Guide to DLR for WDW Veterans!

[ajrwdwgirl]

Early June might be fairly quiet there will be Grad nights though.

 

[mickEblu]

Thank you both!

My next thought for you or anyone, itinerary. Trying to think of days that could be quieter in parks. This is a tentative idea for early June.

Saturday: Travel day / check into a hotel near USH.

Sunday: General Hollywood / LA day. Explore. Santa Monica maybe, etc.

Monday: USH

Tuesday: travel to / check-in hotel near Disneyland. Downtown Disney exploration etc.

Wednesday - Saturday: Disneyland / DCA days. Rope dropping. Full out 4 park days.

Sunday: Check out and travel home.

Does this seem like a silly plan? Are there better days of the week for the parks? Is early June a fools errand?

Yes early June would be terrible this year. Definitely avoid late May to early June as many folks will be trying to use their unused days from their So Cal 3 day passes that will expire 6/2. I would avoid Grad Nights like the plague if you can. Go in early to Mid May if possible.

I like avoiding USH on the weekend and going on a weekday. USH has more typical crowd patterns with the park being much busier on weekends than weekdays. For DL since you’re going for 4 days Thurs to Sun or Wed to Sat is probably your best bet.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Yes early June would be terrible this year. Definitely avoid late May to early June as many folks will be trying to use their unused days from their So Cal 3 day passes that will expire 6/2. I would avoid Grad Nights like the plague if you can. Go in early to Mid May if possible.

I like avoiding USH on the weekend and going on a weekday. USH has more typical crowd patterns with the park being much busier on weekends than weekdays. For DL since you’re going for 4 days Thurs to Sun or Wed to Sat is probably your best bet.

My days may work then, I was thinking June 3rd for USH, and then later that week for Disneyland. So just after those passes expire.

hmm.

 

[mickEblu]

My days may work then, I was thinking June 3rd for USH, and then later that week for Disneyland. So just after those passes expire.

hmm.

But then you still have grad nights to deal with. I actually just checked and looks like they start much earlier this year from 5/10- 6/14. For my money I’m going first week of May. If not then after 6/14.

 

[Disney Analyst]

But then you still have grad nights to deal with. I actually just checked and looks like they start much earlier this year from 5/10- 6/14. For my money I’m going first week of May. If not then after 6/14.

Ugh haha! There is always something. I’m trying to avoid spring break, long weekends, now grad nights didn’t even think of those.

Sadly early May is out as my coworker already snatched dates up to May 17th.

 

[mickEblu]

Ugh haha! There is always something. I’m trying to avoid spring break, long weekends, now grad nights didn’t even think of those.

Sadly early May is out as my coworker already snatched dates up to May 17th.

Ya it’s tough haha. 6/14 isn’t too bad tho. It’s usually not too hot yet and you avoid grad nights. You also have two tiers of pass holders that are blacked out. The only negative I can think of is the June Gloom but the fog usually dissipates by the early to mid afternoon. I’d say mid June is a solid option.

 

[PiratesMansion]

It seems counterintuitive, but July is actually better than June as long as you avoid the 4th.

Early June has grad nights and passholders. In late June or July, none of that exists.

 

[Disney Analyst]

It seems counterintuitive, but July is actually better than June as long as you avoid the 4th.

Early June has grad nights and passholders. In late June or July, none of that exists.

So perhaps June 15-23rd ish is when we should plan to hit SoCal.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Anyone have opinions on undercover tourist for discount tickets?

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Anyone have opinions on undercover tourist for discount tickets?

I use them frequently for Disneyland tickets. I have never had an issue with them.

 

[PiratesMansion]

Seconded. I've used UT for most of my DL tickets and they're solid. They also offer a year long almost-full-refund policy on tickets, which makes them particularly attractive vs. other sellers.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Seconded. I've used UT for most of my DL tickets and they're solid. They also offer a year long almost-full-refund policy on tickets, which makes them particularly attractive vs. other sellers.

Nice! I will definitely use them for the USH and Disneyland tickets, any bit of savings helps.

I've booked our hotels, so this is definitely happening.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Nice! I will definitely use them for the USH and Disneyland tickets, any bit of savings helps.

I've booked our hotels, so this is definitely happening.

I don't know if you will need a rental car but I have used Undercover Tourist's rental car discount a few times and it can be a good deal.

 

[PiratesMansion]

@Disney Analyst, if you do go for a rental car, know that some (many?) hotels in the area charge for parking.

 

[Disney Analyst]

I don't know if you will need a rental car but I have used Undercover Tourist's rental car discount a few times and it can be a good deal.

@Disney Analyst, if you do go for a rental car, know that some (many?) hotels in the area charge for parking.

I don't think we will go the rental route. Us Canadian's don't really fancy the idea of trying to drive in LA! Haha.

Haven't fully decided how we will get from Airport to Universal Hotel area, and from Universal to Disneyland.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I don't think we will go the rental route. Us Canadian's don't really fancy the idea of trying to drive in LA! Haha.

Haven't fully decided how we will get from Airport to Universal Hotel area, and from Universal to Disneyland.

Which airport are you flying into? LAX? John Wayne/Orange County? Other?

You definitely won't need a car for your DLR days, but if you're doing anything further away than Knott's, having a car is a big, big help. I'm not sure where you're from precisely (Vancouver? Or I could just be making that up), but the difficulty of driving in LA is vastly overhyped. If you've driven in any big city, you'll be fine. The traffic is bad, but the drivers are no worse than any other urban area-better, in fact, than other cities I've been through (Philadelphia, Atlanta, Orlando) by orders of magnitude. Try not to drive during rush hour, use Waze to find the best route, and group your activities strategically to avoid unnecessary detours, and it's relatively manageable.

I take it you're going to stay out by Universal for at least a night as well?

Now, from a public transit standpoint, it is worth noting that Universal actually is on the LA Metro with its own dedicated station. Once you exit the station, you'll walk a block or two to board an official Universal tram that will take you the rest of the way to the park entrance. The coverage of the Metro is a bit limited, but if you're committed to being carless, you could use that to get around to some of the other sites in the area if you want to do things other than just Universal, and then when you go to/return to Orange County and Disney, take the Metro to Norwalk, which is close-ish to Orange County and Disney, and then rideshare the rest of the way to Anaheim.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Which airport are you flying into? LAX? John Wayne/Orange County? Other?

You definitely won't need a car for your DLR days, but if you're doing anything further away than Knott's, having a car is a big, big help. I'm not sure where you're from precisely (Vancouver? Or I could just be making that up), but the difficulty of driving in LA is vastly overhyped. If you've driven in any big city, you'll be fine. The traffic is bad, but the drivers are no worse than any other urban area-better, in fact, than other cities I've been through (Philadelphia, Atlanta, Orlando) by orders of magnitude. Try not to drive during rush hour, use Waze to find the best route, and group your activities strategically to avoid unnecessary detours, and it's relatively manageable.

I take it you're going to stay out by Universal for at least a night as well?

Now, from a public transit standpoint, it is worth noting that Universal actually is on the LA Metro with its own dedicated station. Once you exit the station, you'll walk a block or two to board an official Universal tram that will take you the rest of the way to the park entrance. The coverage of the Metro is a bit limited, but if you're committed to being carless, you could use that to get around to some of the other sites in the area if you want to do things other than just Universal, and then when you go to/return to Orange County and Disney, take the Metro to Norwalk, which is close-ish to Orange County and Disney, and then rideshare the rest of the way to Anaheim.

Right now my thought is to fly into LAX, two nights at hotel near Universal, five nights out at Disneyland. Fly out of SNA (yes, from Vancouver).

 

[Disney Analyst]

Which airport are you flying into? LAX? John Wayne/Orange County? Other?

You definitely won't need a car for your DLR days, but if you're doing anything further away than Knott's, having a car is a big, big help. I'm not sure where you're from precisely (Vancouver? Or I could just be making that up), but the difficulty of driving in LA is vastly overhyped. If you've driven in any big city, you'll be fine. The traffic is bad, but the drivers are no worse than any other urban area-better, in fact, than other cities I've been through (Philadelphia, Atlanta, Orlando) by orders of magnitude. Try not to drive during rush hour, use Waze to find the best route, and group your activities strategically to avoid unnecessary detours, and it's relatively manageable.

I take it you're going to stay out by Universal for at least a night as well?

Now, from a public transit standpoint, it is worth noting that Universal actually is on the LA Metro with its own dedicated station. Once you exit the station, you'll walk a block or two to board an official Universal tram that will take you the rest of the way to the park entrance. The coverage of the Metro is a bit limited, but if you're committed to being carless, you could use that to get around to some of the other sites in the area if you want to do things other than just Universal, and then when you go to/return to Orange County and Disney, take the Metro to Norwalk, which is close-ish to Orange County and Disney, and then rideshare the rest of the way to Anaheim.

also thank you for all that! We might just swing for an Uber or something. Unsure. The flyaway bus to Union Station may also work, then take the metro.

 

[PiratesMansion]

also thank you for all that! We might just swing for an Uber or something. Unsure. The flyaway bus to Union Station may also work, then take the metro.

Just make sure you are prepared for the fact that there is no such thing as a quick or easy way to get out of LAX. Everything will take longer than it should and it can be quite a chaotic, stressful place to deal with.

Maybe see if there are any flights into Bob Hope Airport (Burbank) that might work out better for you? It appears to be closer to Universal than LAX and will definitely be less stressful to deal with.

There's also Long Beach and Ontario (ha) as alternatives to get to the area, though if you're aiming for Universal first, those probably aren't of much help in terms of location. Ontario in particular is a bit out in the boonies, and neither in LA nor Orange County. Long Beach might work as a way to get back home from Disneyland, however, if SNA doesn't work out.

If you fly into LAX, and plan on doing any activities beyond getting to Universal on arrival day, make sure you allow plenty of buffer room to get from point A to point B.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Now probably the more important question - what’s everyone’s rope drop strategy / strategies for both parks? Especially with how much things have changed with early entry, Genie+ etc.

Right now I’m thinking 4 day park hoppers.

Wednesday - Disneyland starting park
Thursday (Pride Nite, won’t get tickets) - DCA starting park
Friday - Disneyland starting park
Saturday - Disneyland starting park

I figure the Thursday DCA will get busy when Disneyland closes at 8pm?