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Hello All-
I went to Disneyland yesterday and I thought I should post a trip report for those interested in Disneyland. For those of you that
simply need the tips, read the first sections. Enjoy!
Who: Me (Lorena- 22 y.o.), my sister (Julia-20 y.o) and my cousin (Alyssa-15 y.o.)
When: Sunday, March 14
Where: Disneyland, California Adventures
DL Tips:
1- Check out hotels online and call the hotel to double check on other discounts. You could be pleasantly surprised!
2- Creating a 'prioritized' list of rides is a good idea to do ahead of time. Just remember that skipping some items is okay, too (nothing is set in stone!).
3-If you stay in a nearby hotel (or have AAA), make sure to ask about discounts at local restaurants, you never know what you could save!
4-Get there early (at least on weekends)! You'll have shorter lines and fewer crowds.
5- If you want to eat there, make a PS for lunch at Blue Bayou via 714/781-DINE (most folks make a PS the day they're there), request a
water side table and arrive early. You can save some bucks by splitting a plate, too, because portions are pretty large.
Trip Report
We left San Diego Saturday at 5:00 p.m. and arrived in Anaheim around 6:45 p.m. We stopped off at McDonald's and got some food before
checking into our hotel room. After checking into the Del Sol Inn, we decided to hang out in our hotel because we were planning on getting
up early in the morning. Our room was spacious, had a TV, refrigerator, microwave, etc. We got the room for a special Internet
rate of $65.00 including taxes. (AAA discount for the room was $75, without taxes, over the phone!)
We woke up around 5:30 a.m. on Sunday. Got showered and walked to the Denny's in front of the hotel. We each got the French Toast Slam (on
special) and water. We paid our bill ($23 with tax and tip) and got 10% off for showing our Del Sol Inn room key.
Off to Disneyland we went. We arrived at the parking structure at 7:00 a.m. only to find out they weren't opening until 7:30 a.m.! So
we sat and waited. A steady line of cars built up behind us. Eventually, we parked the car and walked over to the tram. As soon as
we got to Downtown Disney, we walked quickly over to the theme park area. BTW, those of you worried about the "permanent security gate"
should know that the temporary gates are simply canopies with tables and security personnel. It isn't unattractive or obtrusive and guests
avoid having their bags checked at the entrances to the theme parks each time they pass through. I'm sure whatever its replacement is
will be equally, if not more, attractive.
Julia and I purchased our Southern California Annual Passports, while my cousin, ALyssa, opted to purchase a So Cal Resident Salute Two-Fer
ticket (good for one day each at DL and DCA) for $47. We walked over to the gates and waited for DL to open. When the time to open drew
near, the crowd erupted in a joyous countdown. We got in shortly after the gates opened and rushed over to Star Tours (unfortunately,
Space Mountain and Indiana Jones Temple of the Forbidden Eye were closed).
After Star Tours, we went over to Matterhorn. We got on within 5 minutes and zoomed through the mountain. I had forgotten how quickly
(and scarily) the first abominable snowman shows up! I screamed like a little kid, LOL!
So off to Fantasyland we went. We rode Peter Pan's Flight, then walked over to Alice in Wonderland. The wait was short, for now.
Hardly any of the rides in Fantasyland have Fastpasses, so the lines will start snaking around soon.
After that, we went over to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. After a 10 minute wait, we got on. This was the first weekend Big Thunder Mtn.
had been opened since the accident a little while ago. After that, we rode The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (5 minute wait).
Then, we went over to Splash Mountain and got single rider passes. While we didn't get to ride together, we got in our logs within 5
minutes total! Afterwards, we looked at our pictures and laughed at each other.
We left Critter Country and went to the Haunted Mansion. We grabbed some Fastpasses, with a "window"starting within 30 minutes. We
shopped around New Orleans Square. After a disappointing search for villains gear in Le Bat en Rouge, we checked on our priority seating
for Blue Bayou. I had called a few days ago to get a PS. Everything was okay. So our FP time came up and we got on the Haunted Mansion.
Afterwards, we trekked over to Pirates of the Caribbean. We knew our PS was coming up, but decided to ride anyways. We waited for PotC for
10 minutes, got on and then got off right at 11:30. Since the exit is next door to Blue Bayou, we got there right in time! We were promptly
escorted to our table. It wasn't waterside, but we were only one table over, so we got the idea.
The prices for lunch entrees were in the $12 to $18 range, but the descriptions seemed like large portions. Alyssa and I split the
deliciously deep fried Monte Cristo sandwich and some pasta salad. My sister ordered the Chicken Florentine with pasta. Needless
to say, my cousin and I also helped my sister eat her delicious pasta...
After lunch, we stood in the looongest line all day. We had to take our pictures for our Passports sometime that day or we would forfeit
them! So we stood there for about 30 minutes and got our pics taken care of.
Then off to DCA we went! We went straight to Grizzly River Run and got single rider passes. We were on the river within 10 minutes.
Julia and I went on with a family. It was so much fun to go in a raft full of little kids! After that, we went to get on California
Screamin'. Unfortunately, they had discontinued their single rider program, the standby wait was 130 minutes and FP's were at 4:00 p.m.
We were already getting pretty tired and still had an hour and a half ride back to San Diego. We opted to skip California Screamin'. We
have APs, so there's always next time.
We tried to get on Soarin' Over California, but even single riders had an hourlong wait! We skipped it, too, this time. So what were we
to do?
Well, I suggested we do some 3-D shows...We went on Muppets 3-D and, of course, we all enjoyed it. Very mild and funny 3-D...Then we
headed over to It's Tough to Be a Bug. This show was so much more interactive than Muppets 3-D! I remembered someone giving some tips
to the show and remembered to pinch my nose in time! Everyone in the theater (including Julia and ALyssa) laughed and screamed
accordingly, too!
After that, we headed to DTD to check out the World of Disney store. (Alas, the Disney Stores in San Diego closed a little while ago,
too!) After not finding villain items there either, we decided it was time to go home.
We got home to San Diego in record time, too! My sister drove us down in 1 hour, 10 minutes (her best so far)!
Hope you enjoyed my trip report!
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