Welcome to my Top Tips For Surviving Disneyland!  On the days we went, it was hot, crowded and pretty much nobody could understand our Australian accent (what’s with that?!)  But we had a fantastic time and would go back there again in a heartbeat!  

Please note: This post was originally written in July 2014.  Prices, links and information were current then.  They may have changed since.

Kirsten’s Top Tips For Surviving Disneyland

Tip Number One:  Book an extra night’s accommodation

If you’re travelling a long distance to get to Disneyland with a couple of kids in tow, my number one tip is to book your accommodation to begin the day before you arrive.  

That way, when you get to your hotel after flying for 13 long hours, your room will be ready as soon as you get there and you won’t need to wait for the official check in time of 3pm.  

I know it’s a cost of an extra night’s accommodation, but trust me when I tell you that killing several hours of waiting time with a couple of very jet lagged kids is no fun at all.  

We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott Anaheim and completely forgot to adhere to my number one travel tip this time around!  

We arrived at the hotel around 9am, to be told our room wouldn’t be ready until at least 2pm.  We had a bite to eat in the hotel’s cafe before plonking ourselves down in their very comfortable lobby (think a large tv screen, oversized couches, computers and magazines) to wait until our room was ready.  

The staff were so lovely and after about an hour of sitting in the lobby, they kindly gave us a key to a spare, smaller room for us to use until our room was available.  We were so grateful for this very thoughtful gesture and slept for a solid 4 hours, before being woken up by a phone call, telling us our room was good to go!

We booked a Kids Suite, which had a King Size bed, a bathroom, bunk beds and a fold out sofa bed.  Doors separated the kids area from ours and while the suite was compact, it was extremely comfortable.  

The hotel had a great pool area, which was the perfect spot for cooling off after a long, hot day at Disneyland!

Great pool area, complete with free wi-fi!

Tip Number Two: Purchase your Disneyland tickets from your hotel

Most hotels in the Disneyland precinct will sell tickets at their reception area.  It won’t cost you any extra to purchase them from your hotel and doing so will mean you won’t have to wait in the very long lines to purchase your tickets once you get to Disneyland.  Your kids will thank you for that one!

We purchased a two day hopper pass, meaning we could access both Disneyland and California Adventure Park at any time over a two day period.  Be prepared to undergo minor chest pains when your credit card is charged with the enormous sum of AU$930 for two days at the happiest place on earth!

Buy your tickets BEFORE you get to the park

Tip Number Three: Buy an A.R.T bus pass

Disneyland is located on South Harbour Blvd, as are most of the major hotels in the area.  It’s a very long road and depending on where you stay, it can be a very long walk to get to Disneyland.  

Most hotels offer a bus service called ART (Anaheim Resort Transportation) which is a great way to get to and from Disneyland each day.  Our hotel didn’t have door to door service, but all we had to do was walk next door to the Marriott hotel and wait at the A.R.T bus stop.  The fare cost $5 per adult and $3 per child, for an unlimited use day pass, which we purchased from our hotel on the days we required them.  

The bus will take you directly to Disneyland and stop at a number designated to your route.  Take note of that number as that’s where you will need get to when you’re ready get back on the bus at the end of your day at Disneyland.

Walking out of Disneyland towards ART Bus Stop Number 5

Tip Number Four: Wear Comfortable Shoes!

A trip to Disneyland is no time to be busting out the cute summer shoes you purchased a few months ago because they look good on your feet.  If you do that, you’ll end up with blisters on the bottom, yes the bottom, of your feet and they’ll be aching so much when you get back to your hotel, that you’ll pretty much want to chop them off at the ankle.  Or so I’ve heard!

Sensible shoes are a must!

Tip Number Five: Handbag v Backpack

My advice is to leave your handbag at the hotel and take a backpack with you instead.  I packed very light for our two days at Disneyland.  

I wore my camera around my neck, had 20 bucks in my pocket for on the go purchases and everything else; sunscreen, lip gloss, my wallet and a couple of bottles of water went in the backpack.   Bailey kindly offered to carry the back pack for most of the day and it was so easy getting on and off the rides with just one backpack to worry about.

Tip Number Six: Where To Eat

Ok, let’s take a moment to discuss dining options at Disneyland.  You can bring your own food into Disneyland, but we didn’t bother.  There are so many different places to eat at the park, all of which are quite reasonably priced.  

We tended to pick up a snack along the way from one area of the park to another, rather than sitting down to a meal, because it saved time (the long lines aren’t just limited to the rides!) and to be honest, we were all a bit too excited to be at Disneyland and didn’t want to waste time eating!

Bailey’s lunch. A giant Mickey Mouse Pretzel!

There are lots of healthy snack stands to be found throughout the park although the ice-cream parlour on Main Street does a cracker mint choc chip cone, should you feel the need for a sugar hit!

Because everybody knows calories don’t count when you’re on holiday!

Tip Number Seven: When To Go To Disneyland

We’ve been to Disneyland before and I have to say that this trip, in June (Summer in the USA and school holidays for both the USA and Australia!), was quite uncomfortable.  

It was stinking hot (35 degrees C most days) and VERY crowded – we’re talking 100,000+ people through the gates everyday.  

The lines to get onto each and every ride were long, some up to 90 minutes long, and while our kids are old enough to understand that we had to wait for anything and everything while we were at Disneyland, I think families with younger children (8 and under) would find it a challenge to have to wait such long periods of time just to get served/go on a ride/go to the toilet.

Our previous trip to Disneyland was a couple of years ago in October and it was much quieter and a lot cooler.  

If I was ever lucky enough to do Disneyland again, I would probably give the US Summer months a miss and head over later in the year instead.

Tip Number Eight: Wear The Ears

Don’t be afraid to embrace the ears!  It’ll completely embarrass any teenagers you might have with you, your husband will think you’ve completely lost the plot, but your 9 year old daughter will think you’re all sorts of awesome and you will finally understand what the magic of Disneyland is all about.  It’s all about the ears!

FYI:  I purchased my ears from Disneyland for $21 on our first day there.  

We bought Sophie hers from the ABC Shop (a touristy shop on South Harbour Blvd, full of all sorts of Disneyland things at much cheaper prices) for $6 on our way home that same day.

They look very similar so my advice would be to skip the Disneyland store and head straight to the ABC shop for the cheaper version!

#niceears

#CUTE

Tip Number Nine: Visit Disneyland At Night

Disneyland at night is all sorts of amazing!  The atmosphere is incredible and honestly, the fireworks display is like something out of a movie.  

On our second day at Disneyland, we left the park at around 3pm and went back the hotel for a swim. We then headed back to the park at around 7pm, to find a spot to watch the fireworks.  

Sleeping Beauty’s castle at night

It was crazy busy, so we decided to skip standing in the middle of Main Street to watch the fireworks and headed to the Plaza Inn for dinner instead.  

The food was ok (three meal choices, all served to you cafeteria/prison style) and not a bad price (around 50 bucks for all four of us to have dinner + a drink each).  

The staff were very friendly and when we asked if we were able to sit at our table and wait for the fireworks, the answer was, “Of course Ma’am!  Please sit for as long as you like.” (This doesn’t happen often in the states, as most restaurants work on a tip system and the staff want you in and out as quickly as possible, so they can earn as much tip money as possible.)

A great spot for dinner and fireworks viewing!

So we had our dinner and settled in to what I reckon is probably one of the best seats in the house to watch the fireworks!

Amazing fireworks!

After the fireworks were over, we headed back out to Main Street and decided to go on a few rides.  

It was a great time to do so, as the queues were MUCH shorter (10 mins for the Buzz Light Year ride, as opposed to the 45 minute wait we had earlier that day!)

Main Street, USA

The beautiful carousal at night

Disneyland Tea Cups. My fave!

When we were there, the park closed at midnight, with the last A.R.T bus leaving at 12.30am.  We left just before midnight and caught one of the last buses back to our hotel.  

It’s very safe to walk around the Disneyland area during the day and night, but after a very long day of park action, we were all ready to plonk our butts on a bus and enjoy the 10 minute air-conditioned ride back to our hotel!

So there we have it!  My Top Tips for Surviving Disneyland.  If there’s anything else you would like to know, just leave a comment on this post and I’ll happily answer it for you!

Ever been to Disneyland?  Got a tip you’d like to share with us?