Saying that we thoroughly enjoyed the Disney California Adventure Park would be a bit of an understatement. We absolutely loved the convenience of getting to the park from the hotel (just a short bus or cab drive away), found the size of the park to be perfect for a full day of frolicking without being overly tired, and liked that it never seemed to be terribly crowded, even when it was (which was evident by the long wait times for certain popular rides). We took advantage of all the ease that Disney offers by purchasing the tickets online ahead of time and adding the MaxPass option, which proved to be well worth the cost, as it allowed us to plan for FastPasses to rides that were important to us and also gave us access to some fun photos taken by Disney employees throughout the day.

The highlight for us, specially with a four year-old son, was without a doubt Cars Land. I knew our little guy would be super excited to see it, but I was surprised at how excited I was when we got there!

We enjoyed all the attractions we were able to experience throughout the day, but our favorite was definitely the Radiator Springs Racers. Thankfully we got a FastPass for it, because the wait lines otherwise were insane.

Another important highlight for our little guy was getting to meet Spiderman, who was wonderfully gracious with every little kid he met, making it a truly magical experience for each one of them.

My husband and I even got to experience a little bit of the park on our own while the other parent stayed with our little guy. He chose to ride the California Screamin’ rollercoaster, and also took a 20 minute nap in the middle of the day in a quiet part of the park by A Bug’s Land (yes, it was QUIET, unbelievable, I know!), which made him a much happier camper for the rest of the day. I decided to experience the Animation Academy, which I absolutely loved!

Visiting in October allowed us to see the park’s Halloween theme, which was fun and never too scary for our son.

Before ending our visit watching the World of Color water and light show, we spent a good chunk of time in Cars Land, which at night was even more magical.

What a wonderful way to end our first California adventure trip as a family!