Elizabeth’s solo Disneyland trip - PREP 410

Elizabeth flew from the East coast to the West coast for a whirlwind three-day solo trip to Disneyland. She shares how her first visit to Walt Disney’s original park went.

Post trip begins: 19 minutes

In this article

The Basics

Elizabeth flew from Charlotte, North Carolina on May 4 for her solo Disneyland trip. She hasn’t been to Disneyland since she was 9 years old. She will be staying at the Disneyland Hotel until May 7.

Because she is familiar with Disney World and did her research on Disneyland, Elizabeth is packing in a lot of wonderful experiences. As a solo traveler, she used single rider to maximize her time.

Elizabeth also took a tour and had desert party reservations for World of Color. She took advantage of the wandering characters and enjoyed meeting several of them.

Disneyland (May 4)

Elizabeth’s flight took off from Charlotte at 7:10 a.m. Her flight landed about 30 minutes early at 9:04 a.m. By 9:15 a.m. she was outside waiting for her driver – everything was very quick!

She used Diamond Driver Guy to take her to and from Disneyland. She had a great experience. Her driver was Adrian both ways. He texted her as soon as she landed.

Elizabeth’s pick-up service included a stop at a grocery store, but she opted not to use that. She arrived to the Disneyland Hotel at 10:20 a.m. Her room was not ready, but she checked in.

After changing clothes, dropping her bags, and making a quick trip to World of Disney for a Magic Band, Elizabeth was off to Disneyland.

Elizabeth arrived at Disneyland by 11:04 a.m. She first wandered down Main Street and went into Adventureland to get a snack. Then she went to ride some rides!

Alice in Wonderland had a posted wait time of 25 minutes so she went there first. The wait time was accurate. While in that area, she did Snow White’s Enchanted Wish and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, both with very little wait.

On her way toward it’s a small world, Elizabeth saw Bert and Mary Poppins. She got in line and had her photo taken with them.

It’s a small world had a posted wait time of 5 minutes and Elizabeth waited 4 minutes. She really enjoyed this ride and the character additions.

Elizabeth saw the Pearly Band and Ariel wandering around, which was really fun. The park was getting more crowded at this point. The wait times were lower, but the park felt crowded.

Elizabeth got another snack of cheesy garlic bread by Matterhorn. It was good but a lot and very messy.

Elizabeth purchased Genie+ when the arrived and booked a lightning lane for Pirates of the Caribbean. She only waited 7 minutes and loved it!

She had a lightning lane for Indiana Jones Adventure and went on that next. The posted wait time was 55 minutes and she waited 11 minutes. She loved it and says it is so different from DINOSAUR!

She began going toward Big Thunder Mountain because she had a lightning lane. On her way she saw Miguel and loved seeing the wandering characters.

The posted wait time for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was 40 minutes and she waited 5 minutes with the lightning lane. Elizabeth liked it and notes that it is different from Disney World.

At this point, it was time for her 2:40 p.m. lunch reservation at Blue Bayou. She was seated within a few minutes. She requested a seat by the water but the wait was 40 minutes and she opted not to wait. She did end up with a good table.

Elizabeth says the atmosphere was a 10 but the food was just a 6. She got a plant-based pasta meal and it was just okay.

After her meal, Elizabeth went to Frontierland to buy some pins for trading. Elizabeth mobile ordered a raspberry rose macaron from Jolly Holiday Cafe and made her first pin trade.

By 4:45 p.m. Elizabeth was tired and went back to her room. It was in Adventure tower and was just gorgeous. She was on the 3rd floor with a pool-view and a king size bed.

After unpacking, Elizabeth opted not to take a nap and went straight into California Adventure. She left her room at 6:30 p.m. and was at the park by 6:45 p.m. The parade was just beginning so she stopped to see some of it. She was too short to see a lot of it from as far back as she was.

Elizabeth had a Soarin’ lightning lane and went there first. She loves this ride. After that she used her Incredicoaster lightning lane. She only waited 6 minutes.

She walked through San Fransokyo Square to Cars Land. She loved the theming in this area.

Elizabeth used the single rider line for Radiator Springs Racers. The posted wait time was 60 minutes and Elizabeth only waited 18 minutes. She really loved this ride.

After that, Elizabeth got a snack at Pym Test Kitchen. When she was done with her snack, Elizabeth had a lightning lane for Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! for 9:10 p.m.

The posted wait time was 45 minutes and there was no wait. She got Hit Me with Your Best Shot as her song. It was worth staying up late and pushing through because she really loved this ride. She did over 27,000 steps today.

California Adventure (May 5)

Elizabeth was up well before 5 a.m. and was in line for Early Entry at 6:45 a.m. The line opened at 7 a.m. and she was through by 7:08 a.m. The gates opened at 7:18 a.m.

She was stopped until 7:30 a.m .and went immediately to Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! The posted wait time was 13 minutes. She only waited 4 minutes and her song was Burning Love.

She took the back path to Cars Land and got in line for Radiator Springs Racers. She waited 18 minutes in the regular line. When she got off the posted wait time was 70 minutes.

Then it was time for breakfast. She got a plant based breakfast wrap from Shawarma Palace. Elizabeth says it was so delicious. She also got a cookies and cream cold brew from Pym Test Kitchen.

Elizabeth enjoyed a slower breakfast and had a great time. She also booked a lighting lane for Midway Mania and it went down, turning her lightning lane into a multi-experience pass. This was a nice thing to have just in case.

Elizabeth booked a Web Slingers Lightning Lane and went there after her breakfast. She didn’t have any wait at all. She really loved this ride.

Elizabeth’s next stop was Pixar Pier. She did Incredicoaster and Midway Mania right in a row without much of a wait at all. She was then able to catch the green army men, which was neat.

As she was leaving California Adventure, Elizabeth stopped to meet Daisy and get a photo. She entered Disneyland and loved that it was such a quick walk.

Elizabeth got on the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street to Toon Town. She’d originally planned to do Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway but the line was too long. She got a lightning lane for Pirates of the Caribbean and went through Galaxy’s Edge.

While she was in Galaxy’s Edge she saw the BDX Droids show. It was so cute. From there, she went to her Pirates of the Caribbean lightning lane. She had very little wait and was on the first row!

It was time for Elizabeth’s 12:55 p.m. reservation at Lamplight Lounge. This was a really good meal. She was seated at the bar which was wonderful because there was a great bartender.

They had really cute coasters and the bartender gave her each of the options brand new to take home. She really had a delicious brunch.

Elizabeth took advantage of photos being included with Genie+ so she stopped to take lots of photos! She went back over to Disneyland and her first stop was to meet Goofy.

After that, she had a lightning lane for Hyper Space Mountain. The posted wait time was 60 minutes and she only waited 14 minutes. This was a much smoother ride as compared to Disney World.

Then Elizabeth waited 11 minutes at Star Tours with a lightning lane. The posted wait time was 35 minutes. She really enjoyed the new characters and scenes. She was seated on the far left side of the front row, which wasn’t an ideal view, but it was okay.

Her next stop was Buzz Lightyear with a lightning lane. She had no wait at all. This wasn’t her favorite because she couldn’t get her gun to work.

Her next stop was Indiana Jones Adventure and the posted wait was 55 minutes. She didn’t wait near that long. Then she mobile ordered a mint julep. Elizabeth says it was very refreshing.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad had a posted wait time of 45 minutes but Elizabeth only waited 11 minutes with her lightning lane. At this point, it was time for a rest. Elizabeth took the monorail back to the resort.

Elizabeth rested at the hotel for about an hour before going over to California Adventure. She took the path through the Grand Californian. She had trouble using her key to get into the lobby, but finally got in and wandered around.

She waited 5 minutes with a lightning lane for Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!. Her song was Hit Me with Your Best Shot.

Her next stop was Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!. The posted wait time was 30 minutes and Elizabeth waited 15 minutes. Elizabeth said it was just fine.

Then it was time for her World of Color Dessert Party at 8 p.m. She checked in at 7:50 p.m. She was directed to a very long line. They took smaller groups from that line and when she got in, she got a high top table.

Elizabeth shared her table with a nice couple. The food selections were pretty good, Elizabeth says. The show was absolutely incredible and Elizabeth cried.

When the show was over, Elizabeth went back to the hotel and crashed. She was so tired and clocked more than 33,000 steps today!

Disneyland (May 6)

Elizabeth was up early and in line by 6:40 a.m. She was at the gate by 7:17 a.m. and the gates opened at 7:30 a.m.

Elizabeth went immediately to Adventureland. She booked a lightning lane for Indiana Jones Adventure but it went down so she used the multi-experience lightning lane for Jungle Cruise.

She had the best experience. Her skipper, Jordan, was just delightful. Everyone had a really great time which made it a lot of fun.

Elizabeth wandered around and took some photos. It was delightful. On her wait to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, she met Woody.

She went to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and then Pirates of the Caribbean, both without a wait. After riding in a boat by herself, she mobile ordered a Wafflcristo from Royal Street Veranda. It was absolutely delicious.

Elizabeth then made her way to Toon Town. she wanted to explore before it got too busy. She waited 10 minutes for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. The queue was just so cute. The ride was basically the same as in Orlando, but it’s just cute.

From there, Elizabeth had her longest wait of the trip. She went to Mickey’s house and waited 39 minutes to meet Mickey.

Elizabeth went to use her lightning lane for Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin. She didn’t enjoy this ride.

After this she took a bit of a break near it’s a small world. She made some lightning lane reservations while resting her feet.

She went to Pinocchio’s Daring Journey and waited 8 minutes before doing the Sleepy Beauty Castle walkthrough. It was a neat experience but there was a family recording every single part of the experience and a child reading all of the books.

At 11:45 a.m. Elizabeth checked in for her noon Walt’s Main Street Tour. There were about 10 people on the tour and Elizabeth’s guide was a woman named Paula. She had been working there since the 1970s.

The tour included a drink and sweet treat provided. They walked down Main Street and learned about the windows. They went into Walt’s Apartment. There was a photopass photographer in the apartment and those photos were included with the tour.

They got their sweet treat after that. Elizabeth really enjoyed it but doesn’t know that it was necessarily worth the price she paid.

After the tour, Elizabeth went to Galaxy’s Edge and got a plant-based Ronto Wrap. This was different from the plant-based wrap in Orlando. Elizabeth says it was so good!

Then Elizabeth got a lightning lane for Smuggler’s Run. This was her very first time riding this one! She got a churro before finding a spot for the parade in the it’s a small world area. She got a spot around 2:30 p.m. for the 3 p.m. parade.

After another ride, she went to the King Arthur Carrousel and waited about 15 minutes. Then she took a break and joined the wait list for Lamplight Lounge. She had a drink and snack before going to Cars Land.

She was able to use her multi-experience passes for Luigi’s Rollickin Roadsters. She really liked this. Then she got a very good score at Web Slingers.

Elizabeth went back to Disneyland and used lightning lanes for Indiana Jones Adventure and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad with very little wait. Then she went on Matterhorn. She was hurting afterward but is so glad she rode it!

She mobile ordered Bengal Barbecue and it was very good. It was crowded but she was able to get a table. After that, she went to the Adventureland Treehouse and loved seeing the park at night.

Her last ride of the trip was Pirates of the Caribbean. She left the park at 9:15 p.m. and was back at her room by 9:30 p.m. She was so tired! She did 27,000 steps again today and her legs were feeling it.

Departure (May 7)

Elizabeth was picked up at 5 a.m. by the same driver that got her from the airport. She was at the airport by 6 a.m. and was home by 6:30 p.m.

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