Are you on vacation in California and are you near Anaheim? Go to Disneyland! Here's how to spend a great day there, avoid the queues and maximize the fun!
Steps
Method 1 of 2: First Method: Only at Disneyland Park
Step 1. Buy your tickets before you go so you don't have to queue
Purchase them online at Disney's official tickets website. If you book them early and live in the United States, they can deliver them to your home before you leave. Or, you can download the e-tickets from the email and print them.
- Keep an eye on the offers. Disney occasionally offers promotions that allow you to add an extra day to a multi-day ticket at no cost.
- Be aware of your purchase. If you only want to go to Disneyland Park, not California Adventure, you don't have to buy a ParkHopper ticket, but the ticket for the park you will see.
- If you plan to park at Disneyland, you can also buy the pass on the web.
Step 2. Go there early
You should go there early in the morning, when it is almost empty, the temperatures are cool and the children are still enthusiastic. You can discover the attractions before the crowds become unbearable - people start queuing at the park gates about an hour before they open.
The Fantasyland tour should be done early in the morning, before all the families show up, otherwise the queue will be endless
Step 3. Use fastpasses, or fast passes
This system may be perplexing at first, but then you find that it is easier than it seems and allows you to skip the queues. Here's how it roughly works:
- You can get new fastpasses every 90 minutes. Have someone get them on arrival (this person will need to bring each of your tickets with them). If you don't know when the 90 minutes are up, take a look at the bottom of the latest fastpasses given to you.
- Each attraction offering this type of pass has a small station where you will find 4-8 fastpass machines. Insert one ticket at a time into the machine, from which a fastpass will come out indicating a certain time. You do not have to return exactly at the time indicated: the fastpass is valid for any time after the one indicated on the ticket. However, fastpasses must be used on the day they are printed.
- Once you have obtained the fastpasses, you will have to get in the queue dedicated to those who have these tickets. An employee will make sure they are valid and let you pass.
- Fastpasses are valid for any time after that printed on the ticket. For example, if the ticket says 1: 45-2: 45 but you show up at 4:00, you can still use it.
- The fastpasses for some popular attractions end right away. If you want to see Space Mountain, the Indiana Jones area, the Haunted Mansion (on Halloween and Christmas), and the AstroBlasters you'll have to go there early in the morning. Some attractions, like Thunder Mountain or Splash Mountain, have short queues at the end of the day, so you won't need the fastpass.
Step 4. Think about meals
Food sold in the park can be expensive, especially if you are traveling with your family. However, we recommend that you try some dining experiences. Here's what might work for you:
- Eat earlier than usual or after your food rush, which is intense from 11 am to 2 pm and 6:30 am to 8 pm. This way, you will be able to discover the attractions while everyone is eating and avoid the lines.
- You need to know that the clubs in New Orleans Square have the longest queues. Eat in Frontierland or Critter Country.
- If you don't want to spend too much, bring your packed lunch (put it in your backpack). In the park, there are many tables where you can sit and eat. In addition, it is possible to organize a picnic on Tom Sawyer Island. If, on the other hand, you buy food in the park, remember that fruit is cheap and fast food portions can be split in two.
- Book early for a full meal. There are a few real restaurants in Disneyland, such as Blue Bayou and Cafe Orleans, which fill up quickly. If you absolutely want to eat at these places, make a reservation by calling (714) 781-3463.
- If you want to eat with a Disney character, book in advance. This service is offered at the Plaza Inn, where characters wander around the restaurant and take photos and interact with guests while they eat. This option is ideal if you have children, but it isn't cheap and isn't always available. Book by calling (714) 781-3463.
Step 5. Decide when to buy souvenirs
Here are some possible ways to avoid queues:
- If you want the famous Mickey Mouse ears or a hat of a Disney character, buy these items on arrival so they will show in all the photos.
- If you don't know what you want, go shopping when you need a break. Do you see anything you like? Buy it before you leave, so you don't have to carry it around all day.
- If you have kids and don't want to hear complaints, try this trick. Buy cheaper Disney souvenirs before you go to the park. The night before, give them to your children by telling them that these gifts were left by Mickey Mouse. If you don't want them to get bored right away, put them in your backpack and give them to you after you enter the park.
Step 6. To find out where to see Disney characters, follow these tips:
- The characters wander around the park. If you want autographs, bring a pen large enough for those wearing the costumes to grab.
- Visit Toontown, Mickey Mouse, where you will find Mickey and Minnie's houses. Of course you will find a long line here. You will also be able to spot other characters.
- Visit the Princess Fantasy Faire to take pictures with the princesses. Try to get there early, as the queue can last two hours on peak days. To get there, go to It's a Small World, turn left and pass the Topolinia gate. Otherwise, you can take the Disneyland Railroad train and get off at Topolinia.
- Visit Pixie Hollow, another area where you will find various characters located between the Astro Orbiter and the Matterhorn. Here, too, the queues can be endless.
- Wait at the characters' secret gate. To spot them when they enter the park from the backstage, wait at the gate located on the northeast corner of Main Street, between the Main Street Cinema and the Great Moment with Mr. Lincoln. Characters here periodically appear to pose for photos and to sign autographs.
Step 7. Find good seats for shows and parades
Several are organized throughout the day, but this depends on the season and time (the Fantasmic show and fireworks are scheduled when it's dark). Check out this park schedule site to find out what you can see during your visit. Most of the shows are packed, but you will be able to attend if you plan on time.
- To see the parades from a privileged point, head towards Tomorrowland and, just before entering, turn left and follow the path that leads to the King Triton Statue.
- Seeing Fantasmic comfortably is not easy, but it is doable. For a front row seat by the waterfall (directly in front of Cafe Orleans, where people board ships bound for Tom Sawyer Island), you can sit on a blanket that you will set up there hours before the show (you will need to check the rotating seat). If two shows are planned on the same evening, you may want to wander around the area as the first one begins. As soon as people start getting up and leaving, it takes up a seat.
- As for the fireworks, many people go to Main Street to see them behind the Sleeping Beauty castle. If you want to do the same, try to keep an eye on a bench in the central square, near the statue of Mickey and Walt, or take up an outdoor table in the northernmost area of the Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor.
- If you don't mind missing out on watching the fireworks behind the castle, you can also see them from the path that connects Frontierland and Fantasyland, behind Big Thunder Mountain. Or, if you like roller coasters, take in the show from the Big Thunder: right now, by the way, the line to enter is short, so you can watch almost everything.
- If these shows don't interest you, then take the opportunity to discover the attractions while they are all occupied by something else. Attractions such as Splash Mountain and Space Mountain are usually more accessible during the Fantasmic show and fireworks.
Step 8. Find out about the closure of areas
The park typically stays open late in the summer and on weekends, while it closes earlier in cold weather and during the week. However, certain areas close earlier if a show is scheduled:
- If the Fantasmic show is held, Tom Sawyer Island will close around sunset.
- If fireworks are planned, Toontown closes earlier.
- Fantasyland is one of the first areas of the park to close in the evening, so explore it early, don't delay hoping to find fewer people.
- Specific times are indicated near most attractions.
Step 9. Exit at the right time
Mass exodus occurs after fireworks (or about an hour before closing if this show is not scheduled). In these cases, exiting will require a long wait, even to get on the tram and return to the car park. If you want to avoid the crowds, leave before the fires run out or wait until the park closes.
Method 2 of 2: Second Method: At Disneyland Park and California Adventure
Step 1. Prepare for a long day
If there aren't a lot of people and your energy level is high, you can see them both on the same day. Make a plan not to find yourself wandering around aimlessly and to avoid having an unnecessary foot ache.
Step 2. Buy tickets online at Disney's official tickets website
If you book them in time and live in the USA, you can receive them at home. Download them from the email and print them.
- Don't miss the occasional promotions. For example, Disney can give you an extra day if you buy a ticket to visit the park over several days.
- Buy the right ticket. If you want to see both parks on the same day, opt for a ParkHopper ticket.
- If you want to park at Disneyland, buy the pass online.
Step 3. Go to the park early in the morning, when there are fewer people and temperatures are more pleasant
Remember that people start showing up at the gates about an hour before the resort opens.
- Disneyland Park and California Adventure open at the same time, so decide where you want to go first. California Adventure was the least crowded earlier in the day, but with the popularity of the Cars Land area, this is no longer true. You should choose the park with the attractions you really want to see first.
- If you want seats for the World of Color, it's a good idea to go to California Adventure first (more information below).
Step 4. Use the fastpasses
Read the "First Method" section to find out how they work.
For some famous attractions, the fastpasses end immediately. If you want to see Radiator Springs, Soarin 'Over California, California Screamin' or Midway Mania, get there early. Other attractions you can visit with the fastpass, such as the Tower of Terror, have shorter queues at the end of the day, so you don't even need this ticket
Step 5. As for meals, move wisely
Go eat before the time interval between 11 am and 2 pm and between 6:30 and 8 pm. So, you will order right away and, when everyone goes to eat, the attractions will be all for you.
- At California Adventure, the clubs of Fisherman's Wharf and Cars Land stand out for their long queues. If you don't feel like waiting, head to Hollywood Land. In Disneyland, avoid New Orleans Square and go for Critter Country or Frontierland.
- Bring a packed lunch if you want to save money, or buy foods like fruit and fast-food items, which can be split in two.
- If you want to eat in a restaurant, don't forget that the Blue Bayou and Cafe Orleans, in Disneyland, get crowded immediately. At California Adventure, you can eat at Carthay Circle and the Wine Country Trattoria, but make reservations by calling (714) 781-3463.
- Eating with Disney characters at the Plaza Inn, Disneyland, and Ariel's Grotto, California Adventure, also requires a reservation. Call (714) 781-3463.
Step 6. If you want to buy souvenirs, play smart:
- Buy lighter ones, like Mickey's ears and other characters' caps, upon arrival, and you'll take feature photos.
- Take a stroll around the shops during the off times to see what you'd like to buy and come back at the end of the day, so you avoid having to move from one place to another loaded with things.
- If you have small children and don't want to spend a fortune, get some typically Disney items the day before and keep them in your backpack. Upon arrival, give them to them so they won't throw a tantrum.
Step 7. Searching for characters is an attraction in itself
To save time, follow these tips:
- Bring a pen large enough for the characters to hold, so you can ask for autographs.
- At California Adventure you will be able to meet them especially in the A Bug's Land area. However, you will find many more at Disneyland. Read the "First Method" to learn more.
Step 8. Plan in time for the World of Color, California Adventure's exclusive show held twice a day during the high season and once during the low season (if you prefer Fantasmic or fireworks go to Disneyland):
- Get a fast pass for general seating. World of Color seats are divided into different areas indicated by colors. Grab your tickets and head to the Grizzly River Rapids to get to the machines that issue the World of Color fastpasses. If every fastpass has the same color, you can go.
- An hour before the show starts, go to the general seating area at Paradise Pier where a member of staff will guide you to your seats. General admission includes standing room, so if you want to see the show up close and sit down, get there early (but be prepared to get some splashes of water if you sit in the front!).
- Try the World of Color Dining. If you want to eat there and want a secure entry ticket to the show, you have two World of Color Dining options. You can choose to have a picnic at any time of day and get a pass to enter or decide to have a full-service meal at a fixed price and get great seating. Go to Disney's World of Color Dining page for more information.
Step 9. Find out about the closure of the attractions
In the summer and on weekends, the parks stay open longer than during the colder months and weekdays. Some areas close earlier if shows are planned:
- During weekends and high season, California Adventure closes one hour before Disneyland.
- Read the "First Method" section for Disneyland closing times.
Step 10. Don't leave when everyone else is out
Leave before the fireworks are over or wait for the park to close completely, otherwise you'll have to stand in line for a very long time.
If you leave California Adventure and are in the Paradise Pier or Grizzly Peak area, you can pass by the Grand Californian Hotel in order to find a shortcut. Reach the hotel via the Grizzly River Rapids. Enter the entrance, turn right and pass the conference center, following the signs for Downtown Disney. Once outside, turn right again to take the tram to the parking lots
Advice
- One of Disneyland's most expensive items is bottled water. Bring a bottle from home and fill it up.
- Before your visit, go to the Disneyland website to find out about schedules, scheduled events, special events and weather forecasts.
- Avoid going there on weekends, holidays and extremely hot days. Most of the visitors are local, so there will always be crowds on those days. You could go there in late August and spring: the kids go to school and the uncertain weather puts many people off (however, some attractions, such as the Matterhorn, are closed due to rain).
- Grab a map and guide at the entrance.
- Ask the staff members if there will be any Hidden Mickeys on the attractions of your interest. Most everyone will be happy to tell you.
- Disneyland is a resort designed primarily for families, so have fun but be respectful of other visitors.
- If you bought Mickey Mouse ears the last time you were there, take them with you! Your children may throw tantrums seeing them on other children's heads, so prevent the crisis.
- Staff members wear name tags (except for those disguised as Disney characters) - ask them friendly questions.
- Taking a train ride in the park is ideal for resting your feet and taking a break. The Enchanted Tiki Room is a good place to cool off in hot weather.
- Before you arrive, tell your kids to contact a staff member if they get lost.
- Make sure you get the fastpasses for the Radiator Springs Racers early - they run out right away.
- If your children still ride in a stroller, get a special pass. Go to City Hall as soon as you enter the park to request one. It will give you several benefits.
- Ask for a map in your preferred language and the Honorary Citizen sticker at City Hall on Main Street.
Warnings
- If you are afraid of an attraction or can't get on it due to a medical ailment, avoid it. Pay attention to the warning signs.
- The attractions are safe but you must always follow the instructions of the staff to preserve your safety.
