I spent the past week at Disneyland and I picked up some handy knowledge that I thought I would share with you all, just in case you plan on going someday. I also wanted to share the intense burning in my legs, but that’s impossible to do over the pages of the internet. You’ll have to trust me when I say that your legs will feel like they’ve been dipped in a volcano.
3 Things You Need To Know About Disneyland
Having more adults than children is NOT helpful. My party had 5 adults and 2 children under the age of six. We thought we were so smart. We were not. Those kids won every round! Carrying critical supplies like snacks, shoes, and coats, the adults were guaranteed to need frequent breaks that those small legs just didn’t seem to need. Even when the children were tired, the adults we were punished brutally with the additional weight of little body parts that could no longer function on their own. How can kids have so much energy for running and then suddenly be incapable of walking back to the hotel?!
You’ll walk until you can’t walk even one single step further. That’s when you’ll come to the realization that you are only halfway back to your Disney hotel and burst into tears – Mickey Mouse has designed the world’s best human trap. Your only hope at this point is to find a churro cart. Hopefully the sugar will jumpstart your body long enough to get you to a bed where you’ll collapse for the next 8 hours. Too bad you actually needed 12 hours of sleep…
Leaving the park on your final night will break your spirit. There’s no avoiding this one. You will be bitterly upset that you aren’t rich enough to live in the park castle as a permanent resident, and you’ll plead with everyone in your group to figure out a way to stay just one more day. When that doesn’t work, you’ll desperately look at your airline app and pray that it went out of business. Oops, guess you have to stay one more day!
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I have been to both Disneyland and Walt Disney World several times. Believe me, the older you get, the more difficult the whole process becomes. Even had the misfortune of being at Walt Disney World in Florida, the day they broke all attendance records. Two and a half hour lines for the most popular rides, which, of course, my children had to go on. The kids’ whining gets worse as the day goes on and patience gets shorter. Then there is that song at It’s a Small World which stays in your head for six months after a visit. Is it worth it? I guess it is when you see the photos with smiling faces after you arrive home.
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We did pick a time when the parks were not overly crowded, and the longest line we stood in was 45 minutes. But most of the lines were less than a 25 minute wait which was amazing. I don’t think I would ever want to experience a packed capacity, none of us would’ve survived that.
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I stood in line for over an hour with a dead weight of a sleeping 3 year old in my arms, the entire time. We finally get on the ride and he proceeds to not wake up until we pulled in at the end of the ride….The Irish guys behind me thought it was the most hilarious thing ever…#Dreamteam
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I do have to say, that is pretty hilarious. He must’ve been so exhausted to sleep through a ride. But look at you holding a sleeping dead weight for three hours, that is crazy! You must be some sort of superhero.
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The lines . . .
The crowds . . .
Sigh.
I guess I’m just not an amusement park person.
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I love amusement parks. But I don’t love going when they are crowded, I always try to go during off-season.
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Aw Disneyland is amazing, we actually went pre kids! We said we would return when we had kids, but then had 6 kids and it was never affordable again! There is certainly a lot of walking involved. #DreamTeam
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Six kids would be pretty unaffordable. I was in sticker shock just paying for myself!
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Oh those aching feet and tearful goodbyes. I know it all too well after our trip to Orlando in 2017. And yes, there are so many things you only find out when you’re there x #dreamteam
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I’ve never been to Disney Land/World for affordability reasons. I often doubt I ever will. On the bright side, what you’ve said here makes me think it isn’t for me 😀 #DreamTeam
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I think everyone should go once, but definitely plan for off season when the crowds are low.
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Never been myself but it is always addictive being trapped in an illusion 😉 #dreamteam
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Haven’t been to Disney since my adult children were little. Maybe it’s time to take my grandkids. Thanks for sharing!
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It’s so much fun, definitely go!
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I am not a theme park person but I enjoyed Disneyland the few times I went. I guess I made sure I went early enough in the day before the crowds got big. #DreamTeam
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That does seem to be key. My family would go in for the early morning opening and then we would head back to the hotel for lunch and early afternoon and head back to the park at dinner time. Most people spend the whole day because they get a later start and then they leave the rides to have dinner. It did seem to work out when we went opposite to the crowds.
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Love Disney. I’m usually the one crying and refusing to leave the room when its time to pack up #dreamteam
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That was me too!
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Never been to Disney Land/World – but thanks for the tips if we ever decide to take our little humans (2 & 4) . With all that walking, I might just wait until they’re that wee bit older and have a bit more stamina! #DreamTeam
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Stamina is definitely a good thing. My nieces are three and six and we planned large breaks in the middle of the day to return to the hotel and nap. Funnily enough, the adults always took naps as well.
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Ah we’re all kids really when it comes to Disneyland aren’t we? That part never really leaves you. I have been to the one in Paris but I have yet to bring my daughters. They are still a bit too small for it. But I think about it and look forward to it when the day comes. However much I enjoyed it on my own, I know it will be ten times better when they are with me!! Oh and I’ll remember to pack a good pair of runners! #dreamteam
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Definitely pack good shoes! And it’s always a good idea to wait until the children are old enough to ride (and enjoy) most of the rides. There was only one that my youngest niece couldn’t go on but it was heartbreaking to watch her sob while half the group went without her.
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My kids are too young to go yet, but definitely plan to when they’re old enough to a)talk b)vaguely remember it. I’ll remember these top tips! #dreamteam
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There are so many clever money making traps on every corner that you would need olympic determination to avoid! #dreamteam
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Haha! I love this Heather. There is so much walking to be done isn’t there!? We have yet to go to DisneyWorld, but we walked miles in the smaller Disneyland Paris. I think I even lost a pound or 2! Thanks for being a brilliant #dreamteam host. Let me know if you figure out a way to live in the castle… we’ll be coming with you!! xxx
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If I manage to find a way to live in the castle, you’ll know because I’ll shoot up blue sparkly fireworks at 2 AM when the park is closed.
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Back from #anythinggoes !
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I’ve only ever been to Disneyland Paris. I would love to do one of the American parks. The Paris one sounds much smaller by your description.
#GlobalBlogging
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My favorite park is Disney World in Florida, because I love going to Epcot.
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We can’t wait to go when kids are older thank you for the tips. I can imagine crying on the last day and not wanting to leave.
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The final day is so difficult.
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I keep thinking I am going to have to brave Disney with my kids, but defo need to wait until they can do all the walking as we can’t carry all four of them! #DreamTeam
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Oh yeah, them doing their own walking is critical to survival of the family.
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I went once without young children. It was fun. #GlobalBlogging
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I went to Disneyland Anaheim prekid and Disneyland Hong Kong when my boys were in primary school. They weren’t as excited as I had expected them to be so luckily for me, there were no issues leaving. Maybe it was because we were going to Ocean Park (another theme park) the following day.
#GlobalBlogging
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Another theme park would definitely make life easier when leaving. Then again, I REALLY love Disney so nothing would make it easier for me.
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I was lucky enough to go on a VIP press trip which was amazing and cut out things like queuing. But the walking in heat was a challenge. Wish I had tracked how many steps we did. #GlobalBlogging
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I’ve done Disney World in the Florida summer as a teen and a kid, I would never do that again!
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We’ve only been to Eurodisney. A great time, but the abiding memory is losing our then 7-year-old daughter for nearly 20 minutes!!! #GlobalBlogging
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Oh that must have been scary! I was nervous because one of my nieces is a runner, she even got on an elevator by running ahead of us and walking into open doors. Luckily another lady made her come back up to our floor and delivered her to our waiting hands.
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Unfortunately I have never been to Disneyland. Nor Disneyworld for that matter. It’s really sad. Now I’m sad. I really want to go there. #GlobalBlogging
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You should make it your five year goal!
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That’s a good idea
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We’ve only been to the one in Tokyo (not sure if that counts?!) but will bear this in mind! #DreamTeam
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Hubster was lucky enough to visit that park and he loved it.
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I haven’t been to Disney for years, but I’m currently in the worlds largest mall in Dubai and have lost the ability to walk any further lol #globalblogging
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That sounds like the same type of walking. I recommend you have a break near the ice cream cart or the pretzel place.
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I want to live in a palace and dress as a fairy tale princess every day, married to prince charming, with fairy god mothers to take care of all the messy stuff in life!
#globalblogging
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Me too! How can we make that happen?!
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I haven’t been in about 12 years. Not a favorite place of mine. #anythinggoes
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We did 4 adults and 4 kids in Florida – I swear the saving for us was that we went with a 2 year old so we had a buggy with us ALL THE TIME. But carrying the kids back in the dark was hard work… why do they do the car parks so far away from the park??? #MondayEscapes
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I was prepared to walk a lot, I was not prepared to walk in excess of 10 miles each day.
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Tell me about it! It’s tiresome but yes somehow stupidly you want to stay!! 😂 #mondayescapes
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I have a friend who lives fairly close to the park and she loves to go just for a few hours to ride and eat during non-busy times. I think that would be amazing.
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Oh god I need to brace myself, dont I?! We’re taking the teens to EuroDisney for the 1st time next month, I’m shattered just thinking about it… #MondayEscapes
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Make sure you take your most comfortable pair of shoes for walking!
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If it is a hot, sunny day you might consider sun screen in addition to all the walking and waiting.
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Definitely a good idea!
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