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Disneyland Rides Tips

Disneyland Rides

Disneyland Rides.  Disneyland is many things to many people, but really it all comes down to the rides, right? No?

Well whatever your opinion, you’ll want to read these tips for riding rides before you go!

Top 10 Disneyland Rides Tips

1.  On the Matterhorn, get in the bobsleds on the RIGHT track. A ride on that side is 19 seconds longer than the left.

Disneyland Rides

2.  For a wilder ride on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, do the “Goat Trick”.  Watch for a goat at the second hill.  If you stare directly at him as long as you can, you’ll feel your stomach lurch.

Disneyland Rides goat

3.  Here’s a list of all current Disneyland attractions. You can filter it by “thrill level” and see descriptions, pictures, height restrictions, and wheelchair access.

Disneyland rides list

4.  Guests with all types of disabilities can get information here.

Disneyland Rides
Some rides are scary

5.  For a list of rides that are closed for maintenance, call (714) 781-4565, press 1, 1 again, then press 4. Or to view a list go to the Disneyland website, enter the dates of your visit, and see what’s listed under “Closed for Refurbishments”.

Ride closed sign

6.  The best rides for the toddler crowd are:
– It’s a Small World
– Dumbo the Flying Elephant
– Casey Jr. Circus Train
– The Monorail
– The Railroad
Parents will need to go with their kids on these rides of course.

Disneyland rides Dumbo

7.  Know your child’s height and the rides’ height restrictions before you go. They will be enforced.

Disneyland rides Colin

8.  To minimize waiting in line, get a free FastPass. But only if the ride you want to go on has a wait of 30 minutes or more.

If that wait is still too long and you don’t mind being split up, use the Single Rider line. We were able to ride California Screamin’ 3 times in a row this way. 

California Screamin'

9.  Which Disneyland rides have the longest wait? On busy days, gather your patience for these four:
– Peter Pan: Up to an hour
– Flying Dumbo: Can be over an hour
– Space Mountain: Can be 90 minutes
– Indiana Jones: Can be 2 hours!


Generally speaking, when the park opens, most people go to Tomorrowland (Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, etc.), then Fantasyland (Mattherhorn, It’s a Small World).  Splash Mountain gets crowded then too. 

After that, New Orleans Square, Frontierland, and Adventureland fill up.  Mickey’s Toontown gets crowded later, so that’s a great place to start if you have little ones.  Read more lines tips.

Indiana Jones

Speaking of Indiana Jones, it is said that the cryptic writing on the walls can actually be decoded — if you have a decoder card from 1995, when the ride first opened.

10. Wait until the end of the day to visit Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, Snow White, and Pinocchio.  Their lines are typically shorter right before the park closes. 

So don’t miss the Line Tips.

Snow White

Welcome!

Corn dog

I’m Kathy! I collect all the Disneyland tips in one place for your next trip so you can spend MORE time having fun, LESS time in line, and get the BEST deals. I live in California with my husband and labradoodle. My 2 sons in the photos here are now in college.