I spent the entire day at both parks yesterday(and a few evenings last week) and it inspired a couple of posts. I hope you don’t mind two Disney posts in one week.
I love going to Disneyland and DCA, as you have probably figured out. The one thing that I do not like is having to deal with parking. I usually don’t mind parking in the Mickey and Friends parking lot(the big structure) unless it is a busy day. On busy days parking and then riding the tram to the entrance of the resort can feel like a bad nightmare. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen people almost scuffle over their place in the “stroller line”.
The stroller line is found on the very first car of the tram and the very last car. It allows you to ride without having to fold your stroller. It is very popular and the wait for a spot in the first or last car is usually long. In fact the wait on a busy days for a tram can take a long long time. It is definitely not what you want to be doing when you have tired and cranky kids and have to be around other cranky people. It’s just not a good combination.
Here are a couple of alternatives to parking in the Mickey and Friends parking lot and taking the tram.
My favorite option for parking on nights when I know that I will be spending less than 3 hours is to park in Downtown Disney. If I’m heading over for the evening- I will usually park in the Downtown Disney lot. Parking is free for the first 3 hours. When I park in the DD parking lot I either take the monorail to Disneyland or walk through the Grand Californian Hotel to the DCA hotel entrance. It’s easy, painless and only a short walk.
My second option would be to park in the Mickey and Friends parking structure. Take the tram in but on the way out, only have the driver in your party head on the tram(they will usually be able to squeeze right on to a tram). The rest of the party will head over to the 15 minute parking on Harbor blvd(just follow the walkway to Harbor Blvd- it’s the parking lot on the right hand side) and be picked up from there. This is what we usually do on a busy day.
The last option is to park in the Mickey and Friends parking structure. Take the tram on your way in and at the end of the night, walk the path back to the structure. It’s a nice walk and on a busy night you will get to your car faster walking, then waiting and loading for the tram.
We have quit riding the tram all together. It's a short walk, I don't have to fold the stroller, or have the tension filled ten minutes wondering who is going to cut in to the stroller line!
Lisa – I agree- I'm thinking of following suit with you! It's a very nice walk and you don't have to deal with grumpy people!
We usually walk, especially on the way back to the car, the baby is generally asleep and I don't want to have to wake him up to get onto the tram.
Thanks for the great tips! These will come in handy since I just got my AP and so helpful not to have to take the tram when I take my son by myself. It would be a pain folding the stroller, holding my son and bags and trying to get on and off the tram all by myself.
Hello Aracely, thanks for stopping by at my blog. Very nice to meet you. Love your site, now I know where to go when I'm looking for things to do with my kids in LA and Disney!
See you around
Silvia
Great ideas! We used to park in the hotel parking lot on Harbor Blvd. right across the street until they started putting up signs that said they would tow you if you weren't staying there. Oh well!
omg I love you!!!! Thanks for all the great Disney posts…keep them coming… We are planning a trip with a huge party of family members, and I will be putting more than a few of your tips into action!!!
Thanks again Aracely
P.S. your kids are adorable!!!
sorry…didnt mean to post comment in "anonymous" LOL
Our favorite is walking back to the parking structure after a long & hectic (and sometimes hot day). We've found two great walks, one is the guided walkway along the tram route (follow the signs past the tram entry). The second is going all the way through Downtown Disney and turning right between Rainforest Cafe and the ESPN Zone. Go around to the left and follow the sidewalks all the way through the Downtown Disney Parking lot entrance, cross the street then straight in to the Mickey and Friends structure. 🙂 I call it my decompress time!
Thanks for the info. I never thought about sending someone to get the car and pick us up. We used to do that back in the day, but I didn't know where the "new" drop off point. Also, I would caution about entering through the Grand Californian. If it is a really busy day, some of the attendants will send you all the way back to the front entrance if you are not a guest of the hotel. (They ask to see a room key.) I've seen it happen. 🙁 Fortunatly, we were once guests at the hotel and keep our old key on hand for just such an occasion. 😉
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