Taking My 81 Year Old Mother to Disneyland- Tips?

[EPCOTCenterLover]

Hi Everyone! My sister and I are taking her to Disneyland. She hasn't been in 35 years. All of us really want to get on Rise of the Resistance, but we don't want to pay Lightning Lane prices. Do we have to book reservations or what time of day is best to wait in line?

It's been about 4 years since I've been. About 6 or 7 for my sister.
What would you recommend?
Our Mom is in great shape- walks everyday all day long without any problems, not frail in the least bit- and she is very young at heart.

She loved Matterhorn when she was younger, but I think its much too rough now and it would hurt her back. Big Thunder and Space Mountain I think she could handle. What do you think about Indy?

Any other thoughts? Thanks!

 

[waltography]

How fun! Hope y'all enjoy your trip.

I'd avoid Indy and Matterhorn, I'm afraid; glad she's still kicking at 81 but both rides really put you through a spin cycle so I wouldn't risk it. Indy's also not worth the potential risk given how so much of its effects are perennially broken.

You can avoid most of the wait by rope dropping RotR, but truthfully the wait time lately hovers around an hour for a majority of the day that I don't even bother trying to rope drop; just expect to wait around an hour to ride (although if it breaks down while you're in line it may be closer to 1.5-2 hours).

See if Genie+ is worth it for your group; if rides are your priority, I'd do some research on it because it can easily help you get 3-5 more rides in than you normally would have been able to without it (it's way more helpful here in DL than it is in WDW).

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

I think an hour is a doable amount of time. That’s good to hear!

 

[truecoat]

I think an hour is a doable amount of time. That’s good to hear!

If the ride goes down, keep an eye on it to come back up. Head over as soon as it does regardless of the wait time listed. More than likely, the wait will be much shorter than almost any time of day.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

Just returned from California including our day at Disneyland. Since my sister considers me a hardcore park general, I did not determine departure time from Palm Springs. She woke me up at 4:45 and we all left by 5:30 last Thursday. Arrived in the park at 8:15.

Rise wasn't up yet, so we went to Haunted Mansion Holiday first. My Mom loved Rise, thought Smugglers Run was ok. Took photos in front of the Falcon. Then we covered Pirates (her favorite), and Indy (which she loved but had never ridden). Lunch at Cafe Orleans as she mentioned remembering the Monte Cristo sandwhich at Blue Bayou- which of course, BB was unavailable. Nice, slow lunch!

Shopped a bit in NOS. Went to Small World and then Big Thunder. The roller coaster was a huge hit, and she laughed all the way through. Long complicated story but she ended up riding alone. Didn't bother her a bit. No Splash Mountain as it stayed at 80 minutes, and it just wasn't worth it when it was so hot.

Stopped into Red Rose Tavern for some water and some grey stuff. Tiki Room and then Omnibus to get us to Town Square to shop a bit. Took the train around the park. By then it was 6:00pm and we met my nephew and his wife for dinner at 7:15pm at Downtown Disney at Ralph Brennan's. Great, long, meal. Left the parking garage at 9:45pm to drive home. She was asleep in the car within 20 minutes.

She had a blast and kept up with us easily. She is amazing- fun, upbeat, enjoys life and is strong, healthy, and young at heart.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

Thought you'd enjoy a photo to go with the story.