Disney Land...have No Idea Where to Start

There are books written about this! The unofficial guide to disney. I read a lot before we went. Even things like going to the right, the opposite way everybody goes when you come in the gates. Great info.

I was just there yesterday. Call AAA (if you are a member and they have discounts) or Costco here in S.Cal have deals for like 3 days (?) passes.

There are hotels across the street from Disney and there is a phenomenal hotel right on the property, which if you stay there, you get into the park early. It's expensive.

We have 4 kids and we will not stay in hotels, unless we have to. We will rent from VBRO on vacation. We stayed in Boston and the hotels there were like $400/night and we needed 2 of them! We found a place in South Boston for $165/night with a full kitchen, etc. The hotels might be cheaper near Disney, since it's off season.

http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/usa/california/orang...

Don't rent a car for the entire time. Many of the hotels can get one for you for the day, if you want to explore. You are just 20 minutes from SNA (Orange County airport) OR sometimes www.JetBlue.com have better deals, which fly into Long Beach (28 minutes) from Disney. Some of the hotels may have a shuttle or just get an airport shuttle. Also, I have found, depending on the number of people, www.Limos.com may have better deals. If you DO rent a car, then wait until the week you are leaving and check out their last minute deals. (I just went to Chicago - on my way to Wisconsin last month - and they wanted $80 for an SVU each day when I looked 2 months earlier. 2 days before the trip, they dropped to $30/day!!!)

Hit Costco from the airport (we have them everywhere! if you have a membership) and get water, snacks, grapes, etc. You can bring all of that into the park and you'll be glad you did. Snacks and water alone can easily add up to $50/day for 5 people....and forget wanting to eat lunch at the park everyday.

Ok, now once inside the park, one of the best and cheapest places to eat is in Frontierland, next to the Baazar. It has meat and veggies on sticks. It's super good. We tried one of everything and then went back and got more of what we really liked. We fed our family lunch for $30 yesterday.

If your kids are shorter than some of the rides, ask for a SWITCH RIDER PASS. You'll thank me. ;)

If you have ANY other questions, let me know. I've lived here in S.Cal for 25 years and we have an annual pass for our family to Disney.

1. Find the airplane tickets and use a site like TripAdvisor to let you know when the tickets drop in price.

2. Find accomodations.

3. Tickets

4. Then figure out what the weather will be - it's ALWAYS nice here - and pack!

5. Have the time of your life!

http://www.mousesavers.com/

This will help not only with hotels but everything pertaining to your Disney stay.

Weather-wise it's usually nice that time of year, sweaters, hoodies and light jackets should do well, you can layer them if necessary.

Have fun!! :)

Well just a tip per booking your airline seats reservations.
Go to www.seatguru.com and you can "choose" the seats you want. Its really GREAT.
The airlines uses this too and even our Travel Agent knew about it and uses it. That way, you can, since you have kids, plan what seating you want.
We used this for our trips and when my Hubby took my daughter to Europe, even with all the plane switching etc. for their entire trip to and from. They got seats, near the bathrooms, and in 2 seater rows etc. so it was comfortable for them and per leg space, and they didn't have to be "stuck" in between people in those middle aisles. For example.

When I booked our seats and for my Hubby/daughter's trip, I just told them, while talking to the Airline on the phone "I'm here looking at Seat Guru... per the plane we will be on, I want these seats. Is it available?" and they were right there looking at it too, and I then reserved the seats.
It was no problem. Its great. Got the exact seats we wanted.

I will say that when my family and I just went this past April we dressed in light clothing such as jeans and t-shirts with tennis shoes and brought a light jacket for the evening. We've done this trip a few different times and depending on the ages of your children that will give you an idea where to start. For instance, Toon Town is great and fills up quickly but I've found if you hit it first thing upon entering the park you can have a wonderful time without waiting forever. They do have lockers on site for rent, some just outside of the entrance where you can keep your valuables or a picnic lunch. If you have a child that is disabled or must remain in a stroller for the majority of the trip I highly recommend stopping by City Hall to get a disability pass which allows you to keep your stroller with you at all times while either in line or waiting at the disabled entrance. If needed you can even stop by the baby station - no your child does not need to be baby to use it but must be under a certain height unless otherwise disabled. I had no issues using it with my almost 6 year old for a quiet place to do diaper changes. They also have lower to the ground toilets for little ones as well as a dining area separate from the aforementioned.

Passes are expensive especially for just a one day trip but it's worth it all of course. Take tons of pictures and above all else remember to have fun.

We've stayed several times at the Embasy Suites on Harbor. It is a little ways away from the park, but the "red trolly" will stop right in front of the hotel (you do have to by passes to ride). The great thing about the hotel is the free breakfast, yes it is crazy with all the guests getting up and being fed, but worth it in my opinion. The Disneyland Hotel would be great, but would probably cost half your budget!!

The weather should be great, especially coming from Wisconsin!!

We are heading to Anahiem in about two weeks and we are starting to get excited. Can't wait to see the new "Cars Land".

Have fun.

M

Disneyland has it's own hotel. And the Anaheim Convention Center is right across the street so there are lots of hotels and a few campgrounds right there. There are also several restuarants in Disneyland itself but I thought the food was kinda pricy. Again there are lots of places to eat within a block or two of Disneyland.
I would log on to the Anaheim Visitors and Conventions website and look for ideas.
Knott's Berry Farm is also close. An amusement park that is not as well known as Disney but lots of fun too. You will also be able to visit the beach if you like.
I move away from So. Cali 17 yrs ago and haven't been to Disney in a long time. If things haven't changed too much the last time I was there they did 2 parades a day. Stand close to the next ride you want to get on during the parade and as it is winding up get in line. No wait for that one. Also depending on the age of your kids wait until later in the day to go on the most popular rides. Parents take home little ones so the lines get shorter as the night gets longer.

6K you will have no problem with any of the questions you seek...that is a very healthy budget for a trip to Disneyland, depending on of course, plane fair and length of stay.

Google is your friend.

Costco usually has great deals on park passes...but the Disneyland website would be my first stop!

Clothes wise, comfy jeans/pants, a t-shirt and a hoodie and you should be good to go...comfy kicks are a must, of course!

Have fun!

~I grew up in LA and have been to Disneyland more times than I can count. We took all our kids for the 1st time (I live in WA state now) a couple years back...we stayed at I think the ?Best Western? that is directly across the street from the main gate and it wasn't the nicest hotel choice but it did the job!! If I had your budget I would stay at the resort/hotel on site. You can grocery shop and or eat anywhere you like.
**Now I am craving some El Pollo Loco! Mmmmm! I miss my CA!

Allears.net will cover everything.

Are you a AAA member? If you are, go price the trip with them. Then talk to Disney on the phone. See which one offers you the best deal.

I'd go through the search feature here on Mamapedia (sorry it's so bad) typing in Disney and read as much as you have time to read. Copy and paste what you like on a word document, and use it to help you make some decisions about where to stay.

With the budget you have, you could easily stay on the Disney grounds and never have to drive. It was so nice not having to rent a car at all. You can even order food online (I learned that on this site) and have it delivered to your room so that you can eat breakfast in the room and pack lunches. The food plan is very expensive.

Try this and go from there.

Dawn

LOL our first "real" Disneyland trip was 2002, the kids were 3, 6 and 9 and we had a blast!
(I say "real" because we went when our son was two so that didn't really count.)
Nothing was really planned, so to speak, we had a reservation for one character breakfast, and we are close enough (5 hours) to drive, so no flights or rental cars, and we just booked a room at the Disneyland Hotel, kind of expensive, but easy, close and nostalgic :)
I do NOT suggest the meal plans, unless you are used to consuming over 5,000 calories a day, it's way too much and not worth it. We kept a small cooler with juice, snacks, milk, etc.in our room, and only ate lunch and dinner in the park (we usually bought three meals at a time to feed a family of five and that was MORE than enough!)
I don't know how old your kids are but you can't bring your stroller in any of the lines, so be prepared for that (every ride/attraction has a special stroller parking area.)
Most important: HAVE FUN!!! See at least one parade and make sure everyone gets mouse ears :)

disboards.com is an awesome forum!

We live nearby, so I don't really know much about hotels. As for the weather, it can vary a lot and is usually cool in the mornings in the spring (though nothing like Wisconsin). Jeans, a t-shirt and a lightweight jacket or sweatshirt will be plenty. You can always check weather.com before you pack for a 10 day forecast to help know what to expect.

If your kids are young and still nap, I HIGHLY recommend going back to your hotel mid-day for a couple of hours and getting some sleep/rest. It is most crowded in the afternoon anyway (like 12 - 4ish), so taking a couple of hours off during this time isn't so bad. You will all be much happier if you don't have cranky kids in the evening and can enjoy the park when it's a little less crowded.

Most schools here will have spring break around the first week of April, so if you can avoid that time, you'll have fewer crowds as well.

Stop at City Hall (on your left side at the beginning of Main Street) to collect "First Visit" pins. It's a nice, free souvenir.

There aren't really discount sites. The local Costcos sometimes have discounted multi-day tickets, but you couldn't really figure that out in advance. Local AAA may also have discounted tickets (you can check a AAA near you, not sure if they would).

Get Fast Passes for the rides that offer them so you don't have to wait in the longest lines. You can usually only have one FastPass at a time though, so you need to choose wisely. They also offer "Rider Switch" programs on rides with height limits. For example: if one of your three kids is too short for a ride, your husband and one child can ride it while you wait off the ride with the other two. Once they're off, you can go in through the exit and get to the front of the line to ride with the other child. Just tell the workers at the front of the ride that you are planning to do Rider Switch.

PM me if you want more info. I'll try to think of some other good tips. Disboards.com is awesome!

You can book the room now, then apply the sale code later when you find them on disboards.com
Last year, around January, they had 40% off any room.
Are you military? They get free dining and half off but you have to check at the base and catch those rare times.