Brand new Disney Family

:welcome: to the DIS!

Will you be going during the week or weekend? Disneyland and DCA are open late on the weekends, but close early during off-season - like around 8pm or so. If that is the case, you may not want to take a break in the afternoon and go back to the hotel - just something to think about. If you stay out late one night, you may want to sleep in a bit the next day. There is a lot of walking at Disneyland, and it's better to go well rested than to have multiple days with little sleep.

I also agree with everyone that it's okay to take it slow and build in quiet/down times for your kids (and you).


We are coming during the first week of March! Hopefully it stays open later than 8pm!
 


So you all have convinced us to get a 3 day Park Hopper pass!. Here is my question though. We fly in early afternoon on March 4th (Sunday), our plan is to go Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday, We fly out on Thursday. I have seen mentioned to start at the Park that is opposite the Early hour time (Since more people will be at the other park)?

Also, It appears that it would only cost a few dollars more to convert that 3 day park hopper to a 4 day park hopper. Do you think we will find much value in getting that 4th park hopper essentially for an evening time on the Sunday that we come in?
 
We will be there the first week of March as well - March 2-10 - staying at the HOJO across the street!

This will be our 4th time visiting during this time of year and it is a nice time to visit. However, it's not as quiet as many people expect and often people arrive and are surprised at the lines, especially at park entrance. This time of year there are often reduced park hours and refurbishments which can make the park feel almost as busy as other times of the year when park hours are much longer and everything is up and running. So perhaps look at some of the other posts on this board that speak to the current situation at the park with main street and Paradise Pier under refurbishment.

Due to that I'd also recommend a 3 day Park Hopper because it will allow you to go at a more relaxed pace, especially with younger children, as well as give you access to a Magic Morning (which is entry 1 hour earlier than regular park opening at Disneyland on either Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday) and this is a great thing to enjoy especially all the Fantasyland Rides for the young ones. If you do choose to extend your ticket and use magic morning and if you are there over a Saturday, I'd recommend using it then as it's much quieter in the park at 7AM than 9AM!

If in your budget a character breakfast would be great fun for your kids.

There is lots of excellent advice on this board so you are in the right place as well the Disney website itself. I'd also download the Disney app before you arrive and get familiar with it.

The last thing I'd recommend learning about is rider switch which is available to guests when you have children too short or perhaps timid to enjoy a ride that both parents would like to ride. There are full details of this service on the Disneyland site you can review - we've never used it ourselves so I don't want to explain it wrong but many people use it and it's a great service.

Hope you have a great trip!
 
So you all have convinced us to get a 3 day Park Hopper pass!. Here is my question though. We fly in early afternoon on March 4th (Sunday), our plan is to go Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday, We fly out on Thursday. I have seen mentioned to start at the Park that is opposite the Early hour time (Since more people will be at the other park)?

Also, It appears that it would only cost a few dollars more to convert that 3 day park hopper to a 4 day park hopper. Do you think we will find much value in getting that 4th park hopper essentially for an evening time on the Sunday that we come in?

Just saw your dates now after I posted above so disregard my Saturday early entry advice.

If you did add the 4th day and went on Sunday, that will likely be your only shot at seeing the Fireworks or Fantasmic as they are only offered on weekends during this time of year. So if you are interested in viewing either of those then the Sunday evening would be a great add on!
 


Cancel the trip, delete any Disney bookmarks you may have saved and forget that Disneyland ever existed. You'll thank me later. Disney has probably cost me $50k since 2010.

Whoa!!!! ....call a moderator ....have this post flagged.....very few of us haul the Grand Californian east down I-10, but hey, better to visit Disneyland on Matt's dollar with those great trip reports then to not see all the fun stuff at Disneyland,...so Matt....a dollar well spent i would say!!!! The Yuma Kid.
 
If we are talking about flights, hotel, meals, tickets, car rental - then we have spent close to $25K over our last 4 trips and that is staying at HOJO and not on site but we are flying from Canada and have stayed 36 nights in total. This next trip for 8 nights will likely be close to $8K. So it all depends on where the money gets spent and how far you have to come.

I have enjoyed spending every cent!!
:welcome: to the madness!!
 
Quick question about the voucher from last minute travel. When we take the voucher to the gate, do we exchange it for a paper ticket? How would we then also purchase the maxpass on our phone? Would we just type in a ticket number into the app and then add maxpass once we are in?
 
Anytime you exchange a voucher, whether at the gate or at the ticket booth, they will provide you with a hard paper ticket for each person with their name written on the back. It is the back of that ticket which you will need to scan into your app as it contains a bar code.

Not all vouchers can be exchanged at the gate - some you have to go to the ticket booth to exchange - we bought our tickets for our last visit from a travel company and had to do this before going to the gate. Many suppliers provide you with something you can take straight to the gate to avoid this. I have never bought form Last Minute Travel so can't help you there.
 
So you all have convinced us to get a 3 day Park Hopper pass!. Here is my question though. We fly in early afternoon on March 4th (Sunday), our plan is to go Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday, We fly out on Thursday. I have seen mentioned to start at the Park that is opposite the Early hour time (Since more people will be at the other park)?

Also, It appears that it would only cost a few dollars more to convert that 3 day park hopper to a 4 day park hopper. Do you think we will find much value in getting that 4th park hopper essentially for an evening time on the Sunday that we come in?
For the little extra it will cost, having even a partial 4th day just to go in, wander, and enjoy the ambience is worth it! I’ve always wished for just a little more time, and this year, with buying an AP, I’m finally able to do it!
 
When is the best time of the day to relax? I've seen some say it gets busier after 4pm due to all the people getting out of school/work with APs? We have a toddler, so rest will be important!
 
I think the best time to rest is when you are ready for one. Keep in mind that the Monday to Wednesday you are there - park hours will not be that long - the park could open as late as 10AM and close as early as 8PM so you might not want to take too long of a break - unlike weekend or busier times when the parks are open from 8AM to Midnight. You may find that you want to go for rope drop and then stay until you are are done - and then call it a day rather than head back for two hours. Or you might find you want to head over on the middle day a bit later and stay until closing. If you have a stroller sometimes kids will take a nap when they need one. You really won't know what works for you until you get there.
 
It is about what VALUE you place on a night in Disneyland for when you leave back to lodging. I am at the gates an hour before offical time. I leave frontierland once I notice the crowded sidewalks and hop over to ride GRR and watch Crush, that puts about 2:00 when I leave and return around 4:15 to 5:30. And it varies with DCA parades, lighting shows and if GRR is closed. then I leave early and arrive back in time to catch flag lowering, the murdering of the crows and what else happens on Main street before dusk.
 

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