Advice needed from a DL expert

[DisneyDreamer08]

Hi everyone :wave:

There is a small possibility I may be going to DL in early April. If I do, I will most likely only be in the area for a few days. I know this is a broad question, but is it possible to "do" both DL and DCA say, over 3 days? There is a chance I may be pregnant during that time (fingers crossed!) so if that were the case, I could cross all the big thrill rides off the list.

I've never been to DL or DCA so I'm not really sure if a one day (or one and half day) plan is possible. If its not, I'll still go, I'll just have to be selective in my choices.

thanks for any help!

 

[Monty]

Three days is certainly enough to do both parks.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Another question- If we are not staying on site, do we still qualify for Magic Mornings? Also, if I am reading correctly, if we buy a 3 day hopper, we only get one Magic Morning?

 

[Nicole220]

Another question- If we are not staying on site, do we still qualify for Magic Mornings? Also, if I am reading correctly, if we buy a 3 day hopper, we only get one Magic Morning?

Yes, Magic Mornings are included with 3, 4, 5 day park hoppers as well as Disney hotel guests. They are only offered a few days a week, so you'll end up with one or two Magic Mornings, depending on when they are offered.


And I agree, 3 days will be enough.

 

[Mr.EPCOT]

I think I'd suggest two days for Disneyland and one day for California Adventure. Be sure to take some time to explore Downtown Disney and the hotels, as well!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thanks for all the help guys! I'm thinking of spending one full day in each park and then use the 3rd day to go back and see what I missed. I really don't know a whole lot about DL so I think I'm going to go out today and buy the Unofficial Guide. Just wondering though- I thought I read somewhere that Downtown was within walking distance to the parks? Are the parks within walking distance to each other? So on the 3rd day, could I park once but hop between the 3 places?
thanks again!

 

[Nicole220]

Thanks for all the help guys! I'm thinking of spending one full day in each park and then using the 3rd day to go back and see what I missed. I really don't know a whole lot about DL so I think I'm going to go out today and buy the Unofficial Guide. Just wondering though- I thought I read somewhere that Downtown was within walking distance to the parks? Are the parks withink walking distance to each other? So on the 3rd day, could I park once but hop between the 3 places?
thanks again!

The parks are just a few steps away from each other. A 30 second walk is all it takes to get from one to the other. So if you end up park hopping 10 times in one day, it's no problem. DTD is also right next to the parks.

Here's a map: http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com/disneyland/DL-Resor-t-Map.jpg

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Wow thats so cool

thanks!

 

[Laura]

Hi everyone :wave:

There is a small possibility I may be going to DL in early April. If I do, I will most likely only be in the area for a few days. I know this is a broad question, but is it possible to "do" both DL and DCA say, over 3 days? There is a chance I may be pregnant during that time (fingers crossed!) so if that were the case, I could cross all the big thrill rides off the list.

I've never been to DL or DCA so I'm not really sure if a one day (or one and half day) plan is possible. If its not, I'll still go, I'll just have to be selective in my choices.

thanks for any help!

April 2-10 will probably be VERY busy. Easter weekend followed by Spring break. With those kind of crowds, you will definitely want that 3rd day to catch whatever you miss and to check out Downtown Disney. Fantasyland alone will probably take half a day in those conditions. If you are not pregnant, utilize single rider lines (Indiana Jones, Splash Mountain, Screamin', etc.) and save Fastpass for Space Mt. Single Rider lines are not very well advertised so many visitors don't know about them and you usually can save about an hour of waiting at each ride. Just ask the CM's at the queue entrances. Before my first visit I bought the Unofficial Guide, but I still felt very overwhelmed and didn't know where to start. When I actually arrived, I just did whatever I came to. Unlike WDW, everything is very close so you can easily meander around and search for short lines and you don't need to go in with a plan.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thank you for the tips Laura! If I do go, it will probably be somewhere in the April 11th-16th time frame. So hopefully it won't be too busy.

Thanks for also letting me know about single rider lines vs. fastpass.

I will probably be in the area for 4 days so now I just need to decide if I should get a 4 day hopper, or just a 3 day. Do I need a hopper if I am just going to Downtown Disney?

 

[Laura]

Thank you for the tips Laura! If I do go, it will probably be somewhere in the April 11th-16th time frame. So hopefully it won't be too busy.

Thanks for also letting me know about single rider lines vs. fastpass.

I will probably be in the area for 4 days so now I just need to decide if I should get a 4 day hopper, or just a 3 day. Do I need a hopper if I am just going to Downtown Disney?

OK yeah, crowds will have died down significantly by the 11th I imagine. So you picked a good time to go. That's the week I went for my first ever visit last year and it was very crowd-free. You coulda done a cartwheel on Main Street during the fireworks there was so much space. :lol:

You only need the ticket to enter California Adventure or Disneyland Park. Downtown Disney and the area in between the parks don't require an admission. If you have 4 days, I'd recommend taking a day to sightsee (LA or some beaches). 3 days will be plenty for DLR.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

OK, just a few more questions

I know at WDW, the advice is always to go to a different park when extra magic hours are happening. But, I'm assuming that is not the case for DL? On a morning when DL has early entry, I should utilize that right? I should go there and not to DCA?

Also, do either of the parks have a nightly fireworks or parade schedule? From what I can see from looking online, Fantasmic will still be closed for rehab, and it says the Electrical Parade only happens seasonally or during super busy times. And I didn't see any fireworks on the schedule. So will anything be happening at night while I am there?

thanks again!

 

[Laura]

Personally, I consider DL and DCA to be pretty much all one shebang. I walk back and forth between them constantly each time I visit. If one gets busy, I just head over to the other one. I believe most other people do the same. You don't need to ever PICK a park to do on any particular day. It literally takes 30 seconds to get from one park to the other. About as easy as walking from one ride to another. I know it's hard to wrap your mind around when you're so used to it being such a hassle to travel between the parks at WDW, but you'll see! Really, no planning is required!

For night shows, you just look up each day you'll be there on the calendar at Disneyland.com and it will tell you if anything is happening. Sometimes they save night shows just for the weekends. Other times they happen nightly.