Thinking of going to Disneyland

[redsox721]

After many, many, many times at Disney World, we are thinking about going to Disneyland. The we is myself and my husband. We are 50 and are leaving our young adult children home.

What is the best time of year to go? Besides the three Disney hotels, what is the best hotel/resort to stay in? I have done alittle bit of research and have come up with the Best Western Park Place Inn, Homewood Suites, Residence Inn Maingate and the Candy Cane Inn. I beleive that the Candy Cane Inn may be the most popular with families.

any and all help is appreciated. Thanks.

 

[dancin Disney style]

I too am a WDW vet and am interested in hearing some answers to the OP's questions.

We are looking at a b-day trip in March,

 

[Dis-Ted]

I may be biased as a Californian but I really think you'll enjoy Disneyland and California Adventure even after many visits to WDW. The ability to walk from end to end of both parks in ~30 minutes is a really nice change and that's just one advantage.

In any event, the best times to visit is generally considered to be mid to late September (after kids go back to school) and May before school ends. I also find February can be pretty nice but it's difficult to time with the weather when you're traveling from a distance.

My favorite Hotels in the area are The Hyatt and Embassy Suites (yummy buffet breakfast). Both are a little ways from the park but have shuttles. I've booked Hyatt through Priceline's name your own price for great rates and Embassy Suites tends to be fairly reasonable too during the off peak times.

Hope you and the husband are able to make it out to this side of the park.

 

[Judy from Boise]

can I reccomend you start by reviewing some of the sticky threads at the top of the page ? Especially the Hydroguys WDW veteran tips.

 

[Sherwin]

This is NOT a downside, but DLR will seem surpringsingly small to you at first, as it is confined smack dab in the middle of Anaheim, whereas WDW is pretty much in undeveloped wilderness. The ability to use your legs to go in and out of the resort is pretty fantastic, and I think you'll find DLR to be more accommodating than the Magic Kingdom. There's a lot packed in there.

 

[jonsmom57]

After many, many, many times at Disney World, we are thinking about going to Disneyland. The we is myself and my husband. We are 50 and are leaving our young adult children home.

What is the best time of year to go? Besides the three Disney hotels, what is the best hotel/resort to stay in? I have done alittle bit of research and have come up with the Best Western Park Place Inn, Homewood Suites, Residence Inn Maingate and the Candy Cane Inn. I beleive that the Candy Cane Inn may be the most popular with families.

Hello Redsox Fan

After countless trips to WDW including one last month, we too, have decided to try something different.

Judy from Boise gave a great trip. Be sure to read Hydroguy's Tips. We are travelling mid-August, which is something I wouldnt even consider for Orlando. We are staying 4 days in Anaheim, (we were hoping to catch a Sox vs. Anaheim game, but not such luck) and we are planning on heading over to San Diego.

While at Disneyland, we have two ressies - one at Candy Cane Inn and another at Howard Johnsons. Both are favorites on this board. Nothing yet for San Diego.

I have learned that staying on property at Disneyland, has no advantages like staying on property at WDW.

Also, the dining plan isn't really worth it.

I purchased the Unofficial Guide to Disneyland 2009. Its a great read. It also covers Universal Hollywood, Seaworld, San Diego Zoo and other great tourist spots. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me and I would be happy to share what I have learned so far.

jonsmom
a.k.a. Joanne

PS-We are looking into purchasing the So. California City Pass - its a great value

QUOTE]

 

[funatdisney]

May I offer this: If you are planning on not visiting DLR for a while, I would highly consider the Grand Californian. That is if you can afford it. You will really enjoy this hotel. Take the hotel tour they offer and get a quick lesson on California at the same time. If this is not an option, take the time to walk through the hotel lobby and catch the fireside story telling in the evening. Even when I am not staying at the hotel, I make it a point to sit in the lobby's comfortable chairs after a day touring. I find that the hotel lobby will calm my nerves and relax before I go out for the evening fun in Disneyland.

 

[HydroGuy]

can I reccomend you start by reviewing some of the sticky threads at the top of the page ? Especially the Hydroguys WDW veteran tips.

Here is a link: "A DLR Guide for WDW Vets" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599


As far as "best time to go", it depends on your priorities. Low crowds? Best weather? Maximum entertainment offerings?

High season is similar to WDW - mid-March to mid-April (Spring Break), June-August, Holiday

Mid and off season - everything else

Before jumping on an off-season trip here are some things to digest:

"What You Should Know About Off-Season at DLR" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=18462889

"HydroGuy's High Season/Off Season Tradeoff Rule" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1199852

 

[redsox721]

Thanks for all the advice. I printed the DLR guide for WDW vets so I will be going over that thoroughly.

We are thinking about going May 2 to May 9, 2009. Is this a good time to go? What about the weather?

 

[Husker Mickey]

The weather should be ideal - sweatshirt in the mornings and shorts. Would love to go at that time of the year. Sadly, not really, we are going to Las Vegas with another couple at that time, maybe next year.

 

[Judy from Boise]

actually there is one huge advanatge to staying on site, and that is MM everyday it is offered.Also package return is very nice.

 

[KCmike]

Hope you have a good time. I, too, was also a Vet of WDW and now we've been two years in a row to DL. It is amazing. After you get over the shock of how small the front gate is you will fall magically in love with Walt's baby. All the attractions are so close and park hopping truely is park hopping. Downtown Disney is right next to the parks as well. DL is so quaint, beautiful, and packed full of goodies. There are so many must sees!!! And the rides for the majority are much better in DL in my opinion. The only one that I think is still better is Splash Mtn at WDW. The shows (Billy Hill and Alladin) and the fireworks are much better at DL as well. I'm interested in the changing of the daytime parade though. I like Parade of Dreams. I liked how they intermixed Walt's voice into the parade....i hope they do that again. Oh well. Your truly in for a magical time. keep those questions coming.

 

[HydroGuy]

We are thinking about going May 2 to May 9, 2009. Is this a good time to go? What about the weather?

Whether a particular date is a "good time to go" depends entirely on how you define "good". For me I do not think it is good because I define "good" as times with maximum entertainment and warm weather - with crowds a secondary consideration. But others define "good" as periods of low crowds with entertainment and weather as secondary considerations. And still others define "good" as periods with cool weather.

The weather in May is typically quite nice - see "Detailed Weather History for DLR" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=23004158

The crowds in early May are typically on the low side. And the entertainment in early May is typically scaled back. Early May is much more likely to have ride closures than is June or early April.