Hi Nikki, and Welcome to planDisney! Thanks so much for stopping by and asking this great question.
I'm so happy to hEAR you will be visiting
The Happiest Place on Earth next week! I had to make the same decision about our upcoming arrival date and whether or not we would visit the theme parks on our arrival date. While there is not a half-day theme park ticket available for
Disneyland Park or
Disney California Adventure Park, I have some ideas for you! In my opinion, you should still go! More time to ride all of the rides, eat all of the snacks, and see Mickey is always a good decision! You will be on vacation, so I say fit in all of the magic you can. I just checked the
schedule for your arrival date, and Disneyland Park is open until midnight! You would have the chance to see
Disneyland Forever, my favorite fireworks show at Disneyland, as well as
Main Street Electrical Parade and
Fantasmic!, all on the same night! These are definitely worth the price of admission! Be sure to purchase your
theme park ticket and make your
theme park reservation in advance if you decide to go.
If you feel that you won't enjoy a shorter park day, the
Downtown Disney District offers great shopping and dining options. You could check for
advanced dining reservations and have a nice dinner after some shopping. This would also allow you to turn in early and be well-rested for the following day in the theme parks.
No matter what you chose, I hope you have a magical vacation at the Disneyland Resort! When you're ready to plan the next visit, we're all ears at
planDisney and would love to help!
See ya real soon!
Smiles,
Lisa