Disneyland Planning Timeline: Your Step-by-Step Guide to the Perfect Trip
Planning a trip to Disneyland can be almost as magical of an experience as the vacation itself! But it does requires some strategic planning to make sure everything goes smoothly. With a Disneyland vacation, you can no longer just wing it! You have to plan well in advance, especially for things like park reservations and dining reservations. Plus depending on the time of year you are traveling, you might want to book your hotels and flights early too!
From booking your tickets to packing your bags, here’s a detailed Disneyland planning timeline checklist to help you plan the perfect Disneyland vacation.
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Disneyland Planning Timeline
6-9 Months Before Your Trip: Start Researching
- Choose Your Dates: Start by deciding when you want to visit Disneyland. There is a lot to take into consideration. Did you have specific time you can take off work/school? Do you want to visit during a holiday or special event? Do you want to go when crowds are lower? Typically, off-peak seasons offer lower crowds and better prices but you could run into a lot of refurbishment. And during the off season, you might miss out on some of the fireworks, shows and parades. There are definitely pros and cons to each time of year.
- Set a Budget: Determine how much you can spend on your trip. Include costs for park tickets, hotels, dining, souvenirs, travel expenses and other activities you want to do while there, both in the parks and out.
- Research Accommodations: Look into hotels both on and off Disney property or local AirBnB’s. There are so many options so start researching now.
- Start Saving: Begin setting aside a budget for your trip. If you book with my travel partner Get Away Today, you can actually use their layaway plan and put $200 down and make payments all the way up until 8 days prior to your trip!
120 Days Before Your Trip: Make Reservations
- Book Your Hotel: If you haven’t already, now is the time to book your hotel! Hotels can book up quick, especially during peak season so make sure you book as soon as you can!
- Purchase Park Tickets: Reservations for the parks can be made up to 180 days in advance. I would recommend making these reservations as soon as you can. Purchase your tickets/hotel package through Get Away Today and they will send you detailed instructions on how to make park reservations for Disneyland. I promise, it is so easy! If you have the budget for it, I would definitely consider purchasing multi-day tickets or park hoppers, depending on your plans.
- Research Flights: If you’re flying, start looking at flight options and prices. The best time to book your flights is 6-8 weeks prior to your vacation, but start researching the best flight options for your family now.
- Set Up a Disneyland Account: Create an account on Disneyland’s website or app. When you’re in the parks, you’re going to be using the app like crazy so take this time to familiarize yourself with the app. It’s also so much easier to manage your reservations, tickets, Lightning Lane Multi-pass and dining plans.
3 Months Before Your Trip: Begin Planning
- Purchase Travel Insurance: Consider purchasing travel insurance, especially if your trip is during peak seasons and you’re concerned about sickness or anything else disrupting your trip. It is absolutely not necessary but if it’s something you feel is important, now is the time to do it. Another option to travel insurance is Get Away Today’s Peace of Mind Plan. For just $99, the Peace of Mind Plan is travel protection that allows you to make any reservation changes (excluding airfare) up to five days prior to your check-in date without any penalties. The Peace of Mind Plan will waive any change, reschedule or cancellation fees but it must be purchased at the time of booking to qualify.
- Make a rough itinerary of your trip: Map out which parks you’ll visit on which days. Are you using a park hopper? How do you want your trip to play out, including dining reservations, what you’re doing each day in the park, etc. Ask everyone what their top 3 priorities are and plan accordingly.
60 Days Before Your Trip: Make Detailed Plans
- Book Dining Reservations: If there are specific restaurants or character dining experiences you want to experience, you need to book them 60 days in advance. The reservation window opens up exactly 60 days ahead of time and the reservations go fast. Read this post to find out how to get dining reservations and this one to find out what to do if you can’t get the reservations you want.
- Book additional experiences: Book your Droid building, Lightsaber building and Bibbiddi Bobbiddi Boutique reservations now. Also, if you want to do any other experiences like VIP tours, dessert parties or parade/Fantasmic! Dining packages, now is the time to do that as well. Also, if you’re interested in after hours events like Oogie Boogie Bash or Star Wars Nites, you are going to need to book those on a specific date. Dates are announced for those and usually the tickets go within a day or two so be sure to watch the Disneyland website for that information.
6 Weeks Before Your Trip: Finalize Details
- Book Flights: Now is the time to book flights if you are flying. If you’re not, how are you getting there? if you’re driving, how many days is it going to take and what stops are you going to make? Plan all that out now.
- Reserve Transportation: If you are flying, you will need transportation from the airport to the resort. The options are Uber/Lyft, shuttle or rental car. If you need a rental car or shuttle, book those now. Consider how you’ll get from your hotel to the parks each day. Is it walking distance or do you need to take the shuttle? Some hotels offer a dedicated shuttle and some offer the Art Bus that you’ll need to buy a separate ticket for.
- Purchase Park Essentials: Start purchasing items you’ll need for the parks now, like portable phone chargers, sunscreen, bandaids and autograph books. Check out my post here on all of your park bag essentials!
- Check for Special Events: Verify if there are any special events during your visit and adjust your itinerary accordingly. Sometimes an after dark event is happening which can cause one park or the other to close so be sure you’re aware of all of those types of events happening. Check out my Disneyland by month section here to find out what events are happening.
1 Month Before Your Trip: Prep
- Check Disneyland App: Make sure you have the Disneyland app installed on your phone and your park tickets linked. Familiarize yourself with the park maps and make sure you know how to use all of the features on the app like mobile ordering and Lightning Lane Multi Pass. This will be your go-to tool for managing reservations, viewing wait times, and navigating the parks.
- Review Your Reservations: Double-check all your reservations, including flights, hotels, dining, and any special experiences to make sure everything is correct and there won’t be any surprises when you get there.
- Plan for Meals and Snacks: Think about snacks and quick meals you might want to bring into the park. This is a great way to save money and keep everyone happy during the day. If you don’t plan on bringing any food into the parks, check out this post to determine how much you’ll need to spend on food each day.
- Check Park Hours and Events: Review the park hours and any special events happening during your visit to make any final adjustments to your itinerary. Also check refurbishments so everyone’s expectations are on point when you go.
- Start a Disneyland 30 Day Countdown: You can purchase one here or make your own! If you would like to purchase the 30 Day Disneyland Countdown, use code TIMELINE for 25% off!
30 Day Countdown to the Magic
$9.00
30 Day Countdown to the Magic is a PDF E-book that includes 30 days of planned activities to get you excited for your upcoming vacation! Activities include art and crafts, movies, treats, music and so much more! You also get a bucket list checklist for every land in the parks as well as DTD to help familiarize yourself with the parks and make sure you don’t miss a thing while you’re there!
2 Weeks Before Your Trip: Final Prep
- Start Packing: Start packing your bags! Make a packing list (or download this one) that includes clothing, toiletries, park essentials, and any specific items you might need. Don’t forget travel documents and medications!
- Confirm Reservations: Call or check online to confirm all reservations, including your flights, hotel, dining, transportation and Disney experiences.
- Check the Weather: Keep an eye on the weather forecast for Disneyland and adjust your packing list if needed. I always recommend bringing a jacket, even if you think you won’t need one.
1 Week Before Your Trip: Get Ready to Go!
- Prepare Your Home: Arrange for any necessary home care, such as pet sitting, mail collection or plant watering.
- Finalize Packing: Make sure everyone is packed and ready to go! Double-check that you have all necessary documents, including tickets, IDs, and confirmations.
- Plan for the First Day: Have a game plan for your first day at Disneyland. Know where you want to go and what you want to do first. If you’re going to Rope Drop, make sure you know when the parks open and what time to be there.
The Day Before Your Trip: Final Checklist
- Check-In to Your Flight: If flying, check in online and print or download your boarding passes.
- Prepare Your Car: If you’re road tripping, prepare your car with the necessary activities and snacks you’ll need and make sure your oil is changed, tires are safe and you have a full tank of gas.
- Charge Electronics: Make sure you have all of your devices are fully charged. This includes portable chargers for the park. I recommend bringing one per person who has a phone. And don’t forget to pack all necessary chargers and batteries.
- Get a Good Night’s Sleep: You’ll want to be well-rested for your magical adventure! Go to be early with everything done and ready for tomorrow so you don’t have to stress in the morning!
Day of Trip: Off to Disneyland!
- Leave Early: Allow plenty of time to get to the airport or start your road trip. The worst thing in the world would be a missed flight when you’re excited for your vacation!
- Enjoy the Journey: Part of the fun of the vacation is the moment it starts at home or at the airport! Whether you’re flying or driving, enjoy the anticipation and excitement of your upcoming Disneyland vacation!
By following this Disneyland planning timeline, you’ll be well-prepared to experience the magic of Disneyland without the stress.
Happy planning, and have a magical vacation!
-Amanda
Disneyland Planning Timeline Checklist
To download a printable checklist, click here and one will be sent directly to your email!
