Sherry E
Currently tag-less...
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2008
Thank goodness summer is over in 2 weeks. It is going to be super hot by the end of this week (it's already hot and humid -- ick!) and I am over it. Even though it won't really cool down around here until November, at least we're headed in the right direction!
Peppermint Watch/Holiday Watch Alert!
For those of you who don't also follow my Halloween Time Superthread, you may have missed the breaking news:
Nestle's Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cookie Dough (with "creamy peppermint chunks") has been spotted in at least one store!!!!!
Right now, the Halloween/Harvest/Fall/Pumpkin Spice/Pumpkin Pie/Candy Apple/Candy Corn/Caramel Apple versions of items are battling over shelf space in the stores. Twix Ghosts and Cheetos Bag of Bones are out there too. Ever so slowly, the Winter/Christmas/Cranberry/Peppermint/Gingerbread/Sugar Cookie/Eggnog/Pine items will be sneaking up behind them!
I've logged everyone's New Orleans Square-Haunted Mansion Holiday photo submissions (from Bret/mvf-m11c to Jenny, and everyone in between). Again, what an amazing array of photos everyone has been posting! I am delighted to see such fun, colorful detailed shots from all of our participants!
I look forward to the_princess' photos, Jamie's photos, Janet's photos, Mike's photos, Crystal's, Amanda's, etc., etc.
And PHXscuba will, hopefully, be back from WDW by now! She said that last week she would be at WDW and would have no chance to post photos, so she didn't want to miss out on Haunted Mansion Holiday photos. Well, luckily, we had Cars Land week and not New Orleans Square-Haunted Mansion Holiday week last week. This week is a different story, however!
BirdyGirl85 --
Okay, let's see... As for crowds, as DSNY4ever said, I think that your dates are a good time to go! While there may be some people on Thanksgiving break who are still in the parks on 11/30, a lot of people will probably clear out on that day (or by 12/1) as they head back home, to work and to school. That's my feeling about it, in any case.
There will be a Christmas break for many people just a few weeks after that (since Thanksgiving is late again this year), so a lot of people won't have the luxury of staying in the parks beyond 11/30 and 12/1.
That said, it is the holiday season and it is popular, so it won't be totally empty in the parks most of the time, but I don't think that the crowds will be too crazy.
As for what to see and do during your time at DLR, these are the things that you may want to make time for (in no specific order):
You may also want to spend some down time having a snack or drink in the lobby of the Grand Californian Hotel, where you will find carolers and Santa, as well as a huge Christmas tree.
There are a lot of great treats and special food items that are out for the holiday season (in addition to the regular yummy food)! Be sure to check out the "Eating, Dinking & Being Merry" post on page 1 of this thread, which features articles and blogs about all of the seasonal foods (with photos in each one).
I will soon be typing up a fairly complete list of all of the holiday foods and where to find theml, so that people have an actual list they can print out and take with them to DLR if need be.
Janet --
That old NOS décor is what Bret and I always refer to as the "light canopy." It was really a series of light strands dangling over the alley, but it added such a powerful element of light to that land. It's been gone for several years, sadly.
When the light canopy vanished, the Mardi Gras masks increased in number and popped up on many lampposts. However, even those seemed to have been scaled back a bit in 2013.
The Court of Angels tree was very pretty -- mostly blue in color scheme, with crescent moon ornaments (for the "Crescent City" reference) and feathers.
Lori --
Really? I didn't know that you are not a Halloween fan! Do you like Fall and Harvest things, or do you just dislike all of it?
It's a strange phenomenon (Halloween), as it has picked up soooooo much steam in the last decade -- not just in neighborhoods, but on TV, in the stores, in merchandise, in food, etc. A lot of people who used to enjoy Christmas have jumped ship over to the Halloween camp. Some people never liked Christmas to begin with, so they have made Halloween their own personal Christmas.
I love Halloween -- but I love the whimsical, playful side of it (pumpkin patches, Fall décor, bowls full of brightly colored candy corn that I don't eat), not the gory, horrific, bloody side of it.
However, while I love Halloween, Fall and Harvest-y things, I love the actual holiday season more. If I had to choose between holidays and was forced to celebrate only one holiday for the rest of my life, I could live without Halloween. Can't live without Christmas, though. Nope. Not doing it. However, my Christmas celebration begins (in my mind) on November 1st!
Janet --
I agree. Not a lot of "new" other than the sing-along. I want something totally new and unique to DLR!
Further, last year was the first year in a long time that Hollywood had some great holiday decorations, including the window displays, trees in front of the Hyperion, Santa and the reindeer, etc.
I fear that not only will Downtown Disney lose its new-found holiday cheer when the ice rink (and possibly the Winter Village too??) moves into DCA, but Hollywood will lose its brand new décor -- because none of that Hollywood décor from last year will work within a Frozen theme.
Misskitty3 --
At this rate, Disney is taking so long to give us a start date for the holiday season that it really makes me wonder if they are still uncertain as to if, how and when they can shoehorn Frozen into Hollywood, and are afraid to promise that everything will be up and running by whenever the start date is.
pattyduke34 --
Have a great time at Club 33!
Mike --
I have to admit that -- although I grew up with the original HM, of course, and loved it -- I, too, love HMH more.
I am so used to HMH now that I cannot imagine ever going to DLR and not seeing HMH!
I'm not even a huge fan of the NBC movie, really -- I don't hate it or even dislike it, but am just so-so about it -- but I love HMH.
Peppermint Watch/Holiday Watch Alert!
For those of you who don't also follow my Halloween Time Superthread, you may have missed the breaking news:
Nestle's Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cookie Dough (with "creamy peppermint chunks") has been spotted in at least one store!!!!!
Right now, the Halloween/Harvest/Fall/Pumpkin Spice/Pumpkin Pie/Candy Apple/Candy Corn/Caramel Apple versions of items are battling over shelf space in the stores. Twix Ghosts and Cheetos Bag of Bones are out there too. Ever so slowly, the Winter/Christmas/Cranberry/Peppermint/Gingerbread/Sugar Cookie/Eggnog/Pine items will be sneaking up behind them!
I've logged everyone's New Orleans Square-Haunted Mansion Holiday photo submissions (from Bret/mvf-m11c to Jenny, and everyone in between). Again, what an amazing array of photos everyone has been posting! I am delighted to see such fun, colorful detailed shots from all of our participants!
I look forward to the_princess' photos, Jamie's photos, Janet's photos, Mike's photos, Crystal's, Amanda's, etc., etc.
And PHXscuba will, hopefully, be back from WDW by now! She said that last week she would be at WDW and would have no chance to post photos, so she didn't want to miss out on Haunted Mansion Holiday photos. Well, luckily, we had Cars Land week and not New Orleans Square-Haunted Mansion Holiday week last week. This week is a different story, however!
I am thinking of suggesting to my husband that we go to Disneyland and California Adventure for a couple days for our fourth wedding anniversary.
Our anniversary is on November 30, so this year, that will be on a Sunday. And also going on Monday, December 1. I'm a little worried that November 30 might still be quite crowded, as that is still apart of the Thanksgiving weekend. Does anything think this date is a bad idea? It's just that that is our actually anniversary date.
This will be the first time in a very long time that I will be going to Disneyland during the Christmas season. Last time I did that, my mom took me when I was a child, I believe even under the age of 7, so I don't remember much, and I know a lot has changed since that time anyways.
I know two days is not much time to see everything there, but we done and seen a lot at Disneyland and California Adventure in the last couple years. I basically plan to go this time to soak up and enjoy the scenery and atmosphere of all the Christmas decorations, and watch all the Christmas themed shows. So far that I know of, there is a Christmas themed parade, fireworks, and World of Color show? Is there anything I am missing? Of course we will ride some rides, but it wont be the main part of the trip for us. I also want to try some Disneyland food I heard people talk about a lot. Since we don't normally get to go to Disneyland very often (once a year or once every other year) I don't normally think about what food to try. But now I am going to plan it out before we go and try some new things. Doesn't have to be Christmas themed food either.
BirdyGirl85 --
Okay, let's see... As for crowds, as DSNY4ever said, I think that your dates are a good time to go! While there may be some people on Thanksgiving break who are still in the parks on 11/30, a lot of people will probably clear out on that day (or by 12/1) as they head back home, to work and to school. That's my feeling about it, in any case.
There will be a Christmas break for many people just a few weeks after that (since Thanksgiving is late again this year), so a lot of people won't have the luxury of staying in the parks beyond 11/30 and 12/1.
That said, it is the holiday season and it is popular, so it won't be totally empty in the parks most of the time, but I don't think that the crowds will be too crazy.
As for what to see and do during your time at DLR, these are the things that you may want to make time for (in no specific order):
- A Christmas Fantasy Parade (in Disneyland);
- Believe in Holiday Magic fireworks with snowfall at the end (in Disneyland);
- The Winter Castle lit up in icicle lights at night;
- It's a Small World Holiday -- both the ride itself, and also don't miss the façade lit up in colored lights at night;
- World of Color-Winter Dreams (in DCA);
- Viva Navidad (a jubilant sort of festival/parade/celebration in DCA);
- Jingle Jangle Jamboree (in Frontierland - with a petting zoo, Santa, characters in holiday attire, rustic decorations, etc.);
- Haunted Mansion Holiday;
- Jingle Cruise (a seasonal version of Jungle Cruise); and
- Cars Land's fun holiday décor, and Snowy the Snow Car photo spot.
You may also want to spend some down time having a snack or drink in the lobby of the Grand Californian Hotel, where you will find carolers and Santa, as well as a huge Christmas tree.
There are a lot of great treats and special food items that are out for the holiday season (in addition to the regular yummy food)! Be sure to check out the "Eating, Dinking & Being Merry" post on page 1 of this thread, which features articles and blogs about all of the seasonal foods (with photos in each one).
I will soon be typing up a fairly complete list of all of the holiday foods and where to find theml, so that people have an actual list they can print out and take with them to DLR if need be.
Wow, I'm so sad I didn't get to see DLR at Christmas until last year. That 05 shut is stunning! And I would have loved to see the Court of Angels done up for Christmas.
Janet --
That old NOS décor is what Bret and I always refer to as the "light canopy." It was really a series of light strands dangling over the alley, but it added such a powerful element of light to that land. It's been gone for several years, sadly.
When the light canopy vanished, the Mardi Gras masks increased in number and popped up on many lampposts. However, even those seemed to have been scaled back a bit in 2013.
The Court of Angels tree was very pretty -- mostly blue in color scheme, with crescent moon ornaments (for the "Crescent City" reference) and feathers.
Mike: I am not a fan of Halloween period!
I actually like the NBC better that the original HM... either way, not my Fave ride!
--Lori
Lori --
Really? I didn't know that you are not a Halloween fan! Do you like Fall and Harvest things, or do you just dislike all of it?
It's a strange phenomenon (Halloween), as it has picked up soooooo much steam in the last decade -- not just in neighborhoods, but on TV, in the stores, in merchandise, in food, etc. A lot of people who used to enjoy Christmas have jumped ship over to the Halloween camp. Some people never liked Christmas to begin with, so they have made Halloween their own personal Christmas.
I love Halloween -- but I love the whimsical, playful side of it (pumpkin patches, Fall décor, bowls full of brightly colored candy corn that I don't eat), not the gory, horrific, bloody side of it.
However, while I love Halloween, Fall and Harvest-y things, I love the actual holiday season more. If I had to choose between holidays and was forced to celebrate only one holiday for the rest of my life, I could live without Halloween. Can't live without Christmas, though. Nope. Not doing it. However, my Christmas celebration begins (in my mind) on November 1st!
Janet --
I agree. Not a lot of "new" other than the sing-along. I want something totally new and unique to DLR!
Further, last year was the first year in a long time that Hollywood had some great holiday decorations, including the window displays, trees in front of the Hyperion, Santa and the reindeer, etc.
I fear that not only will Downtown Disney lose its new-found holiday cheer when the ice rink (and possibly the Winter Village too??) moves into DCA, but Hollywood will lose its brand new décor -- because none of that Hollywood décor from last year will work within a Frozen theme.
Misskitty3 --
At this rate, Disney is taking so long to give us a start date for the holiday season that it really makes me wonder if they are still uncertain as to if, how and when they can shoehorn Frozen into Hollywood, and are afraid to promise that everything will be up and running by whenever the start date is.
Ok ..here are a few of mine,...I am sad that this year we will not be able to see Court of Angles all done up for Christmas time. But on a Happy Note...I am going to get to see it on my Halloween trip...Having lunch at Club 33 in 7 days!!!! can not wait!!
pattyduke34 --
Have a great time at Club 33!
Mike --
I have to admit that -- although I grew up with the original HM, of course, and loved it -- I, too, love HMH more.
I am so used to HMH now that I cannot imagine ever going to DLR and not seeing HMH!I'm not even a huge fan of the NBC movie, really -- I don't hate it or even dislike it, but am just so-so about it -- but I love HMH.
)
