Pre-Trip We are going to Disney....land?!

DisSplash · Jun 20, 2015

Very jelly over your news, but also very happy for you! And going with your mom! Those will be some great times and memories, as it seems your mom gets the whole Disney addiction!

We were very briefly toying with the idea of a trip to DL ourselves, next summer since my sister just moved out to the LA area, but when those Star Wars cruises announced themselves, we decided to jump on one of those instead!

I suppose DL is like my Prince Charming ... someday it will come! :inlove:

Doc Disney · Jun 21, 2015

EpicMickey said:
That is just awesome Trust me you will have a wonderful time at Disneyland as long as you adjust your expectation. As you said it's the 60th anniversary, there are a lot of magnificent night time shows going on to celebrate the birthday.
And if I may give you a suggestion, since you will be in the Bay Area, I highly suggest a visit to the Disney museum in San Francisco. It's really worth the visit
It's too bad that you don't like the food that Carthay Circle offers, it may not be for everyone, but find one that you like that offers the World of Color dining package, because the area they reserve for you is a great spot to watch.
Disneyland hotel is one of the best Disney hotels too, if not the best!
You will love your visit We will be there too around those times to continue our LA ramen's exploration

Thank you for all the suggestions! We won't have a car but I think it may be worth taking a cab to San Fran if we have the time to see the museum since we have some free time our last day! Happy to hear about the Disneyland Hotel I had such a hard time deciding between the hotels!!

catmom46 said:
I've eaten at Uva Bar in DTD and really enjoyed it. Not super fancy, but good eats.

Looked at the menu definitely looks delicious!! Thanks for the tip!

DisSplash said:
Very jelly over your news, but also very happy for you! And going with your mom! Those will be some great times and memories, as it seems your mom gets the whole Disney addiction!
We were very briefly toying with the idea of a trip to DL ourselves, next summer since my sister just moved out to the LA area, but when those Star Wars cruises announced themselves, we decided to jump on one of those instead!
I suppose DL is like my Prince Charming ... someday it will come!

Thanks for following along! I am very happy my mom understand my addiction otherwise I would not ave any travel partners...although I feel like I am kind of dragging my whole family into the addiction! I did not know about the Star Wars cruises!!! Thats so awesome!!!!

Doc Disney · Jun 21, 2015

Hey guys I reevaluated everyones advice on the World of Color Dining Package and my mom and I looked at the menus a little closer and decided we would try Ariels Grotto! When I was reading the Unofficial Guide it got pretty good reviews and I looked a few reviews online and everyone seemed to enjoy it! We are going to do it on the first night we are there

I was back and forth about doing this Dining Package anyway so I am glad you guys tipped me in the right direction :inlove:

amjt660 · Jun 22, 2015

Doc Disney said:
Thanks for the tips Max @amjt660 I really appreciate it! I was definitely worried about finding the Fast Pass for Radiator Springs! I knew it wasn't near the ride but wasn't sure exactly where. Maybe we will look into a dining package for World of Color again. Its really not the price that stopped me though, its the menu. My mom and I (more my mom than me) are very picky eaters and we weren't super thrilled with the menus of the three places...
Where in Canada are you from?

Glad I could help.
If cost is not a big issue I say go for the dinning package.
It may be your only chance to see WOC so it would be worth it

I live in Waterloo Ontario. It is about 2 hours north west of Niagra Falls/Buffalo , 3 hours west of Detroit if that helps.

Feel free to ask more questions

I know you will have a great time(based on your previous TR's that I have read)

Max

PS We did the Disney family museum in San Fran and loved it. You are then very close to the Yodi statue (if you are a Star Wars fan).

PPS Just noticed you are from Buffalo so we are almost neighbors!!

Doc Disney · Jun 22, 2015

amjt660 said:
Glad I could help.
If cost is not a big issue I say go for the dinning package.
It may be your only chance to see WOC so it would be worth it
I live in Waterloo Ontario. It is about 2 hours north west of Niagra Falls/Buffalo , 3 hours west of Detroit if that helps.
Feel free to ask more questions
I know you will have a great time(based on your previous TR's that I have read)
Max
PS We did the Disney family museum in San Fran and loved it. You are then very close to the Yodi statue (if you are a Star Wars fan).
PPS Just noticed you are from Buffalo so we are almost neighbors!!

Yes we are semi-neighbors! I know exactly where Waterloo is..have never been there though! We don't go into Canada much except for Niagara Falls (for Swiss Chalet haha) and Toronto. My mom and I decided with everyones advice to do the World of Color Dining Package! We chose Ariels Grotto because it had the best reviews

bebert · Jun 25, 2015

You will love Disneyland and the Disneyland Hotel. The pool and Trader Sam's is awesome. You will also enjoy the short stroll through DTD to the entrance of the parks, absolutely kills WDW in that aspect.
The sense of history in DLP is awesome, great park.

Doc Disney · Jun 27, 2015

bebert said:
You will love Disneyland and the Disneyland Hotel. The pool and Trader Sam's is awesome. You will also enjoy the short stroll through DTD to the entrance of the parks, absolutely kills WDW in that aspect.
The sense of history in DLP is awesome, great park.

I forgot about Trader Sams being there! Yay I'm excited for that now!!! It will be weird being able to walk to the parks but I am definitely looking forward to it!

samantha788 · Jun 28, 2015

You will LOVE Disneyland Hotel! I stayed there one night when in town for work a few months ago and it was magical. If i'm lucky enough to get back to Disneyland, I won't want to stay anywhere else. Plus a headboard that plays "A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes"! The short walk through DTD to the parks was fun, I loved being that close. Also fun being able to take a short walk into DTD, hop on the monorail and end up in Disneyland. The one morning I was there for, there were Extra Magic Hours at California Adventure. I think I rode ToT at least 3 times in a row with no wait...that alone is worth staying on site

I was by myself since I was there for work and had the best time, you and your mom will have a blast!!
Have fun, can't wait to read the trip report!

Doc Disney · Jul 1, 2015

samantha788 said:
You will LOVE Disneyland Hotel! I stayed there one night when in town for work a few months ago and it was magical. If i'm lucky enough to get back to Disneyland, I won't want to stay anywhere else. Plus a headboard that plays "A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes"! The short walk through DTD to the parks was fun, I loved being that close. Also fun being able to take a short walk into DTD, hop on the monorail and end up in Disneyland. The one morning I was there for, there were Extra Magic Hours at California Adventure. I think I rode ToT at least 3 times in a row with no wait...that alone is worth staying on site I was by myself since I was there for work and had the best time, you and your mom will have a blast!!
Have fun, can't wait to read the trip report!

I'm so happy to hear positive things about the hotel

Now I am getting very excited!!!! I forgot the headboard did that !! Thanks for reading!!

Doc Disney · Jul 8, 2015

Hey guys! I wish I had more things to update...its so weird not updating on Fast Pass selections haha
My mom and I are getting very excited and we definitely don't really know what to expect which is very nerve-wracking to me but also very exciting! I finished reading the Unofficial Guide to Disneyland and I think we may follow the Touring Plans and give that a try!
Just to reiterate/put it all in one place for my own use we have dinner reservations for:
Ariels Grottos / World of Color on August 5th
Big Thunder Ranch BBQ on August 6th
Tortilla Joes on August 7th
Thinking about adding a breakfast on for August 8th but not sure about that yet

Has anyone done breakfast at the Plaza Inn?

I am trying to see what the best option is for breakfast on the other days before the parks. We are early risers and rope drop type people so we will probably eat at the hotel - Tangaroa Terrace looks like a place we would eat...my mom loves her Mickey waffles

Definitely very excited to check out Trader Sams too ! Ah I worry that we won't have enough time to do everything but I think I need to put on my Disneyland Hat not my Disney World hat haha

Pooh'sBuddy · Jul 8, 2015

Cool! We'll be there right after you (flying into SNA on the 11th). Have a great time!

Doc Disney · Jul 9, 2015

Pooh'sBuddy said:
Cool! We'll be there right after you (flying into SNA on the 11th). Have a great time!

Oh thats awesome! Its your first trip too? (Was looking at your signature!) Have a great time!

Pooh'sBuddy · Jul 9, 2015

Doc Disney said:
Oh thats awesome! Its your first trip too? (Was looking at your signature!) Have a great time!

Yes! We're so pumped, but it feels really weird planning. DL feels SO new - like a total learning curve - but oddly familiar to the extent that I'm not sure we will be prepared. Does that make sense to you?

LAKid53 · Jul 9, 2015

Doc Disney said:
OK so here are my super general plans for Disneyland!
Wednesday August 5th: We fly into Santa Ana around 12:00pm and are planning on taking a cab to Disneyland. I chose Santa Ana because Southwest flies into there and I am always up for two bags fly free haha
When we get to the hotel I am planning on storing our luggage if we can't check in and popping over to Disneyland! I also want to hop over to California Adventure to see where the Fast Pass Machine is for Radiator Springs. I am curious about maybe seeing if we can get a Fast Pass for World of Color that night. I heavily considered doing a Dining Package for it but my mom and I really didn't like the restaurants offered so we aren't going to and just hope for regular Fast Passes. Not sure where/what we will eat. I was looking into the hotel restaurant Steakhouse 55 but we aren't super into fancy dinners and will probably eat a quick service somewhere!

The 6th: Disneyland for the day with reservations at Big Thunder Ranch BBQ for dinner. Joe and Ashley from See Ya Reel Soon ate there and it looked pretty cool

The 7th: California Adventures...trying to decide where to eat but thinking Tortilla Joes..made a reservation in case

The 8th: both parks...thinking about maybe doing a breakfast at Disneyland in the morning...The Plaza Inn has a character breakfast but the only thing is we have such limited time in Disneyland I'm afraid of wasting too much time..I will have to talk it over with my mom. We leave for San Jose at 7:10pm so we actually have a good amount time that day which is nice

In any case..it will be weird having to deal with paper Fast Passes again. I think I may stick to the touring plans from the Unofficial Guide. I never did it for Disney World because we have our own system and a lot more time but due to the limited time we have in Disneyland I think Touring Plans may actually be helpful!

Thanks for reading along everyone!

You are fortunate to choose to fly into John Wayne - much smaller than LAX and only a 25 minute (as long as you aren't arriving during rush hour) drive to Disneyland. Oh, there is a shuttle service from/to the airport that is cheaper than a taxi. Taxi cost me a little over $40 with tip. I think shuttle is $20 person and you can get a voucher for it with your reservation. It's like Magical Express- only you pay - and the shuttle doesn't visit the other resorts.

The Disneyland hotel is at one end of Downtown Disney. You could take the monorail to Disneyland, but it's a 15 minute walk through DTD to bag check and then the Plaza; turn left, Disneyland; turn right, DCA (and DCA's entrance will look familiar). Plus, you don't want to miss the Fossil store in DTD (girl can always use a new bag), La Brea bakery and a much smaller World of Disney.

The fast pass machine for Radiator Springs is at the entrance to Bug's Life. The fast pass machine for World of Color is near the back entrance to DCA from the Grand Californian. I found that you don't need fast passes for most of the rides at Disneyland. I either walked straight on or had no more than a 15 minute wait. Except for the submarine, which was a 25-30 minute wait (and it doesn't have a fast pass; not all rides at Disneyland do). I usually arrived at the parks between 10:00 - 10:30. If I got a fast pass (other than Radiator Springs), the return time was within an hour.

And the vibe is completely different. Most visitors are local and no Brazilian tour groups! I really enjoyed my trip this past April (and Spring in Southern Cal is wonderful). Decided that one of our many trips to WDW will be a trip to DLR.

LAKid53 · Jul 9, 2015

Doc Disney said:
Thank you for all the suggestions! We won't have a car but I think it may be worth taking a cab to San Fran if we have the time to see the museum since we have some free time our last day! Happy to hear about the Disneyland Hotel I had such a hard time deciding between the hotels!!

Looked at the menu definitely looks delicious!! Thanks for the tip!

Thanks for following along! I am very happy my mom understand my addiction otherwise I would not ave any travel partners...although I feel like I am kind of dragging my whole family into the addiction! I did not know about the Star Wars cruises!!! Thats so awesome!!!!

It's a good 90 minute cab ride to SF from San José- and we did it at 2am from the Amtrak station. During the daytime, it will be longer, especially since you will be going to the Presidio. I'd suggest renting a car and driving, but SF can be intimidating for visitors to drive around in. Plus parking is hard to find and very, very expensive.

Mukta · Jul 9, 2015

You have a good plan. Please do read the Unofficial Guide and use their touring plans. You will get so much more done that way.

On the 5th, you are not likely to get a FP for Radiator Springs or WoC. I'm not a fan of the new show, but if you want to see all of the nighttime shows, you are better off seeing it on the 7th when you arrive at rope drop. See Fantasmic! on the 5th instead. That dining package is way cheaper.

The 6th looks good. I like the BBQ place, but I always eat too much there. Get a spot in front of the castle for fireworks no later than 7:50 pm. From there move to the IASW area to see the 11 pm night time parade.

I wouldn't leave DCA on the 7th to eat. There are lots of good QS places on the boardwalk area.

If you want to do a character meal, go for it. Hopefully yuo will already have done most of the must dos by then.

Let me know if i can help in any way!

Doc Disney · Jul 9, 2015

Pooh'sBuddy said:
Yes! We're so pumped, but it feels really weird planning. DL feels SO new - like a total learning curve - but oddly familiar to the extent that I'm not sure we will be prepared. Does that make sense to you?

I know EXACTLY what you mean! I also feel like so much less planning goes into DL without the Fast Passes and 180 day reservations...I feel like I'm slacking haha

Doc Disney · Jul 9, 2015

LAKid53 said:
You are fortunate to choose to fly into John Wayne - much smaller than LAX and only a 25 minute (as long as you aren't arriving during rush hour) drive to Disneyland. Oh, there is a shuttle service from/to the airport that is cheaper than a taxi. Taxi cost me a little over $40 with tip. I think shuttle is $20 person and you can get a voucher for it with your reservation. It's like Magical Express- only you pay - and the shuttle doesn't visit the other resorts.
The Disneyland hotel is at one end of Downtown Disney. You could take the monorail to Disneyland, but it's a 15 minute walk through DTD to bag check and then the Plaza; turn left, Disneyland; turn right, DCA (and DCA's entrance will look familiar). Plus, you don't want to miss the Fossil store in DTD (girl can always use a new bag), La Brea bakery and a much smaller World of Disney.
The fast pass machine for Radiator Springs is at the entrance to Bug's Life. The fast pass machine for World of Color is near the back entrance to DCA from the Grand Californian. I found that you don't need fast passes for most of the rides at Disneyland. I either walked straight on or had no more than a 15 minute wait. Except for the submarine, which was a 25-30 minute wait (and it doesn't have a fast pass; not all rides at Disneyland do). I usually arrived at the parks between 10:00 - 10:30. If I got a fast pass (other than Radiator Springs), the return time was within an hour.
And the vibe is completely different. Most visitors are local and no Brazilian tour groups! I really enjoyed my trip this past April (and Spring in Southern Cal is wonderful). Decided that one of our many trips to WDW will be a trip to DLR.

WOW!!! Great tips thank you so much!! We are looking into the shuttle from the airport but it looks like they only leave at certain times of the day so I will have to read more about it! I knew I did not want to fly into LAX haha I knew that airport would have been too overwhelming. We will definitely plan on walking to Disneyland the way you suggested...we are walkers anyway thanks to Disney World so I would rather walk anyway. I COULD always use a new bag haha Thanks for the heads up about the FP machine!

LAKid53 said:
It's a good 90 minute cab ride to SF from San José- and we did it at 2am from the Amtrak station. During the daytime, it will be longer, especially since you will be going to the Presidio. I'd suggest renting a car and driving, but SF can be intimidating for visitors to drive around in. Plus parking is hard to find and very, very expensive.

Oh wow really? Eek. One of my friends will actually be in town too and they will have a car so maybe we can hitch a ride with them to San Fran and save us some time...
Oh we will stay in San Jose haha

Doc Disney · Jul 9, 2015

Mukta said:
You have a good plan. Please do read the Unofficial Guide and use their touring plans. You will get so much more done that way.
On the 5th, you are not likely to get a FP for Radiator Springs or WoC. I'm not a fan of the new show, but if you want to see all of the nighttime shows, you are better off seeing it on the 7th when you arrive at rope drop. See Fantasmic! on the 5th instead. That dining package is way cheaper.
The 6th looks good. I like the BBQ place, but I always eat too much there. Get a spot in front of the castle for fireworks no later than 7:50 pm. From there move to the IASW area to see the 11 pm night time parade.
I wouldn't leave DCA on the 7th to eat. There are lots of good QS places on the boardwalk area.
If you want to do a character meal, go for it. Hopefully yuo will already have done most of the must dos by then.
Let me know if i can help in any way!

Ahh thanks so much! Yea I already read Unofficial Guide cover to cover and already informed my mom we WILL be doing the Touring Plans

on the 5th I was assuming we were getting WOC Fast Passes with the dining...hate to say it but we are not Fantasmic people so we don't plan on seeing that one
Yea, we aren't too committed to the Tortilla Joes reservation so we will see how we feel that day

Mukta · Jul 9, 2015

DL's Fantasmic! is way better than WDW's. I would consider it if I were you.

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