Camping out on Main Street USA- There Has to Be a Better Way

     I do not like posting negative things about Disneyland, but sometimes there are negative things even in the Happiest Place on Earth. Most are created by guests though but I think that Disney needs to come up with a way to stop certain things from happening. I am not sure if my solutions will work but I did send them to Disney hoping maybe it could help.

     I love the Paint the Night Parade and I love the fireworks but I do not love how the park almost shuts down from around 5:00 PM until the end of the fireworks, just for those shows. People start lining Main Street USA around 4 or 5 to get a good spot. Well I think that is too early. Disney should not allow them to do that because it becomes way too crowded.

     Some people actually camp out on Main Street. They have blankets, toys and other items. These things line the street to the point if you are coming from the park and want to enter a shop on either side of the street you have to make sure you get on the sidewalk before you get to main street or you can't get through. People literally block the entrance to the sidewalk area all along the street. We wanted to go into one of the shops this year and did not want to go all the way to the end of the street. We should not have to, we paid our money just like those camping out. We could not get through though, there were people, strollers, blankets and toys all along the street. So we decided we were just going to cut through the people.One lady got mad because we stepped on her blanket. Well, sorry it is not a camp ground so the blanket should not be there.

     All of this camping out also makes the park look cheep and seedy. It makes it look like a city park, not a theme park where guests pay hundreds of dollars to visit.

     You can hardly maneuver the park after around 5:00 PM due to the people saving spots for the parade or fireworks. You also can't sit down to eat at some of the restaurants after 5 because people are there until the shows.

     I know people want good viewing spots but the parade starts around 8:30 and the fireworks at 9:30. Disneyland should not allow people to start saving spots until an hour before the first parade showing. They also should never allow people to camp out. Don't let them put their blankets and toys down on the streets or sidewalk. People should not be allowed to block the entrances to the shops on Main Street. I think if they want to save spots there they should have to stand and move out of the way if people need through.

     World of Color in DCA is a popular show but they have worked hard to make the viewing area less congested. It is not hard to get around there until around an hour before the show. Yes people do camp out there too and I think that should not be allowed but at least it is not from 5:00 until show time. There has to be a better way!