Miss Price's Magical First Visit! June 2013

[MissPrice]

Hello All! Welcome to my second attempt at a trip report. I'm Amanda, known as Miss Price on the DIS and amanditabonita on Instagram.

I love reading trip repots. It's my favorite thing to do on the DIS. I usually go to WDW every January with my husband. But since I got a new job as a pediatric nurse after graduating, I had the extra income to plan a trip to the west coast!

WHEN: June 25 to June 28, 2013

WHO: Myself and my best friend from childhood, Cassie. Cassie lives in LA. She is a fan of Disney, but not crazy about it like us. She was not too thrilled about spending 3 full days in the parks without a break. But I give her credit, she was a trooper.

WHERE: We stayed at Anaheim Desert in and Suites. I heard about this place from danimaroo's DL trip report. Great location, only about a 5 to 7 minute walk from the main baggage check. We had a suite with a Jacuzzi. Great to soak in after walking in the parks all day.

 

[MissPrice]

June 25th
I left my house around 5:30 am. My dad dropped me off at the Metro and I arrived at Regan National around 7:00 am. I flew on Alaska Airlines non-stop to LAX.

The flight took about 5 hours. Not bad considering I gained an extra 3. Cassie picked me up at the airport and we drove straight to Anaheim. Traffic was light and we got to the hotel in about an hour. We left our bags in the car since we couldn't check in yet. We walked to the parks. I couldn't wait to get through the baggage check to see my first glimpse of Sleeping Beauty's Castle!

As you can tell from the pictures, it was a bit cloudy that day. I love how everything is so close together!! The entrance to both parks are literally right next to each other. Talk about easy park hopping. I was so happy to be on Main Street USA once again. And Sleeping Beauty's Castle is so adorable. It's very quaint with lots of detail.
We went straight to Tomorrowland. And randomly the first attraction we went on was Captain EO. It was the anniversary of the attraction, and there seemed to be some big fans watching with us. They were singing along to the songs and reciting lines. Very Fun. Next we headed to Bibbidie Bobbide Boutique. Cassie wanted to look for some gifts for her 2 nieces. Then we did the castle walk through.

The walkthrough was really fun. It was so cool to be inside the castle.​

 

[luulu1999]

Im in...I love trip reports too its like a good book and you can't wait to read more.....I was a little freaked out with the castle walk thru there were a lot of people and it was stuffy and I thought I was going to have a panic attack before we got out so that's not on our list for the next time

 

[MissPrice]

Im in...I love trip reports too its like a good book and you can't wait to read more.....I was a little freaked out with the castle walk thru there were a lot of people and it was stuffy and I thought I was going to have a panic attack before we got out so that's not on our list for the next time

Hi there and Welcome! Yes, it was a bit claustrophobic in there. hahah at least you got to do it once !! -Amanda

 

[rnorwo1]

can't wait to read all about it.... We're going for the first time in march and are hoping to do it in 3 days also, so looking forward to seeing what you were able to do!

 

[MissPrice]

can't wait to read all about it.... We're going for the first time in march and are hoping to do it in 3 days also, so looking forward to seeing what you were able to do!

Thanks for joining in I was able to get quite a lot done, especially with some solo touring. -Amanda

 

[MissPrice]

After the fabulous castle walk through, we headed to Fantasyland. I was really excited to try some of the Disneyland only attractions. We hopped on Pinocchio's Daring Journey. I must say, this ride is very "dark" story wise. The we headed to the Haunted Mansion. The exterior is quite different than the one in WDW. It looks more like an old southern plantation house rather than a mansion. The queue is outside, and not covered so it was quite hot. I didn't get any pictures of the interior of Haunted Mansion, but I loved the pet cemetery outside of it. Next we went on Jungle Cruise. Our skipper was OK, she was telling the jokes really fast so it was hard to hear her.

We hopped off our cruise and decided it was time for some Disney food. I had a churro and Cassie had a Mickey's Ice Cream Sandwich. Both were tasty, but we didn't want to fill up since we had reservations for dinner later that evening. We walked back to the hotel to take a break and freshen up before our reservations. 

 

[MissPrice]

A few photos from back at the hotel. Yay, for buttons and fast passes!!

After relaxing for an hour or so, we finished getting ready at the hotel. We had 7:00pm reservations for Blue Bayou. I had heard great things about this place on the DIS, and Cassie had been there before and loved it so I was super excited to try it out. We got back into Disneyland around 5:30 pm or so. They were doing the flag ceremony. We took a moment to listen to the band. There was only one girl in the band, and she played the trumpet. I played trumpet in high school and was the only girl in the jazz band so I could relate! Then we moseyed down Main St. towards New Orleans Square.  

Finally we made it to our destination. Now I've heard people say you don't need ADR's in Disneyland. However, I feel in the summer that might not be true. I'm glad we had reservations, as they were turning away people at the podium.

After checking in we waited about 10 minutes before being seated. OMG, the atmosphere in there is incredible! It reminded me a lot of the Mexico Pavillion in EPCOT. The boats from Pirates of the Caribbean stream right by the seating area in the restaurant. I wish I could have gotten some pictures but it was really low lighting. For dinner I had chicken breast with mashed potatoes. Cassie had the surf and turf. Both were excellent. They came with rolls and salad.

We were both really full, so we decided to skip dessert. Plus, we had some more attractions to enjoy. Coming up, we use our fast passes and get kicked out of Fantasyland!​

 

[CapnJacksGirl]

I'm really enjoying your report! We are making our first trip to DLR in October 2014, and I must admit, I'm terrified....I mean excited! I'm soaking in all the info I can so I can plan and not feel lost!

Thanks for your insight!

 

[MissPrice]

I'm really enjoying your report! We are making our first trip to DLR in October 2014, and I must admit, I'm terrified....I mean excited! I'm soaking in all the info I can so I can plan and not feel lost!

Thanks for your insight!

Hi there! Thanks for reading. Yeah, I was a bit overwhelemed planning my first trip. I used the boards (of course) and the Disneyland lines app which really helped.You're going to have a blast. If you can tour WDW, then DLR will be a breeze. -Amanda

 

[momjeeps]

I'm in! I grew up going to DLR, so it's fun to watch others experience it for the first time. Sounds good so far!

 

[MissPrice]

Yay and Welcome ! I should have some more updates done through the holiday weekend. -Amanda

 

[MissPrice]

After our fantastic meal at Blue Bayou, we headed over to Tomorrowland to use our Space Mountain Fast Passes. I was a bit worried about this ride. The SM in WDW is hard on my back and neck, it' so jerky. But I was pleasantly surprised with the DL version. It seems a lot smoother. Plus you sit side by side and there is retro "space" music piped in to the headrest. It was so much fun!

Rockets in the queue

We then walked around to Fantasyland. I really wanted to go on It's a Small World. But it was closed for the fireworks. In fact, all of Fantasyland was closed, but would reopen after the fireworks show. Bummer. I got some nice pics of IASW all lit up though. Cassie was amazed at the sea of strollers. She decided to be silly and pretend she was pushing one.

We decided to head over to New Orleans Square. We went on Pirates of the Caribbean. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures. I feel this version is superior to the one in WDW. It felt twice as long, had TWO drops, and a lot more scenes. Plus in the beginning when you go by the Blue Bayou, ugh it's just amazing! Then we went to the Tiki Room. Cassie had never been! I told her it was the 50th anniversary so we just had to go. She ended up really enjoying it.

This was taken earlier in the day

Jose's backside

It was late after we finished the Tiki room, so we decided to go back to the hotel. We took our time walking down main street. We stopped in the Penny Arcade to get some yummy treats.

It was an amazing, exhausting first day at Disneyland. Even though it was hot and crowded, the crowds were very manageable. I think it has to do with being on the West Coast and the fact that there are more locals, but people seem to be very chill! I didn't witness a single meltdown!! We made it back to the hotel and got some sleep. We needed to be well rested for our upcoming full day!​

 

[BeautyAndTheBeast22]

Subbing! Loving it so far

 

[WDWaddictt]

Joining along, great TR!

I am thinking either Disney Cruise or DLR for the first time in Oct 2014. So I am researching both...lol

 

[MissPrice]

Subbing! Loving it so far

Hi there! Thanks for joining

 

[MissPrice]

Joining along, great TR!

I am thinking either Disney Cruise or DLR for the first time in Oct 2014. So I am researching both...lol

Hi there!! Welcome. Oh my, I'm sure either would be great. I'm tentatively planning a Disney Cruise for sometime in 2014. -Amanda

 

[MissPrice]

I woke up bright and early on my first morning in California, one of the benefits of coming from the East Coast! Cassie decided she wanted to sleep in. I was excited to do some solo touring and check out a few DLR only attractions. I ate a quick breakfast at the Denny's next to the hotel then headed to Disneyland. It was a gorgeous morning, and since I was at the park around 8am, there were low crowds.

Hello Little Pinky

I headed straight to Fantasyland and had one thing on my mind. J. Thaddeus Toad! I loved Mr. Toad's Wild Ride at WDW when I was younger. There was no wait!

He looks so innocent here! lol

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride was really fun, and pretty dark, complete with the "hell" scene at the end of the ride. Wind and the Willows is on Netflix Instant. Watch it if you have a chance!​

 

[WDWaddictt]

I have never been on that ride, or seen the show. That would be interesting! Glad you had fun!

 

[tksbaskets]

Nice trip report! Thanks for sharing.