My First Trip Report! About This Page:

[WeatherTed]

Hello! This is my first trip report on my first trip to DL (and my first trip to the state of California too!) I'm sorry that this is a bit late, but I have been really busy and didn't have much luck uploading the photos. Well, here we go...I hope you enjoy it!
My First TR on my First Trip to Disneyland Resort!

Vacationers:
Me (Ted) – 42
DW (Claudine aka WDWJAMBA) – 39
DS1 (Ethan) – 11
DS2 (Colin) – 8

When: April 4 through 11, 2009

Well, being originally from Massachusetts, I never thought that I would visit the Disneyland Resort (DLR). I never visited WDW until I was a senior in High School on a band trip in 1985. It was a good time with a couple of gals who played in my percussion group, adventuring into the Magic Kingdom and Epcot.

Since that time, I visited WDW 5 more times (from 2005 through 2008) with my family.These have been great vacations, but I was looking forward to our visit to DLR. This was not only my first trip to DLR, but also to California. This trip was a bit spontaneous for us as we never started planning for it until about early February. This trip was also a bit of a struggle to happen too, as I broke my hip in late February (from falling at the local ice rink). This limited me to crutches for the next 6 weeks and an ECV in DLR and Disney’s California Resort (DCA).

DW and I also wanted this trip to be a surprise for our two sons, so we didn’t want them to know about it until that morning that we were to fly out of Montana. But another hurdle came along, this one known as a blizzard. This storm was expected to affect the Denver area (where we were expected to change planes). The airlines called me the day before we were to fly out telling me that our flight to Orange County Airport from Denver was cancelled. We still had hope though – as we were not going to let this cancel our vacation! That evening, we were on hold with the airlines to rearrange things – maybe we could fly in a day late or two? No way, so I then thought that we could check out flights from Denver to LAX – and wala! We were headed to Disneyland! (albeit about 8 hours later than originally scheduled ).

When we landed in California at 10 PM, the 65 degree weather felt so good! We had just experienced a colder than normal winter here in Montana, so I was looking very much to the warmer weather. Claudine called for a town car to pick us up, and we would be enjoying the 1 hour trip from LAX to the Desert Palms Hotel and Suites (located just two blocks from the DL gates!).

The next morning, we woke up and headed straight to the parks. Since we had a 6 day ticket, we received park hopper perks. So we visited DL and DCA. The weather was awesome, with plenty of sunshine, a high temperature of about 82 and low humidity (yes, low humidity! ). Just perfect park weather. After we past the baggage check, we took a right turn for Disneyland, destination – Space Mountain! This has been rebuilt with a smoother track and a sound system. We enjoyed the ride more than the one in WDW, because of the refinements.

In DCA, we next walked to California Screamin’. It’s a loop coaster that also has a sound system and is quite the thrill! Up to this point, Colin had said that he will go on all the rides except for this one! For weeks, Claudine was bound and determined to bring him on this one. At the entrance, there was a little bit of a tug-of-war going on, until an understanding mother encouraged Colin to give it a try. She told him about her son who rode on at about his age, and didn’t think much of it. Well, that was enough to get Colin to stand in line at least. He certainly had a very stern look on his face and didn’t say too much while we stood in line. He remained quiet after we sat in the cars (sitting next to mom of course) and we didn’t hear a peep from him until after we passed the loop. He is a vocal kid on adventure rides, so it was good to finally hear him get excited. As you can imagine, he was hooked! We probably rode this ride about a dozen times in the next 5 days (and was of course became his favorite)!

Since this was a Sunday, I expected the crowds to be a bit on the high side. But they didn’t seem that bad compared to WDW. Wait times were often times 25 to 50 minutes (the Grizzly River Run however had 70 minutes).

To get a break from the crowded lines, we wanted to enjoy a Broadway-quality show. This was “Aladdin”, being shown at the Hyperion Theater. It is a 40 minute show that had us laughing all the way – especially when we were watching the Genie. He played his part well and made it more fun when he even interjected humor about Current Affairs.

On Monday, the weather was a carbon copy to Sunday’s, so I had to use a little bit of sunscreen. I didn't mind since I hadn't used any in about 8 months.However, I was a bit disappointed, as the crowds seemed to be just about as heavy as they were on Sunday. I asked a couple of people in line (who were from the local area) and said they were on Spring Break. Well, there goes that expectation that the parks were going to be a bit low through the remainder of the week. I read that the crowds typically are lower on the weekdays.

One of our favorite rides was Indiana Jones. The car had the same type of movement as the ride at WDW’s Dinosaur, but not as loud, therefore more enjoyable. The beginning part of the ride featured the giant ball rolling toward you. The adventurous feeling lasted through the remainder of the ride and whetted your appetite to try it several more times (which we did! ).

The trip was a great break from the hustle and bustle of the school year. I’m glad that Disney was able to accommodate my temporary handicap too. We will be visiting this park again for sure, probably staying at the Grand Californian next time. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!


Some pictures that I snapped (click to enlarge):

Colin at breakfast on top of our hotel:
On top of Hotel.jpg
On top of Hotel2.jpg

At the Autopia:
Colin Driving.jpg
Ethan Driving.jpg

And a classic:
Submarines.jpg

[chezp]

Sounds like you guys had a great time - I've been wondering how it all went and what you thought of Disneyland. I'm so glad you were able to find the time to post a trip report for us.

[Two4Disney]

So glad you found a way to get there and had a good time! My favorite ride is Indiana Jones and while it's similar to Dinosaur, it's just so much better - way better!

Thanks for sharing!

Kathy

[HeatherD]

Welcome to the Disneyland side of things! Glad you were able to continue the trip without too much of a delay. I've got thrill junkies for children, so I'm loving life now that they are getting bigger! We couldn't keep DD off of CA Screamin on our last trip, either!

Can't wait to read more....

[eff051102]

Great TR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's nice to here from you also and I'm really sorry about
your hip. I hope you are doing better.

How did the boys react to the surprise?

[DyanKJ130]

Sounds like you had a wonderful time, Ted! Colin is much braver than me to ride California Screamin'! for sharing your TR with us. I have enjoyed reading it

[Colexis Mom]

Great start Ted!!

[isabelalvarez]

MORE

[pamcarey]

Thanks for sharing your TR! Sounds like you had a great trip!

[dsnytina]

Thanks for posting...glad you got to experience both parks!

[bsblady01]

more please