Just returned from a 3 day trip to Disneyland (Sat, Feb 24-Mon, Feb 26) and we had a BLAST! Genie + was amazing and made our trip so easy. Sunday at Disneyland was a dream- after the fireworks the park cleared out and most rides were walk ons. The Disney App made everything so easy to navigate and mobile ordering was the best. I much prefer doing quick service compared to long sit down meals, as it saves so much time. Taking a break midday was key, and using that time to recharge and stack lightening lanes worked so well. Loved the PhotoPass pictures. Make time to stop and do these! Our kids don’t love roller coasters, so we skipped most of those. Rise of the Resistance was the highlight. The trip was magical 
Saturday, Feb 26: Crowd Level (8/10)
10:45am: Arrived California Adventure
10:50am: Picture with Minnie Mouse
11:10am: Spiderman Show
11:30am: Radiator Spring Racers (LL)
11:45am: Lunch @ Flo’s (delicious!)
12:15pm: Disney Jr Dance Party
12:45pm: Mickey’s PhillarMagic
1:10pm: Under the Sea +
1:30pm: Wine Break @ Wine Trattoria
2:10pm: Webslingers +
2:30pm: Pool Break @ Hotel
5:30pm: Monsters Inc +
6:00pm: Bought Souvenirs
6:30pm: Toy Story +
7:00pm: Dinner @ Boardwalk Pizza
8:00pm: Got Spot for WOC (don’t recommend getting there so early)
9:00pm: World of Colour
9:15pm: Webslingers (round 2!)
9:45pm: Luigi’s Racers
10:00pm: Park Closing
Sunday, February 25: Crowd Level 5/10
7:15am: Arrived Disneyland Front Gates
7:40am: Starbucks Coffee from Market Place on Main St.
8:00am: Rope dropped Peter Pan
8:15am: Dumbo
8:25am: Alice & Wonderland
8:40am: Storybook Land Canals
9:00am: Minnie & Mickey Train (love!) +
9:25am: Cadget Go Coaster
9:40am: ToonTown Playground
10:00am: Roger Rabbit Cartoon Spin (least favourite ride of the trip)
10:20am: Matterhorn +
10:40am: Breakfast @ Red Rose Cafe
11:15am: PhotoPass Photo Star Wars Land
11:30am: Millennium Falcon +
12:00pm: Rise of Resistance (LL)
12:45pm: Lunch @ Hungry Bear
1:15pm: Pirates of Caribbean +
1:30pm: Pool Break @ Hotel
4:45pm: Returned to Disneyland
5:00pm: PhotoPass at Front Entrance
5:15pm: Spot for Parade in front of Firehall
5:30pm: Parade
6:10pm: Buzz Lightyear +
6:25pm: Star Tours +
6:45pm: Autopia +
7:15pm: Dinner @ Galactic Grill
7:45pm: Thunder Mountain(Rider Switch)+
8:00pm: Star Wars Land @ Night
8:30pm:
Dad & Son: re-rode Millennium Falcon 3x and Rise of Resistance 2x (chose to miss fireworks)
Mom & Daughter: Jungle cruise in the dark and re-rode Pirates of Caribbean (both walk ons), got cookies & hot chocolate from Holly Jolly Bakery & got a great spot in front of bakery for fireworks 10 min before show
9:30pm: Fireworks
10:15pm: Re-rode Rise of Resistance (4th time that day for father & son!)
10:45pm: Fantasyland (all rides except Peter Pan were walk ons): Dumbo, Carousel, Snow White, Pinocchio, Mr Toad’s Wild Ride
11:30pm: Headed back to hotel before park closed at midnight
Best day ever
Monday, February 26: Crowd Level 6/10
Decided we got so many rides done on Sunday, we could skip rope drop & sleep in. Monday was much busier than Sunday.
9:30am: Arrived at Disneyland
9:40am: Star Tours +
10:00am: Breakfast @ Red Rose Cafe
10:40am: it’s a small world +
11:00am: Minnie & Mickey Train
11:30am: Pirates of Caribbean +
11:45am: Swiss Family Tree House
12:00pm: Jungle Cruise
12:30pm: Rise of Resistance (LL)
1:00pm: Millennium Falcon +
1:30pm: Davy Crockett Canoes
1:45pm: Tom Sawyer Island
2:30pm: Autopia +
2:50pm: Lunch @ Galactic Grill
3:10pm: Left park to catch plane @ LAX
Shows & Parade: I would not arrive more than 10 min before showtime. We found good spots each time right before shows started. For WOC you can probably see better standing far back than you can being close up.
Weather: We got a mix of everything on our trip, but we never needed full on rain gear (rain ponchos would have been best to store easily in stroller). Clouds at the park are nice because it keeps you cool, but for future trips we’ll go during the fall or spring when there’s a better chance of sun.
Clothing: shorts in the day & leggings at night with a t-shirt, sweatshirt, & runners. A light puffer jacket late at night was nice in addition to sweatshirt. I did not find I needed two pairs of runners, one pair was fine. Next time I’m investing more in Disney outfits- totally worth it for the photos!
Hotel: stayed across the street at Tropicana Inn. Location was awesome and the hot tub was great, but beds weren’t that comfortable, you could hear your neighbours talking & there was not daily house keeping. Next time I’ll be looking for a hotel in similar location but that offers daily house keeping & has bunk beds for the kids. Will probably try Candy Cane Inn or Courtyard Marriott Theme Park next time.
Stroller: We rented a double City Select from Bree on BabyQuip with a stroller organizer & rain cover. All in like new condition. She was able to drop it off & pick it up for us at our hotel & included a little gift for our kids. A stroller for kids 7 and under is an absolute must. 20,000 + steps a day is hard for little ones to keep up with, plus it’s a place to store all your stuff!
Crowds: Maybe the reservation system is working, as I found these to be the most reasonable crowds I’ve experienced at Disney. Sunday night seems to be a prime time to go, with many people leaving after fireworks to get ready for work or finishing their vacation.
We got way more done than I had ever hoped for! This was our best Disney trip so far and I can’t wait to go back!
Saturday, Feb 26: Crowd Level (8/10)
10:45am: Arrived California Adventure
10:50am: Picture with Minnie Mouse
11:10am: Spiderman Show
11:30am: Radiator Spring Racers (LL)
11:45am: Lunch @ Flo’s (delicious!)
12:15pm: Disney Jr Dance Party
12:45pm: Mickey’s PhillarMagic
1:10pm: Under the Sea +
1:30pm: Wine Break @ Wine Trattoria
2:10pm: Webslingers +
2:30pm: Pool Break @ Hotel
5:30pm: Monsters Inc +
6:00pm: Bought Souvenirs
6:30pm: Toy Story +
7:00pm: Dinner @ Boardwalk Pizza
8:00pm: Got Spot for WOC (don’t recommend getting there so early)
9:00pm: World of Colour
9:15pm: Webslingers (round 2!)
9:45pm: Luigi’s Racers
10:00pm: Park Closing
Sunday, February 25: Crowd Level 5/10
7:15am: Arrived Disneyland Front Gates
7:40am: Starbucks Coffee from Market Place on Main St.
8:00am: Rope dropped Peter Pan
8:15am: Dumbo
8:25am: Alice & Wonderland
8:40am: Storybook Land Canals
9:00am: Minnie & Mickey Train (love!) +
9:25am: Cadget Go Coaster
9:40am: ToonTown Playground
10:00am: Roger Rabbit Cartoon Spin (least favourite ride of the trip)
10:20am: Matterhorn +
10:40am: Breakfast @ Red Rose Cafe
11:15am: PhotoPass Photo Star Wars Land
11:30am: Millennium Falcon +
12:00pm: Rise of Resistance (LL)
12:45pm: Lunch @ Hungry Bear
1:15pm: Pirates of Caribbean +
1:30pm: Pool Break @ Hotel
4:45pm: Returned to Disneyland
5:00pm: PhotoPass at Front Entrance
5:15pm: Spot for Parade in front of Firehall
5:30pm: Parade
6:10pm: Buzz Lightyear +
6:25pm: Star Tours +
6:45pm: Autopia +
7:15pm: Dinner @ Galactic Grill
7:45pm: Thunder Mountain(Rider Switch)+
8:00pm: Star Wars Land @ Night
8:30pm:
Dad & Son: re-rode Millennium Falcon 3x and Rise of Resistance 2x (chose to miss fireworks)
Mom & Daughter: Jungle cruise in the dark and re-rode Pirates of Caribbean (both walk ons), got cookies & hot chocolate from Holly Jolly Bakery & got a great spot in front of bakery for fireworks 10 min before show
9:30pm: Fireworks
10:15pm: Re-rode Rise of Resistance (4th time that day for father & son!)
10:45pm: Fantasyland (all rides except Peter Pan were walk ons): Dumbo, Carousel, Snow White, Pinocchio, Mr Toad’s Wild Ride
11:30pm: Headed back to hotel before park closed at midnight
Best day ever
Monday, February 26: Crowd Level 6/10
Decided we got so many rides done on Sunday, we could skip rope drop & sleep in. Monday was much busier than Sunday.
9:30am: Arrived at Disneyland
9:40am: Star Tours +
10:00am: Breakfast @ Red Rose Cafe
10:40am: it’s a small world +
11:00am: Minnie & Mickey Train
11:30am: Pirates of Caribbean +
11:45am: Swiss Family Tree House
12:00pm: Jungle Cruise
12:30pm: Rise of Resistance (LL)
1:00pm: Millennium Falcon +
1:30pm: Davy Crockett Canoes
1:45pm: Tom Sawyer Island
2:30pm: Autopia +
2:50pm: Lunch @ Galactic Grill
3:10pm: Left park to catch plane @ LAX
Shows & Parade: I would not arrive more than 10 min before showtime. We found good spots each time right before shows started. For WOC you can probably see better standing far back than you can being close up.
Weather: We got a mix of everything on our trip, but we never needed full on rain gear (rain ponchos would have been best to store easily in stroller). Clouds at the park are nice because it keeps you cool, but for future trips we’ll go during the fall or spring when there’s a better chance of sun.
Clothing: shorts in the day & leggings at night with a t-shirt, sweatshirt, & runners. A light puffer jacket late at night was nice in addition to sweatshirt. I did not find I needed two pairs of runners, one pair was fine. Next time I’m investing more in Disney outfits- totally worth it for the photos!
Hotel: stayed across the street at Tropicana Inn. Location was awesome and the hot tub was great, but beds weren’t that comfortable, you could hear your neighbours talking & there was not daily house keeping. Next time I’ll be looking for a hotel in similar location but that offers daily house keeping & has bunk beds for the kids. Will probably try Candy Cane Inn or Courtyard Marriott Theme Park next time.
Stroller: We rented a double City Select from Bree on BabyQuip with a stroller organizer & rain cover. All in like new condition. She was able to drop it off & pick it up for us at our hotel & included a little gift for our kids. A stroller for kids 7 and under is an absolute must. 20,000 + steps a day is hard for little ones to keep up with, plus it’s a place to store all your stuff!
Crowds: Maybe the reservation system is working, as I found these to be the most reasonable crowds I’ve experienced at Disney. Sunday night seems to be a prime time to go, with many people leaving after fireworks to get ready for work or finishing their vacation.
We got way more done than I had ever hoped for! This was our best Disney trip so far and I can’t wait to go back!
