The Expert
Has been to every Disney park in the world
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2009
- Messages
- 4,478
ToD report from Sunday, March 28
We flew in from SLC on Saturday afternoon and stayed at the new JW Marriott. LOVE the location! Cutting through the Gardenwalk, we shaved a quarter mile off our distance from going around via Harbor and Katella (I tracked it on my Garmin both ways). On Sunday, we left the hotel about 11 and walked over. At 11:22 we were approaching temp check. There was a short line at security, and then (coming from Harbor) you walk all the way around the central courtyard area on the Disneyland side to come through the entry for the lines. We joined our line about 11:35 (roughly 3/4 of the way back in the courtyard) and they had just started letting people in. Our line moved quickly and we were in the park by 11:45.
We immediately got in line for the Marketplace Cashier next to Carthay Circle (note there is another back by the bridge to Paradise Pier). While in that line for 45 minutes, we went ahead and made a mobile order for Smokejumpers. We could have chosen to pick up right away, but not knowing how long the line would take, we opted for 12:30-1, which was perfect.
An IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT MARKETPLACE CASHIER!
Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention, but we didn't realized until we got up to the front that we could ONLY order from the six Marketplace locations (D-lish, California Craft Beers, LA Style, Golden Dreams, Uncork California and Cluck-a-Doodle-Moo). It was still worth waiting in that line, as we were able to use our receipts to pick up at the booths when we wanted, rather than having to choose a mobile order return time, but we did end up using mobile order for the things we couldn't get there. At the booths, we often saw long lines at the Mobile Pick-up side, and very little or no line at the Marketplace Pick-up side, so I figured we traded one 45-minute line for all the rest that day. Also, confirming that you can't use the Disney gift card for alcohol, but the cashier was more than happy to split our order into two so we could use it for the food. We just carried two receipts, which was no big deal.
The weather was HOT (almost 90) and we did struggle to find seats in the shade after the first 90 minutes or so. I noticed a lot of manager-types in dress clothes and name tags walking around and taking notes, checking on seating areas, asking people if they needed help or just striking up conversations. They also had VIP tour guides out for guest assistance. Most of the day we saw great mask compliance and good social distancing (except in Elias & Co). We visited the Legacy Passholder corner and picked up our magnets and buttons, and when we purchased something with our discount at the Art of Disney, they gave us an additional 65th anniversary DL magnet.
By about 5:30pm we were getting tired and had had all the food and drink we wanted, so we decided to call it a day. A lot of people were leaving at that same time, and just a few coming in. Your ticket does allow you to come and go, which we considered, but the crowds were steady all day so I'm not sure anyone really took advantage of that.
Overall, I'm really glad we went. It was definitely a unique experience and it was fun to see the excitement from the locals to have a little bit of Disney magic finally back. We didn't see any rides testing but there were CMs coming in and out of closed areas and closed attractions, so they're definitely getting ready. We'll be watching for when they open up to out of state travelers!
Photos and video on my instagram story highlights: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17901784822784199/
We flew in from SLC on Saturday afternoon and stayed at the new JW Marriott. LOVE the location! Cutting through the Gardenwalk, we shaved a quarter mile off our distance from going around via Harbor and Katella (I tracked it on my Garmin both ways). On Sunday, we left the hotel about 11 and walked over. At 11:22 we were approaching temp check. There was a short line at security, and then (coming from Harbor) you walk all the way around the central courtyard area on the Disneyland side to come through the entry for the lines. We joined our line about 11:35 (roughly 3/4 of the way back in the courtyard) and they had just started letting people in. Our line moved quickly and we were in the park by 11:45.
We immediately got in line for the Marketplace Cashier next to Carthay Circle (note there is another back by the bridge to Paradise Pier). While in that line for 45 minutes, we went ahead and made a mobile order for Smokejumpers. We could have chosen to pick up right away, but not knowing how long the line would take, we opted for 12:30-1, which was perfect.
An IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT MARKETPLACE CASHIER!
Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention, but we didn't realized until we got up to the front that we could ONLY order from the six Marketplace locations (D-lish, California Craft Beers, LA Style, Golden Dreams, Uncork California and Cluck-a-Doodle-Moo). It was still worth waiting in that line, as we were able to use our receipts to pick up at the booths when we wanted, rather than having to choose a mobile order return time, but we did end up using mobile order for the things we couldn't get there. At the booths, we often saw long lines at the Mobile Pick-up side, and very little or no line at the Marketplace Pick-up side, so I figured we traded one 45-minute line for all the rest that day. Also, confirming that you can't use the Disney gift card for alcohol, but the cashier was more than happy to split our order into two so we could use it for the food. We just carried two receipts, which was no big deal.
The weather was HOT (almost 90) and we did struggle to find seats in the shade after the first 90 minutes or so. I noticed a lot of manager-types in dress clothes and name tags walking around and taking notes, checking on seating areas, asking people if they needed help or just striking up conversations. They also had VIP tour guides out for guest assistance. Most of the day we saw great mask compliance and good social distancing (except in Elias & Co). We visited the Legacy Passholder corner and picked up our magnets and buttons, and when we purchased something with our discount at the Art of Disney, they gave us an additional 65th anniversary DL magnet.
By about 5:30pm we were getting tired and had had all the food and drink we wanted, so we decided to call it a day. A lot of people were leaving at that same time, and just a few coming in. Your ticket does allow you to come and go, which we considered, but the crowds were steady all day so I'm not sure anyone really took advantage of that.
Overall, I'm really glad we went. It was definitely a unique experience and it was fun to see the excitement from the locals to have a little bit of Disney magic finally back. We didn't see any rides testing but there were CMs coming in and out of closed areas and closed attractions, so they're definitely getting ready. We'll be watching for when they open up to out of state travelers!
Photos and video on my instagram story highlights: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17901784822784199/
