Please help! Regular WDW go'er heading to Disneyland

[disneymarathoner07]

I need some serious help---We are annual (at least) visitors to WDW---I know how those parks work, what to do and where to be and stand and at what time. My daughter is attending a softball camp in the Anaheim area in July and I can't go all of the way out there and not go to Disneyland. For planning sake it will be myself, my daughter (15 years old) and her friend. Here is the time that we have available: July 22nd her camp is over at 3:00 so we can probably be at the parks around 4:00 or 4:30 (her camp/our hotel is 8 miles away from DL) and we were thinking of doing DL on this day and staying until it closed (midnight), her camp doesn't resume until 10:00 a.m. the next day so we have a little sleep in time. The next day we were going to go check out the beaches after camp. Then on Friday morning we were going to be at DCA at opening and stay until we need to leave for our flight (5:30 at SNA). I am worried that getting do DL at 4:00 in the afternoon we won't be able to get any FP's (if they work like the old WDW fastpasses do---during busy season they were out by midday). Will the crowds get substantially lower as the evening goes on so that we will be able to ride? I just don't want to spend the money to be standing in 1+ hour lines all afternoon.....I am not AS worried about the DCA day since we will be there at opening. Could you DL veterans give me some advice as to how DL/DCA works, what I can expect dealing with my time frames and things I should concentrate on---must do's for those parks, etc. Also, what time should I leave the park on that Friday to insure me enough time to drop off my rental car and get to the airport to catch our flight out? Thank you for all of your advice!!!

 

[SMD]

People do tend to stay until closing, especially during the summer. And when DCA closes at 10pm the tend to hop back to DL for those last 2 hours. But with the new parade and fireworks it's hard to say what lines will be like at night. I'd suggest you use Otto while you're on the tram to figure out which ride has the earliest available FP (going to guess it would be BTMRR) or if Space FP is available. I'd just plan to use single rider for Indy and Splash if you're going to do those. I think as long as you go in with the expectation that you're not going to do everything and some rides will have 1 hour waits then you won't be disappointed. Is it too late to arrive a day before the camp and do your DL day then? I suppose if camp starts at 10am on your DL day you could to rope drop, ride something, then drop the girls off, then go back to get FPs because their tickets would be active. But that sounds like an extreme effort to me when DL isn't the main reason for the trip.

 

[Disney Kidd]

I don't know if you're the same as me, but when I go to the Magic Kingdom at WDW my main goal is to ride the attractions that are not (or no longer) at DL: Carousel of Progress, Peoplemover, Country Bear Jamboree. If so, I would definitely recommend Matterhorn and Indiana Jones. Luckily, both have SR! Indy also has FP with a farely quick turn-around. You shouldn't have a hard time securing a FP at 4 or 4:30 for most of the attractions except Space. Space Mountain usually has the longest turn-around. I just checked MouseWait and the return time today (if you got a FP at 4:00) is 10:10. The others are in the 7:00 range.

 

[SMD]

In my recent observation, if Indy stays up, meaning they continually distribute FPs, it will run out before Space.

 

[disneymarathoner07]

Thank you, I had never heard of Mousewait and have now downloaded it. In your experience, how accurate is it? I am pleasantly surprised at how small the waits are when I look at it right now.

I don't know if you're the same as me, but when I go to the Magic Kingdom at WDW my main goal is to ride the attractions that are not (or no longer) at DL: Carousel of Progress, Peoplemover, Country Bear Jamboree. If so, I would definitely recommend Matterhorn and Indiana Jones. Luckily, both have SR! Indy also has FP with a farely quick turn-around. You shouldn't have a hard time securing a FP at 4 or 4:30 for most of the attractions except Space. Space Mountain usually has the longest turn-around. I just checked MouseWait and the return time today (if you got a FP at 4:00) is 10:10. The others are in the 7:00 range.

 

[Nicolette11785]

Arriving at 4-4:30 you may get held up on Main St. for the Soundsational parade so be prepared for that. If the parade hasn't started yet, it will be pretty crowded. Know what ride you want to do first so that you don't have to cross Main St. During the parade.

I have found that usually there are still fast passes around 4:30. Of course you will never know for sure but you have a good chance of at least getting 1-2 fast passes. I would do single rider if you can on any rides that offer it.

It may make more sense to do DL the next day since you would have 1.5 hours in the morning and then could come back after the class. But she may want to sleep in so this may not work.

I think you could definitely have fun at DL and DCA and will get to go on a fair amount of rides. Just don't have high expectations to get everything done since it is a pretty busy season and you are really only having 2 half days for 2 parks. If there is any way to add a day before or after your trip that would be great.

I hope you have lots of fun!

 

[Disney Kidd]

Thank you, I had never heard of Mousewait and have now downloaded it. In your experience, how accurate is it? I am pleasantly surprised at how small the waits are when I look at it right now.

It's not always accurate, unfortunately, but it's usually pretty close. You can tell when it was last updated by looking at the time below the wait. It will also tell you FP return times. For the most accurate wait/FP times, I would call Otto as the PP mentioned. If you call around 4:00 on a similar day to when you expect to go, you'll get a good idea of what the wait times could be like. Here's the number to call Otto: 714-520-7090.

 

[Nicolette11785]

As far as when to leave Disneyland I would give yourself a few hours. You will need to wait for a tram or bus to take you back to the parking lot, get on the freeway on a Friday afternoon, returning a rental car and getting through security. I would give myself at least 2.5 hours if not more before your flight leaves. I am not sure how busy the airport is lately.

 

[Fantaluminishes]

a couple things to keep in mind:
1. Most of the Fantasyland attractions will close early for the fireworks and Paint The Night. This includes all rides in the castle buildings and Storybook Canal Boats. The monorail also closes during this time. All will reopen (except the Canal Boats) after the fireworks. Alice In Wonderland may stay closed until after the 2nd parade.

2. Mickey's Toontown also closes before the fireworks, and does not reopen.

3. Frontierland and Adventureland are extremely packed at night because of Fantasmic. However, if you can navigate the crowds (or use the train), you will probably find very short lines for most of the open rides on that side of the park.