our favorites were:
indiana jones. this one was closed most of the week when we were there. it does have a fast pass, and you'll probably want to use it. the line is pretty long.
space mountain. this also has a fast pass. the line didn't seem crazy long, but it might be busier at other times of year.
big thunder mountain. it has a fast pass and the lines were generally long. this is probably the most tame "roller coaster" and very fun.
splash mountain. it has a fast pass. the line was either really long or really short. it was kind of weird. we got fast passes because the line was long but then when we came to use the fast pass, it was only a ten minute line. so we ran into the regular line, went on the ride, and then went in the fast pass line, since we still had time to use it. i also discovered that if you want to get wet, sit in the front. i sat in the back, but not the very back seat, and i didn't get very wet at all, which i preferred. if you sit in the very back, the water that is in the boat will end up in your seat, but generally the further back you sit the less wet you will be. easy of course sat in the front. :-) another note is to hold your feet up a bit to keep the feet from getting wet, or possibly wear flip flops for this ride.
star tours. this is a fun one, and we discovered that not all of the pods show the same show. so if you go on it more than once, try to get into a different pod and you'll see a different show.
haunted mansion. the line goes pretty fast because it's a "people eater" ride, so we did this one when we had some extra time here and there.
the matterhorn was also fun, but a very long line and no fast pass. we went there first thing on one of the days so the line was better, but actually still pretty long for first thing in the morning. probably other people had the same idea. what they do have for this ride is a "single rider" line, where you can get in a separate line if you don't care if you ride together. my advice would be to do the single rider for this ride, because the seats are basically single anyway. then just wait for each other at the end.
pirates of the carribean was closed unfortunately while we were there. i was disappointed about that. so was nemo, which was on my list of recommended rides, but i can't say for sure if it would have been worth it. mickey's magical map was on my list but it wasn't running either. small world was closed too, and i have never been on it.
the fantasmic show was really neat. i don't know if the schedule is the same all the time, but they had 2 showings when we were there with fireworks in between. the cast member we spoke with recommended doing the fireworks and then the second show of fantasmic, because people stake out their spot hours before. {why??? would you waste your time at disneyland doing that??} anyway, we headed over at the end of the fireworks and went on the bridge by pirates of the caribbean. it was a great spot.
one secret we discovered from a lady standing behind us in one line who easy told her life story to {imagine that} is that on the big mark twain river boat, you can ask to go up to the top with the driver. i believe it is called the wheel room. that was really fun. the kids got to ring the bell and blow the whistle and sign the super secret guest book and get a certificate. that seems to be a pretty well-kept secret, so i would definitely ask them for that.
another surprise was the pirate's lair on tom sawyer island. you take a little raft over and there are all these caves to go through and explore. the warning here is that you can easily lose children. we didn't realize this and the kids quickly got away from us and finding them again in the tunnels took quite a while, so be aware of that. but my kids could have stayed there all day.
these rides were kind of in the middle:
the jungle cruise...this is a tricky one. i like the jungle cruise. the kids loved the jungle cruise and laughed and laughed at their corny jokes even after the ride was over. but i kid you not, that line goes for miles and the ride is pretty short. i wouldn't say don't do the jungle cruise, but somehow try and hit it with a shorter line. if that's even possible. i don't know.
the buzz lightyear ride was ok. the line goes pretty fast. so we just squeezed it in when we had extra time.
the disneyland railroad is nice for getting you to another side of the park. it stops at the main entrance, and in the new orleans area and over by fantasyland/toon town. the monorail is not helpful for getting you from place to place. it only stops in tomorrowland and in downtown disney outside of the park. but the fun thing we learned is that you can ask to ride in the very front. it fits 4 people, which was perfect for us, but if your group is more than 4 people you will have to split up. and apparently it's not really a big secret, so you might have to wait longer if that is something you want to do.
similarly, toon town was a little crazy with the kids and the wandering off, because there is one ride, or maybe two, but its mostly just a lot of "stuff" in cartoon style to wander through etc. cuddles loved it, but i wasn't very excited about trying to keep track of where my kids were in there. by the way, the ride is roger rabbit, which has a fast pass, but it is a pretty lame ride, especially since my kids have no idea whatsoever who roger rabbit even is. so that was a weird ride actually. i would skip it if i had to.
these were the rides that were a little less worth a wait in line:
pretty much everything in fantasyland. :-) although preschool aged girls might disagree. for us, these are the rides where they basically send you through a diorama of scenes from the movie. if i were going to choose just one, i would say peter pan, because you are flying around in the pirate ship so it's a little more fun. but in general the lines in fantasyland were way too long for the enjoyment factor of the ride, for my kids at least who don't care about princesses. the other thing i learned was that the storyland canal boats and the casey junior train take you through the same area, so i would just choose one or the other and call it good.
the tiki room. my kids gave it a big thumbs down, but i was so curious about what it even was, i just wanted to know. but here is the thing we figured out after the fact: apparently everyone on the planet wants a dole whip and the only place to get them is by the tiki room. there is a pretty long line to get them. if you go in to the tiki room show, you can get on the inside line to get your dole whips, and then eat them while you watch the show. i wish i would have known that, and especially if time is an issue i'm sure you will appreciate that tidbit. also my kids would have enjoyed the show more if they were eating ice cream during it. and for what it's worth, we didn't think the dole whips were that amazing.
you know what? disneyland really is a lot of fun! i knew it was, but even i was surprised with how truly magical it feels to be there. they really do a great job. i honestly had planned this to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip, but they really have me thinking about how we can go back.
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