Disneyland at Christmas/Holiday Season Superthread #3!- HOLIDAYS BEGIN 11/12/13!!

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I know this has been mentioned already, but I don't have the energy to search through the last 20 pages to find the answer.
What are the times for the Holiday Magic Tour? I want to book the later tour on Dec 24th, and I want to make sure that my dining reservation isn't in conflict with the start time.

Thanks :)
 
I know this has been mentioned already, but I don't have the energy to search through the last 20 pages to find the answer.
What are the times for the Holiday Magic Tour? I want to book the later tour on Dec 24th, and I want to make sure that my dining reservation isn't in conflict with the start time.

Thanks :)

My tour is on Sunday December 1st and I believe the times on that day were 12:30 and 3:45 (or maybe it was 3:30)? The tour culminates with the parade.

I'm not sure on the times for your date but you could call: 714-781-TOUR (8687) to find out for sure.
 
My tour is on Sunday December 1st and I believe the times on that day were 12:30 and 3:45 (or maybe it was 3:30)? The tour culminates with the parade.

I'm not sure on the times for your date but you could call: 714-781-TOUR (8687) to find out for sure.

Thanks :). I don't think they are releasing info about the 24th yet as we are still more than 30 days out.
 
I focused a lot on Hollywood Land this time around because it is so infrequent to see this many decorations on the Hollywood facades and I was a bit taken aback! I skipped posting a lot of other DCA decor photos that I have but I can always go back to those and post more another time, if anyone wants to see them. I'm just trying to do a highlight reel of certain elements of the decor for right now (such as showing the full-sized Cozy Cone tree and the miniature version of that same tree).

Glad you were able to come down and get photos and what not :) And here here on the Hollywood decorations this year. We're super excited about them in my department alone.
 

I had just finished my last round of replies and saw that more posts came in as I was typing, so let me quickly add:

mrsw94 -- Ghirardelli is expensive. I don't think they give samples at the chalet, but they hand out free samples at the Ghirardelli shop in DCA, so be sure to stop in and get a free piece of yummy peppermint bark!

I was in downtown Disney on Friday night and they were handing out peppermint bark!
 
Wow Sherry, thank you for taking the time to post all of those photos. I am truly impressed with DCA's decorations. I cannot wait.

I am especially loving the details in Carsland. :thumbsup2 Bugsland during the holidays is also so well done. Last year we took off all of the white lights from our tree (yawn) and went back to the ceramic colored lights (not LED). I know it's enlarging my carbon footprint but I figure it's only for a month. ;)
 
EEEEEEEP!!!!!! I get to see the Christmas decor in PERSON this year!!!!!!! I won a spot to see the View being taped and a one day park hopper!!!!!!!!!! My must see/do list is getting lengthy, I hope I can cross everything off!
 
Sherry, thank you so much for all the wonderful photos and descriptions! I'm getting so excited, just a little over 2 weeks!!! :yay:

Those holiday goodies look so delicious. I'm gluten-free, so I'll have to see if they have any holiday cookies that are gluten-free.
 
I'm really eating all of this up. Thanks so much for posting these Sherry! I hope you feel better soon! pixiedust:

Janet -

Thank you.:goodvibes I feel fine today. It was yesterday that I had a nagging headache but it's all gone now.

After all of these months your trip is rapidly approaching -- in 3 weeks or so, correct? I remember when it was far enough away that you hadn't even established where you were going to stay. It's crazy to think that so many people who joined this thread quite a while back (you, egritz, czmom, Trish/Phoenixrising, Kathy, etc.) are now about to embark on the holiday trips that have been in the works for months.



Holy cow Sherry! It was like Christmas morning opening the thread tonight to find so many excellent photos! Where to begin??

I love the look of the little village in DTD. I could sure find something to have dinner/lunch at the Snack Shack. Sounded delish.

While not overly enamored with Duffy, him dressed like a little elf with elf Mickey may have to come home with me. I also like the black Grumpy shirt!

Did you get a chance to ride the Jingle Cruise? If so, was your captain a good one?

One important question: Which store had the gingerbread Mickeys????

I'm sure I have more questions but I wanted to thank you for your efforts (I know how time consuming it is to upload and resize let along categorize!)

Now - I have GOT to watch Snow Bride tonight!

TK


TK --

You're welcome!

How about that giant gold mask hanging where the moon-headed dude used to be (in the wreath above NOS)? That was, uh...new. Different. I wasn't expecting that giant mask to be there after so many years of seeing the wreath!

I love that black Grumpy shirt! And I agree -- I own nothing Duffy-related but that elf Duffy with the little Mickey is very tempting.

I rode the Jingle Cruise and as I was saying a few pages back, what I realized about it is that if the line is short (which most of us would want) we will miss some of the decorations. The upstairs portion of the ride was roped off when we went on it so we didn't get to see the extra holiday details/decorations upstairs. Therefore, I think we were cheated out of a 'jingle' or two!:rotfl2: It's not that I want a long line, but I want to see all of the decorations. If I'm going to go on the Jingle Cruise, I want the full jingle effect!:rotfl2:

In any case, those pictures I posted of the makeshift tree with candles are from the downstairs portion of the queue. All of the guys working the ride (both in the boat and helping people on and off the boats) wear jungle-ish Santa hats, which is a nice touch. Our guy was mildly amusing, but the jokes were not that great. Really, it's a very minor overlay -- nothing on the scale of IASWH or HMH -- but the holiday touches here and there were cute and I appreciate that Disney tried something new and different.

I saw the gingerbread cookies in the Candy Palace on Main Street. I did not see them in Marceline's, which was very surprising as they are usually there. I also did not see them in Trolley Treats in DCA but I could have missed them. The cookies may have been in Pooh Corner in Critter Country, but I didn't make it back there.

"Snow Bride" is very cute. You must let me know if you like it!

Love the photos, Sherry!

Halloweenqueen --

I thought of you the other day because I noticed that there was some equipment and gear in front of the Castle, and people were not allowed to enter or exit Fantasyland through the center of Castle because it was blocked. At first I didn't know what it was all about (the parade taping was long over), but then I thought that it might have something to do with The View taping this upcoming week?:confused3

I will be curious hear how this week of shows pans out!

This has got to be one of the cutest things I've ever seen.
I know what you mean about the gingerbread. That looks to me like the gingerbread served at Starbucks and it is indeed orange and maybe a little candied ginger?

Tonight I attempted to tie dye some shirts. I d.i.d.n.t. w.e.a.r. g.l.o.v.e.s. :worried:

Kathy --

Uh-oh! What color are your hands?:scared:

I love that mini-gingerbread model in the Cozy Cone office! I also love that whoever set it up moved it a little closer to the side of the window where most people will be viewing it, so it is slightly easier to see than it was last year.

I was disappointed to not see a gingerbread house/car in Flo's in Cars Land, like there was last year.

Yes -- candied something or another in the gingerbread loaf! I'm so glad that I wasn't imagining that flavor! The loaf was sold at the Market House (now Starbucks), but there are also Disney-specific things sold there too. I had never seen the loaf in DLR before, so I figured it was a Starbucks product. I definitely tasted something orange, and there was a candied piece of something in the frosting too. It wasn't bad, but I think I like my gingerbread in cookie form, without candied things and orange essence in it!:rotfl2:

However, I did get a big blended peppermint mocha too (to ease the pain of the peppermint ice cream not being available at DLR this year) and that was delightful.




I know this has been mentioned already, but I don't have the energy to search through the last 20 pages to find the answer.
What are the times for the Holiday Magic Tour? I want to book the later tour on Dec 24th, and I want to make sure that my dining reservation isn't in conflict with the start time.

Thanks :)

NSmuppetmom --

Hopefully no one has ever suggested going through the last 20 pages of any thread to find something.:faint: I know I've never said it. I always suggest going to page 1 first (easy to get to and the info has been updated pretty regularly) and if you can't find the info there, then ask us and someone will help.:goodvibes We don't expect you to go combing through many, many pages.

There is also a feature you can use called Search Thread, or Search this Thread. I use it a lot to find things. I think it actually works much better than the general Search feature for the whole board.

I just happened to check the 2013 Holiday Time tour link I listed on page 1 and I guess that DLR changed the tour page since I first added that link in, so I had to then go back and copy the new link and re-add it.

I would expect that the info/times for the 12/24 tour will be available on 11/24-ish.



Glad you were able to come down and get photos and what not :) And here here on the Hollywood decorations this year. We're super excited about them in my department alone.

Hi, Jessica!:wave::cool1:

Indeed, I was there 2 days ago -- and also back in September -- and will be back again in December.

I was on my way out of DCA to head into DTD and I happened to glance over in the general direction of Hollywood Land. Something caught my eye -- a glimmer of something that hadn't been there last year. I thought, "Is that garland of some kind? What is that?" (Last year all that was there was the red and white garland wrapped around the poles.)

I decided I had to check out this mysterious shiny thing in the distance and was shocked to see Santas and stars, trees and garland on various Hollywood facades! And the Santa/reindeer display!! Somehow, word of this miracle had not gotten out -- not on Mint Crocodile's site or elsewhere, from what I could tell. I think that everyone assumes that Hollywood will not be decorated so they gave up looking for decor a long time ago. I was thrilled! I think that the Hollywood decor is a nice complement to the Buena Vista Street decor.

So, Disney gets a big thumbs up from me on the vast improvement of the Winter Village in DTD, and for the Hollywood decorations!:thumbsup2 I haven't seen Winter Dreams yet so that verdict is yet to be determined.


I was in downtown Disney on Friday night and they were handing out peppermint bark!

misskay -

I was there on Friday (we left as it was starting to get dark), but at that specific moment it didn't look like too many other people were visiting the chalets. I am not sure if people knew that the Village was open yet, since the rink was still covered and not operational. Maybe the Ghirardelli folks took out the samples when more people started coming by in the Friday night rush? In any case, I'm all for more samples! Why trek all the way to Pacific Wharf to get a sample in DCA when you can get one at the Winter Village, right?

Wow Sherry, thank you for taking the time to post all of those photos. I am truly impressed with DCA's decorations. I cannot wait.

I am especially loving the details in Carsland. :thumbsup2 Bugsland during the holidays is also so well done. Last year we took off all of the white lights from our tree (yawn) and went back to the ceramic colored lights (not LED). I know it's enlarging my carbon footprint but I figure it's only for a month. ;)

Jenny --

You're welcome! DCA is at least a part of the holidays now. Even in the past, when the CALIFORNIA letters and Golden Gate Bridge were there, the park somehow felt disconnected from the seasonal merriment. Now -- even though the decorations may be more extensive in some lands than in others -- there are basically decorations in every land except for maybe Condor Flats and Pacific Wharf. Grizzly Peak has little wreaths and things. Paradise Pier is decorated in certain spots.

I had to chuckle at the "enlarging my carbon footprint" comment!:rotfl2::rotfl2: I can't blame you. Even though I love that there are so many different ways to decorate for the holiday season, using all sorts of color schemes and themes (including all white or white lights), nothing beats a splash of color! And what better time to revel in color than during the holidays when colorful lights are so prominent? As you said, it's only for a month. Even for those who begin to decorate earlier, it's still not that long of a period of time.


:santa::santa::santa:


Goofy_Mom - That's awesome!:woohoo: It seems that there are a few DIS'ers who have been lucky in winning things recently (trips, tickets, etc.). I've read several posts from different people who have won. A wave of luck and good fortune seems to have swept over the board.

You will have a very full, fun day, between the show taping and the parks!



dreamseeker9 -- You're very welcome! I think you'll have a great time on your trip, and the hotels will be decorated by then as well.:cool1: I've never asked about gluten-free holiday goodies at DLR but I tend to think that there must be something.

:santa:
 
Well, we just returned this morning from an amazing vacation in Disneyland! We had a fantastic trip and I got LOTS of fun photos. Staying at the Villas at Grand Californian was a dream, and I absolutely loved that hotel!

I have to admit, having the stage and scaffolding set up for The View during our ENTIRE STAY was remarkably frustrating. It got to the point where we couldn't get anywhere near the castle on our final night (last night), and so I'm lacking castle photos this year. Pretty big bummer, but what can you do? I just don't like that something can take over that much space in the park, during the holiday season... And I know one CM I spoke with wasn't a huge fan of it, either.

Anyway, that little issue aside, it was an amazing trip and I'm looking forward to writing a Trip Report! I have 2,600 photos to get through and edit, but here's just one I got with my new wide-angle lens.

iasw_zps92fa5fbe.jpg


I hope everyone has amazing trips and enjoys the holiday season! We definitely did and can't wait until next year!
 
Well, we just returned this morning from an amazing vacation in Disneyland! We had a fantastic trip and I got LOTS of fun photos. Staying at the Villas at Grand Californian was a dream, and I absolutely loved that hotel!

I have to admit, having the stage and scaffolding set up for The View during our ENTIRE STAY was remarkably frustrating. It got to the point where we couldn't get anywhere near the castle on our final night (last night), and so I'm lacking castle photos this year. Pretty big bummer, but what can you do? I just don't like that something can take over that much space in the park, during the holiday season... And I know one CM I spoke with wasn't a huge fan of it, either.

Anyway, that little issue aside, it was an amazing trip and I'm looking forward to writing a Trip Report! I have 2,600 photos to get through and edit, but here's just one I got with my new wide-angle lens.

iasw_zps92fa5fbe.jpg


I hope everyone has amazing trips and enjoys the holiday season! We definitely did and can't wait until next year!



Gorgeous photo, danimaroo!

I didn't stay long enough to see the new little show projected on the IASWH facade at night (I'll do that in December) but I love the colors. The colors are so vivid and awe-inspiring, aren't they? How did you manage to get a photo without 10,000 people in the way?

I thought all of the stuff in front of the Castle was intrusive too. It's almost unheard of for any major series to come to DLR and tape for a whole week. One episode, yes, but not a whole week! Those sorts of shows always go to WDW. So it's very weird to see all of that stuff.

That said, I have to admit that I am watching this week's View shows!:rotfl2: I usually do not watch, but because they are at DLR I am watching! I think that Kurt Russell and Barbara Walters are touring Walt's apartment and Club 33.

Let us know when your TR is up and running. I'll add the link to the Trip Reports and Reviews section on page 1.
 
^^Gorgeous photo, danimaroo!

I didn't stay long enough to see the new little show projected on the IASWH facade at night (I'll do that in December) but I love the colors. The colors are so vivid and awe-inspiring, aren't they? How did you manage to get a photo without 10,000 people in the way?

I thought all of the stuff in front of the Castle was intrusive too. It's almost unheard of for any major series to come to DLR and tape for a whole week. One episode, yes, but not a whole week! Those sorts of shows always go to WDW. So it's very weird to see all of that stuff.

That said, I have to admit that I am watching this week's View shows!:rotfl2: I usually do not watch, but because they are at DLR I am watching! I think that Kurt Russell and Barbara Walters are touring Walt's apartment and Club 33.

Thank you, Sherry! :)

We spent a LOT of time back at IASWH this trip, so we caught the new projection show multiple times. It's really fantastic and very cute!!

But yes, I would agree, the colors are gorgeous! That photo was actually taken Saturday night at around 10 or so, and it was pretty busy. But I set up my little Gorillapod over near the exit on a railing, and took some long exposure photos. This basically makes it look like, more often than not, that people aren't in the photo, even though they are, haha. I lucked out that no one was really standing around and kept moving.

And I totally agree, it was a bit intrusive. I wouldn't have cared if they hadn't blocked off everything for that many days. I mean, we got there Wednesday afternoon and had I known the stage was going to be set up starting Thursday (and restricting access to the castle from that point moving forward), I would have made sure to stop and get my castle photos that night. But oh well, not much I can do now!

I did think it was funny seeing everything set up and people testing the chairs and stuff... only to be on live TV here this week. The CM we were chatting with told us how they will be shooting it live for the east coast feed, so anyone who will be there for the taping will have to get there EARLY, haha. If I was working from home, I'd probably watch an episode or two!
 
Thank you, Sherry! :)

We spent a LOT of time back at IASWH this trip, so we caught the new projection show multiple times. It's really fantastic and very cute!!

But yes, I would agree, the colors are gorgeous! That photo was actually taken Saturday night at around 10 or so, and it was pretty busy. But I set up my little Gorillapod over near the exit on a railing, and took some long exposure photos. This basically makes it look like, more often than not, that people aren't in the photo, even though they are, haha. I lucked out that no one was really standing around and kept moving.

And I totally agree, it was a bit intrusive. I wouldn't have cared if they hadn't blocked off everything for that many days. I mean, we got there Wednesday afternoon and had I known the stage was going to be set up starting Thursday (and restricting access to the castle from that point moving forward), I would have made sure to stop and get my castle photos that night. But oh well, not much I can do now!

I did think it was funny seeing everything set up and people testing the chairs and stuff... only to be on live TV here this week. The CM we were chatting with told us how they will be shooting it live for the east coast feed, so anyone who will be there for the taping will have to get there EARLY, haha. If I was working from home, I'd probably watch an episode or two!

danimaroo --

Let us know when you get your TR started! And please feel free to share more photos.

I look forward to seeing the show on the IASWH facade. I love the colors, so I like to get a good dose of those when I can!
 
I was at Disneyland this weekend and my family and I had dinner at Big Thunder Ranch BBQ and they have a seasonal dessert which is a baked brownie with peppermint ice cream on top, served with a side of hot fudge. I commented to the hostess about having inquired at Gibson Girl earlier in the day for it and being told that they were not receiving any this year. Her reply " we've got it and it's yummy". We ordered the dessert and it was delicious. The ice cream had bits and pieces of candy cane in it. Sorry I did not get a picture :(

I found a picture that my Dh took


Big Thunder Ranch BBQ Seasonal dessert with Peppermint ice cream
 
Great photos, Sherry. So much to comment on, so I am sure I will forget something. I just had one of those M&M dipped Rice Crispy Treats from Candy Cauldron, and it was way TOO sweet. There are some items I am looking forward to trying though.

I love those little Christmas Trees. We just bought one for each of the boys at the Days of Christmas shop. They are still in the box, because Crap thinks it is too early to hang them.

I am the most excited about the Jingle Cruise. The single thing Connor talks about the most from our trip is the Jungle Cruise. He asks to ride it everyday. At that age, they really do not get the distance concept. How I wish we lived closer. I would take him all the time (especially because we bought APs last trip).

The ice rink should be a lot of fun. I cannot wait to try that. I love the a Frozen decorations. We should plan a trip to the El Capitain to watch it, but it will cut into our Disneyland time. Should I do it?
 
I found a picture that my Dh took

Big Thunder Ranch BBQ Seasonal dessert with Peppermint ice cream

TinkerLiz --

Well, that is very interesting news! The plot thickens! The guy I spoke to at Clarabelle's was 100% certain that they would not be getting in the ice cream at all, this month or next month, so much so that he was moved to write his own "strongly worded" letter to Dreyer's about it. The Gibson Girl people didn't have the ice cream either, although I don't know if they wrote to Dreyer's to complain.

The fact that peppermint ice cream would be anywhere else at DLR -- especially at the BBQ -- is perplexing. Why could Dreyer's not send the necessary "size" to the actual ice cream shops in the parks, but it could send the ice cream to the BBQ??:confused3 I wonder if the Disneyland people ran out to the nearest grocery store and bought a bunch of cartons of ice cream?:rotfl2:

The ice cream in the photo almost looks like the Slow Churned/half-fat variety, which is why I wonder if some Disney people ran over to Vons or Target and grabbed some cartons!

In any event, the mystery that surrounds this ice cream continues. I don't think there has ever been a more elusive and perplexing ice cream as this peppermint ice cream.
 
In any event, the mystery that surrounds this ice cream continues. I don't think there has ever been a more elusive and perplexing ice cream as this peppermint ice cream.
To add to the mystery, I subscribe to another Disney website that emails out summary postings, and one of the posts was about peppermint ice cream (with a photo to prove it :rotfl: ) available at both Ghiradelli and Clarabelle's in DCA. :confused3
 
We've just been woken up by a long and very noisy 4.7 earthquake, just trying to calm down, thank you for the LOVELY PHOTOS to take my mind off the shakes. Soon we will be at the happiest place on earth!
 
Sherri, rest assured no one on THIS thread has suggested going through the length of this thread. I have seen comments to that effect on other threads &/or other forums. I normally do the search this thread feature, but I was on my phone and couldn't find that option. :)
I knew someone would kindly provide the answer to my question. I want to thank you again for the work you have done with the thread. I look forward to catching up on the posts daily as we count down to our DLR trip.
 
Arriving to DL on Christmas Day. So our plane from the East Coast arrives at LAX at 11:30 AM. That puts me at the DL front gate at 3 PM on Christmas Day. We are only visiting DL on Thursday and Friday, moving on to Universal on Saturday. I know it is going to be mobbed, but I'm taking all 6 of us for a dream visit to DL. I'm worried that if I buy the 3 day ticket at 3 PM, the parks will be closed and I will have wasted the money ( times 6). Do you guys agree that trying to get into either DL or DCA at 3 PM is a wasted effort and I should just bag the whole idea and wait until Thursday AM?
 
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