Can we do both parks in 2 days?

[chasemi]

We land at LAX at 12:26PM, so I figure we will be at our hotel (not sure which Good Neighbor yet) around 2PM. We are WDW vets but first time to DL. Our list: CA-Guardians of the Galaxy, Radiator Springs, Toy Story Midway Mania, Goofy Rollercoaster, Grizzly River, Incredicoaster; DL - Big Thunder, Buzz, Indiana Jones, Matterhorn, Space Mtn, Splash Mtn, Star Tours, Pirates of the Carribean. We will be able to get this done in July between Thursday at 2PM and Friday close? Will we need a Park Hopper? I'm used to the FP+ of WDW and am scared that by the time we get there all the Fast Passes for all the good rides will be sold out. We are interested in the World of Color show, but not really any parades or character meet n greets. Any advice?

 

[theluckyrabbit]

I'm moving this to the trip planning forum -- Disneyland (California). You'll get great advice there!

This thread will have lots of good information for you: A DLR Guide for WDW Vets.

In addition to WOC, think about seeing the PTN parade. That is an awesome nighttime parade, totally unique to DLR, and WDW has nothing like it right now.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

You’ll definitely need a parkhopper (at least for Friday) because you won’t be able to do all of the DCA stuff you have listed (rides + WOC) on Thursday. Even if you do make it to your hotel by 2 (which seems optimistic), it will take time to get into the parks...

I don’t know how 2-day tickets compare to buying two 1-day tickets price-wise, but you could do DL-only on Thursday and then a hopper for Friday if that proved more cost-effective.

You’ll need Maxpass, IMO, to accomplish the list you have there - those are a lot of headliners, and every single one has (or will have) FP.

I think it's possible, of course dependent on your touring style, strategy, crowds, and park hours. It will likely be quite a rigorous march without a lot of time to soak up atmosphere (and I think you should be interested in Paint the Night, but to each their own)...

For reference, yesterday (Memorial Day, so crowded) at 2:49pm, here was the list of available FPs using Maxpass:
At Disneyland:
It's a Small World: 2:50-3:50
Buzz: 3:15-4:15
Roger Rabbit: 3:20-4:20
Haunted Mansion: 3:20-4:20
Big Thunder: 4:20-5:20
Star Tours: 5:05-6:05
Matterhorn: 5:10-6:10
Splash Mountain: 5:20-6:20
Indiana Jones: 5:40-6:40
Hyperspace Mountain: 8:20-9:20
** Pirates will be here, too, no idea how that will fit in popularity-wise
At DCA:
Grizzly: 3:55-4:55
Goofy's: 4:00-5:00
Soarin': 6:05-7:05
GOTG: 9:10-10:00
RSR and TSMM were gone
** Granted, there's no Incredicoaster yet, which will spread these out, but the DCA list is clearly inferior to the DL list in terms of what's available mid-afternoon.

You would be able to knock out a fair amount of your DL rides on Thursday, then on Friday you could likely hit all of your DCA rides plus whatever you still had to do at DL.

 

[tarheelalum]

Possibly with a park hopper and max pass. When you arrive at 2pm some of the fast passes will be gone for the day. The others left will likely be for late in the day/evening. You will not get a lot done that day. RSR usually runs out of passes by late morning on most days. On the next you should get there before rope drop to do as much as you can. You will be able to get a lot done in the first hour or two of the day, but overall, it will be tough to get everything you want to accomplished in a day and a half.

 

[Whistlebee]

If your group is able and willing to ride single rider that will help quite a bit. I think if you can utilize single rider (especially on your arrival day), maxpass and rope drop you could get quite a bit done.

 

[figment_jii]

I also think you're very optimistic about when you'll get into the parks. How are you getting from LAX to DLR? I ask because it's about a 45 minute drive (in good traffic), plus you have to allow time to de-plane, collect luggage (if applicable), find a taxi/ride share, and then get to the hotel/motel, check-in, drop-off baggage, walk to the parks, get through security (which could be walk-up or backed-up, it's hard to say). I would guess that it'll be closer to 3:00 pm by the time you actually get into a park.

I would get the Park Hopper option because I don't think you'll have enough time to get all of things you want to do in the amount of time you have without hopping. My guess is that DL is opening later than DCA, so you can use the hopper to maximize that time. Friday is DCA's EMH morning, so it might be worth it to try and rope drop DL to see if you can knock as many rides as possible out in the first few hours. While I haven't used it, I would look into MaxPass for Friday at least because it might help you squeeze in a few more rides.

In terms of WoC, that's a tough one because to really see the show with a good view, you need to invest a lot of time (unless perhaps you're really tall and can see over the heads of most people). With your schedule, I don't know that you want to spend 1 to 2 hours waiting for WoC.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... In terms of WoC, that's a tough one because to really see the show with a good view, you need to invest a lot of time (unless perhaps you're really tall and can see over the heads of most people). With your schedule, I don't know that you want to spend 1 to 2 hours waiting for WoC.

For the best view with the least wait time, the WOC Dessert Party would be the best option. Pricey, yes, but it would guarantee you a seat (in an actual chair!) with a pretty-good-to-great view no matter where you are in that section, even if you walked up at the last minute because your seats would be reserved. With the other dining packages, you'd be looking at an hour's wait time and with the free FPs, at least a 90 minute wait to make sure of a good view. (Unless, as the pp pointed out, you are tall and can easily see over other guests from a back row.)

 

[Darkhaund]

You need a park hopper and get SUPER DUPER EARLY and have like a plan.. it is doable.. but difficult

 

[ninergrl6]

I agree with everyone else. You have a very ambitious list! MaxPass would make it much easier and save you time. It seems like park hopper is a must, at least on your full day.

 

[Shanti]

We were first-timers who did a full-day Saturday and half-day Sunday in early November and rode everything we wanted, sometimes multiple times. To do this, we:

1. Used MaxPass
2. Used Park Hoppers
3. Stayed onsite & used EMH both days
4. Skipped evening shows

I think it also helped that Saturday was a blockout day for most annual passes.

 

[Indiana Scott]

When you say "Do both parks", do you mean do everything in them?
If so then i would say no. I've been going for year and haven't done everything. But that's OK because the park will always be there and if you miss something this trip, you can look forward to doing that thing on the next - no matter when that is.

 

[CateinPhoenix]

When you say "Do both parks", do you mean do everything in them?
If so then i would say no. I've been going for year and haven't done everything. But that's OK because the park will always be there and if you miss something this trip, you can look forward to doing that thing on the next - no matter when that is.

Exactly. This. Can you "do" the must-dos from your list...absolutely. But that's not "everything".

 

[PirateRedhead]

We were first-timers who did a full-day Saturday and half-day Sunday in early November and rode everything we wanted, sometimes multiple times. To do this, we:

1. Used MaxPass
2. Used Park Hoppers
3. Stayed onsite & used EMH both days
4. Skipped evening shows

I think it also helped that Saturday was a blockout day for most annual passes.

This is great advice for tackling your list. Your real park time on arrival day will likely be later than 2 (if I were getting to LAX at 12:30, I'd bank on walking through the turnstiles at closer to 4) which might make paying for Maxpass seem like a waste, since you'll only have it for a few hours. But with limited time and a wish list like yours, you'll want Maxpass the whole time. Passes for a couple of the most popular attractions will likely be unavailable by the time you make it to DCA, so the parkhopper will be necessary. On your second day, get to the park as early as possible. Mornings are magical for knocking out lots of attractions!

 

[shooting4life]

I would do Disneyland first day since fast passes would be available. Single ride as much as you can on your list. Stay as late as possible. Second day I would start at Disneyland to finish what you haven’t don’t. Keep an eye then on Maxpass times for gotg and pick that up when it gets to the mid afternoon. Then head of a little before gotg masspass time, single ride rsr, then use your Maxpass for gotg then pick up Maxpass or Standby for the rest of the rides you want to do at dca which you should be able to do in just the afternoon/evening of one day.

 

[Abharmagic]

Following! You and I have similar backgrounds (WDW veterans) time of year (July) timeframe (I have 2.5 days) and list of “want to do” rides.

I’ll report back after our trip.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

It really depends. Can you make use of single rider, or will your party consist of children who cannot ride without an adult? That makes all the difference. I've done 2 parks in 1 day before, but that's on my own using maxpass, park hopping, and single rider. When I have my family, it significantly slows us down. Also, there are multiple attractions you're hoping to see that run out of FP for the whole day by mid-morning. RSR, for instance. I recommend doing DL on your first day because I'm thinking you'll actually get into the park around 4 based on my experience with checking in/checking baggage at any walking distance good neighbor and getting through security lines. In July, DL will be open until 12AM while DCA normally closes at 10. Then, be up and in line at DCA the next day at least 30 minutes before rope drop (meaning you'll get through security by then). Focus on DCA and get through all those first (GotG and RSR are the big ones, but the wait for GRR will be long by mid-morning, too, if it's hot), then hop back to DL to do anything left on your list.

 

[chasemi]

Thank you all for your advice!! We are definitely planning on Rope Drop on our second day. (Does either park do a show? I love the MK rope drop show!). And we always go with a plan! Your suggestions will help us form our strategy. We don’t usually park hop but since the parks are so close we will definitely go that route. Anyone know if the DL and CA are similar in distance to Universal Stdios and Islands of Adventure in FL? Just trying to get a picture in my head. Thanks again!

 

[blackjackdelta]

It took us 45 min to USO but traffic Is different in LA. Could take 1.5 to 2 hrs to get to USH depending on the day


Jack

 

[limace]

It took us 45 min to USO but traffic Is different in LA. Could take 1.5 to 2 hrs to get to USH depending on the day


Jack

I think OP is asking if the distance between DL and DCA is comparable to the distance between USO and IOA-not drive time. I wish I could help but haven’t been in years. It’s like the two halves of Epcot, I think.

 

[Skyegirl1999]

Thank you all for your advice!! We are definitely planning on Rope Drop on our second day. (Does either park do a show? I love the MK rope drop show!). And we always go with a plan! Your suggestions will help us form our strategy. We don’t usually park hop but since the parks are so close we will definitely go that route. Anyone know if the DL and CA are similar in distance to Universal Stdios and Islands of Adventure in FL? Just trying to get a picture in my head. Thanks again!

They are about 100 yards apart, I believe. The entrances face each other across the esplanade.

If there aren’t lines at the entrance, you can get from one park to the other in a minute or two.