Tentative Day Itinerary at Disneyland

[StarSpeckledSky]

This can actually be a very good idea, especially if your sister decides she's sick of the stroller and wants to run around for a bit. You can leave them in Toon Town where she can safely explore and have fun and your dad can get snacks and drinks if he needs them. Then go do your thing, push as hard as you need to in order to get through your list, and meet up with them later for a meal. And everyone will be happy.

Yeah that could work - my dad might be concerned about loosing me but I'll have a phone to contact him with. I could probably go do the me-only rides and then meet up with them to do the ones for all three of us.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

I like this! Give dad a map and circle Toon Town, Tom Sawyer Island, Tarzan’s Treehouse, and the Tiki Room. Let them run around and play, and you all can meet up at a designated time for dinner, IASW, and Fantasmic. Would your dad be okay with you touring solo?

I'm not sure, I'll have to ask him. I'll do that soon.

 

[DisMomMT]

I think you have a good plan and outlook on flexibility. I think some of the responses are coming from a different point of view. It sounds to me like this is a trip where your dad is pretty much willing to take your sister and the 2 of them basically tag along with your trip sprinkling in the few things they would like along the way. I think you are probably going to make up for your aggressive wait times by your dad doing things like mobile ordering or picking up food for you while you are on a ride and then you can eat it while walking to or in line for the next thing. He also will likely let your sister explore, run, jump, etc. as needed while you are on one thing so hopefully he can load her in the stroller and travel quickly between things that way. I can see how this will work.

Be sure to make sure you show your complete appreciation for your dad and sister by making sure to be very helpful and agreeable to do things completely that they want (without complaining) on other days of your trip. You sound very mature and responsible so I’m sure you already will do this.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

I think your plan should go something like this:

• 7:10 am - arrive, park, wait for rope drop. After they've scanned your tickets and you've entered the park and you're "at the rope," buy Max Pass if it's in your budget to do so. Then get a FP for Space Mtn. Make a note of the time that it says you can grab your next FP. Set an alarm on your phone for that time.
• 8:00 am - go to Fantasyland. Even though it'll be EMH, Fantasyland ride wait times won't be in the 30 min range until later. Go on Mad Tea Party, Alice in Wonderland, Dumbo, Storybookland Canal Boats.
• ~ 9:00- go to Toon Town. Go straight to Mickey's house to meet him w/hardly any wait. Then go on Roger Rabbit. Then use your Space Mtn FP. Next FP you get should be for Star Tours. You can go on Matterhorn in single rider line while somebody else attends to the 3 yr old. Good time for the little one to have a quick break.
• When Star Tours FP return window opens, go on that.
• Then have everybody go on Buzz Lightyear.
• Now everybody goes on Pirates of the Caribbean.
• Then get a snack. Bathroom break.
• Then go on Haunted Mansion.
• FP you select after Star Tours should probably be Splash Mtn if the FP return time is before 11:30 am. Otherwise, get a FP with a return time after 2 pm when you'll be out of SWGE. While you go on Splash Mtn, others can take the little one on Winnie the Pooh.
  
• 11:30 am - enter SWGE
• 2:00 pm - exit SWGE.
• MID AFTERNOON - THIS is when you get the silhouettes done on Main Street. If you wait until 10 pm, then chances are that the 3 yr old will be asleep for it.
• OTHER MID-AFTERNOON TIME KILLER OPTIONS - Storytelling at Royal Theater, Mickey & the Magical Map, Great Moments with Mr Lincoln, get an ice cream, let the 3 yr old explore Toon Town some more. Be at your parade watching spot by IASW by 2:45 pm. So it would make a lot more sense to grab some Quick Service food in Fantasyland, for example, rather than walk all the way from SWGE at the back of the park to Adventureland for Bengal BBQ and then walk all the way back to the OTHER back side edge of the park to watch the parade by IASW. By the way, a better parade watching spot is right in front of or just to the left of the Alice in Wonderland themed bathrooms in Fantasyland. They're the bathrooms with the playing cards on the stall doors. There's a row of benches built into the side of the 'mountain' and there's a bathroom right there. If you're smart about it, THAT's where you should be ~ 2:30-2:45 pm for the 3:30 pm parade. Send 1 of the adults to a Quick Service location in Fantasyland for food while 1 of you holds your parade watching spot. Bring a light weight blanket to mark your territory. Same routine as at WDW. 1 of your party has to remain there. If the 3 yr old is potty training, I guarantee you that the kid will need to use the toilet right before the parade because 3 yr olds never give you enough advanced notice that they need to use the bathroom! Haha!
• If everything has an enormous wait between the 2 pm SWGE exit and finding a spot for the 3:30 pm parade, you should consider escaping to Tom Sawyer's Island. Kids LOVE exploring that area. You can also go on the Columbia Sailing Ship and the Mark Twain river boat. OR THIS is when you spend some time shopping. Or taking a family photo in front of the castle. Or taking the 3 yr old to Snow White's wishing well so the kiddo can drop a coin in and make a wish.
  
• Tarzan's Treehouse is a good time filler between parade & dinner/Fantasmic.
  
• 6:30 pm - pick up Hungry Bear F! dining package. Eat dinner.
• For Fantasmic! - You should actually get in line earlier than 30 min (even though it says 30 min beforehand on the Fantasmic FP). I think probably 8:45 pm.
• After fireworks, head to Fantasyland the back way through the back side of BTMRR. That's when you should go on IASW. You probably won't need a FP at that point. Then maybe go on Mr Road or Pinocchio. Peter Pan will have a 30-45 min wait right up until a few min before park close. If it's a 30 min wait, that's a "short" wait for Peter Pan.
• Earlier in the day, pay attention to FP return times so you can get a FP for BTMRR also. A good time to go on that would be between dinner & 8:45 pm when you'll line up for your Fantasmic! FP. There's a lot of open area around the BTMRR exit, so if the 3 yr old is wearing out, the kiddo can chill out there.

You'll probably need to skip the Finding Nemo submarines.

I am totally all for having a plan. I have a detailed daily plan every time we go to a Disney park. But you also need to keep some options in your mental back pocket so you can adjust on the fly as needed based on how wait times and crowds are.

I like this plan! So for BTMRR just get that for a time that will work well?

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

I think you have a good plan and outlook on flexibility. I think some of the responses are coming from a different point of view. It sounds to me like this is a trip where your dad is pretty much willing to take your sister and the 2 of them basically tag along with your trip sprinkling in the few things they would like along the way. I think you are probably going to make up for your aggressive wait times by your dad doing things like mobile ordering or picking up food for you while you are on a ride and then you can eat it while walking to or in line for the next thing. He also will likely let your sister explore, run, jump, etc. as needed while you are on one thing so hopefully he can load her in the stroller and travel quickly between things that way. I can see how this will work.

Be sure to make sure you show your complete appreciation for your dad and sister by making sure to be very helpful and agreeable to do things completely that they want (without complaining) on other days of your trip. You sound very mature and responsible so I’m sure you already will do this.

"It sounds to me like this is a trip where your dad is pretty much willing to take your sister and the 2 of them basically tag along with your trip sprinkling in the few things they would like along the way." Yep, that's it. My dad doesn't care much for any rides other than it's a small world and some of the classics in Fantasyland, plus Pooh maybe. My sister will just tag along. Your first paragraph is pretty spot on

I definitely will do that! Disneyland will be the highlight of the trip for ME, but we'll be going to San Diego and I think that that'll be the highlight for my dad so I plan on following whatever he wants to do there. Thank you!

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

Going to ask anyone who's paying attention - rope drop Fantasyland (even though we don't have EMH and it's an EMH day) or the west side of the park?

 

[dieumeye]

Going to ask anyone who's paying attention - rope drop Fantasyland (even though we don't have EMH and it's an EMH day) or the west side of the park?

Can't say what will be happening at FL at rope drop on a EMH day since I don't usually do that, but here is something I have done many Saturdays: go west at rope drop and hit Jungle Cruise, walked thru the treehouse, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, and then Winnie the Pooh all with little to no wait. Then often a Big Thunder FP I booked earlier that's pretty immediate, which allows me to book another one right around this point which is usually Matterhorn or Space Mtn when I'm doing this run.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

Can't say what will be happening at FL at rope drop on a EMH day since I don't usually do that, but here is something I have done many Saturdays: go west at rope drop and hit Jungle Cruise, walked thru the treehouse, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, and then Winnie the Pooh all with little to no wait. Then often a Big Thunder FP I booked earlier that's pretty immediate, which allows me to book another one right around this point which is usually Matterhorn or Space Mtn when I'm doing this run.

Thank you, I'll keep that in mind.

 

[smartlabelprint]

My sister would probably do well with nuts, cheese sticks, and chips, thank you for the suggestions!

Can you tell I have a 3 yo? Haha!

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

Can you tell I have a 3 yo? Haha!

Haha maybe a little...

 

[smartlabelprint]

Haha maybe a little...

I just thought of something...while you’re on splash mountain there isn’t much to explore around there. She might like Winnie the Pooh over and over. But he could take her over to Tom sawyer island. (Hope it’s still called that) it’s a little raft ride over to a walking trail with some fun stuff for little kids. There are restrooms over there in case she’s potty trained/training.

 

[smartlabelprint]

Going to ask anyone who's paying attention - rope drop Fantasyland (even though we don't have EMH and it's an EMH day) or the west side of the park?

I’d probably follow the plan aboveboard that suggest fantasyland first. It will be easier on your dad and sister. Plus, since that’s what your dad will like most get him started on a positive note!

(All 3 of you can pull paper fastpasses for IASW if needed. )

FP are quick and easy for big thunder. Its a fun one to ride during fireworks if you can time it.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

FP you select after Star Tours should probably be Splash Mtn if the FP return time is before 11:30 am. Otherwise, get a FP with a return time after 2 pm when you'll be out of SWGE. While you go on Splash Mtn, others can take the little one on Winnie the Pooh.

Oh personally I'd like to do Pooh (my favorite ride at Disneyland/WDW as a kid) so I'll replace Haunted Mansion with that (not interested in mansion)

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

I just thought of something...while you’re on splash mountain there isn’t much to explore around there. She might like Winnie the Pooh over and over. But he could take her over to Tom sawyer island. (Hope it’s still called that) it’s a little raft ride over to a walking trail with some fun stuff for little kids. There are restrooms over there in case she’s potty trained/training.

I've heard of that and went to the one at Magic Kingdom, it would probably be fun for my sister - she loves playgrounds/running around! She's potty trained but we'll still bring diapers in case, so that's good.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

I’d probably follow the plan aboveboard that suggest fantasyland first. It will be easier on your dad and sister. Plus, since that’s what your dad will like most get him started on a positive note!

(All 3 of you can pull paper fastpasses for IASW if needed. )

FP are quick and easy for big thunder. Its a fun one to ride during fireworks if you can time it.

Okay, thank you, I'll take that into consideration! I want to return to IASW before we leave maybe, even if we go in the morning because I'd like to end on a positive note too.

We'll probably stay in our F! viewing area for fireworks but I'll try to find a time for BTM as we're exploring throughout the day.

 

[VandVsmama]

Going to ask anyone who's paying attention - rope drop Fantasyland (even though we don't have EMH and it's an EMH day) or the west side of the park?

For a 3 yr old? Absolutely. Fantasyland first.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

For a 3 yr old? Absolutely. Fantasyland first.

Yep, I mean like for the day as a whole

 

[VandVsmama]

Yep, I mean like for the day as a whole

Fantasyland first because most of those rides are "slow loaders." So as the day progresses, the wait times go up. 3 yr olds can have short attention spans and not much patience. And as an adult, I find it torture to wait 30 min for Dumbo.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

Fantasyland first because most of those rides are "slow loaders." So as the day progresses, the wait times go up. 3 yr olds can have short attention spans and not much patience. And as an adult, I find it torture to wait 30 min for Dumbo.

Okay, thank you! So... waits should still be short-is even though it's an EMH day and we'll be entering at normal park rope drop?

 

[VandVsmama]

Okay, thank you! So... waits should still be short-is even though it's an EMH day and we'll be entering at normal park rope drop?

Correct!

FP rides to do in the morning:
Space Mountain
Star Tours
Indiana Jones

Why? As the day progresses, these FP return windows get later and later, which means that you have to wait longer in order to get your next FP.

FP that are usually easier to get:
BTMRR
Splash Mtn (unless it's a super hot day, then Splash Mtn FP are at a premium in terms of desirability)
Buzz Lightyear
Haunted Mansion

FP that can go either way depending on crowds:
Matterhorn