Way Out West - Day 6 – Disneyland

[wickesy]

Today was Magic Morning (extra magic hours) which meant the park opened to Disney Hotel guests at 7:00. I had decided that I didn’t want to be up and out that early but even so we were both up by 7:00 and out by 7:30.

Thanks to the compactness of the resort we were inside the park within minutes and soon walking up Main Street, which was already starting to seem familiar. Just for a laugh we poked our heads into Tomorrowland to see what the queue was like for Finding Nemo. We took one look at the queue, didn’t bother looking at the wait time and turned back towards Fantasyland.

The plan for today was to tick off the rides that are not at WDW so with that in mind first stop was Alice in Wonderland, which had a posted wait time of 10 minutes. Sure enough around 10 minutes later we were on. This is a combination dark ride and outside ride which takes you through Alice’s adventures in Wonderland.

From Alice we made our way round to Mr Toad’s Wild Ride, which was also around a 10 minute wait. This was one of the few rides I remember from my first visit to WDW in 1992 and I always remember being quite surprised that I could see the track that the car was running along.

From Mr Toad we went round to Casey Jr’s Circus Train which is a cutesy train ride along the lines of Big Thunder Mountain railroad at a snail’s pace.

After our train trip we went round to Pinocchio’s Daring Journey, which is your typical Disney dark ride in the same league as Snow White.

By now the time was still only around 8:30 and the only thing we hadn’t been on was the Storybookland Canal Boats, which had a large queue and only seemed to have two boats running so we left that and did Snow White’s Scary Adventure. We also had a look at Peter Pan’s Flight but that also had a large queue so we left Fantasyland and headed off towards Frontierland.

On the way I spotted that Pirates of the Caribbean had only a 5 minute wait time so we rode that and found it pretty similar to WDW. Next ride ticked off the list was Pooh and from there we went to Haunted Mansion. The one thing I noted here was that it is easy to tell the difference between how the “stretching room” effect is done here to how it is done in Disney. Some of you may know the difference and some may not want the illusion spoiled so I won’t say any more.

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[wickesy]

From Haunted Mansion we went round Tarzan’s Treehouse

The picture of Tarzan was actually being ‘drawn’ as we walked past.

and then to Jungle Cruise, which is one of those rides where the script never changes but cannot be avoided. Once we got off the cruise it was 10:25 and we stopped off in a nearby shop for a limeade each which we sat and drank in a nearby shady spot.

We had an 11:30 Priority Seating for Blue Bayou so I decided that we could fill the time by going down to Disneyland: The First 50 Magical Years, which is a short exhibit and film outlining the history of the first half-century of the park.

Disneyland as it appeared on opening day with just 22 attractions.

The track layout of Space Mountain.

This filled the time nicely and at 11:20 we were back at Blue Bayou checking in for our reservation. We were seated after just a couple of minutes and, as requested, we were at a table by the waterside where we could watch the Pirates of the Caribbean boats being despatched.

There was only one reason for eating at Blue Bayou – the Monte Cristo Special, which is a turkey, ham and cheese sandwich deep fried until golden brown. We both ordered one, mine with Blue Bayou potatoes and vegetables and Dad’s with Blue Bayou potatoes and spinach. We were told that we also had a choice of soup or salad and we both chose the salad – this was what I’m sure must have been a quarter of a lettuce in one big chunk and was a meal in itself! By the time the sandwich was brought out I could only eat half of it although I declined the offer of a box to take the rest away in.

After eating we left the park and had a quick browse around World of Disney before returning to the room for a midday break. I spent some time uploading some more photos to Photobucket, browsing the hotel shop and updating my trip report before going back out at 5:40.

We had a wander down to the Disneyland Hotel and had a look around the shops there before strolling over to the Paradise Pier Hotel for a look around their shops. From the Paradise Pier we walked back to the Grand Californian and stopped off in the Hearthstone Lounge where Dad had his usual Margarita and I had a Zen and Zang, which is a concoction of Vodka, iced tea, cucumber purée and a dash of hot chilli sauce – it was something different and had a bit of a kick to it which was nice.

After our drink we went back upstairs for another break before going out again at 8:25. We headed back to Disneyland and towards the Rivers of America arriving at 8:45 for the 9:00 showing of Fantasmic. Thanks to a fantastic tip from a trip report I read on the Disneyland trip report boards here we had a great spot for Fantasmic and a pretty decent spot for the Remember Dreams Come True fireworks that followed straight after. The spot in question is opposite Café Orleans and is right behind a pillar that supports lights and speakers for the shows. Up until 10 minutes before show time these lights and speakers are on the ground blocking the view so people walk past thinking they are not going to be able to see. Once the lights are raised there is a perfect view across the river to where the action takes place.

After the fireworks we made our way round to Tomorrowland and at 9:55 entered the queue for Finding Nemo. Just 45 minutes later we were on the ride, which follows the plot of the film and is pretty similar to the old 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea attraction from WDW.

Once we came off the ride we returned to the hotel and were in bed by 11:30 knowing that we could have a lie-in tomorrow as Disney’s California Adventure doesn’t open until 10:00.

Tomorrow: Day 7 – Disney’s California Adventure

 

[Snowy-girls]

YAY you got to do Nemo at last .That sandwich tasted oh so good .x.

 

[Pinky166]

What a great day!

 

[Lizzybear]

Great day, I can't wait to go on Mr Toad's Wild Ride!

 

[SusanEllen]

Another day well done, David. Your photos taken inside the rides are exceptionally good.

I said a little, "Oh no!" when I got to the part about your heading for Fantasmic 15 minutes before it started--but then I'd never heard of the Fantasmic viewing spot trick you used to great advantage. I'm certainly going to remember it for my next trip, though. A dozen times through the years we made the effort to stake out a spot on the bridge over the Pirates entrance to get the most terrific view, usually managing to get one, but always at the cost of an hour or more of valuable park time. We would consider it an opportunity to rest and people watch and really didn't want to risk the rush and crush of people who pushed in at the last minute. Bless whoever tipped you (and now the rest of us) about that great spot.

 

[Strommie]

Another lovely day

 

[irongirlof12]

fab day, I can remember Mr toad's wild ride at WDW before it was replaced.

 

[natalielongstaff]

Great day David

 

[wilma-bride]

Great day David - sounds like a fantastic spot for Fantasmic viewing. I echo Susan in her thanks to whomever provided that little gem of info and hope to make use of it in the future

 

[Pugsly]

Great report, David! Can't wait for more - I'm hooked.

 

[mark&sue]

We went on the 20,000 leages ride at WDW in 1992 and did not think it was all that good. Is the new one any better?

Love reading your report, it is so descriptive


susan

 

[wickesy]

We went on the 20,000 leages ride at WDW in 1992 and did not think it was all that good. Is the new one any better?

Love reading your report, it is so descriptive


susan

To be honest I can't really remember the 20,000 leagues ride but to me Finding Nemo really isn't worth the wait and doesn't live up to the hype. Imagine The Sea with Nemo and Friends from WDW in a submarine rather than the clam-mobiles and you have Finding Nemo. It is basically sitting on a seat peering through a porthole watching some fish going by.

I'm probably being a bit harsh because it is difficult as an adult to suspend your disbelief when know that the submarines never actually go underwater, and the kids probably get more enjoyment out of it but I wouldn't rush to do it again.

 

[mark&sue]

David

Thats exactly what Mark always says about this ride whenever we look back at our old videos. We keep telling Kirsty that she never really missed anything so were amazed they bought it back.

Thanks for getting back so quickly as we off to the Indian in 20 mins!


Susan

 

[wickesy]

Bless whoever tipped you (and now the rest of us) about that great spot.

Great day David - sounds like a fantastic spot for Fantasmic viewing. I echo Susan in her thanks to whomever provided that little gem of info and hope to make use of it in the future

I really should have given a name check for the person I got this from - it was from a trip report on the Disneyland board here written by mommyof2boys1girl and although I know she in turn got it from somebody else I don't know now who that was. It certainly is a tip worth remembering though.

 

[tennisfan]

Another great day with fab photos

 

[florida sun]

Great day David, lovely photos

 

[jjk]

another fantastic day

 

[PudseyChancer]

Another busy day! Great photos again David, doing a good job of selling the West Coast to me!

 

[arieljasmine]

A lovely day, David. I loved trying all the rides which aren't at WDW. I was surprised by the Casey Jr train as the one at DLRP is so much faster. Your Fantasmic viewing spot sounds perfect. Glad you got to go on the Nemo ride. We enjoyed it but I do confess to falling asleep near the end!

Laur's