My wife and I recently made our way to the “Happiest Place
on Earth” and I’m happy to report that we each made it out in one piece! We had
a great time of course, because it’s Disneyland -- and because we prepared.
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| "It's a Small World" was decorated for the holiday season. |
I wrote down our basic itinerary for each day -- where we
were planning to visit, who we were going to visit with and where we were
staying each night. My parents are my out-of-town contacts on my family
communication plan. I told them where we were going. They have all of our
contact information.
We prepared sandwiches and bought plenty of snacks and water
for the drive (make sure to stay hydrated!). I also kept records of my car
rental and hotel confirmation with me, just in case.
We checked the weather forecast for the days ahead. Each day
turned out to be beautiful, but it helped to pack light jackets, since temperatures
dipped at night.
California is known for its earthquakes. My wife and I
practice our Drop, Cover and Hold On drill at home a few times a year,
including during the annual Great Arizona ShakeOut, but refreshing what to do
if you are on the road is important
too. If you are in a moving vehicle,
make sure to stop as quickly as safety permits and stay in the vehicle. Avoid
stopping near or under buildings, trees, overpasses and utility wires. Proceed
cautiously once the earthquake has stopped. Avoid roads, bridges or ramps that
might have been damaged by the earthquake.
My wife and I also had a small section of our suitcase
dedicated to our many electronic chargers – phones, iPod, iPad, Fit Bit…we made
sure to cover all the bases.
A few things that we learned:
Know your limits and prepare accordingly –My
wife and I don’t do well with certain rides, so as fun as Space Mountain, Star
Tours and California Screamin’ are, we sat those out. I get motion sick more
easily than most people. So I took non-drowsy Dramamine and wore sea sickness
armbands around my wrists. I was good to go for the whole day.
Bring a small bag – We brought a small
drawstring backpack which made a HUGE difference. You can bring in unopened
water and Gatorade into the park, which we did. We bought Wetzel’s Pretzels for
breakfast in downtown Disney (nutritious, I know…) and were able to keep
leftovers as a snack for later. The backpack was also small enough to where it
never got in the way.
Think ahead about traffic concerns – Southern
California, especially the Los Angeles metro has notoriously awful traffic. My
wife and I knew this going in. But we failed to realize just how long rush hour
really is in that area. Whether it was I-5, the 101 Highway or other roads, we
were backed up for miles along the roadway. Make sure to get there early.
It is important to be informed about where you are going, which can include
traffic, weather and other potential hazards. Get good shoes or beware of back discomfort
– I definitely had back issues after all the walking around. Going from our
regular desk jobs to nearly 40,000 steps on my step counter is a big jump! And
okay, maybe we could’ve taken another break here and there ;).
Rain ponchos please! – Not only can you ride water rides like
Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run, you can be prepared if weather takes a turn.
If you bring plastic ponchos and a light jacket (which you can keep in your
small bag), you can ride both of those as many times as you want at night! Both
Grizzly River Run and Splash Mountain had wait times of five minutes or less at
night because, understandably, no one wanted to get wet while it was cold out.
We had an awesome time on our Disneyland vacation. With our
lessons learned for the future in mind, I’m excited to see how our next trip
goes.
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