Marvel/Star Wars Extravaganza (ie Taking my 14-year-old son to DLR)

[Jaina]

I haven't actually finished my last trip report, but I'm going to get that done fast, and then start working on this one, since we just got back this weekend!
Our trip was September 25th and 26th, Friday at California Adventure and Saturday at Disneyland. We roughed it at the motel 6. ;-)

This weekend was a long time coming, since I was supposed to take my son for his LAST birthday in September of 2020. This year he was turning 15, but thankfully still wanted to go to Disneyland with Mom. We haven't ever done a trip together, so he was pretty excited about it. It was not quite as seamless as a trip with my next-oldest child, my daughter, since we have very similar Disney tastes. We still had a great time though, even if we spent way more time in Galaxy's Edge and Avenger's Campus than I normally would. He didn't want to go any sooner, because he had really wanted to go during fall/Halloween time and see the decorations and "Monsters After Dark."

This is my guy when he was little on his first trip. I think he's 6 here.

And from the other two trips he's been on. 2016 and 2018. So he hasn't actually been for about 2 1/2 years:

He loves all things Marvel and Star Wars and hadn't seen either land yet, so he has been pretty excited for that! He has grown SO much in the last 2 1/2 years. He's still not "tall," (though taller than me), but grew 9 inches since his last trip! Crazy kids and their continual getting so big... (Pic is from this summer at science camp with the next two younger siblings. They're all getting big!)

 

[MaleficentMe]

I'm here! Can't wait to read more!

 

[Jaina]

I'm here! Can't wait to read more!

Thanks for being here! It makes it feel so much more worthwhile if we feel like someone is reading and enjoying or getting useful info from these trip reports!

 

[noodle73]

I love how you do one-on-one trips with your kiddos. It must be less hectic that trying to wrangle the whole crew and will be special memory for each of them. I want to do solo trips with each of my kids when they turn 10. Not sure how DH will feel about getting left behind tho ha!
I have yet to step foot into Galaxy's Edge at either DLR or WDW, and we just passed through Avenger's from Cars Land to Hollywood Blvd this last time. I'm sure that will change when DS gets a little older.

 

[fivelittles]

I'm so grateful to have more trip reports to read again! Looking forward to it!

 

[Jaina]

I love how you do one-on-one trips with your kiddos. It must be less hectic that trying to wrangle the whole crew and will be special memory for each of them. I want to do solo trips with each of my kids when they turn 10. Not sure how DH will feel about getting left behind tho ha!
I have yet to step foot into Galaxy's Edge at either DLR or WDW, and we just passed through Avenger's from Cars Land to Hollywood Blvd this last time. I'm sure that will change when DS gets a little older.

It really is. I like doing it all together, but it's another whole level of planning and even expense (all at once). And someone's often unhappy with the group choice. This has been fun and given them an opportunity to explore the parks and spend time with mom without having to worry about 4 other siblings wants and needs.

I'm so grateful to have more trip reports to read again! Looking forward to it!

Thanks for following along! I'm trying to get the last one finished up and then I'll get going on this one!

 

[marybaby08]

Following

 

[Jaina]

Okay, I finally finished our July trip! I'm ready to get this one down! #802c11

September 24th - 25th (Friday and Saturday), California Adventure the first day, and Disneyland the second!

We left Thursday a little later than I hoped. I picked him up early from school, (he's a freshman this year) but we were a little late getting off anyway, and it took us much longer than I hoped to actually get to Anaheim. We left Mesa about 3, and with a few regular stops, and one that took longer than we hoped (DS had his heart set on pizza for dinner), we didn't get in until nearly 10. (It should have taken us closer to 6 hours than 7, but alas...)

We were staying at the Motel 6, since I had never stayed there before, and since it was the most economical not-too-far walk from the Harbor side. It was okay. I would stay there again if I hadn't planned ahead well and it was going to save me $100 a night. It was mostly clean, and had what we needed. No fridge or microwave, which was annoying, but thankfully I had brought a small ice chest with me. The staff was super friendly, and strangely enough, the ice from the ice machine was really great. Isn't that a silly detail to remember? We tried to get to bed as quickly as we could, but it was past 11 I think by the time we were all sorted and had our backpack packed for the next day.

We were up early and left the hotel at 6:49. As we walked, we got boarding group 120 for Webslingers. I had purposely waited a second or two before I hit the "Join Boarding Group" button because I wanted to avoid an early boarding group that would cut into our short-lines-on-other-rides time. The walk wasn't as bad as I expected, especially without any little kids, and we were in line for security within 15 minutes. I think security opened at 7:15, and we were in a short line for the entry gates to California Adventure at 7:22. DS hadn't been to Disney for about 2 1/2 years, and was pretty excited for the trip, and excited to see Avenger's Campus.

The gates opened at 7:30, and we took a moment to take a few pictures, and even got some Photopass shots with the headless horsemen. We were planning to rope drop Pixar Pier, and it wasn't as intense as if we were trying to get to RSR or to Guardians.

Waiting for rope drop is always a long one, but at least the weather was still nice that early. At 8, we hurried over to TSMM and rode it at 8:05 and again at 8:20.

Then we hurried over on Incredicoaster twice at 8:28 and at 8:42. Love that one, even if it does crazify my hair a bit when we do it that early in the day.

We walked through Pixar Pier, but DS wasn't interested in riding the Emotional Whirlwind. He was interested in the Silly Symphony Swings (8:50) and then rode Goofy's Sky School twice before 9:05 am, getting to stay on for a second ride when I asked, since no one was waiting in line. Which is how we rode 7 attractions (3 repeats) within a single hour!

We walked over through the bypass behind Grizzly River Rapids and rode Soarin' at 9:30. On our way over to the end of the Hollywood area to ride Guardians, we saw Daisy in her cute Halloween costume.

We rode Guardians of the Galaxy (if you've read any of my reports, we know this is my favorite!) with a 20 minute wait. (It said 30). We jumped in line again and the wait was even shorter this time, at 10 minutes! That was weird, but nice. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get either of our pictures because someone or several someones had their masks off in each photo. I have not scored a Guardians download since they reinstated indoor masks.

 

[noodle73]

Which is how we rode 7 attractions (3 repeats) within a single hour!

I love how much you can get done in that first hour at DCA doing the Pixar Pier loop!

 

[Jaina]

Whoops, I forgot before we did Guardians, we also went over and did the Visa character Photopass. It's not nearly as fun as when it was a character, but the photographer was super friendly, and the resulting pictures are cute.

My son is very into Marvel, so we felt it was worth our time to see some of the shows. I have never been able to make myself wait around for them yet. We waited 10-15 minutes for a good spot to watch the Avengers Assemble show at 11:15, and then walked right over to wait to see the Spider-Man show, which started at 11:35. I enjoyed the Spider-Man one more, of the two.

We were ready for the single rider line on RSR, and got in line for that at 11:45. We ended up in the same vehicle and rode at 12:07.

I actually have no idea what we did for the next 45 minutes. :-o I have no pictures from that time! But by 1:15 we were at the Smokejumpers Grill waiting for our food when I saw Clarabelle and Horace Horsecollar out, which I had never seen! Our order was ready, so I just snapped a shot from a distance. DS was a fan of the Monte Cristo, but he said it was a bit much to eat two pieces.

At 1:30 our Webslingers boarding group was called and we headed that direction. But we stopped for a minute to get some Photopass pictures!

We got in line for Webslingers at 1:40 PM and rode at 2:15. DS really enjoyed it and probably would have liked to try it again if it worked that way.

After that we headed over to ride The Little Mermaid, and waited about 10 minutes, riding at 2:45. We killed time and cooled off some more by seeing Mickey's Philharmonic at 3:10. then rode Monsters, Inc at 3:34. I was SOOO glad that someone in front of us had just been told about the "Buddy Pass" that is like a single rider there. I never remember about it, and it saved us at least 15-20 minutes in line! (The line was posted at 30 min) We walked right on; hallelujah!

We played around for a few minutes in the BackLot area and took some pictures before headed over to experience Monsters After Dark!

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

Sounds like a best way to start a DCA day! I hadn't heard of the buddy pass for Monsters Inc - pretty neat.

Can't wait to hear how the rest of the trip was!

 

[Jaina]

Sounds like a best way to start a DCA day! I hadn't heard of the buddy pass for Monsters Inc - pretty neat.

Can't wait to hear how the rest of the trip was!

I'd seen it mentioned a few times, and I think it's hit or miss, but if you're 1-2 people, it's definitely worth asking the CM at the entrance about!

 

[Jaina]

Monsters After Dark was one of the main reasons DS was excited to visit during the Halloween season. I was so glad things went well and we were able to ride it! We got in like at 3:45 and rode 40 minutes later. It had been about 3 years since I had been there when it was this different theming, so that was fun for me, too.
Again, someone had their mask off in the picture, so we couldn't download it with Photopass. I wish the had the option to put a circle over someone's face or something. I didn't realize that was happening yet (not getting the photos) so I just snapped a far away shot of the number, not a good shot of the picture.

We checked out Avenger's Campus some more and saw some more characters. So many characters that day! DS wanted to see the Dr. Strange show, so we went all the way around into Carsland to join the line for that at 4:38...

We enjoyed the show, and it was fun to see some extra characters there too. After the show we took some fun pictures with the checkerboard floor, which is such a fun mind trip since you don't see the effect until you take a picture.

It was getting to be that nice time of day finally when the sun really calms down. We decided we'd better try Grizzly River Rapids (another favorite) before it got cold at all. We got in line at 5:10 when it said 20 minutes and waited about 10 minutes. We had ponchos, and got good and splashed, but did not have any mishaps and get soaked. Well, mostly. DS's pants got pretty wet in one spot, haha.

It was time to pick up our mobile order over on the Wharf at Cocina Cucamonga. We got two different types of street tacos; I got carne asada tacos (pictured) and DS got the quesa birria tacos. They were both good, but his were better. We got our salsas on the side (and didn't care for the consume, but we're a little picky) which effected them, I'm sure.

The same DS is asking for my computer, so I guess I'm done for today.

 

[Jaina]

Just after 6 PM that evening, the sky was beautiful! Love, love, love Disney (and anywhere, when weather is nice) this time of day! We headed over onto the Pier for another ride on the Incredicoaster!

I just realized that our last two rides, I never got the picture linked to my Photopass! And also had not realized that the expiration date had changed from before Covid to like 45 days instead of a year. :-( So there is no real way to download those pics now. Lame! But the ride was not. We got in line at 6:13 and rode just over 10 minutes later!

He wanted to ride Goofy's Sky School again next, so we waited from 6:36 to 6:52 for that one.

It is also so pretty when all the lights are coming on. We just really enjoyed looking at everything on our walk from there over to the Hollywood Studios area. We stopped by for an end-of-the-day photopass picture with the Headless Horseman.

Time for another ride on Monsters After Dark, even if we did wait nearly 40 minutes again this time, riding at 8:05. Very fun difference from the regular, but I like both of them, obviously.

We walked through Avengers Campus, and Carsland, and decided to ride Incredicoaster one time. The wait said 30 minutes, and we were on in 15, even waiting for the first row this time. This is a picture I'm sad we didn't get!

The park didn't actually close for 10? more minutes, but we had already decided to not push it that night, so we could get to bed at a decent time and get another early start the next day. Plus, the walk back to our hotel was about 15 minutes from the gates. Here are our walk stats for that Friday at California Adventure!

 

[Jaina]

Day Numero Dos!

We slept in just a touch, but still made it out the door in good time and got boarding group 7 for Rise of the Resistance on our walk in. We got to the line for security at 7:12 and were 2nd in line at gate #3 by 7:25. It's always so great to be close enough to get your ticket scanned before the gates open. That's always my unofficial goal.

Indiana Jones was a priority for DS, so once again I found myself waiting for rope drop at Adventureland. Rope drop directions are harder to decide without Fastpass/Maxpass! We were like the second car on Indy at 8:07 AM, which was great until it STOPPED right at the ending scene, and we were stuck there for like 20 minutes. It would have been no big deal later in the day, but it's frustrating when you know the lines are just building and building outside! Also, my seat belt was a little tight, which was only slightly claustrophobic. I thought they might have to walk us off (not too far, since we could see the unloading area) but they got things moving again. I think they offered us another ride, but our car declined.

We were right by Jungle Cruise, and didn't know where else we wanted to go just yet, so we decided to go ahead and ride that one and see the new scenes. It took us 10 minutes to get through the line, and we rode at 8:45.

DS was a little hungry, so we grabbed a churro (with no wait) at 9 AM, and then headed for Splash Mountain.

'

We were on Splash Mountain by about 9:15 and since they sat us in front (I guess we could have declined) managed to get absolutely soaked. Even with my poncho I was pretty wet, (see my hair?) and DS was very wet. Including his tennis shoes. So they got to ride around attached to my backpack with paper towels shoved in them for the next several hours while he wore the flip flops I had packed and changed into. So fun.

DS was ready to check out Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge (he's been carefully avoiding spoilers of all kinds for the last 2-3 years), and with such an early boarding group, we expected to be called soon, though they hadn't started yet at 10 AM. We rode Smuggler's Run standby (waited about 20 minutes) at 10:10, and got to be pilots (I asked to wait so we could, actually, since it was DS's first time). He really enjoyed it, though I don't know how well we did.

They still weren't calling boarding groups, so we decided to go ride the Matterhorn. First, though, we stopped so I could buy one of the Magic Key popcorn buckets! I've never bought a refillable bucket (or one of any kind) but I know my kids (and I) love popcorn, and this trip, and also the one I was taking DD11 on in November would fit into the time frame, so it seemed like a no-brainer at that point. I wish I had bought it the day before, but we didn't think about it.

The Matterhorn was really fun (as it usually is) and really rough (also, as usual). I used to dislike that ride, but I seem to go on it an awful lot anyway! Harold scared me like crazy as a kid, and new Harold is far scarier. I used to ride it with my eyes closed, because I hate scary things kind of popping out at me. I try to keep them open now though. We waited about 15 minutes, but they had to shuffle us into a different vehicle before we took off for some reason, which took a little extra time, and we rode at 10:40.

Was Rise of the Resistance ever going to come up? I was grateful for the super early boarding group, but this was a MUST do for DS, and I remembered that one day recently when it had just never come up for the day, and was a touch nervous.

 

[Jaina]

Still not up, so we headed over to ride Star Tours. It said a 30 minute wait (I think) and we waited about 25, riding at 11:15. My son had caught on the day before when I tried to explain that some rides, when they call for "party of 2," it's not in your best interest to shout out. This is super duper true for Soarin', and also true for Star Tours. You're most likely to get stuck on the end, which isn't a great view, and it's best to just keep your mouth shut and take your chances with not "skipping the line." Anything 3-D/motion simulated is likely to make me a little nauseated, but Star Tours isn't too bad.

Guys! It was finally time! At 11:30, Rise of the Resistance was finally boarding! We were pretty excited, but stopped to refill our popcorn on our way over.
Also on the way over, someone saw us sitting with our popcorn for a minute and handed me this cute little key, saying, "Thanks for being a Magic Key holder!" It was so sweet and fun!

We ended up waiting about 30 minutes is all, and rode at 12:20. Hopefully the wait was worth it for DS - I think he really liked it. (Also, it was warm and sunny enough for me to break out the umbrella in the outside line. I burn easily, and kind of hate sunscreen.)

After Rise, DS wanted to do Millennium Falcon again, and we went single rider this time. I

It was 1:10, and time for our mobile order at the Stage Door Cafe. My corndog was truly gigantic. Actually, it would have been improved slightly with a little less batter... DS15 got chicken tenders, and they were better than I remember them being a couple years ago. I wish I would have gotten an orange like him instead of fries though.. His mandarin orange was delicious and large.

After another popcorn refill, we waited in like for Pirates for just less than 20 minutes, riding at 2:10 PM. I love when Captain Jack Sparrow or Red come out and interact with the line.

We headed over to Tomorrowland and caught some of the characters out in the Hub. I got some pictures and video, since Alice in Wonderland and Winnie the Pooh are two of DD13's favorites! Winnie the Pooh is also a long time favorite of mine. (second pic in 1989 when I was 6)

We waited less than 10 minutes for Buzz Lightyear and rode at 2:50, followed by waiting 45 minutes for Space Mountain, and riding at 3:45. That line is a bear when it's warm, especially since you have to wear a mask for so much of it! Our picture was nothing special.

DS went and sat down to eat a snack while I checked out the Magic Key Lounge or whatever. It was interesting. Less so since he couldn't go in, since I was the only member. I tried charging my phone for a few minutes, since my battery backup was having issues, but the charging speeds were super slow in there.

https://imgur.com/HICaMTZ

After that we asked around and found where the Disney Visa photographer was taking pictures, and got a few cute ones. That is a nice thing to take advantage of, especially if you decide not to purchase Photopass for the day. Since all of the Photopass rides are masked at Disneyland, and since I usually see fewer photographers, with longer lines, I opted not to buy Photopass that day. DS was excited about that last magic shot when we got it, because apparently it's his favorite droid from whatever series that is.

 

[abbeyroad6282]

This trip looks amazing so far! I love Marvel but haven't waited around for any shows yet. I will have to "pencil in" those one of these trips! You two got a lot done and the report really conveys the fun you both had! How special! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Jaina]

This trip looks amazing so far! I love Marvel but haven't waited around for any shows yet. I will have to "pencil in" those one of these trips! You two got a lot done and the report really conveys the fun you both had! How special! Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for reading! (And commenting!) I have such a hard time making myself "stop" to watch shows, but I should do it more often for sure! The Spiderman one and Dr. Strange one were both pretty enjoyable. The Avengers one didn't entertain me quite as much..

 

[Jaina]

We decided it was time for a snack, and got Dole Whips at the Tropical Hideaway at 4:45. We went with the classic flavor this time.

We wandered over to Main Street to enjoy them, and also got to listen to some of the Cadaver Dans, which I don't usually get to do. I didn't take a picture of them, but took some video, so I could enjoy their pretty sound again later. We also refilled our popcorn again. While I was waiting in line, my popcorn bucket somehow left this indent on my wrist.

We wanted to ride the train, so we got in line at Main Street. However, it took us over 20 minutes to get on the train. We were entertained during part of our wait, at least, by the characters up on the train station. The Queen of Hearts was in rare form, and the video from that is pretty funny.

Since it had taken longer to get on than we expected, we needed to get off at Toontown to make our Mobile Order at the Red Rose Tavern. DS got the flatbread pizza (which was actually really good) and I got the Cobb Salad. Uninspiring, but solid.

DS had never gone on the Storybookland Canal Boats, so we decided to do that. We got in line at 6:10 and waited 30 minutes. That's a long time with such a slow-moving ride. But he checked that off.

At 6:49 we got single rider passes for the Matterhorn, but the line was really long and really slow-moving, so I left DS waiting in line and went to scout out how the fireworks situation was starting to look. People were already grabbing spots, so I sat down and rested (not the best pick of spots, but it worked out) while I waited for DS. I don't actually know how long it took him; I don't remember. It was more than 30 minutes though. He then checked in with me (cell phones are the best in this case) and rode Star Tours with a 10-15 line before joining me to save our spot while I used the bathroom really fast and possibly went out to exchange my child 3-day ticket for an adult 2-day ticket. My trips are getting confused in my head right now...

The crowds were getting exceedingly non-socially distanced as we waited for fireworks, especially when they had us all stand up 20 minutes beforehand.

Fireworks started at 9 and we had a decent view. It would have been much better from the other side of the street, but I forgot about Jack's head. They were good. Halloween isn't really my thing, but the show was good.

As soon as the fireworks were over, we headed straight to Space Mountain and got in line for single rider. Our timing was good, because over 25 people were in line behind us within 5 minutes. We rode within 10 minutes, at about 9:30.

Well, a little more than an hour left in the night. What did DS want to do? (If it was up to me, we might just ride Big Thunder back to back like 4 times...)

 

[Jaina]

Alas, it was not my trip, and we are different people. We went to Star Tours (again) and waited about 13 minutes to ride it at 9:55. After that we trekked through Fantasyland (hi beautiful castle!!!) and over to Galaxy's Edge. Which really is stunning at night.

He wanted to ride the Millennium Falcon again. Seriously, kid? All the motion simulators. I'm not sure if my non-drowsy dramamine was still in effect, but it seems like it. I do remember looking it up to see how often I could take it. He wanted to be a pilot again, if I remember right. We waited a little over 20 minutes and rode at 10:25.

When we got off I thought we would get in line for something else (Big Thunder, anyone?) but he was tired and ready to wrap it up. Okay, kid. You do you. He is an early riser (5-6 most days) and 10:30 is pretty late for him. So we meandered out of the park, enjoying the sights as we went. We still had a good 15-20 minute walk to the Motel 6 once we cleared the entry gates, so that was okay I guess.

Well, that's it! We had a great trip, and a good stay at the Motel 6. There were a few questionable things (WHY were there floor mats outside the doors that always looked wet in the morning? Pest control? I'm not sure if that is a reassuring or disturbing answer!?) but overall it was fine, and good for the value. The beds were comfy. That's all we did in the room anyway, was sleep. I don't think I'd like to have a bunch of kids in there (not that there's room) but it was fine for two people, since I brought a cooler and didn't require a microwave. Like I said, the walk wasn't bad, and we never felt unsafe. Here's our step count for the day!

I'll try to get a video up before very long. I was surprised when he asked me take lots of video. He said, "Jaina (DD13, my mini me) has like 3 Disneyland videos. I want one too!" You never know with this kids. The ones that are as big (taller than, actually) you, but still not grown ups. I'm glad he finally got to experience all the Marvel and Star Wars goodness he had been looking forward to for so long!