Just found out that my DH planned a surprise trip to DL for our 10th anniversary! We are WDW vets, but have never been to DL. We were supposed to go for one day in March of 2020 which obviously didn’t work out.
Since I just found out about this, I’m trying to soak in all the details and learn as much as possible! Any tips are welcome and appreciated, I’m a total DL newbie!
Party: me, DH, DS6, DS2
July 8 and 9
Disney’s grand Californian hotel
Park res for DCA on Thursday, DL on Friday with hoppers.
Flights are booked- we arrive Wednesday afternoon and leave Saturday morning.
I’m going to keep track of my thoughts in this thread, so it’s likely going to be disjointed as I learn things and need to note them. Since I don’t have a ton of time, I’ve got to get this all figured out!
I know we will need to join the virtual queue for webslingers for Thursday and RotR Friday. Is this a similar process as WDW?
I know!! DH is not the best gift giver, but dang he nailed this one! He’s been working on it for three weeks. I knew something was up because he tried to sneakily ask my boss for the days off and that didn’t work lol but I did not guess DL!
Yes the virtual queue process is the same as WDW. I would just open the app beforehand to get a feel for the minor differences. You can practice at 7am and 12pm Pacific time.
The major difference is the second drop time (12pm vs 1pm at WDW), and the fact that you can apply for a BG at the second drop even if you don’t have a park reservation for that park, as long as you have entered one of the parks that day.
Questions I’ve thought of so far -
How is rope drop working right now? I know it may change in the next 22 days but just curious if it’s similar to WDW was where you could get in almost an hour before stated opening.
And I’m hesitant to say this but are there any must-try snacks? Or any QS locations that have interesting can’t miss items?
Any tips on getting from LAX to DL? Is uber/lift our best bet? We’ll be landing around 7:30 PM on a Wednesday.
7:30pm should be a decent time for traffic and I would recommend Uber / Lyft. It could cost you anywhere from $60 - $100+ depending on surge pricing and other factors.
If you have the option of flying into John Wayne or Long Beach, I highly recommend it. But at this point I assume it’s too late for that (also coming from further away LAX is usually the only option without a layover.)
Beignets at the Mint Julep Bar in New Orleans Square.
Yea, we’ve already booked the flights which were super cheap ($50/person/way) so its fine if the uber is $60-$100. Hopefully we will be able to get an uber easily.
They have a (relatively) new system in LAX where all ride shares come into a designated pickup called LAXit. If you are at Terminal 1 (Southwest, Allegiant), it is super easy to walk there and you are on an Uber within minutes (there is a special procedure for getting an Uber there where you get in line, hail an Uber with your app, and then they match you with a driver, who takes your number at that point, rather than being assigned a driver by the app).
If you are flying pretty much any other airline, you have to take the internal airport shuttle to get to LAXit, which I hear can take a while. Hopefully they’ve worked out the bugs in the system and it will be painless for you.
Very helpful! we will be on spirit, so i’ll look into this.
It kind of sounds like they are providing uber services similar to the way you used to get a cab (at other airports) with the exception of starting the process on your app.
I also love the churros. I don’t know if it is just in my mind, but they taste better at DL vs WDW. I am guessing we eat more of them here and as a result, they are fresher! The Mac n cheese cones from the cozy cones are fun and can be eaten as a snack or a meal. I especially love to get one at dusk and find a bench in Cars Land and watch shaboom (the turning the lights in cars land to music). Bengal BBQ is another snack/meal item that is quite tasty.
Anything from the Cozy Cone Motel is one of our family’s “must do’s”, particularly the Bacon Mac and Cheese Cone from Cone 3# and a Vodka & Pomegranate Limeade.
Our ritual is breakfast at Flo’s every morning, without fail, but that’s us. The only exception being when we do the Chip and Dale buffet from Storyteller’s. We love starting the day with yummy breakfast food (I love their tamale and eggs…YUUUUM) and watching Radiator Racers zoom by.
Also, in my humble opinion, the clam chowder in a sourdough bowl from the QS place right over the entrance to Pirates is the best of any Disney property I’ve ever had. I hated all seafood except that for the first 25 years of my life. Other good sourdough bowl place is over in DCA at the pier, and they have a fun walkthrough showing how the bread is made.
Can you tell I’m more of a savory than sweet type of gal? I can pass up Gideon’s all day long, but put a bread bowl or plate of pasta in front of me and someone could lose a finger!
Back with another question couple of questions - wondering if anything has changed since the 6/15 changes.
Is RS available right now? DS2 will be height restricted on a lot of things that I’ll want to ride since I haven’t been there. (I was fine sitting out most of these rides at WDW because i’ve done them before).
Also - are any single rider lines open?
This has been available throughout the pandemic - same as it was before, basically. Just hop in line and send a runner to inquire with the CM at the main queue entry what the procedure is.
