Thanksgiving day crowds, despite the rain, pics + park map offer)

[WonkaKid]

Folks, I spent the morning and a little of the afternoon at the park yesterday. It rained nearly the entire time and it was chilly, Usually that's enough to keep many people away. Yesterday, however, it wasn't. Several of us theorized that most of the guests in attendance had come from far out of town and changing their plans was not practical. So: despite the rain and cold, the park was still pretty full at rope drop and only got more so as the day went on. For anyone who plans to visit the park(s) on future Thanksgivings, know that both will almost certainly be slammed. A friend is there now and says that crowds are still heavy. I'd hoped to go tomorrow but have decided not to and I won't be going on Sundays for awhile so I've decided to make it there next Wednesday. I want to see them do the handmade candy canes anyway and that's one of the days that they'll make them.

I did Buzz as my last ride of the day. I was crushing it - 1,4500,000 before I even reached the tunnel to the final Zurg. That's when the lights came on and an emergency alarm and warning sounded. We were all evacuated from the ride. It was neat to see it with the lights on and I spotted something I've never seen before: the Buzz in front of the last Zurg has "ANDY" printed on the sole of his foot. I suspect it's virtually impossible to see it in the dark. Certainly I'll look next time.









Other than than, there's not much to report. So, a few pics:

This was at around 7:50 - ten minutes before rope drop.


You can see the rain on the ROA.




How someone broke a chain in the POTC queue I'd like to know.

 

[WonkaKid]

A few more pics.

P.S. If anyone would like park maps, please send me your address via direct message and specify which park and how many. Three is about the max.


Did OK on Buzz on one ride. On the one right after it, I broke 2,096,000 and lost everything. That is, my score reset and when I came I out, I saw that I'd only earned only 50,000. Always, always frustrating and aggravating.






I happened upon the original inspiration for Splash Mountain on my way home.


And then I caught a rainbow, a faint promise of better days ahead.

 

[VandVsmama]

That storm hit us here in AZ last night. We even had a tornado warning really really early this morning!

 

[WonkaKid]

That storm hit us here in AZ last night. We even had a tornado warning really really early this morning!

I heard! I have friends there and they told me. Yikes.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

We were there on Thanksgiving, too. The weather was brutal, but we didn't have to wait longer than about 20 10 minutes for most rides.

 

[WonkaKid]

My feet were soaked from about the time I got there till I left at 1:30. I'd had enough. As I recall, though, the wait for PP was 50 minutes at around 11:30. I could be wrong about that. Seems right, though.

 

[Vacamode]

A few more pics.

P.S. If anyone would like park maps, please send me your address via direct message and specify which park and how many. Three is about the max.


Did OK on Buzz on one ride. On the one right after it, I broke 2,096,000 and lost everything. That is, my score reset and when I came I out, I saw that I'd only earned only 50,000. Always, always frustrating and aggravating.
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I happened upon the original inspiration for Splash Mountain on my way home.
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And then I caught a rainbow, a faint promise of better days ahead.
View attachment 455571

We were there on Thanksgiving. We planned this trip for months, flew in on Sunday, and there was no way we would cancel.. we ended up in the animators studio complex and philharmagic which we may not have taken time for had it not raining...

 

[WonkaKid]

We were there on Thanksgiving. We planned this trip for months, flew in on Sunday, and there was no way we would cancel...

I think a lot of people were in the same boat, which is why crowds were so heavy.

 

[Paigesmom2013]

Looks cold and dreary! ugh! But you gotta do what you gotta do!

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

We hung out in our hotel until about 1 PM yesterday. Then we took a Lyft to the Grand Californian and hung out there and in DCA until our 3 PM dinner reservation. After dinner, we waited the rain out for a while shopping in downtown Disney. Sometime after 7:30 we finally made our way to Disneyland. We rode Star Tours, Space, Indy, Peter Pan, the Falcon, then crossed to DCA and rode Toy Story twice, stopped at Ghirardelli for some cocoa and called it a night shortly before 10 PM. We go every year for Thanksgiving. Since we live in Northern California, we always stay multiple days, so we weren’t too fussed about not having a full day. We have annual passes too. This was definitely the coldest, wettest thanksgiving we have had down here. At least we got a lot of rides done in the evening without getting too terribly wet.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

We arrived on Thanksgiving Day around 6 pm and found just about everything to be a walk on -- this included bag check (CMs seemed glad to have some guests to check!), the tram (walked right up and on to a waiting tram), the gates, and most rides (exception, of course, being Peter Pan). FPs were almost all immediate/near immediate returns. BTMRR went down around 7 pm, so we got ME FPs -- but they weren't really needed because the lines in general were so short. We walked right up to the rail for the first WOC -- had FPs, but no one was even bothering to scan anyone since there was plenty of room in all sections. Our wet weather gear stood us in good stead -- rain boots, waterproof pants, waterproof and windproof stadium coats, gloves... Bring it on! We were warm and dry all night. But we did see a surprising number of families in shorts, flip flops, soaked sneakers, torn ponchos, kids in soaked clothes with plastic bags tied over their heads as a sort of hood (?? um, how is this supposed to help?), etc. Wished every CM we saw a "Happy Thanksgiving," and received big smiles all around.

 

[Vacamode]

We arrived on Thanksgiving Day around 6 pm and found just about everything to be a walk on -- this included bag check (CMs seemed glad to have some guests to check!), the tram (walked right up and on to a waiting tram), the gates, and most rides (exception, of course, being Peter Pan). FPs were almost all immediate/near immediate returns. BTMRR went down around 7 pm, so we got ME FPs -- but they weren't really needed because the lines in general were so short. We walked right up to the rail for the first WOC -- had FPs, but no one was even bothering to scan anyone since there was plenty of room in all sections. Our wet weather gear stood us in good stead -- rain boots, waterproof pants, waterproof and windproof stadium coats, gloves... Bring it on! We were warm and dry all night. But we did see a surprising number of families in shorts, flip flops, soaked sneakers, torn ponchos, kids in soaked clothes with plastic bags tied over their heads as a sort of hood (?? um, how is this supposed to help?), etc. Wished every CM we saw a "Happy Thanksgiving," and received big smiles all around.

We did not expect a huge infrastructure such as Disney not to have drainage on the sidewalks. We had tennis shoes and jeans on but still got soaked. Thankfully the Animation studio was open and a nice experience. Many cast members were gracious about working on Thanksgiving, which I appreciated.

 

[WonkaKid]

We did not expect a huge infrastructure such as Disney not to have drainage on the sidewalks. We had tennis shoes and jeans on but still got soaked.

Agreed. It seemed odd to me too. I did see CMs using large brooms to sweep away some of the water, which helped. But not nearly enough. On the other hand, it only rains as hard as it did on Thursday about once a year in Southern California. Their rain policy makes about as much sense as their no running policy... which is rarely if ever enforced.

 

[midnight star]

Their rain policy makes about as much sense as their no running policy... which is rarely if ever enforced.

LOL ! Sounds like any place in Socal. This whole region thrives when it's 75 and sunny. When it's not that people freak out.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

We did not expect a huge infrastructure such as Disney not to have drainage on the sidewalks. We had tennis shoes and jeans on but still got soaked...

It's not really about DLR's infrastructure -- this was a major winter storm which was forecast and broadcast on most media over a week in advance. Disney tried to prepare, but it isn't really reasonable to expect them to overhaul their entire drainage system for one storm. They did adjust their operating hours for this storm and announced that in advance -- that doesn't happen often, so it shows how serious this storm was supposed to be. We were warning people here on this forum to prepare for the weather in several ongoing threads. We were warning people about the uneven terrain and the huge puddles that form very quickly. Many of us have learned from hard experience about the need for good waterproof footwear! We always suggest playing it safe with good outerwear so that you can get the most enjoyment out of your time in the parks during cold, wet weather -- the wisest investment being waterproof shoes of some kind and warm socks. You can always buy a dry hoodie and a poncho if necessary, but once your shoes and socks get soaked through, your fun in the parks will be seriously tested. See the quote below from another recent thread for an example of weather discussions on this forum this past week. Glad you still managed to have a good time on Thanksgiving.

These threads have good information on wet weather in the parks:
Rain
Can we chat rain?
Advice for solo trip with rain!

As pp have said, rain patterns are not really consistently predictable in Southern CA. But, one thing is predictable, consistent, and reliable: the better your rain gear is, the more fun you can have in the parks during wet, cold weather! Having good outerwear is key to being able to stay in the parks from open to close during wet, cold, and even stormy weather, while remaining warm, dry, and comfortable the whole time. For us this means waterproof shoes (shoes/boots/rubber boots), rain pants, and waterproof and windproof rain jackets/coats. We saw people whose jeans got very wet/soaked just by sitting on the tram because of all the water on the seats and the rain blowing in while the tram was in motion. They were pretty wet from the waist down even before they entered the gates. A longer jacket or coat or rain pants could have helped prevent that. And dollar store ponchos (that are meant to be thrown away after riding Splash or GRR), trash bags, and shopping bags do not count as rainproof outerwear. We saw plenty of people wearing those things yesterday -- they all had soaked clothing under the plastic, soaked shoes or just flip flops, and they were all complaining loudly about how they were freezing. Predictably not fun!

 

[Indiana Scott]

Adam the Woo posted an update of his visit to the parks on Thanksgiving evening. It was dead!

 

[Aurora0427]

If I were flying in on a vacation to Disneyland, I’d be checking the weather everyday the week before I left. If it is pouring, and you are not wearing rain boots and a long rain coat, you are going to get soaked, drainage system be darned. It was raining sideways at one point. The thought of walking around Disneyland in the rain without proper attire makes me miserable just thinking about it!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... The thought of walking around Disneyland in the rain without proper attire makes me miserable just thinking about it!

And with the proper rain attire? You can have so much fun! The difference is like night and day! I know we keep saying it, but we can't make people believe it... until they either learn the hard way or experience the amazing difference for themselves.
For example, we rode IASWH and exited the ride building into a traffic jam and a downpour (not uncommon on rainy nights with this ride). We were prepared with our raincoats, rain pants, and rain boots -- warm and totally dry the whole time, just singing along to the ride song, even while water was filling the bottom of the boat. Everyone else in the boat? Let's just say that it wasn't exactly the happiest cruise that ever sailed for them. They got drenched.

 

[Vacamode]

Agreed. It seemed odd to me too. I did see CMs using large brooms to sweep away some of the water, which helped. But not nearly enough. On the other hand, it only rains as hard as it did on Thursday about once a year in Southern California. Their rain policy makes about as much sense as their no running policy... which is rarely if ever enforced.

Unfortunately the CMs sweeping water had a rough job. I was sorry they had no where for the water to actually drain to. Anyway, I hope the rain helped the crops and vegetation around the area since rain is so rare in SoCal.

 

[Vacamode]

LOL ! Sounds like any place in Socal. This whole region thrives when it's 75 and sunny. When it's not that people freak out.

Thanks, that explains a lot!