2 days on a work trip---MaxPass is a must!

embracejg

Mouseketeer
Joined
Aug 8, 2017
My job as a reporter takes me to several conferences a year, and I never hesitate to attend events held in Orlando. This time, my job brought me to LA, so I tacked on a few extra days to experience Disneyland for the first time as an adult.

I spent Friday at Disneyland. Got in around 9:30 (luckily making the drive from Silver Lake in only an hour). No problems getting through security and on the tram, and only minimal delays in the line. The process of taking photos for guests with multi-day tickets clearly holds things up for everyone.

I quickly purchased MaxPass, which allowed me to get on three major attractions within my first hour--Star Tours, Buzz Lightyear and Matterhorn. I was better with my ride choices earlier in the day, getting through big attractions like Small World and Indiana Jones, but as the day wore on, MaxPass became less helpful as crowds increased.

Going on a day with Mickey's Halloween party ended up hurting me later on, as crowds didn't thin out around 4 or 5, but got worse as the Halloween guests started entering.

In all, I got through 16 attractions in 8 hours. I did miss some of my favorites--Pirates, Haunted Mansion
(which had very long lines all day) and the Finding Nemo subs. In all, however, a productive day.

My Tuesday night visit to DCA was a different story. I worked during the day and got to the park around 2:30. Crowds were far heavier than I'd anticipate for a weekday. MaxPass only allowed me to get on Guardians, and even then it was about a 30-minute wait. In my six hours there, got through only six attractions: Little Mermaid, Radiator Springs (God bless the single-rider line), It's Tough to Be a Bug, Guardians, the 55-minute-long Frozen show (which is outstanding) and Monsters Inc. I also took time to see the Thor preview, though I would much rather have Muppetvision using that space.

Despite the overhaul, DCA still feels like a subpar Disney experience. Too many uninteresting off-the-shelf attractions make it feel like a slightly better Six Flags, with the exception of the astounding scenery in Cars Land. The park still doesn't have an identity and I feel another big change is coming when they start building out Marvel attractions there. Can't very well call your park California Adventure when a whole section looks like New York in the Marvel Universe.

That being said, I'm a Disney fanatic and loved seeing the places Walt himself touched. The history on its own is worth the trip (I probably geeked out more over the Disneyland model and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln more than anything else). I will be back, maybe this time staying near the park for a night to make the best use of my time. Onsite hotels are way out of my price range, but walking from a Good Neighbor hotel seems easy peasy.
 

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