Disneyland Do’s and Don’ts: What’s YOUR Disneyland Advice?
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For more details, please see our disclosure policy.
Want to save this post?
Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, I'll send you time- and money-saving tips every week!
I grew up as a Disneyland girl. My dad was — and still is — a kid when it came to Mickey, Donald, and roller coasters. His excitement about a day at “the Happiest Place on Earth” was contagious. And we were raring to go whenever he said so. We lived about an hour’s drive away and made a trip every year. This was back in the days of E-tickets, so that tells you how old I am. There were no such things as Speed Passes or early entrance times.
Although Disneyland was a regular experience of my childhood, my children have never been. Yes, it’s true. For awhile the excuse was that they were too young, then we lived too far away, then we were in debt. Well, the excuse-making is over. Our kids are aged 12, 9, 7, 5, 3, and 1. We live an hour away. And the debt is gone.
It’s time.
But, before we go, I thought I would put out a call for help. The last time Fish and I went to Disneyland was 1996. We were newlyweds – no children. We have no clue how to do Disneyland. That’s where YOU come in! I know a lot of you have great wisdom as to best tackle such a monumental event. And the rest of you are clueless along with me.
So, this week is the FishMama Two Day Disney Extravaganza:
Tomorrow I’ll have Mr Linky up for you to share your Disney posts (Disneyland, Disneyworld, EuroDisney, Disney HongKong, DisneyTokyo). I think it would be so fun to tour the parks with you!
Today tell me your Do’s and Don’ts about Disneyland. What would you do? What would you avoid?
We go every other year when DH is traveling in CA. Me with 3 littles (now 9,8 and 3) by myself in DL – totally doable! LOVE the “unoffical Guide” books – have also used it for DW last August with grandparents in tow. Always stay at Embassy Suites in Garden City (closer to park entrance than Anaheim location) and is located on ART (Anaheim Resort Transit) bus line – cheap shuttle to park entrance. Bonus- ESuites has free made-to-order breakfasts each AM, free happy hour, and sleeps max of 6 people per room. We love that kids have own tv and parents have own room with tv. (I sound like I work for Hilton – i don’t) Just LOVE traveling to DL and DW w/ a frugal plan! DH thinks I’m nuts the way I overplan (meals, rides, souveniers, etc) but then loves when we are there relaxing. Also check out Disney Character Warehouse (about 15 min drive) for cheap souveniers. Have a great trip!
@Ann M,
We also love Embassy Suites. Sometimes we take too much for breakfast and bring some to DL. I also really like that there is a couch to sit on. When the kids are napping or already asleep, it’s nice to be able to still be an adult and stay up late. lol
I wish we were planning a trip like this, but our time will come! I found this Web site for couponing deals and have glanced at her Disney World information and it looks like great information.
http://www.couponingtodisney.com/
Thanks for doing some homework for me!
We just took our son and nieces and nephews to Disney World (6, 4, 22 months, 15 months). I was shocked, but we were allowed to take in food and drinks! Because we had two strollers we packed drinks, sandwiches, and snacks in soft coolers with ice. We didn’t have to battle lines to feed the kids. We did buy tons of ice cream though.
We also took advantage of the fast pass. We were a group of 10 so we let the kids ride with one adult multiple times on the same ride.
I went to Disney when I was 10 and it is a great childhood memory. I was I could take my kids!
We took our 3 year old and 5 month old last year and my 3 year old LOVED the goofy rollercoaster. Another must is the Princess lunch in Norway. Amazing service and we got to see all the princesses and they gave us pictures of my daughter with Belle. The one thing we were really disappointed with was the Little Enstein lunch. Horrible.
We went during the free dining plan- save us tons of money!!
@Linda, sorry, that was for disney world, not land.
My favorite thing to do after going every year for 20 plus years is to bring a big water bottle for all of us, instead of buying drinks like soda or juice or even pay for water is to just scoop up the ice from the vendors and fill up the bottle at the water fountains. The vendors don’t mind at all and its free, especially if its very hot and you need water all day and its good for you. And also do it while you are sitting forever waiting for the parade to start, park by a vendor and you will never loose your seat or leave your kids unattended.
Enjoy,
My daughter is 4. She’s already been to Disney World twice and is going for the 3rd time in just a few weeks.
DO consider renting a double stroller from the park. Even if you want to bring your own for the littlest one, the older kids will often crash as the day goes on. The park strollers have enough space for even the older kids to crash and take a little nap.
DO consider one of the interactive tours. Disney World has the Family Magic Tour which is part scavenger hunt and part mystery.
DON’T allow the souvenirs to get the best of you. Either set a limit for each child, or (like someone else suggested) buy disney souvenirs from the Disney store beforehand. You can keep them hidden until you arrive in the park and then give them to the kids. They will be so excited to have something new and disney themed that they won’t care it was purchased in advance.
DO invest in autograph books for the kids (either buy at the park or in advance). There’s usually a long line to visit the characters, but its a fun activity for the kids.
DO consider the character meals (reservations usually required). Most of the ones I have been to are all-you-can-eat (either buffet or family style dining). The price tag can sometimes be high, but the food is excellent and it will certainly give everyone enough to eat. The characters are a blast too!
DO buy a squirt bottle with a fan attachment on the front. I’ve been told you can buy these at Wal-Mart. You can also get them at the park though its more expensive.
I ended up with a lot of DO’s and very little DON’Ts 🙂 Have a great time!
Thanks for all the ideas!
I wouldn’t take a kid under 4- good luck!
@janet,
Wow really? We live about 40 minutes from DL and just this year got passes. We took my son for the first time for his 2nd b-day. My daughter was just 6 months old. And YES there are TONS to do with little kids. We had a blast. Actually my son was tall enough for matterhorn so that was the first ride we went on. 🙂
I guess maybe it depends on the temperment of the child. My children (now 4 and 3) have always done awesome.
last piece of advice, time indoor rides, shows and browsing the shops during the hottest part of the day.
I love Disneyland. I’m not sure if you know how the Fast Pass system works, but you need to scan your ticket to get them and you can only have 1 fast pass per ticket at a time (you have to get one, use it on a ride, then you can get another). So look at the return times listed at the fast pass station before you get one. Also some big rides don’t have them, like the Matterhorn. Also, since fast passes are tied to your ticket it’s a good idea to have a central place where you can keep all your tickets and all your fast passes together so nothing get’s lost. That’s why those neck pouches for tickets are kind of cool but I’m sure you can think of another solution too.
CA Adventure is pretty small and doesn’t need a whole day. So either get a park hopper so you can go back to Disneyland or spend your 2nd day when you’re tired there. There are some fun things for littler kids & Soaring over CA. There’s a list of the rides that have height requirements on the Disneyland website, it’s surprisingly few of them so your 1 year old can go on most rides (not Soaring, Matterhorn, Space Mountain–the obvious ones). At 1, my daughter went on almost everything.
Have fun! I’m sad to have moved away from CA so it’s not so convenient, luckily the grandparents are still in San Diego, so we’re hoping to go back the next time we visit.