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We’re going to Disneyland. I’ve already gotten some great tips, but I would like to hear even more. Please share your wisdom born of experience. What would you do differently? What did you do that worked out really well? I am especially interested in advice from people who took both younger and older children to Disneyland. Did you split up and have one adult go with the older child(ren) and another stay with the younger children? Did you do lots of switching off? How did you prepare younger children for the potentially frightening rides? Also, what did you carry with you into Disneyland and how did you carry it? Water, chapstick, ponchos? In a purse, a backpack, a waistpack?
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4 Responses to “Disneyland–Tips, anyone?”
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We did the park for two days; I would definitely do three. Too much to see and do. The park is open so late at night and opens so early in the morning spring through fall that I would break the day into two trips, and let everybody have a nap/break during the middle of the day. Lunch ANYWHERE is cheaper than Disneyland, so that’s an added bonus of leaving for a while and then coming back. Means a little more money for dinner in the park, which is fun. And your parking pass is good all day, so you don’t have to pay double for parking if you leave. Everybody carried their own little backpack with water and a small snack, and a light jacket in case of rain or wind (we had both); the adults carried the sunscreen, camera, etc.
We waited to take the kids until they were all at least tall enough to go on the roller coasters/etc, so no advice on dealing with little ones; sorry. We felt it would be more enjoyable for the kids if they could all enjoy all the rides together, and more enjoyable for the parents to not have to manage the: “You go there with the smaller children and I’ll take the other one over here. Meet you at Small World in 95 minutes, since the projected wait at Thunder Mountain Railroad is 90 minutes. Call me on the cell if anything happens.” I’ve never regretted waiting. While we were there, the kids all said they were glad we waited because they would have missed out on so much by virtue of being too small to be allowed on the best rides.
Have a GREAT time!
I blogged about this here
http://cliff-notes.blogspot.com/2009/04/planning-to-travel-part-iii-disneyland.html
Short version: use the park strollers… helps keep the youngers happy! And bring a small bag if you want to carry anything with you on rides or larger if you are comfortable leaving it in the stroller basket. Water bottles can be refilled at fountains. I wrote extensively about RideMax, software that creates a custom itinerary for you. I love it but it isn’t for everyone (it should be — RideMax is true!) If you have a small person who can’t go on a big ride, use it by going to get fastpasses while the biggers ride or parents switch off (older kids can ride twice then!) while the youngers have a snack.
California Adventure is nice — do not miss the new Toy Story Mania ride. So much fun.
You should totally talk to Michael. When we went to Disneyland he had it down. We never had to wait in line for anything. It was great. Seriously you should talk to him.
1. Get there half an hour before the park officially opens, if possible. They let you into the main street area early and then you can be first in line for the rides. The first hour has pretty light traffic and you can get a lot of riding done before the crowds hit. As soon as they let you in, head straight for the Dumbo ride. It is quick, the little kids LOVE it and the line gets ridiculously long later on. If you get there early enough, they can ride it a few times in a row and you can get on with what you consider the more exciting stuff.
2. Have a planned itinerary. Get your fast passes early. Don’t just randomly walk into the park and start meandering down the first street you come to. Know which rides will have the longest waits and use that Fastpass system to death. I
3. If you don’t want to split up but have younger kids who can’t go on a ride, tell the ride attendant as you come up to get on the ride that you want to do a kid swap. They will let one parent and the big kids go on the ride and will send the other parent to wait at the end of the ride. They get off, you switch kids, the younger kid goes off with the first parent and the second parent gets to go back to the entrance with one other older kid and go on the ride. The older kids love it because they get to go twice in a row without waiting!
4. Plan on at least an hour break for lunch and relaxing with the younger kids. If one parent wants to take the older kids on some other rides, this is a good time. But those younger kids will need a little down time to avoid tantrums. Pack hearty, filling snacks–bagels, trail mix, fruit, and lots of water–in a small cooler or diaper bag and keep it in your stroller. Eating outside of the park is definitely less expensive and there are several restaurants right across the street from the entrance–I believe, a Denny’s and a McDonalds, and some hotels with restaurants, but just remember that it is quite a long walk in and out of the park for little legs. If you go out of the park to eat, plan on it taking at least 1 1/2-2 hours out of your day.
5. Definitely do three days, if possible, especially if you are of the mindset that you have to see and do everything. Hit Disneyland one day, California Adventure the second, and then you can go back on the third to get stuff you missed or want to do again.
Good luck! Have fun!