Brand new here, where to start?

[mom2buzzandbelle]

Hi guys. We're planning a trip to Disneyland in CA in May. But I have to admit that I don't have a clue where to start! So tell me what we need to do please.

 

[mom2buzzandbelle]

Guess I could give more information. I was in the middle of other things when I posted.

We have 2 kids, 3 and 4 yrs old. We'll be driving from the midwest to get there. We have a budget of around $1500-$2000, so it needs to be a fairly frugal trip. I'm sure we'll be staying in a hotel off the Disney property. (Any suggestions?)

So what things would you highly reccomend we do while there? Anything you feel is a waste? How many days should we plan on visiting the theme park? And what other parks would you reccomend?

 

[Blackunicorn]

Well, first and foremost, read the posts that interest you on this board. Most likely, they'll answer a lot of questions and help you figure out what other questions you might have.

As far as hotels go, the Candy Cane Inn and the Howard Johnson's are the two hotels that I see mentioned most often when asked for recommendations. The Howard Johnson's is most often mentioned when people ask for high quality/low cost, and is within walking distance of the main gate.

With small children, you'll get the standard small children warning: Head to Fantasyland first thing in the morning, because it gets very busy very quickly. The first ride of the day should probably be Dumbo, because it holds a small number of riders and is slow to load/unload, so the line builds up very quickly. Peter Pan and Storybookland Canal boats are also rides where the line builds up quickly. Disneyland can be very overwhelming for small children, so make sure that your plan is flexible enough to allow them rest if they need it.

It might be worth it to look at a guide to Disneyland. If you don't want to buy one, you can probably check out previous year's copies from your library. If you don't have an idea of what guide to get, you can do a search at amazon for "disney" and "guide" and it will give you a whole slew. I personally like The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland and Southern California with Kids. These guidebooks also usually provide a sample itinerary which can give you an idea of what rides to ride at what time of day, and I know that the Unoffical Guide has an itinerary made up specifically for families with small children. If you get an older guide, the information won't be up-to-date, but much of the information in the guides stay the same from year to year with very small changes, and you can probably find out a lot about what's going on for the 50th on this board. Also, the Unofficial Guide lists the rides on a table that also lists things like height requirements and about what age would enjoy the ride, which I found VERY helpful when we went with our then-3-yo DD.

If you buy a package with a Good Neighbor Hotel, you can get a dining plan which may save some money. There's a good thread on the dining plans here . Buy your tickets in advance to save a little bit of money over the gate price. It may be worth it for someone in your party to get an annual pass, which will give you 10% off at some of the restaurants and shops.

Good luck, have fun!

 

[funnygarcia]

Make a decision on hotel soon! Hojo's was over 50 % occupied when I reserved in January for May 14th - 20th. I now checked the rates via laughingplace web site discount link and all they have left is Home Office Room at $109 a night ( it was $75.65 back in January for same dates).

There's lots of stuff to read on message boards here and other sites like laughingplace.com
mousesavers.com
mouseinfo.com
and Disney's own web site to get an idea of what the park is like.

The first year we went we had no clue - bought pkg deal thru Disney web site and just picked a hotel without thought of location- but still had fun and came back to "do it better" the next year

Now we feel like old pros at DL travel planning and hope to tackle WDW in a few years

 

[AFMom]

I know where you're coming from on the budget thing! We're planning a trip for 14! We actually decided to stay at the Super 8 on Disneyland Dr - for the last week of April we're getting it for $45 a night. It's clean, has a pool, and you walk to the Pinochio parking garage and take the parking tram to the entrances. Not a lot of Disney Magic in the hotel! But it's cheap! I've also seen realy good rates at the Castle Inn right across the street from the entrance, but I don't know what reviews it gets. Candy Cane Inn is more expensive, but they are a quick walk to the parks (also have their OWN free shuttle), have a nice pool, nice sized rooms, and a wonderful free breakfast every morning.
Buy tickets in advance from Ares Travel or getawaytoday.com - I don't know what the tickets will be going for 5/01 on, but keep in mind you're coming the first month of the 50th anniversary party! Hotels and tickets are going UP.
It will be BUSY so if you can plan 4 park days, you'll be able to see everything. Don't miss Fantasmic(it's worth the ticket price alone!). The Electric Parade is a must see. Aladdin and Snow White are also great. Do Fantasyland first thing in the morning (Peter Pan and Dumbo First!!!!) or you'll wait forever to ride them.
Other parks? WHat other parks? (hehehehehehehe ) Well - Universal is neat - but you're kids may be too young to appreciate it, and a lot of the rides are a bit too old for them. You may want to take a day and just see other SO Cal sights, beaches, etc. Or just sleep in and go to the pool!
Hope this helped!

 

[LucyKate]

Another vote for the Unofficial Guide to Disneyland which also includes reviews of Universal studios. Definitely get this guide (have a look on ebay if you can't afford a new one) it will save you a lot of money and a lot of hassle.

But, as mentioned, Universal sSudios is probably not worth it as so many of the rides have restrictions which would stop your kids riding.

Also another vote for the Howard Johnson which we loved - but get in quick. It also has a shop which sells things like milk, cereal, bread etc so you can cut costs by not having to buy breakfast each day and make your own lunches.

To avoid queues head straight for Dumbo and Peter Pan, as these had the biggest queue of the kids rides.

And some rides which sound too scary for kids, such as Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean are actually not scary at all and kids will love them.

Make use of the kid swap, where you queue together on adult rides, tell the cast member you are doing a kid swap, one goes on the ride, the other waits with the kids, then you do a handover - this way you only queue once, and together, and still get to ride the big rides.

 

[gurleym]

We went to Disneyland in June of 04. We had a great time. We stayed at a Best Western several miles away. It said it was only supposed to be about 5 minutes away it took about 20 to get there everyday. So try and locate your hotel before you book on a map and remember traffic it is awful around there. We saw the Tropicana I believe that was the name I read about it on a websight. Nothing spectacular but it looked clean probably would stay there next time. It was right across from the entrance also where you go to get on the trams when leaving the park. There is also a McDonald's there this will save you some money if you only want a burger. It is cheaper than buying the ones in the park which are the same thing.

Take advantage of the baby swap and fastpass especially for the Indiana Jones ride a must do for the adults. Your kids will love the Playhouse Disney it is great for kids. Aladdin is also great get there a little early to save a place in line to get a good seat.

We loved Disneyland even though it is smaller than the Magic Kingdom we had a great time. You will have a great time.

 

[dsnylndmom]

Castle Inn is not as close to the entrance as they advertise! And we had a horrible stay there, room conditions horrible and dirty and customer service just bad bad bad.

If Hojo's is unavailable try
Best Western Park Place Inn, it's THE closest offsite hotel and you get a choice of basic continental breakfast or strawberry pancakes. They have basic rooms and mini suites. Rooms are very well kept and the service is very good, they have a small pool but a large hot tub.

Also decent and RIGHT across the street are
Tropicana, very basic but very clean and good service decent continental breakfast too.

Carousal Inn we had an "eh okay" stay there 6 years ago but I've heard it's gotten much much better.

Park Inn-I haven't stayed at this one yet(I will in July!!!) but it gets wonderful reviews. It'll will be the most expensive of the four.

All 4 places have mini fridges and microwaves, so you can bring snacks, juices water etc from home for the room.

Stay away from Del Sol, Castle Inn & Suites & Park Vue all of which have been deemed "roach motels" at one point or another. Also, the Desert Inn & Suites has reallllly gone downhill in the last couple of years.

With your kids's ages I would say don't waste time on Universal Studios. We love Knott's, but it's for nostaligic reasons. I'd say spend the time at DLR. especially since May will be so busy.

As Blackunicorn suggested ride the fantasyland rides first thing in the mornins! FIRST THING And take full advantage of baby swap and fastpass!! Oh and Aladdin's Oasis should be open again(not the Aladdin show in DCA)it's in between the TIki Room and Jungle Cruise and it just a little show geared for kids, most kids LOVE this little show. Make sure and don't miss Fantasmic! even though the wait for a seat will be looong, it's worth it! And for the Electrical Parade the more you cheer and yell the more of a chance the characters will come over to you!

If your 4 year old is fearless and likes roller coasters we did our kids by this list
Go Coaster
Big Thunder
Matterhorn
Splash
Space Mountain

Be aware that the IHOP and Denny's across the street are overpriced and for the prices you'd pay there you can eat in the parks. Mimi's across the street is really good though.

In the park we've found the best deals to be
Rancho Del Zocalo(frontierland)
Plaza Inn(main street)
Redd Rockets(tomorrowland)

Also, in the Grand Californian Hotel there is White Water Snacks(easy to go there through the DCA/GCH entrance/exit. They have really good tasty food with GREAT prices!!

If you have AAA get a list of places that accept AAA to get discounts. I know that Goofy's Kitchen, Blue Bayou, Rancho and some other restaurants offer a AAA discount.


have a wonderful trip!!

 

[CaliforniaDreamer]

Disneylandmom, I wish it were true! I looked on the AAA site and they don't list the Blue Bayou for discounts. Could that be an oversite?

Am headed to DL tomorrow, last minute b-day trip sidelined last week by DH's appendicitus <sp?>. It looks like it closes at 8, no fireworks and is there no Aladdin show now? Is there any don't-miss shows for two adults? My friend has never been to DL (of any kind)!

I was going to WDW last year but a major illness sidelined me then. Had it all planned out <groan>. So this will be special.

 

[skipper2]

We used the Unofficial Guide to Disneyland for our trip this year, and it was a timesaver. It's hard to see everything in one day, and there were several rides closed for refurbishing, so I'm glad we had a loose plan going in. We also ate lunch at the Blue Bayou, and while it was good, the portions were HUGE, and it took up a chunk of time. The next time we go back we'll eat something smaller for lunch and save Blue Bayou for desserts (yum!) My DS's only regret was that Buzz wasn't open (his favorite ride of all time).