A traveler's guide to Disney California Adventure
Use this theme park for the rides Disneyland Park does not have, and stay long enough to see Cars Land at night.
Disney California Adventure is the Anaheim theme park next door to Disneyland Park. Radiator Springs, the Incredicoaster, and Avengers Campus are the reasons to cross the esplanade. It is a better second day than a second morning at the castle.
When to go
Same calendar as Disneyland Park. Summer evenings on Buena Vista Street are pleasant; summer afternoons in Cars Land are not. Holiday overlays here are quieter than the ones across the way.
How to see it
Racers first. Then the pier for the Incredicoaster, or Avengers Campus if the board is kinder. Grizzly River Run will get you wet. The parade and the World of Color show are the reasons to keep the hopper for the evening instead of fleeing back to the castle.
Tickets and time
Almost nobody should buy this park alone on a first trip. Pair it with Disneyland Park. Lightning Lane is most useful for Radiator Springs Racers, which can sit above an hour from open.
If you only remember this
- Cars Land at blue hour is the photograph.
- You will get soaked on Grizzly River Run. Plan the shirt.
- The pier is loud. The back of the park is calmer.
- A reservation in Carthay Circle is the grown-up meal.