Out of State Disneyland Trip Planning Thread

[AZMermaid]

Got our room ready text while we were sweating to death outside the pool deck in AZ! But my son swam well, so it was (sorta) worth it, lol! Argh! But we are now getting gas in Quartzite and will be crossing the CA border soon!

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Got our room ready text while we were sweating to death outside the pool deck in AZ! But my son swam well, so it was (sorta) worth it, lol! Argh! But we are now getting gas in Quartzite and will be crossing the CA border soon!

Ah Quartize. What an interesting town lol. Have a great time!!!

 

[MikeRx]

Quartzite is our first charging location on our way (and last on the way home) to the DLR from PHX. Tesla put in a 30+ bay supercharger to accommodate the I-10 traffic in both directions. When it was 10 slow chargers there was often a long line in the unforgiving sun to charge. That Carl’s Jr. is a distopian oasis for weary Tesla travelers. Reminds me of the Cantina...you never know what you will see...a wretched hive...We will be making the pilgrimage again on July 8th.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Quartzite is our first charging location on our way (and last on the way home) to the DLR from PHX. Tesla put in a 30+ bay supercharger to accommodate the I-10 traffic in both directions. When it was 10 slow chargers there was often a long line in the unforgiving sun to charge. That Carl’s Jr. is a distopian oasis for weary Tesla travelers. Reminds me of the Cantina...you never know what you will see...a wretched hive...We will be making the pilgrimage again on July 8th.

How long does it take for a charge?

 

[MikeRx]

Quartzite supercharger are V3 and can take you from 10% to 100% in 15-20 minutes! The older chargers would take 30-40 min or far longer if the other charges were in use too. The new V3 network chargers do not slow due to others charging. There is also a V3 charger in Erhenberg that we started to use before the Quartzite location was upgraded. With the expansion of the V3 network they are making it easier and easier to travel the “mother road home”. They’ve also added a new charger in CA (Beaumont) that is next to an In ’n Out so we will likely try to make it there instead of the Cabazon slow charger....it’s only 10 miles further. We love taking “Lilly Belle” to the DLR. Yes, everyone names their Tesla.

 

[AZMermaid]

The Bowers exhibit is excellent! I’m so glad we went. I think it’s only open a few more weeks but I highly recommend it for Disney buffs! We are now poolside!

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

Do we know if they will be raising capacity on the 15th?

 

[ZehnJahren]

We are finally going to pull the trigger on a DLR vacation! No one in my family has been, ever, but after the past year we figured it was time. Can anyone point me towards any thread that talks about best GN hotels? I have a list of 5 and no idea how to choose.

 

[wishing4PA]

We are finally going to pull the trigger on a DLR vacation! No one in my family has been, ever, but after the past year we figured it was time. Can anyone point me towards any thread that talks about best GN hotels? I have a list of 5 and no idea how to choose.

I never found that thread and now that I've picked one for our upcoming trip, I'm not sure I want to find one and see what could have been better lol.
I ended up just googling and checking on a general travel site and wondering every day if I should have picked differently or sprung for one of the Disney resorts.

 

[LorrieAnn5]

We are finally going to pull the trigger on a DLR vacation! No one in my family has been, ever, but after the past year we figured it was time. Can anyone point me towards any thread that talks about best GN hotels? I have a list of 5 and no idea how to choose.

See if this list helps you.....
https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disneyland-anaheim-hotels-reviews-rankings/
I'm not sure what 5 you've narrowed it down to, but here are my experiences:
We've stayed at Hilton (at the Convention Center twice) - con there is it's a 20 minute walk (cross Katella), but it's a nice high-rise hotel with large rooms and great views.
We stayed at Fairfield Inn by Marriot - very quick walk and surrounded by Panera, McDonald's, and ice cream/quick marts...but it's a motel (exterior hallways), smaller room than the Hilton that we were used to.
This month we will be at Grand Californian....honestly never though I would stay on site, but the pandemic changes things! LOL ;-)

 

[ZehnJahren]

See if this list helps you.....
https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disneyland-anaheim-hotels-reviews-rankings/

Thank you!! I went down that rabbit hole, as I'm a major researcher no matter where we go. That is awesome - I am using that as a reference for sure.

 

[jennydep312]

We will be making our 2nd trip to DL/DCA in May 2022 to celebrate our daughter’s 25th birthday. She has Down syndrome and works 3 jobs. She decided she wants to save up to take the family to WDW. After some discussion, she changed it DL! We can’t wait! The whole idea of choosing a hotel is a bit overwhelming for me, but researching is fun!!

 

[ten6mom]

Best guesses on early October- think we will still be making park reservations and that hopping will be restricted?

I'm trying to decide whether to get hoppers or just the one park per day tickets. In the "before times" it wouldn't ever have crossed my mind to restrict myself to only one park per day, but I'm not sure that the increased price for hoppers will be worth it (I wouldn't buy hoppers if I were going tomorrow, for example).

 

[AquaDame]

Looks like I'm checking in July 7th! The hardest part was choosing flights which felt absurd.. usually they are plentiful and cheap from PDX! Just about all dining reservations are taken which I was expecting but I'll be keeping my ears open for anything new to open up between now and then!

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Best guesses on early October- think we will still be making park reservations and that hopping will be restricted?

I'd say yes. I think park reservations are here to stay permanently just based off the big wigs comments on how much they like that system. Park hopping? Hard to say but WDW has been open longer and they're still restricted so I'd plan for it.

 

[ten6mom]

I'd say yes. I think park reservations are here to stay permanently just based off the big wigs comments on how much they like that system. Park hopping? Hard to say but WDW has been open longer and they're still restricted so I'd plan for it.

Good points, all.

I opted for the hoppers... just to give us the best chance in case things "improve."

 

[wishing4PA]

Good points, all.

I opted for the hoppers... just to give us the best chance in case things "improve."

That's the main reason I went for the hoppers. Plus with the reservation system I'd hate to be stuck not being able to go at all into one park or the other on the last full day just b/c of a decision I made in May without having been to either park yet.
Now, if someone could just tell Disney that I'm coming from the South, so it'd be super nice if they could open up some DL TS restaurants that don't seem southern themed. We get enough of that here. (Although COVID sort of puts things in perspective. We've been not eating out for so long that almost anything will be a treat.)

 

[MikeRx]

We were able to snag $127 RT fares from PHX to BUR for a non Disney trip in August. So if you look at the area airports you may be able to find a deal.

We are driving over in July for our return to the magic, although we've been to WDW twice since DLR's closure. Almost feels like cheating...We are also waiting on many of the TS options to populate as we were able to snag a BB lunch & ATT nightcap (7/9), Craftsman lunch, TJs dinner (7/10), and NR dinner (7/11), and Storytellers breakfast (7/12), but the lack of DCA and DTD options for the 11th and 12th cause me to check back several times a day. We are looking to secure something other than Alfresco Tasting Terrace (ATT) or Craftsman Lounge for lunch on the 11th.

I'm sure it's staffing issues and capacity changes, but it is still maddening. Hopefully June 15th sees a host of times released and a few new options to deal with the growing summer crowds.
Mike

 

[Bigmace]

We were able to snag $127 RT fares from PHX to BUR for a non Disney trip in August. So if you look at the area airports you may be able to find a deal.

A small regional airport near me just started getting service from Avelo airlines which offers $19 one way tickets to the burbank airport. Somedays its a little more expensive but still can go round trip for less than $100 per person most days. But it seems like a headache to get to Anaheim / Disney from Burbank. And any savings from the flight would be lost paying for ground transportation.

 

[ten6mom]

Holy Toledo. Yesterday I booked the park reservations for October 4 (our first day) and today when I went back in to book October 5, October 4 is showing not available! That's only one day after the "window" for that date opened!