The Early Bird Gets the Rides!

by Stephen C.
(Birmingham, Alabama, USA)

If you want to go on several popular rides, but *don't* want to stand in line for ages upon ages at a time, the simple answer is... get there first!

The only long line you should have to be standing in is the one to get in the Disneyland park *itself* the second the gates swing open.

After that, get a FastPass ticket for anything anywhere near Main Street that you want to see, to reserve a place in line, and move all the way to the furthest *edge* of the park! Everybody and their families will be rushing up to ride Thunder Mountain or the Matterhorn, and that'll cause a huge logjam there. Get a FastPass for those, if you want to ride them anytime soon, and instead *skip past them* and work from the outside in.

The crowd will be coming from Mainstreet U.S.A. and spreading outwards, stopping at all the rides they want to visit on the way first. By going from the outside edges of the park inwards, you don't deal with that crowd and can get several of the busier rides in early - BEFORE they become packed with a huge line. This is a great chance to ride some of the popular attractions on the periphery of the park, such as the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, or Splash Mountain.

The hugely-popular "iconic" rides, such as Space Mountain, will still be crowded... but this is your chance to get several of the "also-see" experiences out of the way in quick and enjoyable succession with very little waiting time.

Learn more about planning your own Disneyland vacation or Anaheim vacation, including renting a timeshare at WorldMark Anaheim or Dolphin's Cove.