Touring Plan Help

[SevenWonkas]

Hello! DH and I are going to Disneyland for a day (Saturday April 11) next month! We go to WDW at least once a year, but have never been to Disneyland. We're hoping to get some help with a touring strategy at Disneyland because it's a whole new ball game for us. It's overwhelming planning DL as a newbie, and I can't even imagine how hard it is to plan WDW with no prior knowledge!

We are familiar with the paper Fastpass system from when it was at WDW, and would like to use this to our advantage at DL when possible. We do plan on sticking it out all day at Disneyland. We have a Fantasmic Dinner package booked at 4:50 at the Blue Bayou. It looks like the park should be very busy on the day we go, unfortunately.

These are the top attractions we want to hit: Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Alice in Wonderland, Disneyland Railroad, Monorail, Indiana Jones Adventure, Roger Rabbit's Car Toon spin, Story Book Land Canal Boats.

Due to similar attractions at WDW, motion sickness issues, or other issues, we don't care about these attractions: Dumbo, Carrousel, Teacups, Peter Pan's Flight, Snow White's Scary Adventures, Astro Orbiter, Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, Star Tours, Tiki Room.

Any other attractions not listed we are fine experiencing, they're just not ones that are top on our list. Having never been to DL, I don't know if our list is already to ambitious? We also want to just experience DL itself, of course! Take photos, and just take it all in.

Any tips on how to tackle this list of attractions, along with a counter service lunch and our Fantasmic dinner/show? There are so many WDW planning blogs out there, but not as many on DL!

TIA!

 

[Blue32]

The only attraction you may have trouble with as far as wait time is concerned will probably be Alice and maybe Storybook Canal Boats. Getting to the park before opening will help, but you will be behind those with Magic Morning access being that you are going to DL on a Saturday. You don't mention how long are you willing to be at the parks that day. If you are sticking it out all day I would probably grab a FP for IJ, then ride BTMRR if interested, head to Pirates and HM. When your FP opens for IJ, use that. Toontown will open 1 hour after regular park opening so I would head back there when that opens to ride Roger Rabbit. The canal boats will have a line most of the day but if you hop in line right after the parade you can get on with a short wait. If you hang around in Fantasyland during the Fireworks, you can probably get on Alice right after because they re-open the attraction shortly after the Fireworks end. The monorail and railroad can be fit in anytime. You should have no trouble completing your must do attractions and much more, even on a busy Sat. Have fun!

 

[SevenWonkas]

Thank you, Blue! Do Alice and the Canal Boats have a low capacity? I wasn't expecting them to have a long wait. Haha. We may need to skip them if the line is crazy.... or the same reason we never do Peter Pan at WDW. It's cool, but not worth the wait. Although, doing some of the classic DL attractions would be so nice!

 

[MouseEXP]

Hello! DH and I are going to Disneyland for a day (Saturday April 11) next month! We go to WDW at least once a year, but have never been to Disneyland. We're hoping to get some help with a touring strategy at Disneyland because it's a whole new ball game for us. It's overwhelming planning DL as a newbie, and I can't even imagine how hard it is to plan WDW with no prior knowledge!

We are familiar with the paper Fastpass system from when it was at WDW, and would like to use this to our advantage at DL when possible. We do plan on sticking it out all day at Disneyland. We have a Fantasmic Dinner package booked at 4:50 at the Blue Bayou. It looks like the park should be very busy on the day we go, unfortunately.

These are the top attractions we want to hit: Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Alice in Wonderland, Disneyland Railroad, Monorail, Indiana Jones Adventure, Roger Rabbit's Car Toon spin, Story Book Land Canal Boats.

Due to similar attractions at WDW, motion sickness issues, or other issues, we don't care about these attractions: Dumbo, Carrousel, Teacups, Peter Pan's Flight, Snow White's Scary Adventures, Astro Orbiter, Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, Star Tours, Tiki Room.

Any other attractions not listed we are fine experiencing, they're just not ones that are top on our list. Having never been to DL, I don't know if our list is already to ambitious? We also want to just experience DL itself, of course! Take photos, and just take it all in.

Any tips on how to tackle this list of attractions, along with a counter service lunch and our Fantasmic dinner/show? There are so many WDW planning blogs out there, but not as many on DL!

TIA!

Here you go...

#1 Get to the park 10-30 minutes before the park opens to the public.
#2 When the park opens head to Fantasyland first. spend about an hour here. With Alice in Wonderland first, Mr Toad, Casey Jr., Pinocchio, and Snow White.
#3 Then grab a FP for Indy, but be cautious of the motion on this attraction. Should be 9am-930am.
#4 Then Jungle Cruise, Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Grab FP for Big Thunder
#5 Use FP for Indy, then ride Pirates. Should be around 1030am-1130am.
#6 Grab FP for Space Mountain. If you can handle Big Thunder and Indy you might be able to do Space Mountain. Keep in mind that Space at Disneyland is way different than at WDW. Its more like Big Thunder in the dark, while Space at WDW is like Matterhorn at Disneyland.
#7 Use FP for Big Thunder
#8 Lunch
#9 Now you can do the things in Tomorrowland after lunch.
#10 Save Small World, Toontown, and Storybook for later in the day when the sun is starting to go down. Get the Roger Rabbit FP before you ride Small World.
#11 Don't forget about the following attractions... Lincoln and Sleeping Beauty Castle

 

[Heyteac]

Jungle Cruise is classic and fun - be sure to check it out!

 

[figment_jii]

Thank you, Blue! Do Alice and the Canal Boats have a low capacity? I wasn't expecting them to have a long wait. Haha. We may need to skip them if the line is crazy.... or the same reason we never do Peter Pan at WDW. It's cool, but not worth the wait. Although, doing some of the classic DL attractions would be so nice!

The're generally considered low capacity/slow loader attractions, so the lines tend to build up as the day progresses. I would try to do them at rope drop, but even by then there might be a line because Saturday is typically DL's MM/EMH morning. They are cute attractions and unique to DLR, so I would try to do them if possible. Another one to consider is Casey Jr Train, which is also unique to DLR. None of these rides are really considered "E Ticket" attractions, but they're cute.

I would probably grab a FP for Indy and/or Roger Rabbit (if they're using FPs) just to save time if possible. I would note that Roger Rabbit does spin (like teacups, but not as much). So if you're avoiding rides that spin (e.g., teacups) you might want to re-consider that ride. I can do Dumbo, the Carrousel, Astro Oribiter and Astro Blasters, but I cannot do teacups or Roger Rabbit (you cannot not make the car spin - it will spin on it's own even if you try to fight it).

Given that DL's operating hours are 8:00 am to midnight, I think you'll be able to do all of your top attractions. Some might take longer than others, but I do think you'll be able to get through the list. You don't have a lot of thrill rides, which tend to have long(ish) lines (e.g., Space).

 

[RemainSeatedPlease]

First I want to say that you may want to reconsider Space Mountain. If you can do Indy with motion sickness issues, you can certainly do SM. It is better than the WDW version.

Based on your preferences, my suggestion for a schedule would be:

1. Get a FP for Indy
2. Go to Fantasyland and ride Alice, Canal Boats, and any others in that area
3. Go back to Adventureland and ride Indy with FP/Jungle Cruise
4. Get a FP for Big Thunder Mountain RR if the line is long, or just ride it
6. Check out Frontierland/New Orleans Square/Critter Country, including having CS lunch (options are Hungry Bear, French Market, Harbor Galley, Royal Street Veranda, Stage Door Cafe, Golden Horseshoe, Bengal BBQ, Rancho del Zocalo, various carts) and doing the other rides in the area (Tom Sawyer Island is cute but can be skipped, you can see enough of it from the Mark Twain/Columbia sailing ship). If Haunted Mansion has a long line, grab a FP after the BTMRR one allows you to.
7. In the afternoon, head over to Tomorrowland, where there will not be much to see since the rides there are off-limits on your list.
8. Make your way to Toontown and It's a Small World. I should mention that the lines for Small World tend to be short during parades, but it can be hard to get over there while a parade is going on. If you are trying to do so, stick to the left side of the path/street, near the Canal Boats.
9. For the rest of the afternoon/evening, you should include going to dinner, seeing Fantasmic!, and fitting in any other rides you weren't able to get to earlier in the day, or repeating those you really liked.

 

[figment_jii]

Just a note, but they do not always/usually have FPs for HM. Usually the machines are only turned on while HMH is being presented.

 

[DG24]

Since it is MM, my sugestion would be to head to storybook canal first, this ride does not open until park open, so the line should be the shortest. Then check out Alice, because it is right there, but also the earlier the better, since this has a line all day. The only time it may go down a little but probably not on a Saturday is during the parade, if you hit it right, but then again you will be stuck in fantasy land during the parade.

IJ is a must FP, splash mountain may be also. If you get to critter town after the two rides in fantasy land which should be about 9 am, you may be able to do splash, haunted mansion and pirates with little wait and be done by 10. Then grab a FP to Indy, and do jungle with little wait and check out thunder mountain, which at that time should be less than 40 minutes, depending on your indy return time either ride BTM or ride indy and get a fast pass to btm. Then you can cut back threw fantasyland and do anything there you want, some of the dark rides like Pinocchio and Snow White do not get to long. And head up to toon town, by the afternoon although Saturday is different the rides are to busy, catch a fast pass to roger rabbit. And then look around and do what you want up there. When heading out, do IASW but the line will be long, unless you hit that during a parade which by this time you may. Hopefully the parade is over by the time you are done. I would then hit the railroad at toon town and go all the way around and past toon town again, then get off at tomorrow land and finish what you want there, the subs, space, buzz, start tours. Then I would head back down Main Street, stopping at great moments with Lincoln.

 

[lvdis]

I'm not sure of the order of things to do, but I would highly recommend Space Mountain. We have gotten to where we don't really care for it anymore at WDW, but love it at DLR. DLR's version is much smoother. Also, my must do ride at Disneyland is Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Probably mainly because it was my favorite at WDW when I went for my first time as a kid and they don't have it there anymore since it was replaced with Winnie the Pooh (using the same track system, I believe!).

Oh and we love the Plaza Inn for lunch. The fried chicken dinner was enough for my husband and I to split and the chocolate cake was delicious! Have fun!

 

[SevenWonkas]

Thanks everyone, you guys are so awesome! I'll definitely share this with DH!

Motion sickness issues are mine and mainly with spinning rides or motion simulator rides (hence, no teacups or Star Tours). If Roger Rabbit spins like teacups, then we will have to investigate this further. DH doesn't like falling, so he cannot do roller coasters. Tame ones, like Big Thunder Mountain, are okay. Space Mountain at WDW doesn't really have a major drop, but it has major dips so he's not interested in trying it. If DL's Space Mountain is more like Big Thunder indoors, then I'll have to let him do some research on Space Mountain to see if he can do it. I love roller coasters, but with only one day at DL I am okay skipping them in order to do other things with DH.

 

[figment_jii]

Roger Rabbit doesn't continuously spin like Tea Cups, but it does spin. You can try to force it not to spin (by holding the wheel), but there are moments when the car has to face a certain direction, so you will spin no matter what you do. My cousin tried his hardest to keep the vehicle from making too many 360 degree spins, but some cannot be avoided and I left that ride feeling motion sick (and have not ridden it since).

 

[MouseEXP]

Thanks everyone, you guys are so awesome! I'll definitely share this with DH!

Motion sickness issues are mine and mainly with spinning rides or motion simulator rides (hence, no teacups or Star Tours). If Roger Rabbit spins like teacups, then we will have to investigate this further. DH doesn't like falling, so he cannot do roller coasters. Tame ones, like Big Thunder Mountain, are okay. Space Mountain at WDW doesn't really have a major drop, but it has major dips so he's not interested in trying it. If DL's Space Mountain is more like Big Thunder indoors, then I'll have to let him do some research on Space Mountain to see if he can do it. I love roller coasters, but with only one day at DL I am okay skipping them in order to do other things with DH.

Space Mountain at DL only has two main drops and they compare with the head chop drop on Big Thunder Mountain
The spinning on Roger is very minimal and you can probably control most of the turning by moving the wheel where you want to go. Basically spin the wheel away from the turns.

 

[saraschoening]

We go to Disneyland every year and have never really planned too much in advance. I generally find that you can walk onto the Snow white ride in the morning. Peterpan in crazy all the time. Alice is usually crazy too. So try and knock those ones off right. You aren't going to California Adventure? The cars ride there is my fav in the whole world!! So much fun but Magic Kingdom park overall is the best.. just to put your feet where Walts were.. its just amazing. Fantasmic is a great show! Another good restaurant is Blue Bayou. If you are looking for a small and good bite to eat the bengal bbq is great. Oh you are going to have so much fun!!

 

[figment_jii]

The spinning on Roger is very minimal and you can probably control most of the turning by moving the wheel where you want to go. Basically spin the wheel away from the turns.

What is minimal to one person may not be minimal to someone else. I disagree that the spinning is minimal and that you can control most of it. At least the last time I tried, I was not able to do stop/control enough of the spinning to avoid becoming motion sick. I would say that Roger spins more than Buzz, but less than Tea Cups.

 

[RemainSeatedPlease]

Thanks everyone, you guys are so awesome! I'll definitely share this with DH!

Motion sickness issues are mine and mainly with spinning rides or motion simulator rides (hence, no teacups or Star Tours). If Roger Rabbit spins like teacups, then we will have to investigate this further. DH doesn't like falling, so he cannot do roller coasters. Tame ones, like Big Thunder Mountain, are okay. Space Mountain at WDW doesn't really have a major drop, but it has major dips so he's not interested in trying it. If DL's Space Mountain is more like Big Thunder indoors, then I'll have to let him do some research on Space Mountain to see if he can do it. I love roller coasters, but with only one day at DL I am okay skipping them in order to do other things with DH.

You should investigate IJ further. It's my favorite ride, and I really hope you can go on it with no problems, but if Star Tours makes you sick then this one might too. It is a very bumpy ride, with sharp turns, stopping, speeding up, etc. The car you are in bounces around quite a bit.