Live
| 22min | 25min | 80min | 30min | 20min | 15min | 10min | 10min | 5min | Closed | 20min | Closed | 5min | 15min | Closed | 45min | 15min | 5min | 5min | Closed | 10min | 10min | 30min | 10min | 10min | 45min | 10min | 50min | Closed | 20min | 10min | 5min | 5min | 20min |
| Average Wait | Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run | Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance | Astro Orbitor | Autopia | Big Thunder Mountain Railroad | Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters | Casey Jr. Circus Train | Disneyland Monorail | Disneyland Railroad | Dumbo the Flying Elephant | Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room | Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage | Chip 'n' Dale's GADGETcoaster | Haunted Mansion | Indiana Jones™ Adventure | Jungle Cruise | King Arthur Carrousel | Mad Tea Party | Matterhorn Bobsleds | Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway | Mr. Toad's Wild Ride | Peter Pan's Flight | Pinocchio's Daring Journey | Pirates of the Caribbean | Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin | Snow White's Enchanted Wish | Space Mountain | Splash Mountain | Star Tours – The Adventures Continue | Storybook Land Canal Boats | The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh | "it's a small world" | Alice in Wonderland |
⚠️ Wait times are shorter than usual
| 8a | 16 |
|---|---|
| 9a | 21 |
| 10a | Now |
| 11a | 24 |
| 12p | 26 |
| 1p | 26 |
| 2p | 23 |
| 3p | 22 |
| 4p | 27 |
| 5p | 26 |
| 6p | 32 |
| 7p | 29 |
| 8p | 30 |
| 9p | 25 |
| 10p | 12 |
I agree. We arrived at parking today before 10am. By the time we got to the entrance, they were not allowing anybody in! Crazy! We spent most of the day at California Adventure instead.
DCA usually doesn’t hit capacity.
went to disneyland by myself for first time on Dec. 29, Monday. so very crowded, but being alone was awesome. was inside park by 8:30 am. Indiana jones fast pass. No line yet for pirates, haunted house, splash mountain, and winnie the pooh. then used Indiana Jones fast pass and had done 5 rides by 10:30. througout day used fast passes for space mountain, roger rabbit cars, and star tours. I never waited in line more than 20 minutes. No way i was spending one to two hours in line when so many other things to do. spent rest of day going to shows (never was hard to get in), rode train, tom sawyer island, exploring toon town, river boat, tiki room, jungle boat, innoventions (ASIMO was cool), Fantasmic show, fireworks, and ended with an hour on main street at the cinema and opera house. It was a long 14.5 hour day but i did more than i ever had at the park during the busiest week of the year! it was much easier to manuever alone, but if you are with a group you can still have fun IF you 1) arrive early (may not even get in if after 10), get fast passes every time you are allowed to get one, and enjoy the less crowded shows and attractions. if you really want the popular rides without fast passes, then come on a less crowded days. Or else suffer the lines! Hope you have fun!
FYI, It is very cold in the early morning and evening hours. It will only be 45 degrees Wednesday morning, brrr!! My beanie, scarf, and gloves helped immensely for my comfort and enjoyment of those areas. I suggest layering, but even warmest part of day is still chilly, ~upper 50s. Please bundle up the kids, I saw so many red freezing ears and hands!!
A nice uncrowded areas for young kids to enjoy is the Big Thunder Ranch – petting zoo, a few games, characters to meet, also a cheesy but cute little musical show (see schedule for showtimes). The parade was better than I expected too and the kids will enjoy. I got lucky and got a great place to see it just as it was passing by, but you’ll need to plan ahead to get a good spot where the kids can see. Alternatively (or in addition), try out the “Mickey and the Magical Map” show at the Fantasyland Theatre, it wasn’t hard to get a seat and it was fun with a number of disney characters. Late in the day the Tiki Room was a welcome place to sit and watch the show…this is also kinda cheesy, but I only waited about 10 minutes and it brought back good memories from when I was a kid and enjoyed the animitronic birds singing silly songs!!
One last tip – Fantasmic show is now only viewable from the good areas around the lake with a fastpass. Will be more difficult to see otherwise. Go pick that up early from Frontier Landing (River boat, over by Thunder Mountain Railroad). There are also some dining options that give you a fastpass for the show, but they are pricey.
Be prepared for sell out crowds the rest of this week most likely! Even season ticket holders get turned away when they’ve reached capacity (which seems to be between 10-11 am based on what I’ve heard and read, between xmas and new years is their busiest week of the entire year!). See my additional tips for still enjoying the day in my post below. With planning and realistic expectations you can still have fun.
Yes. The Premium passholders are the next to last group to be turned away. The last group are those that are staying at the Disneyland Hotel. Pass holders – don’t be too angry about that – Travelling from out of town (usually) and staying at their hotel is basically a way to reserve your admittance…a seasons pass is just a discounted admittance for frequent visitors. It is rare for this to happen, EXCEPT between Xmas and New Years which is their busiest week of the entire year. If you don’t like getting up early or extreme crowds, I suggest going a different time. BEWARE – they will even stop allowing people to come in even if you have your hand stamped when they are crazy busy during this time period! So make sure to ask before you leave. You might not be able to easily go back and forth between CA Adventure and Disneyland. IN fact, it’s so busy I personally wouldn’t even bother with the one-day park hopper pass. BUT…they don’t usually sell out at California Adventure so that is an alternative option. From what I’ve read, it seems that they can reach capacity between around 10-11 am. Parking, shuttle, security, buying ticket (I suggest buying ahead online), and getting into the park all takes a good while. I got to the parking lot at 7:45 and was in the park by 8:35 which was faster than most. Plan on an hour if you’re getting their early. It may take you 2 hours if you get there later than when I did. BEST way to quickly get to the parking lot from surrounding area is I-5 North, Disney Way carpool exit (from left), Left on Harbor, and then Left into Buzz/Jessie/Woody parking lot. If you are staying at a hotel that is within 20 minutes walking distance, than DON’T go the parking lot and take the shuttle, much faster to just walk (or catch a cab). There are no parking lots that are “in” the park. All the Disney parking lots run shuttles. Hope this helps!!
What additional pass for $100 are you talking about? I’ve never heard of it. I’ve never heard of paying an extra $200 for anything either. Please let us know what you are referring to. An annual pass doesn’t buy you a stake in the company.
Will Jan. 8th and 9th be “less busy”/”manageable” days?
Yes, I think it will be manageable since most of the big holiday crowds should be gone by then.
Will it be too crowded on Jan 1? Which date would be ideal in this week?
I’m thinking that would be the best day to go this week. It’s still expected to be crowded since it’s a holiday, but hopefully not too crazy.