Even with Disney World in my backyard, I think I might love Disneyland just a little bit more. And I think you just might too.
Here’s everything you’ll ever need to know to plan the best Disneyland visit possible.
From epic rides and delicious foods to innovative cocktails and festive holiday parties, these are all of the tips that I think you might find helpful.
Jump to:
- What are the two Disneyland Resort parks?
- Best Time to Visit Disneyland
- Worst Times to Visit Disneyland
- Disneyland Ticket Options and Prices
- How to Get to Disneyland Resort
- Where to Stay
- Best Rides at Disneyland
- Attractions with No Height Requirements
- Best Food at Disneyland
- Special Events
- VIP Tour
- When to Start Planning
- Future Rides and Lands
- Final Thoughts
What are the two Disneyland Resort parks?
There are currently two parks at Disneyland Resort:
- Disneyland Park
- California Adventure
Disneyland Park is the original park that Walt himself built from the ground up that features many of the iconic rides as well as some cool new ones.
California Adventure is a fun park where you’ll immerse yourself in the world of Pixar, Marvel, and other iconic Disney stories.
Both parks are great, but I think California Adventure slightly edges out Disneyland Park.
Best Time to Visit Disneyland
This is a quick breakdown of the best days of the weeks to visit Disneyland as well as the best time of the year for lower crowds, cheaper park tickets, and even lower room rates.
Cheapest Time to Visit
- Cheapest Time = early January to early March
- Cheapest Month for Park Tickets = January through February
- Cheapest Month to Stay at Disney Hotel = January and late-August
For a full list of the most affordable weeks, check out this guide.
Best Day of the Week
- Best Day for Disneyland Park = Friday (28 minute wait)
- Best Day for California Adventure = Friday (29 minute wait)
Cheapest Times to Stay at Disneyland Hotels
- Cheapest Room Rate = late August – early September
Cheapest Month for Ooogie Boogie Bash
- Cheapest Weeks = first two weeks of September
Worst Times to Visit Disneyland
I can’t give the exact dates but these are the most expensive dates to go to Disneyland as well as the busiest weeks.
- New Year’s Day
- Martin Luther King Jr. Weekend
- Presidents Day Week
- LA and Orange County Spring Break
- Easter
- Memorial Day Weekend
- 4th of July Week
- Labor Day Weekend
- Weekends in October
- Thanksgiving Week
- Christmas Week and New Year’s Eve
Disneyland Ticket Options and Prices
Here’s everything you need to know about buying tickets for Disneyland including some cool discounts you can take advantage of.
Disneyland Ticket Costs
- Standard Ticket = $96 – $194 per day
- Park Hopper Add-On = $65 – $75 extra per ticket
You can buy multi-day tickets for up to 5 days at Disneyland.
Park Reservations
You must make a park reservation for every date that you plan on visiting.
To make one:
- Go to Disneyland.com or the Disneyland app
- Link your theme park tickets
- Make your theme park reservation (Disneyland Park or California Adventure)
Ticket Discounts
These are the most reputable authorized sellers that offer discounted tickets:
- Official Disneyland Website = 10% – 40% off seasonal discounts
- Undercover Tourist = $10 – $50 off
- AAA = up to $10 off
- Sam’s Club = discount varies
Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Single Pass
This is just the Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane replacement at both Disneyland and Disney World.
Pricing hasn’t been released yet so I’ll update when it’s officially released on 7/24.
How to Get to Disneyland Resort
Disneyland is located at 1313 Disneyland Dr in Anaheim, California.
Here’s how to get to the park including where to park.
Driving to Disneyland
The most popular way to get to Disneyland is by car.
Parking Garages ($35)
- Mickey and Friends Parking Structure
- Pixar Pals Parking Structure
Parking costs $35.
There are also Magic Key discounts available but it all depends on what pass you have.
This is a pretty good in-depth guide about the whole parking situation at Disneyland.
Flying to Disneyland
If you’re from out of town, these are the airports you can fly in to:
- Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
- John Wayne Airport (SNA)
- Long Beach Airport (LGB)
- Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR)
- Ontario International Airport (ONT)
LAX will have the most flight options but SNA is the closest at only 15 miles away.
Personally, I much rather prefer to fly into SNA since the Lyft ride is so much shorter and cheaper. That said, we have nonstop flights to LAX from Orlando so that’s usually the route we go even though the Uber rides are pretty pricey and long.
Where to Stay
Disneyland Resort offers 3 on-property Disney hotels as well as a plethora of off-property hotels and motels, many of which are within walking distance to the parks.
On-Property Disney Hotels and Resorts
There are currently 3 official Disney hotels on Disneyland property that guests can stay at:
- Disney’s Grand Californian
- Disneyland Hotel
- Pixar Place Hotel
Each hotel has their own pros and cons but if it were up to me, I would always stay at the Grand Californian since it has direct access into California Adventure.
Yes, the Grand Californian is insanely overpriced, but being that close to the park is such a great perk.
The Pixar Place Hotel just went through a major overhaul and is actually a very very nice hotel. Plus, you even have your own private entrance into California Adventure.
Disneyland Hotel is properly the most iconic of the hotels but it’s also the furthest away from the park. That said, they did just open up a beautiful DVC building that may be worth the stay.
Average Disneyland Room Rates
Here’s how much you should expect to pay each night at all three Disney hotels.
Average Room Rate at Grand Californian
The average room rate at Disney’s Grand Californian is between $584 – $767 per night.
Here are the starting prices for every room view and type:
- Standard View = $586
- Woods Courtyard View = $633
- Partial View = $677
- Downtown Disney View = $717
- Pool View = $735
- Standard View Club Level = $1,009
- Premium View Club Level = $1,089
- 1 Bedroom Suite = $1,333
- 2 Bedroom Suite = $1,636
- 3 Bedroom Suite = $1,953
Average Room Rate at Disneyland Hotel
The average room rate at the Disneyland Hotel is between $464 – $631 per night.
Here are the starting prices for every room view and type:
- Standard View = $445
- Deluxe View = $489
- Premium View = $519
- Premium Downtown Disney View = $552
- Standard View Club Level = $686
- Premium View Club Level – $746
- 1 Bedroom Junior Suite = $819
- 1 Bedroom Family Suite = $879
- 2 Bedroom Junior Connecting Suite = $1,009
- 2 Bedroom Family Connecting Suite = $1,069
- 3 Bedroom Family Connecting Suite = $1,291
Average Room Rate at Pixar Place Hotel
The average room rate at Disney’s Pixar Place Hotel is between $355 -$466 per night.
Here are the starting prices for every room view and type:
- Standard View = $339
- Premium View = $415
- Standard View Club Level = $487
- Premium View Club Level $515
- 1 Bedroom Suite = $804
- 2 Bedroom Suite = $1,029
For more details about the pricing and rate seasons, be sure to check out this in-depth guide I wrote.
Off-Property Hotels
Although there are hundreds of hotels near Disneyland, there are only a handful of them that are official Good Neighbor Hotels.
Good Neighbor Hotels
These are the most popular Good Neighbor Hotels:
- Anaheim Marriot
- Best Western Plus Anaheim Inn
- Courtyard by Marriott Theme Park Entrance
- Double Tree
- Hilton Anaheim
- Hilton Garden Inn Anaheim Resort
- Homewood Suites Convention Center
- Howard Johnson Anaheim Hotel and Water Playground
- Hyatt Place
- Hyatt Regency
- Westin Anaheim Resort
My personal favorites include the Hyatt Place, Homewood Suites, and the Westin.
Within Walking DISTANCE but Also good Hotel
If you’re looking for a great property with a very short walk, then you’ll love the following:
- Westin Anaheim = 9 minute walk to Downtown Disney
- Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance = 9 minute walk to Disneyland
- Howard Johnson Anaheim Hotel = 11 minute walk to Disneyland
- Hyatt House = 13 minute walk to Disneyland
- Best Western Park Place Inn Mini Suites = 4 minute walk to Disneyland
- Castle Inn = 10 minute walk to Disneyland
- Tropicana = 5 minute walk to Disneyland
Best Rides at Disneyland
It’s hard to say which rides are the best and can’t be missed since everyones preferences differ, so I’m just going to list my favorites at both parks that I always have to ride when I visit from out-of-town.
Honestly, if you hit these rides, you’ll have a pretty successful visit.
Best Rides at Disneyland Park
- Space Mountain (especially Hyperspace Mountain)
- Indiana Jones Adventure
- Haunted Mansion (during Halloween and Christmas)
- Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
- “it’s a small world” (during Christmas only)
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
- Matterhorn Bobsleds
- Mr Toad’s Wild Ride
Best Rides at California Adventure
- Soarin’ (especially when it’s Over California)
- Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout
- WEB Slingers: A Spider-Man Adventure
- Radiator Springs Racers
- Incredicoaster (fastest ride)
- Grizzly River Run
- Goofy’s Sky School
- Silly Symphony Swings
- Toy Story Midway Mania
- Animation Academy (not a ride but it’s so fun to draw characters)
Everyone loves the Pixar Pal-A-Round but it’s terrifying and trash, and that’s a hill I will die on.
Single Rider Lines at Disneyland
You can also take advantage of Single Rider Lines which basically lets you join a separate, usually shorter line, by riding alone as opposed to with your party.
For example, if a row on a ride has 2 seats like the Incredicoaster but only 1 in that row is filled, a single rider will join that party of one to fill that row.
Single Rider Attractions at Disneyland
- Matterhorn Bobsleds
- Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run
- Space Mountain
- Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Single Rider Attractions at California Adventure
- Goofy’s Sky School
- Grizzly River Run
- Incredicoaster
- Radiator Springs Racers
- Soarin’
- Web Slingers: A Spider-Man Adventure
Attractions with No Height Requirements
There are also quite a bit of rides and attractions that do not have a minimum height requirement.
This is especially good for those parties with little kids and babies, like us.
Here’s a taste for both parks. But be sure to check out this page for the full list.
Disneyland Rides without Height Restrictions
- Alice in Wonderland
- Astro Orbiter
- Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
- Haunted Mansion
- “it’s a small world”
- Jungle Cruise
- King Arthur Carousel
- Mad Tea Party
- Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
- Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
- Peter Pan’s Flight
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room
California Adventure Rides without Height Restrictions
- Golden Zephyr
- Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind
- Mickey’s PhilharMagic
- Monsters, Inc. Mike and Sully to the Rescue
- Pixar Pal-a-Round (Swinging and Non-Swinging)
- The Little Mermaid – Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
- Toy Story Midway Mania!
- Web Slingers: A Spider-Man Adventure
Best Food at Disneyland
The food and drinks at Disneyland are probably the one thing that I look forward to the most when visiting the parks.
These are my go-to favorites at both parks:
Best Things to Eat at Disneyland
- Mickey Beignet (Mint Julep Bar)
- Mint Julep (Mint Julep Bar)
- Bengal Skewers (Bengal Barbecue)
- Dole Whip (Tropical Hideaway)
- Plaza Fried Chicken (Plaza Inn)
- Matterhorn Macaron (Jolly Holiday)
- Season Funnel Cake (Hungry Bear)
- Monte Cristo (Cafe Orleans)
- Churro
Best Things to Eat at California Adventure
- Beef Bulgogi Burrito (Lucky Fortune Cookery)
- Lobster Nachos (Lamplight Lounge)
- New York’s Tastiest (Schwarma Palace)
- QuesaBirria (Cocina Cucamonga)
- Chicken Drumsticks (Poultry Palace)
- Baymax Sour Dough (Aunt Cass Cafe)
- Choco-Smash Cake (Pym Test Kitchen)
- Hot Link Corn Dog (Corn Dog Castle)
- Cozy Cone Ice Cream (Cozy Cone)
- Not So Little Chicken Sandwich (Pym Test Kitchen)
- Funnel Cake Fries (Award Wieners)
- Fried Chicken (Flo’s)
- Seasonal Churros
Best Things to Eat at Downtown Disney
- Beignets (Beignets Expressed)
- Spicy Wontons (Din Tai Fung)
- Soup Dumplings (Dint Tai Fung)
For a full list with pictures, check out this article I put together.
I honestly don’t drink enough to make any cocktail or alcoholic beverage recommendations, so I decided to just skip that part. Sorry about that!
Special Events
Disneyland offers these special ticketed events as well as seasonal festivals throughout the year:
Special Ticketed Events
- Oogie Boogie Bash – A Disney Halloween Party
- Pride Nite
- Star Wars Nite
- Disney Channel Nite
- Sweetheart’s Nite
- D23 (every other year)
You can learn more about each even as well as buy tickets here.
Festivals and Parades
- Lunar New Year Celebration
- Super Bowl Winner’s Celebration (depends on where Super Bowl is held)
- California Adventure Food and Wine Festival
- Pixar Fest
- Holidays at Disneyland
VIP Tour
If you want to experience Disneyland like a celebrity then a private VIP tour is the only way to go.
It’s extremely expensive and you have to pay for it by the hour (7 hour minimum) but you will get expedited access to all of the rides as well as premier seating for all of the shows, fireworks, and parades.
Is it worth it?
I’ve done 2 and honestly it was pretty awesome. Just very expensive.
When to Start Planning
I wrote a quick and easy Disneyland planning timeline and checklist article that should help you plan up to 8 months in advance (if needed).
Check it out here:
Future Rides and Lands
There’s a lot of exciting upcoming projects that will be happening at Disneyland within the next 5 years.
Here’s quick rundown of everything that’s been confirmed or at least highly highly speculated:
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure (2024)
Splash Mountain is currently being re-themed to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure just like the one in Disney World (pictured below).
New Avatar Land (TBD)
There’s a good chance that the new Avatar Land at Disneyland will focus on Avatar 2.
DIsneyland Forward Expansion (TBD)
Disney got the go-ahead from Orange County to start building an expansion park/area.
This also includes a new hotel district a few minutes off-property.
It’s pretty insane that Disneyland is getting all this new growth.
Makes me pretty jealous over here at Disney World smh…
Final Thoughts
Hope this Disneyland planning guide was straight-forward and simple to follow!
Because at the end of the day, planning for a Disneyland trip is honestly pretty easy.
Sure it can get stressful (and pricey), but in reality, as long as you have your park reservations made and your Lightning Lane selections made prior to visiting, you’ll have no issues having a magical time,
If you ever have any questions, please be sure to send me a DM on Instagram and I’ll get back to you ASAP.
