So for those of you who drove on the empty freeways and got there when it opened at 6:30---how was Disneyland?
Was the first hour crowded?
Were the cast members yawning?
Was it absolutely jammed in the afternoon?
How did smoothly was the huge crowd cleared out at 4? (Actually about 3 hours after I wrote this?)
So for those of you who drove on the empty freeways and got there when it opened at 6:30 on Sunday, April 22---how was Disneyland?
Was the first hour crowded?
Were the cast members yawning?
Was it absolutely jammed in the afternoon?
How did smoothly was the huge crowd cleared out at 4? (Actually about 3 hours after I wrote this?)
It was a little more crowded than I expected, but still very light. We walked in the gate around 6:35. First stop Peter Pan - 10 minute wait. Then Dumbo - no wait. Then Casey Jr. - wait for next train. Then Storybook - no wait. Then Teacups - no wait. Then we had to leave for a prior engagement. We waited about 5 minutes for the Omnibus, but it was a no show (it was running, just waiting at the front a long time). So instead we ended being the only passengers on the Horseless Carriage back to the front. We were the only people on the tram heading back to the parking lot.
It was really fun. The CMs were very pleasant, just making light conversation with guests about how early it was. No CMs seemed exceptionally tired. I saw several children in full on pajamas. That was cute. I hoped their early morning DL trip was a surprise. "Wake up kids - we're going to Disneyland!"
We left around 8:00 so I don't know how it was in the afternoon. The morning was super fun. I wish we could have stayed longer.
Thanks, Carolyn! If they ever do that again on a day my AP lets me in I hope I can go.Originally Posted by carolyn
Sunday, April 22nd
Got there at 6:45, tram crowd was light. By 9:30am we had ridden Indiana Jones, POTC, HM, BTMRR, Buzz Lightyear, and Star Tours. Nothing more than a 10 minute wait.
All cast members were quite chipper!
Headed over to Autopia (about a 15-20 minute wait) then we had a leisurely breakfast at the Tomorrowland Terrace.
By 10:30 the crowd was quite a bit bigger. We got to ride in the Lily Belle Rail Road car, it was my first time. I took quite a few pictures and may try to post them later.
Next we headed over to CA Adventure. Before noon the wait for Soarin' was already about an hour. Same for CA Screamin' so we did the single rider thing (even for that there were about 10 people ahead of us).
Before 1pm CA Adventure was starting to look like a zoo (everyone using the last available weekend of their 2fer tickets). We got out of there then. We couldn't imagine what it would be like come 4pm!
How did you hear about the early opening?
...and something I forgot, dust. Dust? Yep, just a little bit of pixie dust.
From Darkbeer on Mouseplanet, of course.
It was posted on the Disneyland Web site, posted by cabozone here on MousePad in January, and it has also been posted in every one of the weekly Disneyland Park Updates since it was first announced.
AVP
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Thanks. I followed the link and then I remembered reading about it. Sounds like it was a fun morning, wish I could have been there. If you snooze you lose!
...and something I forgot, dust. Dust? Yep, just a little bit of pixie dust.
Well, assuming that Mickey & Friends would open at 5:30 (1 hour before park opening) we arrived to find ourselves the fourth car in line at a closed gate. M & F opened at 6 a.m. Oh well, at least we got up front parking!
We were on the first tram and had to wait several minutes for the tram to fill up before departing. No big deal. When we finally got to the main gate around 6:15, all the lines were about only 4 people deep. When the gates finally opened a CM lead a cheer and everyone cheered back. The train pulled into the station and blew it's whistle and in we went. Very exciting!
We headed to Riverbelle Terrace for breakfast and were the first ones there. We were the only ones there for awhile. I wanted to sit out on the patio and enjoy the nice, quiet view of NOS and ROA, but DH and kids complained that it was too cold outside, so we ate inside.
Next, we went on Indiana Jones and walked right on. There were 2 other people in our car. When the ride was over and we were exiting our car, there were no people in line waiting to get on. It was strangely exciting to see it so empty.
We then went on Pirates and had our own boat. Again, very exciting. Then it was on to Big Thunder. We had about a 5 min. wait. We decided to walk along the back way over to Fantasyland and see what Peter Pan looked like.
Considering how quiet the park had been so far, we were surprised to see that Fantasyland was much busier. Not crazy busy, but busy enough for us to skip Peter Pan! I guess we should have gone on Peter Pan first thing. The crowds were very different in Fantasyland than in the rest of the park.
Next, we headed to Space Mtn. and the standby time said 45min. but looking upstairs at the que, it didn't look that bad, so we decided to chance it. We ended up being in line for 20 min. Then it was over to Buzz and we literally walked on with no one in front of or behind us.
Around 8:45 a.m. or so, we decided we'd head on home. We did a little shopping on Main Street on our way out. By this time, the crowd on Main Street looked normally busy. When we got to the tram at 9:30, I was happy to be leaving the growing crowd. It seemed we had left "just in time".
Getting up that early was worth it for the few hours of quietness we experienced at DL. It was a nice, new experience for us. As AP's we are able to go to DL quite often, and are always looking for a fresh, new way to experience our favorite place. I'm happy to say, we were not disappointed.
And as Julie Mouse said, all the CMs were very chipper! I would definitely do this again. But not on an early day that is due to a lot of hype, like the Pirates Premier, for example. I'm sure the crowds would be much crazier!
My daughter and I had our own Small World Christmas boat. Also, there were no other boats nearby so we (OK, I--she was only about 19-months-old) could sing along loudly without anyone hearing. She STILL connects Jingle Bells with the Small World song.
When there is no one waiting to get on, CMs will let you ride again without getting off. I've done this on a few different attractions. At the end of a slow night, the Indiana Jones CMs let me ride it four times in a row. They were cool. Very into their ride and high fiving me as I left each time. They made me miss working at Disneyland.
So you inspired me to go the next 6:30 opening, though you might be right about avoiding the Pirates crowd.
I probably should of check disneyland.com but im lazy!
So why was the Disneyland resort opened so early on sunday?
Go to AVP's post #8 above, click on the top link, and read #17 on that thread.I probably should of check disneyland.com but im lazy!
Cliff's Notes answer (Spark Notes for you under 20): travel show at night.
I was working IASW that afternoon/evening and expected to be rushed at 4:00pm as the west side closed, leaving only FL, TL, and TT open until 8:00. We had a tiny rush after the 3:45 parade ended (our line went from 2 minutes to about 7), then spent the rest of the afternoon with a less than 5 minute wait. By 6:00 we had opened up the wheelchair ramp as the entrance and 90% of our boats were private cruises. I guess no one realized that we were still open and left for DCA at 4:00, even though announcements were made on the loudspeaker throughout the day.
Thanks for the info. PanFan, that's good to know for the future. I thought the whole park was closing. It's good they kept those parts open.
And thank you for working at Disneyland!
I didn't even know that's how it was working until I got there. I thought we'd close to normal guests at 4:00 and then reopen for the POW WOW a little later. But nope, we stayed open until 8:00 and no one seemed to realize it. They did stop admitting guests at the front gate at 4:00, though, so even with a handstamp you couldn't get back in.
Disneyland was GREAT Sunday... DCA was *shivvers* a mad house!
They didn't have it "all together" Sunday in Disneyland but it was OK I guess. The Princess Area should have opened at 9am and didn't open until after 9:30. They cancelled one of the little shows that they were supposed to have.
Someone mentioned parking... My sister came to park at about 11:00 am and they wouldn't let her park in Mickey and Friends they ONLY let her go to (forgive me) Timone and Pumbaa I think it's called.
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