AMUSING THE NEIGHBORS : A Non-Tourist’s Guide to Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm

Is the theme song to Disneyland’s long-defunct Carousel of Progress forever embedded in your memory?

Did you ever make out on the Journey Through Inner Space?

Do you remember the fuss when Knott’s Berry Farm decided to start charging admission, a whole dollar, to Ghost Town?

Can you recite the jokes on Disneyland’s Jungle Cruise a half-beat before the ride operators?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you must be a local. And for locals, Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm have always meant quite a different thing than they have to tourists.

Avoiding tourists, in fact, becomes something of a game, and the tips gleaned from years of hitting the parks are sometimes protected like state secrets. Getting on the major attractions without standing in long lines is the objective, and planning ahead is the key.

In a way, the two theme parks are rooted in different chapters of the county’s history. Knott’s came out of the rural past--it really was a berry farm, after all--and Disneyland, carved out of the orange groves, virtually created the tourist-mecca present.

Ever since the park opened in 1955, people have come from all over the world to go to Disneyland, erstwhile home to the world’s most famous rodent. While the park was a far-off destination for most kids, youngsters growing up in Orange County got used to seeing the Matterhorn from the freeway and hearing the fireworks on summer nights.

To go somewhere on vacation and tell kids you met that you lived near Disneyland was to be granted an aura of instant celebrity, especially for kids of the ‘50s and ‘60s--when Walt was still alive and “Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color” was in its heyday, and before the opening of Walt Disney World in Florida diluted some of Disneyland’s luster.

Of course, just living nearby didn’t guarantee endless trips to the park, but a steady stream of out-of-town visitors helped.

Which brings up a curious phenomenon: When locals take out-of-towners to Disneyland, they tend to show it off with unmistakable pride, as if they built the place with their own hands. (My dad was no exception, and his status as an immigrant only intensified his patriotic fervor. When we went to Disneyland, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and “America the Beautiful” were mandatory stops.)

While Disneyland sprang full-blown into the world, its opening-day broadcast live on television (with Ronald Reagan serving as one of the hosts), the evolution of Knott’s has been more organic.

Walter and Cordelia Knott started selling their berries from a roadside stand in 1928. In 1934, Cordelia began selling chicken dinners; they started the old ghost town in 1940, thus giving birth to the sort of roadside attraction that once dotted highways across America (a perfect complement to the California Alligator Farm right across the street).

Things started getting serious in 1952, when Walter bought the Denver and Rio Grande narrow-gauge railroad and brought it to the farm. Admission to Ghost Town remained free until it was enclosed by a fence in 1968; for a kid in those days, when the Western was still a breathing TV and film genre, the ultimate in cool was to strap on a pair of toy guns, put on a cowboy hat and stalk the streets.

Since then, Knott’s has followed the Disneyland model to a large degree, dividing the park into different areas with themed rides and attractions and mixing in live entertainment. Still, Knott’s has managed to keep Ghost Town, with its shaggy-dog attractions (the Haunted Shack, Mott’s Miniatures), at its funky core.

But enough reverie. The parks long ago outgrew their naivete and have become monolithic, moneymaking machines. Visitors descend by the millions, and that’s where being a native--or at least thinking like a native--comes in handy.

Of course, amusement park veterans do not always relinquish their secrets easily. An informal survey of The Times newsroom brought a few defensive reactions.

“I spent most of my youth perfecting how to avoid big crowds and long lines at Disneyland,” wrote one colleague. “The last thing I’m ever going to do is to tell some tourist my trade secrets that took years to develop.”

Without his help, then, here goes.

General tips

Some of these pointers are fairly obvious, but we’ll pass them along anyhow. First off, this is the off-season, so not only are the parks less crowded, they have both cut prices temporarily in an attempt to attract locals.

Weekends now are fairly manageable. For instance, the peak line last Saturday at the Knott’s Log Ride (one of the most popular attractions) was a tolerable 25 minutes. Weekdays, of course, are even better, and if the day is threatening rain, that should pretty much guarantee you have the park to yourself. But spring break, next month, is an especially busy time, and the crowds will continue to build through summer.

There are certain disadvantages to the off-season at both parks. The hours are shorter for one thing, and this is the time of year when some major attractions may be closed temporarily for maintenance (a sign listing the closed attractions is always posted at the park entrance). Also, the live entertainment options are generally fewer--Disneyland, for instance, offers its fireworks show only in summer.

One byproduct of the high price of admission at both parks is the tourist syndrome: a drive to stretch out the day as long as possible, trying to get onto every must-see attraction (especially at Disneyland). This leads inevitably to frazzled nerves, bad dispositions and general exhaustion.

For people who really like the parks, annual passes may be an option. They allow locals to plan pressure-free short excursions: a few rides, maybe a meal, a leisurely stroll around the park. The onetime outlay is substantial ($99.95 for adults at Knott’s, $180 at Disneyland) but the photo passes are paid for with about five visits to Knott’s, seven trips to Disneyland. This is for real aficionados. The tickets include a parking pass.

Disneyland

There are two basic ways to avoid crowds at the Magic Kingdom. Since most of us can’t afford the Liz Taylor method of reserving the park for our own private purposes, that leaves planning ahead.

Steve Birnbaum, author of a long series of travel books, has written a guide (Avon, $8.95) that concentrates solely on Disneyland. While it is geared primarily to out-of-town guests, much of the information can be valuable to locals: A full-page chart, for instance, shows that the end of February to the third weekend in March typically offer the least-crowded weekends of the year.

Also included in the book are suggested itineraries for a one-day visit at busy times and on less-crowded days.

No matter the time of year, arriving early is the best way to take in the major attractions. Ticket booths and Main Street actually open a half-hour before the announced park opening time. This can give visitors a head start on a circuit of the park’s biggest rides: Star Tours and Space Mountain in Tomorrowland, the Matterhorn in Fantasyland, Splash Mountain in Critter Country.

Other rides that draw long lines: Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion in New Orleans Square, Big Thunder Mountain in Frontierland.

Morning is also the time to make reservations for the Golden Horseshoe Revue in Frontierland, as the performances often sell out.

In summer, just before and during the Main Street Electrical Parade at 8:45 p.m. can be a good time to hit the major rides. The parade has a second run (11 p.m.), for those who want to take it in later. While the park remains busy until closing time in summer, the last few hours before closing can be a quiet time the rest of the year.

There are 112 places to eat in Disneyland. The most atmospheric are also the most popular (the Blue Bayou and the Tahitian Terrace especially), so eating early or late can help cut down on the wait. Also, visitors can expand their choices by taking the Monorail to the Disneyland Hotel (get your hand stamped for re-entry).

Also, for those looking to save some money, there is a little-known picnic area just to the left of the park entrance (food and drink cannot be taken into the park).

Tips for parents: Some of the best rides for small children are the least known, such as the Casey Jr. Circus Train and the Storybook Land Canal Boats.

Standing in lines can make kids antsy. A good way to let them work off excess energy, while giving the grown-ups a rest, is to take them to Tom Sawyer Island and let them explore the tunnels, rocks and bridges (the active experience is also a good antidote to the passive nature of most of the attractions). Unfortunately, this year the attraction is closed until the third week in May.

Knott’s Berry Farm

Knott’s is somewhat different than Disneyland in that it has fewer must-see attractions, as even park officials concede. If the lines at one of the carnival-style attractions in the Roaring ‘20s areas is long, for instance, there’s nothing lost in simply moving on to another ride.

Still, the idea is to get to the park early. As with Disneyland, the gates at Knott’s open a half-hour before the officially announced time, and families can get into Camp Snoopy for breakfast while waiting for the rides to begin operation. Part of the Ghost Town is also open early.

It’s best to make a beeline for the park’s most popular attractions, such as the Boomerang, the Log Ride, Bigfoot Rapids and, to a lesser extent, Kingdom of the Dinosaurs and Montezooma’s Revenge. There is an exception to the advice on getting to the park early: Camp Snoopy, with attractions geared to small children, is busiest just after opening. It clears up a bit before noon.

For live entertainment such as the Stunt Show, the first show of the day is generally the busiest, while the second and third shows are the least-attended. Knott’s sometimes brings in headline entertainers (Gallagher and Eddie Rabbit are among those coming up) which can add to the argument for an annual pass. The concerts are included with park admission.

A Knott’s theorem to remember: the hotter the day, the longer the lines at Bigfoot Rapids and the Log Ride.

One of the biggest attractions at Knott’s remains the Chicken Dinner Restaurant, which often serves several thousand dinners in a single day. While the lines can be daunting at dinner, the wait is often comparatively brief at lunch. Also, the lunch menu offers a scaled-down version of the full chicken dinner, still a big meal, for just $5.50.

The Chicken Dinner Restaurant and many of the shops (including a bakery, clothing stores and gift shops) are outside the main park entrance, so they can be visited free of charge. Also free is the park area around the reproduction of Philadelphia’s Independence Hall. Knott’s offers a short-term parking area (up to three hours) free.

Finally, while Knott’s does not encourage picnicking on the grounds near Philadelphia Hall, it does not actively discourage it either.

HIGH-TECH: “Audio-Animatronics” was introduced into the general vocabulary in 1963 with the opening of the Enchanted Tiki Room, which featured animatronic birds, flowers and Tiki gods. The first Audio-Animatronic human was Abraham Lincoln, in Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, opened in 1965 and refurbished in 1969.

MAJOR MOVE: In 1952, Walter Knott bought the last operating narrow gauge railroad in the United States, the Denver and Rio Grande, and moved its engines, passenger cars and rails to his budding Ghost Town. The Calico Mine Ride was opened in 1960.

YIPPIE INVASION: On Aug. 6, 1970, Disneyland closed six hours early after about 300 “long-haired youths” invaded the park in celebration of Yippie Day, chanting odes to Charles Manson and raising a Viet Cong flag over Tom Sawyer Island. After confrontations with riot police, 23 youths were arrested; 30,000 park visitors were given rain checks.

CHICKEN DINNERS: Cordelia Knott began serving chicken dinners on her wedding china for 65 cents each. Now, the park’s Chicken Dinner Restaurant serves about 1.5 million meals each year (not all of them chicken).

THRILLS: Subjective list of the best thrill rides:

Disneyland: Space Mountain, Matterhorn, Big Thunder Mountain.

Knott’s: Boomerang, Bigfoot Rapids, Montezooma’s Revenge.

CHILLING OUT: Mellow rides, for those who need a rest:

Disneyland: Peoplemover, Disneyland Railroad, Monorail.

Knott’s: The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, the Stagecoach, the Calico Mine Ride.

What: Knott’s Berry Farm and Disneyland.

When: Knott’s is currently open weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday till 10 p.m. and Sunday till 7 p.m. Disneyland is open Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to midnight; Saturday, 8 a.m. to midnight.

Where: Knott’s Berry Farm, 8039 Beach Blvd., Buena Park. Disneyland, 1313 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim.

Whereabouts: Knott’s: Artesia (91) Freeway to Beach Boulevard exit, go south. Disneyland: Santa Ana (5) Freeway to Harbor Boulevard south.

Wherewithal: Knott’s is offering a price break for Southern California residents (with valid ID) through March 31. Prices are $9.95 to $16.95 (regular price is $9.95 to $22.95). Disneyland’s discount rate of $20 for local visitors runs through April 5 (regular admission is $22 to $27.50).

Where to call: Knott’s, (714) 220-5200; Disneyland, (714) 999-4000.