That's the 30th time we've heard that song.. A GRAND Xmas Adventure! Nov 13 TR 6/19!

Okay now, Dani -- Let's get hustlin' with the installments of this TR! :hyper:

I keep getting endless email notifications that there is a new post in this thread, and then excitedly open the email in hopes that it is an actual new installment. But it always turns out to be another post from someone joining in or commenting on your thread -- which is great except for that I'd rather be notified about more TR installments!:rotfl2:
 
Wow, Dani, fantastic photos! You are really quite the photographer!

thanks for sharing.

There's a special magic
In Christmastime this year
Hearts are gay and merry
And full of yuletide cheer
The spirit of the season
Can make our dreams come true
Memories of Christmas
Are here for me and you
:crazy2:

he he.

Linda

Thank you! :) AND THANKS FOR THE SONG, hahahaha. Matt would NOT stop singing it the other day and I actually had to tell him to stop because it was so bad. :rotfl:

I agree, Pirates is exemplary in D-Land. The only thing I kind of don't like is how the end of the ride you slowly drift past all those people in the queue... staring at you. #awkward.

Wait... You've never seen the Dapper Dans in Disneyland, or you've never seen the Dapper Dans EVER???? If it's ever... HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE????? But YAY DAPPER DANS!!

Wow, my first thought while you were waiting for the parade was WOW it got dark quick.

Even though I haven't seen it in person and didn't have to put up with the songs over and over and over, I just might like this Parade better than the one at WDW based on your photos. It's possibly just because it's new to me. It's also possibly because... hello rope holders, lol.

It really is amazing! And yeah, that part is kind of awkward, I never really thought about that, haha.

Nope, never! Not in person, I just NEVER caught them on Main Street. BUT NOW I HAVE SEEN THEM!

Haha, it really did get dark quickly in that 45 minutes!

The parade is pretty fun though, but it's just outdated as heck. I think if they just update it a bit, it'll be fabulous. But those rope holders were just so absurd, hahaha.


Here I am already missing a chance to post on your TR.
So I will have to check out the Indy ride. I like Dinosaur, but it is kinda 90's cheesey. I'm a big fan of the Indiana films though so I would be pretty excited about that. And if we do go that corn dog is on my list, I would have guessed your first food would have been the churro, But that corn dog holy geez I wanna take that sucker down.

I with Matt on the parades. I will watch one if it is special. The Boo to You was pretty neat, but if I missed it... Meh

When do they start decorating for the X-mas party?
Great update though.

Hahaha, yay! Glad you made it over here. You will LOVE Indiana Jones though, love. It's seriously amazing.

And yeah, the corn dog was necessary. Granted, the churro happened right after, but still, haha.

Yup, you and Matt have VERY similar feelings towards the parades! And it's understandable. I just like to see them at least once in my life, haha.

Usuallly by the the 2nd Monday in November (sometimes a little later), everything is up. BUT not at the hotels. Hotels are after Thanksgiving.


I just love your TR's!

Wow those corn dogs look amazing!

I've heard so many good things about the Indiana Jones ride I can't wait to try it out!

Haunted Mansion Holiday looks awesome. The first time I watched Nightmare Before Christmas was only about two years ago and it is def a new found love. After I saw those pictures I wanted to hop on a plane and head over there right then (except it wouldn't be holiday so I need to fast forward a few months :) ).

The castle looks so cute! I know it's smaller than the one at Disney World but I always love the pictures of Disneyland's. I just can't wait to see it in person.

The parade floats look so cute! I just love Christmas decorations!

Can't wait for the next post!

Thank you so much! :goodvibes

Indiana Jones is awesome! I had heard amazing things but when I finally went on it.. wow. It's just so much fun.

HMH is AMAZING. Matt has loved NBC since it first came out and was shunned. Once I met him in 2003 we watched it and I really loved it, as well. It's just such an amazing attraction!

It is a little baby castle, but it's got such charm about it that you just have to love it.


I just had to chuckle about the song in the parade. That has been a long-running joke with me -- the fact that I can't get that song out of my head, no matter what I do!:rotfl2: If I try to avoid the parade, I end up running into it and then the song kicks in. If I take time to stop and watch the Christmas Fantasy Parade, the song latches onto my brain and stays there forever.

In fact, the last time I actually took time to intentionally watch the parade in its entirety was in December 2011 -- and yet the song is etched into every nook and cranny of my memory to this day and will haunt me for all eternity.

If there is ever a Christmas party at DLR, the parade could become a party exclusive, or it could be done away with in favor of a newer holiday parade. One never knows! But if the parade disappears, does that mean the song will leave my memory too?

HAHA I was wondering how you felt about the parade, Sherry! So funny, because that song WILL NEVER LEAVE YOUR HEAD. Ever, hahaha. We sing it all the time and can't stop. It's terrible.

It'll be interesting to see if they ever do a party in Disneyland! But that parade could disappear and then the song will, too! Though I think they sometimes play it over in the promenade with all of the other music. :rotfl:


This is adorable!! I love love love the Disney balloons. I wish there was a way to bring one home with me. A permanent Disney balloon in my bedroom wouldn't bother me at all. Haha :banana:

I showed my client (the one I told you about last time) all the pictures you took and when he saw the odd rope carrier from the 90s, he asked "Did Disney get budget cuts?" LOL!!! Absolutely hilarious. Every time I go to work now, he asks "Did wreck it ralph write more stories?" Thats what he calls you, because when he saw Matt's costume in the Sept TR he LOVED it. And he kinda thinks your hubby is straight outta the movie. Hahaha:)

I know, I always want to buy one but realize it'd be such a waste, wompwomp. They're so cute.

HAHAHAHA I love the budget cuts! It's so true though. And Wreck-it Ralph, ya know, I can't complain about that nickname, hahahaha. Matt was a fantastic Ralph, afterall!
 
I do love me some DL Pirates action!

Yay for getting to finally see the Dapper Dans... I love them and they are just so Main Street! :cloud9:

Huh... Odd that they just play that song on repeat... That would have had me on a fast path to crazy-town quick!!! :rotfl: but at least you can use it as a weapon to annoy each other when necessary! ;)


Haha, meeee tooo.

I know, I was super happy to catch them perform finally!

Oh my gosh, it will drive you insane, seriously! It's just ridiculous. But it sure is fun to annoy the crap out of each other. :laughing:


I love that parade - the reindeer and Eeyore are my favorite in it! Clearly the song must not have had the same impact on me because without watching on YouTube I didn't remember it.

And I can never get enough of balloon pictures. They're my favorite, too!

It's pretty adorable, I won't lie! But I can't believe you don't remember the song! OH MY GAAAAAHD be thankful. It's stuck in my head forever now. WAH.

And I agree, I LOVE balloon photos.. and taking them!


I haven't started yet but wanted to go ahead and get this in my subscribed threads list! :wave2:

YAY! Glad you're in for another one!

Hi Dani :wave2:

I've never been to Disneyland but I enjoyed reading your last Disneyland report & I'm enjoying this one too so far! :)

It's interesting seeing & reading about all the similarities & differences between Disneyland & Disney World, & I love the idea of the Nightmare Before Christmas themed Haunted Mansion :)

As someone who enjoys Dinosaur, I am sure I would be a big fan of the Indiana Jones ride!

I look forward to reading more! :thumbsup2

Very best wishes,
Siân.xx

Hello!! Super happy to see you over here for another TR!!

The two are very different from one another... and yes, HMH is just amazing and such an awesome thing that they do in Disneyland!

You would love Indiana Jones if you like Dinosaur, seriously. It's amazing!


Okay so I'm finally here, and I'm finally caught up, because apparently I'm a late to the party kind of gal these days....sheesh!
Your pictures never cease to amaze me - they are so gorgeous. I wish I was 1/8 the photographer you are! The pictures inside Haunted Mansion? Amazing. Can't wait to read/see more :goodvibes.

YAYAYAY! It's okay, you're really not that late, hahaha.

But thank you so so much! I'm still really trying to get better with my photos every trip. I'm hoping I can get some good ones here next week when we're in Disneyland!


What is up with the old school hair!? I would be so distracted by that! And I'm not too sure about Ariel's dress. But I love Goofy and Pluto's float!

I love the pictures of the castle - I like how it has more of a "cartoon" feel to it compared to Cinderella Castle. It makes it look so cute with all the decorations!

HAHAHA I don't know! It was ridiculous though, hahaha. But yeah, it was still a really fun parade to watch.

It is pretty adorable and definitely does feel kind of like it's out of a Disney animated movie. It's beautiful when all decorated, that's for sure.


Great TR! Went to Disneyland for my first time in March. Can't wait to hear the rest of this adventure! :)

YAY! I'm glad to see you over here! I hope you had a great time in Disneyland!

I'm HEEEEEERRREE!!!! popcorn::

Great beginning to your TR! I'm so excited to read more about DL. Sooooo, I have a question. What makes POTC at DL different/better than the one at WDW? You mentioned that you liked it better. I've never been to DL so I'm curious.

Also, I'm with Matt on Spectro! I cannot describe in words how sad I am that it's gone. :(

YAYAYYAHOO!

The Disneyland Pirates is waaaay longer than WDW's version. The beginning starts off in a Bayou, there are multiple drops, there's way more scenes... I could go on, but it's pretty amazing. The queue is not nearly as cool as Disney World's, but the ride itself is awesome. I'm just sad it's closed during our trip next week, wah.

I never experience Spectro, wompwomp.


So stoked that a new trip report is started! Can't wait to read more!

YAY! Glad you're on board for another one!!

Okay now, Dani -- Let's get hustlin' with the installments of this TR! :hyper:

I keep getting endless email notifications that there is a new post in this thread, and then excitedly open the email in hopes that it is an actual new installment. But it always turns out to be another post from someone joining in or commenting on your thread -- which is great except for that I'd rather be notified about more TR installments!:rotfl2:

HAHAHA, so funny that you commented, because I'm about to post new updates here in a sec! Things have been so busy lately, agh! I'm hoping to get this one and maaaaybe one more before we're off to Disneyland!

I also need to get working on writing more updates so I don't fall way behind, eeep!
 
Chapter 5: Finally getting some fried chicken up in here.
Day One: November 13th, 2013


After the parade was over, Matt and I both had already planned that we were going to get dinner over at the Plaza Inn. Of course, this involved us maneuvering our way through the crowds and across the street. My only concern with going over there was the crowds from the parade would have the same idea as us... and while a lot of people went there, it wasn't anything terrible.

The Plaza Inn is the type of restaurant where you grab what you want on your tray, pay for it, and find a place to sit down. So basically a quick service place, but with some real silverware/plates... and tasty food. Of course, we knew EXACTLY what we were going there for... THE FRIED CHICKEN!

We decided to split it (since we had plans to try lots of good food during our trip), along with a Yule Log, and found a seat in the dining area, close to the Christmas tree.

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The chicken is something we'd heard from numerous people you just HAVE to try... and oh my goodness, this chicken did NOT disappoint. It was crunchy and crispy but not heavily coated. It was amazingly good, and I was kind of wishing I'd gotten my own plate of it!

It also came with mashed potatoes, string beans, and a biscuit, all of which were very good, as well.

But the fried chicken was the true star of the show.

We also split the Yule Log and I wasn't sure I'd like it at first, since it looked like it kind of had a citrus filling. This was REALLY tasty, as well. Even though it had cranberry and more of a citrus flavor to it, Matt and I both really enjoyed it.

The Plaza Inn itself has wonderful decor, especially during the Christmas season.

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Side note: I AM SUPER BUMMED Plaza Inn is closed while we're in Disneyland next week! No fried chicken for us, wompwomp. It'll have to wait until November!

After we finished eating, we decided to head back towards Tomorrowland, so we could make our way on over to It's a Small World Holiday!

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One of my favorite moments of every Disneyland trip is approaching It's a Small World Holiday for the first time. It's just absolutely STUNNING.

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As we walked up, we noticed that it was completely roped off around the attraction, and it was indeed closed for the evening due to the fireworks. Matt and I were SUPER disappointed since we really wanted to go on it, but instead had to settle for some photos. This is one of the downsides of everything being so close together in Disneyland - they often have to shut down attractions during the fireworks, especially when it's windy.

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As we were leaving, the Small World projection show that they do every 15 minutes or so started up, so we hung around to watch it. It was completely brand new compared to the previous year's show, so we were excited to see it.

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It's definitely a fantastic projection show and I love that they do it! Again, Disneyland is just amazing around Christmas time.

We left IASW and decided to head back towards the Matterhorn! Matt really wanted to go on it, and since there was basically no line, I told him to go for it. In the meantime, I wanted to try to take a few photos of it, and caught this one which I thought was pretty fun.

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And yes, that is a ghost Matt zooming by me in that photo, haha.

After Matt got off the Matterhorn, we headed back towards Tomorrowland and stopped in Star Traders to look around. I was a big fan of this Stormtrooper hat.

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I was really dying to go on Buzz Lightyear, so we strolled on inside of there since it was a short wait.

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This one is so much more difficult than Disney World's! Seriously, I have WAY more of a difficult time figuring out which laser is mine, even though you have way more freedom to shoot since your gun isn't attached to the vehicle. Matt beat me, OF COURSE.

As we got off of Buzz, we walked right into the "snowp" on Main Street! But it was INSANELY busy, so we kind of had to dart through the crowds... but I did turn around to get one photo of the castle all lit up, since I hadn't had an opportunity to get one all night.

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Matt took my hand and led us through the crowds!

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Continued in next post
 

Chapter 6: We finally get to see our room, yay!
Day One: November 13th, 2013


We decided to pop into the Emporium to look around, and of course, the pillow pets sucked us in.

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I was eyeing the Sulley one, while Matt was eyeing the Duffy one, but we both held off on getting them. We DID however, find an awesome Oswald antenna topper!

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We made our way out of the park, but of course had to stop and take a million photos of the Christmas tree... I'll spare you and only post 2.

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We said goodnight to Disneyland, and headed out of the park!

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It was still pretty early, so Matt and I decided to go into World of Disney on our walk back to the Grand Californian!

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I found a FANTASTIC pair of pajamas that I just couldn't say no to.

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Matt and I kind of have a tradition of getting Christmas PJs, so these were perfect to wear on Christmas Eve! They ended up being pretty darn adorable.

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I also found a pair of PERFECT Christmas-themed Minnie ears, so I picked those up, as well! I took this photo later in the evening, but here they are so you get the idea of which ones I'm talking about:

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That was all we picked up that night, and we really wanted to actually see our room, so we headed back to the resort and right onto our room. I loved that the walk to the room was pretty short and the Villas really weren't that far away from the lobby.

We walked into our room and I fell IN LOVE with it! It was a bit bigger than our room at Beach Club, and just overall felt like it had more space. It was cozy, but not too dark (Wilderness Lodge was a little dark), and of course, you couldn't really get any closer to California Adventure.

twitter: Um, I want to buy DVC points for the Grand Californian NOW. This room is fabulous, and I love the hotel.

Matt called for our bags to be brought from bell services, then called home to see how the puppies were doing, so I took photos of the room!

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I was curious about whether or not we could see any of California Adventure, and we actually could a little bit from our room.

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We could also hear a LOT over there. As in, we could hear World of Color happening... but I was pretty certain they were rehearsing Winter Dreams, which wasn't debuting to the public until Friday.

Even though we didn't get an upper floor, it was pretty neat being able to see parts of California Adventure and hear the music over there.

I went into the bathroom and started laughing when I saw the spare toilet paper.

twitter: Even the toilet paper is well-themed.

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But seriously though!

And I loved the little Mickey heads on the carpet:

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Our bags were brought to us pretty quickly, and as soon as we got them, we headed down to Whitewater Snacks for some nachos to split between the two of us.

Everyone had told us that the nachos there were good, so of course we wanted to try them out. We ordered steak nachos to go, along with a very good-looking Christmas cupcake to split. We brought our food back to the room and this photo is a total fail and out of focus, but I was too excited about nachos to really even care.

twitter: These Nachos from White Water Snacks truly didn't disappoint. Oh my god. So good.

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Whitewater Snacks has AMAZING nachos! Oh my gosh, people were NOT messing around. They were seriously fantastic! And they give you a TON for a really good price.

The chips themselves are like these really thick tortilla strips and are just super tasty. Oh man, they were some of my favorite nachos. And they didn't skimp out on the steak, either.

We then decided to split our amazingly good-looking cupcake:

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Oooooh this was delicious! The frosting was not overly sweet and had a hint of peppermint in it! The cake itself was moist.

It was the perfect Christmas cupcake, and it was huge, so perfect for us to split between the two of us. I think it was like $5.79, so not cheap, but VERY good and a pretty sizable cupcake.

After we finished eating, we unpacked our clothes and got ourselves settled into the room. The bed was extremely comfortable and I felt like the room was just perfectly cozy and roomy.

We were both pretty tired, so after I took trip notes (I'm still miffed over the loss of them, but oh well), we both conked out as we had a FULL day in front of us and wanted to make sure we were well-rested and ready to go!

Continued in next post
 
Okay you in your Christmas pj's = precious!!!!!

Cut to me being confused about why you were trapped in your mirror and taking way longer than I should have to figure out the mirror was decorative. Man optical illusions get me every time!!

Those nachos do look awesome. I feel like the strips would be good for scooping toppings.

The small world projection show looks really cool.

Now for an odd question - was that table in one of the villa photos plaid on top? My husband's entire family LOVES plaid and oh my goodness a plaid table would be too much. Seriously, I have been on the receiving end of not one but TWO sets of hand me down plaid couches!! And not from the same house! I just want to know how the plaid works into a table top if I saw it correctly.
 
I neeeeed those nachos! This report has me excited for all the food when I'm there in a month!
 
Yay for new TR updates!:yay::yay::dance3:

I wanted to be sure to tell you to check out the Springtime Roundup (if it is still open) when you head to DLR soon. It wasn't crowded when I was there, but it has some really cute Spring-y touches and details, pretty flowers, etc. Even though Easter is over, I wonder if the CMs kept some of the (fake) decorated eggs out for viewing. There were egg artists painting eggs and a lot of the finished masterpieces were put in a case with chicken wire on the doors. Look for the case with the chicken wire and hopefully they still have the adorable character egg art on display.

I love the look of your room/Villa. I have stayed at the GCH in the regular rooms -- which I found to be cramped and on the dark-ish side, but the Villas look so much more promising!

By the way, the first sightings of hotel decorations last year were reported 9 days before Thanksgiving! Santa still didn't appear at the hotels until Thanksgiving and beyond, but the trees were at least up more than a week ahead of schedule. So you never know what could happen this year. I am hoping that the planning masterminds at DLR realize that the hotels should be decorated at the same time the parks are decorated -- when the season officially begins. When I saw that the GCH tree had slightly different lights and ornaments, the DLH had a giant faux gingerbread castle in the lobby (with a piped in gingerbread smell), and the PPH had all sorts of new ocean-themed ornaments and accessories around it, I thought, "Hmmm...well it seems silly to get all these new decorations and knick knacks for the hotels if they are not going to be decorated until Thanksgiving."

So my hunch is that DLR is now going to try to make an effort to get the hotels in the spirit a bit earlier than usual from now on. I suspect that is why they got some new things to put on the trees and around the hotels last year. Maybe you will be in luck in November!

Anyway, you and Matt are peeps after my own heart when it comes to Plaza Inn. I ate there in December, and what did I get? That's right. The big plate o' chicken (except for that I swapped out the beans for another serving of potatoes) and the Yule Log!:rotfl2:

I wasn't that thrilled with the Yule Log -- it was too rich, too decadent and too much chocolate -- and mine did not have any citrusy notes in it, nor did it have orange sprinkles on it -- but it was...Yule-ish, and that's what counted! Mine had red and green sprinkles and a chocolate Ganache filling, if I recall. It looks like you might have had the more autumn-inspired log, and mine was the more winter/holiday log? Maybe they don't bring out the holiday log until December, I wonder.:confused3

I love the pajamas you got -- so cute!

I also like the photo you took of DTD as you were approaching World of Disney at night, because it reminds me of that walk from the parks to the hotels -- which I love, especially at night, and especially during the holiday season!
 
Hi Dani,

You look super cute in the Stormtroopers hat. Our teen daughter bought that hat on our last trip. :)

The picture of Matt and the little girl looking at the Pillow Pets was very sweet.
 
Hi Dani

I've hopped over from your WDW TR to this one, although I've never been to DL and have no idea when I'll ever get there, your TR is just increasing my desire to go. Loving your descriptions and photos again. I think it's great that they have some of the same things, just done a little differently though can imagine the slight sense of confusion. The parade looks so cute I'd love to see that, and great you don't have to pay party prices for it. My DH also doesn't really like the parades but he also really isn't into character meets either, so although we'll be at WDW this November I'm not prepared to spend the money on party tickets.

I'm a bit behind but thought I'd better post while I have the chance or you'll have finished this report before I comment as well as happened on your last one.

Thanks for writing :) J
 
OK, I've just decided that Sunshine Seasons needs to add the chicken to its menu. ::yes::

Wow, Small World does look wicked. I imagine I would even consider riding with the overlay.

D-Land does indeed look glorious.

Haha, I love that statement. We left Disneyland and WALKED to World of Disney on the WALK to the hotel. I miss that.
 
Okay, I had to come out of lurking status to say hi! :wave2:

I've read all your TRs (in true stalker style ;) ) and am looking forward to keeping up with this one! You & Matt are just too cute and I'm also a fellow Washingtonian. Anyways, I felt like a creeper since I've also followed you on IG & twitter in the last few days. :rotfl: So hey girl heyyy! :thumbsup2
 
You look adorable in your Christmas jammies! :goodvibes Good job finding the Minnie holiday ears - they sell out early and fast! People are forever asking me where I found them the closer it gets to Christmas, especially in WDW (so if you ever go there during the holidays, be sure to take your ears along).

Love the Plaza Inn fried chicken. Except I'm a freak who hates eating meat off the bone, so my sweet hubby picks it all off for us to share. Yes, I realize how lucky I am. hahaha The Cobb Salad is also really good, so we usually get one of each and split them both. It's a great spot to watch the fireworks away from the crowds if you sit outside and aren't worried about seeing everything that's projected onto the castle.

Are those nachos not lifechanging? So stinkin' good. I tried to take my mom & aunt to have them after we watched World of Color the other night but it closed super early so we missed out. :headache: (I thought they were open till 10-11pm, turns out they closed at 9pm. SERIOUSLY?!) I've been craving them like crazy! They also have a pre-made pesto chicken sandwich that is deeeeelish, annnnd you can also buy Mickey Bars from Whitewater (which you may already know) - I love to get them there. :thumbsup2
 
I forgot to add that I know some secret tricks to earning big points on Buzz (Daniel has hit > 1 million a few times & my highest is a little over 800k). I'd be happy to share our tips with you when you're here. :thumbsup2
 
I can already tell your TR is going to make me miss Disneyland sooooo much!

Loved the info on the Long Beach airport. Last summer we flew in and out of Burbank which technically worked since we did more than DL stuff but have decided for our next trip (summer 2015...fingers crossed) we need to use a closer airport. It was stressful getting all the way back to Burbank in CA traffic on our way home! I will have to look at LB.

Good job with the DVC book strategy! Very smart. I am really working DH hard on the DVC membership thing and I will have to remember that if I am ever lucky enough to be a member.

I nearly died at your Main Street picture...the castle is soooo small. For me it doesn't seem that small when I am there because I guess I am in awe of it all but in your picture is barely visible!

Oh Indiana Jones and Pirates....you are DL gems!!

So your festive merch choices are perfect. Love those jammies! Too cute.

Wow, the GC villa looks super spacious! Seriously I am in love with DVC rooms after our trip to SSR last month. They just feel so much more homey than regular resort rooms. SO happy you were able to get in there!

Looking forward to more....and following along on Twitter on your upcoming trip!! Tweet lots!! ;)
 
GRAND CALI....ahh I can't. I am obsessed. Those room pictures are definitely fueling the obsession here. Is that where you are staying for your next trip? I better see some photos on Instagram if you are.

And the Plaza Inn chicken looks delicious. Really, all of Disneyland's food...I'll have one of each, please.

Can't wait for more updates!
 
I'm finally de-lurking to post! I've been following your Sept 13 TR and loved it so much I read all your others (yep, stalker), and now a new Disneyland one! We have a trip planned in September and this TR is getting me so excited for it. I've only been to Disneyland a few times (and the first time I was only 9 months old, so I figure that doesn't really count) so I love seeing all the photos and learning some tips! My husband's not a huge Disney person, but maybe we'll try the fried chicken and he'll change his mind... :)

Love your photography! I have no talent in that area and am always impressed by gorgeous photos, which yours are. The balloon ones always make me smile, and just scream 'Disney' and 'childhood' and 'happiness' to me!

Can't wait to read more!
 
Okay you in your Christmas pj's = precious!!!!!

Cut to me being confused about why you were trapped in your mirror and taking way longer than I should have to figure out the mirror was decorative. Man optical illusions get me every time!!

Those nachos do look awesome. I feel like the strips would be good for scooping toppings.

The small world projection show looks really cool.

Now for an odd question - was that table in one of the villa photos plaid on top? My husband's entire family LOVES plaid and oh my goodness a plaid table would be too much. Seriously, I have been on the receiving end of not one but TWO sets of hand me down plaid couches!! And not from the same house! I just want to know how the plaid works into a table top if I saw it correctly.

Hahaha thank you! :) And that's so funny, yeah, that mirror has been here since we bought our house, and we kept it since it's kind of fun!

They are super good! And they give you a LOT.

It is very cool. We always watch it quite a bit during our trip since we have good luck with catching it, haha.

Haha, I had to look back BUT no. The plaid was on one of the tables at White Water Snacks. It was just kind of part of the table I think.


I neeeeed those nachos! This report has me excited for all the food when I'm there in a month!

They are so goooood. Make sure you get them!!

Yay for new TR updates!:yay::yay::dance3:

I wanted to be sure to tell you to check out the Springtime Roundup (if it is still open) when you head to DLR soon. It wasn't crowded when I was there, but it has some really cute Spring-y touches and details, pretty flowers, etc. Even though Easter is over, I wonder if the CMs kept some of the (fake) decorated eggs out for viewing. There were egg artists painting eggs and a lot of the finished masterpieces were put in a case with chicken wire on the doors. Look for the case with the chicken wire and hopefully they still have the adorable character egg art on display.

I love the look of your room/Villa. I have stayed at the GCH in the regular rooms -- which I found to be cramped and on the dark-ish side, but the Villas look so much more promising!

By the way, the first sightings of hotel decorations last year were reported 9 days before Thanksgiving! Santa still didn't appear at the hotels until Thanksgiving and beyond, but the trees were at least up more than a week ahead of schedule. So you never know what could happen this year. I am hoping that the planning masterminds at DLR realize that the hotels should be decorated at the same time the parks are decorated -- when the season officially begins. When I saw that the GCH tree had slightly different lights and ornaments, the DLH had a giant faux gingerbread castle in the lobby (with a piped in gingerbread smell), and the PPH had all sorts of new ocean-themed ornaments and accessories around it, I thought, "Hmmm...well it seems silly to get all these new decorations and knick knacks for the hotels if they are not going to be decorated until Thanksgiving."

So my hunch is that DLR is now going to try to make an effort to get the hotels in the spirit a bit earlier than usual from now on. I suspect that is why they got some new things to put on the trees and around the hotels last year. Maybe you will be in luck in November!

Anyway, you and Matt are peeps after my own heart when it comes to Plaza Inn. I ate there in December, and what did I get? That's right. The big plate o' chicken (except for that I swapped out the beans for another serving of potatoes) and the Yule Log!:rotfl2:

I wasn't that thrilled with the Yule Log -- it was too rich, too decadent and too much chocolate -- and mine did not have any citrusy notes in it, nor did it have orange sprinkles on it -- but it was...Yule-ish, and that's what counted! Mine had red and green sprinkles and a chocolate Ganache filling, if I recall. It looks like you might have had the more autumn-inspired log, and mine was the more winter/holiday log? Maybe they don't bring out the holiday log until December, I wonder.:confused3

I love the pajamas you got -- so cute!

I also like the photo you took of DTD as you were approaching World of Disney at night, because it reminds me of that walk from the parks to the hotels -- which I love, especially at night, and especially during the holiday season!

Ooooh I hope they are all still on display! I've seen photos of the eggs and they look AMAZING, especially the Haunted Mansion one I saw! I will keep an eye out for sure.

The Villa was really great, way more spacious than I thought it would be!

That is SUCH great news, because we are staying at the Grand Californian again in November!! But this time we'll be there a little later, on the 19th. We had planned on the 12th but when I found out about the Avengers runDisney events happening during the 14th-16th, we pushed it back a week. I have a feeling the parks will be quite busy during that time... so I hope that we get to see some decorations in the hotel this time!

I love the Plaza Inn, it's so good! But I think we got the fall Yule Log, as I was expecting the one you got, haha. But it was good nonetheless!

I love those pajamas. They're comfortable and adorable! A bit expensive, but worth it.

I LOVED that walk back. It was so nice to stroll through DTD on our way back to the hotel. And like you said, even better during the holiday season.


Hi Dani,

You look super cute in the Stormtroopers hat. Our teen daughter bought that hat on our last trip. :)

The picture of Matt and the little girl looking at the Pillow Pets was very sweet.

Thanks!! It's a pretty awesome hat, though I didn't end up buying it, haha. And yeah, Matt loves those pillow pets as much as I do. ;)

Hi Dani

I've hopped over from your WDW TR to this one, although I've never been to DL and have no idea when I'll ever get there, your TR is just increasing my desire to go. Loving your descriptions and photos again. I think it's great that they have some of the same things, just done a little differently though can imagine the slight sense of confusion. The parade looks so cute I'd love to see that, and great you don't have to pay party prices for it. My DH also doesn't really like the parades but he also really isn't into character meets either, so although we'll be at WDW this November I'm not prepared to spend the money on party tickets.

I'm a bit behind but thought I'd better post while I have the chance or you'll have finished this report before I comment as well as happened on your last one.

Thanks for writing :) J

Yay! I'm glad you decided to join in, even though you haven't been to DL. I hope it's an entertaining report!! But it's such a great place to visit, so I do hope you get to go at some point!

And yeah, it is a nice bonus to not have to pay for the parade or the holiday fireworks, either! I'm not sure I'd pay for MVMCP myself...

Haha, we're only one day in, so it's not too bad!


OK, I've just decided that Sunshine Seasons needs to add the chicken to its menu. ::yes::

Wow, Small World does look wicked. I imagine I would even consider riding with the overlay.

D-Land does indeed look glorious.

Haha, I love that statement. We left Disneyland and WALKED to World of Disney on the WALK to the hotel. I miss that.

Uhh yup, it'd be wise of them to do so because it's SO GOOD.

Small World is fantastic, I do think you'd enjoy it!!

I know, it's pretty nice how everything is just right there and in walking distance... but then again, I love the bus rides and boat rides and monorail rides in Disney World, so both places have their pros and cons!


Okay, I had to come out of lurking status to say hi! :wave2:

I've read all your TRs (in true stalker style ;) ) and am looking forward to keeping up with this one! You & Matt are just too cute and I'm also a fellow Washingtonian. Anyways, I felt like a creeper since I've also followed you on IG & twitter in the last few days. :rotfl: So hey girl heyyy! :thumbsup2

YAY! I'm glad you came out of lurkdom to say hi though! And even more awesome for being a fellow Washingtonian, haha. But thank you, and I'm glad you found me on IG and twitter.

HEY GIRL HEEEYYYYY!


You look adorable in your Christmas jammies! :goodvibes Good job finding the Minnie holiday ears - they sell out early and fast! People are forever asking me where I found them the closer it gets to Christmas, especially in WDW (so if you ever go there during the holidays, be sure to take your ears along).

Love the Plaza Inn fried chicken. Except I'm a freak who hates eating meat off the bone, so my sweet hubby picks it all off for us to share. Yes, I realize how lucky I am. hahaha The Cobb Salad is also really good, so we usually get one of each and split them both. It's a great spot to watch the fireworks away from the crowds if you sit outside and aren't worried about seeing everything that's projected onto the castle.

Are those nachos not lifechanging? So stinkin' good. I tried to take my mom & aunt to have them after we watched World of Color the other night but it closed super early so we missed out. :headache: (I thought they were open till 10-11pm, turns out they closed at 9pm. SERIOUSLY?!) I've been craving them like crazy! They also have a pre-made pesto chicken sandwich that is deeeeelish, annnnd you can also buy Mickey Bars from Whitewater (which you may already know) - I love to get them there. :thumbsup2

Haha thanks, they're so cute! And I'm glad I got those ears, though they are oddly tighter than the Halloween ones I got.. so they kind of give me a slight headache. Wompwomp.

Hahaha yes, you are lucky! But I can see how that would be an issue. I will have to try the Cobb Salad at some point... but I'm still sad the Plaza Inn is closed while we're there, boooo.

They are SO GOOOOOD. But that's so weird that it closed early! I thought it was open later than that. Matt and I are planning on going there though this week! I wouldn't be surprised if all of their stuff is amazing though, based on those nachos!


I forgot to add that I know some secret tricks to earning big points on Buzz (Daniel has hit > 1 million a few times & my highest is a little over 800k). I'd be happy to share our tips with you when you're here. :thumbsup2

Haha YES! Tips are necessary! I got the max score in WDW, now I must do better in DL!

I can already tell your TR is going to make me miss Disneyland sooooo much!

Loved the info on the Long Beach airport. Last summer we flew in and out of Burbank which technically worked since we did more than DL stuff but have decided for our next trip (summer 2015...fingers crossed) we need to use a closer airport. It was stressful getting all the way back to Burbank in CA traffic on our way home! I will have to look at LB.

Good job with the DVC book strategy! Very smart. I am really working DH hard on the DVC membership thing and I will have to remember that if I am ever lucky enough to be a member.

I nearly died at your Main Street picture...the castle is soooo small. For me it doesn't seem that small when I am there because I guess I am in awe of it all but in your picture is barely visible!

Oh Indiana Jones and Pirates....you are DL gems!!

So your festive merch choices are perfect. Love those jammies! Too cute.

Wow, the GC villa looks super spacious! Seriously I am in love with DVC rooms after our trip to SSR last month. They just feel so much more homey than regular resort rooms. SO happy you were able to get in there!

Looking forward to more....and following along on Twitter on your upcoming trip!! Tweet lots!! ;)

Haha, it has made me miss it a lot, so thank goodness we're going here so soon!

LGB is a GREAT airport to fly into! Definitely do it if you can. It's smaller and easy to get in and out of!

I hope you guys can do the DVC thing, because it's awesome to own, seriously. And so worth it!

Hahaha the castle is so dinky. That's the weird thing, is not being able to see it from the end of Main Street really!

Those two are huge gems for DLR, seriously. I love them both!

And thanks, haha, I was a big fan of the pajamas. And yeah, I love the coziness of DVC. You really do feel like you're home, if that makes sense! I can't wait to go back to VGC.

And yes, I will be tweeting and instagramming up a storm!


GRAND CALI....ahh I can't. I am obsessed. Those room pictures are definitely fueling the obsession here. Is that where you are staying for your next trip? I better see some photos on Instagram if you are.

And the Plaza Inn chicken looks delicious. Really, all of Disneyland's food...I'll have one of each, please.

Can't wait for more updates!

I know, it's SUCH a beautiful resort. I really loved staying there. Unfortunately we will not be there in May, since by the time we booked our trip, it was already booked up for DVC (and is insanely expensive to stay in a normal room). So we're staying at a nearby hotel. BUT we will be back in November to the Grand Cali!! I can't wait. And I will be taking photos of the Grand Cali this week since Matt and I plan on stopping by for dinner and photos.

Plaza Inn chicken is SO GOOD. Everyone should try it when they visit Disneyland.


I'm finally de-lurking to post! I've been following your Sept 13 TR and loved it so much I read all your others (yep, stalker), and now a new Disneyland one! We have a trip planned in September and this TR is getting me so excited for it. I've only been to Disneyland a few times (and the first time I was only 9 months old, so I figure that doesn't really count) so I love seeing all the photos and learning some tips! My husband's not a huge Disney person, but maybe we'll try the fried chicken and he'll change his mind... :)

Love your photography! I have no talent in that area and am always impressed by gorgeous photos, which yours are. The balloon ones always make me smile, and just scream 'Disney' and 'childhood' and 'happiness' to me!

Can't wait to read more!

YAY! I'm so glad you decided to comment! And I hope you guys have an AMAZING trip to Disneyland. I think you will love it!! I hope more updates help with tips... but DEFINITELY eat the chicken, seriously! You will love it.

Thank you so much. I am really hoping that when I'm in Disneyland this week, I am able to get a lot of great photos. I have a ton of gear packed with me, so fingers crossed!!
 
Hi everyone! I just wanted to make a quick note here that this will be my last update for a little bit because we're going to Disneyland on Wednesday!! YAYAYAYAY! So don't think I abandoned you or anything, I'll just be off having a fun time in Disneyland for 4 days with Matt! I won't be writing a trip report for this trip, but there WILL be a trip video, and I'll be sure to post it once it's completely done.

So anyway, hope you enjoy this update, and I will talk to you guys after we're back from our little getaway to the happiest place on Earth.


Chapter 7: Rise and shine, it's time to go play in Disneyland!
Day Two: November 14th, 2013


We woke up this morning at 7:30 to the phone ringing. I was overly joyed to hear Mickey Mouse telling me to get my booty out of bed.

twitter: Mickey just woke me up on the phone. This makes me happy.

I also decided to remind myself that yes, we were indeed eating at the Blue Bayou this day... one of my favorite places to eat.

twitter: Also, Blue Bayou for lunch today. Yes.

We got ourselves dressed and looking all snazzy, Matt wearing his Christmassy Mickey t-shirt, and me with my ears and my Up/Sleeping Beauty Castle shirt. My lovely friend Rachel picked up the DL version of the t-shirt for me over a year ago in an outlet (of all places!), and this was the first time I finally wore it in Disneyland! I own both the WDW and DL versions of the t-shirt, but was surprised that the DL one went to an outlet!

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I can't tell you how many people, throughout the trip, either in-person or on instagram actually asked me where I'd found the shirt. I felt bad when I told them that it was long-gone now, but I'm glad I own both versions because they're easily in my top 3 Disney t-shirts I own.

We got out the door and went through the Grand's lobby, which I was obviously a fan of having to walk through it.

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The ONE thing I was sad about was that the hotel itself wasn't decorated yet. They don't bust out the decorations for the on-property hotels until after Thanksgiving, so unfortunately, we were missing out by a few weeks. But I'm happy to take the lighter crowds AND a chance at the Grand by going earlier in the month, so there's a solid trade-off there.

But still, I would think it'd just be amazing to be sitting by this fire, with the Christmas tree up, just enjoying all of the decorations in the lobby..

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We then headed over to White Water Snacks for breakfast, and we both ordered the Egg, Bacon and Cheese Biscuit, which came with a side of grapes. After grabbing our food, and using our lovely AP discount (oh Disneyland, thank you for giving AMAZING discounts on pretty much everything; you beat out Disney World by a landslide on discounts), we found a seat inside to eat.

Of course, like a good DISer always does, I took a photo of breakfast.

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I was somewhat surprised at how good this was! And the grapes on the side were just the perfect thing for a heavier breakfast. I really love how quick breakfasts in Disneyland come with a side of fruit (like at the Pacific Wharf).

We finished up our breakfast pretty quickly since we wanted to make sure we were over and ready for the Extra Magic Hour. This was going to be our first time getting to take part since we were staying on-site! Because we have Premier APs, if we're not on-site, we don't get to take advantage of the Magic Hour.

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So we hopped in line, and we had some time to go before we were let inside.

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I still wish Disneyland had an opening show like they do at Magic Kingdom. I mean, why not?! Instead, we were eventually just let in to start off our day.

Now while everyone else was running to God only knows where, Matt and I were off to wait in line for...

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What, did you guys really think we wouldn't go there first thing in the morning? We needed our caffeine fix if we were going to really make the most of this day!

twitter: Starbucks from the Market house is the only way to start off your day in Disneyland. Just sayin'.

We ordered our coffees and then waited. I LOVE how they decorate in the inside of the Market House.

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I also love the spaciousness, but also the availability of seating. I didn't like that the Starbucks in Disney World offered NO seating inside! I don't really understand why... especially since Disneyland is smaller.

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Once we got our coffees, we were off to head towards Tomorrowland. It was pretty empty on Main Street, since most people had already made their way over to the different lands.

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To my surprise, there was suddenly scaffolding up behind the Partners statue and in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle... Uh oh. This did not bode well, especially since I wanted to get a lot of photos of the castle this trip.

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But we moved along since we had things to do!

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Of course, we were headed straight for Space Mountain, surprise, surprise.

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My feelings about the outdoor portion of the Space Mountain queue in Disneyland are mixed. On one hand, it's kind of fun to go outside before inside, but on the other hand, seeing Space Mountain that close-up makes it seem WAY smaller and less daunting.. then again, this is probably a good thing for me considering my history with Space Mountain.

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But the inside portion? IT JUST IS THE BEST. The only thing I wish it had is the same music as the indoor queue at Disney World. I LOVE the music in the long walkways in Disney World. The indoor queue though of DLR is amazing. I mean, look at it.

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Our wait wasn't very long before we zipped off and heard the music that accompanies the ride. I LOVE the Space Mountain music in DLR. It just adds so much to the ride experience... plus, I'm a sucker for Michael Giacchino's music (he did the music for LOST, Up, and many other films/TV shows). Plus I love the smoothness of Space Mountain Disneyland.

After Space Mountain, we decided to just kind of wander over towards Fantasyland... and on our way, I saw a girl wearing this hoodie around her waist and started laughing.

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I instagrammed and just said that people need to stop wearing that hoodie around their waist! Hahaha... it's not the first time that I've seen it in the parks.

We continued on our way to Fantasyland, of course, with me stopping to snap photos when I could.

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This was my first trip with my Sigma 10-20mm wide-angle lens and I was really a huge fan of it! It allowed me to get so much more in my photos, as you can see with some of the above photos. And I was super excited to shoot a bit more at night time, too!

One thing we had no idea about with Magic Hour in Disneyland is that only specific attractions are open... mainly just Fantasyland attractions and Tomorrowland.. and um, yeah, that's it. They rope off the other lands of the park until the park officially opens.

I didn't entirely love this since Disneyland is a bit small as it is, and trying to navigate it when things are roped off is kind of a pain. Plus, I would have loved to gone on Pirates, Haunted Mansion, or Indy with no lines. So that was kind of disappointing since it was our first time getting to partake in the Magic Hour, but what can you do?

But don't worry, we had the rest of the day ahead of us, and it was jam-packed with a lot of fun.

Continued in next post
 
Golly I miss (yeah I said golly) waiting to enter into Disneyland. Just something really special about it. I still don't understand why there's no morning show though. If any park was to have one I would think this would be it.

Oh yeah, SM in Disneyland is, in my opinion, 1,000,000 times better. I was blown away by how smooth it is.

Dani, I hope you and Matt have a wonderful visit with the Mouse this week!!! Looking forward to the video.
 













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