Can someone help a "newbie"?

[Traveling Texan]

Our family and another are planning on attending DL on Tuesday, Jan. 3.

All along, we have planned on being there when the gates open, which is 9:00 a.m., I believe. Is there any need to get there earlier than that?

Also.....based on our kids ages (ranging from 7 to 12) we were planning on staying in the Disneyland Park exclusively.......is that solid planning, or should we plan on "Parkhopping" between DL and CA?

Any advice (whether solicited or not) is welcomed.

[MammaSilva]

Jan 3rd, is gona be one of the crowded days, if the current calendar says the gates open at 9am plan to be at the gates by 8am, seriously, the faster you get thru the gate the better your day will be. Stop by the bakery on the way in and grab coffee/drinks and a snack to munch while you wait and take pictures!

[Susan L]

I would arrive early just incase.

If you are only doing one day I would do Disneyland only.

Do Fantasyland and Toontown first before noon. Get fastpass for the E ticket rides. Have a great time.

[ameryth74]

Have you ever been to Disneyland before? If not, you might want to stay just in that park and make the most of it... however, if its really busy, I love having the option of hopping over to DCA for a somewhat calmer atmosphere. Plus, there are a lot of good rides there the 7-12 year olds might enjoy. But it costs more for a one-day park hopper... so there are a lot of things to take into consideration. :)

[Traveling Texan]

Y'all are great. Keep the suggestions coming.

The kids have been to DW before, but none of us has been to DL.

Our bodies will still be on Central Time, so 8 am will feel like 10 am.....so we should be fine.

[disneyperson]

If you are only there for one day, I woudn't waste time park hopping. If you have an extra day,the kids might like DCA. I'd decide ahead of time which ride your family wants to fastpass first and do it right away. Space Mountain will probably run out of fast passes early in the day. Keep track of when you can get a new fastpass, you can get one every two hours. You might want to consider going to Fantasyland first thing in the morning so your kids can ride those before the lines get too awful. I hope you have a lovely time.

[tod]

Plan ahead. Have some idea of where you are going and what you want to do.
Be ready to improvise. Nobody plans to watch costume characters for half an hour or listen to the band or the Dapper Dans for a whole set. But be ready to do that.
Lower your expectations. You will NOT be able to do everything, and you may well miss some of the things you wanted to do. You'll still do plenty, and can have a very good time.
Drink in the details. Part of what makes Disneyland magic are the tiny details. For example: There are 50 50th-anniversary logos scattered around the Park. When the Christmas tree went up, with a 50 logo on top, another one went down. So there are still 50 of them.


--t

[TahoeBob]

Jan 3rd, is gona be one of the crowded days,

Don't most schools start classes again the 3rd, I know the college I work at does.

[DisneyLynn]

Don't most schools start classes again the 3rd, I know the college I work at does.

In S. Calif. it's about 1/2 and 1/2 going back that day. The town I live in (about an hour from DL) doesn't go back until the following Monday, Jan. 9. My daughter's preschool goes back the 4th. I know quite a few schools who now take 3 weeks vacation in Dec. When I was in college, we always got 5 weeks off and started back up around the last week of Jan, I used to love to go to DL around the middle of January.

[raych30]

My kiddos go back Jan 9th. We're planning on a Jan 4th one day trip, and I'm gearing myself for the crowds, lol. My kids have been off going on three weeks, now...I'm ready for them to return :p

Cheers,
Rachel

[evrythngwmn]

[LIST]
Plan ahead. Have some idea of where you are going and what you want to do.

--t

I think this is a definite must. Also, if you can familiarize yourself with the layout of the park. I helped one poor woman tonight who'd waded through the crowds at fireworks time. She'd just come from the West side of the park and ended up encountering me at Main St. Photo looking for Pirates only to find out it was back where she just came from.

[RStar]

Also, to get to the gate at 8, you'll need to be at the parking lot/structure about 30-45 min before that. Parking can take a while if the park is busy.

However, I don't think the 3rd is as bad as the previous two days.

plan your first ride to be the big E Ticket you all want to see. If you get there early enough, you'll have no wait to get on it. Don't run, but briskly walk directly to it, and know how to get there. Then, as the crowds build but still are minimal, plan the next one, and pick up a fastpass for one on the way.

If you want to see the fireworks, plan to pick your spot an hour ahead of time. Have a late lunch so you aren't dining the same time as everyone else, and have dinner while waiting for the fireworks. Send one of your party out for the food or pick it up on the way, and eating helps kill the wait time.

Have fun!

~Bob