When planning a trip to Disneyland, you want to make your experience nearly as good as possible. I went to Disneyland last November and from my experience I’ve put together fourteen different tips and hacks to make your trip to Disneyland truly magical!
CHOOSE THE RIGHT SEASON
Disney is very busy in the summer, so the parks are filled with visiting Disneyland when the children are NOT on vacation from school. (Spring and winter holidays are crazy too, but not as crazy as summer).
This past year, I also took a trip to Disneyland for Valentine’s Day. The lines are short and there aren’t many people, which is a definite plus. However, Disney apparently closed many of its rides for maintenance earlier in the year because of reduced crowds.
My best Disney experiences were in August, September, October (Halloween themed!), and November.
BEST DAY TO GO
Skip the weekend, and go on weekdays. I am unable to tell you how much shorter the lines were when I went on Thursday than my trips were on Friday and Saturday.
APPLICATION WAITING TIME
If you go to Disney, this app is crucial. This is a free phone app that tells you the waiting time for each ride. So rather than waiting 90 minutes for Indiana Jones, head to Space Mountain if the app tells you it is only 25 minutes to wait. Chances are, you will see Indiana Jones at a lower lead time later on — just pay attention!
QUICK PASS WORLD OF COLORS
If you want to be in an excellent spot during the World of Color show at California Adventure, you will want to grab some fast tickets (currently located near the Grizzly River Run). We got our fast passes around noon and eventually gathered at our meet up location around 7:50 pm (show starts at 8:15 am). We’re finally front and center for the show… literally as close as we can get.
DISNEY PHOTOGRAPHERS
If you want someone to take a picture of you and your group (come on, sometimes a selfie is not ALWAYS the answer!), ask a Disney photographer! You know, those guys with giant tripods standing near the castle, and in Cars Land? After they take a picture of you on their camera, ask them to take a picture on their phone or personal camera, and they’ll say yes!
PALACE PICTURES
Everyone wants to take pictures near the castle. I mean, if you do not take a picture in front of the castle, are you really going to Disney?
To avoid having millions of individuals in the background of your castle pictures, head to the castle early in the morning. By 11 or 12 o’clock, the castle is awash with guests, so your best bet is when the gardens are open.
RIDE OVER SHOWS
If you are not interested in watching the fireworks or the World of Color, some (but not all!) rides remain open during these times. A while ago, I had to go up Splash Mountain twice in just fifteen minutes (the wait time was literally five minutes!) during a fireworks display.
HEALTHY SNACK
Okay. I love Disneyland food, no matter how unhealthy it’s. But if you want something a little better, head to the food carts in nearby Village Haus. It’s in the same area as Pinocchio’s Daring Journey, conveniently next to the Fantasyland exit and the entrance to Frontierland. They sell tons of fruit — their mango is the best!
OLD VS. NEW
Older rides (such as Peter Pan’s Flight and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride) don’t offer fast passes. I believe Disney was under the impression that because it was an old ride, no one wanted to go on it, therefore they did not need a fast pass. But that’s so wrong. These rides virtually all the time have a 40-minute waiting time. So, to ride it without waiting in long lines, make this ride one of your first stops at the park. Many people take this ride last (afternoon) because they’ve already done everything else. So if you go to these rides early in the morning, the lines will be much shorter!
BRING EXTRA LEGS
Seriously, just trust me on this one. There is all the time ONE person on the sodden Splash Mountain or Grizzly River Run. If that person were you, you might want to consider packing an additional pair of socks. I can walk around for an hour in wet jeans, but wet socks? No, thank you!
GET DOLE WHIP FAST
Dole Whip is probably the most popular snacks at Disneyland, and with popularity comes long lines.
But what you do not know is that the Tiki Room has TWO DIFFERENT LINES. During my last trip to Disney, THE INSIDE of the Tiki Room had a line of about four people. Outline has at least fifteen. So if you want Dole Whip, GET IN!
SOARIN’ OVER CALIFORNIA
Try to be first in line for Soarin’ Over California. If you are not first in line, you will be forced to look at someone else’s shoe hanging above you, which is not really a big deal, but is an undesirable distraction from the California experience nonetheless.
AVOID WALLETS
To be honest, avoid wallets. Not because there’s quite a lot of theft at Disney, but because it is an enormous hassle to carry around, and even tougher to try and fit into the little carry bags on the rides.
But if you do need something to store your stuff, opt for a backpack. They’re still a pain to travel with, but a backpack will hold your merchandise far better than a purse (depending on how big your wallet is). And at the end of the day, carrying a heavy bag with one hand gets tiring.
AVOID FLIP FLOPS
Flip-flops usually do not provide much support for your feet, and when you are at Disney, you are possibly going to be walking a lot. Also, you do not want to be on a ride like Soarin’ Over California or the Tower of Terror when unexpectedly your shoe comes off. Not fun.
Despite all these tips, just enjoy your Disneyland experience! After all, it’s the happiest place on Earth.
