Surprise Bday Trip for my son... 3 days after Christmas...

[melis79]

Ok. I am a newbie here to posting but have been a lurker for over two weeks. I am 30 days out from my trip to Disneyland. I planned the trip back in May to take my son for his 5th Birthday as a surprise... the only thing is, his bday is 3 days after christmas.
I wasnt too worried about it, I knew it would be busy, but since I've been lurking I am in near panic mode. I just want him to be able to enjoy the trip as much as possible and would like some advice from the brave ones out there that have dared to enjoy Disneyland in the days between Christmas and New Years.

I havent been to DL for 9 years, before DCA was even opened, so it's like an all new trip for me too.

I've read and memorized The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland. I want to go on as many little kid friendly rides while we are there.
We have all Fri and Sat to explore the park (with a hotel across the street for mid day naps of course!) and until about 3pm on Sunday.

Any advice? (I don't need to hear how crazy the parks are going to be and how I should have planned it for another week. It is what it is, and ever since I was pregnant the plan was to take our kids to DLR for the first time on their 5th birthday and to spend their birthday in the park. And well, the little man just happened to have a not so DLR friendly birthday. )


I need some good vibes too... I just want my boy to really feel the magic and have a BLAST!!!! I could care less if I get to go on any "fun" rides, Splash, Space Mountain, BTMR, HMH, etc... its about him and I want it to be a birthday to remember and a great time for me and my boy.

 

[DLR29]

Get there AT LEAST and hour before park opening (yes that means 7). This is because you want to maximize your time in the park. The earlier you arrive, the farther up you will be in line, the closer to official park opening you will get in.

If you are buying a 3-day park hopper, I recommend that you use Early Entry. It is only offered on the Saturday of your visit. I recommend getting to the gates around 6, for a 7AM EE. I know it's a lot to ask for some, but it sure saves a bunch of time. Plus for EE, Fantasyland is open, which is a bunch of the rides appropriate for him.

Grab Fastpasses early! I don't know if you're familiar with FP because they weren't around 9 years ago (oh, but you have read the UG, so that's good). Rides that your son might like that have FP are Autopia, Buzz Lightyear (he may want to ride this multiple times), Roger Rabbit (a little intense scenery wise), Soarin? at DCA (as long as he meets the height requirement-40" and does not mind heights).

You never know what he will like/dislike. If he gets scared easily the first dark ride to try is Peter Pan. Nothing scary, but a little dark. Then Alice. If he's ok with those two, Monster's Inc (at DCA) and Winnie-the-Pooh should be fine for him. There are some that might be a problem including Mr. Toad, Snow White, and Pinocchio. If he can do those three, he can do HMH and Pirates.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Since you'll be there for the holidays. Go to Santa's Reindeer Roundup. He can see live reindeer, decorate cookies and do a craft. Also, just relax, go with the flow and make sure you do at least 1 character meal. If your DS is into characters, they are great for getting one on one interaction. As the PP stated, Fantasyland during EE is a must do as the lines are a little shorter for these very popular rides. Also, Toontown is great fun for 5 year olds. If he's never ridden a roller coaster before, the Go-Gadget coaster is a great first one and there are a lot of interactive things to do and climb on. Toontown generally opens 1 hour after the park opens, so try to get there at opening when there is no Toontown Morning Madness scheduled.

 

[Kailua's Belle]

Don't forget to go to City Hall on Main Street and get him a birthday button. That should bring him some special attention!

If you do a character meal, try to make a priority seating reservation for an odd time. I would not waste precious early morning hours there. Maybe get the latest morning reservation you can or do an early dinner at Goofy's Kitchen. We love character meals, but we did learn you can burn a lot of great early morning time in one of them.

You might want to check out eBay and pick up a couple Toontown Morning Madness tickets. Some think it's not worth paying for them, but if you only have to buy two and they're reasonably priced, it may be worth it. It's a great way to get through Toontown with no waits. My kids got to do the coaster there like four times in a row, didn't even have to get off. They LOVED that! Plus they love characters, so it was a great way to see all of them. Roger Rabbit had no wait either, so we did that a couple times.

Biggest thing I learned on these boards, which you've probably read, but if not, it's priceless info and worth repeating is that you can use your Fastpasses after the window time. So if it says return between 12:00 and 1:00, you can use it any time after that too. So hit rides in the a.m. and gather Fastpasses for use later on.

You also might want to consider RideMax to help you make some touring plans and minimize your wait times. The price is very reasonable and may prove to be very helpful to you since it's been so long since you've been there.

Good luck and just have a great time with your son!

Oh, and don't forget Jedi Training. He'll love it. If you can, make him a little sign to hold. That usually helps in getting picked, along with lots of enthusiasm.

 

[melis79]

Thanks for the great advice!!
We do have PS for the Plaza Inn Character Meal on Friday morning. Right at 8am. I wanted to have his first experience at Disneyland be at the breakfast, and since it will be his bday that day too, I thought it would be special. We won't be able to use EE that day, so I planned on using that on Saturday, to try and get Dumbo and Peter Pan out of the way and try and hit Nemo.

I dont think there is much at DCA that he will want to do, other than Talk with Crush and maybe some of the Bugs Land. Monsters will be closed for refurb while we are there.

I plan on grabbing FP's for Buzz, and Autotopia as well. I'd love to get him on Pirates, but he can be a little timid. I'm brining some dollar store glow sticks for the dark rides to see how he does with those.

Its coming so close and its all I can think about these days!

My DD will turn 5 next December, earlier in the month during the cheaper off season so that will be a nice change of pace as far as crowds go.

Ok, I'm rambling. Thanks for the advice so far. You guys are great!

 

[DLR29]

Thanks for the great advice!!
We do have PS for the Plaza Inn Character Meal on Friday morning. Right at 8am. I wanted to have his first experience at Disneyland be at the breakfast, and since it will be his bday that day too, I thought it would be special. We won't be able to use EE that day, so I planned on using that on Saturday, to try and get Dumbo and Peter Pan out of the way and try and hit Nemo.

I dont think there is much at DCA that he will want to do, other than Talk with Crush and maybe some of the Bugs Land. Monsters will be closed for refurb while we are there.

I plan on grabbing FP's for Buzz, and Autotopia as well. I'd love to get him on Pirates, but he can be a little timid. I'm brining some dollar store glow sticks for the dark rides to see how he does with those.

Its coming so close and its all I can think about these days!

My DD will turn 5 next December, earlier in the month during the cheaper off season so that will be a nice change of pace as far as crowds go.

Ok, I'm rambling. Thanks for the advice so far. You guys are great!

I guarantee you that on your EE day, you will not be able to get Peter Pan, Dumbo, and Nemo done in an hour. Maybe 2 hours for all 3 attractions because Nemo's line gets to be about an hour around 15 minutes into park opening (EE day or not). Throughout you're entire trip, Nemo's line will probably not drop below 60 minutes from 8:15 (7:15 for Sa) on.

Also at DCA, your son will love the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail and some of the Paradise Pier rides (Jumpin Jellyfish, Golden Zephyr, King Triton's Carousel).