Our Disneyland New Year's Park-Hopping Half-Marathon! 12/31/11-1/7/12 Complete!

[tksbaskets]

New Year's Day 2012

Sarge and I were up at the crack of 8 am and headed down to WWS for a round of American Breakfasts. We find that Donald and Grumpy awaken more happily from their slumber if you pass a plate of food under their noses. This was also the trip of the grape. It seems red seedless grapes are the garnish for about every item.

We headed into DCA at 10 am slightly after the opening of the park. Unlike trips of the past, there was really not a big tactical advantage to entering at the DCA entrance as EVERYONE got to enter the park before ten and then line up right at the Paradise Pier bridge and wait until 10 am to walk briskly to the attractions at PP.

I just love DCA and it's theming:

The rest of the 10:04 crowd. Not too bad at this point. Perhaps because everyone had a late night?

Beautiful morning!

Our trigger fingers are itching now!

The guys have long since ditched me as I lingered a tad to get a few photos. Don't you worry - I catch up to them

Our first ride on TSMM was a 20 minute wait. We quick snagged FPs for CS when we got off and then got right back in line for TSMM. It was our experience that first thing in the morning were the shortest lines.

Our second wait time:

The time does go quickly as you weave back and forth.

Grumpy and Donald went ahead to get FPs for Soarin' and then we went to GCH to drop off our sweat shirts.

We'll be back soon PP!

While the boys ran up to the room I wandered around the lobby and bar area.

Let the park hopping begin! It's 11:50 am and we are heading to our second park of the day! Let's go to Disneyland

 

[Virgoinab]

TS I just love your tr's I have read all of them

 

[IndayMichelle]

This was also the trip of the grape. It seems red seedless grapes are the garnish for about every item.

I know! AND it made me want more of them when I got home! I've been eating red grapes everyday since getting home.

 

[tksbaskets]

TS I just love your tr's I have read all of them

Thank you for your kind words and following along. More tonight after work. Gotta pay for my Disney habit.

I know! AND it made me want more of them when I got home! I've been eating red grapes everyday since getting home.

Ah, Disney cravings! I made Oscar's Baked Potato Soup this weekend for that very reason. I see you have a few trips scheduled. I'll be getting my Disney fix from your TR soon!

 

[mvf-m11c]

Great update to your TR TK.

Got to do TSMM twice that morning and collect the FPs for CS and Soarin. I like the picture of the GCH Lobby tree.

I can't wait to read more.

 

[deejdigsdis]

Such a pretty morning on New Year's Day! Every time I see pictures of the GCH lobby I am kicking myself for never having walked in there. I really love those little lanterns on the Christmas tree.

 

[tksbaskets]

Great update to your TR TK.

Got to do TSMM twice that morning and collect the FPs for CS and Soarin. I like the picture of the GCH Lobby tree.

I can't wait to read more.

Yes it was a good morning for our family! Thanks for following along.

Such a pretty morning on New Year's Day! Every time I see pictures of the GCH lobby I am kicking myself for never having walked in there. I really love those little lanterns on the Christmas tree.

Hi Deej. Kind of what I think every time you post pics from the Mark Twain, Omnibus, front porch. That means we have to go back more right??

 

[tksbaskets]

Off to Disneyland. Park #2 for the day~

After a short stop at VGC to drop off our unneeded sweatshirts we headed through DTD to DL.

Love the decoration on the turn styles~

Boy do I appreciate people who are able to get great shots of the flower Mickey in front of the train depot. Short of setting Grumpy and Donald as centuries who would stop all who tried to bust in my picture I said "Oh well" and hurried to catch up with my guys who were almost to the fire station by now. This was the best I could get:

OK, maybe they aren't that far ahead but they are men on a mission for Star Tours FPs. We hadn't experienced ST since the makeover so we were anxious to go on this ride. (Except for Sarge who doesn't do motion rides )

Hey - I've seen some great pics from people riding the top level of this! This was as close as I got.

Sarge loves Buzz Lightyear (perhaps because he rides this while the rest of us spin on motion rides) The display said a 15 minute wait so in the queue we went. It was more like 30 minutes but a fun ride.

Sorry Buzz - you'll have to depend on my men-folk to defend you against Zurg.

It doesn't matter what I do my scores always are sub par on this ride....

WOW it was sunny in front of SB castle. NOT that I'm complaining. I was very happy with our Photopass pictures this trip. We had enough I didn't feel the CD was a bad value. Actually besides a few pins it was the only souvenir I purchased. Here was our first photo session.

We were hungry by now! Bengal BBQ was recommended and we found it to be tasty. Long and slow moving line but tasty. Our level of hunger could have been directly proportional to our review of the food.

The veggie skewers were cooked to perfection. A bit of crunch to them.

Guess where we went after our lunch?

Name this attraction. It was not a bad wait. I think 20 minutes or so. At 2 pm we didn't think that was too bad.

After our Adventureland fun we decided to hop aboard the DL Railroad to take a spin to the front of the park.

We saw Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. So worth the time! I love the Steve Martin movie about the DL anniversary that now plays in the lobby too.

Well, time to run back to DCA for our dinner at Ariel's Grotto. Park #3 for the day

 

[tksbaskets]

WOC Dinner at Ariel's Grotto

When I made the reservations for our WOC dinner at AG it sounded like a good deal. Many course meal, preferred standing, restaurant we hadn't eaten at before (no princess meals for us ) Cost: Adults: $39.99 plus tax and tip.

We hustled across from DL to DCA after getting our second hand stamp of the day. As I mentioned before with the construction walls you walk around DCA to get to PP or to Hollywood. We headed to Ariel's Grotto and our dinner.

We actually went downstairs to eat. Our antipasti was on the table in a tiered serving dish...no pics...it wasn't overly plentiful and for four adults lasted a shorter time than it took for me to get out my camera.

The bread did last long enough for a picture.

After we ordered we looked at our FP collection to plan our evening.

Dinner is served.

While the dinner was good, we were left with the feeling that the atmosphere of the Grotto and the cost of the meal were somewhat out of sync. It was by far the most we paid for a meal this trip.

After dinner we walked over to use our FPs for California Screamin'. Part of our half-marathon of walking master plan. WHAT The FP line was 30-40 minutes. We had Indy and Star Tours FPs also which were burning a hole in our pockets so we decided to come back before WOC.

Park #4 Back to DL to ride Star Tours. It was GREAT! Grumpy used Sarge's FP and rode again and then we hot-footed it over to Indy for another ride. Indy is one of our favorite rides at DL. Nothing like it at WDW (OK, I know the ride vehicles are the same as Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom but that ride is so dark you can't see diddly squat.)

Back to DCA (#5) for our WOC preferred viewing. The area was nice and even better NO FOG! Now my guys were able to see the show in it's full splendor and see what I had raved about. Very cool show. What a difference actually being able to see it.

Note: CS closes between WOC shows and may not start back up again. Lesson learned. It was now 8:30 pm and CS wouldn't start up again until after the second WOC which made the ETA about 9:45 pm

No coaster for us on New Year's Day. Off to ride.....

Recap of our day: DCA-DL-DCA-DL-DCA. Fun day. Wish I would have had a pedometer!

Next up: Magic Morning at DL & how many hand stamps on 1/2/12?

 

[IndayMichelle]

Note: CS closes between WOC shows and may not start back up again. Lesson learned. It was now 8:30 pm and CS wouldn't start up again until after the second WOC which made the ETA about 9:45 pm

I know this. I know this all too well. And yet, almost every time, I forget. So many wasted California Screamin' FPs. It's the same thing with Storybook Land Canal. They close an hour before the parade but I always forget. I've only ridden it a few times during the day and mostly after dark because of the parades!

Ariel's Grotto is totally overpriced, but I still love to go! I prefer to eat with the Princesses at lunch. I'm not sure your boys would let you get away with that.

 

[deejdigsdis]

Nice Fast Pass stash!

I think you got a great Mickey Floral shot! It really is hard.

Dining at Ariel's has not been a priority for this mom of 3 boys either. The food looks so good, but I didn't know it cost that much. Is there anything special about the atmosphere? With Blue Bayou one goes mostly for the atmosphere, so I can understand the prices there a bit better.

Great PP picture! I love it when the older boys are still OK with putting their arm around mom.

Ahhh...loved seeing the Omnibus in action. (As much as a double-decker bus can be in action.) One of these days, TK... Just like one of these days I'll watch WOC. Just haven't felt the draw yet. The wait is what puts me off, as well as standing during a show. I watched the live stream on opening night, which I know doesn't do it justice, but it was good enough for me for now.

Looks like you need to take a spin with Bret on Buzz to pick up some tips from a real pro.

Are there nets covering the trees in the PP picture?

 

[tksbaskets]

I know this. I know this all too well. And yet, almost every time, I forget. So many wasted California Screamin' FPs. It's the same thing with Storybook Land Canal. They close an hour before the parade but I always forget. I've only ridden it a few times during the day and mostly after dark because of the parades!

Ariel's Grotto is totally overpriced, but I still love to go! I prefer to eat with the Princesses at lunch. I'm not sure your boys would let you get away with that.

Yes, the Princess lunch would have to be a 'girls only' trip activity. I knew that CS was closed during the WOC show but was unaware of the "not opening between shows". Live and learn. I didn't know that about the Storybook boats. Good to know

Nice Fast Pass stash!

I think you got a great Mickey Floral shot! It really is hard.

Dining at Ariel's has not been a priority for this mom of 3 boys either. The food looks so good, but I didn't know it cost that much. Is there anything special about the atmosphere? With Blue Bayou one goes mostly for the atmosphere, so I can understand the prices there a bit better.

Great PP picture! I love it when the older boys are still OK with putting their arm around mom.

Ahhh...loved seeing the Omnibus in action. (As much as a double-decker bus can be in action.) One of these days, TK... Just like one of these days I'll watch WOC. Just haven't felt the draw yet. The wait is what puts me off, as well as standing during a show. I watched the live stream on opening night, which I know doesn't do it justice, but it was good enough for me for now.

Looks like you need to take a spin with Bret on Buzz to pick up some tips from a real pro.

Are there nets covering the trees in the PP picture?

Hi Deej, I didn't think the atmosphere was anything special at the Grotto. Acutally a bit er, worn, looking. Nothing like Storytellers or the Bayou. Warm and intimate it is not. I bet during the day in the bright sunshine with lots of Disney Princesses it is festive...

Our sons are good guys and give hope to other moms of sons for good things to come. To this day they spend the majority of park time with us. They keep putting their arms around their mom and spending time with us both and we'll keep taking them with us. I hope it will be many more years of fun.

Bret would shake his head at my lame attempts to conquer the evil empire on Buzz. Probably with some 'can't hit the broad side of the barn' narrative. Poor Bret has done his best to share his tips. Now if I could only execute. On one ride I simply put the gun down and layed my head on my folded arms in disgust while the voice of Zurg seemed to mock me.

Guess I'm built for pulling a string not a trigger.

Now I have to admit I went back to look at the PP pic and those are nets on the trees. Is there a big bird issue in DL? Perhaps they light up at night? Now I need to look at some of my other pics.

Thanks to both of you for following along. I'm so proud to be on page 3 of my TR.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Great update to your TR TK.

Very nice photos when you enter DL. It didn't looked that crowded when you and your family walked up on MS USA.

The photos from BLAB were very nice and you and your family had good scores on BLAB. You and your family did some park hopping that night to use the FPs which is smart.

The food from Bengal BBQ and WoC Dining package were very appetizing. I should think about doing the WoC dining package one day, but I like to go with my traditions and get a blue FP for the first show and get the fire hydrant spot.

For your WoC preferred spot, in the pictures was there a group in front of you during the show? Great photos from WoC that night.

Bret would shake his head at my lame attempts to conquer the evil empire on Buzz. Probably with some 'can't hit the broad side of the barn' narrative. Poor Bret has done his best to share his tips. Now if I could only execute. On one ride I simply put the gun down and layed my head on my folded arms in disgust while the voice of Zurg seemed to mock me.

Guess I'm built for pulling a string not a trigger.

Your sons and Sarge had good scores. I am not shaking my head when I saw your score this morning. It is very difficult to score really high on this ride when you have to push the trigger a lot. I see that the guys know where the secret targets were on the ride. It is hard to hit the small target at the Z's in comparable to WDW BLSRS where you have to hold on the trigger and the gun lights up. I am glad that you got to ride BLAB that day. You and your family easily beat my scores on TSMM. I just don't have a good arm so I can't pull the string a lot like I do with BLAB where it is easy for me to pull the trigger of the laser gun.

I can't wait to read more on your TR TK.

 

[tksbaskets]

HI Bret,
You are very kind to not call my score pityful. The Bengal BBQ was quite tasty. As for the WOC dining package - I think the view you get from your blue FP is as good as what we got for our expensive price.

The group in front of us in the picture were other dining WOC people. We didn't get there really early so they were closer than we were. Nice viewing area.

Thanks for following along

 

[Minnie Sue Oz]

Hi!

Great report so far and I am loving your pictures! The one you got of Mickey's fun wheel and the Paradise Pier area is just grand

My DD and I did Ariels grotto princess lunch on the last trip. I must admit, I probably wouldn't do it again. We hardly touched the food and it was expensive for what it was. DD did get her pic taken with 5 of the princesses though, so this did make it some what worthwhile. But it is just one of those things that is a once is enough thing, well for us any way!

I am looking at all the info I can get re WOC at the moment as it is something we did not do last trip. You would think being in Anaheim for 3 weeks and visiting the parks on almost every day that we would have seen it at least once.........................well, we did have the very best intentions but left it until the last week we were there and it was very horrible weather so it was cancelled and we missed it

So, it will be one of the FIRST things we do this coming trip!!!!!

Looking forward to more!

 

[CB Jamboree]

Hi! I'm all caught up on our TR! I am really enjoying all of your great pics. The weather looks amazing! Too bad about the fog on NYE
Loved to see all the pics of GC. Like Deej said, of all my visits to DLR I have yet to visit GC. The villa looks wonderful, and the lobby seems so warm and cozy!

 

[tksbaskets]

Hi!

Great report so far and I am loving your pictures! The one you got of Mickey's fun wheel and the Paradise Pier area is just grand

My DD and I did Ariels grotto princess lunch on the last trip. I must admit, I probably wouldn't do it again. We hardly touched the food and it was expensive for what it was. DD did get her pic taken with 5 of the princesses though, so this did make it some what worthwhile. But it is just one of those things that is a once is enough thing, well for us any way!

I am looking at all the info I can get re WOC at the moment as it is something we did not do last trip. You would think being in Anaheim for 3 weeks and visiting the parks on almost every day that we would have seen it at least once.........................well, we did have the very best intentions but left it until the last week we were there and it was very horrible weather so it was cancelled and we missed it

So, it will be one of the FIRST things we do this coming trip!!!!!

Looking forward to more!

I definitely think WOC should be one of the first on your list. If I did it again I'd take Bret's (mvf-m11c) advise and get a FP when you can get a Blue section one (He has all the details) and park yourself next to the fire hydrant for excellent viewing.

I did it once with the WOC picnic/fastpass option and felt that was worth the money. (see my solo Halloween trip for details. How's that for a shameless plug?)

Hi! I'm all caught up on our TR! I am really enjoying all of your great pics. The weather looks amazing! Too bad about the fog on NYE
Loved to see all the pics of GC. Like Deej said, of all my visits to DLR I have yet to visit GC. The villa looks wonderful, and the lobby seems so warm and cozy!

Thanks CB. I'm uploading 103 day 3 pics to photobucket right now. Don't be frightenend several are from our parade priority seating. The weather was amazing that day too and I couldn't help but take several pictures.

TK

 

[mvf-m11c]

HI Bret,
You are very kind to not call my score pityful. The Bengal BBQ was quite tasty. As for the WOC dining package - I think the view you get from your blue FP is as good as what we got for our expensive price.

The group in front of us in the picture were other dining WOC people. We didn't get there really early so they were closer than we were. Nice viewing area.

Thanks for following along

The WoC dining package is very nice, but I don't think it would be good for me if I got the front railing since it is close to the pier and the fountains could easily got my video camera wet.

I see. Thanks for answering my question. When I saw your picture during WoC, I thought that you were in front of someone or someone on the bottom of the section is so tall that you can see them.

 

[tksbaskets]

PS for Day 2

I forgot to show you my favorite picture of Sarge and I taken by the DL tree.

Day 3 January 2, 2012 Magic Morning at Disneyland
Turnstyles at 6:50 am:

Another beautiful day! Nice and warm and a little mist this morning.

Oh if the streets were always this free!

Our family made a fast walk towards Tomorrowland where we divided up to take rides on our favorites while they weren't as crowded.

Donald, Grumpy, and I rode:

Sarge took off for his TL favorite:

I rode Star Tours twice and loved it! The upgrades were so fun

Grumpy and Donald rode ST for the entire Magic Morning. Sarge rode Buzz 5 times and while he was defeating Zurg, I headed off to Fantasyland~

I couldn't ignore the pull of the lonely Photopass photographer!

I love the rides in Fantasyland. It was almost eerie how on many rides I was the only one there. NOT that I'm complaining in any way. No lines at times made it a touch difficult to find the entrance

You all can ride along with me! Let's go to London first.

Next deep into the woods:

Hi Ho

Now let's go to the English countryside!

This was my best Cast Member encounter of the morning. When I went into the queue for Pinocchio's Daring Adventure the CM asked 'No one wanted to join you on your daring adventure?' He was very sweet.

Sarge joined me for a ride on Peter Pan and then we went back to TL to collect Donald and Grumpy and head to Adventureland and a little breakfast.

OH MY! Here comes the non-magic-morning crowd. Like a swelling tsunami.

Up next, our morning in Adventureland

 

[tksbaskets]

Liberty Belle Terrace Breakfast
Off we went to AL and breakfast at Liberty Belle Terrace.

The guys are going ahead while I take pictures to get FPs for Indy!

We found the breakfast tasty!

After our bellies were full we went to ride HMH. I love the way the sun shines on the front of the HM.

No flash was used!

The S/B ride for Indy was not bad at all so here we go!

We grabbed our second FP for Indy after our S/B ride.

By now it's time to head over to DCA. It was 9:30 and we had time to go back to the Grand Californian to use the guest only entrance. On our trip in 2009 there was a tactical advantage to enter at the GCH entrance to DCA. This year there was no advantage as everyone was able to enter the park well before 10 am and then line up at the rope by Paradise Pier.

YIKES

The line went very quickly and we were riding in 15 minutes. After our first ride the line was already at 60 minutes. Guess we aren't the only ones who like this ride.

Sarge went to collect CS FPs and Donald, Grumpy, and I rode CS. It was a great day for a coaster ride!

Our Holiday Tour was scheduled for noon so we exited DCA by way of the Soarin' FP machines. After our second hand-stamp for the day we were on our way back to DL.

Grumpy and Donald made tracks to get FPs for Star Tours and Sarge and I enjoyed the activity around the Mainstreet hub. Look who we found!

While I took a few photos Sarge enjoyed the warm winter day!

No holiday attire for most of the characters.

Next up: Disneyland Holiday Tour