First trip to Disneyland

So we are contemplating a trip to DLR. But the only way I can talk my wife into another Disney vacation is to only spend half the time doing Disney stuff. So I was considering a 9 day trip to California and spending 4 of those days in Disney. Is that enough time? I know for us in Disney World we like to spend 2 days in each park. So I figured 2 days per park in DL.

Should I stay at Paradise Pier? Or I see there are hotels right across the street.

I have no idea about the layout there so I don't know what driving time from an off resort hotel would be.

What else other than the 2 parks is there to do on Disney property?

What else is there to do around Anaheim? Should I rent a Car and drive to another part of California?

Any suggestions for what airport to use, which airline would be cheapest?

Thanks for your help in advance. Everyone was so helpful while I planned my last DW vacation.

Paradise Pier is located across the street from the parks. It's an easy walk There are other "good neighber" hotels which are also within walking distance.

We stayed at Paradise Pier on our last visit and enjoyed it very much.

Traffic is brutal! We drove to Universal one day - it's about 40 miles away. We waited until after what would typically thought of as commuter rush hours. This is a distance I drive daily to my office. It took us more than twice as long as my typical daily commute to cover that amount of distance.

We also went to Sea World in San Diego one day - I think that was a Sunday - traffic was much more pleasant but we have just been lucky as we were warned it could be quite bad. Really, though, I wish we had gone to the San Diego Zoo instead, though.

You'd not be too far from Hollywood either so that's a possibility.

I'm not sure what other attractions, etc. are within walking distance of Disneyland.

Two days in each park during a non-crowded time of year should be adequate. Don't forget there is also a Downtown Disney area as well.

We are also taking our 1st trip, (daughters college grad present) we do DW frequently in fact was there in Feb. This was a whole new world for us, as we will be there 6 nights and as we didn't want to drive, our whole package is thru Disney (except flight, flying into LAX via southwest. We are staying at a Good Neighbor hotel, (Quality INN which is a little further than some but I think we can walk) in our package, we have hotel, 2 day park hopper, van shuttle from and back to LAX, a day tour back to Hollywood and a day tour to the beaches, we have some extra time so may see if we can venture back to LA on our own. Disney offers several tours for those who don't want to drive. Hope this is helpful, not as much response on the Disneyland boards like there is on WDW.

I stayed at the Quality Inn probably about five years ago. It's absolutly within walking distance, though a bit further than the hotels that are right across from the park enterence.

They have (or had, when I went there) a decent breakfast - including a waffle bar. There is also a Mimi's close by - pretty much you'll walk right by it to get to the parks. The hotel is right next to the freeway, but when I was there I didn't hear the traffic noise at all when we were in the room.

For anyone planning a trip to Disneyland I really recommend staying at an offsite hotel. I've stayed at the DLH and the GC and while it's always nice to stay on property you can say A LOT of money by going to a hotel on Harbor. I've stayed at the Tropicana several times and paid about $170 a night, which is much better than the rates at the resort hotels. Honestly, the walk from some of the hotels on Harbor is shorter than than if you're staying at the DLH or PP.

Thanks New DVC Owner for the info. By the way, what is Mimis? Not familiar with it.

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Originally Posted by missouridisney

Thanks New DVC Owner for the info. By the way, what is Mimis? Not familiar with it.

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Mimi's is a standard American type food restaurant. Sandwiches, salads, pasta/chicken/beef entree plates, etc. I don't know what the cost is down in Anaheim, I'm sure it's more because of the location, but at the one near me meals run between $10 and $15. They also have very good muffins that you can purchase to go, but again, I'm not sure of the cost.

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Originally Posted by Hog

So we are contemplating a trip to DLR. But the only way I can talk my wife into another Disney vacation is to only spend half the time doing Disney stuff. So I was considering a 9 day trip to California and spending 4 of those days in Disney. Is that enough time? I know for us in Disney World we like to spend 2 days in each park. So I figured 2 days per park in DL.

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I'd say so, my sister and I did 5 days during our first Disneyland trip and I think we were good around the end of the 4th day, it was a quiet time of year though.

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Should I stay at Paradise Pier? Or I see there are hotels right across the street.

I have no idea about the layout there so I don't know what driving time from an off resort hotel would be.

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Personally I haven't found the DL Hotels to be worth the extra $$$$ when there's all those hotels on Harbor Blvd just as close (or closer), and you won't need a car to do anything if staying on site or on the Harbor Blvd area. The 2 parks have entrances right across from each other. After passing through a bag search area, you go one way to DL park, or the other way for California Adventure. Downtown Disney is right there too.

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What else other than the 2 parks is there to do on Disney property?

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Just Downtown Disney

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What else is there to do around Anaheim? Should I rent a Car and drive to another part of California?

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There's Knott's Berry Farm, which is another big amusement park. My sister and thought it was allright. but to us it was just like visiting a Six Flags which didn't seem to make much sense being in Disneylands shadow. If not renting a car, you can take an OCTA city bus to a metrolink station, from there you can take a train to Union Station and get on a Metro Red line train. The Red line has stops in the heart of Hollywood and one at Universal Studios. I've done this to go to the price is right a couple times (which requires hoping on another bus from the Red line)
Gray line bus company offers several tours that will pick you up from your anaheim area hotel, such as Hollywood, Knott's, and Universal.

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Any suggestions for what airport to use, which airline would be cheapest?

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John Wayne/Orange County (SNA) is defenitley the closest. It's a smaller airport, but most major airlines serve it. Southwest is the dominant airline here. Not sure where you are coming from, but aside from Southwest your chances of getting a nonstop flight are probably pretty slim. If that's important to you, check LAX. You will also want to check LAX (IMO the 2nd best airport to use) to compare fares, as sometimes they can be a lot cheaper than SNA, other times it's the other way around.