What the heck is going on at DL/Anaheim this week?

[countofmc]

Going this week, thankfully I made hotel reservations months ago. But I just randomly checked and they are all sold out. Everything. I don't think I've ever seen it like this, even during Christmas. But reservations seem to be available at the park so it doesn't seem to be all park-goers. Is there some big event happening in Orange County?

 

[evilmommie]

Going this week, thankfully I made hotel reservations months ago. But I just randomly checked and they are all sold out. Everything. I don't think I've ever seen it like this, even during Christmas. But reservations seem to be available at the park so it doesn't seem to be all park-goers. Is there some big event happening in Orange County?

I always look on the convention website to see what's on the calendar. Starting Tues, Sept 20th is the Solar Power International 2022 convention. https://www.anaheim.net/Calendar.aspx?EID=30146

 

[Gaub]

The parks were PACKED this week! I’m not sure why they even have a reservation system at this point as it seems they are overselling tickets. One cast member even told my son that. Frequent ride breakdowns compound LL attraction lines once those rides comes back up. Thursday night around 7pm was an absolute nightmare! OOB closed down DCA at 6pm, forcing those folks over to DL. Splash, Space Mtn, Star Tours, Indy all down at the same time. a different cast member told my son that any LL would be at least an hour from then on out. I had already left at that point. My son left soon thereafter and could barely exit the park there were so many people! The HM line was apparently backed up past Splash Mtn! I’ll give a trip review later this weekend, separately. Just be aware that lines will be long after 11am until 9pm every day

 

[countofmc]

I always look on the convention website to see what's on the calendar. Starting Tues, Sept 20th is the Solar Power International 2022 convention. https://www.anaheim.net/Calendar.aspx?EID=30146

Wow, I didn't know a single convention could pack Anaheim like this. IIRC I've gone to DL during conventions and during busier times at the park and I don't remember hotels being sold out like this. Although it appears the convention could have up to 50,000 attendees, so that's a big one!

I also get the impression a lot of these hotels aren't running at full capacity due to staffing issues, although I could be wrong about that.

 

[countofmc]

The parks were PACKED this week! I’m not sure why they even have a reservation system at this point as it seems they are overselling tickets. One cast member even told my son that. Frequent ride breakdowns compound LL attraction lines once those rides comes back up. Thursday night around 7pm was an absolute nightmare! OOB closed down DCA at 6pm, forcing those folks over to DL. Splash, Space Mtn, Star Tours, Indy all down at the same time. a different cast member told my son that any LL would be at least an hour from then on out. I had already left at that point. My son left soon thereafter and could barely exit the park there were so many people! The HM line was apparently backed up past Splash Mtn! I’ll give a trip review later this weekend, separately. Just be aware that lines will be long after 11am until 9pm every day

I believe this past week was the last week to use those discounted California tickets. Maybe contributing to the crowds? Like @evilmommie said, I think the hotels are sold out due to the convention. I don't recall hotels selling out to this extent even during Christmas.

EDIT: Also, there's no down season for DL anymore, esp with the WFH crowd and all that. But I don't think mid-September is a huge travel time for out-of-towners, at least to the extent park goers would pack all the nearby hotels like this.

 

[D2Pugs]

Gay days at the DLR is also this weekend.

 

[Jaina]

We are here and it’s been pretty busy. But the -real- problem is multiple headliners down constantly for hours at a time. Seriously, Disney, what is going on? Indy, Big Thunder, and Space Mountain were all down for hours and hours this morning. And that’s just one example.

 

[Hyphen677]

The parks were PACKED this week! I’m not sure why they even have a reservation system at this point as it seems they are overselling tickets. One cast member even told my son that. Frequent ride breakdowns compound LL attraction lines once those rides comes back up. Thursday night around 7pm was an absolute nightmare! OOB closed down DCA at 6pm, forcing those folks over to DL. Splash, Space Mtn, Star Tours, Indy all down at the same time. a different cast member told my son that any LL would be at least an hour from then on out. I had already left at that point. My son left soon thereafter and could barely exit the park there were so many people! The HM line was apparently backed up past Splash Mtn! I’ll give a trip review later this weekend, separately. Just be aware that lines will be long after 11am until 9pm every day

We were there on Thursday night as well. Those lines were brutal. We ended up with 14 multiple experience passes (large party) after the headliners repeatedly broke down. My in laws had to get towed in on the Jungle Cruise.

We got stuck on Indy on Wednesday night and they actually turned on the lights which was kind of cool.

 

[serendipityaey]

We are here and it’s been pretty busy. But the -real- problem is multiple headliners down constantly for hours at a time. Seriously, Disney, what is going on? Indy, Big Thunder, and Space Mountain were all down for hours and hours this morning. And that’s just one example.

My small scale experience has been its next to impossible to get new parts *and* experienced maintenance people.

 

[Snap Crackle Pop]

Gay days is this weekend. And as we get closer to October it’s only going to get busier.

 

[alisonleigh21]

We are here and it’s been pretty busy. But the -real- problem is multiple headliners down constantly for hours at a time. Seriously, Disney, what is going on? Indy, Big Thunder, and Space Mountain were all down for hours and hours this morning. And that’s just one example.

And lighting lane has been a 20-40 minute wait for most rides!

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

Super busy today, as expected due to Gay Days and Halloween time. But the weather was so lovely, especially compared to what we’ve been having lately. Getting food at dinner time was brutal at DCA tonight and mobile order kept glitching.

 

[countofmc]

Super busy today, as expected due to Gay Days and Halloween time. But the weather was so lovely, especially compared to what we’ve been having lately. Getting food at dinner time was brutal at DVA tonight and mobile order kept glitching.

What is DVA?

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

What is DVA?

Oops typo, DCA

 

[DisneyJade]

Oof. This thread is stressing me out a bit. What are we paying for if Lightning Lanes are 20-40 minutes or even an hour?! I have always found Disneyland crowded, especially the original park, just due to the tight spaces. But if you pay the upcharges to avoid the impact of crowds (G+, ILL, staying on site for early entry), then you're not getting what you paid for when fast track line passes are hour-long waits. Actually, no one is getting what they paid for if multiple major rides are regularly down for hours. I hope some of this is exaggerated or circumstantial and not actually the norm.

 

[Stephluva]

We spent 3 days in the parks after the D23 expo. It was packed!!! It was our first time at Disneyland (WDW veterans), so we couldn't compare this to any previous visits. But this is the most crowded I have ever experienced a Disney park.....ever. I asked a few cast members if this was normal, and the majority of them said they've been shocked with how crowded it was. One thing we noticed was the amount of school-age children in the parks during the day. I'm talking middle of the day on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I know schools are back in session everywhere, and since it's the beginning of the school year, I was surprised that parents would pull their kids out of school this early in the year. With the crowds, and multiple headliners being "temporarily closed", we were still able to have a good time and do most everything we wanted to do. We'll definitely be back (hopefully at a less crowded time).

 

[Gaub]

Oof. This thread is stressing me out a bit. What are we paying for if Lightning Lanes are 20-40 minutes or even an hour?! I have always found Disneyland crowded, especially the original park, just due to the tight spaces. But if you pay the upcharges to avoid the impact of crowds (G+, ILL, staying on site for early entry), then you're not getting what you paid for when fast track line passes are hour-long waits. Actually, no one is getting what they paid for if multiple major rides are regularly down for hours. I hope some of this is exaggerated or circumstantial and not actually the norm.

See my observations from last week, 9/13-9.15. The parks were packed (OBB was part of the problem). Unfortunately Disney's policy on their paid Genie+ and ILL are no refunds! The current leadership is greedy and all about packing as many people into the parks as possible. I'm not even sure why they bother with the reservation system at this point. Go read reviews on Trip Advisor like I did today. You'll see numerous reviews commenting on how crazy busy it has been. Most LL lines won't be more than 10-15 minutes or less, which isn't bad. However, depending on if and when and how long a ride has been down, those LL people usually come back and are then doubled up with the current LL reservations available when the ride opens. So, if Indy is down for an hour (say, Noon-1PM), then you have those people come back at 1PM and all of the other people that also had reservations for 1PM. So, your line may take longer than normal to process through and the poor people in standby have to wait that much longer, too! Genie+ is a disaster when it comes to guest experience compared to Maxpass. Genie+ is a brilliant and lucrative idea for the bean counters and those looking to squeeze as much $$ out of guests as possible. I'm out of state, but won't be returning until they fix this. And with current leadership, I don't see anything changing anytime soon. Rides seem to break down more frequently and some features never get fixed (See Indy, for example). I'm not exaggerating. I've been monitoring Genie+ return times for the past few months and especially the past couple of weeks leading up to our trip. That's your best indicator. Also, things really depend on your group. If you're a solo visitor, you may be able to navigate quite differently than a family of 4 and especially w/ young kids. Last week was my 9th visit to the parks since 2002. I wouldn't keep going back every couple of years if I had bad experiences. I probably won't be back ever, at this point.

I don't want to be a downer, but I want people to have realistic expectations going in. If you expectations are lower, then you may end up having a great time (which I truly hope is the case)! But if you think things are the same or better than previous years, you'll likely end up quite disappointed and I wouldn't want that to be the case. I'm just a guest, but I seem to care more about the guest experience than those that work there and should be the ones that care. Disney is making a ton of $$ now. But if they don't make major changes for the better, I can see them struggling in a few years as more and more people wise up to the lack of value that is now Disneyland.

 

[DisneyJade]

See my observations from last week, 9/13-9.15. The parks were packed (OBB was part of the problem). Unfortunately Disney's policy on their paid Genie+ and ILL are no refunds! The current leadership is greedy and all about packing as many people into the parks as possible. I'm not even sure why they bother with the reservation system at this point. Go read reviews on Trip Advisor like I did today. You'll see numerous reviews commenting on how crazy busy it has been. Most LL lines won't be more than 10-15 minutes or less, which isn't bad. However, depending on if and when and how long a ride has been down, those LL people usually come back and are then doubled up with the current LL reservations available when the ride opens. So, if Indy is down for an hour (say, Noon-1PM), then you have those people come back at 1PM and all of the other people that also had reservations for 1PM. So, your line may take longer than normal to process through and the poor people in standby have to wait that much longer, too! Genie+ is a disaster when it comes to guest experience compared to Maxpass. Genie+ is a brilliant and lucrative idea for the bean counters and those looking to squeeze as much $$ out of guests as possible. I'm out of state, but won't be returning until they fix this. And with current leadership, I don't see anything changing anytime soon. Rides seem to break down more frequently and some features never get fixed (See Indy, for example). I'm not exaggerating. I've been monitoring Genie+ return times for the past few months and especially the past couple of weeks leading up to our trip. That's your best indicator. Also, things really depend on your group. If you're a solo visitor, you may be able to navigate quite differently than a family of 4 and especially w/ young kids. Last week was my 9th visit to the parks since 2002. I wouldn't keep going back every couple of years if I had bad experiences. I probably won't be back ever, at this point.

I don't want to be a downer, but I want people to have realistic expectations going in. If you expectations are lower, then you may end up having a great time (which I truly hope is the case)! But if you think things are the same or better than previous years, you'll likely end up quite disappointed and I wouldn't want that to be the case. I'm just a guest, but I seem to care more about the guest experience than those that work there and should be the ones that care. Disney is making a ton of $$ now. But if they don't make major changes for the better, I can see them struggling in a few years as more and more people wise up to the lack of value that is now Disneyland.

I appreciate this insight. I'm trying to keep a positive attitude about our upcoming trip, but I'm also have some buyer's remorse. If we hadn't already missed the window for a full refund, I would be seriously considering canceling. We are only about 6 hours from DL, so it's not the end of the world if it's a little crowded or rides aren't all running - disappointing, yes, but for us - not a ruined trip. What kills me though, is that this 3-day trip is costing us almost half of what we paid just 18 months ago for a full week in Disney World (including our airfare to Orlando!) It's just very hard to see the value in it. Thousands of dollars for our family of four for just 3 nights and 2.5 days in the parks (and that's before gas and food and ILLs). Ugh!

But I do appreciate all of the info so that we can manage our expectations. That will actually help us to have a better attitude about it - or maybe even be pleasantly surprised!

 

[serendipityaey]

See my observations from last week, 9/13-9.15. The parks were packed (OBB was part of the problem). Unfortunately Disney's policy on their paid Genie+ and ILL are no refunds! The current leadership is greedy and all about packing as many people into the parks as possible. I'm not even sure why they bother with the reservation system at this point. Go read reviews on Trip Advisor like I did today. You'll see numerous reviews commenting on how crazy busy it has been. Most LL lines won't be more than 10-15 minutes or less, which isn't bad. However, depending on if and when and how long a ride has been down, those LL people usually come back and are then doubled up with the current LL reservations available when the ride opens. So, if Indy is down for an hour (say, Noon-1PM), then you have those people come back at 1PM and all of the other people that also had reservations for 1PM. So, your line may take longer than normal to process through and the poor people in standby have to wait that much longer, too! Genie+ is a disaster when it comes to guest experience compared to Maxpass. Genie+ is a brilliant and lucrative idea for the bean counters and those looking to squeeze as much $$ out of guests as possible. I'm out of state, but won't be returning until they fix this. And with current leadership, I don't see anything changing anytime soon. Rides seem to break down more frequently and some features never get fixed (See Indy, for example). I'm not exaggerating. I've been monitoring Genie+ return times for the past few months and especially the past couple of weeks leading up to our trip. That's your best indicator. Also, things really depend on your group. If you're a solo visitor, you may be able to navigate quite differently than a family of 4 and especially w/ young kids. Last week was my 9th visit to the parks since 2002. I wouldn't keep going back every couple of years if I had bad experiences. I probably won't be back ever, at this point.

I don't want to be a downer, but I want people to have realistic expectations going in. If you expectations are lower, then you may end up having a great time (which I truly hope is the case)! But if you think things are the same or better than previous years, you'll likely end up quite disappointed and I wouldn't want that to be the case. I'm just a guest, but I seem to care more about the guest experience than those that work there and should be the ones that care. Disney is making a ton of $$ now. But if they don't make major changes for the better, I can see them struggling in a few years as more and more people wise up to the lack of value that is now Disneyland.

I work at a very small theme park. We were so crazy crowded today it was insane, and yeah, it wasn’t great and no we weren’t expecting it. We’ve been doing this for 50 years. Yes we’ve raised prices and people have said the same thing about us, but we don’t care about money at all we’re just trying to keep our sanity at this point. The demand is so high right now, there’s no way to meet it. Not trying to say Disney isn’t all about profits but just offering perspective.

Last summer we tried to limit reservations. You cant imagine how angry people get when they actually aren’t allowed to do what they want. I had someone yell at me on the phone they would rather come and have a bad time then not be allowed to come. I don’t know what the answer is, but for now all we personally can do is figure out which way makes less people angry.

 

[Camilo]

We went to the parks on September 1st, 2nd and 3rd. On the 1st and 2nd, both parks were "empty". What I mean by that is that we were able to do 6 to 10 rides on the first 3 hours, including big ones. We did have Genie+. In both days, we took a break in our hotel (Hyatt House) as it was crazy hot. Lines for Splash Mountain, Indy and BTTR were around 30 to 40 minutes (regular line), which I find fair.

On Saturday, completely different beast. To get to the turnstiles, we already had to wait for 20 minutes. DL was packed that day, everything was a big wait. I THINK it was the first day Haunted Mansion holiday was open. I couldn't believe what difference it made on this 3rd day. Lines ofr the rides above were 45, 50, 60 minutes. Although we could have stayed until 6 PM (our flight was only at 10:30 PM), we left DL at 1 PM, went back to the hotel, took a shower (late checkout was offered) and stayed at the lobby for a couple of hours (granted, Saturday was even hotter than the other 2 day).