Originally Posted By Merriweather It's official, going Dec. 9 thru 12, which shouldn't be too crowded from what I've heard. I just booked a 2 bedroom, 2 bath suite at the Desert Inn. I think I got a good rate, I know it's close, and will give more privacy and space than one room, and less anxiety than booking "non-guaranteed" connecting rooms somewhere and hoping we get them, LOL. Party consists of me, DH, DD, DD's DH, and 3 year old granddaughter. First trip for GD. None us us has been in about 3 years. SO, any tips/hints etc. appreciated. Comments on hotel (hopefully good , what's there for the 50th, what's there for Xmas, what's good for a toddler, etc. I love hearing ideas from you guys, in the past I have gotten great ideas I'd never have thought of from these boards.
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 Have you scoped out LP's Disneyland Plan Your Trip section and the Disneyland.com website?
Originally Posted By MsLindanne Your going to have a great time! I've been there during the month of December and it is beautifully decorated. As for tips...weather wise it will probably be in the 60's, possibly low 70's during the day and 50's at night. This may sound strange, but wear tennis shoes with thick soles and warm socks. If your feet are warm at night, you'll be comfortable. Also...gloves might be a good thing to bring along. I brought some during one of our winter trips and I was so glad I did. As for the 50th celebration...I've been there twice this year and there is a lot going on. Be sure to see the parades, especially the one at California Adventure. There are lot of fun things for your Granddaughter there too...be see "Turtle Talk with Crush" in the Hollywood Animation Building. It was great! Also, and hopefully your Granddaughter will be tall enough...but be sure to catch the ride called "Soaring over California". And try to get into row "1". You'll have a great view. You'll understand once your on it.... Don't forget to see the Firework show at Disneyland and try to get a spot right in front of the castle so you can spot Tinker Bell. She really lights up the sky. "Fantasmic" is another great light show to see and I am sure it will be going on while your there. If it isn't, then you've got another reason to go back real soon! Keep checking the boards as I am sure you'll get plenty of more tips! Have fun111 ºoº
Originally Posted By MickeyMommy My best advice is to get to the park at opening, and if you have Early Entry - use it. The first hour or two is so much less crowded than the rest of the day. Since you have a 3 year old, head over to Fantasy Land first. Dumbo is usually a very long line the rest of the day, so ride that first. My son loves Dumbo, so I usually take him on at least a couple of times in a row in the morning. Flying thru Fantasy Land is now our morning tradition, and a great start to the day. Once the park starts to get crowded, we head back to our room and eat, relax, and swim. Then we head back to the parks in the evening refreshed for a few more hours. All day at the parks can be too much for young children. I have never stayed at the Desert Inn, but you may want to call HoJo's and see what they can do for you. They have consistant good reviews. We had 4 rooms together last November, with 2 of them connecting like we had asked for. They really are great at customer service, they will really try to accomodate your wishes. And lastly, don't forget your camera, and take lots of pictures of your grandaughter. The rest of the family may start to grumble when you keep making them stop to pose for pictures - but they will love having the pictures when they get home! Have a wonderful trip!
Originally Posted By Merriweather Thanks for the great tips. We'll be prepared for all weather - we just bring our Disney sweatshirts and tshirts both, LOL. DD, her DH, and DGD live in northern CA, and I spent my teen years in southern CA, so we know how much it can vary that time of year. DH and I did Soarin' three years ago, it's great. DGD won't be quite tall enough (unless she really has a growth spurt, LOL). We won't have early entry, but I know how much less crowded the parks can be early on. Thanks for the mention of Dumbo, I'd forgotten how easily it's lines get long (I'm sure it's due to being an older, not designed to get 'em in quick, ride, LOL). But can't miss that with a 3 year old! I've heard good about both HoJo's and the Best Western Park Inn, but they don't have suites. DD is very stressed about the possibility of booking connecting rooms and not getting them, as neither place can guarantee it (no way to put DGD to bed and be in the next room with door ajar), so I think a suite is the better for her mommy anxieties. Thanks again for all your tips.
Originally Posted By tlovesdis Just an FYI... The 2 bedroom 2 bath suite at the DI is just two connecting rooms. We stayed there once and would never stay there again. It was very dingy and old, the floors were very, very dirty. It kind of grossed us out!
Originally Posted By MickeyMommy The Hojo does have a few suites, but we have never stayed in one. It also has the best pools (IMHO) of the area motels, but since you are going in December, you probably won't be using them. The pool is a big consideration for us, because my kids want to swim if its not raining, no matter what the weather is like.
Originally Posted By Pixie Glitter My best tip for you is to take your granddaughter on plenty of outdoor rides before trying dark rides. When you do start with the dark rides, try ones like Peter Pan or Alice first. I wouldn't do Snow White at all with a child that young unless she's begging to go on it and you don't think she'll be scared of the witch and skeletons. Pinocchio is another one that terrorizes many preschoolers, so again, I'd avoid it. If she has issues with the dark, go to a dollar store and buy the tiniest little flashlight or glow stick you can find. They make little keychain Coleman lanterns and flashlights that are literally only an inch long and barely make any light at all, but even those tiny lights gave my children a lot of security on dark rides. They are nowhere near bright enough to bother any other guests, but it helped my little ones immensely that they had their own little light to turn on. We even made a game out of zapping the witch, etc. with the light.
Originally Posted By tinafromidaho Don't worry about the Desert Inn, I am staying there in a few weeks and have been reading reviews constantly, it seems like a clean decent motel, nothing fancy but for the price and location it can't be beat. Don't go expecting the ritz and you'll be fine.
Originally Posted By dlkozy Or to make dark rides more fun write on your kids (like tracing the outside of their ears, writing a message on their hands-forehead) with the same kind of pens you would write on a black light board with. I have even used highlighters in a pinch! They are a lot of fun and especially when you have a couple of carloads in your group-you can instantly spot each other in the dark ride!
Originally Posted By pirategirlscully I bought my black light pen on ebay but I just saw that Circuit City sells them and they come with a mini black light on them too for the same price I paid for one without a light. (about $5)
Originally Posted By Elastigirl-3 We took our three-year-old on our last trip and I have a little advice! Disneyland is intense for a kid that age and can be really scary. Warn her ahead of time that characters are really big (kids don't expect Mickey to be bigger than their parents) and to remember that anything scary is just "pretend". Measure her before you go and make sure you know if she'll be able to go on the rides with a 40" requirement. If she's not close yet, know which rides require it and steer her clear of them. You don't want her seeing rides and getting excited about them only to be told she's not allowed. If she's barely under 40 inches, there are some easy ways to get her to the 40 inches by buying shoes with thick soles, or in a pinch folding Disneyland maps and putting them under her heels in her tennis shoes. If she's barely 40 inches, be prepared to be stopped and measured often at rides. Finally, even though three-year-olds often don't use strollers anymore, Disneyland is way too much walking so bring or rent one. She can relax and look at sights while adults can walk at a faster pace and extra whining can be avoided because she won't get so tired. Disneyland through the eyes of a child that age is fun for everyone; you'll have a great time!
Originally Posted By Merriweather "Just an FYI... The 2 bedroom 2 bath suite at the DI is just two connecting rooms." But the big difference is that they're booked as a suite. If connecting rooms are booked as two rooms, they don't guarantee you'll get connecting rooms, they could be not even adjoining. With a 3 year old who need to go to bed earlier than the rest of us, that's very important. As I've heard other people say the place is ok, I'm hoping your bad experience was a one off.
Originally Posted By Merriweather Thanks to all who posted helpful hints. DGD has been to Marine World many times, so rides aren't a problem - dark rides however are new. We'll probably start her with Small World or Winnie the Pooh. We'd already decided on the flashlight, thanks for the extra suggestions - love the black light pen idea, and "zapping" what scares you. She's only 37" now, so not close enough to manage 40" rides. She's used to seeing grown up rides at Marine World that she can't go on - the only one we need to avoid is the water rafts at CA, as she goes on the rafts at MW, and that would be hard to explain to her. As for characters, she likes the "big chicken" at MW, so a mouse shouldn't be a problem, LOL. And yep, the stroller goes (if nothing else we can rest our bags in it, LOL).
Originally Posted By pirategirlscully Be sure to take her to the Silhouette Studio on Main street and have a silhouette done to mark her first trip to DL! Another tip if she is too nervous to get near any of the characters (both my boys were on their first visits) I had them stand a ways away from the character, like in the group that surrounds the character? I would get down and take a close up photo of my son with the character in view over his shoulder in the background. It sounds silly but my son loves to see pictures of him at DL with characters behind him even though at the time he was too nervous to go up and greet them. (BTW, the last day of each one's first visit, they were all over the characters so we got a few good shots that way too)
Originally Posted By mhartman47 I would definitely second the stroller idea. Even at ages 5 and 6, my parents still mercifully rented a stroller for me. (This was back when they had the indestrucible ones). Also I second the idea of Dumbo first. Although I am now in my mid 20's, this is still my first ride on my first morning in the park, mainly for sentimental reasons. My dad and I always went on this first and I have continued it despite my parents passing. Note: nothing gets weird looks from CM's to seek 5/6 teens getting in line for Dumbo.
