Since I had a 1-day park hopper ticket to explore both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, I had to make sure I made the most of it. My biggest tip is to plan ahead, yet stay flexible. Although everything I planned was based on my preferences, and there are plenty of people with way more Disneyland/DCA expertise, I’m happy to share some tips from my experience so hopefully you can make the most of your experience as well!
BEFORE YOU GO
Make sure you have the Disneyland app downloaded on your phone. This is where you can access your ticket, find what’s available (some rides/restaurants may be closed), and get in the virtual queues. Research and make two lists of all the rides you hope to accomplish - a “Top Priority” list and an “Optional” list. My boyfriend (Michael) and I had 10 rides on our Top Priority list and 6 rides on our Optional list. Check out the wait times throughout a given day to have an idea which rides are the most popular and when the wait times might reduce a bit.
Research and make a list of foods you hope to try. Check the app to make sure the restaurants/carts are open, and be mindful of hours of availability. For instance, I specifically wanted to try the breakfast wrap from Ronto Roasters, which they stop selling at 10:30 AM.
Make a flexible schedule. Emphasis on flexible! Especially if you are trying to get into the Rise of the Resistance or the Web Slingers virtual queues - you won’t know when you’re allowed to hit those rides until the day of. Keep in mind which park you’ve reserved to start in, and try not to waste too much time walking back and forth between the parks. Map out everything and try to hit rides/food spots that are near each other at the same time to avoid excess walking.
Honestly, the planning is what I feel helped us the most in accomplishing 14 rides and eating almost all of our food choices in 12 hours (limited hours due to covid).
RIDES WE RODE
I’m a big baby and can’t handle any legit coasters, so I wanted a good variety of rides that are fast (but have no major drops) and classic dark rides.
Rise of the Resistance - Hands down the most impressive ride. You don’t have to be a huge Star Wars fan to appreciate how well this ride was made. I was questioning what was real and what wasn’t! I don’t want to give any spoilers so I’ll just say - this is a must-ride!
Smuggler’s Run - There are 4 positions: up/down pilot, left/right pilot, shooter, and engineer. The pilot positions are definitely more stressful but it is an overall fun virtual simulation ride.
Space Mountain - I never rode this before because I wasn’t sure if I could handle it, but I ended up loving it! Since this coaster was in the dark (for the space theme), I wasn’t able to anticipate the drops as much, which might have helped me mentally. It was such a thrill that I debated getting back in line as soon as I got off!
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - The pace of the coaster is similar to Space Mountain but a bit more jerky. The main difference is the ambiance - this one is partly indoor/partly outdoor and has a rocky mountain theme.
Indiana Jones Adventure - This used to be my favorite ride. Although it was still fun, I was a bit disappointed that some of the features/effects were turned off or were not as realistic since it is an older ride that hasn’t been given a lot of attention for repairs. However it was more jerky than I remember, which can be fun.
Radiator Springs Racers - Starts off as a chill ride then shifts to a coaster feel once you get to the race portion. The last drop was a bit much for me, but it gave us a priceless picture and I will definitely ride it again!
Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree - This ride might be more for kids, but Michael and I love it! Not only does it have a shorter line, but it really whips you around making it so enjoyable. We rode this one twice since we had a little extra time in DCA.
Snow White's Enchanted Wish - This dark ride was recently renovated to be less of a scary theme and more of a whimsical theme. I don’t remember how it was before, but Michael said the updates are great.
Toy Story Midway Mania! - I always try to hit this ride when I go to DCA because I like to have a little competition. Although I never win and my arms are dead afterwards, it’s worth it!
It's a Small World - There was basically no line, and this is a great option if you want a long, relaxing ride.
Pixar Pal-A-Round - I almost tried the swinging cart but switched gears at the last minute because we were short on time and the non swinging one had a shorter line. Thank goodness we did, because I actually think I would’ve died in the swinging cart after seeing it up close.
Haunted Mansion - As someone who absolutely hates horror movies, this ride actually wasn’t too scary. There are so many haunted details, you’ll definitely have to ride it multiple times to catch them all.
Star Tours - Although it wasn’t actually on our list, this virtual simulation ride had a short wait and was on our way to our next stop so we decided to squeeze it in.
FOODS WE ATE
Ronto Morning Wrap at Ronto Roasters (Scrambled Eggs, Grilled Pork Sausage, Shredded Cheddar, Peppercorn Sauce, wrapped in Pita) - As simple as it sounds, this was one of our favorites! I do wish the sausage was thicker, but it was a delicious quick breakfast. Michael and I agreed, this is a must-get next time we go.
Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo
Batuuan Beef Pot Roast (Braised Beef Pot Roast, Cavatelli Pasta, Wilted Kale, Mushrooms) - Small but tasty. The beef was nice and tender.
Batuu-bon (Chocolate Cake, White-Chocolate Mousse, Coffee Custard) - The cake portion was actually more like a brownie, which we prefer.
Cold Brew Black Caf (Cold Brew Coffee topped with Sweet Cream Cheese and Chocolate Puffs) - We wished it had a stronger coffee flavor, but the chocolate puff toppings were a nice touch.
Not so Little Chicken Sandwich at Pym Test Kitchen (Fried Chicken Breast, Teriyaki and Red Chili Sauces, and Pickled Cabbage Slaw on Brioche, served with crispy Potato Bites) - The fried chicken was basically like chicken katsu. For someone like myself that has easy access to good chicken katsu, it wasn’t anything special. However, it is still yummy and perfectly crispy.
Slow-roasted Beef Po' Boy at French Market Restaurant (Fried Onions and Creamy Horseradish Sauce served on a Rustic Roll with Au Jus and Seasoned Chips) - As a big fan of french dip sandwiches, this one was good but not particularly special.
Lobster Nachos at Lamplight Lounge (Warm Lobster with Black Beans, Aged Cheddar-Oaxaca Cheese Sauce, Pico de Gallo, and Chipotle Crema) - These nachos were a great snack but honestly, the view was the best part.
Cosmic Cream Orb at Terran Treats (Crisp Terran Cream Puff filled with Whipped Raspberry Cheesecake) - The cream was nice and dense, and had a good balance so the raspberry flavor wasn’t overpowering. Plus it made it more enjoyable to take pictures with the vibrant purple cream in our mouths.
Iced Caramel Caffe Latte at Cappuccino Cart - This wasn’t on our list but we wanted a caffeine boost. Unfortunately, we also wished this latte had a stronger coffee flavor.
OUR SCHEDULE
Although we had an idea what order we wanted to do things, we had to stay flexible because of ride wait times (including our boarding time for Rise of the Resistance). Since Indiana Jones and Thunder Mountain tend to have longer waits, we decided to start there and try to cross those off the list before the wait times got crazy. We then headed to Galaxy's Edge (a.k.a. Star Wars Land) to get the ronto morning wrap before they stopped selling it and explored the area.
Snow White’s Enchanted Wish wasn’t too far, so we rode that next and got a picture in front of the castle while we were in the area. We wanted to check out Cafe Orleans for the Monte Cristo with garlic parm fries, but the online wait list was lagging. We didn’t want to waste any time, so we went for our backup - the beef dip at French Market Restaurant.
At this point we had just enough time for one more ride before our Rise boarding time, so we squeezed in Smuggler's Run. From there we went straight to Rise, then ate at Docking Bay 7.
We headed over to DCA to check out the new Avengers Campus, and took our time watching some of the mini shows. Right next door was Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree, so we crossed that off the list. There was an estimated wait time of an hour and half for Lamplight Lounge, so we put our name down and rode Toy Story while we waited. By the time we got off, we received the text that our table was ready (took half the time they estimated it would).
We needed a caffeine boost so we grabbed a latte on our way back to Disneyland to ride Space Mountain. Then we crossed off Small World and on our way to Haunted Mansion, we took another picture by the castle since the lighting from the sun wasn’t as harsh this time of day. There was just a bit of spare time, so we decided to ride Star Tours since it had a short wait and was kind of on our way back to DCA.
To finish the day in DCA, we ate at Pym Test Kitchen, got the cream puff orb, and went to ride Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree again. We had just a bit more time before we needed to be in line at Radiator Springs by 8:59 PM (the parks closed at 9 PM), so we squeezed in Pixar Pal-A-Round. Emphasis on squeeze! We booked it to Radiator Springs to make it in time and it all worked out perfectly!
FINAL THOUGHTS
If your biggest takeaway from this isn’t to plan ahead a flexible schedule, then I hope you can at least remember to have fun! You’re at “The Happiest Place On Earth” after all! Don’t let it discourage you if you can’t ride or eat everything you hope. Just remember to stop, appreciate the ambiance, and enjoy the experience!