That's the 30th time we've heard that song.. A GRAND Xmas Adventure! Nov 13 TR 6/19!

[KelleyK75]

Just joining in. Great TR so far!

 

[danimaroo]

Yea!! I was right on what you were going to eat!!! Love those corn Dogs! I agree! best ANYWHERE!!

Awesome pics in the Haunted Mansion! Seriously awesome! I don't even see Sally that well in person!!

Yeeees you were! They are the best.

And thank you so much! I was pretty happy with them!

10-15 minutes for Indiana Jones??? Wow. And I was totally stoked for you to ride given your love of Dinosaur. But you're right, the comparison begins and ends with the vehicle. Awesome Imagineering. Which begs the question... Why did we get stuck with Dinosaur, lol.

I so want too ride the Holiday Haunted Mansion. It just looks and sounds so amazing. I really wish they could do this in WDW (I know they can't but I wish they could). Your photos really capture how amazing this is. Unbelievable.

I know, we had pretty short lines during this day which was nice, but then again, it was a Wednesday afternoon, too, haha. But yeah, Indiana Jones is just at a whole different level!

HMH is AMAAAAZING. It'll never happen at WDW, but yeah, I look forward to it every year.

Okay, first off, I would have cried if my iPad lost my notes. Seriously. Just would have cried. I applaud you for moving forward without them.

Woah, $6;95 for parking at Sea-Tac? I thought $12 a day at Milwaukee was cheap! Now, that's in comparison to the $35 a day at O'Hare......

That mural was definitely creepy!

Dude, that is cutthroat! We are planning a mega trip next August with my niece and nephews, and we've already figured that we won't be able to get a villa.

The Disneyland corn dogs are just otherworldly. Sooooooo good.

Indiana Jones is definitely one of the best rides ever! We absolutely love it.

Great pictures of Haunted Mansion Holiday. It's been quite some time since I've been there during that time of year.

I kiiiind of almost cried. I was so annoyed I'd lost them after making the effort to take them every night in the first place. So lame.

Haha well, it's not actually Sea-Tac parking, but a lot nearby that has a shuttle that takes you there in 5 minutes. But yeah, super cheap and we've used it multiple times now!

It IS cut throat. People laugh at me but I'm the one laughing when I get to stay at the Grand Cali, sooo whatever, haha. I just booked us a one-bedroom villa for our November trip with Matt's parents, and got up at 4:45am for that one!

Yeah, they really are. Best corndogs I've ever eaten!

Thank you! I love that ride so much.

Great update! Those corn dogs seriously look amazing!!! I am wanting one right now SO bad, haha!

I have only been to Disneyland once, back in 2010. However I have a feeling that your report will have me wanting to get back again sooner than later! I do remember going on Indiana Jones like 100 times!!! It's amazing!!! Jaw-drop inspiring for sure!

I know, so do I, and it's 9:18 at night, hahaha.

GOOOOO TO DISNEYLAND AGAIN! Seriously. But yeah, Indy is so amazing, I feel like people need to experience it first-hand to understand!

Holy corn dog, that looks delicious.

Indiana Jones seems like it must be awesome! I don't really know what it's about, besides the obvious Indiana Jones-ness, but it seems cool!

It is SO GOOD. Like, I can't even describe. Disneyland knows how to make a mighty corn dog!

It IS awesome. And I wrote out the entire premise of the ride for you, except when I went to submit all of my responses, I lost them all, and now I don't feel like re-writing it, haha. But basically, it's a huge legendary temple, you're not supposed to look in the eyes of the deity Mara, but someone does, and then everything goes wrong. It's so much fun though!

That corn dog looks amazing! Also I love his churro t-shirt - we are a big churro eaten' family but I've never seen that one before.

Haunted Mansion Holiday is basically what convinced me my first trip to Disneyland has to be during Christmas. I love Oogie Boogie!

GAH it was so good. Our friends Bruce and Amy got that t-shirt for Matt as a birthday present and it couldn't have been more perfect for him!!

HMH is SO worth the trip during the holidays. It's just amazing and you're mind will be blown by it.

Holy huge corn dog!!! That thing looks bigger than the turkey legs. Lol

Haunted mansion holiday looks totally awesome. My kids are huge NBC fans and would love that ride!!! Too bad I'm stuck on the east coast

I KNOW RIGHT?! These ones were just huge for some reason! And so delicious.

HMH is absolutely amazing. You guys would love it... you could always do a west coast trip during October or November!! It's so worth it.

The first time we were on Indiana Jones, the ride stopped half way through. Of course, we didn't realize anything was out of the norm until everyone on our vehicle reacted

We were stopped in the room with the snakes and my Dad is terrified of snakes. All I could think of is that I was so glad he wasn't with us! He would not have been happy.

We were right past the half way point on the ride, so we got to walk the rest of the ride, which was pretty cool to see everything!

That's kind of amazing! I'd love for the ride to break down like right in front of the huge skull. I'd take 2309420 pictures, hahaha.

Yay!!! So happy to be reading your Disneyland TR. I have learned a TON about WDW from your reports, (I've never been!), but now you're in MY park. Can't wait to go along on your adventure!!

YAY! I'm glad you enjoyed my WDW ones... and yes, I sure do love Disneyland! It's different from Disney World, but I really do love it for its own reasons.

Oh my goodness. I hold you solely responsible for the craving I've got for a corndog now! It looks AMAZING.

Also, your TRs are some very convincing details as to why I should visit DL. I have always been so in love with WDW that I haven't ever given DL a second thought. But you make it look amazing! It's definitely going on my bucket list now.

Sidenote - I work with an intellectually disabled client who I started reading your TRs to since he can't travel but LOVES Disney...and he asks me maybe 4 times a day if you wrote more. He loves it! D'AW!

Hahaha, I know, I really want one, too.

Yeees, you should go! It's awesome. Very, very different from WDW, but awesome in its own right.

And this made me SO happy. Seriously, I read it to Matt. That means so much to me! I am so glad he loves my TRs though!!

Corn dog...nom nom! We just went in February and our first stop- Corn Dog Castle. I've never had them from the Little Red Wagon?! It's always been closed for us, or had huge lines, that's what we get for traveling so far off season...

And where do you park for $6.95?!?! I need to know!

Indiana Jones is worth a trip to DL, really just so awesome, it's hard to explain!

Great HM pictures, love the music from NBC....this is Halloween, this is Halloween...

Ooooh yeah, and you can also grab them at Stage Door Cafe.. where they come with french fries. NOMNOM. I think we're going to try that this next trip!

It's actually $5.95, and it's at Extra Car! They have a shuttle that will get you to the airport in like 5 minutes! Just get the discount code for the $5.95 (normally it's $7.95).

Indy really is amazing. People need to experience it to truly understand!

Thank you! I love HM... and NBC. Two of Matt's absolute favorite things in the world.

Holy moly, that is one gigantic corn dog!!!

I have seen the Indiana Jones movies, but they aren't my favorite. The ride is INCREDIBLE, though!! I can't stand Dinosaur, but even having the same ride track, Indiana Jones is so much more amazing than Dinosaur any day. The rooms are so HUGE!

I hope one day when we are back in DL, we can be there for the holiday overlays. It's so cool how you get to experience basically a whole new attraction with the HM overlay! They were putting it all up on our last trip in August 2012. Great pictures of the animatronics!!

I know, they are HUGE. I didn't remember them being THAT big our first trip, haha.

I am a HUGE fan of Indiana Jones movies, so the ride just kind of blew my mind. Dinosaur just has no chance at even comparing, haha. Though the dinosaur animatronics ARE cool.

Ahh I hope you guys go back during the holidays. There is nothing better, seriously!

 

[danimaroo]

So glad you are writing a DL Holiday trip report! I really want a corn dog and a churro now. I've only flown into Long Beach once and I loved it- it feels like Old Hollywood to me. I also share Matt's concern about having enough time to get through security.

Eee of course! I had to, especially with this trip!!

I really like Long Beach Airport, and now it's way bigger and nicer! I really like it, because it's still small enough to get through pretty quickly. And yeah, I like getting there early, but not to the insane point where the ticket counters aren't open.

Great update! My dh and I love those corn dogs too. Except for whatever reason we never get them at the wagon, we always get them from corn dog castle in DCA and they are the same thing!

I love Indy too! It's my DH's favorite ride ever. It sadly was closed again during our trip earlier this month though. I can't believe it was a 10-15 minute wait that late in the day either. Looks like a Tuesday in November is a pretty great time to go!

I love the Phantom Manor Music Box, I have it downloaded onto my ipod! I think one reason you may have not heard it, was because I am pretty sure they didn't always play it out in the front where it is easily heard. I had only ever heard it by the FP distribution center for HMH when they used to have it open. I want to go back to see HMH sometime. A DLR trip isn't in the plans until next Jan or Feb but since we're only a 6 hour drive away we may be able to sneak a weekend trip in in November.

Haha, they're all the same, so I'm happy as long as I get my corn dog fix somewhere! Next time we're trying out Stage Door Cafe since they have more seating over there!

Indy is just so good. I'm sad it's going to be down our first two days of our trip in 2 weeks. Wompwomp, but we'll have to go on it our last 2 days a few times! It was a Wednesday, so it wasn't very busy in the afternoon at all!

I had heard it before since we own the Haunted Mansion album, so I knew it was Phantom Manor.. but then had no idea it was also played outside of HMH! But I never noticed it over at the FP machines the year before! I just adore that version, it's very creepy but pretty.

OMG, those corn dogs look HUGE! Did you ever see the corndog story? It's hilarious. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N29y12uDVp4

Oh my GOD! Thank you for sharing this. This cracked me up! People know what they like, hahaha. The corn dogs are so good though.

Those corn dogs look ridiculous! You know, I don't think I've ever actually had a corn dog, but maybe whenever I get myself to Disneyland, I'll try one...I mean, if I'm going to have one for the first time in my life, I might as well have the best one, right?

Adventureland looks so cute! Everything in Disneyland just looks so adorable!

Indiana Jones sounds awesome! But OMG that Haunted Mansion/NBC overlay... I keep thinking I want to go to Disneyland next year in August for the D23 convention, but maybe I should go in November instead...I feel like if I don't see it for the holidays I'll regret it, and how often am I going to fly myself to California?

AHHH save your first corn dog experience for Disneyland. They're so good!!

Adventureland is awesome, but small. Everything is smaller in Disneyland though, haha. But it's so easy to get from place to place (when it's not crowded, ack).

Indiana Jones IS amazing.. and oh my gosh, forget D23 (it's crazy insane and busy) and GO TO DISNEYLAND DURING THE HOLIDAYS. I hope this TR convinces you to go that route! Hahaha.

I'm in and enjoying your report. Can't wait to see your villa.

Awesome, thank you for joining!!

Just joining in. Great TR so far!

Yay! Welcome, you've gotten in at a perfect time since this TR is just starting!

 

[danimaroo]

Chapter 3: There's a special magic, when Christmastime is near... NOPE!
Day One: November 13th, 2013

We left Haunted Mansion Holiday and headed for Pirates, which we were both very excited about.

Pirates in Disneyland is just so fantastic. The queue itself may not be as excellent as the one in Disney World, but the overall ride in Disneyland is amazing.

After Pirates, we decided to head back over towards Main Street because we wanted to find a good spot to watch A Christmas Fantasy Parade from. We were supposed to have had VIP seats to watch it last year, but unfortunately due to the insane amount of rain we saw during our trip, the parade was canceled and we never got to see it. So it was definitely a priority for me to see it during this trip!

We decided to stroll through the perfectly pink Sleeping Beauty Castle, and take photos along the way.

twitter: Pretty little baby castle:

Main Street was already looking pretty busy with people, but there were some spots near the hub, so we plopped ourselves down to get good spots for the parade, which wasn't happening for another 45 minutes.

Of course, Matt really wanted some Starbucks, and I did, too, so I decided I'd go and get us some lovely drinks for while we waited. As I headed over to the newly opened Starbucks in the Market House, I found some beautiful Disney balloons. As we all know, I LOVE photos of Disney balloons, so I stopped to get some.

I suddenly spotted, right out in front of the Market House, a group I'd NEVER seen live before, ever...

THE DAPPER DANS!! I was so freakin' excited to finally catch them, so of course I stopped to watch them sing Christmas songs for a bit. I felt kind of guilty since I knew Matt was waiting for me, but I couldn't help it!

They were fabulous, and I was so glad I finally got to see them in a Disney park. Plus, how adorable are they in their Christmas outfits?

I finally pulled myself away and went inside of the Market House to get us our drinks.

The line wasn't too long which was good!

And of course, all of the treats looked amazing, too.

I am pretty sure I got Matt his usual iced Venti nonfat vanilla latte, and I got myself a Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino. So good, I love enjoying Starbucks while in a Disney park!

I made my way back over to where Matt was and a bunch of people had kind of swarmed our area. Fortunately Matt did a pretty good job of keeping people out of my spot, but they were definitely encroaching. I didn't really care since we'd been there first, so I just sat down and kind of made them move.

We sat for a while and just kind of people-watched while waiting for the parade/listened to the park music.

And this is where the song that never ends began.

Okay, most of you who have seen the Christmas Fantasy Parade obviously know the song that accompanies the parade. If you don't, this is it: http://youtu.be/AJUkF5-3xp0?t=38s

So this song... ooooh this song. I swear they played it no less than 30 times on repeat while we were waiting for the parade and also before the parade actually made it to our area.

Over.

And over

And over.

Now don't get me wrong, hearing it the first time made me really excited for the parade. But after a while, Matt and I were starting to go insane, out of our minds, hearing it repeatedly. It doesn't help that the song is extremely short, only 3 minutes long, and that's the song they play over and over again the entire length of the parade.

Unlike the Boo to Your Parade in Disney World, the soundtrack is the same 3 minute song on repeat for the entire parade... I mean, it's KIND of different depending on the part of the parade you're seeing, but it's pretty overall similar.

By the time the parade finally made its way in front of us, we were slap happy and singing along to it... and also to just annoy each other, hahahaha. We have a total knack for doing this to each other, singing a song that we know drives the other person crazy.

Well lucky for us, we were both driven insane by it. It doesn't help that it is REMARKABLY catchy, so as soon as one person started singing it, whether trying to annoy the other person, or just singing it because it's stuck in your head, the other person just yells "NOOOOOO!" because they know it's officially stuck in their head, as well.

And we seriously sing this song to each other all of the time now. In fact, I just sang it to Matt last night, hahaha.

And THIS is where the TR title was born... because we proceeded to sing this to each other the rest of our trip.

ANYWAY, back to the parade. I was happy with where we were sitting since we had a great view of everything, but at the same time, the darn huge lights didn't help my photos. I did get a few good ones, though... okay, more like I took a TON, so be prepared for infinite amounts of photos here.

Then these little Snowflake Ladies came zooming around on their skates, which cracked me up for some reason. I think maybe it felt a little outdated.

Continued in next post​

 

[danimaroo]

Chapter 4: We're still singing that song...
Day One: November 13th, 2013

I'm not going to lie, when Winnie the Pooh and Tigger came by, I let out a huge "AAHHH!" because of how CUTE they were! And of course, poor Eeyore, hahaha.

And then they brought out the adorable Snowmen! Oh my gosh, they're the cutest little nuggets ever.

I really adored Pluto and Goofy's float, and then all of the princes and princesses!

Chip 'n Dale were so adorable in their little car with the big acorn... and I loved all of the reindeer.

Then, it was time for Woody's float, then Jiminy Cricket and Buzz Lightyear.. all of which were fantastic.

One thing to note: It was unusually warm this day... as in, 90 degrees out. We dealt with it pretty fine since it was dry (that Florida humidity is what always kills us), but while we were watching the parade, we were both commenting on how HOT those performers must have been.

Seriously, some of them were sweating like crazy, and I give them props for being able to keep a smile going!

At the end, of course, Santa Claus ended the parade...

but we can't forget about the rope-holders at the end!

Maybe it's just me, but their hair and outfits seriously seemed straight out of the 90s! Hahaha, I looked at Matt trying to figure out what was going on there.

So overall thoughts on the parade?

twitter: Christmas parade verdict: I liked it and thought it was adorable, Matt thought it was okay.

I liked it, I really did, and thought it was adorable. There was so much detail in the floats! Like my tweets mentioned, Matt thought it was just okay. Matt isn't a HUGE parade person in general, and I think the only ones he's really outright said he enjoys are Main Street Electrical Parade and Spectromagic. He always brings up how amazing Spectro was.

But yeah, I think the only thing I didn't love about it was that it felt a little old and outdated... and the fact that the song gets played SO many times, even if you love it, it starts to kind of drive you up the wall a bit. I think it just needs some slight updating, because otherwise it's fabulous and is pretty adorable.

I'm sure we will catch it again during our next November trip (since Matt's parents are coming with us and his Mom loves parades), and it's definitely a very Christmassy parade to see! I also wanted to mention that I love that Disneyland offers this to all guests and not just via a ticketed party.

Continued in next post​

 

[stinkerbell007]

Wow, Dani, fantastic photos! You are really quite the photographer!

thanks for sharing.

There's a special magic
In Christmastime this year
Hearts are gay and merry
And full of yuletide cheer
The spirit of the season
Can make our dreams come true
Memories of Christmas
Are here for me and you

he he.

Linda

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I agree, Pirates is exemplary in D-Land. The only thing I kind of don't like is how the end of the ride you slowly drift past all those people in the queue... staring at you. #awkward.

Wait... You've never seen the Dapper Dans in Disneyland, or you've never seen the Dapper Dans EVER???? If it's ever... HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE????? But YAY DAPPER DANS!!

Wow, my first thought while you were waiting for the parade was WOW it got dark quick.

Even though I haven't seen it in person and didn't have to put up with the songs over and over and over, I just might like this Parade better than the one at WDW based on your photos. It's possibly just because it's new to me. It's also possibly because... hello rope holders, lol.

 

[Joben]

Here I am already missing a chance to post on your TR.
So I will have to check out the Indy ride. I like Dinosaur, but it is kinda 90's cheesey. I'm a big fan of the Indiana films though so I would be pretty excited about that. And if we do go that corn dog is on my list, I would have guessed your first food would have been the churro, But that corn dog holy geez I wanna take that sucker down.

I with Matt on the parades. I will watch one if it is special. The Boo to You was pretty neat, but if I missed it... Meh

When do they start decorating for the X-mas party?
Great update though.

 

[white306]

I just love your TR's!

Wow those corn dogs look amazing!

I've heard so many good things about the Indiana Jones ride I can't wait to try it out!

Haunted Mansion Holiday looks awesome. The first time I watched Nightmare Before Christmas was only about two years ago and it is def a new found love. After I saw those pictures I wanted to hop on a plane and head over there right then (except it wouldn't be holiday so I need to fast forward a few months ).

The castle looks so cute! I know it's smaller than the one at Disney World but I always love the pictures of Disneyland's. I just can't wait to see it in person.

The parade floats look so cute! I just love Christmas decorations!

Can't wait for the next post!

 

[Sherry E]

I just had to chuckle about the song in the parade. That has been a long-running joke with me -- the fact that I can't get that song out of my head, no matter what I do! If I try to avoid the parade, I end up running into it and then the song kicks in. If I take time to stop and watch the Christmas Fantasy Parade, the song latches onto my brain and stays there forever.

In fact, the last time I actually took time to intentionally watch the parade in its entirety was in December 2011 -- and yet the song is etched into every nook and cranny of my memory to this day and will haunt me for all eternity.

If there is ever a Christmas party at DLR, the parade could become a party exclusive, or it could be done away with in favor of a newer holiday parade. One never knows! But if the parade disappears, does that mean the song will leave my memory too?

 

[hakunamomtata]

This is adorable!! I love love love the Disney balloons. I wish there was a way to bring one home with me. A permanent Disney balloon in my bedroom wouldn't bother me at all. Haha

I showed my client (the one I told you about last time) all the pictures you took and when he saw the odd rope carrier from the 90s, he asked "Did Disney get budget cuts?" LOL!!! Absolutely hilarious. Every time I go to work now, he asks "Did wreck it ralph write more stories?" Thats what he calls you, because when he saw Matt's costume in the Sept TR he LOVED it. And he kinda thinks your hubby is straight outta the movie. Hahaha

 

[Tracy161]

I do love me some DL Pirates action!

Yay for getting to finally see the Dapper Dans... I love them and they are just so Main Street!

Huh... Odd that they just play that song on repeat... That would have had me on a fast path to crazy-town quick!!! but at least you can use it as a weapon to annoy each other when necessary!

 

[DharmaLou]

I love that parade - the reindeer and Eeyore are my favorite in it! Clearly the song must not have had the same impact on me because without watching on YouTube I didn't remember it.

And I can never get enough of balloon pictures. They're my favorite, too!

 

[stacy~**]

I haven't started yet but wanted to go ahead and get this in my subscribed threads list!

 

[cinderellaurora]

Hi Dani

I've never been to Disneyland but I enjoyed reading your last Disneyland report & I'm enjoying this one too so far!

It's interesting seeing & reading about all the similarities & differences between Disneyland & Disney World, & I love the idea of the Nightmare Before Christmas themed Haunted Mansion

As someone who enjoys Dinosaur, I am sure I would be a big fan of the Indiana Jones ride!

I look forward to reading more!

Very best wishes,
Siân.xx

 

[AbbyMarie]

Okay so I'm finally here, and I'm finally caught up, because apparently I'm a late to the party kind of gal these days....sheesh!
Your pictures never cease to amaze me - they are so gorgeous. I wish I was 1/8 the photographer you are! The pictures inside Haunted Mansion? Amazing. Can't wait to read/see more .

 

[mollybuck]

What is up with the old school hair!? I would be so distracted by that! And I'm not too sure about Ariel's dress. But I love Goofy and Pluto's float!

I love the pictures of the castle - I like how it has more of a "cartoon" feel to it compared to Cinderella Castle. It makes it look so cute with all the decorations!

 

[AVDisney]

Great TR! Went to Disneyland for my first time in March. Can't wait to hear the rest of this adventure!

 

[stimmons]

I'm HEEEEEERRREE!!!!

Great beginning to your TR! I'm so excited to read more about DL. Sooooo, I have a question. What makes POTC at DL different/better than the one at WDW? You mentioned that you liked it better. I've never been to DL so I'm curious.

Also, I'm with Matt on Spectro! I cannot describe in words how sad I am that it's gone.

 

[DisneytheKid]

So stoked that a new trip report is started! Can't wait to read more!