Tons of Questions - Starting to Plan First Disneyland Trip

[MouseEarsJenny]

I am massively overwhelmed! We're starting to plan our first Disneyland trip for next year. I know I'm planning WAY in advance, but I don't need to plan this year's WDW vacation at all, and planning Disneyland is helping me keep my mind off the last few weeks before this year's vacation.

At any rate, we're travelling to Disneyland and Southern California next July. We'll probably be going toward the end of July. We've got two kids who will be 11 and 14 at the time of the trip. They are ridiculously excited about the trip, and have very specific wishes. We anticipate this will be our only trip to California with the kids because we have other vacations we want to take before the oldest graduates high school. So we don't want to completely break the bank, but are willing to pay a bit more for once in a lifetime experiences.

We want to do the following things:
-Universal VIP Experience (and Wolfgang Puck's Bistro at Citywalk)
-Day in Hollywood (See the Chinese Theater, Kodak Theatre, maybe Madame Tussaud's, Eat at California Pizza Kitchen, see the handprints and the Walk of Fame, get a picture with the Hollywood sign in the background - that last one is my daughter's biggest requirement, go to the Disney Studio Store)
-Beach Day (MUST see the Pacific Ocean, would like to at least dip toes in it)
-San Diego Zoo (considering the Backstage Pass tour with the photo with a cheetah and hands-on experience with rhinos, etc.)
-Disneyland (MUST ride on anything we don't have at WDW - especially dark rides and Indiana Jones, want to eat at Blue Bayou)
-DCA (But we're wondering what will be open here?)
-Rent a convertible for transportation

So with all that in mind, here are the questions:

1. Hotels and Basic Logistics - Should we book one central hotel and visit places from there? Or should we book three hotels - one in LA, one in Anaheim and one in San Diego? Should we fly into and depart the same airport or start in one place and end in another? Should we stay at a Disney hotel? If we don't, where should we stay?

2. I know we'll never see everything Southern California has to offer, but are we missing anything that you consider crucial? What is it, and why is it so important?

3. Is there a better way to get around than a rental car? Are there shuttles or other transportation methods between our various destinations? Are we going to get hopelessly lost or killed on a freeway somewhere?

4. We followed the Unofficial Guide touring plans at WDW until we got the hang of how the parks worked. Now we know how to maximize our riding and minimize our waiting. Disneyland and DCA scare us witless. Are the lines as terrible as I have read? Is there any way to avoid them? Does the Unofficial Guide work as well at Disneyland? Should we get Ridemax instead? Both?

5. Where should we eat? We only have three restaurants in mind for the whole trip. We usually get the dining plan at WDW, and DL doesn't seem to have anything like that. Plus, we'll be offsite frequently. Help!

6. How many days do we need to see everything at DL and DCA that's not at WDW?

7. When they list arrival times for flights, does that include the time change from the east coast?

8. Can we do this???

(I'm sure I'll think of more, but we'll start there...)

 

[esk]

I can't answer any of your questions, except.....

flight times: yes, that includes the time change.

So I'm coming from Mountain Time (2 behind EST) and it's a 2 hour flight for me, but it looks like one hour on paper, because of the time change.

 

[HydroGuy]

1. Hotels and Basic Logistics - Should we book one central hotel and visit places from there? Or should we book three hotels - one in LA, one in Anaheim and one in San Diego? Should we fly into and depart the same airport or start in one place and end in another? Should we stay at a Disney hotel? If we don't, where should we stay?

Definitely split between Anaheim and SD. Will you need a third place in Hollywood? Hard to say. If you want to do at least two days in Hollywood it is probably best to stay there to avoid LA traffic.

If you can fly into Anaheim or LA and fly out of SD (or vice versa) that would work fine - depends on cost and convenience for you.

Where to stay? At DLR there are tons of advantages to staying with walking distance. This means one of the three Disney hotels or a dozen other good neighbors.

See "HydroGuy's Hotel Rule" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1199862

There are some advantages to the Disney hotels at DLR but not as much as at WDW. Read up on it.

2. I know we'll never see everything Southern California has to offer, but are we missing anything that you consider crucial? What is it, and why is it so important?

It depends on your priorities. Do you want to get more culture and history? Or nature? Or education? Recreation? Physical activity?

I think you have a good basis and will have a lot of fun no matter what you choose.

Here is a shot gun of possibilities:

o Mission San Juan Capistrano (history, culture)
o La Brea Tar Pits (science, education)
o Live Television - maybe Leno?
o Ocean cruise - San Diego Bay? (dancing, dining, etc.)
o Yosemite National Park (most beautiful place I have ever seen)
o Rent bikes on Newport Beach or Mission Beach boardwalk

3. Is there a better way to get around than a rental car? Are there shuttles or other transportation methods between our various destinations? Are we going to get hopelessly lost or killed on a freeway somewhere?

Car is probably best. You can find shuttles from DLR to USH. But getting to SD is harder. Will you get hopelessly lost or killed? My crystal ball says a definite maybe. You will need to be careful for sure about travel times and traffic.

4. We followed the Unofficial Guide touring plans at WDW until we got the hang of how the parks worked. Now we know how to maximize our riding and minimize our waiting. Disneyland and DCA scare us witless. Are the lines as terrible as I have read? Is there any way to avoid them? Does the Unofficial Guide work as well at Disneyland? Should we get Ridemax instead? Both?

The lines at DLR are roughly what you would see at WDW. You have heard some horror stories about DLR lines that are not realistic. It all depends on season. You think DCA and DL are scary? Try being a DLR vet on their first trip to WDW! You have it easy, believe me!

The UG at DLR is not nearly as respected os useful as the WDW version. Yes get RideMax. That will really help even if you never follow a touring plan.

5. Where should we eat? We only have three restaurants in mind for the whole trip. We usually get the dining plan at WDW, and DL doesn't seem to have anything like that. Plus, we'll be offsite frequently. Help!

This is an easy one. Dining at DLR is much less of an issue than WDW. You should get used to the idea of winging it more on dining. You will figure this out as you go along. The dining plan at DLR is different than WDW's and viewed negatively by just about everyone.

6. How many days do we need to see everything at DL and DCA that's not at WDW?

If you just want to see the things that are different then probably two days. But I think this would be a mistake. There is not much that is identical but a lot that is similar. Realize that WDW's four parks only have 10% more rides than DLR's two parks. And DLR's shows are very good. In general I think you should spend a minimum of three days at DLR. Otherwise you will leave feeling a bit frustrated and that you were short of time.

7. When they list arrival times for flights, does that include the time change from the east coast?

Of course.

8. Can we do this???

You have it easy. If you check on this forum we can help you through all of it and have a great trip.

Here are a few more links to review:

* DLR Info/Links - Maps, Hotels, DISer Reviews, Hydroguy's tips, NEWBIE INFO here!

"A DLR Guide for WDW Vets" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

"Getting The Most Out of a Summer Visit To DLR" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1345319

Good luck!

 

[tara30us]

We have young girls so we always make sure to do the Character Breakfast at the plaza (which used to come with early entrance to the park), Lunch at the Blue Bayou and dinner at Ariel's Grotto.

Now if I didnt have the girls I would skip the Ariels Grotto dinner but a visit to Disneyland isnt the same without eating at the other two places

 

[MouseEarsJenny]

I can't answer any of your questions, except.....

flight times: yes, that includes the time change.

So I'm coming from Mountain Time (2 behind EST) and it's a 2 hour flight for me, but it looks like one hour on paper, because of the time change.

Thanks! That's what it seemed like, mathematically, but I wanted to be sure. I usually avoid flying, and have never crossed time zones in the air.

 

[MouseEarsJenny]

Definitely split between Anaheim and SD. Will you need a third place in Hollywood? Hard to say. If you want to do at least two days in Hollywood it is probably best to stay there to avoid LA traffic.

Okay, we'll look into three hotels then. Thanks!

Where to stay? At DLR there are tons of advantages to staying with walking distance. This means one of the three Disney hotels or a dozen other good neighbors.

We definitely want to stay in walking distance. But the Disney hotels actually don't look that great for the money you pay for them. The Grand Californian looks nice, but I'm not sure it's worth the money for the very limited amount of time we would actually spend there. Guess we'll have to keep researching there.

It depends on your priorities. Do you want to get more culture and history? Or nature? Or education? Recreation? Physical activity?

I think you have a good basis and will have a lot of fun no matter what you choose.

Here is a shot gun of possibilities:

o Mission San Juan Capistrano (history, culture)
o La Brea Tar Pits (science, education)
o Live Television - maybe Leno?
o Ocean cruise - San Diego Bay? (dancing, dining, etc.)
o Yosemite National Park (most beautiful place I have ever seen)
o Rent bikes on Newport Beach or Mission Beach boardwalk

I will look into all of these - thanks for the suggestions!

Car is probably best. You can find shuttles from DLR to USH. But getting to SD is harder. Will you get hopelessly lost or killed? My crystal ball says a definite maybe. You will need to be careful for sure about travel times and traffic.

LOL, okay, that WAS a stupid question. My dh is fine with driving in Philly, Washington, Baltimore, and other big cities. But he flat out refuses to drive in NYC. I guess a better question would be is LA traffic more like Philly or more like New York? Or nothing like either?

The lines at DLR are roughly what you would see at WDW. You have heard some horror stories about DLR lines that are not realistic. It all depends on season. You think DCA and DL are scary? Try being a DLR vet on their first trip to WDW! You have it easy, believe me!

*phew* We can handle WDW lines just fine. But I was flipping through the UG for Disneyland and it was saying that the Nemo submarines usually have a 2 hour line and that we should go during a parade when it was only 35-75 minutes of line. Um... isn't that why I'm reading a touring plan? So I don't have to wait 35-75 minutes for things? So I guess that's why I got nervous. Thanks for the reassurance!

The UG at DLR is not nearly as respected os useful as the WDW version. Yes get RideMax. That will really help even if you never follow a touring plan.

Will do!

This is an easy one. Dining at DLR is much less of an issue than WDW. You should get used to the idea of winging it more on dining. You will figure this out as you go along. The dining plan at DLR is different than WDW's and viewed negatively by just about everyone.

Do we still need ADRs?

If you just want to see the things that are different then probably two days. But I think this would be a mistake. There is not much that is identical but a lot that is similar. Realize that WDW's four parks only have 10% more rides than DLR's two parks. And DLR's shows are very good. In general I think you should spend a minimum of three days at DLR. Otherwise you will leave feeling a bit frustrated and that you were short of time.

We will definitely schedule at least 3 days. We want to focus on the things that are different, but we will probably try to see as much as we can, similar or otherwise.

You have it easy. If you check on this forum we can help you through all of it and have a great trip.

Thanks! I will definitely be around on the boards!

"A DLR Guide for WDW Vets" www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

Found this one while I was looking around last night - GREAT info! Really helped me get a handle on a lot of this! Thanks!

 

[MouseEarsJenny]

We have young girls so we always make sure to do the Character Breakfast at the plaza (which used to come with early entrance to the park), Lunch at the Blue Bayou and dinner at Ariel's Grotto.

Now if I didnt have the girls I would skip the Ariels Grotto dinner but a visit to Disneyland isnt the same without eating at the other two places

Is the Plaza in DL or at one of the resorts? I'll go explore the menus and see if I can figure it out. Thanks for the tip!

Blue Bayou is on our to-eat list.

As for Ariel's, my ds will be 11 and my dd will be 14. They're not much into princesses anymore.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

Is the Plaza in DL or at one of the resorts? I'll go explore the menus and see if I can figure it out. Thanks for the tip!

Plaza Inn is at DL, it is where the character breakfast Minnie and Friends is. For lunch and dinner it is counter service.

 

[HydroGuy]

LOL, okay, that WAS a stupid question. My dh is fine with driving in Philly, Washington, Baltimore, and other big cities. But he flat out refuses to drive in NYC. I guess a better question would be is LA traffic more like Philly or more like New York? Or nothing like either?

I have driven in both Philly and NY but not enough to compare. I suspect LA is closer to NY. But you have to drive because other options are so limited. You just need to figure out when to do it. And pray. Pray hard to the traffic gods!

*phew* We can handle WDW lines just fine. But I was flipping through the UG for Disneyland and it was saying that the Nemo submarines usually have a 2 hour line and that we should go during a parade when it was only 35-75 minutes of line. Um... isn't that why I'm reading a touring plan? So I don't have to wait 35-75 minutes for things? So I guess that's why I got nervous. Thanks for the reassurance!

Another example of outdated information. That was true in 2007 and maybe 2008 when it first opened. It is still one of the harder rides to do without a long line. If you time it right you might get a 30 minute line in the evening in July. Or do it first thing in the morning and make it your first ride of the day.

Do we still need ADRs?

Yes, sort of, but it is not like WDW. I wrote this recently and it may help:

From DLR to WDW and Back Again: My Challenge With WDW Dining Philosophy at DLR

 

[GrandBob]

Do we still need ADRs?

For Blue Bayou or character meals, definitely. For some of the more popular spots, such as Carnation Cafe, Napa Rose, Rainforest Cafe, recommended. For most of the rest, you can wing it pretty safely. You may still have a bit of a wait, but you'll get seated.

-Bob