Category Archives: Disneyland

Disney Parks – Smoking, Strollers & Ice – The Outrage

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Walt Disney World Summer Crowd

If you follow any Disney-related social media folks, you’ve surely seen this article and/or the associated outrage. Personally, I’m struggling to come up with any negative feelings about this latest series of Disney park announcements and believe me, I’m trying to see these changes from every possible view. Let’s take a closer look at the news and my estimates on the outrage level for each…

Disney Parks – Smoking, Strollers & Ice – The Outrage

Smoking (14% Outrage / 86% Support)

As smokers and non-smokers on social media weigh in, I see a few negative comments. My favorite of these: “Disney just alienated half their fan base” and “No more family vacations!” One smoker observed, “With as much money as I pay to get in those parks, I shouldn’t have to waste all my time leaving and returning just to have a smoke!” I’m actually sympathetic to that person as the smoking areas have never bothered me. Since smokers in the US make up just 14% of all adults (according to the CDC’s 2017 data), Disney isn’t worried about any attendance-related impact from banning in-park smoking. Unlike alcohol, Disney doesn’t make any money from smoking, so there’s that. The Twitter and Facebook comments I’ve seen have been overwhelmingly in favor of the US Disney parks smoking ban, with “It’s about time!” seeming to be the most popular sentiment.

Strollers (25% Outrage / 75% Support)

Honestly, who hasn’t been rammed by a giant, hard-to-steer stroller in a Disney park? It’s such a common occurrence, frequent Disney park visitors joke about it all the time. Add in those space-hogging wagon strollers and park walkways become increasingly traffic-jammed and hazardous. One problem I’ve noticed is that popular large rental strollers don’t have the familiar handling of one’s own stroller and learning to maneuver this new vehicle seems to take some time for many people. Also, those giant strollers on the Monorail were getting ridiculous. I’m in favor of this change, but also sympathetic to people who’s children have special circumstances (asthma, for example) and need a mobile resting place. Most of the complaints on social media are in the “what will we use now?” category. Excellent article here for help.

Loose and Dry Ice (100% Confusion)

I haven’t found anyone who can tell me what horrors must have occurred with loose or dry ice to get them banned in Disney parks, but I’d like to know! I’ve never taken perishable food into a park and fortunately have had no need to keep any medicine cold. If you know what’s up with this, please post a comment! (Reusable ice packs are still allowed.)

So…no smoking, no giant strollers or wagons, no loose or dry ice. I can’t even tell you how much of my Twitter and Facebook feeds have been taken up with this particular news over the past several days! Personally, I think it’s going to be okay. How about you?

Disneyland Souvenirs – What Did We Buy?

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We can’t help ourselves.  One of us has a Disney Christmas ornament addiction and the other one is extra sentimental.  Makes us great news for the shops in Disney parks!  Our September Disneyland vacation was no exception to our well-established Disney shopping ways.  What was a bit different was that we actually had a plan and a shopping list and managed to stick to it without going overboard!  Yay us!

Disneyland Souvenirs – What Did We Buy?

Since it was our first visit to Disneyland and we only had three days, we decided to scout out the items on our list before making any purchases.  This turned out to be both a brilliant and terrible idea at the same time.  It was great to get the lay of the land and see what the various shops had to offer, but we almost missed out on one of the items on the list by waiting too long.  The Sally costume we wanted for our granddaughter was suddenly nearly impossible to find on the last day, but Raymond finally spotted one.  Crisis averted.

What was on the list?  A souvenir for our son-in-law, Grant, some more Christmas ornaments (’cause we can never have too many), the costume and a traditional, embroidered EarHat for Violet, and some special something to commemorate this trip to celebrate our 29th anniversary.  What about Megan and Joseph, you ask?  We’d already purchased their souvenirs on the West Coast Disney cruise we took before visiting Disneyland.  Megan got a Disney Cruise Line spirit jersey in a beautiful watermelon color and Joseph got a tee shirt from a fantastic brewery we visited in Astoria, Oregon.

Grant’s souvenir was so easy, we spotted it on the very first day.  Who wouldn’t love a Thanos Infinity Gauntlet Mug from the gift shop at Guardians of the Galaxy:  Mission Breakout?  We made a note to pick it up on the last day and moved on down the list.  We spotted that Sally costume early on too, but made no such helpful note.

Moving on.  The ornaments were plentiful and we found them in many locations.  Choosing just a few was way more difficult than I’d imagined.  I’m a pretty decisive person, but there were so many great one’s I didn’t have!  I mulled over my choices in several stores so I’d be ready when the time came.  See?  Mrs. Potts and Chip, Mushu and Cri-kee, Jack and Sally, and Mickey and Minnie were my final selections.

On the last day, as we made our purchases, we still needed one special something for ourselves.  Raymond and I have always loved Carl and Ellie from Up, so while I was busily debating the merits of one ornament over another and making my final choices, Raymond was looking at sketches being drawn by an artist right there in the store.  There were Carl and Ellie!  A very helpful Cast Member explained the custom framing options and we knew we’d found exactly what we were looking for.

We left our packages to be shipped home and ordered our sketch with a Grape Soda pin and our wedding date added at the bottom.  When we got home, waiting for our souvenirs did quite a bit to soften our post-Disney depression.  The anxiously awaited packages finally arrived and we were so pleased with how the framed sketch turned out.  Absolutely, it’s one of our favorite Disney purchases ever!

What’s your most favorite Disney purchase? 

Disneyland Good Neighbor – Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance

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After booking our Disney cruise on the Wonder and our pre-cruise stay in Vancouver, I needed our add-on Disneyland post-cruise stay to be a bit…let’s say…economical.  There was no way I could afford one of the on-property Disneyland hotels, so I researched the Good Neighbor choices and quickly settled on the one I liked best – Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance.

Upon arrival, we immediately knew I’d made an excellent choice.  This hotel was most obviously committed to three things – Friendliness, Cleanliness, and Halloween Decorations!

Disneyland Good Neighbor – Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance

Arriving early in the day, we knew our room would not be ready.  We were warmly greeted by an employee who assured us that he would get us the very best room possible and call us when it was available.  We were handed our Disneyland packet of park tickets, coupons, and freebies before we passed off our luggage to the bellhop for storage and made the very short (9-minute) walk to Disneyland’s park entrances.

It was obvious during the check-in process that this hotel takes Halloween seriously!  The decorations were extensive and incredible!  This added to our visit since Disneyland was likewise adorned and all that seasonal splendor created extra fun.

As we were enjoying Disney California Adventure, we got a call from the Courtyard’s front desk about our room.  It was ready and on the top floor (6th) with a theme park view!!!  I must say, we were warmly welcomed every single time we entered the hotel and sent off with kind words every time we left.

We headed back to our room to change for dinner at Napa Rose and found our room spacious, extremely clean and tidy, and with a balcony that would allow us to enjoy Disneyland’s fireworks each evening.  NOTE:  This place was perfect for us, but for folks with small children, the fireworks were loud!  Certainly loud enough to disrupt bedtime and possibly cause some fear in little ones.

The split bathroom was luxurious.  We had two showers and since Raymond and I like our separate getting-ready-spaces, this was ideal.  The toiletries, hair dryer, comfortable linens, and high ceilings made us feel like we were in a much more upscale hotel.  Our room had two queen beds and a set of bunk beds, so would have easily slept 6 (four adults and two children).

Bottom line:  I was trying to save money when I booked our Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance room and what I ended up with was a delightful experience that exceeded our expectations and was worth every penny.

Disneyland Attraction Reviews (by Old-ish People)

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For fun, here’s a quick rundown of everything Raymond and I experienced attraction-wise during our very first visit to Disneyland.  (Bonus:  Comparisons to WDW when applicable)

Disneyland Attraction Reviews (by Old-ish People)

Disney California Adventure

Golden Zephyr – Yes, this was the ride we chose as the first one upon arrival.  No line, great views, very sweet and gentle.  Also, not at Walt Disney World, so added bonus of being unique!  We got to see the cutest Green Army Man parade from way up in the air.

Pixar Pal-A-Round (non-swinging) – I wanted to see the sights and thought the swinging version of this would impair viewing.  It was relaxing, but the caged-in feeling detracted from my enjoyment.  I’d ride it again.  Maybe.  Raymond was likewise underwhelmed.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout (Twice!) – This was awesome!  No comparison to Tower of Terror (apples to oranges).  Everything about this attraction is amazing and we thought it was about as entertaining a ride as could be.  We loved how the experience changes (like Star Tours) and the humor was great.  The queue was excellent too.  This attraction deserves all the hype and lives up to its reputation.

Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue – Cute!  Exactly what you’d expect and Monsters, Inc. fans are sure to be pleased.

Incredicoaster (Twice!) – A bit like an outdoor Rock’n’ Roller Coaster.  We love the Incredibles and are thrill-ride fans as well.  We thought this was the perfect combination of the two.  I want to be Edna Mode when I grow up.

Radiator Springs Racers (Twice!) – This won my heart.  It was my favorite attraction of the trip.  We almost skipped it because it was described as being like Test Track (which we think is just meh).  It was @CaptainAlabama on Twitter who convinced us to try it and boy!  What a phenomenal experience!!!  We rode during the daytime and then again one night.  I strongly suggest, if you ever have the chance, you do that too!  Cars Land by day is vastly different from Cars Land at night and this attraction is too.  Every detail, every twist and turn, every view, each and every moment…outstanding!

Toy Story Midway Mania – Not much different from the one at WDW.  Always a favorite.  Guess what?  No matter which coast I’m on, I always win the same prize on this ride!  Darn you, poor eye/hand coordination!

Paint the Night Parade (did a dining package for special seating) – This turned out to be one of Raymond’s most favorite parade experiences ever!  It was sweet and the floats and characters were interesting and entertaining.  (More on the dining package part in a future post.)

Disneyland Park

Space Mountain – The seating really threw us at first (side-by-side), but the ride was excellent.  The “Ghost Galaxy” theme was cool!  Enough like Magic Kingdom’s version to be familiar yet surprisingly different in a good way!

Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride – Ah, nostalgia.  It was nice to see Toad again after all these years.  I missed it at WDW when it closed, but knowing the ride lives on in California did a lot to soothe my hurt feelings.

Jungle Cruise – WHOA!  This was so cool!  The jokes are mostly different, the animatronics often much better than in Magic Kingdom, and (spoiler alert!) piranhas!  There was hardly a wait for this attraction – WHY?  It’s awesome and adorable!

Pirates of the Caribbean – This experience did not diminish my love for WDW’s Pirates in any way, but holy moly!  I loved the buildup from the bayou through all the scenes.  It felt much creepier (more creepy?) and the added length allowed more of a story to be told.

Indiana Jones Adventure – I cannot lie.  We hated it.  Go ahead with your gasps of outrage, we did not get anything out of this ride except whiplash.  We moved way to fast to actually see any of the seemingly awesome details.  Just when I’d spot something interesting to focus on – zoom!  We were gone.  I’m a huge Indy fan!  My DOG is named Henry Jones, Jr., for Pete’s sake!  Maybe I was expecting too much.  It’s a once and done for us.

Haunted Mansion – Words cannot describe how excellent the Halloween overlay is!  The Mansion’s exterior is gorgeous!  Absolute perfection that fits in very well with New Orleans Square (excellent details and theming there!).  While I would have loved to experience Haunted Mansion without the overlay for comparison purposes, we were blown away by the excessive details!  It’s extraordinarily well done.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad – Different, but just as excellent as Magic Kingdom’s version.  The explosions in the mine were so EXTRA!  What a fantastic detail and we were delighted!  It’s a do-not-miss for us.

Mark Twain Riverboat – Scoff if you must, but I drug poor Raymond right on board and loved every second of this!  Have I mentioned the weather?  Blue, blue sky, sans a single cloud, temps in the 80’s.  How could anyone NOT love a relaxing trip around the Rivers of America?  Seriously, it’s fantastic!

Snow White’s Scary Adventure – Like Mr. Toad, the nostalgia factor was the draw here.

Storybook Land Canal Boats – I fell in love with this!  This attraction sounds silly and like a waste of time, but it is not!  The boats are sweetly adorable, the actual real-life human guide is an extra-special detail, and the little kingdoms and villages along the canal’s shores are especially well-crafted.  See all your favorite Disney movie settings!  And ride into Monstro’s mouth too!  What’s not to love about that?

it’s a small world – We were completely and totally unprepared for this.  It’s HUGE!  Makes the one in Magic Kingdom feel like a rip-off.  Sure, they’re basically the same on the inside (and everyone always says it’s what’s on the inside that matters, right?) but the exterior is so EXTRA!!!  It added to the overall experience exponentially.

Pinocchio’s Daring Journey – Well…uhm…this was certainly a tribute to Pinocchio and stuff.  I’m afraid it felt a bit outdated.

Splash Mountain – I have to say it.  Magic Kingdom’s version is much better.  Three things ruined Splash for us here.  One, the boat was much rougher and bashed into the sides of the “river” violently several times.  Two, the boats moved so fast we didn’t have time to enjoy the scenes and the adorable furry animals.  Three, there’s a pitch black section in which we were completely drenched with ice-cold water from head to toe.  We were saddened by the experience.

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage – We thought this was precious and it brought back fond memories of the old 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Alice in Wonderland – This one was among my favorites.  Recently refurbished with added projection effects, we were charmed by the whimsical details.

The Disneyland Story Presenting Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.  I liked this very much…better than Hall of Presidents, honestly.  They said no pictures and I took it seriously!  I did get a nice picture of this sign though…enjoy!

A word about wait times.  There were hardly any at most of the attractions.  In fact, not all Disneyland attractions have posted wait times.  Unlike Disney World, only the most popular attractions have/need FastPasses.  Interspersed with all those attractions, we had plenty of time to snack, grab a beer or glass of wine, and soak up the outrageously perfect weather and Disney’s magical details.

Attractions we skipped were mostly by design.  Some would have been exactly like their WDW version (Soarin’ and Star Tours), some would have meant we didn’t get to ride our favorites twice.  Matterhorn Bobsleds – closed for refurb, disappointingly.  I was conflicted about the decision to skip Grizzly River Run, but after the complete soaking on Splash, we thought it for the best.  Hopefully, there will be a next time!

Okay, let me have it!  Agree?  Disagree?  Bit of both?