259. Re-drop: Happy Birthday Disneyland! 70 Amazing Tips for Visiting the Happiest Place on Earth

[Music] Hi, I'm Katie. And I'm Erin. And you're listening to "Rope Drop in Park Cop" and we are improvising. I'm coming to you live from Orlando. Woohoo! In the future. Two hours in the future. Two hours in the future, yeah. It's very warm. Oh boy. It's hot. I can't wait. I've been watching the weather a little bit for me. For next week, it looks like it might be dropping a little bit, but still. Hi, 80s, low 90s. It's all the same. It's hot. And what, the 10-day forecast that I can see online is hot and thunderstorms every day. I'll keep you posted about the thunderstorms. I just. So far nothing. We did fly around a really big one last night though that was cool. It was so pretty. The picture was pretty. It was really pretty. I just ordered a bunch of shoe covers and ponchos for us for next week. So we have ponchos, but. Yes, thank you. We have ponchos, but not shoe covers. Awesome. Thank you. Sorry, we just got our food. Yeah, it's all good. So late night for you last night. We're doing a redrop episode this week. So I figured I would run in the studio real fast to record an intro. And then I thought, well, I'll just have air and facetime in. But I can't get it to connect correctly. So you get her on speed. Sorry for the audio quality. You get what you get. But this week. Let me. Oh, yeah, good job. Burgers for everyone. So next week you'll get a trip report. But here you have air and life from her trip. So that's kind of fun. Let me read a review really quick. And then we won't go into any news because there's not a whole lot of the drop this week anyway. But we will be dropping our 70 tips for the Disney World. And then we will be dropping our 70 tips for the Disney World. But we will be dropping our 70 tips for the Disney Land Resort from the 70th birthday last year. Because the 70th is still in full force till the end of the summer. So I thought it would be a good time to do a redrop of those. But let me read a review. This is from two years ago from Joy 22552. And it says, "Great information, five stars." I started listening over a year ago for tips for an upcoming trip. And the most dayd listening is these two ladies now feel like friends. They are very helpful and set realistic expectations for your trips to Disney. They are relatable moms and I even enjoy the weather updates since I have family and boys see. Ha ha! Excellent. Awesome. Thank you for the review. Thank you so much. You didn't know you'd be getting an Orlando weather review. Right. Exciting stuff. It's actually chilly here the last couple of days. It's chilly sounds good. It's been a very mild June so far. Okay. Well, have so much fun today. Thank you. Keep me posted. I think you'd be joining me for just a moment. Yeah, I thought this would be fun. I already have lots. I already have information to share. Awesome. You have a little airport experience. You'll have to come back next week for that. That's great. We have a whole airport experience. We had some weather delays. Maybe I'll share some pictures of that. And yeah, we've got some good stuff coming. Yeah. And here's your reminder. Follow us on Instagram because I'm sure she'll be posting some stuff there. I will be posting for sure at ropedrop.park.com. And enjoy the episode. We'll see you guys next week. Bye. So this week in honor of Disneyland's 70th birthday today, we had a really fun meeting with our Patreon members on Tuesday night. And we had them help us compile a list of 70 top tips for the Disneyland resort. And there's going to be no particular order. We're just going to kind of talk through them. And obviously this is not a comprehensive list. There are probably 278,000 more things that we could come up with. But this is from our Patreon listeners. And we'll give them a little credit at the end too. Because they were so sweet and helped us with this. Do we want to just take turn? Sure. Let's go for it. Okay. Number one. When you're at the resort and you're shopping in the stores and you find something you like, always, always, always go to shop Disney and check their prices. They often will have 20% off or 40% off of things. And the person who recommended this said that they were there, they bought a backpack, and then they got home and saw that it was like $30 less online. And they could have ordered it and had it free ship to their home. And I had to deal with packing it and all of that. So I actually did this the last time we were there. I was well with you. I was looking at the little tennis skirt Jacket combo. I did. Yes. I bought it right there where we were sitting for the parade. I remember. Yes. So I found them in the shop and they didn't quite have my size that I wanted. And so I just quickly looked on. Is it called shop Disney still or is it the Disney store again? The Disney store again. I think if you type in shop Disney, it still takes you to that website. So it's, you know, either one is fine. But anyway, I was able to find them. I think they were like 30 or 40% off. Like it was a huge savings and just had them shipped to my house and they had the right size and it worked out great. So that's a great tip. Can we? Oh yeah. Oh yeah. A little bit while we're doing this. Also another thing that we do sometimes when we're there, this is, we'll expound on the things that people have shared. If you buy something at Disneyland and you're like, gosh, you know, this is fragile. I don't want to pack this in my suitcase or if it's a little bit big, Disney will ship for you. And so we do this frequently because one of the perks of one of our Patreon levels also is like quarterly fun gifts. And so we'll get those while we're at Disneyland. And when we check out, we'll ask them to ship it for us. And it's pretty reasonably priced. It is. It's a flat rate. Yeah. Well, it changes by size. Right. But still, I mean, like it's probably cheaper than you would pay at home at the post office. Correct. I think it's cheaper than what we would pay. And I don't have to get in the car. Go to the post office. Write everything out. That'll have you fill out a form. And yeah, and it usually takes a couple of weeks. It's a little slow, but it is 100% worth it. Yeah. Because then you're not hauling your stuff around the park and you are not having to leave extra room in your suitcase for your souvenirs. Anyway, I love it. That's a hack that I absolutely love. Yes, it's great. All right. Number two, speaking of discounts, get the Disney Visa. I have the credit card. I think you have the debit card, right? And the debit card also works for those discounts. So get that, get it for the discount alone. But also, it gets you access to special meet and greets. Sometimes stitch in California adventure. Sometimes it's mini. I think they swap back and forth. I think it's Pluto sometimes too. Okay. I've heard. And then in Disneyland, it's a Star Wars character, usually Darth Vader. Yep. Sometimes Kylo Ren I think. Okay. But anyway, so that's a really fun perk. And then also, if you have the credit card, you get rewards points, rewards dollars that go on a little special card that you can use. For trips, merch, food, anything. Yeah. And the friend who recommended this said she is not encouraging going into that. Please make sure that you pay your card off every month. And if you don't have a Disney Visa yet, I think we have a referral code. Totally. So reach out to us to get that referral code. Because I think everybody gets perks if you use your referral code. Yep. All right. Next up, Lightning Leans, book and modify. So this is something that we've talked about before. Number one, do not ever, ever, ever, ever, ever. Cancel a Lightning Lane. Because you have that two hour window, if it's not in a media or close by return time, you have to wait two hours until you can pull your next Lightning Lane. If you were to cancel that two hour window starts over, if you refresh or sorry, if you modify, it does not start that two hour window. And you can modify as many times as you'd like. You can bump your Lightning Lane out. And then the other thing to do is refresh. So when you go into modify, drag your screen down and refresh. And you'll see times change. People will modify. Modify. Or cancel theirs if they're not listening to our podcast. And those will go back into the pool. Sometimes if Disney realizes it's not super busy in that line, they may release some extras and you can grab those. Just go in and I've heard it called fiddle faddling. If you listen to mammoth club on YouTube, they talk about fiddle faddling. And this is just going in and modifying your return times for Lightning Lane and being able to find it. And I have really great luck with it. Same. Yep. And it's great to do while you're just waiting in line or sitting down for a meal or something. Yeah. I mean, don't be walking in fiddle faddling if you can help it because you tend to run into people. And also, I'll eat my brain. I'll be like, you know, I'm going to do this for two minutes. And I'll just refresh for two minutes while I'm standing in this line. And if I can grab something better, awesome, if not, whatever. Yeah. And there's a tip further down the line that kind of goes along with that, but we'll get to that. Number four, rope drop, but ride rides without using Lightning lanes for those first two hours, ish of the day. So start booking Lightning lanes right away, but don't, but book them for later in the day if you can. Right. Or modify them out. Right. Modify them out. So start booking right away so that two hour timer starts for your Lightning Lane window. But don't use those first two hours of the day. Don't use Lightning lanes. It's a waste because those lines are typically going to be 10 minutes or less for most attractions. And I always say, hit up the attractions that you know you're going to want to ride more than once. So some of those big e-ticket attractions, the lines will be less in the morning. They'll still be there. That's what everyone's going to go to, right? But you can wait in a shorter line and then use your Lightning lane later in the day to ride it a second time. Okay. Number five, e-iconic foods. Those, those churros and popcorn and doll whips that just went up in price. Right. All of it. But for real, go try some of the things that you've heard everybody talk about. They're e-iconic for a reason. Yeah. And it's hard because there's constantly new things being introduced and everybody gets all excited about the new things. I'm always happy to go with our good old standbys and then just try a smattering of the new stuff. Same. I am the same way. And the churros are really good. The mayonnaise are even if they're not super fluffy. They're pretty tasty. So my binyes this last time. Fluffy. Fluffy. I don't think they're always flat. - I think it's hit or miss. - Okay. - Number six, the garlic bread skewer hack. Everybody loves this one. You grab the cheesy garlic pretzel bread, either from Adelvice Snacks, which you can mobile order at, or at Marisa's Treats, which is a standby line, but it's usually pretty quick. Take it on over to Bangle Barbecue, which is also mobile order. Do not stand in the line at Bangle Barbecue. - No, I saw the other day someone posted that there was absolutely no line, and I was like, "Oh, that might be nice," because sometimes the mobile order line is quite long. That's true, and sometimes mobile order is pushed out pretty far time-wise for a very popular cube. Anyway, grab yourself a meat skewer, whatever meat you desire, and throw it in that garlic cheesy pretzel bread, and everybody loves that hack. It's a delicious filling meal. - It's a great sandwich. - It's pretty cost-effective, too, I would say, like as far as a filling meal goes, it's probably decently priced. - Yeah. - Yeah. - $15 total, maybe? - Yeah, probably. - Yeah, if you just do one skewer. - Yeah, I think that's, and I've done it before. It's tasty. It's a good way to go. - Rest on number seven is rest on special event days. So if you have tickets to a gigabash, take the morning off, go to the pool, take your time, go get breakfast, relax, and then hit that event at mix-in time, and stay until it ends, and really get your money's worth of that event. - This is one of our favorite hacks that we tell people to do, and we never follow our own advice. But we're going to this time, right? - I wanna sit by the pool. - Yeah, I'm totally happy with that. - Me too. - We'll see how it goes. (laughing) We try really hard. Do as we do, not as we sit. - No way, do as we say, not as we do. - Yes. Number eight, eat at off time. So if you are, well, so the Patreon member that helped us with this one said that they typically eat breakfast on the go from their hotel room. So they either instacard or door dash, or whatever breakfast to their hotel, or if you have a free breakfast at your hotel, obviously you're gonna eat that first. So they don't take up park time doing breakfast. And then they make sure they eat like a weight breakfast early lunch before the crowd start. I would say that's probably before 11. A lot of the lunch places don't open till 10.30. So you're looking between that 10.30, 11 window is a good time to eat. And then dinner wise, probably between four and five is the best time, or after eight, maybe. - And they said that specifically, it's easier to find seating in some of these off times, except at Bangle Barbecue. You're never gonna be able to make a barbecue. You're gonna have to hover awkwardly in the seating area and just pay attention to who's nearly done with their meal and who might look like they're starting to get up and dive into that seat. - You have to be a vulture and circle. And the last, it's the fourth of July and everybody's on Main Street then sometimes you can find table-free easily. - That's lucky. Number nine, mobile order. It's surprising to me still how many people will stand in line to get food at Disneyland when you don't have to. And talking about this, somebody mentioned, I walked up to a place and I was planning on just standing in line. The line was stupid long. I got online. The mobile order line was immediate. I could order for right away, ordered. Clicked, I was here and I got my food before people were even to the cash register. So utilize mobile ordering. It's the best way to go. And if you don't know how to do it, figure it out before you go. Look at the app, play around in the app and learn how to mobile order and definitely utilize it. - And you can mobile order even if you're not there on property. Like you could order for somebody else for fun or you can like if you're in your hotel and you know that you want this for lunch. Bangle bar with you. You can order it right then. - Like right now, I could order something for somebody who's there and post it online and be like, go pick this up. - Happy 70th anniversary. - Little pixie dust. - Okay, number 10. - This one I love. - Yes, this was a new hack for us. - This was new and also something I probably wouldn't have thought of and also I have anxiety. So I probably wouldn't have tried it. Maybe not, maybe not. This is let your ice cream bar thaw a little bit when you buy it because they are rock hard coming out of those freezers. They keep them very frozen. So we're talking like Mickey ice cream sandwiches, Mickey ice cream bars. Any of those things that come in the little frozen carts, she says let it thaw in your bag or whatever go on a ride. - Which just feels like a long time to me. When she was talking about it. - Maybe not my high-end started to bring out. - Maybe not like rise of the resistance. - Maybe not a 17 minute ride. - She said specifically when they were there last week, they went on autopia. They got their Mickey premium bars. They put them in their backpack, went and rode autopia. And then when they got off, they were perfect. And they didn't break their teeth. - But I feel like that would be a puddle. - Apparently it is not. - No. I think they're just so very frozen that it works out great. But good tip. - I like that one. - I like that one. Connect number 11. Connect everyone in your app for lightning lanes. This one's pretty basic, but if you're traveling with a group, if you're traveling with just your family, somebody needs to manage the tickets for your family. Even if the teenagers want their own tickets, somebody needs to have access to all of those tickets. And it's easy to add everybody's tickets to one account. If you're traveling with another family, make sure you combine tickets and have somebody managing them. And that way you can pull lightning lanes together. And you're not trying to, oh, what's the window you have? Okay, this is the window I have. Especially later in the day that's gonna get a little bit more challenging. Just make sure all of the tickets are on one person's account that wants to manage lightning lanes. - Yeah, and we've talked about this a little bit. It's way different at Disney World where everybody is kind of automatically connected sometimes. - Well, yeah. - Sometimes you have to spend hours online with tech. But at Disneyland, you're basically just connecting your tickets on your app to each other and it's super easy to stand real. - Super easy. - Mm-hmm. Is it my turn? - I think so. - Number 12. This one's, I would say this one's a little controversial, but by the dining package, for parade viewing. And we talked about this a little bit with Paint the Night. We weren't sure if that was really the best viewing area, but this Patreon member of ours loves not worrying about finding a spot for the parade. And I think, you know, that's a total personal preference thing, but that's a good tip. If you are not wanting to wait for an hour and a half or an hour to get a great spot for the parade, this might be the way to go. And the restaurant that is currently doing the parade dining packages is Plaza Inn, correct? - And I've heard the meal of this great. - Yeah, and it's a great meal and it's a great place to eat. - And I'm gonna add on to this, Rancho del Zocolo's Dining Package for Fantasmic. I have heard from multiple, multiple people that it is just the best value. You don't pay a whole lot more than you would be paying for a meal anyway and you get reserved seating for Fantasmic. - And the food is really good. - And the food is great. Yeah, so look into those less expensive dining plans, not like dessert party or look into some of those less expensive dining packages that get you reserved seating. - Yeah, I do love the dessert party too. - I don't think that's on our list, but I would add that as an honorable mention. - This is not our day. - Yes. - Okay, number 13, kind of piggybacking off of that one. - Oh yeah. - Go to the Plaza Inn and try the fried chicken. Even if you don't love fried chicken, you were commanded to go try the fried chicken. - Just try it. It is very good. - It is good. - It is easily shared. Two people can easily share. I'm gonna add to this, also try the pot roast. I love Plaza Inn's pot roast. - And if you're looking for a good filling salad, Plaza Inn always has a couple of great salads. So if you're looking for some roughage for the day, if you need your fiber, go try one of their salads. - Plaza Inn is underrated for this. - It is. - It's very good. - And it's a character breakfast in the morning. It's minion friends at Plaza Inn. - Which requires reservations. - It's full 11-ish. And then starting at 11, it becomes quick serve. But it's still cafeteria style, which is really fun. - No mobile order. - No mobile order. There's plenty of seating. There's always tons of outdoor and indoor seating. So. - Yep. - But you don't need reservations after 11. So that's exciting. - All right, number 14, this is a big one. And it's a good one. Do a solo trip. If you're thinking about it, if it sounds like you would be bored or not have a great time, you're wrong. (laughs) Solo trips are amazing, they're really fun. - And I think a lot of people who are listening right now are parents and parent guilt is a real thing. - Yeah. - And leaving your kids behind to go somewhere like Disneyland feels like you shouldn't do it. You absolutely should. You still exist, you still deserve to go have some fun without having to worry about who's in line behind you and worry about if everyone is together and who needs to eat and who needs to use the restroom and you can just go and have your own time. Just do a solo trip. - Yeah, great. And one of the things I think that is fun about going without your kids is it makes you appreciate the time you go with your kids more. Like the whole time I'm there without them, I'm thinking I can't wait until the next time I'm here with them to experience this with them. Which, and you get to try a lot of things that you wouldn't normally try when you're with your kids. You're busy running from ride to ride or making sure everybody's fed. When you're on a solo trip, you are beholden to no one and you can do whatever the heck you want. - You can people watch and nobody's like, "Mine, let's go." - Yes, yeah. - It's great. - Yeah. Number 15, hydrate. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. This is a big one. And I think maybe there's a tip a little bit later down but water is great. Make sure you're drinking lots of water but also make sure you have electrolyte. - Right, throw in someone like that IV or something similar and use that. Number 16, day-to-day break. We talk about getting there for a rope drop and hitting the park's hard early in the morning. We also talk about coming in a night. The lines tend to calm down after fireworks. But that midday when it's nice and hot, head back to your hotel and go swimming. Go to the lobby of the Grand Californian, find a spot and just relax and listen to the piano player. - Yes. - There's a little spot for kids to sit and watch Mickey cartoons with little tiny rocking chairs. It's the cute, it is really cute. - Right in front of the fire is our favorite spot. There's also some great quiet spots up on the third floor. By the club 33 desk, meet you might see someone famous. (laughing) - Just there and watch. - Just watch. - But yeah, there's great places. Go to the Disneyland Hotel. You can sit outside. There are couches outside the Disneyland Hotel that anybody can sit on. You don't have to be a guest You can go into the lobbies of each of the towers and check out the dioramas Sit and eat at Tangaro a terrace or traitor sams if you can find the grassy spot downtown Disney But take a break go refresh yourself have a rest and just take a break from the intensity of the park. Yeah, yeah Number 17 change your shoes This patreon member says change them midday. I have seen a lot of people do that We recommend changing them at least every other day So like don't wear the same pair of shoes all three or four days that you're there kind of switch it up between them Yeah, shoes are a big deal Like there's I think there's actually a couple of tips in here that relate to shoes So we'll talk more about that in a minute Missorable fee make for a miserable trip Number 18 go to traitor sams It's something oh it is first of all it is the hardest reservation to get in Disneyland Resurations open at 6 a.m Disneyland time 60 days in advance and these reservations are gone within five seconds They do go super fast. I will say though. I'm gonna add on to this tip. It is actually pretty easy to find reservations a day or two yeah a day or two before the day that you want the reservations for because people tend to start Canceling them around then if their plans have changed so just keep an eye out if you don't get them right at that 60 days Just wait until a few days before your trip and start searching then yeah and traitor sams with reservations That's a better guarantee for you to be indoors and show I have seen the show Yeah, they do have a walk-up list frequently that's gonna sit you outside nine times out of ten Which is also really lovely in the eat in the late afternoon It gets a little bit dicey out there because the sun is setting and the shade covering is not as great So you might get seated in kind of a sunnier area But being outside at night is really fun because the they usually have the ukulele players out there So and the teaky torches are going it's just it's a really lovely spot and keep in mind We talked about this just recently that after 8 30 p.m Minors under 21 are not gonna be a lot inside you're going to sit outside with this But this is a great place to go take that mid-day break too go to traitor sams get some topus Yes, get some I mean they have full meals too They've got the ramen bowl they have that's true the poke bowl. So there's and hamburgers I think there's a poo poo platter poo poo platter anyway and get a drink and just enjoy yourself and get a dull whip float because they're amazing Number 19 put your phone on low power if you are the one that is in charge of the lightning lanes and the mobile ordering and all that You're going to be using your phone a lot during the day This is one thing that is kind of a blessing in a curse at Disney You can use your phone for almost everything, but that means you're on your phone a lot And so putting it in low power mode even just at the start of the day will help preserve your battery life a little bit more It won't have your phone constantly refreshing looking for new emails right New any kind of alerts that it's supposed to send you it's it's a good way to conserve power And then number 20 kind of goes along with that make sure you bring fuel rods or a battery pack that you can use to charge your phone Should the battery get low yes, and our tip for fuel rods is you can order them for cheaper off of Amazon Then you can get them in the park, but they are free swaps at the park Which is one of the few places left in the world for fuel rods to be free if you swap them in an airport or Sports venue or wherever else they're located. It's usually around a three dollar fee to swap them So a couple of years ago. I think they started talking about charging a dollar or two at Disneyland and people So I imagine at some point they're gonna start charging at Disneyland Maybe maybe well, that's why they raised the prices on pretzel so they don't have to charge for fuel rods I'll take it. It's worth it to me number 21 purel Bring hand sanitizer. Yeah, bring hand sanitizer. I'm gonna add also if you If you've been here any period of time you know that my number one favorite purchase ever is my What do I complain about when I'm at Disneyland that I miss so much toilet paper in a bidet my bidet I miss my bidet more than anything when we're at Disneyland So I'm gonna go ahead and add maybe a little travel pack of wipes hand wipes fine other wipes that you might need take those with you as well Yes, the toilet paper is terrible. Yes Number 22 shoe covers from Amazon Or and a sand cloud towel. So these were a couple of I kind of combined these because they were related to writing wet rides so writing Tiana's and writing Grizzly River Run Walking around with wet shoes after those rides is miserable and so shoe covers or the other tip was to go into a store and buy something and get a couple Shopping bags to wrap around your feet or Maybe this is sandals. I was gonna say that that was I think that's a little bit further down but Bring sandals so that you can change in and out of your regular park shoes. Yeah $3 old Navy flip flops fit perfectly into your bag pull them out to ride Tiana's and then put your dry shoes back on You're gonna be really sad if your socks and shoes get wet on Tiana's and they will yes, they will So guaranteed and now on Grizzly River Run guaranteed to go so because the guys are going Yes, there should be right at warmer there next time if we bring if we bring sandals. Yeah, we're staying at the Grand California We can totally dip in and change. Yeah, they have lockers at Grizzly River too. Yeah, to put all of your things in Okay, throw your shoes in you're committing you all heard that I mean all do it. I will do it. Okay 23 Are you telling me it's my turn? I get the odd numbers because I'm odd Number 23 brings it blocks They're great to have especially if you have kids and you're gonna get a sucker and they're going to be done with their sucker But they're not actually done with their sucker thrown in the Ziploc. Mm-hmm. You can put your phone in it to keep it dry if you're gonna right away Right. Do you know what they have now? I mean they've had them for a little while But they have sucker covers that you can buy at the stores now they are so cute. They're adorable Is it blocks are a little less expensive? They are but they're not as fun as souvenir right or and if you're bringing home a Crosstant cookie or a cheesy garlic pretzel bread for somebody you could throw that in a Ziploc to keep it fresh Yeah, I don't think that the the Crosstant cookie I don't think more ace's treats will ship like we talked about earlier I wonder if you could throw it in with something that you buy in another store though You can I throw this it would probably have to be something super non-perishable So here can I throw the sucker in with that yeah, yeah All right number 24 rent a locker for extras We kind of talked about this a little bit But they're the lockers that grizzly river are free to use I think for an hour maybe two hours Okay, and then you have to like pay to get your stuff out but Those are free for a little time. There are also paid lockers in the Esplanade and on Main Street and Boyne of us to Street There's a couple of locker spots in both parks. So and I want to throw this out there too in the picnic area There are large lockers and so if you have a flight and you want to head to the parks for a little bit before your flight You can Theoretically theoretically if you don't mind security going through your unders You can bring your suitcase into The Esplanade area and go into the picnic area and rent one of those larger $15 lockers and they will fit a small suitcase. Yeah pretty easily or a car seat if you have a car seat that you need to put somewhere or A cooler if you are bringing your own food in which Some people do some people do yeah so So Those are there as well. Yes And I actually prefer the Esplanade Lockers over that you're not having to go into the park and correct especially if I'm hopping I don't want to have to grab it when I'm leaving the park for the night and move it to the other side and either rent another locker or have to carry it at that point I much prefer leaving my stuff in the Esplanade. It's much easier to get And that those are for all day when you pay that rental price. It's for all day. Yep Don't forget it at the end of the night though. No Because that would be bad 25 find the special keepsakes so we talked specifically about First pickle of the day on Main Street on the right hand side actually just near the lockers There is a fruit stand where you can purchase a pickle and it is a mad dash to get the first pickle of the day You get a button that says you purchase the first pickle of the day There's a death certificate that you can get it. I've never done this. I have any mention And then there's of course the bucket list things that you can do like pilot the mark twain and you get it certificate for that We've written in the lily bell before and you get a little ticket for that so special things like that They're hard to seek out right you're not guaranteed to get any of these There's a cipher at indiana jones that you could ask a cast member for There's a few things like that kind of seek those out and see or like I said you can't seek them out But be aware of them and if that's something that you might want to try for give it a try 26 Use the train to rest your feet or get around crowds I mean I love to ride the train for any reason at all. I don't even need a reason to ride the train We would ride the train all day if we could on a solo day. That's a fun thing to do And you can ride it as long as you want. Yes, but this is a great tip to get around crowds If it's especially a crowded day and the train weight is 15 minutes or less top on the train to get from land to land It's a great way to do it. It's not the only attraction. I think that I don't even Maybe the monorail are those the only two attractions that you can just stay on forever Yeah Can you stay on the monorail forever? Do they not make you hop off? They for sure don't know. I don't think that they do because people because once you're scanned in you're scanned in right and people could be writing it for the loop Huh Well adding on to that the monorail is a great option if you're staying at the Disneyland Hotel. It's a great way to save your feet at the end of the night or in the middle of the day if you're taking a break to write it from Tomorrowland to downtown Disney. Yep. All right, number 27 ask for free ice water, a quick service. Never ever ever grab a meal or a snack or anything at a quick service without asking for an ice water. They'll give you a little 12 ounce ice water that you could either throw into your water bottle that you have with you or that you could just suck down real quick, but again, stay hydrated. Yeah. Always grab that little water and they're free and they'll give you a couple if you ask for a couple nicely. Yep. And there are also water bottle filling stations. Galaxy Zedge has one. I think there's a new one near the Alice bathrooms too that I don't think we've used yet. I've seen it a couple times in passing and then there's also the freestyle machines that you can fill your water bottle at and then at Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta, there's a spot that you can fill your water bottle. So there's there's options for free water. You do not need to pay what is it like $7 now for a disonny bottle water. Which you still do occasionally. We do, yeah. Yeah. If you if you're not carrying around a water bottle all day, sometimes you just gotta buy the water, but there are plenty of free water options as well. Yep. And I don't think they taste that bad. I think this there was one of our listeners that said they can't stand the taste of California water. And so I don't want it. They want to they will like instacart bottled water to their hotel room so that they have some to take with them. And I'm okay if I just throw in some liquid IV or something like that. That helps me. Yeah. And that's another reason to have it with you aside from electrolytes. Helps helps with the taste. That's right. Okay. Number 28. Interact with characters. So don't be afraid to be a little kid at heart when you're at Disneyland. The characters are fantastic. The one thing that's really special about Disneyland is the roaming characters, which doesn't happen in most other parks and it's especially walking through fantasy land at certain times of the day. You will see tons and tons of characters same with galaxy's edge. Just and up and down Main Street too. You just never know who you're gonna see. Yeah. And I mean as an adult, sometimes it feels a little awkward to interact with characters, but just have fun with them. I think it's fun. I think it's fun too. I've gotten over it. I know. And there and I mean I don't feel awkward, but I think sometimes adults probably feel like it's weird. I don't know. Just all I'm saying. Well, and I'm not one to stand in line for a character picture. Right. That's not my thing, but a lot of adults do and it's totally fine. There's no shame in it. I think it's really fun. They're cute. Number 29. Right, jingles. We've talked about jingles before. Jingles is the special carousel horse and something we kind of talked about on the Patreon that was new information for some and some new. The carousel stops and starts at the same place every time. So if you are wanting to ride jingles and you are in line to ride the carousel, you're going to head to the left toward Mr. Toad and Peter Pan and jingles is on that side right near the exit of the carousel and jingles is just an iconic carousel horse. It was from Mary Poppins. Well, it's dedicated to Mary Poppins, but wasn't it Walt's favorite horse? Maybe that's right. Yeah. And is it not the horse that she rides in Mary Poppins like when they're going to the fair? I don't know. I swear. Maybe I know that it was dedicated. Yes, it's been dedicated and now there's julie Andrews and there's a dedication on the horse. Yeah. And if you're not sure who jingles is, she has a lot of gold bells going down her side and she's pink and light blue. She's very pretty or he there's discussion whether or not she's a he or he's a she. We need to look under his skirt. Maybe we need to guess we do. Maybe we need to do a deep dive on jingles, but that would be fun. If you have to knock down a couple of kids to get to jingles, they probably don't know what they're riding. It's a special horse, but she's the lead horse also of the carousel. So anyway, she's just a special horse. Do some research. All horses have a name. Did you know that on the carousel? On the carousel. Every horse has a name. That's fun. So maybe that's a little a little B part to that is whatever horse you get on. Look at what it's name is. Yeah, find out a little bit about it. The fun thing about the carousel too is sometimes Mary Poppins and Bert will ride the carousel. She always on jingles. And she's on jingles and I don't remember what the band is called. The Perly band. The Perly band will ride along with them and they play the carousel music instead of the carousel playing music, which I think is just like one of my favorite not pixie dust moments, just magical moments that happen at Disneyland. They had also a thing we weren't invited, but they had an influencer thing a few months or two ago and they played hot to go on the carousel. Oh, that's fun. I think I remember that. I think I remember seeing that. Maybe we were invited and we just declined or it got lost in the mail. I'm sure that's what it was. Our invitation got lost in the mail. Speaking of bands, number 30 is catch the Disneyland band. Don't sleep on the Disneyland band. If you see them coming up Main Street towards the castle or towards the train station, stop and listen for a little while. They are fantastic. They are so talented. They love what they're doing. It's a fun time. It's really, really fun. I just saw a video the other day. Yes, all the bands, the dapper bands, all of that, all of the entertainment that happens on Main Street at random times. I agree. I just saw a video of the Disneyland band playing. We don't talk about Bruno the other day and they're having the best time and the crowd is having the best time. It's just, yeah, that's really, really fun. I think that I think I should go back to high school and try band again. I played in middle school. I played the flute. Fun. Then I maybe should go back and try and then I should aim for the Disneyland band. I think so. That sounds like a great retirement plan. Also, this is similar but not the same. After the parade, if you're catching the first parade, whatever the parade is, try to catch it over along the corridor between the castle and the matter horn and once the parade passes by you, hop in line behind the parade. Number one for the fun. It's like a dance party. You feel like you're part of the parade. Yeah, and so you can do this anywhere along the parade route, but this area specifically is going to give you a great fireworks spot. If you follow the parade into the hub and then dip over to the right, you're going to get a really great fireworks spot. All right. Number 32. Look for Hidden Mickey's. They're everywhere. They're actually whole books that you can buy that will tell you about all of the Hidden Mickey's around Disneyland. For four years now, we've talked about doing a very like in-depth Hidden Mickey episode and we've never done it. It's kind of overwhelming. It is very overwhelming because there are so many, but one of these days we have to do a Hidden Mickey episode. And I feel like there are a bunch of inadvertent Mickey's too that I find everywhere just because that's what my brain does. It looks for Mickey's while I'm there. Well, in life too. I was going to say when I wash my car, sometimes the drip bots. Yeah, I'm like, oh, that's a sign that I need to go to Disneyland. If you go to Target, when you go to check out before you scan your card on the scanner, the target circles are in a Mickey head shape and I always take that as a sign that I need to be headed to Disneyland. That might not be on accident, actually, because they yeah. I think they do it for me specifically. There's a target tip coming up here soon too. No good. Then you can look for your Hidden Mickey. Yes. 33 celebration buttons. Be sure to get those if you're on your first trip ever. They have a first visit button if it's someone's birthday. And the rule, the rule of thumb for birthdays is if your birthday is either six months away ahead or six months behind. If you're within six months of birthday, it is your birthday. So grab a pin for that. That's Alice in Wonderland logic. Yes. And it's Disneyland. And it's amazing how many people will pass by you and wish you a happy birthday. Cast numbers and other guests alike. Yeah. There are other celebration buttons if you've recently gotten married. There is a happily ever after button. And then there's just the generic. I'm celebrating. So whatever the heck you're celebrating, get a button for it. You're celebrating your new Birkenstocks. Get a button. If you're celebrating not getting blisters on your feet the day before. Celebrate. Celebrate that. If you are celebrating the 50 cent price increase for your favorite coffee. Uh-huh. Love it. Get a button. Love it. They also have the, is it citizen at the day? Honorary citizen buttons. Those are not you can't ask for those. They give those out randomly. Cast member people. But that's a fun one to get. Did you know I learned this the other day at the water parks at Disney World? They don't have buttons. They have temporary tattoos that look exactly like the button. What? Which I know apparently they stay on really well. But what a cute thing. That's really cute. Now we need to go to the floor. I know. That's what I say. I like it. Number 34. Carrie water. We've talked about water a lot. Hydration is important friends. We have a theme. Especially if you have a stroller it's pretty easy to throw. This is a trick that we used to do when my kids were little. We would throw frozen water bottles in the bottom of the stroller at the beginning of the day. And then by the time you're ready to drink their thawed but they're still cold. So yeah, Carrie water with you. But if you can't use the free water options we talked about before. Number 35 is the goat's terror on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. If you don't get motion sick and if you want to add a little intensity this really does work. If you want to add a little intensity to your ride. Once you come up the second hill which is the largest hill I'd say. At the very top there is a goat on your right hand side with dynamite in his mouth. And once you start to drop down that hill keep your eyes on the goat for as long as you can. Don't take your eyes off the goat which means you're going to have to turn your head to the right. But doing that kind of increases the feeling of the G force. And it's a pretty fun way to do it. It is fun and super fun. And I'm surprised that nobody brought this up the other night. But Big Thunder Mountain Railroad the big trick for that one is to ask for row 15 always. Yep. And that gives you the biggest thrill on that ride. Riding in rows like one through five is a little bit. It's a lot down. But I will say this if you're there for your first time and you've got children who are trying to be brave and wanting to do something for their first time ask for row one through one or two or three. A great. Yeah. That is a really great first roller coaster for kiddos. It is a really great roller coaster. And Rose, there is a market difference between the experience on rows one, two, and three versus 13, 14, 15, the end of the train. If they're being brave and they want to test it out, row one goes a lot slower than row 15. All right, guys. So we're halfway through our 70 and we're chatty, which we nearly would be. Yes. So here's our plan. I think we're going to split this into two episodes. We'll celebrate Disneyland's birthday for two whole weeks and that'll give us an extra episode to drop while we're going. So come back next week and listen to the other half. The finale. Yeah. This is your weekly reminder then to follow us on Instagram @drop_emparcop and on Facebook the same go join our fun discussion group called rope dropping and park copying. Leave us a nice comment on our viral reel. Yes. And join us on the Patreon. We do fun thinking of the Patreon. Yes. And actually let's do this really fast. I'm going to mention who contributed to this list really quick though before you do that. Hit subscribe. Right. Review the podcast. Yes. Now all the things. Thank you to Katie, Casey Ellie, Kaya, Kaya Rines with Papaya. I got it. Bill and Jolly, Tom, Kari, Megan, Mindy and Torina and Kevin for all of your contributions to this list. Like it's basically the perfect list. I mean, obviously we could add on to it because there's so many great tips for Disneyland. Yes. You guys did a fantastic job and we're super grateful. Our Patreon are the best of the best and they are. We just love hanging out with them. Definitely Disneyland lovers who have lots of great ideas and thoughts and tips. Yeah. So join us in. And we missed, we have a few regulars that weren't able to make it this week and we definitely missed them. Yes. So they'll get a shout out another time I'm sure. Yes. And we will see you next time with the next 35. Okay. Let's talk about planning a Walt Disney World vacation because if you've looked into it lately, there are a lot of options. Oh, yeah. Four parks, dozens of resorts, dining reservations, lightning lanes, it can feel like planning a small expedition, which is exactly why we recommend using mouse world travel. Our Disney vacation experts at mouse world travel help you choose the right resort, secure park tickets, plan your park days and even grab those hard to get dining reservations. And here's a big reason to start planning now. Throughout 2026, kids get free dining plans at Walt Disney World with select vacation packages. That means meals and snacks for the kids are included making it even easier for families to budget and enjoy their trip. And the best part, when you book through mouse world travel, you get one on one care with a mouse world travel agent. So you get expert help, insider tips and someone watching for discounts. If a Disney world vacation is in your future, let mouse world travel handle the planning while you focus on the magic. Visit mouseworldtravel.com to start planning today. Mouse world travel, making your Disney vacation magical from the very first step. All right. Welcome back. Part two of our list of 70 hot tips for Disneyland. And we are on number 36, which is take a tour. Take a tour. Do the special 70th anniversary tour, which is really fun and comes with a lot of great perks. I think this one's a good value. It's probably one of the best ones they've done. They have the railroad tour sometimes. They have, before they started the 70th one, they had a main street tour that would take you over to Walt's apartment. I'm sure that one will be back at some time. They do some seasonal ones at Halloween, sometimes at Christmas. Yeah. I used to have a horticulture one. Yeah. Just check out the tours that are available. They're pretty fun. See if one strikes your fancy. And it makes you feel kind of fancy to walk down Main Street with a tour guide without having to pay the VIP tour guide prices. Which, I mean, there's another tip. If you can swing it, do a VIP tour. That's the tour you should take. Number 37, slow down and take it all in. And this kind of kicks back also to that solo trip. It's so nice to be able to sit at the hub and watch the horse that doesn't want to walk and joke about it forever because it's a memory. So taking that time to slow down, listen to the music, smell the smells, grab a treat and just people watch. We would never have met our friend Chris. That's right. If we hadn't, which Chris, by the way, we talked about Chris a couple weeks ago and his friends who staked out their spot in front of the castle at 6 p.m. He commented on our podcast. Yeah. So he was saying that made me so happy. So cute. And that's your time to visit with people and talk to, you know, make new friends. Yeah. And yeah, take time to slow down. It's easy to run from ride to ride. It's hard to find that time to slow down. But it's so fun. And if you happen to be walking past the porch on Main Street that's got rocking chairs on it and they're empty, take them and sit for a minute. It's a really great spot. They're rarely empty. They're all regular. They're all spits. I think his name is Frank. There's a man who sits there who wears LA Dodger blue and he's got his LA Dodgers hat on. He's look, he's the Disney porch potato. He has an Instagram account and people love him and he's a great guy to say hi. I actually saw Peter too this last time. I was there. I forgot to tell you. I was wondering if he was still around because I hadn't seen him in a while, but he was there and I said hi to him and did he clap with you? Oh, very cute. Yes. Love Peter too. Number 38. Check out the garbage cans. I know that sounds funny, but the garbage cans at Disney are legendary. They're perfectly themed to each area that they're in. They are spaced every. Now I don't remember it. 30 feet? Maybe less than that. Something like that. Yeah. It gets 30 steps. Which Walt wanted because he did research and figured out how many steps it would take for somebody to hold on to a piece of garbage before they wanted to get rid of it. And that's why the reasons it's so clean there. Yeah, but they're all very fun and they're all themed and I want the salt and pepper shakers. They're very cute. And actually in Tomorrowland they have that little robot on the top of those now too and I can't remember his name. That's right. Some of them are getting even more theme than they were before. I love it. Number 39. indoor attractions during the day, outdoor attractions at night. And I love this tip. If it's hot outside and you're still in the parks, go hit some of the indoor attractions. The lines might be a little bit longer for those because you won't be the only one doing it, but it's a great way to go sit in some air conditioning for a little while. Yeah. And then in the evenings, the park takes on a whole new life when the lights come on and there's that evening ambiance. Yeah. And you get the sparkles everywhere. Yeah. So go hit up the Storybook Land Canal boats or atopia. Because there's so much more fun at night when it's dark. And my add-on tip to that is rides that you know you're going to want to ride at night. Ride them during the day too because they're different. I feel like. Yeah. Especially like radiator strings racers. Totally different during the day and during the night. Different feels. I agree. Number 40. Ride Soren on row B1. And you can request it. And your mileage may vary. Some cast members are a little nicer than others about it. But they kind of have a procedure in place where they'll kind of file you over to the side if you request, request, baby row one. So it's pretty easy to do. But that is the best spot if you don't want any leaning tower of rifles. It's still even though they tried to fix it. It's still wings just a little bit. Yeah. And you got to do it once. Yeah. I'm not super picky most of the time. Yeah. Me neither. Absolutely. At least once. Yeah. Okay. Number 41. Play heads up in line or other games. We will download a couple of games to our phone. We'll play the finger sticks game. I don't know if anyone needs to have played that. We'll do charades. We'll do. Yeah. I mean, guess the word like what is that taboo or whatever in real life. We had once upon a time we bought the travel alligator dentist game. Oh, that's fun. Were you open it and you push on his teeth and then he snaps his mouth shut. Anyway, grab some travel games. Card games probably don't work great. But grab some easy travel games or come up with some. And that is a great way to connect with your people and also pass time in line. And Disney also has an app called Play Disney that works. They have special games for some lines. So for instance, Peter Pan has a really, really cute game that my if we don't ride Peter Pan very often just because we're not willing to wait in the 40 minute line. But when we do like we were there with our friends last time that really wanted to ride Peter Pan because their daughter just played windy in a play. But while we were in line, you pull up that Play Disney app. It has a little scavenger hunt and you're looking for these little symbols in the line physically in the line. And it gives you a little surprise at the end when I totally delighted everybody with me because they didn't know about it and it was very cute. Brand new information. And then everybody after us kept trying to tap their magic bands on it. Which doesn't work. You have to play it on Play Disney. You have to play the game. Okay, number 42. No, you're 42. I was 41. Oh, I'm 42 then. Sorry, because I was just talking so much. Number 42. Use Rider Swap. Child Swap. If you have little's that are not tall enough to ride or ride, ask a cast member at the entrance and they will help you figure out how to do the child swap option so that you don't have to wait in line twice. If you've got two adults and then some children that can't ride, you don't have to wait in line twice. Yeah, that's a nice way to. And then that older kid gets to ride twice with both parents. Number 43. This is a funny tip. But I like it. Gate 21. Specifically, and that's it. We're moving on. Just kidding. So out in front in the Esplanade when you're lining up to get into the park's gate 21 tends to have a shorter line. The reason for that in the past was there was a tree right in front of gate 21 and people didn't realize that there was a gate there. So people would line up on the two gates around it, not realizing that the short line that ended at the tree was there also. And so you could file into that line and it was quick and easy. They've since kind of changed the layout. But it's still a great bet. Yeah. Our Patreon listener says it's still his lucky line. He finds it's always the shortest. Number 21. Number 44. Bring ginger, choos, drumming, patches, whatever you need to for motion sickness. if you are the type that is prone to that. - 'Cause they're helpful. - Yeah. - But do not take a ginger pill unless you've got a lot of water to wash it down with. I'm just saying. I don't ask me how I know. Oh, that was the worst. - I'm sorry. - Anyway, drink it with lots of water if you're gonna take the pill. Number 45, Chapstick. And if you need Chapstick in the park, Disneyland sells the blue standard Chapstick. - Behind the counter. You just have to ask for it. And it's cheap. It was like $2. It's like, they did not raise prices on Chapstick. (laughing) - Maybe they have to do that. - I mean, I'm sure it's cheaper at the dollar store than it is at Disney. But I feel like for Disney, that is they could charge more and people would probably pay it. 'Cause you're usually in a bind when you're buying something like that. - Right. And that goes back to stay hydrated. And then maybe your lips won't feel super chubby. Maybe you got some burned. Maybe your lips got some burned. - And maybe we should add that. - Some things don't forget it. - Which is also sold behind the counter at most Disneyland shops. So there you go. - And that's expensive. - That's not cheap. - No. Number 46. Band-Aids, bring Band-Aids. Arquitlil, Ellie, listener, Ellie says, make sure you bring the kind of Band-Aids you know you're gonna wanna use. So bring the cute themed ones. If you have picky kids, - Or the hydrocolyte. - Or the ones that I bring. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. Moleskin is also a good option for some people. - Yep. - But if you are in a bind, there are first-aged stations in both parks that will provide you with Band-Aids if you need them. They will also get a splinter out of your face. - They will. And I think they have things like Tylenol and ibuprofen that they can dull out if you need it. - Yep. Number 47, bring straws and utensils. We've talked about those garbagey paper straws before. So if you don't wanna suffer through a paper straw, which I kinda do lately, it's fine. - It doesn't bother me as much as it used to either. - It still bothers me. - But bring a straw. Make sure you clean it well. That's my big hold on. - I know, it's hard, right? And then also bring your own glow cubes. - Yeah. - It's a clock bag. - B-Y-O-G-C. (laughs) This Patreon listener of ours was trying to be very conscientious this last time, which kudos, that's awesome. And so they brought their own reusable utensils, reusable straws, reusable water bottles. They tried to not contribute to their carbon footprint while they were there, which I think is awesome. - And they sell. - They sell little reusable utensil cans too. So if you wanna souvenir, you can buy your reusable utensil kit right at Disneyland. - They used to a tropical hideaway. They had some really cute themed ones. I'm not sure if they still do or not, but. Number 48, do a non-park day. This one's hard for us to take our own advice on as well. But this is one that we actually recommend sometimes. Go to the beach, go visit the Anaheim Packing House. Go, and this was our kids episode that publishes next week is actually all about things that you can do on a non-park day. And so go check that out. Go take a listen to that if you need some ideas. But it's great to not hit the park's hard, you know, three or four days in a row. It gets a little bit exhausting. So it's good to take a break. But it's also really challenging to be right there. - It is really challenging. - And now go to the park. - Yes. Number 49 Target has Disney gift cards at 5% off. If you have a Target Red card. And similar to the Chase Visa, you can get a Target Red card credit card and you can get a Target Red card debit card. - And they both work the same. - Yep. - You can purchase, they consider them entertainment cards. And Disney gift cards are entertainment cards that you can purchase at 5% off. So it's a great way to save some churro money. - Yes. - Yeah. - So you're gonna start buying those ahead of your trip as a way to kind of build up a little Disney savings account and a discount. - And if you book through a travel planner, like one of us, we can take Disney gift cards as payment. So that's a great way to save on your overall trip as well. - Yep. Number 50, try attractions that you wouldn't normally try. - Like the canoes. - The canoes, just once. (laughing) Never again. Casey Jr. Circus Train. - Just once. - The Wheel of Death. - Never. - You did. - I know. - You did it for the gum ball of it. But yeah, there's lots of little, you know, attractions that you don't normally think, oh, I gotta do this. But try 'em every once in a while. You might fall in love with 'em. - When my kids were smaller and we were trying to run from attraction to attraction, we didn't do the mark Twain. 'Cause that just feels like, oh, we don't need to do a boat ride. And actually, we didn't do the train for a long time because the same thing. And once we finally sat down and started doing some of those rides that you kind of run past, those are some of my favorite. - For sure, yep. - Absolutely. - And along that same vein, catch shows that you normally would walk by the Royal Theatre over by Fantasyland has some very cute short, bodville style shows that are super fun. I'm trying to think what else. - The T-Shirt. - Show-wise. I mean, there's the Pixar Jazz or Size party. In the back corner of the park right now. If you happen to be riding the train and it's happening, just catch a glimpse of it there and that's all you need. - It just could. - Your kids would probably love it. I just wasn't super into it. But yeah, I mean, lots of things like that. - Number 51 is Magic Bands, Grab Magic Bands. They're just super convenient. - I love them. I mean, we've talked about this a lot. They are not necessary. The more I go, though, the more I'm like, I don't know that I could be without a magic band. It's so much more convenient when you're tapping them for your lightning lanes when you're tapping into the park. It's just nice that everybody doesn't have to be on a phone to get into all of that. - I agree. - And they interact really cutely with rides and shows and all of that stuff. I mean, every time it happens, every time my magic band lights up during World of Color or when you're getting off the Spider-Man ride or whatever, I still look at and be like, oh, look, it's lighting up or on Guardians, too. And so, kind of piggybacking off of that, I don't wear my magic band. I have my Apple Watch on my left wrist and I don't like it on my right wrist and I don't want to double up on my left wrist. And so, I have my magic band around the strap of my crossbody and invest in bitbelts. Bitbelts, those magic bands are notorious for popping open and people lose them all the time. And you can get for like six bucks off of Amazon these little belts that will hold it on. Hold that, clasp in place. And so, I have mine permanently on my crossbody bag with some bitbelts on it. So, I miss out on that. Katie's always like, look, and then I really quickly look. But if you don't want to wear it, strap it to your bag. And then I just tap it from my crossbody and it's so easy. - So fun. And then for the 70th anniversary, they have a bunch of little, I don't know what you'll call them. - Souvenir, well, experiences. - Yes, so you can tap and get these little free cards or tap and have a little thing, a little show happen. And then in downtown Disney, they've got characters with, I can't think of what the word I'm trying to think of. There's just little displays in downtown Disney. And when you walk by, they'll make noises and your magic band will light up and buzz. So, fun stuff. And if you ever go to Walt Disney World, they're even better at Walt Disney World. They do a lot more there. So open your hotel door. You can make purchases with them, which we've heard in the past is functionality that's coming to Disneyland. We just don't know when. 2039 for the 100th anniversary, yes. 30 years. - The ways away. - Number 52, find your perfect bag. The same type of bag doesn't work for everybody. And I actually go through phases where I love a backpack. And right now I'm currently in a phase where I love a little belt bag, a little fanny pack. I don't want anything heavy on my back or hot on my back. So it means that I can carry less. So I kind of have to be really choosy about what I bring into the park, but it works for me. And in different phases of your life, when you've got lots of children, you might need that diaper bag size. And if you, someone who wants to carry a water bottle with you, you might need a small backpack. We've talked about designer park co on our podcast. - Yes, designer park co is a really great sized bag. And it comes with a little hydration kit if you want to do that. And it's got a place to put your collected pins if you'd like to display your pins. - A place to put your mouse ears if you want to take them off of your head and secure them to your bag. And here's a plug. The code rope drop gets you 10% off at designer park co. - And actually a lot of our patrons have these bags. - Yeah, and mention them specifically. How much they really like them. They're well organized. It's a great bag for the parks if you're looking for one. - And she actually makes a belt bag too now, which I keep meaning to order and I keep forgetting. But it's a decent sized belt bag. It's not like a teeny tiny one. So I wanted to try it out for a while. - At any way. - Go do that. But bottom line is only you know what will work best for you. And sometimes it takes a little bit of trial and error. - Yeah, but absolutely. Number 53, we kind of already talked about the store-dash water. If you don't want to drink California water, and you want some, I like having a little bit in my hotel room too. So a door dash or instacart some water to your hotel with some others next. - Yeah, thank you for that there. - You're breakfast, whatever. And we're in all the bars. - And the next one. - Yes, number 54. This was a new tip to us. Door dash or Starbucks in the morning. So that you're not waiting in those huge long lines. At Market House in Disneyland and Fiddle or Fiverr and Practical Cafe, those are actual Starbucks locations. But they will not do mobile order. The one in downtown Disney does. We talked about this a little bit on our Patreon. We've been hit or missed with that mobile order. Sometimes it's an immediate pickup time. Sometimes it takes like 20 extra minutes, which is really frustrating when you're trying to rope drops. So this Patreon member of ours said they door dash coffee to their hotel. - So they leave in the morning. - So they're getting ready. - They're walking past everybody standing in line at Starbucks waiting for their coffee. - Kind of genius. - And she said, what was the name of the coffee bean in T-leaf? - Coffee bean in T-leaf is the name of the company. - No, wait, I don't know what the name, there was another place she mentioned a really good drink of coffee. - Oh, it was like cookies and cream one or something like that. - Yes, that was from coffee leaf and tea. - Okay, anyway, so that was some really tasty. - And that's over off the corner of Catella and Harbor and you can door dash from there. And they also have breakfast options. And so it's easy to have that brought to your hotel room. Number 55, Epsom Salt. and foot masks. Take care of your teeth. Yes. And what somebody talked about going back during your midday break and putting some cool water in your tub and just having a little tub party with a couple people sitting in their feet. And then specifically there were some doctor's shoals foot masks that were mentioned. And I've looked at them online and I actually really want to buy them. But they're like foil footies that you put on and they're supposed to be amazing for relieving your feet. And if you use that in the evening, you wake up the next morning feeling quite refreshed. Perfect. I think we've talked about this a little bit before too, but it was a little massage roller balls are great to use in the evening when you're done with the park. I really like just a mint foot rub to use at night. That seems to work pretty well for my feet to have them recovered and ready for the next day. I think that's it for feet. Just take care of your feet. Number 56. Do a character breakfast on departure day or a character dinner on a rival day just to keep the magic of being in the parks alive when you're not having a park day. It's a great start and it's a great end. Yep. Number 57. Take a screenshot of your tickets and your photo passes for your lock screen. So grab those barcodes and if you're not going to listen to our magic band advice. Yes, magic band would be this is your second best option. Take a picture of your barcodes for both of those and save them as your lock screen. It's nice and easy when you get a photo pass picture and you're not fumbling to try to find it in your app. You can just pull up your lock screen and they can scam that really easily. Number 58. Do the pin trading. This is fun for kids and adults. There's a whole pin trading section over in Frontierland. People set up shop and trade pins galore but every not every store but a lot of the stores will have a little pin board up that you can trade with and you can buy pins off of Amazon before you go. They're not the highest quality and some of them are not super authentic but people get real feisty about this if especially if they are like seasoned pin traders and here's my thoughts on this. The pins that you're going to find on pin boards most of them are not going to be the super nice pins. Right. Very rarely are you going to walk up to a pin board and be like oh my gosh that one is one that I've been looking for. Right. You're usually having to buy the ones that are super special. So keep the ones that are special to you and trade the ones that are not and you're going to notice a lot of repeats on pin boards because I think a lot of people are doing the same thing where they're buying lots off of Amazon or eBay or something like that and using those to trade with pin boards. So keep that in mind. They're not going to be your high quality pins. Keep those in a safe place for later. And if you don't have a designer park co-bag to display your pins on you can always use a lanyard or something like that to throw them on. Yep and get locking pin backs so you don't lose them. They're really easy to lose so invest in some locking pin backs if you have some nicer pins that you want to keep. Number 59. Get in Disney shape before your trip. Don't wear new shoes because so go on walks if you're getting ready to go. You're going to be walking 25 to 35,000 steps depending on how hard you go. Yep. And that's a lot for a lot of people that aren't used to it. So go out and take some walks for a couple of weeks leading up to your trip, bring some shoes in, don't take new ones with you. And we've had multiple discussions on which shoes are the best shoes. Everybody is very different. I mean we get some suggestions for the same types over and over again. Hocus are good. I like my Brooks. Erin likes her Brooks. I like my what are they? Oh those new balances. The new balances. Yes. I love the new balances. I do two. I do two. Birkenstocks have worked pretty well off and on depending on the day. Yeah. That's true. But again that's a you know switch up your shoes kind of a situation. If you wear the same pair of shoes every single day sometimes that gets a little taxing on your feet. Yeah. Arch support is important. But everybody's feet are different. So this is the the Get in Disney shape is try out shoes and see which ones feel the best to you going longer distances. Absolutely. And because we haven't mentioned it in a while Katie what is number six? Number 60 we should say this for last. Drink water with electrolytes. We're not kidding. So funny. It's a really important guys. Really really important to stay hydrated. I wonder why this came up so much. That's kind of funny. That's funny. Okay. Number 61 ride lines shorter. Oh yeah. Ride lines are shorter during show times. So if you are cool with missing fireworks or a phantasmag or a world of color you're going to notice a quick decrease in lines. I'm okay with it. I've seen those shows before and I'd rather get a ride in. Yeah. You may find it important. And also writing Big Thunder Mountain during the fireworks is one of the coolest experiences ever. So try it out. See if you can time it. Yep. Number 62. A lot of people don't know this but photo pass is included when you purchase lightning lane multi pass. So take advantage of it. Your ride photos are included. Any photographers any photo pass photographers those photos are included. They also have a cute little photo session that you can do. At the hours I feel like it starts around 11 and it happens for a few hours but there's a photo pass cast member standing near the castle that will take you on a little excursion by the Frontier Land Bridge. Yes. And do a little photo pass session with you. And you can pick the land that you want to go to. I think what did you say? Did you say 15 minutes or so? I didn't but yeah. You get about 15 minutes with the photographer and you can just get a bunch and then you can if you really want to go get back in line and do another session with a photo pass photographer in a different land. Yep. But you get to choose a place to go to. And it's free. It is free. I'm actually wanting to see. Hold on just a second. Well, yes. And also photo excursions. You can find it in the app. It is from noon to 630. Okay. So ask your Disney photo pass photographer if I'm oh ask your Disney photo pass photographer if a magic shot is available at this location. That's don't worry about that. But photo excursions from noon to 630 pm if you go over to the bridge that leads into Frontier Land and you'll you should be able to see a line there. And this is completely free. Yeah. It's a great way to get some family photos. Yeah. It's a great way to get some headshots. It's a great way to get some graduation photos or cute photos of your kids. Yeah. And I just saw one the other day and she decided to do hers on Main Street USA and they were so cute. Cute. Sounds fun. Yeah. 63 book dining at 60 days but also check days before and oh we just kind of we talked about this a little bit. Trader Sam's. Yeah. Yes. Trader Sam's is hard and some of the harder ones are Trader Sam's Riverbell Terrace Premium dining for Fantasmic. Blue Bayou is not as hard as it used to be. Right. If you're on right at 6am you should get exactly what you're looking for. Lamplight lounge. Lamplight lounge. Carthage Circle. Those are ones that tend to go quicker but usually if you're on at 60 days out 6am Disneyland time you should be able to get them. And then the next part of that is if you're not able to get something but it's important to you consider signing up for a service like mouse dining that will send you alerts. There's a free service at mouse dining. It'll send you an email but if you pay you get a text message. Right. But also you can reach out to your travel planner and they will be on the lookout for those reservations because they pay for those subscriptions. Yes. Always. Yep. And then again always check a day or two before because people start to cancel about them. And you make it lucky. Yep. Number 64. Utilize single writer and buddy passes. If you are a failing that doesn't have little kids they have to be over seven. Seven. Over age seven. Anybody over age seven can utilize the single writer line. I won't go through the list of what offer single writer you can look that up on the app but it's a great way to get on the right quickly if you don't care about writing together. And then with buddy passes there are specific rides where there are three rows where they will offer you a buddy pass to fill in that third row when you're supplementing a party of four. So poo has a roulette. Roo pass. Roo rest. The roulette. The roulette. Monsters in has a buddy pass. So won't be a row for much longer. And Toy Story used to. It's hit or miss right. If you see a cast member standing in the exit holding cards then yeah yeah. That's good. And that's usually for a party of two or if you are two with a small child that could sit on a lap you could do that too but it's just enough to fill that last row. And we I mean anytime we've used it we're on within one or two minutes so fast when the line is long it's the best. Number 65 I'm glad I got this one because it's one of my favorites the animation Academy I love it so much. Not only is it a great place to go and hang out and take a break from the heat and sit in some air conditioning but also there are some really awesome things to do in there. You can meet Anna and Elsa you can go to turtle talk with crush which I recommend doing even if you have older children it's funnier than heck. You can go down into the Sorcerer's workshop and learn a little bit about animation and you can go into an animation class and learn how to draw one of your favorite Disney characters. They post a schedule every morning we usually will go in and check it first thing take a picture of it and then kind of plan which one we want to come back for. And even if you are completely art illiterate like I am I am not a drawer but I can even make it look like the character with their little lesson. They're really really good at teaching you how to do it. It's really fun. It's interactive and then if you are someone who goes frequently I have also heard invest in a little sketchbook that you take with you each time. Smart and then you have a collection. You have a lot of the great idea. I never know what to do with them after because they're usually just recycle line. Yeah I take a picture of it and then recycle it. Number 66 start conversations with people in line and cast members. So when we talked about this a little bit already but just start up a chat with somebody next to you. You may learn something awesome. You may make a new best friend and especially chatting with cast members is really fun because you kind of get to know what they love about working there, what they don't love about working there sometimes, and then sometimes you make it a little pixie dust for starting up a conversation. So don't be afraid to chat with people around you. For me, I would say I'm an introvert a little bit, but for some reason I don't find it that hard at Disneyland to start up conversations with people. And you get, I mean, some of our favorite people that we've met along the way that we go and visit every single time we go to Disneyland are because we started conversations. Yep. So yeah, Uncle Matt. Uncle Matt. I haven't seen him in a while. Where is he? I don't know. But it's absolutely one of the best parts of Disneyland is the cast members and speaking of cast members. Oh, and hold on. Oh, wait, go ahead. Going back to talking, joining people's conversations. I didn't the worst at this. But also, last time we were there, we were in line for Guardians of the Galaxy and the people behind us were talking about a stain remover. And I used the stain remover and I was like, yes, it is the best and Katie, you bought it. I did. And it is the best. It is magical. It is so good if anyone needs a recommendation. Reach out. I've got a really good stain remover recommendation. But where else would you find things like that? The line at Disneyland. Yep. Yeah. Number 67 cast compliments. Maybe make a goal every day to notice one cast member who's doing something awesome. And there are two ways actually to leave cast member compliments in the app. There's one that's very basic and you're able to just leave a name and location of the cast member that you like. You don't get to kind of explain what they did and send that through. But there is a way to leave a more detailed cast member compliment in the Disneyland app. If you ever need to know how to do that, reach out to us. You can show you how. It's kind of hard to explain, but I sometimes want to go in and say why I really loved this particular cast member and what they did to make my day special. I want them to feel that personalized recognition. For sure. And so there are ways to do both. And the Patreon member that recommended this, actually his tip was really great, was take a picture of the cast member's name tag. I mean, ask permission first. But they're like, can I take a picture of your name tag so I can remember your name and then when you're scrolling through your photos later, you'll be like, oh, I need to leave a cast member compliment because sometimes it's hard to do it right away. And then you forget. And then you have the day and the time that you were there so they're able to make sure if it's Mike and there's three mics in that department. Right. You're able to find them. I love that. Yeah. Cast member compliments are important. Number 68. Don't worry too much about the wait times. Use that time to chat with the people around you, your family members, your friends, whoever you're with. I think I said this the other night, but those are some of my favorite memories actually are the time that we've spent in line. And we talked about playing games and stuff in there, but also just playing conversation and you talk about your hopes and dreams. And I think too, I think part of what when we talked about this with our Patreon, I think part of it too is we spend a lot of time looking at the app, trying to find the lowest wait time. Don't waste your time. Don't worry about it so much. Even if it's like a 45-minute line, just go get in the line and wait if that's what you're doing, commit to waiting in line. Yeah. Know that you're going to and they usually go by pretty quickly. I wouldn't wait in like 10, 45-minute lines during the day because then your backstarts are hurt. But a couple of times a day, it's actually really fun to spend that time with your family and not be on your phone. I agree. Number 69. Explore the windows on Main Street. We just talked about the New Zootopia window, but there are some other ones also. And they're all kind of not interactive, but they have movement. And they're very cool. Take the time to check those out. Yes. And also the windows up higher on Main Street all have historical significance. They are all dedicated to people who contributed to Disneyland somehow or were friends with Walt or you know all kinds of things. There's actually a really cute, I showed this to my friend last time we were there. There's a dentist office in the back corner by the lockers and you can hear the guy. You can hear Laverling. You can hear Scrami. Yes. It's really really funny. So there's some fun stuff to find. This is part of the slowdown and take it all in. Yeah. Comment I think. Yep. Oh, and then we saved the best for last baby. And please got this one. Of course she did. Close all cookies. Close all cookies. Not everybody loves them apparently, but I do. And the hot tip. 99% of people love them. Our friend Hannah did not love it. Yeah. Everybody else we've talked to loves them. Yeah. Maybe you got a bad one Hannah. Maybe so. Maybe she needs to try again. But also if she doesn't, that's more for me. That's fine. Okay. Happy 70th birthday Disneyland. This is a big deal. I know. And now we're going to look for to 75 after this. Yes. We'll be down to celebrate the 70th anniversary in a few weeks. We're very excited for that. Yep. And for Oki Boki Bash. Exciting. August. Nothing. It's Halloween. That's right. I've been looking at some like Halloween outfits and I'm like, you can't really wear a sweater. No. In August. No. So it'll be summer Halloween. You wear this. Yeah. This is your Halloween outfit right here. With my orange ears. Yeah. That'll work. This is your weekly reminder to hit subscribe. Leave us a rating. Leave us a review. We appreciate them so much. And follow us on Instagram at rope drop and park hop. Rob drop dot park hop. Also on Facebook the same and our Facebook group rope dropping. Park hopping is really fun. And if you want to do fun stuff with us like this, join us on the Patreon. It's a great crew. It is. And speaking of the Patreon, huge shout out one more time to the people that helped us put this list together. Katie, Casey, Ellie, Kaya, Bill, Jolly, Tom, Kari, Megan, Mindy, Torina and Kevin. We love all of you. Thank you so much. I hope that's everybody. I hope so too. And the people who weren't there, we missed you. We missed you. Yeah. Very much. So we'll see you guys next month. Hopefully. That's right. Bye. Bye.