Starting to dance....Pre Trip Plan

With only 11 days to go, I'm starting to really get excited and Mom has been dancing every morning for about a week now. Of course I'm also concerned about getting everything in that I want to do. Since this is my first "real" trip to Disneyland, I would love to know if my planning sounds good.

Ok, so here we go… We are leaving at 3:30am on Friday, May 11 to catch the train to the airport so we can fly to our first stop: Las Vegas. We are spending 2 nights in Las Vegas. Then Sunday, May 13th (Mother’s Day) we have a flight that arrives at SNA about 10:30 am. We have Super Shuttle picking us up to transport us to the Disneyland Hotel. I’m hoping that we will be at the hotel now later than 12 noon. If someone sees were this may be incorrect please correct me so that I can make the adjustments. So we check in and head to DCA. We will walk threw DTD and stop at the WTC to pick up my Disney Rewards Visa book bag. Then to the park.

Once at DCA we plan on seeing the following (in order of importance)….Aladdin , Soarin’ Over California, Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue, Sun Wheel, Disney Animation, Turtle Talk with Crush, Mulholland Madness, The Bakery Tour and Mission Tortilla Factory. We have a 2:30 lunch ADR at Ariel’s Grotto. I am a character stalker so there will be stops for character photos and for them to sign my new book bag. And finally it is extremely important to me to see the Disney Electric Parade at 8:45pm. After the parade we plan on running over to DL to see the Remember-Dreams Come True" Fireworks at 9:25 pm. Then maybe hit a few rides on the other list before we head back to the hotel for the night.

Early to rise on Monday, May 14th. The park opens at 9am. We plan on seeing the following (in order of importance)…Pirates of the Caribbean, Matterhorn Bobsleds, Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin, Enchanted Tiki Room, Buzz Lightyear Asto Blasters, Pinocchio’s Daring Journey, Storybook Land Canal Boats, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, Alice in Wonderland, Casey Jr. Circus Train, Innoventions, Jungle Cruise, Indiana Jones Adventure, Haunted Mansion, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years, The Disney Gallery, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, Dumbo the Flying Elephants, “it’s a small world”, Peter Pan’s Flight, Mickey & Minnie’s House and Chip N Dale Tree house. Again with the character stalking for photos and autographs. The Parade of Dreams at 7 pm. The park closes at 8pm. Some snacking threw out the day to hold us over till dinner at the HOB in DTD which won’t be till late (so I hope it is still open) because we want to do any last minute shopping at the WOD which closes at 10pm before we eat and then head back to the hotel. I’m not sure what order we are doing any of the attractions in Disneyland and I haven’t a clue as to what the best order would be, I just want to get them all in and shop and snack too.

Then Tuesday, May 15th we have a 7am breakfast at Goofy’s Kitchen. Then off to the airport. We have to be there by 10:30am for our 12:30pm flight home so I think we will be leaving around 9:45am ish. I wish I could have afforded both money and vacation time wise to stay an extra day but it just wasn’t possible. And unless mom or I hit big in Las Vegas this is the plan. We aren’t huge ride people and mom doesn’t do spinning very well and I will be riding the coasters alone. She likes the dark rides because they are gentle but she wants to do Soarin. The other thing I’m a little concerned about the 3 hour time difference. We are east coast so the body and the clock aren’t going to match. I don’t want to be awake at 4am and tired out by 8pm. I’m hoping that my excitement will keep us going.

So what do you think? Do you veterans think that we can get it all in? Please feel free to make any suggestions or recommendations or alterations to the plan. Thanks for all of your help.

Oh, I'm so excited for you! You and your mom are going to have so much fun! Just a couple of comments for you....First of all, you should be at your hotel way before noon. It's only a 15-20 minute ride from the airport to your hotel. Of course you never know if they're going to make several stops before your hotel but even so, you should be there before noon.

Next, the park is more than likely going to be REALLY busy on Mother's Day! It's probably good that you're planning on doing DCA on that day. Just so you know, you won't be the only one trying to catch the fireworks after the Electical Parade. Be prepared for hords of people with the same idea. We've done this before. Make sure you sit as close to the entrance/exit of DCA as possible when watching the parade. Then just as the last float comes by, make a bee line for the gates! You won't get a prime spot up next to the castle but try to get as close as you can for the best viewing.

Take advatage of the fastpass system!!! If you get to Disneyland as soon as it opens, grab a fastpass then hit all the Fantasyland rides. You should be able to go from ride to ride without any lines. If you wait until later in the day you'll find yourself in long lines for these rides...especially for Peter Pan!

ToonTown opens about an hour later than the rest of the park. Roger Rabbit has a fastpass that is not connected to the rest of the system so you can have a fastpass for that ride and another ride at the same time.


Don't be in such a hurry....take time to notice the little things that make Disneyland so special! Well, those are my tips! I'm sure others here will have many more great suggestions for you too! Have fun!

What a great plan! That is a lot to squeeze into one day but I do think that it is doable. On your DL day, take the monorail 1st thing in the morning. In my experience, the lines are shorter to go through security and ticket check here than they are at the main gates. Do Peter Pan and Storybook Canal boats first. DH and I have been lucky enough to have private boats this way and it tends to be a very slow moving line later in the day.

My only warning about DCA is to watch out for the Sun Wheel. In my opinion the swinging gondolas are by far the scariest ride in either park. I love thrill rides, but this really scares the pants off me!

I would probably make a reservation for HOB since you plan on going soon after the park closes. While visiting in January, on weekdays, we had problems getting into the DTD restaurants soon after the park closed.

My last bit of advice is that snacks and drinks are allowed in the Tiki Room. It is a great way to take a break, enjoy a show and have a bite to eat!

You may want to grab a Soarin' Fastpass first thing upon entering DCA. That line can get long and Fastpasses go quickly. This attraction is close enough to the front gate that you will not waste any time by heading there, getting the FP, then going on to other attractions until your ride time comes up.

As others have said, the Fantasyland lines only get longer as the day goes on. Hit those rides first. Fantasyland can become a congested mess later in the day and in the evening.

Have a great time and enjoy your stay! :balloon: