Is One Day at Disneyland Worth It?

One day is all you may WANT to spend there. LOL At least thats how I am. =) 1 day of the crowds, the sun, the lines, the parking, and so on is enough for me.

One day is way worth it. I have done both the one day and the couple of days and was so exausted after the second day that it was no fun anymore. Map out what you want to do ahead of time so you don't spend a lot of time going from place to place wasting time going back and forth. If you can, leave the 3 year old with family - Micky is really big and scary at that age and they can't go on a lot of the stuff that the older ones can, plus they wear out.

for me 1 hour is plenty, for my kids, a week is not enough.
if you're going to be there better do one day than none at all. i don't know what discounts are on right now but check this and see if you find anything in terms of cheaper tix
www.mousesavers.com

You can't see the entire park in one day... but yes, one day is worth it.

Yes it is worth it. I don't know the ages of your kids but there's a lot to do and no, you may not get to see all of the park in one day - but what you can do is look at the maps and entertainment schedule to find out what you want to do as a family and work towards that goal.

You will be making a lot of great family memories!!! Don't stress over everything as then you are making unrealistic goals. Your sister will understand about you doing things without her.

There's much to do and see!!! Don't fret and go!!! See what you can and just enjoy it!!

One day is absolutely fine. You might want to pick Disneyland over California Adventure and stick with it. Disneyland is nowhere near the size of DisneyWorld, so you'll be just fine.

My grandparents used to live in Anaheim so we went to Disneyland frequently growing up. We never went more than one day. I never felt I missed anything. Maybe the park has expanded a lot since then, but it wouldn't even occur to me to go multiple days (although, like you, I keep hearing of people going for several days). There are so many other things to do in the LA area, I would rather see other sights than to spend much of my vacation time doing the same thing over again.

We're going to Disneyworld one day as a day trip from the beach in a few weeks. I know we won't see everything, but I'm not shelling out the bucks for a full-on Disney vacation until my boys are a little older. For their ages (4 and 21m) I think one day at the Magic Kingdom will be perfect! We probably won't see and do everything -they're not even old enough to do it all -but we're just going to go have fun doing some kiddie stuff, seeing some sights and getting our first sets of mouse ears! I went to Disneyland one day as a child and remember nothing but fun from it -I certainly don't remember feeling cheated! Go and have a great time!

its totally worth it. i've never gone for days. u can get thru the park in a day. but it will be crowded since its the season. u will have fun, stay for the parade an fireworks

yes you should go everyone in there life has to go to disneyland once. you'll have fun and your kids will diffidently have the time of there life. =) enjoy and be safe.

yes it's worth it, especially if you've never been. I'm from Anaheim and grew up right down the street. We always just went for the day. You guys will all have a great time! And you don't say how old your kids are but more than one day may be too much excitement and overwhelming for them anyway. Have fun!!!

Since you're staying closeby anyway and have saved up, I suppose it would be worth it. Better than being that close and not going at all.
We stayed for several days and STILL didn't get to see everything so I wouldn't let that part stop you. We went in April hoping it would be less busy and I almost had a heart attack when I saw how long the lines were, but the wait times, surprisingly, weren't that bad. We had a stroller, (I was still nursing my youngest) and we were afraid to leave it, but everyone else did. No one ever bothered a single thing that we left in the stroller. I was really impressed by that. I'm sure there are incidents, but we had a great all around experience.
Bring some snacks and take lots of pictures!

Have a great time!

we went to Disney World in April and it was really crowded but I wouldn't want to go more than one day... that was enough for us. I have heard the one in California isn't as crowded as Florida so you will probably have a better time than we did with average of 2 hour lines for the basic rides you would see at a carnival. Needless to say we haven't been back to Disney and the kids prefer Universal Studios over Disney. If you have younger kids Disney is fun for them because they love the characters but if they are older than 10 the rides aren't really thriller rides and seem like baby rides to older kids. However it is a fun experience that everyone should get to do at least once in life so have fun and enjoy it but most people spend more than 1 day because they get the 3-5 day park hopper tickets. If you get park hopper tickets then you need more than one day but if you just get the basic 1 park 1 day ticket then you will be fine with 1 day.
Make sure you use the fast pass option if it's still free. Not sure if that is still free since some theme parks are charging extra for that option. We found out that when the sign shows a 45 minute wait and the fast pass shows 2 hours later that those fast pass people were getting to ride before us and we were in that line longer than 2 hours, So after seeing that happen a few rides, we went through the whole park and grabbed every fast pass for all the rides that still had them available then walked back to the ride that we would be riding first and got in the fast pass line, we rode a few more rides after we figured that out. So walk through the park first and grab the fast passes first, then go around and ride as many as you can within those time slots, sometimes you will be in one line and miss the next ride because your fast pass time expired but you can grab another one and try to hit it later. They are usually 2 hours away from the time you pick one up so you have to sort of plan your rides out.
Also use the child swap option for your 3 year old. One of the adults gets in line with the other kids and the other adult with the 3 year old sits in the child swap room, then when the first adult gets off the ride they let the ride operators know that you are child swapping, then your spouse comes and watches the 3 year old while you get to ride and your older kids get to ride it with you too so they get 2 rides in a row if they want to ride with each parent. You may have to get a child swapping bracelet at the gate, I don't remember if we had them at Disney but have had to get them at other amusement parks. That is a nice option so you don't have to stand in line twice if both adults want to ride. Watch for the baby swap signs so you know where to go. They have nice play rooms for your child to play in while you wait.

We went for one day. I thought it was plenty! Two days might have let us see everything possible but we couldn't walk anymore! Make sure you see the parade, try get a map before you go to plan out which rides and attractions will be most important to everyone. Bring everything that will make the long day more comfortable (change of clothes, shoes, stroller). You can park the stroller at each attraction, but be sure not to leave any valuables in it, just in case. Keep your camera and purse with you. In one day cut short we were able to see all of Disneyland and didn't get to California adventure, but none of us could walk anymore at that point. (didn't help that I was 7months pregnant and it was 102 that day!)

Since you'll be in the area already, one day is fine. It also depends on the age of your kids as lines will be long but if your kids are ok going from morning till later at night, you can get more in. Here are some tips.
http://www.bigbluetrunk.com/ourcorner/780

Yes, one day is definitely enough for Disneyland! You can do all the major rides and see most of the park in one day. It's nothing like Disneyworld with tons of theme parks. There is just Disneyland and California Adventure. I'd recommend skipping CA Adv, as there is nothing all that exciting over there and D-land is much more fun.

I grew up about 15 minutes from D-land and would go about once a year, always just for one day. I always felt fulfilled at the end of the day and never once felt like I missed something major and wished I had more time there.

If you have an iphone, there is an app called Mousewait that tells you how long the lines are on any given ride at any time. It can help you avoid walking all the way across the park and then finding a really long line you don't want to stand in. http://www.mousewait.com/ I don't have an iphone, but I hear it's a great app.

Have fun!!!
K.
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If you can afford it--GO! We are originally from South Florida and when we go "home" for Christmas, we usually drive to Disney for a day (2 hours). We leave at 6am so we can be at the park when it opens. Then we head back just after dinner--so the kids get 10 hours at the park. You won't see/do everything, but you'll still enjoy it!!!

Life is short! Go to Disneyland!

I went with my 7 yr old 2nd grader's class last year to a one day "field trip" event at Disney World (Orlando). She had never been before. It was wonderful. Granted, with one adult and one child (no hubby or siblings) we were able to team up or split up and meet back with her best friend and her mom and do ALL of the things my daughter wanted to do. The class did a behind the scenes tour until about noon, and we had the rest of the day to do what we wanted, and we did everything. Some things more than once. We stayed until the very end and saw the electric light parade and end of the night fireworks. Caught the tram out and were back at our hotel around 1:00 a.m. (daughter fell asleep on the tram, lol). She will never forget it and it was very worth it.
A lot depends on your hubby and how you will be able to split up and accomplish the things you all want to do. The under 3 yr old may slow you down as far as doing/seeing everything you want to, so as long as you have a plan about how to deal with that (one of the adults hang out with the little one while the other adult and 2 other sibs hit rides x & y and then meet up at 'z' ) or whatever... it should be a blast. I think that if all 4 of our family had been there, there would have been some tense moments of debate about what to do next and who needed a break when others didn't. But as it was, just me and DD, I was able to cater to whatever she wanted and we both had a blast.

I went to Disneyland as a child, then again a few years ago. I have been to DisneyWorld several times. Disneyland seemed huge way back when I was a kid, but now seemed so small compared to DisneyWorld!

I went just for the day and it was fine. If you are that close, you shouldn't miss it....it still is the "most magical place on earth". Since your family has not been to Disneyworld, you won't feel disappointed in Disneyland. :) It's worth the price of admission!

Hi E.,
This is K.. I wrote my friend to get her opinion on the matter. She has lived there all her life and lives really near to Disneyland. And this is what she wrote me.

I think if their family really likes Disneyland it is worth it. Some of my best memories as a child is at Disneyland. It's not worth it if you have infants or children that tired easy. However it will keep the kids entertained until midnight when the park closes and before they have their fireworks show. I would highly suggest a park hopper ticket. California Adventure is a bit more adult, but it's lots of fun. It has shows and "big kid rides" and other stuff that the main park doesn't have. The strip outside of Disneyland (Downtown Disney) doesn't require a ticket and they have some awesome shops too.

Disneyland IS very big, so comfortable shoes are a must as well as your own water. Water is very expensive at Disneyland. There are a lot of really good places to eat there, as well as shops that have exclusive Disney gear that's REALLY cute. The rides at Disneyland are also a lot of fun. Nothing goes upside down or really fast so it won't scare the little kids. The Pirates ride has too drops, but they're nothing scary. The rest of that ride is very slow. The teacups might make you puke. Indiana Jones is the only ride that might scare them a tiny bit. It has thrills and fire and a giant snake. :)

My family is full of Disney hardcore fans, as well as many of my adult friends became huge fans when they visited me and I took them. So to me, I think it's worth it. If you could care less about Disney it might be the most miserable long-lined place on earth. I suggest going in the middle of the week when less people are likely to be there.

I hope this helps you make a better and more informative decision.
If you decide to go enjoy yourselves. Have a great time!
My best to you and your family.
K.

I know I'm the minority here, but I don't think it is worth it for this trip. It's a lot of money to spend to only see a small portion of the park. (Although, if money's not an issue, that may not matter.) Does your sister live in LA permanently? As in, will there be other trips there to visit her in a few years? If so, I'd wait. For one thing, the youngest probably won't remember it at all. You're in St. Louis - have you taken them to Six Flags yet? A day at a theme park is a long day for older kids, much less little ones. I would just be afraid that they would get tired and whiney after a couple of hours (of course, my kids are still under 3, so that may be why I think that!) That might be a good comparison as far as how they handle that kind of atmosphere and time frame. I'd just hate for you to get there and feel pressured to stay as long as possible even if everyone is having a terrible time.

I've only been to Disneyland, but I've been there twice. The first time I was 13 and we were there for 3 or 4 days, so I saw pretty much all of it. The second time was in college just for one day, so I just hit as many of the new attractions as I could with a few old favorites thrown in. We were still there from open til close. What does your sister think?