Hello, William!
Welcome to planDisney, it's great to have you here! I also try to be strategic when I choose my park days, and there are plenty of possibilities to consider. I'm going to grab my detective gear and channel my inner Basil of Baker Street to take a close look at your dates and see what I can discover.
With a little detective work, I can see that the
Southern California Resident Tickets expire this year on May 25, 2023. That could mean the week of May 22, 2023, could be a little busier in the parks. It looks like you're planning for the week before, plus the SoCal offer is blocked out on May 20 and 21, so I wouldn't change your trip dates just to work around those tickets.
Basil and I did find one other thing you should consider;
Disney California Adventure Park is hosting Grad Nite 2023, so that park will close early some nights when you're there. So when you make park reservations, check those dates and make sure you reserve Disneyland Park on those days!
While May is a very popular time at the
Disneyland Resort it's still one of my absolute favorite times to go! If you're worried about crowds in the park, here are a few of my best strategies for getting the most out of your days:
- Consider staying at one of the Disneyland Resort Hotels. Guests are able to enter the park 30 minutes earlier (you can do a LOT in 30 minutes) and it also puts you close by to take a break later in the day!
- Wherever you stay, get up early! If you can arrive at security around 30 minutes before you can enter the park you'll enjoy some of the shortest waits of the day. You can also get some great time in by being a night owl, which leads me back to staying nearby for afternoon naps.
- Use Disney Genie+ to access Lightning Lanes and keep your wait times shorter.
- Book Dining Reservations 60 days out from your trip (most of them release at 6 AM EST) so you can have a great meal and relax!
- Use Mobile Ordering on the Disneyland Mobile App to avoid some of the lines for snacks and quick service meals.
- Check the Disneyland Mobile App to keep an eye on wait times, the entertainment schedule, and other helpful park information. You can even chat with a Cast Member if you have questions!
- Make reservations for a dining package to see World of Color - ONE or Fantasmic! The nighttime spectaculars are incredible, but also popular, so it's nice to have a delicious meal that also includes a reserved viewing section to help you get a good spot.
Your 60-day window for advanced dining reservations opens really soon, so if you have more questions about making those reservations you can
send me a note here and I'll get back to you before you can say "Elementary!" my dear William!
Keep moving forward!
Amanda