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Kevin Yee
09-24-2002, 12:43 PM
From the DL Resort Q&A (FAQ) page:

Q: Now that you have two parks, how many days can I expect to see it all?
A: You may wish to plan about two days for each Theme Park and one or two nights for Downtown Disney District. Click here to Plan Your Disney Days online.


I don't know about you, but four days at the Resort seems like a long time. I can understand why the website would try to encourage long visits, though.

Laffite
09-24-2002, 12:51 PM
Isn't the rule-of-thumb for DL is 3 days?

How about 2.5 days in DL and .5 day in DCA? 1 day is way too long for DTD though, it's more like a one night thing.

teri
09-24-2002, 12:53 PM
Coming from out of town and having visited multiple times, I would say that 4 days is actually about right. You need to factor in pool time, breaks, a character meal and at least one other special dining experience, opportunities to see and enjoy each parade and special event show. If you take advantage of spa facilities or do tours, that adds time as well.

TheMur
09-24-2002, 12:58 PM
Coming from Nor Cal I like to stay for 4 days if possible (but sometimes I need to do those 1 day lots of driving fixes!)

I would say that is 3+ days at DL and <1 at DCA but my kids keep lobbying for more time at DCA.

If it is during the summer we like to DL in morning to mid-day - beach for a few hours and then back for the evening. Kind of my idealized So Cal existence.

Iceman
09-24-2002, 01:23 PM
You could easily spend more than one night at DTD as well. ESPN Zone is good for a whole evening, you could catch a show at House of Blues another night, eat at Ralph Brennan's then catch a movie at AMC on the third, and there's still plenty of shopping and other places to eat.

mousey_girl
09-24-2002, 08:02 PM
We usually try to plan on at least 4 days. We don't have to rush. We can get naps in. This year DL will be closing at 6 so we might take in a movie or wander aimlessly around DTD. We have even tossed about the idea of checking The Boy into Pinochio's Workshop for a couple of hours so that we can do some Christmas/window shopping/drinking without having to deal with the "I want everything" hopping hissy that always comes up.

roberts1398
09-25-2002, 09:35 AM
I leave Friday for 5 days in the Happiest Place on Earth, and I doubt seriously we'll be ready to leave when the time comes. It's wonderful to have that much time, and be able to relax and do things at a comfy pace, as well as to swim, nap, and eat leisurely meals.

hbquikcomjamesl
09-25-2002, 09:57 AM
Personally, I'd say 2 days for DL, if somebody is an infrequent visitor, 3 if they're first-timers, and 1 for DCA and DTD combined. Of course, if you or your family find something you're absolutely smitten with in DCA or DTD, that could change (see the "my kid prefers DCA" thread), and as DCA weeds out its disasters and adds more content, it certainly WILL change.

mousemom11
09-28-2002, 08:08 PM
We have 2 small children (4 and 1), so we take time in the afternoon for naps and swimming. Their limit seems to be about 3 hours in the park before they (and their parents) need a break.

So for us, 3-4 days is just about right.

Alex S.
09-28-2002, 09:12 PM
Anything more than 2 consecutive days on Disney property and I start to go batty. And that was before I started having to visit the park 10-15 times a year.

But then, the Disney.com web site isn't oriented to people like me. It is for people who only visit the park every 5 to 10 years (if even that often). For such people, especially if they have kids, four days seems a very reasonable length of time to allow a reasonably relaxed schedule.

Though if they only have four days and are coming from a long distance, I would tell them to spend one day at the parks, experience what you can, and then go do something else in the area.

opus
09-29-2002, 05:04 AM
Our family went to Disneyland for the first time last October (going again in 4 days :D ). We had a 4-day park hopper, and used every minute of it. We spent almost as much time in DCA as DL.

It took us about 3 days to see *everything*, especially since we weren't down on fastpasses yet, or scheduling rides for minimal wait times. I know now to head right to Indy, Fantasyland (Peter Pan was the longest wait), and Soarin'.

We spent the 4th day almost totally in DCA, as that was "pick your favorite ride" day for the kids. My 7 year old daughter just loved Screamin'. I'm glad. My wife won't go on coasters, so I have to use my kids. hehe.

Anyway, my point is that for a family of four, it took us three days to see everything the first time.

justagrrl
09-29-2002, 06:53 AM
Originally posted by mousey_girl
This year DL will be closing at 6

Whoah. Disneyland at 6pm? When is this happening?

Darkbeer
09-29-2002, 09:42 AM
The first Monday, Tuesday and Thursday in December, due to private parties. Two of the days are Cast Member Holiday Parties.

Cadaverous Pallor
09-29-2002, 09:43 AM
Originally posted by justagrrl
Whoah. Disneyland at 6pm? When is this happening? It's the usual winter weekday thing.

Darkbeer
09-29-2002, 09:49 AM
The usual winter weekday thing is closing Disneyland at 8 PM, DCA closes at 6 PM.

RStar
10-04-2002, 08:11 AM
I had freinds come over from England a few years back and they got a 5 day pass. We did all 5 days in a row opening to closing, then did Knotts, Univeral Hollywood, Knotts again, then Six flags!:eek: I didn't go to DL for 3 months after that!!

And didn't I hear that they were talking about backing off the hours at DL to 6pm on winter Mon-Thur? No matter to me. After I get off work even 8pm isn't enough time anyway. Maybe things will change now that Pressler isn't in charge (but I doubt Eisner will let loose that much controll at first).

mad4mky
10-04-2002, 08:53 AM
Gosh, my youngest daughter and I are coming down this month for three full days. I am worried that she'll get bored.

I think if you only go every several years, yes, maybe 4 days is a good amount of time, especially if you have little ones. Now that my kids are older, 3 is almost too much time...by the 3rd day, they're ready to go to Knott's (this time, that won't be happening).

But...we don't take breaks on some days...don't care about the repeat of the same parade over and over and over...and I spend some of my time looking through shops.

But, to each his own...
I think it is an individual family thing of how much time it takes....

roberts1398
10-04-2002, 09:59 AM
Well, I'm back, after 5 days, off-season, with virtually no waits except for Saturday afternoon, and I can tell you, I was NEVER bored. Nor was my 7 yr old. We left having missed LOTS that we wanted to do, and without going anywhere but DLR and the hotel. Only one day napping at the hotel in the afternoon (contrary to my plan). We had so much fun and can't imagine getting bored after a whole week there. Although my feet were blisters on top of blisters, and my ears were definitely on sensory overload. So all in all, I'd say 5 days was perfect. I think a 6th day would have been too much, although if we'd taken a one day break doing something quiet and restful -- like the beach -- I could probably have gone back and done another 3 or 4 days!!!

dsny1mom
10-04-2002, 08:25 PM
2 days? 3 days? 4 days? 5 days? LOL

14 consecutive days barely feeds my addiction.:)

dsny1mom
(who is looking forward to days 15-28 at the end of the year)