View Single Post
Old 10-28-2016, 08:13 AM   #39
GreenLantern
One of the Nine
 
GreenLantern's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Space Sector 2814
Exp:
Default

I didn't read a lot of posts so some of this might be a re post but... don't pay attention to crowd calender, we tried that as well and it didn't work. We ended up being there on what the people working called the second busiest day they had seen that year (in October). It is just the luck of the draw really. There are definitely times you can avoid, like Christmas or later into the Halloween season, but as far as a random mid week like yourself.. it is up to chance. But honestly even with the park being that busy, I still didn't find it that bad. I guess I was just expecting absolute chaos. The lines sucked, but we just did the fast pass thing and it was no head ache. Hit the rides without fast pass early in the morning when it is dead. Ahh ya, side note, you want to be there when the park opens with little ones, the longer the day goes the busier it gets and the more tired they will get in the heat. Get them up and out early enjoy, take a break in the heat, resume in the evening. We actually went back to our hotel and napped from like 2:30-5.

DCA is a lot of fun. The best ride in both parks is located there, Radiator Springs Racer, and it is an extra bonus if you're kids love the movie Cars. Go do the ride first thing in the morning if you can as the line gets to be over 2 hours by mid day and the fast pass actually sells out usually by noon as well (it doesn't cost money but there are a limited number of spots per day). We did the ride first thing then went back at night and all the characters (actual sized characters) were out driving up and down the streets talking to all of the kids. I was there with my wife but watching the interaction with the kids they just could not believe that this life sized car was talking to them. The animatronics on the ride/characters is top notch (as is everything in Disney).

Google Radiator Springs Racer wide right. It seems really weird, but this is what I did and it worked, there was probably 150 people waiting for the park to open and we were 2nd on the ride, we were actually first but I let a little guy go in front of us and gave them their own car because he was so excited with the possibility of being first, lol. You will want to look at the schedule and pick a day they aren't offering Magic Morning for DCA (assuming you don't have it) otherwise you might as well not even bother.

DCA also has the roller coaster if you like that, it is tame as far as they go but still worth a ride. You can also get beer there, good beer to, and wine at the pasta restaurant. With your little ones you obviously aren't getting loaded but after dealing with crowds all day trust me a nice glass of wine or a cold beer on the pier in the shade goes a long way. Grizzly River Run is also a great family ride but you will get wet, that is ok if it is a hot day, but make sure your girls are ok with that ahead of time.

There is also a giiiiant ferris wheel, massive swings ride, Soarin Over California is a neat experience for all ages, I won't spoil it but you sit in a chair and it feels like you are literally flying over the state. And there are a few more I am forgetting.. but the point is don't sell DCA short, it is usually quieter and has some really good rides. But again, your 10 year old might be down for lots of them but the 7 year old might be a bit tiny.

Now all that being said, you are bringing girls. And at the risk of being attacked on my twitter account, I imagine they like princesses (GASP DID HE JUST GENDER ASSUME!!). When I was there Frozen was in DL, but I think now it is in DCA, and so is Little Mermaid. But the rest will be in DL. So if you only have one day I would either do DL or get a park hopper (slightly more money but you can go freely back and forth between parks) and do 75% DL, 25% DCA. If you have two days though like we did, we ended up doing DL all one day then about a 80/20 split DCA/DL the second day.

Also check your schedule for parades/shows. I forget the name of the main show at night, if you're kids can last that long (naps are key!) but it has Micky and it was amazing. There is also a water color show in DCA where they project a screen on to some water jets with the ferris wheel in the background. Both are worth seeing, but pick the DL one if you have to choose one. And of course make sure your kids get to see one of the DL parades.

We stayed in the DL hotel and it was incredible, we could see DCA from our window and actually watched the fire works from there the first night as we got in late. It was pricey though and probably won't ever go that route again. You can save yourself hundreds of dollars a night staying in an off site hotel. It was worth the money, for sure, we were like a 4 minute walk to the park as well, but just looking at how much you can save would change most peoples minds. I would recommend staying near there if you are doing 2 days, if you aren't you can probably just drive in. But remember Anaheim is not LA, DL is in Anaheim, not LA. It's minimum 30 minutes from Anaheim to LA proper without traffic, hours with. I avoided driving the freeways between 7-9 and 4-6 every day and we never hit gridlock. The one day we deviated from the schedule to drive the strip and we ended up just on the tail end of it, came up the hill and 6 lanes as far as the eye can see completely stopped. Luckily our exit was very close. No matter what though you will want to rent a car, this is just a bunch of cities all grouped together with no major public transportation besides an extensive bus system. Uber works great as well though, but I would still want a car. Just get a good GPS, should come with the rental for extra, mine would highlight which exact lane I needed to be in to exit.

I would honestly just avoid Santa Monica/Venice with the kids, go to Laguna or something instead, or drive up the coast a bit to Malibu. They were both very dirty and stunk, the crowd was very rubby and the only attraction is the pier with an amusement park, but you are coming from DL. It will be like going from Calgary to Edmonton. Malibu and Laguna both have great piers and are very clean. Plus the Pacific Coast Highway is really cool, obviously it can't hold a candle to the Cabot Trail, but it is still really neat to drive the coast with places you and the family can stop to stretch your legs and walk the beach.
__________________
"In brightest day, in blackest night / No evil shall escape my sight / Let those who worship evil's might / Beware my power, Green Lantern's light!"

Last edited by GreenLantern; 10-28-2016 at 08:19 AM.
GreenLantern is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to GreenLantern For This Useful Post: