Disneyland news and rumors, November 2013

There have been a few changes made to the planning session of what the new Tomorrowland will look like according to MiceChat since my last post a few months ago. Also, it appears that a new "mini" land will be headed to California Adventure.

Tomorrowland
First, the plans to use the old PeopleMover track have apparently been scrapped probably due to the extreme amount of reinforcements that would have to be made to be sure it could handle a high speed ride. Now the tentative plans call for the Innoventions building to be gutted and used for the pre-show and boarding area for the new Speeder Bike thrill ride. The majority of the track would be out side and to the north where Autopia currently resides. I would be shocked if they actually took Autopia out, but according to the MiceChat report, that's precisely what they are considering. I would have to think that even if Disney goes through with this plan, they would simply move Autopia to another location, maybe Cars Land or by the Thunder Mountain Railroad where the Ranch is currently?

The Speeder Bike thrill ride will be based on the forest moon of Endor where the Ewoks live (from the Star Wars film, "Return of the Jedi" for you non-Star Wars fans out there) and an Ewok village and walk-through attraction will be built to house dining and shops. Disney's Imagineering team supposedly has dueling proposals for this area; one that keeps the current Monorail track as it is and disguises it amongst the Ewok forest, and one that cuts out much of the track and shortens the Monorail route to enhance more of the Ewok forest visuals.

Another Tomorrowland reported project is the removal of the Astro Orbiter from the entrance of the land which will help free up space to get in and out of Tomorrowland. The re-Imagineered Rocket Jets Spinner is currently planned to land on top of the Space Mountain Concourse, tying in with a repurposed Starcade upper level next door.

The old Rocket Jets spinner and PeopleMover platform is reportedly getting an extreme makeover its self, as a landing pad for a very popular spaceship...the Millennium Falcon. The Falcon will serve as a walk-through attraction as well as the meet and greet location for Chewbacca. Just below the landing platform where the Tomorrowland Terrace dining facility is currently, will be made over into the rowdy Cantina on Tattooine (from "A New Hope").

Monstropolis
This past summer, the attendance split between Disneyland and California Adventure was nearly 60/40 which is a HUGE jump from the normal 80/20 split it had been typically, visitors preferring Disneyland in large numbers. This amazing change can be attributed mainly to Cars Land. But since the jump in California Adventure attendance is more than anyone had foreseen, the Disney brass now sees a necessity in increasing park capacity by the creation of another "E-ticket" attraction. (An E-Ticket attraction is a ride that draws people to an area, such as Radiator Springs Racers or Indiana Jones). Doing so would help them decease overcrowding on other rides, specifically Radiator Springs Racers.

I an effort to create such an E-Ticket attraction, work is rumored to be close to getting underway for the creation of a Monstropolis land in the sleepy corner of HollywoodLand. The casualties would include the MuppetVision and Stage 17 buildings which would be replaced by the new E-Ticket thrill ride. Taking a concept originally cooked up a few years ago for Disney Hollywood Studios in Florida, the new thrill ride would be themed to the door hangar scene in the Monsters Inc. movie. The Monsters Inc. dark ride would remain although the façade of the building would be redone as the whole area will be transformed into a fully realized Monstropolis environment.

The "Studio Backlot" theme of this area would be removed entirely and the backsides of the Hollywood Blvd. facades would be built out and repurposed as new dining and shopping locations.

With the 60th Anniversary celebration set to get underway in 2015, work will undoubtedly be going on to some extent in both parks, though it will be much easier to hide in the corner of California Adventure. To what extent work is started on the Star Wars attractions in Tomorrowland by then remains to be seen. With the release of the new Star Wars film slated for December 18, 2015, it's possible that Disney will try to at least give Star Wars a bigger presence in the Area.  

Disneyland News and Rumors August 2013

Being the Disney nerd that I am, I decided to periodically post some of the latest news and rumors from various credible websites about ride updates and different construction plans within Disneyland and California Adventure.

Fantasyland
According to micechat.com, Disney has about $100 million earmarked for a renovation of the 5 Fantasyland dark rides, namely Peter Pan, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Snow White, Pinocchio, and Alice in Wonderland. Starting with Alice in Wonderland, each of these rides is tentatively scheduled to be closed for a few months in 2014, and maybe even a bit into the early part of 2015 so that they will be open and updated for Disneyland's 60th anniversary. The renovations will include installing upgraded animatronics, updating lighting and audio, and adding all new digital special effects.

For three years, Disney has debated and rethought how to fix the outdoor portion of the Alice in Wonderland track - specifically as it relates to heightening it's safety standards. Even though I have never really thought that it posses any sort of a risk, I'm sure it's just a matter of time before an unsupervised child gets out of the ride vehicle and falls off the 10 foot high track platform and is hurt. I suppose Disney had this in mind when they decided to redo this part of the track. As a side note, the outside portion of Alice is actually my kids favorite part of the ride so I hope they don't change it too much. Regardless, it is tentatively scheduled to be closed in January 2014 and then reopen in May with a new track.

Tomorrowland
Micechat.com also reports that a major renovation to Tomorrowland is close at hand. For a long time Disney has mulled over what to do with Tomorrowland. Until Disney's recent acquisition of Star Wars about a year ago, new Tomorrowland ride concepts were based on Tron and Marvel. Now, obviously, Tomorrowland plans include a much stronger Star Wars presence. Because of the size of the renovation to Tomorrowland, Disney has decided to divide it into two phases. Phase one would be completed in time for the 60th anniversary in 2015 and phase two would start after the celebration has concluded. Thus Tomorrowland won't be under construction during the anniversary celebration.

In phase one which is rumored to get underway this winter, Captain EO get's the axe and a new 3D Star Wars movie will appear in it's place. Since I can't remember ever going to see Captain EO, I'm not quite clear on if there is room in the old Captain EO space for anything else, but from what I've read, just a movie will replace it. Disney will also be visually enhancing the buildings around Space Mountain which, for the most part, have remained unchanged since 1967. All the work would theoretically be completed by early spring 2015, in time for the 60th anniversary. In addition to the new movie in place of Captain EO and the improved aesthetics, new destinations would also be programed into the Star Tours ride. These destinations would be based on the new Star Wars movie, Episode VII, which is set to be released in the summer of 2015.

Once the 60th celebration dies down, work on phase two of the Tomorrowland renovation would begin. This renovation offers the biggest and perhaps the most exciting change to Tomorrowland which includes once again using the old People Mover track that closed permanently in 2000. After the People Mover closed in 1995, Disney used the track for a race track type ride called Rocket Rods. Because of numerous technical problems, among other things, the Rocket Rods only lasted from 1998 through 2000. Though unused, the track has been repainted a couple of times and fairly well maintained. Disney will try it's hand at another coaster type ride on the People Mover track, this time with a Star Wars theme. It is rumored to be a speeder bike coaster, I'm assuming like the speeder bikes used in Return of the Jedi in the forest scenes. Much work would have to be done to the support structure of the track though, as the track wasn't built for a high speed attraction, as was discovered when the track started to weaken from use with the Rocket Rods. More Star Wars themed buildings would also be created during the phase two process.

Condor Flats
Meanwhile, despite the recent $1.1 Billion renovation that California Adventure received as a part of the Cars Land expansion, micechat.com reports that Disney will be shooting a new film to be used in Soarin' Over California. The new film will be entitled Soarin' The World. It will be shot in digital HD format, an upgrade from the 70mm film it currently uses. New footage of some of the world's most famous land marks will be used but, as a special touch for California Adventure, the ending will once again feature flyovers of the Disneyland and California Adventure Parks. The flyover filming will take place on the night of March 12th, 2014 for several hours via a helicopter with an HD Omnimax camera. The new film is slated to be used in conjunction with the 60th anniversary celebration in 2015. Condor Flats would also be re-themed to match more of the vintage timeframe that the Grizzly River Run received in 2012.

2013 Disneyland/CA Adventure Ride Stats

Our family of nine had 4 day park hopper tickets to Disneyland and CA Adventure. Our ages are 39, 37, 19, 15, 13, 10, 7, 6, and 4. Every year, each one of us keeps track of the rides we go on. The following is a breakdown of all the rides we went on based on the number of riders.

Rank	Attraction	Riders
1	Ariel's Undersea Adventure	49
2	Pirates of the Caribbean	41
3	Disneyland Railroad	17
T-4	Tea Cups	16
T-4	Tarzan's Tree house	16
T-4	Silly Symphony Swings	16
T-7	Winnie the Pooh	15
T-7	It's a Small World	15
T-7	Jungle Cruise	15
T-7	Splash Mountain	15
T-11	Peter Pan's Flight	14
T-11	Heimlich's Chew Chew Train	14
13	Soarin' Over California	13
T-14	King Arthur's Carousel	12
T-14	Mater's Junkyard Jamboree	12
T-14	Star Tours	12
T-17	Casey Jr Circus Train	10
T-17	Tuck and Roll's Drive 'Em Buggies	10
T-19	Monorail	9
T-19	Mr. Toad's Wild Ride	9
T-19	Radiator Springs Racers	9
T-19	Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular	9
T-19	Disney Junior: Live on Stage	9
T-24	Alice in Wonderland	8
T-24	California Screamin'	8
T-24	Sleeping Beauty Castle Walk Through	8
T-27	The Enchanted Tiki Room	7
T-27	Davey Crockett Explorer Canoes	7
T-29	Tower of Terror	6
T-29	Mickey's Fun Wheel	6
T-29	Luigi's Flying Tires	6
T-29	Main Street Vehicles	6
T-33	Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage	5
T-33	Space Mountain	5
T-33	Grizzly River Run	5
T-33	Haunted Mansion	5
T-33	Golden Zephyr	5
T-38	King Triton's Carousel	4
T-38	The Golden Horseshoe Stage	4
T-38	Flick's Fliers	4
T-38	Story Book Land Canal Boats	4
T-38	Royal Hall (Princess Greet)	4
T-43	Autopia	3
T-43	Matterhorn Bobsleds	3
T-43	Indiana Jones	3
T-43	Dumbo	3
T-47	Starcade	2
T-47	Goofy's Sky School	2

I also did a break down of which lands we spent the most time in, first in comparison to Disneyland and California Adventure, and then in comparison to all the lands within both parks. (One thing to note - Thunder Mountain Railroad was closed for refurbishment so Frontierland was quite a bit lower than normal)

Rank	Park	Total riders	% of Total
1	Disneyland	293	61.04%
2	CA Adventure	187	38.96%

Rank	Land	Total Riders	% of Total
1	Fantasyland	106	22.89%
2	Paradise Pier	90	19.44%
3	New Orleans Square	49	10.58%
4	Adventureland	42	9.07%
5	Tomorrowland	39	8.42%
6	Critter Country	37	7.99%
7	A Bugs Land	28	6.05%
8	Cars Land	27	5.83%
9	Hollywood Land	24	5.18%
10	Golden State	18	3.89%
11	Main Street	12	2.59%
T-12	Frontierland	4	0.86%
T-12	Mickey's Toontown	4	0.86%

How long of a stay will I need to see all there is to see at Disneyland?

Part of the question of "How long of a stay will I need to see all there is to see at Disneyland" depends on what days of the week you are planning to be there. You are able to see much more if you avoid weekends because the crowds are much larger on weekends. We always plan our trips from Monday-Thursday to avoid the large crowds.

There are 55 "attractions" in Disneyland, although really only 36 would be considered rides, and there are another 15 rides at California Adventure. When I talk about seeing all there is to see, I'm referring to both Disneyland and California Adventure since if you're going to Disneyland, you might as well get the park hopper ticket and go to CA Adventure too.

Lindsay with Trey and Shelby

The first time I took my step kids to Disneyland, Lindsay, my 14 year old at the time, was determined to go on every ride there was at both Disneyland and California Adventure. We were staying for 3 nights and had 4-day park hopper tickets so she didn't see why she wouldn't be able to do it. Even my wife found it hard to believe when I told her that there was no way she could do it.

It takes about a day to familiarize your self with the layout of the land if you've never been there before. As funny as this may sound, it's advantageous to look at a map of the park (maps can be found at disneyland.com), and even print one out and study it, before you go. That way when you get there, you spend less time walking around trying to find a certain ride you want to go on and more time going on the rides. With that said though, we spent part of the first day just taking everything in - taking our time and looking at all the details in the construction that makes Disneyland the magical place that it is.

After getting back to the hotel room the first night, we planned out where we wanted to go and what we wanted to do the next day, including what rides we wanted to go on again and what parts of the park we wanted to go to that we didn't see the first day. That helped us make the most of every second.

Mickey's Soundsational Parade

The third day was more of the same - going on favorite rides, trying out new ones, and exploring the park - and the fourth day involved just running around early getting in as much as we could before we had to leave, and then once again taking it all in and creating pictures in our minds to remember until returning the next year.

Another thing to consider when deciding on how long of a visit to plan is that to see all of the parades and night time entertainment such as Fantasmic, The World of Color, Fireworks, and The Magic the Memories and You, you'll need AT LEAST two days to see it all. And to see the shows requires saving seats for a half hour to an hour which cuts into the time you have to go on rides.

Four days is the perfect amount of time for my family to see all there is to see because we don't feel extremely rushed the first couple of days since we know we have a couple more left. Three days would be the minimum I would suggest if visiting for the first time, and even three days didn't feel like enough time for us in 2016 when we tried switching from 4 days to 3. One day would just be enough to leave you frustrated that you didn't see all that you wanted to, and two days, while maybe giving you time to physically see all the parts of both parks still wouldn't give you enough time to really feel and enjoy both parks.  

When is the best time to visit Disneyland?

The best time to visit Disneyland depends on what your goals are. Are they to avoid the crowds? To be there when all the rides are open? Or maybe to see how the park is set up for Christmas or Halloween? I'll do my best in this post to summarize some of the pros and cons of visiting the park during different times of the year. What days of the week to visit the park merit some discussion as well.

Update: August 14, 2019:
While there are many useful tidbits in the following post that was originally posted in 2013, with the addition of annual pass payment plans and other changes in pricing, it's really hard to say what days of the week are the best to visit on. Really the best thing to do is to look at the Annual Pass block-out calendar on Disneyland.com and book your vacation when the Deluxe and below annual passes are blocked out. Also, and I can't emphasize this point enough, get to Disneyland at least 30 minutes before the park opens. Disney starts letting people into the park 15 minutes before opening. The "rope drop" then takes place inside the park right at opening time. The rope drop itself is a very magical experience but most importantly, this is the time when Disneyland is least busy. The first 2 hours are crucial to getting on many of the big attractions with minimal waits or to be able to walk on many other attractions. Typically attendance peaks around 2:00pm. It then usually decreases bit by bit until it is manageable again about 2 hours before close on most nights (although this may not be true when special parades are brought back such as the Main Street Electrical Parade or Paint the Night). So, long story short, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE MORNINGS! 

Disneyland is most crowded on any normal given week on weekends. Accordingly, if at all possible, arrange your visit toward the beginning of the week. We normally get to our hotel late Sunday afternoon/early evening, pick up our park tickets at the ticketbooth which we've already ordered from getawaytoday.com, and stroll along the downtown Disney district. We try to get to bed early as we will need our sleep for the next 4 days! We spend all day and night Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday in the park, and Thursday morning as well, before checking out of our hotel and either heading south to Sea World or back home to Utah. (UPDATE: In May 2016, Disneyland changed their pricing structure, charging more money on weekends in an attempt to more evenly distribute it's guests across the entire week. So far it has worked. In 2016 we attended Disneyland on a Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday and Sunday, which typically would have been the most crowded day in years past, was the least busy. So it seems that in the early stages of the new pricing structure, Disney's strategy is working. Now the time of day (going in the early mornings and late evenings) is a more important factor to avoid large crowds that the day of the week).

In the past, I always enjoyed going in the early part of June, just before most of the California Schools got out for the summer. Unlike Disney World in Florida which is more of a tourist destination, much of Disneyland's attendance comes from local Southern Californians. So one way to beat the crowds is to research when the LA School District lets the kids out of school for the summer and try to get there a week or two before. That had worked very well for us, other then two years ago when Thunder Mountain Railroad was closed for refurbishment until the day after we left. That's the drawback of going in early June - you never know what rides are going to be closed.

Typically during the peak times (mid June through August and major holiday times) Disneyland will make sure that no rides are closed for refurbishment. An exception to this is when Disneyland completes major renovations on rides which makes it necessary to close the attraction for an extended period of time. For example, in 2013, Disneyland completed a major renovation on Thunder Mountain and it was closed from Jan 7th through the fall. Also in 2015, Peter Pan didn't open until July 1st after the refurbishment process took longer than expected. The Disneyland website will list their refurbishment schedule about a month and a half early which, for people who plan their vacations well in advance like my self, is about 4 months too late.

In 2000, we thought it would be fun to visit Disneyland for the 4th of July. Never have I felt more like a sardine swimming upstream against a school of salmon then I did after the fireworks show was over! Needless to say, I won't be going back on the fourth of July, and I definitely don't recommend it for others! There is a very nice fireworks show on nights that the park stays open late, which is most nights in the summer.

My mom, a local, used to go to Disneyland every year on Christmas after I had moved out to college in the 1990's. She mentioned that she loved going because the crowds were minimal. Not any more!I've never been there around the holidays, but from what I read, now the crowds are pretty big since most schools are out. Also, the holiday lights and decorations at Disneyland around Christmas are a big draw to a lot of people since it's only a seasonal thing (usually from just after Thanksgiving until the first Monday in January).  Disneyland didn't decorate as much for the holidays back when my mom used to go on Christmas which may be one of the reasons the crowds weren't as big then.

From the middle of September to the end of October, Disneyland is transformed for Halloween. The rides that are the primary focus are the Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, and the Tower of Terror. Halloween isn't my cup of tea so I've never been to Disneyland around Halloween time, but from what I hear, the crowds do pick up a little to see the changes to the park.

The first two weeks of November is a great time to avoid crowds. This is the time when Disneyland is busy taking down the Halloween decorations and starts putting up the Christmas decorations. It is the short lull in between holidays. Because of this, some of the rides close to get ready for the holidays so be prepared to possibly miss some of your favorite rides. A couple of the rides that are transformed for the holidays are Small World and Jungle Cruise while the rides that were re-themed for Halloween are also transformed back to normal.

Typically Spring Break in March is also a time to avoid if at all possible since the lines for rides can be longer than normal. Again, check to see when the LA School District's Spring Break is, because that is the time to avoid. In early spring, it is common for Disneyland to be refurbishing it's water rides such as Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run since the weather is still a little cold for water rides.

An important part of planning any Disneyland trip is to make sure you plan your visit when the park stays open late. Even if it's just for one night, and even if you have little kids - take them back for a nap around mid day - there is something special about Disneyland after dark. From the lights on Main Street, to Sleeping Beauty's Castle all lit up, to Fantasmic, to It's a Small world lit up, to the fireworks - there is just a special feeling. Night time at Disneyland is one of my favorite memories from my childhood. And despite being completely worn out as a parent of a 6 year old, 5 year old, and 3 year old when the day is over at Disneyland, I enjoy the walk back to our hotel room, watching the kids happily dance along as we start heading back to the hotel, and then watching as one or two of them has completely fallen asleep in the double stroller by the time we get to our room.

A new and glaring issue facing Disneyland is their Annual Pass problem. With the number of Disneyland's Annual Passes issued estimated at close to 1 million, their current Annual Pass program has led to massive overcrowding. As of February 2017, Disneyland sells its bottom tier annual pass (SoCal select) to southern California residents for $339. That's $11 CHEAPER than what a regular guest has to pay for a 5 day park hopper ticket! To make matters even worse, Disneyland allows "payment plans" after a down payment. So not only do southern California residents get 170 days for $11 cheaper than out-of-town guests get 5 days, but they end up only paying about $21 per month after about a $100 down payment. What that means is many southern Californians wisely take advantage of this deal and create a massive overcrowding problem on days that were typically considered "off-season" at the time I originally wrote this post.

Because the lowest tier annual pass is blocked out for the majority of the busy summer months and the holiday times, it is much more common now for Disneyland to be busy when you typically wouldn't think it would be. The best thing to do is to go to Disneyland's website or google "Disneyland Annual Pass blackout dates" and try to plan your vacation when the Southern California and Southern California Select Annual Passports are blocked out. It is estimated that of the 1 million annual passports sold, about 75% fall into one of these two categories. By going when these annual passports are blocked out, you might encounter more out-of-towners, but will probably be able to enjoy a slightly less crowded Disneyland.

In summary, my favorite time to go to Disneyland used to be the first couple of weeks in June, right when the park has started staying open later at night. This was the best time to avoid large crowds, while at the same time taking advantage of the magical Disney nights. The only drawback to going at this time was that one or two rides might be closed for refurbishment. But with all the rides and attractions, even when Thunder Mountain was closed in 2013 when we went, we still weren't able to see all there was to see and do! Now that the Annual Passes are part of the equation, make sure to book your vacation around when the Southern California Select Annual Passport is blocked out, and you should be able to have a little more room to move around the park!