What to do at 60 days prior to trip to DLR?

Can you please confirm if I am thinking of everything I need to do at 60 days prior to my first trip to DLR? I will be going at Christmas/New Years time. I believe there are 3 things I need to do at 60 days prior:

  1. Make ADRs for table service restaurants
  2. Make a reservation at BBB
  3. Make a reservation at the new Anna and Elsa’s Boutique
    Is there anything else I need to be doing?

Fantastmic dessert party if you want to do that

Maybe World of Color dining package? Worked for us

Not really - DLR planning is not the massive effort that WDW planning is http://blog.touringplans.com/2014/07/15/disneyland-planning-disney-world-experts/

That was my experience too. Think I made reservations just a month out or so. May not have been necessary.

What would the reservation for the Anna and Elsa boutique be? That’s apparently not just a shop…

What restaurant did you go with for the WOC dining package?

Carthay Circle

Carthay Circle - probably the best meal I’ve ever had inside a Disney park…

Yes, we do plan to eat there! Menu looks great. I just realized, though, that the packages are going to be super expensive for us because our soon-to-be ten year old will be paying adult prices!! Even getting the kids’ filet off the regular menu is a better deal for him.

So, how necessary is the WoC package?

Edited to add: Sorry for highjacking this thread!

for us, it was essential. Great location and didn’t have to show up too early

We have done the WOC package at Wine Country Trattoria. The problem with the dining packages is you still have to show up at WOC an hour early if you have kids so you can be at the front of any of the sections. Unless you are at the rail/front of a section, your kids will not be able to see. So do it for a great meal, but don’t do it just for the WOC part. You will not save time. We found that getting a blue FP for WOC actually gave us a better view, and we didn’t get wet like we did when had front row with dining package. The FP’s are easy to get and are not connected to the rest of the FP system. My preferred viewing is on the bridge that leads to Ariel’s Grotto. If I were you, I would just get a blue FP in the morning, and then eat at Carthay off the regular menu. Here’s the view from about 2/3 the way up on the bridge (blue FP area)

Just recently, they started doing Anna and Elsa makeovers at the boutique.
This is in Downtown Disney, so don’t have use up park time for it.
One review I read said it wasn’t as “deluxe” as BBB, but significantly lower price, and her girls had a good time.

thanks brklinck. I’m starting to realize that… an it might be one of the main reasons I might start going to DLR more often than WDW!

no problem iheartepcot. I don’t consider it hijacking as you are asking the same questions I have, so you are saving me some work :wink:

thanks Wahoohokie…this is the kind of detail I need to help make some decisions.
Have you ever been during the crazy Christmas/new years time? Even with a WOC FP, how early would you head over to the WOC with kids… still an hour early with FP?

I have not been during Christmastime, but have during the busy summer and Columbus Day weekend. In the summer on an 8 day we lined up 1 hour and 15 min before showtime, but we wanted front row. That was with dining package. Columbus Day weekend, equally as busy, we got in line about 1 hr and 5 min before showtime. Once we got our spots on the bridge (blue FP), we take turns leaving (1 person needs to stay with your stuff or you will lose your spot). Take a blanket or a jacket to lie on the ground to save spots. Everyone should return by 30 min before, because they make people stand up, move forward, that kind of thing. Harder to keep spot. We take a bathroom break, get a Mickey Bar, and wait for the show. During Christmas week I would check about 90 minutes before showtime and see if people are lining up. The CM’s will have signs for each section so you will know where to go. We find that when they open up the blue FP area, most people head for the main viewing area and don’t seem to notice or care about the bridge location. That will work to your advantage! Go 2/3 of the way up, and your view should be great. Trying this again in 26 days, will let you know if anything has changed since last visit.

I have spent countless hours planning our last couple of WDW trips. Spent a decent amount of time on our DLR 2013 summer trip, and did almost no planning at all for our October 2013 trip. Headed there in 25 days and have barely planned a thing in comparison to WDW. I don’t even know what’s for dinner our first night! Crazy times at DLR!

Thanks for the FP tip @Wahoohokie. Those are the kinds of details I will need to plan out a bit as it gets closer. We will be there in April on school break, so I expect that it will be a fairly busy time, but haven’t yet upgraded my subscription to see DLR crowd calendar.

@Dawn_parikh Thanks, glad I was asking questions that you cared about, too!!

I can look at your dates if you like.