Happiest Place on Earth... Maybe

After returning from Southern California, I found it very interesting that the children ages 4 and 10 talked more about the swimming pools at the hotel, SeaWorld, and Universal Studios than about Disneyland. It seems that the Happiest Place on Earth was not in their books.

The lines were far too long, the fast passes worked as long as the rides did LOL several broke down. The day that all the High Schools went to Disneyland the children begged us to leave the crowds were horrendous... we finally broke down and left.

My suggestion is check to see what may be going on while you are there, allow 5 days minimum in case there are any special events that might interfere with your enjoyment of the parks. That way if you do leave early you still have time the other days to see and do Disney and have fun.

1 Day should be set aside for those wanting to get the autographs, as this takes time because unless you are lucky enough to spot the character first you will be in a line. We bought autograph books first thing and only got 2 autographs. We thought we would see more characters so we decided to ride as many rides as we could, well things did not go as planned and we did not see any characters at all in Disney California Adventure.

The other 4 days should be used to ride the rides and see the attractions, leaving as you wish for breaks and down time. If heavy traffic, take the young ones back to the hotel in the heat of the day and then return early evening. While the shows are going go on the more popular rides. If you want to watch a show, then plan ahead and arrive early to the area the show will be in. Get your spot and hold your ground.

For the most enjoyable time, go in the off season. You will have less crowds and more fun.

AnnB

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