Disneyland Without Kids!

Fact: Experiencing Disneyland without kids is so much fun!

Shhh. don’t tell my girls I said that, ok?

Last week I attended the #DisneyInHomeBloggers Event in LA and one day we took in Disneyland, also being the very first time for me at Disneyland. At first sight, my eyes filled with tears, reveling in the fact that ‘I was really here‘. At the same time I also had an overwhelming ‘bad-mother’ feeling that I wasn’t sharing the experience with my kids.

Quite honestly, that last feeling could be easily pushed aside. Sure there was moments of ‘if only they could see this!“. Yet, it’s what you make it, right? And we had a blast!

walt disney statue, disneyland

Painting you a picture: our mini-group was girls-only {aside from our assigned Cast Member, Drew, who was also our VIP guide}. Think of how much fun you have when you are with your friends, a girls-only trip full of laughter and giggles. Yet apply that to the Happiest Place on Earth. Incredible!

disneyland

No strollers to push and no stopping for kids’ requests, we were led through the parks and directly onto rides, whichever rides we wanted to. Side note: there is much to be said about being able to skip lines and use the ‘back-door’ to get VIP access. Just saying. The result? ABSOLUTE FUN x 100

At the end of the day my throat hurt from all the screaming, as we took it upon ourselves to apply the ‘no hands’ rule on every ride and ‘holler’ as loud as we could, even on the Dumbo ride.

My personal faves and must-not miss rides at Disneyland: Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones Adventure, Star Tours, Toy Story Mania {I did this one at Walt Disney World} and of course the newest and most popular ride right now … Radiator Springs Racers.

Which brings me to my next ‘must talk a lot’ about topic – Cars Land!

Carsland Review My Organized Chaos

Cars Land is a 12-acre expansion at Disney California Adventure Park that just opened this year. If you have heard that it brings the Disney/Pixar film ‘Cars’ to life, it’s true.

A group of people posing for the camera, carsland

Walking through Cars Land is just like a trip through Radiator Springs as you have: Flo’s V8 Cafe, the Cozy Cone Motel, Ramone’s House of Body Art, with many themed shops and restaurants and more.The backdrop of the hills are gorgeous and you are literally immersed in the movie. Ka-chow!

A sign on the side of a building, carsland

Again, it was fabulous to just do what we wanted to {insert giggles, arms up and screams of joy again here}. Yet the highlight for me is definitely the Radiator Springs Racers.

A close up of a sign, carsland

The ride takes you on a lazy drive in a ‘Cars’ car, but soon you are racing another car on the highway. So much fun! This ride is very popular so I suggest you head there early in the day. But be warned, you have to be quick, the line is extremely long and fast-pass tickets were sold out for Radiator Springs Racers by 10:30 am. Well worth it though, so get in there!

Cars Land and Radiator Springs Racers

Alas, it was so much fun to take in Disneyland sans kids. It made me feel like a carefree kid again and if the experience made this adult ‘OMG, WOW!’ at every turn, imagine how a child would feel? I’ll let you know the kids’ reaction soon, because my entire family is going to Disneyland very soon – but more on that later!

For now here’s a perfect example of our “YIPPEEEE!!” moments! 🙂

radiator springs

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32 Comments

  1. Just got to ask would you recommend Disneyland or Disneyworld for a family with a 4 and 5 year old….on a budget!

    1. Hi Tara. That depends, which are you closer to? {flight has a lot to do with the total cost}
      I’ll be able to answer that a ton better when my entire family goes to Disneyland next month, as I have a pretty good idea of the Disney World pricing right now.

    1. Thanks Gvenny! Love making memories, can’t wait to go with the kids now. I feel like I just had a fabulous appetizer before an incredible main course!
      🙂

  2. We’ve never been to Disneyland/World without kids, but I’m sure we’d have a blast, the same way you did! Looks like a great time was had by all!

    1. Yes! They have attended the event for the past few years too, always a nice reunion!
      🙂

  3. That’s good your family is going soon ~ you don’t have to feel too “guilty” 😉
    Love the photo from the Cars ride!

    1. It made the guilt a little easier to swallow, that’s for sure! Can’t wait to go as a family now. 7 days and counting!!
      🙂

    1. Oh yes! You must! My stomach can’t handle some rides like when I was a kid {whats up with that?}, yet there’s still so much fun to be had!

  4. I have to admit I’ve never thought of tackling the happiest place on earth without the kiddos…until now! Sounds like a very smart idea! Fun for every age:) *Note to self. Must see CarsLand!

    1. You know, It wouldn’t have crossed my mind either. Now I realize that it would make a fun girls-weekend! *hint, hint*. Group shot in Mickey ears!! 🙂

  5. We have done disney with and without kids, and though we missed the little ones, we had a GREAT time doing the adult stuff!

  6. That looks like a crazy amount of fun! Hope your girls don’t get a hold of the pics though – they’ll be crazy jealous!!

  7. The first time I went to Disneyland was at fifteen and I loved it. Me and my brother each took a friend on our aeroplane miles we had build up from living overseas and it was a blast to have all that freedom. I can imagine how much more tiring it would be with little ones to watch over.

  8. Went to Disney World in FL years ago with the children. I don’t know who was more amazed….me or my children. We stayed on site and just hopped on their transit busses – where ever we wanted to go. Meals were unbelievably tasty and I can not say enough about the staff. Everywhere we went, everyone was soooo courteous. I told my husband that they must have gone thru extensive training and found out later that I was correct. I don’t know if I would ever be able to go back since I am now disabled.

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