Christmas time at Disneyland: A Trip Report

The magic of Disneyland is definitely enhanced during the Christmas holiday. Unfortunately so are the crowds! But if you can handle the additional people and manage your time wisely, you will experience quite a different Disneyland than you'll see at any other time of the year. We were fortunate (or unfortunate depending on your point of view) to experience Disneyland in the rain this holiday season. The rain started right as we pulled into the Toy Story parking lot at 7:45am, and didn't let up until about 2:00pm. The $10 poncho's did their job and we were able to enjoy Disneyland with slightly lighter crowds than normal for this typically busy time of the year.

After I left for college, my Mom started going to Disneyland frequently over the Christmas vacation period (She was a school teacher). Disneyland didn't start decorating for Christmas until 1997 so I never witnessed the Holiday overlay until 2016. It exceeded my expectations!

Disneyland is transformed for the holidays to capture the magic of Christmas by adding a giant Christmas tree just inside the park, by decorating the exterior of Sleeping Beauty's Castle as well as all of Main Street, and by including a Santa meet and greet in Critter Country. But the festive changes to the park not only include the exterior of buildings - they also include changes made to the interior of certain rides such as the Jungle Cruise, It's a Small World, and the Haunted Mansion. In 2016, the holiday changes will last through January 8th. Here's a look at Disneyland during Christmas time!

The umbrella's were out and poncho's were selling like hotcakes on this rainy morning!

The Christmas decor on the castle looked great!

During the day, the light strands hanging off the castle looked a little like moss...but at night when they were all lit up, they looked incredible!

Autopia remained closed through the early afternoon due to the inclement weather.

Work continues to be done on Tom Sawyer Island to get it ready for the return of Fantasmic! in Summer 2017.

Here's a closer look...

On the left-center of the picture you can see a lighter colored tarp. Behind it, the Sailing Ship Columbia is docked in Fowler Harbor receiving the necessary updates to accommodate the new Pirates of the Caribbean scene which is rumored to be replacing the Peter Pan scene in Fantasmic!

Here's a closer look...

The Haunted Mansion Holiday has been up since before Halloween and lines for the Haunted mansion seemed slightly longer throughout the day than they are in the summer time for the classic version.

Another look at the Haunted Mansion with the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay.

Work is also being done on the Disneyland Railroad track in Critter Country. I love how they have helped tie in the construction by using the painted tarps so it's not such an eye sore.

A little further in Critter Country, the Winnie the Pooh meet and greet has been turned into the Santa meet and greet.

I'm assuming this is where Santa typically meets the kids on good weather days...

...but this is where he had taken up residence when we were there, probably due to the rain. Candy canes were handed out to all guests who met Santa. 

Although the Disneyland Railroad is currently closed, the New Orleans Square Train Station has many fascinating displays to take in. In talking to one of the cast members, I was informed that there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony on July 17, 2017 to celebrate the re-opening of the Disneyland Railroad. The cast member also mentioned that the new track will be about 1100 feet LONGER than the old track and will add about 5-6 minutes on to the ride - instead of 24 minutes, the new ride will take about 30 minutes. There will also be a new tunnel before the Toon Town train station. The tunnel that was there previously is no more and in it's place is a new tunnel with unique rock formations and, according to this cast member, perhaps even bubbling paint pots in the likeness of the the ones that existed back during the days of the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland! He mentioned that none of this has been confirmed by Disney, but all the Railroad cast members believe that it will happen and are extremely excited about the tribute to the past. 

You can actually cross to the other side of the railroad tracks - something that you typically aren't able to do when the Railroad is up and running. You can see the cast members that are available to give you as much or as little information about the trains as you would like. They are extremely knowledgeable! 

Here's a look at one of the information boards across the railroad tracks.

Looking back towards Disneyland from the other side of the tracks.

A look into the tunnel leaving the New Orleans Square Train Station.

I had to get a picture by engine #2. This was the actual engine that Walt Disney himself rode in on opening day as he came in to address the crowd. 

Now on to the Jungle Cruise - or the Jingle Cruise, as it shows on the sign. I had heard mixed reviews on the holiday overlay on the Jingle Cruise but I absolutely loved the new temporary look and story! 

Signs at the entrance start the story as to why there are Christmas decorations spread throughout the attraction. 

Here's the other new sign...

A look at a cool authentic-looking sign in the entry way...

...and the sign on the other side of the entry way.

The boats are renamed for the Holidays. The 'Kissimmee Kate' is now the 'Kissimmee Under the Mistetoe.' Other boats we saw were 'Sugar Plum Lady' and 'Navidad Adventuress.'

Unfortunately the pictures I took of the best parts of the attraction were blurry, but here are a few to show some of the overlay. 

The elephants used the bells to make some Christmas music. They played it by ear...

"No, no, Mr Rhino! The star goes on the top of the tree, not in the bottom..."

Alice in Wonderland was closed all day due to the inclement weather but that didn't stop this guy from smiling.

The tea cups also remained closed the entire day.

The giant Christmas tree is located just after you pass under the Main Street Train Station. In makes an amazing backdrop as you walk from the Castle back towards the entrance of the park.

It's a Small World was absolutely breathtaking! Inside of the ride the song 'Jingle Bells' was mixed in with the normal Small World song just perfectly! And the festive decorations that were added were just the right touch to make the ride feel "Christmassy" while not detracting from the special Small World feeling.

Here's a closer look. We went on Small World first thing in the morning since it's my 2 year old's favorite ride, and it's a good thing we did! When we returned to ride it again in the afternoon, the line was insane! It wrapped in and around and back and forth through the trees to the south of the attraction. We had to look to make sure that it really was the line for Small World because it wound its way so far away from the ride itself!

Here's a look down Main Street with Sleeping Beauty Castle in the Background.

And here's a close-up of the Castle. It was really beautiful all lit up!

Star Wars Land Construction

No update would be complete without a couple of pictures from Star Wars Land!

Here's a glimpse over the fence on the way to Critter Country...

...and a closer look. You can see the rock formations starting to take shape!

Here's a look through a knot in the fence that was just wide enough for my camera to capture it. The bridge you can see in the center of the picture is the new track for the Disneyland Railroad. There will be a waterfall coming off of the rocks behind the tracks and running under them into the Rivers of America.

Well, that about wraps up our Christmas Disney trip! I now understand why my Mom loved Disneyland so much during the holidays! Thanks for reading!