Please Help Me Prioritize My Research

[goofballs]

Heading to Disneyland in four weeks. Haven’t been since FP days. This trip will be DH and me, Wed evening through Sunday morning,
one day at DCA, one day at DL, both with LL and no hoppers.

I have so much to learn - where should I start?
Lightning Lane 101 (literally know nothing) - Dining options - touring itineraries - nighttime shows?

Thank you for any advice!

 

[KimberMama]

To be clear, you are going Wed evening though Sunday morning, but only 2 park days? Which days are your park days?

I'm not an expert on Lightening Lane, I just don't stay in the parks long enough to make it worthwhile because the times push out past when I want to leave. My strategy for the parks always involves rope drop. We arrive at parking by 7AM and get in the parks before rope drop, ready to head to our first attraction. For your trip, I would decide which attractions are your must dos and then plan the rest of the early morning around that. For example, if Space Mountain is your thing, go to that first, then hit Star Tours and the Matterhorn (and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters if the wait is 5 minutes). Then you head to It's a Small World -- basically you choose a starting point and then hit as many attractions as you can in that area before moving to the next adjacent land and doing those. Even with LLMP, you might want to rope drop Fantasyland as most of the attractions don't have LL. Occasionally we rope drop Haunted Mansion, then head to Indy and the Jungle Cruise.

Have you already made dining reservations for the places you want to go? Those open up 60 days in advance, so you are past that time and some of the restaurants will be fully booked already. If you are flexible a lot of times reservations start opening up the night before, and even the morning of. A lot of the dining decisions depend on your budget. If you have the funds, I like the World of Color Dessert Party, mostly because I like to be center-ish for the show and I like to sit down. I'm also very fond of the Carnation Cafe which isn't has hard to get reservations for. Cafe Orleans is hit or miss for me -- I love it on a beautiful day when I can sit on the patio. I don't love sitting inside. Blue Bayou is unique. But maybe you've been to these restaurants before?

4 weeks from now is the week before Christmastime starts, but you mentioned arriving on a Wednesday, is that 11/5 or 11/12? That will make a difference in terms of entertainment.

 

[Pluto468]

Since you've been to the park before I'd research things that are new to you, like lightning lane. Then I'd decide what restaurants you might want ADRs for. I don't do touring plans but usually have a few things in mind that I want to do on any given day. The night time shows are great so it's worth choosing which of those you'd like to see, and also decide if you want to make time for the parade.

 

[maleficent55]

Am I reading it right that you only have two Park days?

If so, and since you haven’t been in so long, I wouldn’t focus on Dining research. Just plug in your dates and see what’s available and if something appeals to you then just grab it because things go really fast and likely most of the more popular dining options are already taken.

I would strictly focus you research on lightning lanes and have to maximize them to their fullest extent

 

[irlandaise]

Heading to Disneyland in four weeks. Haven’t been since FP days. This trip will be DH and me, Wed evening through Sunday morning,
one day at DCA, one day at DL, both with LL and no hoppers.

Have you been to WDW in the past few years? If so, you can skip Galaxy's Edge unless you really want to spend time there, because it's the same at DL as at WDW.

 

[megankj]

If you're using LL, I'd prioritize learning how to optimize that to get the best value there. Using those efficiently will make everything else much easier. Do some research on "stacking" rides for later in your day, and then spend some time thinking about what attractions you want to hit within the first two hours after rope drop, before you start redeeming LLs.

Food-wise, I'd consider whether you'll want a sit-down meal at any point, or if you'll be happy to just do quick service in order to stay nimble. If the former, hop on and make a reservation now for something that works for you. If the latter, familiarize yourself with mobile order through the app, which can save you lots of time and hassle.

If nighttime shows are important to you, check out the times they are offered during your park days. For World of Color, you'll probably want to hop into the "virtual queue" on the app at noon the day you are in DCA. In Disneyland, the offerings will differ depending on the day of the week. Look at the entertainment schedule for the day you will visit to see what will be showing. If it's both Fantasmic and fireworks, the easiest strategy might be to watch the fireworks from the Rivers of America area, and then find a place for the second Fantasmic show once the crowds from the first clear out.

 

[LKing]

Lightning Lane 101 (literally know nothing) - Dining options - touring itineraries - nighttime shows?

LL 101 - Here are a couple of threads to read through. They are long so look for current info, rather than the posts from 2-3 years ago.

• Modifying MEP
• Rope Drop Strategy

Dining Options - As was mentioned above, I would opt for quick serve. It sounds like you will be there during the Holiday Food Festival in DCA. That might be a fun option. Otherwise San Fransokyo and Paradise Garden Grill have lots of seating. In DL, Tiana's Place, Plaza Inn, and Hungry Bear have a variety of options and ample seating.

Touring Itineraries - Don't get stuck with a plan that someone else made up. If you want to share your priorities, we can help guide you as to what might take more time or what you might want to hit first.

Nighttime shows - We don't know the exact schedule for nighttime shows, but it looks like some will just be on weekends. Right now, the holiday schedule looks like it the following. It is subject to change.

Disneyland

• Christmas Fantasy Parade - 3 pm and 5:15 pm
• Fantasmic - 9 pm and 10:30 pm (Dining package recommended - you might opt for Rancho del Zocalo because Cafe Orleans and River Belle are longer dining experiences)
• Fireworks - 9:30 pm
• Shadows of Memory 8:30 pm and 10:15 pm
• Fire of the Rising Moon - 9:30 pm

DCA

• World of Color: Happiness - 9 pm and 10:15 pm (late show is only if park stays open until 10 pm)

Pausing during the holidays

• Paint the Night
• Tapestry of Happiness
• Celebrate Happy Cavalcade