1st trip to DL, 1st Anniversary, 1st time on the coast...COMPLETED!!

[Loriann70]

Great update, great pictures as always! Thanks for sharing!

Lori

 

[jhch06]

Hi all! I'm a newbie around here, but I am loving your trip report!

 

[Jennifer48]

Great update Karen! I can't wait to see your Photopass pics. I'm sure they are just as great as your pics

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

Great update, Karen! Lol, that's a crack up about the people and Snow White's wishing well. I would have been like, "helllooo? I'm taking a picture!! MOVE!!" lol. Okay, not really, but that's what you should have said!!!

 

[DisneyMissy318]

Another great update Karen! I seeing the differences in DL and WDW... thanks for bringing us along!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Ok all caught up now. We went on vacation & I am trying to get caught up on my favorite threads.
Loved the picture of the castle with the pink trees & flowers. Gorgeous.
Toontown is soooo cute. I can't wait to see all the details.
Ready for more.

 

[kmab00]

Great pictures. I didn't realize that Minnie's and Mickey's House aren't part of the line to see them at WDW. We went through them at night so they were empty.

I like Disneyland's Toontown better, it has more in it, like the Roger Rabbit ride.

Thank you! In order to see Mickey at WDW, you go to a place called the "Judges Tent" ... you can get to that place through his house but I don't think that you have to go through his house to get to it. That line went by pretty fast too when we were there. I agree....DL's Toontown had SO much more stuff in it!! The Roger Rabbit ride was FUN!! Thanks for following along!!

Great updates!!!!!!!
I can NOT wait to see DL's toontown now!! It looks super cute! I just love Minnie and Mickey's homes in WdW so I am sure i will really be loving the west coast homes hahah.
The pictures are great as always Karen..thanks for pointing out snow white's grotto too! I never knew about that!

Thank you so much! YES you MUST! Towntown is SO CUTE!!!! You REALLY will love these homes! There is so much to them! Thank you again!!

Glad you had a good time at the baseball game, and that your team won. I support the Angels for a number of reasons. First is because they're hometown is closest to me than any other team. but more importantly they're in Anaheim, where DL is, and the Angels used to be owned by Disney with Walt having been on the Board of Directors. lol

Aww thanks!! I NEVER knew that they were owned by Disney!! That's GREAT! I knew that there was a Disney movie called "Angels in the Outfield" but I never knew that they were owned by Disney! That's GREAT!!! We were gonna try to sneak away one night to get to a game but we just didn't have the opportunity! Oh well! Thanks so much for that tidbit of information!!

Glad you had a great time at the game. I can't believe those people saw you taking that picture and just stood there anyway, oh my gosh. That is just crazy. I love Minnie's mailbox too, actually I want Mickey's at his house in WDW and one of those Mickey benches in front of Disneyland, aren't they just the coolest thing ever, I have to get my photo taken on one each trip, I just love them.

I love all the photos of Mickey/Minnie's house, all the detailsl are so cute, I always take photos of the Pluto stuff because I just love it, the dog door was just super cute, I have a picture of that from my trip in March.

Oh no, so you are leaving DL, do you come back?? Are you visiting other places in CA?? If so are you going to include those in your trip report?? I sure hope so. Can't wait to read and see more, can't wait to your photopass CD arrives, they are always so great.

Thank you so much!! Yes we had so much fun! LOL I agree that the benches and the mailbox are great!!! Thanks so much for following along! I love Photo Pass pictures, too! Hopefully it will arrive sometime next week! Yay!!

OMG KAREN. We saw SO many Dream Team members on our trip that weren't in "Dreaming Mode", Jesus was like "Let's follow them!!" We followed one Dream Team CM at DCA for like 20 minutes, and he kept looking at his watch, I was like "He has to be going somewhere to dream people!!" NOPE!!! We followed him all the way to the entrance.. Nothing..

We followed another at DCA too, nope, she was going no where too.. Boo!

Your pictures are so cute!! I didn't know DLR's ToonTown is bigger than WDW's! Disneyland's Toon Town is small, I think. I think that's why it's so crowded, it's so secluded and the one way in is the only way out. It's always crowded when we go over there too..

I looking at your pictures!

Aww I'm sorry that you guys followed that Dream Team CM around and never figured out what they were up to! Disneyland's Toontown is SO much bigger to me! There are two ways in and out of WDW's Toontown though so maybe that's why it never seemed that crowded to me, even though it seems smaller. That could just be me, though! I really really love Mickey and Minnie's DL homes! They are just too cute!!

Aww I love their houses in DL! Just another thing to look forward to seeing if and when we go! I saw you said you have Coach glasses...mine are kate spade and the insurance also paid for mine. Hehe. I can't wait to see the pics of you guys and mickey mouse! Also to hear more about your trip. I hope you are having a good holiday weekend!

Exactly!! Something else to look forward to! Oooh see isn't it great for insurance that pays for expensive glasses?! Don't you just love it!? Thanks so much for following along!!

I def think DL's Toon Town just somehow feels more cartoony! The skyline esp. It was really neat! Great update!

That's a good way to say it....DL's Toontown is more cartoony! I totally agree with you!!! I LOVE the skyline! It's adorable!! Thank you so much!

Same here, we were just going along like cattle, and than realized we were gonna see Mickey! Too funny! Great upDATE!

LOL I'm glad we weren't the only ones stuck in that line not knowing what was going on! There was so much to look at thought that it went by really quick!! Thanks for reading along!!

 

[kmab00]

Great update so far!! Toontown is such a fun place to walk around and relax if you have time to kill...

The crowds def seemed like they picked up in the afternoon..did you ever feel like it was too much??

Can't wait to hear more!!

Thank you!! I agree about Toontown...it's a fun place! The crowds were definitely much bigger in the afternoon but no, I wasn't ever overwhelmed by them so that was good! Thanks for following along!

Great update!!!!

Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it!!

I really like Snow White's grotto! So pretty! The pink trees everywhere are so pretty too! I wish I could have those in my yard.

I'm the same way with the teacups (and reading in the car) DD is still too small for them, but I dread the day she asks to ride!

Aaahhh - strollers everywhere! We just got back from Sea World and it was SO insanely crowded! It took 40 minutes just to get through a counter service line! Looking at your crowd pictures gave me a little flashback!

I know I love the pink trees!! They are so pretty and I love the touch of color that they add! Ugh yes I understand about the reading in the car thing and the teacups....it's not fun!! Oh no I'm not a fan of really huge crowds!! Forty minutes? Geeze!! That's crazy! Sorry you guys had to deal with so many crowds! Was the trip still fun despite the crowds? I haven't been to Sea World in YEARS and would love to go back one day ... hopefully soon!

Loved this update! Snow White's grotto is just adorable! You said she had a fountain too. It looked like a drinking fountain. Is that right? Toontown looks cool! Do they have Goofy Barnstormer & Donald things there too? It did look like things were getting just a little crowded!!! Time for a break??? You know it!

Thank you!! You are right.....that WAS a drinking fountain and it's really Sleeping Beauty's fountain....kind of how there's a Cinderella drinking fountain by the castle in WDW..... No Goofy Barnstormer in DL's Toontown but Gadget from Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers (which no kids really know anymore because that was practically from my time growning up....lol) has her own coaster which is kind of similar I guess. Donald definitely has a boat in DL!! YES I agree...time for a break away from the crowds! lol!

Great update, great pictures as always! Thanks for sharing!

Lori

Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the trip report!

Hi all! I'm a newbie around here, but I am loving your trip report!

Well welceme to the DIS Boards!! I'm so glad that you are enjoying my trip report! You can find so much useful information around here about anything and everything Disney!!

 

[kmab00]

Great update Karen! I can't wait to see your Photopass pics. I'm sure they are just as great as your pics

Thank you! I love Photo Pass...it's so easy and convenient! They take great pictures, too!

Great update, Karen! Lol, that's a crack up about the people and Snow White's wishing well. I would have been like, "helllooo? I'm taking a picture!! MOVE!!" lol. Okay, not really, but that's what you should have said!!!

HAHA I wish I could have said that........I definitely thought it!

Another great update Karen! I seeing the differences in DL and WDW... thanks for bringing us along!

Thank you very much! I'm glad that you feel like you're along for the ride! It was a fun trip and I enjoy "reliving" it through trip reports!

Ok all caught up now. We went on vacation & I am trying to get caught up on my favorite threads.
Loved the picture of the castle with the pink trees & flowers. Gorgeous.
Toontown is soooo cute. I can't wait to see all the details.
Ready for more.

Thank you so very much! I hope you had fun on your vacation!! More is on the way right now!!

Great pics and update! I can't believe how small the castle is!!

I know I agree...I thought that, too!! Thank you!

 

[kmab00]

Tuesday, April 8, 2008 - Disneyland Continued / ESPN Zone!!

By the time we finished with Toontown, it was getting close to supper! I had made an RSVP online at ESPNZone.com for 5:50 p.m. Apparently, according to the Disney Service Desk, ESPN Zone doesn't allow them to make RSVP's for Disney guests ..... sooo, if you're planning on going to ESPN Zone, you can make RSVP's up to 3 days in advance on their website!!

I saw this CUTE ice cream parlor on Main Street and just had to have a picture!!

There's the fire station!! I knew we'd explore that some more later, too!

We ran to our rooms real fast to change into something warmer so after we finished eating, we could just go straight to DCA!!!

This is the Disney Travel Company Office. I found it on our way to Downtown Disney....it'll come in handy in a few days, just wait and see!

We found it!!

Jason was SO excited about this place! I think he was more excited about the games upstairs, though!

When you sit down in the lobby and look up, this is what you see!!

We got to eat in the screening room. It had a HUGE and I do mean HUGE screen with .... YAY a BASEBALL game on!!!!

You kinda get an idea of how big it is behind us

Jason ordered Nachos

I had chicken tenders with onion rings

Let the FUN begin!!

A few weeks before the trip, I ordered "VIP" cards from the ESPN Zone website for free! When we got upstairs to activate them, we were told that we each had FORTY FREE POINTS!! Wahooo!! We had some fun with those points, too!

The wave runners were first!! These were my favorite!

Then I tried NASCAR racing......

I wasn't doing so well if you couldn't tell from the pictures! Haha!

Jason shot some hoops

This is the ceiling up close!

...............................................CONT..................................................

 

[kmab00]

..............................CONT..............................

Jason shot some more hoops...hey we had a lot of points to burn! lol!

And I drove a different NASCAR in efforts of winning!

I think I came in 3rd or 4th which is a HUGE improvement!

The Disneyland Hotel from afar! We didn't have time to walk over there on this night but I knew when we ate at Steakhouse 55, we'd have time to look around!

We had to run back to our hotel to put our leftovers away and on our way there, I saw these flowers! They remind me of the Tiki Room flowers!! Very pretty!

We walked back through the Grand Cali for our first glimpse of DCA!!

Condor Flats

First stop: Soarin!! We only had like 2 hours before the park closed so we figured that Soarin would be the only attraction we'd have time for! Well, we stood in the standby line for a while (which was about 60 minutes long).............

........when all of a sudden, this girl hands me these fast passes and asks if I want them! Well of COURSE I do! Thank you non-Disney personnel for the magic!!

Jason and I in line!

We LOVE Soarin from WDW and I knew this would be virtually the same attraction which I was right except here, they have TWO sides operating that makes the line go by SO much faster!!! I loved how you could smell the pine and the orange as you flew over those trees. I don't remember that from WDW but it might be that I just didn't notice it before! Here, I definitely noticed it and it was GREAT!!

NEXT UP: CALIFORNIA SCREAMIN!!!! We headed over there as FAST as we could! You know what? The standby line was only like 15 minutes long!! Yay!

This is what the cars look like. I LOVED LOVED LOVED this Roller Coaster and could have ridden it again!! It was smooth, fast, had awesome music and thrills...wow.....I LOVED it!!!

Afterward, I took a picture in the Paradise Pier area!

A few reflection pictures! Jason called that orange ride the "Spinning Orange of Death" because every time it would go, you could hear people screaming! lol!

So very pretty at night!

Jason in bugs land! Haha!

On our way out, I took a picture of the Greetings sign! This park closed at 8:00 p.m., so we left and walked straight across to Disneyland for the Fireworks!!

Up next: Disneyland at night and Remember: Dreams Come True Fireworks!!

 

[julezdisney]

Yay! An update! And a great one! Love it!

 

[MadiMouse]

I just the update!!!

 

[alabamagirl]

Great update! California Screamin' looks awesome!

 

[julezdisney]

Ok, so I read that really late last night right before I went to bed and did this ---> so I had to re-look at the pictures. I didn't even SEE that plane 1st time I went to DCA cuz I was with commando in-laws, will def. get pic w/kids with that! Also, I can't WAIT for single rider line for California Screamin! SOO excited to try that one this year!

 

[JaxJags08]

I know I love the pink trees!! They are so pretty and I love the touch of color that they add! Ugh yes I understand about the reading in the car thing and the teacups....it's not fun!! Oh no I'm not a fan of really huge crowds!! Forty minutes? Geeze!! That's crazy! Sorry you guys had to deal with so many crowds! Was the trip still fun despite the crowds? I haven't been to Sea World in YEARS and would love to go back one day ... hopefully soon!

Yes, we still had a really good time at Sea World. But the experience was enough for us to say that we are definitely not going during peak periods or summer again! Which is kinda sad since we had planned on going to Epcot later this month. But we will still go, just later in the year. We have the SW Fun Pass, so we plan on hitting that park again around September or October when the crowds die down and it's not so hot! Not to keep harping on the crowds, but we had to wait 30 minutes before each show to get seats and 1 hour before the Shamu show - so that ate up a big chunk of our day. While waiting at the Shamu show, DH went to get some food and people kept coming up and asking if his space was saved. I said yes to one man, and he went to complain to a CM (not sure if this is what they're called at SW), and she basically blew him off. I don't understand why he complained, get there 1 hour ahead like us if you want a seat - not 10 minutes before the show starts! Whew! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest!

ESPN Zone looks like a lot of fun! The nachos look yummy! That's a great picture of you on the second Nascar game - such concentration!

I've wanted to go to DCA just to ride California Screamin'!

 

[jnjusoioa]

Karen, great update!!!! ESPN Zone looks so fun, oh my gosh, I had no idea. I wonder if they have one of those at WDW?? My Christmas plans have changed, I will be visitng WDW instead of DL so it would be cool if they had one too. I didn't realize how fun the place was.
That is sweet that someone gave you those pass's for Soarin. I am so mad that I didn't get to ride California Screamin. I had major surgery in Dec. and my doc. told me I couldn't ride it in March, too soon. Thats ok, next time.
Your trip report is so great and I can't wait to read and see more, keep up the awesome work.

 

[nibblesandbits]

Karen, great update!!!! ESPN Zone looks so fun, oh my gosh, I had no idea. I wonder if they have one of those at WDW?? My Christmas plans have changed, I will be visitng WDW instead of DL so it would be cool if they had one too. I didn't realize how fun the place was.
That is sweet that someone gave you those pass's for Soarin. I am so mad that I didn't get to ride California Screamin. I had major surgery in Dec. and my doc. told me I couldn't ride it in March, too soon. Thats ok, next time.
Your trip report is so great and I can't wait to read and see more, keep up the awesome work.

I went to the ESPN Zone at WDW and don't recall them having a game area like they do in Cali. I could be wrong and have missed it, but I don't believe one is there.

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

I loved your update Karen! Woohoo!

 

[toocherie]

Great report!