I've never been to Disneyland

[tarheelalum]

A 4 day park hopper is good. A 5 day hopper is great. If money is not an issue for you then stay at one of the DL Hotels but if you are like most of us, staying offsite at Disneyland is by far the best bang for your buck. Disneyland is not like WDW when it comes to accommodations. Lots of great hotels within a very short and safe walk to DL. Some of them are a closer walk to the DL main gate than Disneyland's hotels so be sure to explore all of your options.

 

[usd2bmd]

Five days with park hoppers. Take advantage of the early admission for onsite guests.

1 day is not enough
2 days is rushed
3 days is adequate but a bit rushed
4 days is solid
5 days is the best in my book...

That would be five full days. However we are on the West coast and so it is a short hop on the plane home... We often leave the parks at 5PM on the fifth day..

Thank you. this helps.

 

[usd2bmd]

I have never seen a summary like this - and have never done five days at DLR myself - but having done four days multiple times - plus, 1, 2 and 3 days - I think you nailed it.

As the OP appears to have visited WDW multiple times, I would compare 3 days at DLR to 5-6 days at WDW, 4 days at DLR to 7-8 days at WDW, and 5 days at DLR to 9-10 days at WDW.

We have been multiple times to WDW and our stays are usually 8 days. your comparison helps a lot. I am so glad I came to this board to ask... there is so much information here. I am sure I will be back with many more questions.

 

[blondeoverbluenyc]

.

 

[YukonMommy]

*** would you do at DL for 5 days?

My answer is have fun, laugh and spend time with my family!! You can never have to much Disney!!

 

[althepostman]

Having children with you makes a big difference. Our first trip was five days and we missed a lot of stuff. Going for 6 this time.

 

[HydroGuy]

*** would you do at DL for 5 days? You can do the whole park in a day much like WDW. 5 days and i would die.

I suspect your definition of "doing a whole park" in a day is much different from mine and many others.

My definition of "doing DL" includes:

- Fantasmic
- Fireworks
- Soundsational parade
- Mickey and the Magical Map (sometimes)
- Riding most of the 40+ rides at DL (including all or most of the slow loading FantasyLand rides)
- repeating favorite rides at least once
- Blue Bayou
- Cafe Orleans
- Stopping and listening to street performances
- Getting Tigger Tails
- Stopping in numerous stores for my kids to buy stuff

We personally are not very into visiting characters but many people are. So add that - stopping to see 3 or 5 characters. Anna & Else was huge and took many people hours to see.

Take just the "Riding most of the 40+ rides at DL" part of my definition and try doing that in a day. It is pretty hard. I think the most rides I have ever done in a day is about 30.

Further throw in other really world issues that many young, single, healthy people do not think about...

- Young children in your group that need naps and frequent potty breaks and frequent stops in general to take in all that DL offers
- Elder people with mobility issues in your group that limit how fast you can move
- Anyone with a special needs person in your group

Add all that up and it means maybe...

Wednesday Thursday Friday = 3 Days

 

[Angel Ariel]

*** would you do at DL for 5 days? You can do the whole park in a day much like WDW. 5 days and i would die.

Dlr has so many more entertainment options than wdw...the small things like musical chairs at coke corner, the green army guys show at dca...I would take time to see these kinds of things that are unique to DLR. There's so much more to the park than rides!

 

[usd2bmd]

Dlr has so many more entertainment options than wdw...the small things like musical chairs at coke corner, the green army guys show at dca...I would take time to see these kinds of things that are unique to DLR. There's so much more to the park than rides!

Things like this are good to know for us. I like the shows and things, my husband and daughter are ride people.

 

[Angel Ariel]

Things like this are good to know for us. I like the shows and things, my husband and daughter are ride people.

Musical chairs was one of my favorite things last time we were there, even though we didn't have a child and were just watching. It was fun to see the characters playing with the.kids.like that!

 

[Pooh2]

We had our first DL trip last fall. It was really hot and we could have used an extra day to split with an early morning park visit/pool afternoon. We had a 3 full days, would definitely go for an extra day next time to enjoy resort.

 

[pmaurer74]

We are planning 5 days. We have never been but we usually spend 3 days at MK so I am planning the same for DLR and 2 days at DCA. We are not park commandos so we likely will go back to the hotel in the afternoon for swimming and then back to the parks in the evening. This is likely our only trip so I do not want to feel rushed to have to do it all in one day. We are big on characters. However, if we are done early then I plan to spend a few days at the beach or go to San Diego.

 

[jkquinn]

My definition of "doing DL" includes:

- Fantasmic
- Fireworks
- Soundsational parade
- Mickey and the Magical Map (sometimes)
- Riding most of the 40+ rides at DL (including all or most of the slow loading FantasyLand rides)
- repeating favorite rides at least once
- Blue Bayou
- Cafe Orleans
- Stopping and listening to street performances
- Getting Tigger Tails
- Stopping in numerous stores for my kids to buy stuff

This is awesome....as it's my first visit to Disneyland it's great to read some must do's

 

[SplashMo]

We are planning 5 days. We have never been but we usually spend 3 days at MK so I am planning the same for DLR and 2 days at DCA. We are not park commandos so we likely will go back to the hotel in the afternoon for swimming and then back to the parks in the evening. This is likely our only trip so I do not want to feel rushed to have to do it all in one day. We are big on characters. However, if we are done early then I plan to spend a few days at the beach or go to San Diego.

Only trip and first trip, etc.. 5 days is perfect. I would recommend Park Hoppers.

Consider the distance from the AK gate to the Safari ride. In that amount of time/distance you have hoped between some place in one park to someplace in the other park. (Assuming a short line at the gate of each park but that is often the case during the middle of the day...

 

[8lovesmickey]

It also depends on how old your kids are and how long they can last as well as the crowd size. I have two teenagers, and for us three full days is perfect when the park has long hours. We go at rope drop and/or early entry, ride as much as we can until lunch or we get tired (which is a lot when you get there first thing), then go back to the hotel for a swim (usually shopping at DTD on the way). Back to the parks around parade or dinner time when lots of people are leaving.

Of course we go about once a year, so there are some attractions we don't always do. If your kids are younger and you want to see everything without rushing or falling over from exhaustion, I would say at least 4 full days.

You'll love it

 

[ldarcy]

My family and I are in the beginning stages of planning a trip out west and it will of course include a trip to Disneyland.

Since we have never been and I know pretty much nothing about Disneyland how many days should we plan on to properly visit the parks?

This may very well be our only trip out there so we want to make sure we hit as much as possible.

Thanks for your insight.

Depending on when you go, you can see everything leisurely in 4 days, but even 3 oughta do it. Unlike WDW, which is a huge resort, DL is more properly 2 amusement parks. Disney & fabulous amusement parks(!), but not a resort.

 

[KookyDisneyFam]

The first few times we went, a 3 day park hopper was great but if it's your only trip ever, ever, EVER---get a 4 day park hopper. Our last trip, we did a 1 park per day thing and 1 day in California Adventure was plenty, we could easily spend 3 days in DL alone. But with your first trip, get a park hopper pass. You'll love it!

 

[goooof1]

I agree with the 5 day hopper folks.....you won't regret it. I used to do 3 days and it was never enough! Now 4 days gives us more leisurely enjoyment, but still missing lots of things!
5 day hoppers will allow you to stop and smell the roses and see many, many things that you would miss if you were only there 3 days... As a mostly ride person, the shows can be pretty spectacular! (Fantasmic!, Aladdin, etc......)

 

[coaches24]

*** would you do at DL for 5 days? You can do the whole park in a day much like WDW. 5 days and i would die.

I've done a 5 day trip with park hoppers and it was an amazing trip. And there are still things in both parks I never made it to. I would gladly do 5 days or even more if I had it in my budget. 3 days is usually what I can pull off with some saving. Sooo much to do and see there that is a ton of fun.

I've also done one day at DL and while it was a fun trip I did only a fraction of what I would normally do on a longer trip because there just isn't enough time in a day to get it all done.

 

[nikerbokers]

We do 3 days. 2 at DLP and 1 at DCA. I really think this is plenty of time, especially if it's not summer or Christmas time. Maybe 4 if it is summer or holiday time.

This also includes leaving for 2-3 hours a day for a nap.