Disneyland at Limited Capacity
A few weeks ago we were able to take the kids to Disneyland for the first time in nearly two whole years! After talking to others who had recently gone and had subpar experiences, I went in with very low expectations. I mean, basement-level low expectations. I planned on waiting in long lines and being sardined through every walkway as we had pre-pandemic. I planned on waiting hours for food. I planned on all sorts of snafus because, well, that’s sadly what Disneyland has been like for the past couple of years.
But! Much to my very happy surprise, our day was easy and wonderful! The lines looked long but they moved fast and the park did not feel full at all. My mom and John’s cousins joined us and honestly, it was one of the best Disneyland trips we’ve ever had.
To make sure we would be able to arrive at the park upon opening, we stayed in a nearby hotel and spent a few hours at Downtown Disney the night before. Briar is a LEGO fanatic so she absolutely loved exploring the store and picking out a few new sets. It also helped to warm my cold, jaded heart and get excited about the next day at Disneyland (ha!).
Within an hour of arriving at the park, I pre-ordered our lunch on the Disneyland app. We had heard horror stories about people having to wait hours for meals but thankfully our experience proved to be very different. We bought snacks and coffee directly at the carts without any issues and only pre-ordered dinner about half an hour before eating. It seems like Disney worked out a lot of the early kinks prior to our trip.
We had lots of time to explore Galaxy’s Edge and even made it on the new Rise of the Resistance ride. It was John’s first time seeing this new land and he loved it.
While the boys created lightsabers in Galaxy’s Edge, the girls made our way to Main Street for iced coffee, shopping, and a ride on this double-decker bus (our first time ever!). One of the secrets to successful Disneyland trips (especially with kids in tow) is to take lots of breaks. This was the perfect way to slow down, caffeinate, and cool off. Briar has also developed a real fondness for shopping so she enjoyed having Nana and me at her disposal ;)
From there, we picked up the train in Toon Town (easily the longest line we waited in all day) and did a lap around the park. Riding the train always feels like a classic Disneyland experience.
Aside from being tall enough to go on nearly every ride, both kids walked the entire day without a single complaint. It was our first D-Land trip sans stroller and diapers and it felt like a whole new world! Such a difference from our last family trip when they were only four and two years old.
My favorite ride is always and forever Big Thunder Mountain but the kids absolutely love Autopia so we rode it over and over again. It was such a blast!
Disneyland feels like an entirely different place at night. The park closed at 9 pm on this particular day so I was sad that I didn’t get to enjoy more of the evening hours. In our younger days when annual passes were semi-affordable and we didn’t have kids, John and I would get to the park around 7 pm and stay until long after closing. Nowadays I can’t even wrap my head around the idea of being away from my bed at midnight!
We spent the last half hour of the day running from Autopia to Alice in Wonderland to Peter Pan. Gotta teach those kids to maximize every minute!
We planned this trip specifically before California reopened so we could experience Disneyland with limited capacity and I’m so glad we did! Despite Covid restrictions, it was an incredible day and I actually felt (for the first time in years) that it was worth every penny. Can’t wait to go back during the holidays!
