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22 BEST Ways to SAVE TIME at Disneyland

SoCal Disney Dad

33,827 views

Want to save time at Disneyland and fit more rides, food, and fun into your park day? In this updated Disneyland tips guide, I share practical strategies for planning ahead, avoiding unnecessary waits, and making smarter decisions inside Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

Learn how to take advantage of rope drop, recognize better times to ride, use the Disneyland app more effectively, and avoid losing valuable vacation time to long lines, meals, shopping, and transportation. I’ll also explain when options like Lightning Lane, Mobile Order, Single Rider, and Rider Switch can make the biggest difference.

Whether you’re visiting Disneyland for one day or an entire vacation, these time-saving tips will help you create a flexible plan, spend less time standing around, and enjoy more of everything the Disneyland Resort has to offer.

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RESOURCES
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Disneyland Food Guide 2026 - Disneyland Food 2026 ULTIMATE GUIDE | Over...
Disney California Adventure Food Guide 2026 - Disney California Adventure 2026 FOOD GUID...
Downtown Disney Food Guide 2026 - Downtown Disney Food Guide 2026 PLUS Disne...
Disney California Adventure Rides 2026 - Disney California Adventure Rides 2026 | E...
Disneyland Full Tour 2025 - FULL Disneyland Tour 2025 | GUIDED Walkthr...
Disney California Adventure Full Tour 2025 - FULL Disney California Adventure Tour 2025...
Downtown Disney Full Tour 2026 - Downtown Disney 2026 FULL WALKTHROUGH | Al...
How to Use Lightning Lane at Disneyland - How to Use Genie+ at Disneyland to SKIP TH...
36 Best Lightning Lane Tips for Disneyland - 36 BEST Lightning Lane Tips to SKIP the Li...
29 Tips to Save Money at Disneyland - 29 Ways to SAVE MONEY at Disneyland in 202...
20 Disneyland Mistakes to Avoid - 20 MISTAKES You're Making at Disneyland

CHAPTERS
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0:00 Save Time at Disneyland
0:10 Disneyland App
1:09 Creating a Plan
2:13 Choosing Your Hotel
4:16 Before You Arrive
5:38 Best Time to Visit
8:10 After Hours Events
9:31 Parking
10:49 Rope Drop & Park Close
14:58 Wait Times
18:17 Ride Specific Hacks
24:47 Mobile Order
27:06 Parades & Fireworks
29:31 When & Where to Eat
33:12 Lightning Lane Multi-Pass
34:53 Shopping & Merchandise
37:20 Single Rider

#Disneyland #DisneylandTips #DisneylandPlanning #Disneyland2026 #DisneylandVacation #DisneylandResort #DisneyCaliforniaAdventure #DisneyTips #DisneylandRides #SoCalDisneyDad

20 Comments

@Gameroomschoolhouse 2 months ago

One time in college we went to Disneyland and had to leave early to take a final. We did not remember where we parked and wandered for two hours! We missed our final but were able to make it up. Ever since then, I always take multiple pictures of where I park and make a note in my notes app!

@joshpeterson8168 1 month ago

I'm going to DL with my wife, 2 daughters, and 12 other family members in October. Videos like this are great, because I'm being tasked with managing lightning lane and will be the guide for the day. SOMEONE has to do it because I would imagine a group of 16 people at Disney without a plan wastes a LOT of time.

@MindaJP 3 weeks ago

I am diggin’ Amy’s glasses on this video

@MissReggieGrace 2 months ago

Hey guys, we have been consuming your content for over a year now ! We are from Australia and never really thought our family would ever make it to Disneyland. But we have been blessed to be able to be in a position to take our four kids to Disneyland in 6 weeks time ! So now our watch time on your channel has quadrupled ! We love your guys content and appreciate all the info and effort you guys give !!!

@RoeslerDisneyFamily 2 months ago

What a wonderful group of tips! Thanks for the hard work Traver & Amy! We felt very "in-the-know" because we learned a lot from you over the years now, but it's super fun to see you & Amy in action with an update and helping everyone have their best day ever! :_Dolewhip:

@dipsh_t289 2 months ago

I have always advocated for the Disneyland app. When I went on my first Disneyland trip since I was two with a bunch of my friends, I encouraged a lot of them to install the app and a lot of them did

@happy55girl 2 months ago

I love a good wait time update! I vote for weekly during the busier seasons!

@beginingssful 2 months ago

Loving the taking turns on the info with you and Amy!! Thanks for the great advice!! ❤

@homeschoolingmy3sons 4 days ago

I feel like some of the busiest days at Disneyland as days where the lowest tiered pass can be there. We used to have that pass and would go in August right when we were allowed to go back after summer. I would hear so many complaints from people out-of-state because they were shocked at how busy it was. So you may be better off going on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday on the shoulder season when some of the pass holders are blocked out. Also, the parks don't stay open as long and sometimes they don't staff as many cast members. For instance, when it is slower only one train runs for Casey Jr. and you may only have one side of Big Thunder going. So the weekday shoulder days may not always be your best option. I have been watching ride line since the middle of September as there have been days it has been a ghost town there but there have been some Mondays where the lines were horrible.

@makenzieboyer5070 1 month ago

I would love to see a video of crowd updates for all the ‘transition dates’ you referred to in between seasons! Like August, and beginning of November! I’m sure it would take a while to put together, but that would be awesome!!

@chanelleaguilar534 1 month ago

You always have the best videos! Love that you moved around as you talked about all the “need to know information”. It made it more exciting to watch! Also love watching Amy talk more💜

@nateb-76 1 month ago

You can stay at hotels up to 2 miles away and take an Uber or Lyft to the harbor Blvd side and it's still way cheaper than parking at the Disneyland Parking structures. Save loads of money!

@cajamat9464 2 weeks ago

😂😂😂that would be me!! I have lost my car lol. Thank you!!

@veronicareitherreese6671 2 months ago

Be prepared. If you are going to use lighting lane (LL), study up. I have seen too many people frustrated on how to utilize LL or even mobile order so watch those videos and practice. Having a game plan makes the day go smoother. If something happens unexpectedly, roll with the punches.

@TripleFL4 2 months ago

I love over planning and it works out :)

@Brian_822 2 months ago

Maybe you have already done a video on this, but how about a video explaining all the tips and tricks of navigating the Disneyland app? For me personally, my first experience with the app was a train wreck because I didn’t understand what modifying Lightning Lane entailed 😂

@FletchyMcFletch 2 months ago

Hundred percent agree with Amy and you that a Fantasmic dining package saves time. We did Rancho Del Z. Food was so-so but price was decent, and kids got to watch Thunder Mtn trains.

@paulo3011 2 months ago

My favorite tip that I been giving people for years (even before lightning lane and fast pass) is ride breakdowns. The only time it's discussed on other channels is regarding stacking lightning lanes and getting an MEP from the breakdown. This is the first channel that I heard discuss it for Standby and not Lighting lanes- love it!

My favorite ride to use this on is Indiana Jones. It's my least favorite of the headliners, and it's a very short distance from Jungle cruise. It makes it not a waste of time if I just stand in that line in most cases.

Harder to do this with a Matter Horn or Space Mountain. Star Tours is a bit further in practice and harder to get out of to get back to Space Mountain.

@klbbh 2 months ago

I wish I had this video last week! I was not prepared at all for my first visit to Disneyland, but that’s how you live and learn haha! You are so spot on with the tips and tricks for time saving, thank you both for sharing such great advice!! ❤️✨