So Disappointed by Disneyland 50th :(

[disneychrista]

And from what I saw, they only closed Plaza Inn (big inconvenience since I was jonesing for the pot roast ). I could have missed another one, but that's the only restaurant I saw that was closed.

I believe they also closed Rancho, in Frontierland. This would have been a big bummer for me, since the tostada salad is a disney staple for me.

 

[ReneeB]

I was there on the 6th, 7th & 8th and was totally surprised that the crowds were so small. I went totally prepared for monster crowds, but they weren't at all what I was expecting. I was so disappointed that I didn't get to go on the 5th, but I guess it was for the best.

 

[Live Wire]

well as someone who was at Disneyland on the fourth and the fifth I can say that both days were wonderful for me. The fourth wasn't crowded as it was for invited guests only. It was also majorly for media so that helped. On the fifth I knew it was going to be crowded and crazy but I have to say guest control did a wonderful job especially considering the line to get into Disneyland had reached DCA at 7am when the park didn't even open until 9am. Yeah it was crazy at the castle but again guest control (at least on the west side) was wonderful. They let us move up into the reserved area and did everything they could to help. They knew that the media was blocking the view for the majority of people and did whatever they could to get us the best possible positions. It was drizzling and they took down one of the tents so that people could see the screens.

It's disney and of course they are going to do things for the media. There were chairs set up that people could purchase tickets too but unfortunately those sold out in two hours and my friends and I didnt know about them ahead of time. My friend participated in the castle ceremony and I have to say I wasn't disappointed. The point was to be there. We escaped to Downtown Disney for breakfast and when we came back the crowds were actually a lot better.

I have to commend everyone involved and say they made the best of a what could have been a disaster. For the most part everyone was courteous and made the best of it. I even made a new friend lol. Like others I did talk to people and tell them that DCA would be a better idea if they had park hoppers but no one I talked to seemed upset. Once they realized that the fifth was the kickoff they all just seemed honored to be there, like me!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Now to the Diznoids;
1. Why were YOU there on the 5th. There is nothing significant about that day. It was just the start of an 18-month event.

I went just for the fun of being there at the kick-off. I really had no intention of going on any rides, but I wanted to be a part of the excitement.

2. You should have expected that there would be many others like you who were going to be there as well.

Yup - totally expected it. Speaking for myself, I had a great time, and really didn't see unhappy people, except after the opening ceremony when people were trying to come down Main Street. I made PS for Carnation Cafe, and even though it was late because of all the people, we didn't mind. Met up w/Disneyland Emily & Bernee & her friends & had a wonderful lunch with them. Oh - also met up with Prince Phillip from the night parade (he was incognito), and he hung out with us for the day - we really had a good time.

3. How DARE you question the motives of normal families for going to the park on that day and not knowing what to expect?

I would never do that, so I won't take this question personally. As a matter of fact, I was happy that we could accommodate a nice lady from Wales/New Zealand and a family with young kids in our parade/fireworks spot that we had been saving for hours. I knew that they weren't APers like us, and it was fun doing something nice for them (I can't be a total ddg ), plus I had fun talking to them, especially the lady from Wales/New Zealand.

4. Did you really not expect this to be a media event? And why were you surprised by all of the tents and/or tables?

I must not have been paying attention. I thought the media event was on the 4th, and that the 5th would be crowded with a bunch of guests. I saw the tents, though, and took it in stride, as did my teenage kids - just part of the adventure for us.