since the two parks are only about a football field's length apart, you can easily go back and forth for rides and attractions.

 

[Indiana Scott]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea? Its like you waste all this money and you should just stick to one park right? Why go between parks if your going to be going back and forth and missing out on certain things at each park?

I guess you can paint me "Lame" then because I would not even consider going to the parks without a PH. It allows me to travel between parks on a whim and do what ever I want rather than be tied down to one area.

 

[lawdvd]

I agree with theluckyrabbit. We get many more rides in by using this system. For example, we'll go into DL at rope drop. I'll grab FPs for Space Mountain or other E ticket. Then, while wife & kids are doing a short line ride, I'll head over to DCA and grab our RSR FPs. We end up going back and forth a couple of times (and me maybe 1/2 dozen because I'm collecting FPs.

I'm not away from my family much. I'll scoot to the other side while we are taking a snack or bathroom break. Most times, there aren't long waits to get from one park to the other.

 

[StageTek]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea?

No. Going between parks isn't a lame idea. It is a personal choice.
If you would rather not "waste" money or miss out on certain
things then you shouldn't buy a Park Hopper. I LOVE having BOTH
parks as my one, big park. Doesn't seem "lame" to me.

 

[bumbershoot]

But isn't going between parks a lame idea? Its like you waste all this money and you should just stick to one park right? Why go between parks if your going to be going back and forth and missing out on certain things at each park?

I don't think it's lame. And I wouldn't go to the other park if I was going to miss something I wanted to see. You move when you want. So if I'm hit with the urge to ride Monsters Inc and I've just finished Pirates, I go to dca. If I wanted to see the fireworks later, I hop back. If I wanted to ride Monsters at the same time as the fireworks then I'd need to make a decision.

It's easy to see things as useless when you haven't done them. For two years we bought one day one park tickets for our visits because WHY would we want to go to a CA themed park in CA? The. We had our first proper trip and the package came with hoppers and we fell in love with DCA. And realized...where else to have a CA themed park? I wouldn't go to one in Montana, right?

So it seems silly to you now. Maybe try it sometime.

Well what about getting to Disneyland/DCA itself, like I remember seeing people walking from the Anaheim Convention Center area to the park, can you do that? Or do you need to get on one of those Disney buses to get to the park?

I really don't understand this question.

 

[Cats2]

Sorry if this has been asked before but can someone explain to me what the difference is between these tickets for the parks? I live in Los Angeles, California, so if I went to these parks I would always just go to one park but have heard about the Park Hopper countless times, but what is it exactly?

Well what about getting to Disneyland/DCA itself, like I remember seeing people walking from the Anaheim Convention Center area to the park, can you do that? Or do you need to get on one of those Disney buses to get to the park?

I guess my question is whether you'd be doing day trips from your home, or if you were planning on staying at a nearby hotel/motel? If doing a day trip from home, then I would presumed you'd be parking at either Mickey & Friends or Toy Story parking lots (the parking for the parks). Disney provides buses/trams from their parking to the park. If on the other hand you're staying nearby, then you have an option of walking to the parks, taking ART (the Anaheim bus line that goes by the parks/resorts), or walking to a Disney parking lot and catching the tram/bus to the park.
Hoppers are handy-when it's busy in one park, you can hop to the other park. Since the FastPass systems at each park aren't connected to each other, you can collect FP for both. Having grown up in LA before DCA was built, it was weird the first time I used a hopper.

 

[Canuck16]

We always get PH on our trips and use them to our advantage.

As OP have mentioned the FP system in both parks are not connected. For example, if we start our day in DCA we ride and see what we want and then pull a FP for RSR for at night before we head over to DL for the afternoon as it doesn't affect our FP at DL. It's not lame for us to hop......we would never do a trip without them!

 

[VandVsmama]

If you are just going to the Disneyland Resort for one day, then in my opinion, purchasing a park hopper is not a good deal. However, if you are at DL Resort for multiple days, then it is very useful to consider because when DL is getting horribly busy in the middle of the afternoon, you can literally WALK less then 5 minutes from the Disneyland main gates to the DCA main gates and enter the other park.

It is less than 100 yards' distance between the Disneyland main gate and the California Adventure main gate. No tram or shuttle to get on. No miles and miles of walking. You can see the other park entrance when you are standing with your back to the first park's entrance/exit. No joke.

It literally is RIGHT THERE.