DisneyLand...they think of everything!

J and I set out to DisneyLand and California's Adventure Park on Black Friday, November 27! We thought that this would be a better day to go on because many people were out shopping or still recovering from Thanksgiving and so there would be less people there than on maybe a Saturday or regular weekend! We pre bought the 1-Day Park Hopper tickets through my teachers union for a cheap price and had the fanny pack (that I bought earlier that morning at Black Friday madness) packed up and ready to go.

We set out on our adventure. The drive was about 1 hour up to Anaheim, CA from our house and there was a convenient exit, Disney Way, that took you straight from the highway to the parking garages and resort parking for the theme park and Downtown Disney.

During our experience at Disneyland we had a few Eureka moments and epiphanies. The following is our list of all the amazing things that Disneyland and CA Adventure Park have, as well as our Do's and Don'ts in order to have an optimal time at the most magical place on earth!

Props to Disney for:
-Hand Sanitizer : in the midst of Swine Flu, they had hand sanitizer stations outside every ride when you exited and by all major eating facilities!

-Overall Very Friendly: each employee was super nice and helpful

- Warm Water in bathrooms for hand washing: when we left the park that evening I had to use the bathroom one more time before the ride home. It was pretty cold outside and I was dreading washing my hands with the freezing cold water. But, to my surprise, the water was pleasantly warm and made my hand washing experience much better!

-Photo Passport Card: you can get it for free from any gift shop or an employee who is taking pictures. They scan your card when they take a picture of you with a character or at a prime photo destination. This card has a bar code that links online to their website. When you leave Disneyland you can go home and view all the pictures they took of you during your visit and then have the option of buying them or editing them to say "Merry Christmas" or "First visit", etc. The card is reusable and we can bring it back next time we go to Disneyland to add pictures to our photo passport. The employees will also take the same picture with your personal camera, so you don't have to buy their pictures. Even though, most of the time their pictures turned out better than our camera.

-Fast Pass: Is a must. Basically it waits in line for you, while you can be riding another ride. It is a ticket that you get with your Disneyland park ticket. You insert it into the machine by the ride area and it prints out another ticket with a time for you to come back to ride the ride. When you come back at the later time, you by pass all the waiting in line and go directly to the front of the line for the ride. It is awesome! Great for rides like Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Screammin' Roller Coaster Ride, and other long line rides.

-Equal Opportunist Employer. I met a Deaf man. He was working in the candy shop and we had a nice little chit chat. He was also fluent in other countries sign languages, such as Mexican Sign Language. It was very impressive! Deaf people can be bilingual too!

-2 people is Best!: We learned that traveling with 2 people in your party is much better than larger groups such as 3 or 4 or 5. Lots of families are bigger and all want to ride the ride at the same time in the same cart or raft. J and I just had two, so when there were other smaller families or 2 or 1, they always needed 2 more to fill the cart, so they would ask for groups of 2. It seemed that we were the only two, always, and we got to cut past about 10 or 15 groups of people per ride because of our small numbers!

-Bobsled Ride at DisneyLand is the best!: This ride is in a bobsled through a dark mountain. You get to sit two to a seat with your partner between your legs on this ride. It's also nice because you get to cuddle up and be close to your loved one and sit in between their cozy legs! The whole ride is in the dark so there is maximum time to sneak a kiss or two!

Do's:
-Bring a fanny pack: it's better than a backpack, because you can keep it on your person/body during most rides. It can slide around to accommodate the different seat straps and safety bars that come down over your lap.

-Bring Snacks and Drinks!: They do allow food and drinks in the park. I wish I would have known that before hand, because we waited in many long lines and I wish I had a snack. It also saves money because you don't have to spend $4 or $3 for a popcorn or ice cream for the kids when they are hungry. Food wasn't priced as bad as I thought, but if you pack from home, there are many places to sit and eat. They also have lockers to put your cooler in if you don't want to carry it around all day. Or you can leave the park (be sure to get your hand stamped) to eat at your car and come back.

-Buy Tickets ahead of time!: saves you time, rather than waiting in line when you arrive at the park to buy tickets. Also, there are cheaper deals online and through companies to save money! If you are a teacher in a union, go through TSA (for California teachers) or other union affiliates for cheap deals. We saved $24 per ticket!

-Hit up Disneyland first in the morning!: (if you have a park hopper pass) Then hit up the CA Adventure Park in the afternoon. You can always go back to Disneyland in the evening to see the parades and fireworks. We learned that more people with small children go to Disneyland and it was a lot more crowded than the Adventure Park. So we suggest going to Disneyland first thing in the morning and riding all the rides, as it will be less crowded.

-Use the convenient Disney Way freeway Exit!: Follow the easy signs from the freeway to the park entrance. They even have convenient ramps to enter back onto the freeway when you exit the park. Make sure if you are going back to San Diego to take the SOUTH ramp and not the North Ramp to LA.

-The artistic designs for rides and props for rides are amazing!: The artists who work for Disney really think of everything. Down to the smallest detail, they design the most amazing art and props for the rides. On Big Thunder Mountain Railroad check out the small little rattlesnakes and turtles that heads move and tongues hiss on the sides of the ride.

-Uniforms!: Disney treats their employees well. Each uniform was very nice and differed for each ride. They all matched the themes and accommodated for weather changes. As the temps dropped in the evening, the workers had coats, hats and gloves that matched with their outfits.

Do NOT:
- Ride any water rides at NIGHT!: In the winter months, when the temps drop significantly at night when the sun goes down it is not the best idea to ride a water ride. You will get soaked and you will be freezing, since the sun is not out to dry you off. We suggest riding most water rides first in the earlier day time when the sun is out! Or to bring a change of clothes.

Overall, we had the most amazing time at Disneyland and CA Adventure Park! We can't wait to go back again! Everything was amazing and perfect! Disney never seizes to amaze us!