Joe's 2016 Disneyland Egg-stravaganza Easter Egg Hunt

[mre200200]

It's nearing Easter and once again Disney is having an Egg-stravaganza! From what I remember, it's been going on here at Disneyland since 2013, when it was part of the Limited Time Magic celebration, though it's been going on at Tokyo Disneyland since 2010.
Back on February 12th, the official DisneyParks Blog announced that the Egg-stravaganza would include Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and all new this year, Downtown Disney! The Egg-stravaganza will run from March 2nd - March 27th 2016, or until they run out of maps.

Knowing that in the past, they've run out of maps (so sad we missed it in 2014), and also wanting to do it during a less busy period, Theresa and I both took off work, grabbed the kids, and headed to Disneyland!

And since it's always more fun to do it with friends, we asked Jacob if he wanted to join us. Of course! Great to have friends that will take off with little notice and go have fun.



Not knowing how many we'd be able to get done today, I chose to start in Downtown Disney. You can purchase maps all over Downtown Disney, but I picked the Fantasia Gift Shop in the Disneyland Hotel, both because it's really close to the Mickey and Friends parking structure, and because it's on one of the ends of Downtown Disney. If we're good, we can knock these all out at once with no backtracking.


Like everything around here, the cost of the map has gone up slightly since this event started. From 2013-2015, they were $4.95. This year, maps cost $5.95.


With map in one hand, and stickers in the other, it was time to start hunting eggs! Let's go!


SPOILERS AHEAD!
If you don't want to know where these eggs are hiding, stop reading here!

Downtown Disney is fairly linear, without a lot a twists and turns. According to our map, the Earl of Sandwich shop seems to be the closest to us. Let's head there.


Sure enough, right beside the sign, there's Thumper.




Ian, where's the egg?
Jacob had arrived a little before us, and grabbed a bag of Jelly Belly Jelly Beans. Whoever found the egg got to get a Jelly Belly!


AMC Theaters was also close by, and sure enough, there's Woody on the roof by the sign.




This must be the Westside Stage. And there's Pluto.




And on top of ESPN Zone, there's Mickey. I wonder if there's any rhyme or reason why the characters were chosen for each location. So far it appears pretty random.




Hanging out over the Disney Vacation Club is Donald. In this one little area, Theresa was able to stand in one spot and see 4 eggs simultaneously. Do a better job hiding them!




At D Street, there was no egg on top of the sign like there has been at the previous locations. Looking in the display windows yielded nothing either. I was considering stepping inside, but happened to notice Goofy behind the glass, but still right beside the D Street sign.




Across the path at Wetzel's Pretzels, there's Jessie watching over every who comes inside.

 

[mre200200]

Marceline's Confectionary (inside) was next. Nice of the map to tell us it's inside, so we're not looking all over outside. I wonder though it having it inside is a good thing or not. It's not that crowded now in the morning, but during the busy afternoons on the weekends, I'd bet it's going to be a little more hectic in here. Sitting behind the counter among the sweets is Daisy.




Onward to Anna & Elsa's Boutique. Peeking out from the bottom of the window, it's Minnie.




Jacob, can you hold Alli while I take a picture of the egg? Alli seemed pretty happy with her Uncle Jacob.


Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Spa (Brisa Courtyard) was next. Here we found the White Rabbit right next to the track the monorail speeds down, going through the hotel.




Here's the sticker mommy.


Once the kids decided they didn't want to wear the hats, the adults chose to wear them instead.




Only a couple eggs left!
Next was the very vague World of Disney (inside). The inside of this store is pretty huge. The five of us entered the door, and I started to walk further inside when Jacob called me back. Ah, looking down on us as we entered was Chip.




Just one egg remaining so we know who it is, but we've still got to go there. The map told us to go to the Information Booth (Near Disneyland Park Gates). It's rare for me to ever see this booth open, and sure enough, it was closed this time too.


But who is that perched on top? It's Dale!




Our map is complete! The map says to redeem it for a prize back at the World of Disney, but being so close to the parks, we pressed onward to the next Egg-stravaganza hunt. Off to Disneyland!


I liked that they added Downtown Disney to the egg hunt this year. I'm happy we did it early and during a non-crowded time of day. There were certainly a few people out and about looking for eggs, but not so many that they formed a crowd around where the eggs were hidden. Most of these eggs were out in fairly plain sight, so that probably helped.

 

[mre200200]

Continuing our search of Easter Eggs during the 2016 Disneyland Egg-stravaganza, having just completed our search of Downtown Disney, Jacob, Theresa, Ian, Alli and I made our way into Disneyland. Here's the prizes for this year, but more on that later.




SPOILERS AHEAD!
If you don't want to know where these eggs are hiding, stop reading here!

First stop is the 20th Century Music Company (inside). Well there's a problem I haven't encountered yet before. This double stroller is too wide to get into a lot of these shop doors.


Peeking my head in, I can see Mickey is right above the register.


And then leaving the stroller with Jacob, I continued inside for a better picture. I have a feeling this little shop is going to be very busy during the next few weeks with people coming in to look for this egg.


Next up was the Flower Market, midway down Main Street. Here's Thumper! I suppose since he's friends with Flower the skunk, this is an appropriate spot for him.




Ian's looking in the window for the next egg at the China Closet (inside). Again the stroller was too wide to fit in the doors, so Jacob and I took turns going inside to look.


Above the coffee mugs, we found Minnie.




Ian decided he needed a jelly bean for finding Minnie.


Back in the Tomorrowland Terrace, amongst the edible foliage, Goofy was lurking beneath a tree.




While over at King Arthur's Carrousel, I see Tinker Bell hiding in the flowers.




Mr Toad, what are you doing by Pinocchio's Daring Journey? Get back on your side.




Looking over where to go next.


"I've got a great idea." Ian says, holding his finger up. Since it's so close and there's not much of a line, he wanted to ride the carrousel.


I tell you one thing. This hunt is helping me learn the names of stores I wouldn't otherwise know. Here at Bonanza Outfitters (inside) we see Dale looking down from above.




And on the other side of the building at the Stage Door Cafe, we find Chip.

 

[mre200200]

Off to Critter Country where the White Rabbit is looking over Pooh Corner. What's that White Rabbit? Come in and buy a treat? It worked on us, because T got a caramel apple and the rest of us got drinks.




Back towards the entrance through New Orleans Square, sitting above the balcony of Mlle. Antoinette's Parfumerie is Daisy.




And working our way through Adventureland, by Bengal Barbecue is Donald.




Beside the Jungle Cruise, Pluto is watching people pass by.




Our map complete, it's time to go redeem it for a prize! One of the things I'm happy with today was that so far, all the eggs have been hidden in different locations than previous years. It would have been easy to just do everything like last year, so I'm happy they took the additional effort to mix things up.


Back to the beginning on Main Street.


Off in a corner all by itself are a couple tables for purchasing and redeeming maps.


When you buy the map, they stamp it to indicate it was paid for. When you redeem it, they stamp it again, so you can't use it over and over again.


Different than years past (or maybe just because it's the beginning of the event and they have all the different eggs), they let us pick which character we wanted. And not only that, but we were able to redeem our Downtown Disney map here too.
Pick your favorite buddy!


Some pretty cute eggs this year. Ian picked a Mickey and a Minnie for him and his sister.
I asked and these same 6 eggs are the prizes for all 3 quests.


Only one park to go! California Adventure, here we come!

 

[mre200200]

As part of the 2016 Disneyland Egg-stravaganza, we've spent our day finding easter eggs in Downtown Disney and Disneyland. Only one other place remaining, and that's Disney California Adventure.



Once again we have 12 eggs that need to be found.


SPOILERS AHEAD!
If you don't want to know where these eggs are hiding, stop reading here!

As soon as you step out of Oswald's, the Chamber of Commerce is right behind it. Hi Donald.




And Lockers (Buena Vista Street) was also close by. Greetings Daisy.




Having fun?


At the Hollywood Land (Truck), Minnie is peeking out from the passenger's side.




Hollywood Land has a water tower? Sure enough, the Hollywood Land (Water Tower) has an egg way off in the distance.


Quite the climb Mickey.




The map says "Condor Flats (Station Wagon)", but as Jacob pointed out, Condor Flats is what this area of the park used to be called. Back in January of 2015, this whole section of the park was closed down and reopened in May 2015 as the Grizzly Peak Airfield. Perhaps whoever made the map didn't get the memo.
Peaking out the back window, among the luggage, it's Goofy!




This next section was only one of two that gave us some difficulty. The map lists Grizzly River Run (Artist Camp) and Grizzly Peak Park Service Ranger Truck. The path that takes you behind the ride to where the truck is, was closed, so the egg must be somewhere else.


Looking around the Fast Pass area, Jacob found Chip.




I don't remember seeing any signs for something called Grizzly River Run (Artist Camp) either. And the first couple times we walked by this section, there was a line to meet characters, so we didn't get too close to the fence. Eventually though we were able to locate Dale.

 

[mre200200]

Toy Story Midway Mania! was the next stop to visit. I could see from all the way across the water that Pluto was on top of the sign, but why not get a little exercise and walk to the entrance anyhow. There I confirmed it was Pluto.




Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill had a surprise in the rafters. Is Rabbit on the menu? No, just Thumper.




Into Cars Land, at Fillmore's Taste-In, Mater is at the bottom of this decoration.




Right across from Fillmore's place is Mater's Junkyard Jamboree. It was here we were supposed to find another egg, but despite multiple trips up and down the street, no egg was found. Hmm. Best continue on.

"A Bugs Land" (Entrance) was next. Here's the one egg I didn't get a wide shot of before zooming in to the egg. The White Rabbit was hiding in the brush underneath the windmill that holds Princess Dot.


And here's the reason I missed the wide angle shot. Looking back towards Mater's, I see Lightning McQueen hanging out on the roof of that shed. I was so excited to find him, I completely forgot to take the other shot. I don't know that you'd even be able to see Lightning from the entrance to Mater's Junkyard Jamboree. He's much easier to see from the Bugs Land side.




Our map is complete!


Inside Elias & Co. was the redemption center for the maps. Cast members were very busy selling maps and handing out prizes. They were even asking if you'd like to go ahead and redeem your prize when you first bought the map! Saves you a wait in the line I guess, but I'd guess the satisfaction of the prize isn't as sweet if you didn't earn it.


Ian was happy to have some new toys to play with.


Alli looks to be wondering what's on Ian's head. Think she knows she's got bunny ears on too?


She's a happy girl.


Our mission complete, it was time to head back to the car. Thanks for joining us today Jacob! We had a lot of fun!


And here's what the eggs look like. They're your standard hollow plastic easter egg, though they have triangular ridges that hold the egg together compared to the standard lip you normally find.

 

[Sherry E]

I don't know if I missed it, but which day were you at DLR doing the hunt? I was there on Wednesday. I wanted to do it right away, right when it began, before any photos or spoilers began appearing!

I thought that DCA had the slightly more challenging hunt this year, whereas in the past the hunt in DCA seemed pretty easy (to me). One family I encountered even expressed some frustration over the fact that young kids would not be able to spot some of the eggs in DCA.

The Grizzly Peak hiding spots were throwing off a lot of people on the day I was there (and I include myself in that bunch!). Also, the one in A Bug's Land was stumping some people. I was thrown off by the Water Tower clue.

The CMs did ask me if I wanted to take my prizes right at the times I bought the maps, but I didn't want to do it that way. I like being able to actually hunt for the eggs first, and then coming back to claim the prize at the end.

 

[mre200200]

I don't know if I missed it, but which day were you at DLR doing the hunt? I was there on Wednesday. I wanted to do it right away, right when it began, before any photos or spoilers began appearing!

I thought that DCA had the slightly more challenging hunt this year, whereas in the past the hunt in DCA seemed pretty easy (to me). One family I encountered even expressed some frustration over the fact that young kids would not be able to spot some of the eggs in DCA.

The Grizzly Peak hiding spots were throwing off a lot of people on the day I was there (and I include myself in that bunch!). Also, the one in A Bug's Land was stumping some people. I was thrown off by the Water Tower clue.

The CMs did ask me if I wanted to take my prizes right at the times I bought the maps, but I didn't want to do it that way. I like being able to actually hunt for the eggs first, and then coming back to claim the prize at the end.

Hi Sherry E!
We all did the hunt on Friday. I definitely hear you about doing it right at beginning before spoilers came out. Hopefully people who read this thread have either already done it, or weren't planning on doing it anyway.

You're right. For young kids, DCA is the harder one. I'd say the Downtown Disney hunt is probably the easiest.
I can't remember seeing the water tower in DA before, so I was just scanning the skyline. I thought it might have been over by the Tower of Terror, but luckily saw it without too much trouble. That Lightning McQueen egg was probably the most tricky for us.

For anyone else doing the hunt, I'd recommend doing it during the middle of the week before it gets too busy.

 

[Sherry E]

Hi Sherry E!
We all did the hunt on Friday. I definitely hear you about doing it right at beginning before spoilers came out. Hopefully people who read this thread have either already done it, or weren't planning on doing it anyway.

You're right. For young kids, DCA is the harder one. I'd say the Downtown Disney hunt is probably the easiest.
I can't remember seeing the water tower in DA before, so I was just scanning the skyline. I thought it might have been over by the Tower of Terror, but luckily saw it without too much trouble. That Lightning McQueen egg was probably the most tricky for us.

For anyone else doing the hunt, I'd recommend doing it during the middle of the week before it gets too busy.

I don't think I've ever noticed the Water Tower before, but I guess it's been there all along!

Yes, I agree -- the Downtown Disney hunt was easy. Disneyland was pretty easy this year too, but I think that DTD was the easiest. I think it starts off that way, but then with each passing year -- as new hiding places have to be utilized -- the hunts get a bit harder because the hiding places change. The people who plant the eggs around DLR have no choice but to hide them in some spots that are a little trickier. They can't hide them in the same spots every year or no one would need to do the hunt more than one time. So they may not even try to make the hunts difficult, but it just kind of naturally ends up that way for some of them.

The only thing that disappointed me about the DTD leg of the Egg-stravaganza is that it didn't include any hiding spots at the Disneyland Hotel or at the Paradise Pier Hotel. I think that hiding an egg somewhere near the geyser area of the DLH would be fun, or in one of the towers. Oh well. There is always next year. I have a feeling the DTD hunt will be a smashing success on its own because it can be accessed by people who are not going into the parks. So maybe next year they can branch out and hide more of the eggs on the different hotels' grounds.

I was glad to see some new and different hiding places used in DCA this year. They had been using the same spots in Pacific Wharf for at least a couple of years.

 

[mre200200]

I don't think I've ever noticed the Water Tower before, but I guess it's been there all along!

Yes, I agree -- the Downtown Disney hunt was easy. Disneyland was pretty easy this year too, but I think that DTD was the easiest. I think it starts off that way, but then with each passing year -- as new hiding places have to be utilized -- the hunts get a bit harder because the hiding places change. The people who plant the eggs around DLR have no choice but to hide them in some spots that are a little trickier. They can't hide them in the same spots every year or no one would need to do the hunt more than one time. So they may not even try to make the hunts difficult, but it just kind of naturally ends up that way for some of them.

The only thing that disappointed me about the DTD leg of the Egg-stravaganza is that it didn't include any hiding spots at the Disneyland Hotel or at the Paradise Pier Hotel. I think that hiding an egg somewhere near the geyser area of the DLH would be fun, or in one of the towers. Oh well. There is always next year. I have a feeling the DTD hunt will be a smashing success on its own because it can be accessed by people who are not going into the parks. So maybe next year they can branch out and hide more of the eggs on the different hotels' grounds.

I was glad to see some new and different hiding places used in DCA this year. They had been using the same spots in Pacific Wharf for at least a couple of years.

What I really wish they'd do is use new eggs that are more appropriate for their location. The White Rabbit at Winnie the Pooh? Tinker Bell by the carrousel?
I'm all for them expanding it further into the hotels too. Anything that gives me cause to explore other parts of the resort I wouldn't normally see.

I hadn't thought about that regarding the difficulty of the hiding places. Well I guess in the next few years I'll enjoy the DTD hunt more with more challenging hiding places.

I'm really surprised WDW still only has the one Egg-stravaganza hunt at Epcot, while the Disneyland Resort now has three! These maps seem like a license to print money, given how popular they are. I'd really be curious to know how many maps they sell.

 

[jonahsmommy]

It was fun for me to see the pictures of the eggs since we won't make it to Disneyland until Christmas. Thanks so much for taking the time to share.

 

[Sherry E]

What I really wish they'd do is use new eggs that are more appropriate for their location. The White Rabbit at Winnie the Pooh? Tinker Bell by the carrousel?
I'm all for them expanding it further into the hotels too. Anything that gives me cause to explore other parts of the resort I wouldn't normally see.

I hadn't thought about that regarding the difficulty of the hiding places. Well I guess in the next few years I'll enjoy the DTD hunt more with more challenging hiding places.

I'm really surprised WDW still only has the one Egg-stravaganza hunt at Epcot, while the Disneyland Resort now has three! These maps seem like a license to print money, given how popular they are. I'd really be curious to know how many maps they sell.

Once again, I totally agree -- themed character eggs that are relevant to the lands and areas around DLR would be great. One year they hid a White Rabbit egg outside of the Little Mermaid ride, which made no sense at all. Using a Woody or Jessie egg at TSMM would be perfect. Using a Tinker Bell egg near the Peter Pan ride would be perfect. Even if they continued to use Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald, Daisy, Chip and Dale, they could use images of them dressed in themed attire for specific lands (like beach garb or nautical wear for Paradise Pier and Pacific Wharf, or dressed as Pirates for New Orleans Square, etc).

I think that the degree of difficulty in each hunt will vary from year to year, just because new locations have to be used. I suspect that in some years the hunts will seem very easy, and in other years they may seem quite a bit more challenging as they run out of places to put the eggs. So far they have not gone so far as to hide any eggs inside or on any of the rides. In the case of the Looking for Mickey Quest last year I think that some of the Mickeys were inside rides or along queues, if I remember correctly?? That could be the future of the Egg-stravaganza. If they eventually make it a concurrent, multi-level hunt -- which is what I have been hoping for all along -- that included one hunt with super easy-to-spot eggs and then a separate hunt with smaller, much harder to find eggs, the latter hunt could very well include some on-ride or in-queue eggs.

 

[wanderlust7]

DS (age 7) and I really enjoyed your report! He's bummed that we'll just miss it by a week. How long do they usually leave the eggs up after it ends?

He was also disappointed that there's nothing in the eggs. He thought there would be a little toy or candy, ha ha.

 

[Sherry E]

DS (age 7) and I really enjoyed your report! He's bummed that we'll just miss it by a week. How long do they usually leave the eggs up after it ends?

He was also disappointed that there's nothing in the eggs. He thought there would be a little toy or candy, ha ha.

The eggs are only there for the purposes of the hunt -- not for decoration. So, from what I recall reading, I think that that the eggs came down immediately after Easter last year, and Easter is always the last day of the Egg-stravaganza.

 

[mre200200]

It was fun for me to see the pictures of the eggs since we won't make it to Disneyland until Christmas. Thanks so much for taking the time to share.

So glad you enjoyed it!

Once again, I totally agree -- themed character eggs that are relevant to the lands and areas around DLR would be great. One year they hid a White Rabbit egg outside of the Little Mermaid ride, which made no sense at all. Using a Woody or Jessie egg at TSMM would be perfect. Using a Tinker Bell egg near the Peter Pan ride would be perfect. Even if they continued to use Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald, Daisy, Chip and Dale, they could use images of them dressed in themed attire for specific lands (like beach garb or nautical wear for Paradise Pier and Pacific Wharf, or dressed as Pirates for New Orleans Square, etc).

I think that the degree of difficulty in each hunt will vary from year to year, just because new locations have to be used. I suspect that in some years the hunts will seem very easy, and in other years they may seem quite a bit more challenging as they run out of places to put the eggs. So far they have not gone so far as to hide any eggs inside or on any of the rides. In the case of the Looking for Mickey Quest last year I think that some of the Mickeys were inside rides or along queues, if I remember correctly?? That could be the future of the Egg-stravaganza. If they eventually make it a concurrent, multi-level hunt -- which is what I have been hoping for all along -- that included one hunt with super easy-to-spot eggs and then a separate hunt with smaller, much harder to find eggs, the latter hunt could very well include some on-ride or in-queue eggs.

Ooh, I like the idea of a multi-level hunt. And if eggs were on rides, they'd have to be themed a little better to match the surroundings.

DS (age 7) and I really enjoyed your report! He's bummed that we'll just miss it by a week. How long do they usually leave the eggs up after it ends?

He was also disappointed that there's nothing in the eggs. He thought there would be a little toy or candy, ha ha.

I'm happy you and your son enjoyed it! That's too bad you're going to miss it. As Sherry E said, I believe they're removed pretty quickly after the event ends.
That said though, you could make your own kind of scavenger hunt. In the past, I've taken a handful of quarters and figured out all the fun ways to spend them around the resort.
I've got a pocket full of quarters at Disneyland. Let's have some fun spending them.

Or you could try to find all the different penny-press machines at the park. There's 25 in Disneyland alone! For ~$15, you could get something from each machine and have some cool souvenirs.
Penny Press Locations

As soon as Ian got the eggs, he wanted to fill them up with Goldfish snacks and other treats.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

What an eggslent thing to do with your family. I think you really eggcelled as a team

 

[disneyguy4life]

Thanks for the tips. Do you know if the hiding places are the same from year to year? I really need to get out there more often.