Single Traveler - first time to Disneyland

[EmmyL258]

Hi!

Traveling to California for the first time ever. Spending a few days in San Francisco and then traveling down the coast to Disneyland. Will be there April 20th and 21st (but my flight leaves around 3pm).

Will a day and a few hours be enough to get a good taste of disneyland? I'm a frequent traveler to Orlando, so I don't need more than just the feeling of being "home" at least. But I don't want to feel super bummed about missing a lot of things.

Any advice would be appreciated! Even advice on the best way to get from San Francisco to Anaheim.

Thanks in advance!

 

[disneycat321]

First off, will you have time while in SF to visit the Walt Disney Family Museum? If so, DO IT. It's really a must do for any Disney fan who makes it to SF. It's an absolutely incredible museum, and there's so much there. It takes about 2-3 hours to get through.

We are CA locals, so DL is our home park, but we have been to WDW twice. What you should be sure to see at DLR really depends on your interests.

Here's a list of what I would say you wouldn't want to miss because it's different than WDW:

DL:
Attractions:
- Hyperspace Mountain (different overlay and much better ride than the WDW version in general)
- Matterhorn
- Indiana Jones
- Finding Nemo
- The Fantasyland dark rides: Pinocchio, Snow White, Mr. Toad, Alice
- Storybookland Canal Boats - I listed this separately from the dark rides because we just adore this ride. It's especially magical at night when all the miniature buildings have lights in the windows. We never skip it.

TS Food:
- Blue Bayou - consider this for the ambience, especially if you love Pirates. Food is pretty decent, but expensive.
- Carnation Cafe - great food and really reasonable prices

DCA:
Attractions:
- Everything in Carsland. (And just Carland itself - super well themed!) - the single rider for RSR is usually 20-30 min, but earlier in the day is still better. That line can get longer.
- Screamin' - If you like roller coasters, it's a great one.
- Mickey's Fun Wheel - great views, probably not a must do unless you love the theming and want to experience it.
- Grizzly River Run - fun, but similar to Kali probably (although we haven't been on that so can't comment personally.)
- *WORLD OF COLOR* - I'd say this is your top must do for DCA. I've never seen Rivers of Light at AK, but I've heard it's much different than WOC, so it would be a totally unique experience for you. You can see fireworks with the bigger castle at WDW, and I'm sure you've seen MSEP, so I'd skip the nighttime shows at DL and go to DCA, since you only have one night.

TS Food:
- Carthay Circle - I have admittedly never eaten here, but I've heard it's great. I've only eaten CS in DCA.

 

[JanJan324]

The above list is great. I would add Pirates to the list because it is SO much better at DL. Also, Grizzly River Run is better than Kali. At least imo - I found Kali to be a bit of a disappointment compared to GRR.

 

[EmmyL258]

First off, will you have time while in SF to visit the Walt Disney Family Museum? If so, DO IT. It's really a must do for any Disney fan who makes it to SF. It's an absolutely incredible museum, and there's so much there. It takes about 2-3 hours to get through.

We are CA locals, so DL is our home park, but we have been to WDW twice. What you should be sure to see at DLR really depends on your interests.

Here's a list of what I would say you wouldn't want to miss because it's different than WDW:

DL:
Attractions:
- Hyperspace Mountain (different overlay and much better ride than the WDW version in general)
- Matterhorn
- Indiana Jones
- Finding Nemo
- The Fantasyland dark rides: Pinocchio, Snow White, Mr. Toad, Alice
- Storybookland Canal Boats - I listed this separately from the dark rides because we just adore this ride. It's especially magical at night when all the miniature buildings have lights in the windows. We never skip it.

TS Food:
- Blue Bayou - consider this for the ambience, especially if you love Pirates. Food is pretty decent, but expensive.
- Carnation Cafe - great food and really reasonable prices

DCA:
Attractions:
- Everything in Carsland. (And just Carland itself - super well themed!) - the single rider for RSR is usually 20-30 min, but earlier in the day is still better. That line can get longer.
- Screamin' - If you like roller coasters, it's a great one.
- Mickey's Fun Wheel - great views, probably not a must do unless you love the theming and want to experience it.
- Grizzly River Run - fun, but similar to Kali probably (although we haven't been on that so can't comment personally.)
- *WORLD OF COLOR* - I'd say this is your top must do for DCA. I've never seen Rivers of Light at AK, but I've heard it's much different than WOC, so it would be a totally unique experience for you. You can see fireworks with the bigger castle at WDW, and I'm sure you've seen MSEP, so I'd skip the nighttime shows at DL and go to DCA, since you only have one night.

TS Food:
- Carthay Circle - I have admittedly never eaten here, but I've heard it's great. I've only eaten CS in DCA.

I will definitely make time for the Disney Family Museum! Thanks for the tip. Kind of a last minute plan, and haven't done a ton of research yet

Thanks for the tips on rides too. As I said, I haven't even begun really planning!

So my biggest question is, whether a day and a half is enough?

I was thinking i might take the coast train down, but that takes a whole day (12 hours) so I'm not sure that I want to spend that much time - although I love the idea of a leasurly train ride to see a bit of the coast.

 

[Karyanne30]

I would try to get there as soon as you can, so maybe not the train? As far as what not to miss, I would say the dark rides in fantasyland that are not in wdw, pirates, Matterhorn, hyperspace mountain. Maybe blue bayou, although that would take a lot of your time. Indy is a good ride as well. Cars land is a must, as well as screaming. Since you are limited on time, I would get there well ahead of park opening to avoid the long lines at security so you can get in and start your day off right.

 

[EmmyL258]

side question,

If I'm staying about 2 blocks off property, how safe am I to walk alone at night back to the hotel? Like after park closing? or is that just a terrible idea...

 

[danceanddisney2010]

side question,

If I'm staying about 2 blocks off property, how safe am I to walk alone at night back to the hotel? Like after park closing? or is that just a terrible idea...

I would advise against it. Most hotels have a shuttle service so I would most definitely take advantage of that. The area is very sketchy .. and just on harbor alone have seen some pretty interesting things go down... I couldn't imagine walking further and ALONE at night! Hopefully you can find a solution! And if the shuttle doesn't come to your hotel... maybe it can at least get you closer so LESS of a walk

 

[disneycat321]

I will definitely make time for the Disney Family Museum! Thanks for the tip. Kind of a last minute plan, and haven't done a ton of research yet

Thanks for the tips on rides too. As I said, I haven't even begun really planning!

So my biggest question is, whether a day and a half is enough?

I was thinking i might take the coast train down, but that takes a whole day (12 hours) so I'm not sure that I want to spend that much time - although I love the idea of a leasurly train ride to see a bit of the coast.

I think a day and a half is enough to do all or most of what I listed, especially since DL is open until midnight, but I would probably stick to CS instead of TS for meals. The exception might be Carnation Cafe - that place is pretty quick for a sit down place. You will need to get there at rope drop both days, though. The 20th is Magic Morning at DL from 7-8, but I've read that the 7:00-8:00 time is less crowded than later times, so hopefully rope drop will still be a great time for short lines.

All our DLR trips are 1-2 days, and we get done what we want in that amount of time. We don't have kids and we tour pretty commando style. With one person, I think you'll be able to get it done. Obviously I would always encourage longer trips vs. shorter, but I also understand that it's not always possible!

Utilize single rider - RSR, Screamin, Matterhorn, Splash, and Indiana Jones all have it, and maybe more I'm not thinking of... Also, use those glorious paper fast passes DLR still has! They'll be super helpful!

The coast train ride would be beautiful, but if you're pressed for time, I would rent a car and drive down. I'm betting it would also be cheaper. I haven't driven from SF specifically, but the drive down through the center of the state, which I've done dozens of times, is super easy and will only take you 7ish hours, provided that you don't hit lots of LA traffic. (Try not to hit LA between 4:00 and 7:00 if possible.) You could take the scenic route along the coast as well, but that would take a lot longer. You could also fly, but you didn't mention that as an option so I'm not sure if you wanted to do that. It all really depends on your personal preference.

 

[The Hunchback]

We were at DL last month. We are WDW veterans but found we needed a full day at each park. We concentrated on the rides not found at WDW. Flo's was our favorite CS restaurant.

We never found ourselves alone when walking back from the park. There always seemed to be a big group of people headed our way. We left at closing so that may be why we had company. If you truely are going to be alone, take a shuttle or cab. The people who are in the neighborhood are often homeless but they did not seem aggressive. Better to be safe than sorry.

We were in SF too for a few days. The Disney Museum was very good. Like everywhere else in SF, you pay for parking. We drove from LA to SF and it took 8 hrs but we did hit rain. We did not consider the train. Maybe next time.

 

[Disney_Alli]

side question,

If I'm staying about 2 blocks off property, how safe am I to walk alone at night back to the hotel? Like after park closing? or is that just a terrible idea...

I would advise against it. Most hotels have a shuttle service so I would most definitely take advantage of that. The area is very sketchy .. and just on harbor alone have seen some pretty interesting things go down... I couldn't imagine walking further and ALONE at night! Hopefully you can find a solution! And if the shuttle doesn't come to your hotel... maybe it can at least get you closer so LESS of a walk

I'm going to contradict the above. I have stayed a 15-20 minute walk away solo and felt perfectly safe at all hours of the day and night. It's almost impossible to leave the parks and not be surrounded by people so you're rarely "alone" walking and while I have seen homeless people sleeping on benches the area is heavily patroled and felt much safer than some of the places I've walked to get home from work at all hours of the night up here. Be aware of your surroundings obviously but I think you're completely fine walking back to your hotel solo.

 

[CallieMar]

I have gone solo in the morning many times when DBF wants to sleep in/work out/whatever, and have managed to get on all the big rides in both DL and DCA by lunch time. Take advantage of FP and single rider lines wherever you can, and maybe eat at off times to avoid long lines. We stay across the street now but used to stay at one of the hotels on Katella and walk...like the PP said there are always a ton of people walking around and you're never really alone. You can probably catch an Uber/Lyft pretty easily if you needed to as well.

 

[danceanddisney2010]

I'm going to contradict the above. I have stayed a 15-20 minute walk away solo and felt perfectly safe at all hours of the day and night. It's almost impossible to leave the parks and not be surrounded by people so you're rarely "alone" walking and while I have seen homeless people sleeping on benches the area is heavily patroled and felt much safer than some of the places I've walked to get home from work at all hours of the night up here. Be aware of your surroundings obviously but I think you're completely fine walking back to your hotel solo.

I am sure some people are totally fine with the solo walk... it really is a personal preference. I am only speaking on my experience and offering my true thoughts. Yes, you are with a group of people but as you make your way further and further from the Disneyland entrance, people begin to branch off and it is no longer a concentrated group. I feel fine walking across the street and making my way to one of the hotels directly across the street .. no problem there, but going much further (and especially off the beaten path ..leaving Harbor) is not something I personally am ok with. I haven't stayed off property in a while .. last tine was 2013 so maybe things are different now but that trip we stayed at Best Western Raffles ... which was like 1.5 miles from the entrance to the park and that walk was NOT something I ever wanted to repeat if possible. Most days/nights were okay ... ALWAYS some sketchy characters for sure but doable. One two occasions we ran into some very scary situations.. one was a homeless woman sitting at one of the many ART stations along harbor who began swearing at us and telling us if we didn't leave right then and there she would physically hurt us. WHAT?? It was just me and my mom so obviously a little frightening! And then a few nights later down by the 7/11 a man who was obviously on some sort of drugs was resisting arrest and at the same time was shirtless and bleeding ... was going off the deep end as we were walking by. I know 100% that this is not a regular occurrence but I would much rather be safe than sorry. It was just the two of us... myself and my mom.. and I was freaked out so I know that if I were alone that feeling would have been even stronger! I just prefer to be with someone else so if anything ever happens there are two of us or preferably more. If I can avoid the walk alone .. then I am going to do it! Again... I think it really comes down to preference. You say you felt safer there then walking home from work and for me that is NOT the case at all.

 

[Disney_Alli]

I am sure some people are totally fine with the solo walk... it really is a personal preference. I am only speaking on my experience and offering my true thoughts. Yes, you are with a group of people but as you make your way further and further from the Disneyland entrance, people begin to branch off and it is no longer a concentrated group. I feel fine walking across the street and making my way to one of the hotels directly across the street .. no problem there, but going much further (and especially off the beaten path ..leaving Harbor) is not something I personally am ok with. I haven't stayed off property in a while .. last tine was 2013 so maybe things are different now but that trip we stayed at Best Western Raffles ... which was like 1.5 miles from the entrance to the park and that walk was NOT something I ever wanted to repeat if possible. Most days/nights were okay ... ALWAYS some sketchy characters for sure but doable. One two occasions we ran into some very scary situations.. one was a homeless woman sitting at one of the many ART stations along harbor who began swearing at us and telling us if we didn't leave right then and there she would physically hurt us. WHAT?? It was just me and my mom so obviously a little frightening! And then a few nights later down by the 7/11 a man who was obviously on some sort of drugs was resisting arrest and at the same time was shirtless and bleeding ... was going off the deep end as we were walking by. I know 100% that this is not a regular occurrence but I would much rather be safe than sorry. It was just the two of us... myself and my mom.. and I was freaked out so I know that if I were alone that feeling would have been even stronger! I just prefer to be with someone else so if anything ever happens there are two of us or preferably more. If I can avoid the walk alone .. then I am going to do it! Again... I think it really comes down to preference. You say you felt safer there then walking home from work and for me that is NOT the case at all.

And I can totally see you point of view. As I said at the end of my post it's important to be aware of your surroundings. I live in a very safe city generally but I also work in security and would routinely take the train home from a security job at 2-3 am and walk through many darker areas with very little police presense it's all about personal experiences and personal preferances but I did just want to offer the other view.

 

[danceanddisney2010]

And I can totally see you point of view. As I said at the end of my post it's important to be aware of your surroundings. I live in a very safe city generally but I also work in security and would routinely take the train home from a security job at 2-3 am and walk through many darker areas with very little police presense it's all about personal experiences and personal preferances but I did just want to offer the other view.

I totally respect your view and it is important to hear both sides... I just LOVE the buddy system lol. I personally am not one who likes to walk alone at night and avoid that if possible and based on my previous experience of walking (not alone but with my mom) 1.5 miles away ... I REALLY don't want to walk that far alone EVER again.

 

[agamble]

The above list is great. I would add Pirates to the list because it is SO much better at DL. Also, Grizzly River Run is better than Kali. At least imo - I found Kali to be a bit of a disappointment compared to GRR.

Grizzly River Run - fun, but similar to Kali probably (although we haven't been on that so can't comment personally.)

Grizzly River Run is much better than Kali. Kali is kind of odd because half the ride smells like smoke (themeing) and also there are no real drops. GRR is a beautiful, scenic CA float with 2 decent drops. It's a lot of fun and one of my favorites. Expect to get wet.

 

[disneycat321]

Grizzly River Run is much better than Kali. Kali is kind of odd because half the ride smells like smoke (themeing) and also there are no real drops. GRR is a beautiful, scenic CA float with 2 decent drops. It's a lot of fun and one of my favorites. Expect to get wet.

This is good to know! I absolutely love GRR, but I just assumed they were similar. We've never done Kali because we knew our clothes would never dry in the summer humidity when we're there.

As for the other question, I used to live in Orange County, and I personally would not feel safe walking around that part of Anaheim by myself late at night. If I were you, I'd get a hotel that's as close as possible to avoid walking a long distance. Once, DH and I walked to the Toy Story parking lot at midnight or so...we said never again.

 

[Belle83]

I went solo a few years ago while away on a work conference. There are a lot of rides with single rider options but depending on the ride, that may/may not be quicker than the regular line. I think I waited a lot longer in the Matterhorn line than the regular line, but it was typically a nice quick option. Grab a fast pass for World of Color

 

[PiratesMansion]

I think a day and a few hours is not enough time to really appreciate DLR. I would recommend a minimum of three full days, possibly more.

Also, when you talk about wanting to feel at home, keep in mind that WDW and DLR are sometimes very different. You will enjoy it and appreciate it (especially if you can add more time in the parks) but it might not feel like "home" to you. Especially if you are just in and out in a day or so.

 

[EmmyL258]

I think a day and a few hours is not enough time to really appreciate DLR. I would recommend a minimum of three full days, possibly more.

Also, when you talk about wanting to feel at home, keep in mind that WDW and DLR are sometimes very different. You will enjoy it and appreciate it (especially if you can add more time in the parks) but it might not feel like "home" to you. Especially if you are just in and out in a day or so.

I've decided to fly on on Wednesday morning from San Francisco and spend two full days. Thanks for all of the advice! I'm very excited to try disney solo and to get to experience Disneyland!

 

[cruisehopeful]

side question,

If I'm staying about 2 blocks off property, how safe am I to walk alone at night back to the hotel? Like after park closing? or is that just a terrible idea...

It varies greatly depending on which way you are going. If you are staying on Harbor, 2 blocks is no big deal and there will be lots of other people walking. Katella is most likely okay, too. If you are staying somewhere else, you may want to use an uber/lyft for a ride back.