Suppose I were to plan a 1st time ever solo trip...

toonaspie

Just a poser
Joined
May 30, 2010
I'm not saying anything is official. It's in the dream phase right now and it's never too early to plan. I'm a Disney World veteran but visiting more Disney Parks has been the dream. In fact I've been on such a Disneyland kick, it's driving me crazy! How can I be crazy for a place I've never been before? :jumping3: I've wanted to visit Disneyland cause I'm a huge dark ride junkie weird as that sounds.

Anyway here's an idea for what I would like to do for a first time trip:

- Would be after SWGE opens
- Would be during when the Holiday overlays of Haunted Mansion and Small World are open
- 4 night, 3 full day trip (would involve the weekend though due to work) possibly arrive Sat leave Wed
- Avoiding the busier/pricier times of course
- Do as much stuff as I can that isn't offered at WDW (except for the crazy thrill rides as I don't like those)

Originally I was thinking about early December until I heard that Candlelight Procession time really brings up those prices. That event aint really a priority for me though so if it better to avoid it I will do that.

So right now I just need the best advice on when to go given my wish list...and also (and I know you get asked this alot) I would like a cheap hotel within walking distance but also one that uses the Disneyland Resort Express shuttle...(unless you guys know of a much cheaper airport-hotel transport alternative).

Thank You very much :flower3:
 
Best time based on what you are saying is before Thanksgiving when crowds are down bit. Also maybe week after TG this year since TG will happen so early [Incorrect see post #3]. Be careful with Veterans Day, Nov 11, as that can be really busy.

I have been to WDW solo on short 2-3 trips, and been to DLR solo on 1 and 2 day trips. DLR has lots more single rider lines than WDW. With that and FP (MP is nice too) you can do a ton.

You are taking a bigger chance on cold and rain. See https://www.disboards.com/threads/comparison-of-weather-for-wdw-and-dlr.1711098/. And rain at DLR is not like WDW. When it rains at DLR it is almost always accompanied by real cold and "all day rain" unlike WDW where rain tends to come and go more quickly.

Even so the chance for bad weather are not huge.

:wizard:
 
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Thanks for that. A question I almost forgot: Are there websites like Expedia or Hotwire that can offer these same hotels at a lower rate or it is better to just book through the hotel's official website(s)?
 


Thanks for that. A question I almost forgot: Are there websites like Expedia or Hotwire that can offer these same hotels at a lower rate or it is better to just book through the hotel's official website(s)?
YMMV, but I usually book direct with the Good Neighbor (GN) hotels. For the Disney hotels, it depends. I found a good deal on Orbitz once. Never hurts to check all of the resources.

If you have not done so you may want to sign up for MouseSavers. Their monthly newsletter alerts you to good deals and gets you special discounts in some cases when using the links in the newsletter.

:wizard:
 
You can use the disneyland resort express for pretty much all walking distance hotels. You can check the exact route on their webpage but one stop is the bus stop at the harbor exit next to the crosswalk and another one is harbor cross katella but there are also a couple of other closer to the other “less” walkable hotels...

Crowds are really hard to predict after the opening of SWGE... last year mondays were pretty bad so maybe you could try to avoid that at least but I think all bets are off the board for next year anyways...
If you are alone it is usually a little easier to navigate on crowds anyways and those single rider lines help a lot as well.
 
Thanks for that. A question I almost forgot: Are there websites like Expedia or Hotwire that can offer these same hotels at a lower rate or it is better to just book through the hotel's official website(s)?
Absolutely look around for the best price, but I would caution you against using bidding sites (with a surprise hotel) in the DL area. Many are quite a distance from the parks and once you get outside the resort area, the budget motels can be pretty sketchy.
 


so what exactly is a dark ride junkie??

I just enjoy the dark rides in the Disney Parks. They are my kind of speed as I hate roller coasters. At least in Disney I can ride most of the "kiddie" rides as an adult without feeling pathetic. I'm envious at the ridiculous amount of these that Disneyland has compared to Disney World (particularly Magic Kingdom).
 
ridiculous amount....wait till you ride Snow White...you will have to ride at least three times in a row to catch all the Kitchen details....my conspiracy theory about Snow White is that Walt had a personal touch in the attraction and he started with the kitchen and cuckoo clocks and then the construction management said he was running out of time.....and the attraction goes down hill once you make the turn onto the scary adventure.
 
As of now, I'm leaning towards Alamo Inn and Suites. Don't judge me. I've read the horror stories on here. But if it were a choice between price and walking distance...price wins out. I know the hotels on Harbor are priced similar to Value Resorts in WDW but still too high for me. My second choice, Motel 6, wasn't available for the dates I was looking at.

I won't have a car but at the same time, I REALLY don't want to waste money on a place where I am just gonna sleep and shower in. I will keep looking though.
 
motel 6 sold out......that is amazing or downright scary!!!! I have booked all my trips in October for a December visit at the motel 6. It is a massive complex, that will not be a fun place to be during the holidays. I would check back to Motel 6 again, it could be a computer glitch....or maybe they are doing some renovation on one of the three towers.....I am still shaking my head.
 
As of now, I'm leaning towards Alamo Inn and Suites. Don't judge me. I've read the horror stories on here. But if it were a choice between price and walking distance...price wins out. I know the hotels on Harbor are priced similar to Value Resorts in WDW but still too high for me. My second choice, Motel 6, wasn't available for the dates I was looking at.

I won't have a car but at the same time, I REALLY don't want to waste money on a place where I am just gonna sleep and shower in. I will keep looking though.

I just pulled it up on Google Maps. Doesn't look like too bad of a walk--just a hotel down Stovall's it looks like, and Stovall's is a pretty easy cut through the parking lots and then Downtown Disney. I haven't read any reviews, but the walk doesn't look too bad :)
 
I'm not saying anything is official. It's in the dream phase right now and it's never too early to plan. I'm a Disney World veteran but visiting more Disney Parks has been the dream. In fact I've been on such a Disneyland kick, it's driving me crazy! How can I be crazy for a place I've never been before? :jumping3: I've wanted to visit Disneyland cause I'm a huge dark ride junkie weird as that sounds.

Anyway here's an idea for what I would like to do for a first time trip:

- Would be after SWGE opens
- Would be during when the Holiday overlays of Haunted Mansion and Small World are open
- 4 night, 3 full day trip (would involve the weekend though due to work) possibly arrive Sat leave Wed
- Avoiding the busier/pricier times of course
- Do as much stuff as I can that isn't offered at WDW (except for the crazy thrill rides as I don't like those)

Originally I was thinking about early December until I heard that Candlelight Procession time really brings up those prices. That event aint really a priority for me though so if it better to avoid it I will do that.

So right now I just need the best advice on when to go given my wish list...and also (and I know you get asked this alot) I would like a cheap hotel within walking distance but also one that uses the Disneyland Resort Express shuttle...(unless you guys know of a much cheaper airport-hotel transport alternative).

Thank You very much :flower3:

I love my solo trips! They are such a recharging time for me!

Depending on what airport you are flying into, there's cheaper options, and there's more comfortable options, and there's MUCH more consistently reliable options. Cheaper: Karmel or Super Shuttle. More comfortable: Rented car, Uber, Lyft. More consistently reliable: Nearly anything. If you're flying into LAX, you'll be waiting on this little cement island in between traffic until they arrive. If they are running late with drop-offs, you are there on that island for an unknown amount of time. You can use the search feature in the upper right corner of your screen to find recent reviews, which seem to be very mixed. They've been sold several times (3? ) in the last 5 years or so, which makes the reviews even more difficult. We had a terrible time (late, charging different prices, unable to tell us how far away the bus is, taking an hour to sort us into the correct SNA or LAX buses, and more) but it was 5 years ago. There's been more recent issues, though, and a search on these forums will lead you to the reviews from DIS'ers.
 
I just pulled it up on Google Maps. Doesn't look like too bad of a walk--just a hotel down Stovall's it looks like, and Stovall's is a pretty easy cut through the parking lots and then Downtown Disney. I haven't read any reviews, but the walk doesn't look too bad :)
I just pulled it up on Google Maps. Doesn't look like too bad of a walk--just a hotel down Stovall's it looks like, and Stovall's is a pretty easy cut through the parking lots and then Downtown Disney. I haven't read any reviews, but the walk doesn't look too bad :)
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=33.809212&lon=-117.918813&z=19&m=w

FWIW, I measured it on Google maps as about 1 mile to the center of the Esplanade.

:wizard:
 
Keep checking regularly on Motel 6 -- people do cancel! Also look at the Super 8 on Disneyland Dr. -- that hotel is walking distance to the M&F tram (bag check is usually quick and easy there). The walk to DTD is just a few minutes further on (bag checks at DTD and the DLH are also usually quick and easy). You can have reservations at more than one hotel (make sure there is a no penalty cancellation policy), then keep checking to see if the rates drop or if a special comes up before your trip. If that happens, call the hotel to rebook your reservation and cancel the other bookings.
 

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