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View Full Version : Soap weekend impact to DCA



kranders
04-18-2002, 08:07 AM
I only get down to Disneyland every 5 years or so and I'll be here Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 4/19-21...staying at the Disneyland Hotel. My question is on how crowded the Soap Stars event caused DCA to be. I'm not interested in the stars but want to be able to enjoy the park. My thinking is to hit Disneyland on Friday and Sunday(less crowded?) and hit DCA on Saturday when Disneyland will be packed. If the Soap weekend makes DCA a pain I could switch DCA to Friday and spend Sat/Sun at Disneyland.
What so you think?

Uncle Dick
04-18-2002, 08:41 AM
Originally posted by kranders
I only get down to Disneyland every 5 years or so and I'll be here Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 4/19-21...staying at the Disneyland Hotel. My question is on how crowded the Soap Stars event caused DCA to be. I'm not interested in the stars but want to be able to enjoy the park. My thinking is to hit Disneyland on Friday and Sunday(less crowded?) and hit DCA on Saturday when Disneyland will be packed. If the Soap weekend makes DCA a pain I could switch DCA to Friday and spend Sat/Sun at Disneyland.
What so you think?
From what I saw, the Super Soap weekend actually made the lines for attractions shorter. Since everyone was out trying to get an autograph or attending one of the special events, the lines for all the of E-tickets and what not were a whole lot shorter than previous weekends. Your plan sounds pretty good, as I understand that Super Soap weekends make DCA more crowded on Sunday.

Mouse
04-18-2002, 09:08 AM
I noticed the same thing as Uncle Dick. I hear the crowds this weekend, at least for the soap stars, may be larger because the stars are from a more popular soap. But I really don't know anything about soap operas and I couldn't tell you if that's true or not.

MouseWife
04-18-2002, 09:35 AM
I think that it is more crowded on Sundays because of the $99. AP's that block Saturdays but not Sundays.

Is this weekend General Hospital? It may be that there are more 'solid' characters on that one. Tony Geary, Genie Francis.

Have fun, good luck on the lines being short.

Techie7
04-18-2002, 10:36 AM
Let me stress that getting the the park at opening will make all the diference. I went with a couple friends to DCA on Saturday. We got there at opening and were done with just about every attraction in time for the first showing of blast. We then went over to Disneyland at about 2:00. Lines were never really long at DCA BUT in the morning we were able to walk onto the major attractions. Sorain and Screamin should be first on the list. After that, most of the film lines move no problem. Annimation building is better right before closing or at opening when less people are in the interactive areas. Make sure to swing by DL to pick up fastpasses early because they have been going fast. (Indy is the worst one). DL was packed so take your time and enjoy.

cstephens
04-18-2002, 11:19 AM
Originally posted by kranders
I only get down to Disneyland every 5 years or so and I'll be here Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 4/19-21...staying at the Disneyland Hotel. My question is on how crowded the Soap Stars event caused DCA to be. I'm not interested in the stars but want to be able to enjoy the park. My thinking is to hit Disneyland on Friday and Sunday(less crowded?) and hit DCA on Saturday when Disneyland will be packed. If the Soap weekend makes DCA a pain I could switch DCA to Friday and spend Sat/Sun at Disneyland.
What so you think?

Depending on what you're interested in specifically, you might want to consider switching your Friday and Saturday plans, or maybe splitting the days up, hitting one park in the early part of the day and the second park in the evening. The soap opera stuff is only at DCA, and it's only on Saturday and Sunday, so being there on Friday probably wouldn't be as bad. (And, I believe that Millionaire is included in the soap opera events, so if you want to go to the regular attraction, Friday would be the day.) Yes, Saturdays are more crowded than other days, but I don't know that crowds are that bad this time of year - off-season and all, so Saturday at DL shouldn't be unbearable. Also keep in mind if you want to watch the fireworks (DL on Friday and Saturday nights only) and/or the Electrical Parade (DCA on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights), you should build that into your schedule so you're in the right park.

Have a great time!



/cs

kranders
04-18-2002, 01:20 PM
Thanks for all your help and advice!
I'll be leaving early in the morning (4am) to get there by opening. I'm sure we'll have a good time.

kranders
04-24-2002, 12:04 PM
Just got back from my trip and I had a ball, the best vacation ever!!! We split up each day and visited both parks and retreated to DCA on Saturday when Disneyland became unbearably crowded. The soap buisness didn't seem to cause much impact to the rides at DCA. I'm already planning my next trip for October...no more 7 year waits for me(some of that time I was living in Colorado).
By-the-way, the Disneyland Hotel was GREAT!!! Definately the way to go.
Even though it's a 4 hour drive for me I'm thinking about getting an AP. Which one do you recommend(Prem, Dlx or So. Cal)? Does it go into effect when you buy it or is it based on a calendar year?
Thanks for all the tips on this forum!!!
Ken

Uncle Dick
04-24-2002, 12:15 PM
Originally posted by kranders
Which one do you recommend(Prem, Dlx or So. Cal)? Does it go into effect when you buy it or is it based on a calendar year?
Thanks for all the tips on this forum!!!
Ken
I would definitely recommend the Premium AP. You get all sorts of discounts, free parking and don't have to worry about any blackout days. And if you go to Disneyland four times, you've already paid for it. It's a steal at $219.

Darkbeer
04-24-2002, 12:20 PM
As for which AP to get, it depends on when you are traveling, a SoCal makes no sense if you are planning to come out in the summer months. The difference between the Deluxe and Premium is more than just the extra dates (which is still an important consideration, remember that you can buy a blackout pass for $25, if for example every day of your trip except one saturday is available on the Deluxe.) you get the parking pass (which is an extra $35 on the Socal and Deluxe versions (but if you are planning to stay at a hotel, that isn't important), but the additional discounts in shooping, food, and hotel rooms. You might want to buy ONE Premium, and the rest of the family Deluxe to take advantage of the parking and discounts.

As for when they take effect, let's say for example, you went to the Disney Stores and bought AP vouchers. The day that you came to the Park, and used it for admission (and the visit to the AP Processing Center to convert your "ticket/voucher" to the Photo ID) is the Starting date of your AP, and one FISCAL year (i.e. 365 days) later, your pass would expire.

So plan your next trip, look at all the different packages, check out the sites, including the AP discount packages (you need your AP pass at check-in, not when you reserve the dates). Then go to the Disney.com website, compare the dates of your trip (plus future potential trips in the next year) and see which AP best matches your dates (If you buy only one or two blackout passes, that's OK, if you plan to attend 3 blackout days, move up!)