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Thread: How does Grad Night affect the regular nightly schedule?

  1. #1

    How does Grad Night affect the regular nightly schedule?

    Hi!

    I am planning my trip this year for June 18-21 and just realized 3 out of the 4 days are Grad Nights. How do these nights affect the schedule? Does the Park close early to the public? Do they cut shows/fireworks? Are the Parks filled with high school seniors?
    I have always visited in the spring in the past, this will be my first summer trip and I am terrified of overcrowding/heat and now I'm really concerned about what the nightly schedule will be like with Grad Nights happening. Any advice would be greatly appreciated :-D

    Thanks,
    Kimbopotamus


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  3. #2

    The grads are now given parkhoppers for the whole day. They are supposed to arrive as a whole school group, but could arrive any time during the day. That late in the year, many schools will already be out, so they could arrive quite early. This may mean additional crowding during the day. According to Dinsey's website DCA will close in the evening for an all night dance party. This should not affect Disneyland's hours, but could impact crowding at Disneyland during the night as all of the regular guests will be "kicked" out of DCA around eight. I think they will show World of Color to day guests at 8:15, and then close the park. But that is a guess.


  4. #3
    Registered User ogold72's Avatar
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    I think you might get a 6 pm parade but thats it for DLR.

    As far as the daytime goes - I personally love Grad Nights. The parks are generally super light because most locals dont want to go since the park closes to them early and dont want to be around the Grads. For me who comes in for 4-5 days at a time, I get more rides in on the day of a Grad Night than on regular days. Since I have little ones we usually dont shut the park down anyhow so we find something to do like go to Goofys Kitchen or DTD for a nice dinner somewhere and then have an earlier night and hit the parks fresh the next morning.

    Heading to DLR July '15!

  5. #4
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    Last May we went on a Friday night grad night. We were in Disneyland which was closing at 11. We didn't get into the park until around 9, and at that point most of the guests were graduating seniors. We didn't have any problems with at all. In fact many of the teens were very friendly and nice to my little kiddos while we waited in line. The park had normal Friday night crowds. Before the 11:00 closing we were allowed to get in line, and when we finished the ride it was about 11:20, and we just had to exit the park immediately. It really didn't impact us much.

    Our First WDW trip is coming up... March 2016!
    Staying 10 nights at Wyndham Bonnet Creek, and 4 nights at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort!
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  6. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by ogold72 View Post
    I think you might get a 6 pm parade but thats it for DLR.
    Does this mean that for Grad Nights, they do not usually offer Fireworks and/or Fantasmic! to the general public?

  7. #6
    Registered User ogold72's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    Does this mean that for Grad Nights, they do not usually offer Fireworks and/or Fantasmic! to the general public?
    I thought that all park guests that werent part of Grad Night had to leave by 7, but I may be off on that. Its been a few years since I was there on a Grad night. Ill ask some of the other MPrs to chime in. wwomant seems to have had a different experience.
    Heading to DLR July '15!

  8. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by ogold72 View Post
    I thought that all park guests that werent part of Grad Night had to leave by 7, but I may be off on that. Its been a few years since I was there on a Grad night. Ill ask some of the other MPrs to chime in. wwomant seems to have had a different experience.
    That's the old grad night system. And now they are in DCA this year. So DCA will close a little early and DL will have regular hours and entertainment.

  9. #8
    Registered User ogold72's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 3Princesses1Prince View Post
    That's the old grad night system. And now they are in DCA this year. So DCA will close a little early and DL will have regular hours and entertainment.
    Thanks 3P1P, I thought I had lost my mind for a second there. No, just out of touch (tear) with the current routines at DLR. A sad casualty of moving out of driving distance from the park.
    Heading to DLR July '15!

  10. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by 3Princesses1Prince View Post
    That's the old grad night system. And now they are in DCA this year. So DCA will close a little early and DL will have regular hours and entertainment.
    I am crossing my fingers that this is the exact case!!! I can miss World of Color if I have to, but Fantasmic! is my one if-it's-not-showing-I'm-not-going thing. Plus, I am taking my 50+ year old mother in law for her very first Disneyland experience and I want her to have the chance to at least see Fantasmic! and hopefully the fireworks too :-D.

    Thanks all for the info! I'll keep my itinerary the same and perhaps just add on Saturday if necessary.

  11. #10
    It was a good day! Malcon10t's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    Does this mean that for Grad Nights, they do not usually offer Fireworks and/or Fantasmic! to the general public?
    Most "Grad Nites" are during the week (usually Wed or Thurs nights) and fireworks/Fantasmic! are usually shown on Fri-Sun in May and sometimes early June.
    Planning 3 trips at once...

  12. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcon10t View Post
    Most "Grad Nites" are during the week (usually Wed or Thurs nights) and fireworks/Fantasmic! are usually shown on Fri-Sun in May and sometimes early June.
    It says in MousePlanet's Resort Events section that this year's Grad Nites will be on Wed, Thurs, and Fri (June 19, 20, 21). I am assuming since that's mid/end of June, they would offer fireworks and/or Fantasmic! at least Thurs-Sun. My hope was to see Fantasmic! Thurs and the Fireworks Fri. I guess I'll just have to wait until DL's calendar goes up to know for sure and can always do Thurs-Sun if I have to :-)

  13. #12
    It was a good day! Malcon10t's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    It says in MousePlanet's Resort Events section that this year's Grad Nites will be on Wed, Thurs, and Fri (June 19, 20, 21). I am assuming since that's mid/end of June, they would offer fireworks and/or Fantasmic! at least Thurs-Sun. My hope was to see Fantasmic! Thurs and the Fireworks Fri. I guess I'll just have to wait until DL's calendar goes up to know for sure and can always do Thurs-Sun if I have to :-)
    By then, there should be fireworks and Fantasmic! each night.
    Planning 3 trips at once...

  14. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    It says in MousePlanet's Resort Events section that this year's Grad Nites will be on Wed, Thurs, and Fri (June 19, 20, 21). I am assuming since that's mid/end of June, they would offer fireworks and/or Fantasmic! at least Thurs-Sun. My hope was to see Fantasmic! Thurs and the Fireworks Fri. I guess I'll just have to wait until DL's calendar goes up to know for sure and can always do Thurs-Sun if I have to :-)
    If you see the first Fantasmic you can stay where you are to watch the fireworks. That is what we did last June.

  15. #14

    We were there last year for the first week of June when several grad nights were going on. Grads mostly started arriving around noon so the morning was really light. By around 3pm to 5pm the park was packed with grads. They acted like typical teenagers. Most were just fine, but there was a lot of more language then I have ever heard at Disneyland (my kids were 4 and 6). Since my kids are little we left the park about 6pm each day so it was no problem for us. I did go back one night (just adults) and it was definitely full of teenagers, but there were no issues that I saw.


  16. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by bumblebeeonarose View Post
    If you see the first Fantasmic you can stay where you are to watch the fireworks. That is what we did last June.
    We actually tried that last April and something about the transition of people (those getting up to leave the Rivers area and those coming in to see the next F! showing) made it very distracting. We sat for about 3 minutes before deciding we'd just watch the fireworks the next night in front of the castle. We went on Splash three times in a row and 'watched' the fireworks from there and THAT is a terriific view!

  17. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcon10t View Post
    By then, there should be fireworks and Fantasmic! each night.
    Yay!! Crossing my fingers and toes and eyeballs that they will be going on and we won't be kicked out early for the Grads.

  18. #17
    Registered User ogold72's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    We actually tried that last April and something about the transition of people (those getting up to leave the Rivers area and those coming in to see the next F! showing) made it very distracting. We sat for about 3 minutes before deciding we'd just watch the fireworks the next night in front of the castle. We went on Splash three times in a row and 'watched' the fireworks from there and THAT is a terriific view!
    Spring for the Premium Seating and its not distracting at all. But the Fireworks arent the same as when you are in front of the Castle
    Heading to DLR July '15!

  19. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by kimbopotamus View Post
    Yay!! Crossing my fingers and toes and eyeballs that they will be going on and we won't be kicked out early for the Grads.
    The Grads have their late night event at DCA so there's no reason to kick anyone out of DL early.

  20. #19

    I was wondering about this as well, as we are there for 3 Grad nights.


  21. #20
    Lost boys target practice Wendy Bird's Avatar
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    Woohoo, first trip in almost 2 years!
    I will be going the week of May 13... Friday will have Fantasmic(its a must), and I have to check out the mad T party.
    should the crowds be less at Disneyland with grad night at Cal Adventures?

    Grand Californian Concierge November 29 - December 2, 2007
    Fort Wilderness Cabins September 8-16 2007

  22. #21

    Last year was the first year they offered the all-day park hopper, and the after hours portion was at Disneyland, because of the DCA construction, so it's hard to gauge crowds. But the after hours party at DCA doesn't start until 10pm or 11pm, so that's about the time people start leaving for the night anyway. It's hard to say whether people will congregate early at DL or whether the crowds will be mostly grads who will leave DL early to flock to DCA. If it were me, and I got to the parks some time after school, I'd spend as much time in DL as possible knowing I had the extra hours in DCA. But then again, I'm not a high school senior, nor do I want to try too hard to think like one


  23. #22
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    If the DLR and DCA park hours are listed as midnight and/or 10:00 p.m. on the Disneyland website for grad nights, then isn't that truly the case? If either park were to close early because of grad night, wouldn't that earlier time be posted on the Disneyland website? We were there on grad night one year, and didn't even notice it until much later into the evening when we realized that almost everyone on the rides was under the age of 20. It was a fun group, and the kids were nice and friendly and patient.


  24. #23
    Lost boys target practice Wendy Bird's Avatar
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    We are getting close to the start of grad night for May
    May 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 29, 30, 31

    will someone post their experience next week

    Grand Californian Concierge November 29 - December 2, 2007
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  25. #24
    Lost boys target practice Wendy Bird's Avatar
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    how were the crowds today/tonight???

    Grand Californian Concierge November 29 - December 2, 2007
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  26. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by Wendy Bird View Post
    how were the crowds today/tonight???
    The grads were hardly noticeable. In fact, had I not walked across the M & F's 1st level outdoor parking and noticed the several school buses there, I wouldn't have thought to inquire if it was a grad night. I probably would've not known.

    Interestingly, I saw more non-high school senior aged school groups (as in promoting 5th/6th or 8th graders) at the resort than anything else. I thought "what the heck? It's GRAD night, not promotion night!" But some of those younger groups were probably day guests and not in on the all nighter. Unless they were. What do I know?

    Crowds were pretty sparse IMO. We did about 10 rides in DCA and Animation Academy plus a parade plus a relaxing dinner @ Golden Horseshoe and a ride in Disneyland. Average wait time was less than 5 minutes. Although we didn't ride it, PotC was deserted.

    That said, I wouldn't read too much into tonight. From what I recall, the grad nights increase in attendance as we get closer to and then into June. Two weeks from now I'd expect lots o' grads.
    At the end of the night there was only a small handful of school busses in the parking lot.
    Your attention, please. The Disneyland Limited now leaving for a grand circle tour of the Magic Kingdom. Aboaaard!

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