We have much to be thankful for this year at Disneyland, with new Downtown Disney and hotel offerings at Disneyland Resort. As of Nov. 15, 2024, all the holiday magic is back in place! If you want to have a Disneyland Thanksgiving in 2024, you'll want to book as early as possible, as the days during Thanksgiving week can fill up in advance due to the theme park reservation system. Hop along as we devour all of the details about visiting Disneyland during Thanksgiving!
Disneyland Thanksgiving Crowds and When to Book
Thanksgiving is all about traditions and giving thanks. For many families, giving thanks involves a traditional Disneyland Thanksgiving trip. With the tadpoles out of school and a few days off of work, many families make a pilgrimage to the parks. Many. Families. We don’t need to tell you that it’s a busy time to visit the parks, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make the trip! We’re hoppy to offer planning tips that will make it a trip to remember. Use this guide to Disneyland at Thanksgiving to help you manage crowds and make the most of this holiday.
Disneyland Thanksgiving falls during Holidays at the Disneyland Resort. This is always one of our favorite times to visit. Holiday Time means longer park hours, special ride overlays, seasonal entertainment, special foods, holiday merchandise and holiday decorations. But guess what else shows up during this time? Crowds.
The busiest days of the week are likely to be Friday and Saturday right after Thanksgiving. The parks are crowded on Thanksgiving Day. The parks are operating with a theme park reservation system. That means the parks may sell out sooner, but at the same time, they may be less crowded than pre-pandemic times and have more consistent crowd levels each day.
Your best plan is to purchase tickets early (and save with multi-day Disneyland discount tickets without blackout dates from your favorite froggy friends) and make those reservations ASAP. Consult the availability calendar for tickets before you purchase. Guests with 1-day or multi-day tickets may reserve up to 180 in advance. Magic Key holders may reserve up to 90 days in advance. Magic Key holders have a different access calendar, which varies based on the type of pass. If the dates are full, keep checking just in case dates open up due to cancellations.
We are going to let you in on a little secret. If you stay at a Disneyland Resort hotel, you have a different pool of reservations available. Hop to this link to compare the availability for hotel guests vs. the availability for other guests not staying on-site. As dates get closer, the hotel guests may have more availability.
The Sunday after Thanksgiving is often a travel day for people. Normally, we expect crowds to drop slightly on that day, but again, all weekends in fall are usually full for reservations, so we expect Thanksgiving weekend to book up early too. The weekend before Thanksgiving will see a surge in guests. The days right around Thanksgiving and especially just after will be the busiest. Hop over to our Disneyland Crowd Calendar to see more details and crowd projections.
Thanksgiving Food at Disneyland in 2024
Here's where to find a holiday turkey sandwich, holiday treats and even Thanksgiving ice cream flavors (based on past offerings)! Keep hopping back as the holiday season approaches for updates — visit our full list of Thanksgiving dinner options at Disneyland for even more information!
- Thanksgiving dinner options at Disneyland Resort hotels — Reserve early up to 60 days in advance. Reservations went live for Thanksgiving day on Oct. 4, 2023. Thanksgiving dining reservations can be made for Napa Rose, Storytellers Cafe (turkey and characters at brunch and dinner) and Goofy's Kitchen (turkey and fixings at both brunch and dinner)! This year Storytellers Cafe has a Pajama Party breakfast and brunch every day starting Nov. 19.
- Carthay Circle Lounge — In the past, guests dining al fresco could enjoy a pumpkin ice cream sundae and an apple pie sundae.
- Salt & Straw — The past Thanksgiving flavors of ice cream were Salted Caramel Thanksgiving Turkey, Sweet Potato Casserole with Maple Pecans, Roasted Peach & Sage Cornbread Stuffing and Cranberry Juniper Sorbet (vegan). We can't wait the 2024 flavors!
- Ballast Point — Pumpkin Down Ale and Pumpkin Down Ale Float
- (New this season) Wonderful World of Sweets (formerly Marceline's Confectionery) in Downtown Disney and theme park candy shops — Caramel apples, cookies, peppermint marshmallow wands, crispy rice treats and more. These will mostly be geared toward Christmas; however, you might just find a crispy rice treat that's shaped and flavored after a slice of pumpkin or pecan pie! Hop over to our post on holiday treats at Disneyland for more on holiday eating. Note that most treat shops are now on Mobile Order.
- Turkey Leg — Oh, hoppy day! One of our favorite Disneyland on-the-go food items is a giant smoked turkey leg. Pair it with corn on the cob.
Our Top Tips for Visiting Disneyland at Thanksgiving
Arrive Early
We can never stress this enough. The early frog gets the fly. The “fly” in this case is short lines in the morning. If you are driving, allow at least an hour to park, take shuttles to the park entrance and get through security. Aim to be at the park gates at least 45 minutes before park opening whether you have Early Entry or not.
You'll also want to read up on Disneyland virtual queues. The World of Color show utilizes a virtual queue that opens at noon each day. Haunted Mansion Holiday utilizes a virtual queue. Tiana's Bayou Adventure could possibly use a virtual queue when that ride opens Nov. 15.
Get to Know Lightning Lanes 
Lightning Lane Multi Pass (formerly Genie+) is an optional paid service that allows you to bypass the standby line for select attractions. You can purchase Disneyland tickets preloaded with Lightning Lane Multi Pass (recommended as Undercover Tourist has the best rates) or purchase it in the Disneyland app as soon as you enter a theme park each day (price that day can vary). All frogs with Lightning Lane Multi Pass can start making ride reservations once they have entered the park for the day. Hop over to our Lightning Lane post to learn about the free Disney Genie planning tool, Lightning Lane Multi Pass and a pay-per-ride option called Lightning Lane Single Pass.
The a la carte, pay-per-ride options are available for a select number of in-demand rides that are not offered on Lightning Lane Multi Pass to use the Lightning Lane entrance to skip the standby line:
- Radiator Springs Racers
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
The Lightning Lane is the former FASTPASS Return entrance. Don't worry. All of these rides also still have free standby lines and Radiator Springs Racers has a Single Rider line.
You can only purchase up to two rides per day via this method, whereas Lightning Lane Multi Pass has about 20 ride options to skip the lines for a flat fee. Standby lines remain in place for free. We know you have a ton of questions about this because we did too! Hop over to our Lightning Lane FAQ post.
Lightning Lane Multi Pass also comes with the bonus of unlimited Disney PhotoPass downloads. That means you can capture some hoppy family memories of your Disneyland Thanksgiving trip with professional photos.
In case you missed it, MagicBand+ is in place at Disneyland. Streamline your day by leaving your phone in a pocket and tapping into the park or into the Lightning Lane with a flick of the wrist. You can also have your PhotoPass photographer scan your MagicBand+. (You still need to make Lightning Lane selections on your phone though.)
Be a Fam With a Plan
It’s best to enter the parks with a plan. Check out the park entertainment calendar online and note showtimes. You may need to look up some shows and acts by name in the app as not all appear on the main calendar these days. Ask your family what their must-do rides and shows are. Figure out when you want to see the holiday parade or fireworks. Listing your priorities and making a plan can help ensure that your family gets to experience your top attractions. Keep in mind that our Disneyland Resort Park Plans will help year-round. (Yes, even during Disneyland at Thanksgiving!)
We also visit attractions that take us away from the crowds at holiday times. During Thanksgiving week, we enjoy taking an art class at Animation Academy, seeing Mickey's PhilharMagic and spending time at Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer Island.
Experience the Special Holiday Hoppenings
Enjoying Disneyland at Thanksgiving means carving out a taste of some Christmastime fun. You can visit our post on Holiday Time at Disneyland to get a sense of all the holiday cheer. Disneyland has holiday ride overlays such as Haunted Mansion Holiday and “it’s a small world” Holiday. The Festival of Holidays at Disney California Adventure has a marketplace offering tasty treats inspired by different cultures. My mouth is watering just thinking of those delicious morsels! You can meet Santa (in a new location in the Fantasyland Theatre as well as in Redwood Creek Challenge Trail and hotels) and let him know what you want for Christmas. (For Tad, it’s a new camera.) You'll also find Disney pals decked out in their best holiday outfits.
Review Your Family Safety Plan
With big crowds and little tadpoles, it's smart to craft a family safety plan. Thinking ahead is a smart way to prevent lost children or parents at Disneyland. Pay attention to what everyone is wearing, take a morning photo and make a plan in case you get separated. Yes, everyone has phones, but what if the battery runs out? Bring a portable battery charger so that you are always reachable by other family members. There are phone cases with built-in batteries. We expect the increased phone usage for Disney Lightning Lane and mobile orders to take a toll on phone batteries. Having a built-in charger or even a removable charger has been a phone lifesaver.
Family safety and comfort also include checking the weather. Be prepared for Disneyland at Thanksgiving. It may be sunny and warm, or it may be rainy and chilly. Umbrellas are allowed in the parks. If you see rain in the forecast, think ponchos! While you can buy them in the park, you'll save cash by buying them in advance. Rain can be a good thing. YES, I SAID IT. Rain definitely helps with keeping crowds away. Rain can keep crowds to a minimum, at least it did in years before the reservation system was in place. We find that weather can play a big role in crowd control during the Disneyland Thanksgiving break. We have yet to see how the reservations will be affected by weather since you cannot necessarily switch plans and visit the next day if there are no open reservations to switch to.
Practice Good Holiday Cheer and Patience
You’ll have to pack your patience any time you visit Disneyland on a long holiday week. The weekend after Thanksgiving is no different. Expect to move a little slower with more people out and about. It's a given that waits for rides and food will be long. Plan ahead for food breaks and get in place early for shows and parades. Plan a little extra padding for everything you do. This will help avoid meltdowns — and that's just by us parents!
Make Reservations and Plan Meals
Food lines can get long, especially at mealtimes. Plan ahead by eating meals early or late. Pack some snacks to tide you over for convenient, between-meal nourishment. Use mobile order to order food, and order before you get hungry. On busy days, those mobile order windows can feel dar away. So plan ahead for that. Disneyland at Thanksgiving is a great time to have dining reservations. Reservations open 60 days in advance usually about 6:00 a.m. We have a whole post about dining at Disneyland at Thanksgiving, which includes tips on where to dine. It takes the stress off of deciding where to eat. You'll also remove the hassle of searching for a table and balancing a full tray of food with the froglets behind you.
This is a great time to look into dining packages for shows such as Fantasmic!, World of Color and parades. Which packages are most worth it? We have a hopful post on where to splurge and where to save on Disneyland dining packages.
Table-service seating allows you to sit down and relax those tired feet and frog legs. That downtime is the key to recharging your energy and putting in a few more hours of quality park time. Reservations for table-service restaurants open up 60 days in advance, but sometimes it's under 60 days. If you can't get a dinner reservation for Disneyland at Thanksgiving, keep checking the app, or at least get yourself a turkey leg! Sometimes the larger hotel holiday meal reservations drop after 60 days. If you cannot get a reservation, try joining the walk-up list in the Disneyland app.
You can always hop (or better yet, use Mobile Order) into the Jolly Holiday Bakery Café for a Thanks-Mas Sandwich. With oven-roasted turkey, stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce on rustic bread, it hits the spot. While the mashed potatoes are missing from this mini Thanksgiving meal in a sandwich, we know you'll love the house-made potato chips instead.
If you have not visited the planet Batuu in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, you may want to make reservations for your must-do experiences over Thanksgiving. Do you want to build a lightsaber, create your very own droid or knock back some drinks in Oga's Cantina? Then you should be aware that reservations open up to 60 days in advance.
Power Nap at a Nearby Hotel
Another way to save time and hassle is to stay at a Disney Resort hotel or one of the many hotels surrounding the resort. It's great to escape the crowds mid-day and take a Disneyland nap. In case you missed it, Undercover Tourist is booking hotel rooms at the Disneyland Resort and at nearby hotels. Many hotels are within hopping distance.
You can save money (with discounted rates) and time by walking to the front gates (or taking a shuttle bus to Disneyland from a Disney lot near your hotel). Plus, if you're feeling the need for a post-turkey nap, it’s nice to have a nearby room to retreat to. Once you emerge from your food coma (or football games, according to Leap) you may return for round two of Disneyland at Thanksgiving! If you have no place close enough to nap, we recommend finding a spot in front of the fire in the lobby of Disney's Grand Californian Hotel.
Have you visited Disneyland at Thanksgiving? Have any tips to share? Let us know in the comments below! This fall season save up to 20% on select stays Sunday through Thursday (up to 14 nights) at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, Disneyland Hotel or the Villas at Disneyland Hotel. Book now through Dec. 9. for visits Oct. 20 through Dec. 19, 2024. The discount is reflected in the rate.
Related: Tips to Maximize Your Time at Disneyland
Related: Where to Find a Delicious Disneyland Thanksgiving Dinner
Hoppy planning!
