A Few Thoughts From My Disneyland Trip

As you may know, my daughter and I recently returned from Disneyland Resort. It was a trip that we put off several times, and it was nice to finally be able to get away. I’m still trying to get my head back in the game here in Florida. We had such a good time, I can’t wait to go back!

Instead of adding a long, boring recap of everything that we did, I decided I’d just add a few thoughts about our trip. I’ve added a lot of pictures and videos on Facebook and Instagram, so if you don’t like or follow those already please take a moment to do so.

I bought the Enchant Magic Key for both of us. (She didn’t know, it was her Christmas present.) It may seem a bit frivolous to have Annual Passes for parks across the country, but I’m glad that I bought them. We were able to go to the parks five days, including the evening that we arrived. If we didn’t have Magic Keys, we wouldn’t have wasted a day of the ticket. We’re hoping to return for two different events in California next year, and now I won’t have to decide whether or not we should hit the parks, we already have tickets.

I also liked the number of discounts that we received with our Magic Keys. Unlike at Walt Disney World, there are discounts at some Mobile Ordering locations! The discount is automatically added. There is also a discount on merchandise.

Originally we planned on four theme park days, but I was able to make a reservation for the day that we left. Don’t let anyone tell you that spots don’t open up, because we had no problem adding that fifth day.

We bought Disney Genie+ two of our five theme park days. In California, it was worth it for us. Both days we were in the parks all day. The other three days we didn’t spend a full day in the parks, so we rode things that aren’t available on Genie+.

WEB SLINGERS is an awesome ride, and Rise of the Resistance is windier on the West Coast. Breakfast at Shawarma Palace was everything!

There were characters everywhere, and the character cavalcades that we saw were bigger than at Walt Disney World. I also realized that I really don’t miss full parades. That said, I can’t wait until Main Street Electrical Parade, and since we have tickets we’re already planning on flying out for a weekend once it’s back.

Budget Car Rental from LAX was terrible. The line was ridiculously long, there was too much trying to upsell, and then there was a problem with the car they gave us and I had to wait again. If we’re there for a week again I’ll take a rideshare to and from the airport and then if we want to rent a car I’ll do it in Anaheim.

That said, our hotel was wonderful. We stayed at Kings Inn Anaheim. It’s basic, but it’s clean, and it is an easy walk to the parks. It was also quite a bit less than the other places I considered staying at. The staff was wonderful as well. We’ll stay there again.

Off the top of my head, I think that’s it. Thanks for following along. I loved sharing pictures with you along the way! I’m glad we decided to visit in December, the was holiday magic everywhere.