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September 12, 2008
Disneyland Trip Report
 Elaine and I had our first anniversary this week, and, to celebrate, we decided to take a quickie jaunt down to The Happiest Place On Earth with a few good friends.
The trip was Friday-to-Tuesday, so we had plenty of time to see, well, everything at both Disneyland and California Adventure, plus do some sleepin' in and hangin' out.
A few notes:
- Just one weekend after Labor Day, and Disneyland's attendance was noticeably low. Most rides were walk-ons, with the occasional 10-minute wait. We managed to ride every major attraction (Space Mountain, Matterhorn, Indiana Jones, Splash Mountain, Tower Of Terror, California Screamin', etc.) in both of the parks on Saturday alone.
- The noticeable exception to the walk-on rule was Toy Story Mania, which sported 25-to-45-minute lines for the duration of the trip. Good reason, too: the ride is incredible. It's fun, engaging, wildly imaginative, competitive, and full of Easter Eggs and unlocks. Kids love the graphics and the "Toy Story" characters, adults love the games themselves, and the Type A's (that's, uh, me) love the thrill of beating their previous scores. Put that together and you'll have a long line on this puppy for a good while to come.
- We also tried the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, and, while I liked it fine, I wasn't blown away. Aside from the submarine-nostalgia factor for the adults, this one's really more for the kids (all of whom on our boat were shrieking and cheering for Nemo, Dori, etc.).
- The single best thing we did on the trip was "Cruzin' Disney's California Adventure", which is a private Disney tour that we found on the Disneyland Web site. It's a 2-hour, before-the-park-opens tour of California Adventure on Segways. And it rocks. There were 7 folks in our group; each person got their own Segway to tool around on. After spending the first hour or so getting familiar with the Segway and its operation (you do basic skills tests, like navigating tight corners and stopping on inclines), the group zoomed around DCA's various lands to get acquainted with the park and its history. The tour ends with a complimentary photo in front of Paradise Pier. This was easily the coolest thing I've ever done at Disneyland. If you're heading to Disneyland, don't miss it.
- At long last, we managed to get over to the Blue Bayou to try their (legendary) Monte Cristo sandwich. I've been hearing about these sandwiches for a long, long time now, and was pretty jazzed to finally see what all the fuss was about. My verdict? Well, it tastes like a super-heavyweight ham-and-cheese doughnut. Really. Battered, deep-fried, served with jelly ... I'm glad I had one, but it's not my taste. (And I'm now firmly convinced that "The Count Of Monte Cristo" refers to cholesterol.)
- A broader point about dining - one thing that disappointed me on this trip was the food. I don't mind paying top dollar for meals at the Disney parks (it's expected), but what I do mind is not being able to get anything tasty, even at some of the restaurants outside the parks. We hit a number of different places over our stay, and there's a kind of bland sameness to a lot of the meals. I don't remember this from previous trips, so I'm wondering if a gaggle of MBAs got their hands on the restaurant menus and started cutting costs. It's doubly disappointing given our recent (excellent) experience at Silverwood, whose food was not just tasty, but reasonably priced as well.
- Notable exception to my food complaint: Napa Rose, the high-end restaurant at the Grand Californian Hotel. We had our anniversary dinner there, and it was fantastic.
- The "Remember..." fireworks show at Disneyland is a can't-miss. Carve out a space on Main Street a good half-hour before the show, minimum.
- Having a bit more time in the parks meant that we finally made the effort to see some of the smaller, non-E-Ticket stuff that we'd missed in the past. We spent time in Fantasyland doing "Alice in Wonderland" and "Storybookland Canal Boats" (and yes, we did both the tortilla-making and bread-baking "attractions" at DCA). It was nice, relaxed ... I'm glad we took the time.
- We also ducked in to the new-and-improved "Innoventions" (featuring the Microsoft Home), which, I'm sad to say, is pretty terrible. There's lots of whizzy stuff to look at and walk past, but much of it is incomprehensible as a useful technology showcase. It's Das Blinkenlights with leather couches. Give it a miss.
- As I walked around the parks, I was very cognizant of the fact that DCA is about to be reborn. Golden Dreams shut down permanently on Saturday, and will be replaced by the new "Little Mermaid" attraction; the Wine Country Trattoria will soon be shuttered to house the new DCA Preview Center. It was strange to think that we were seeing the last days of the park before it's ripped up and rebuilt into something a lot, lot better.
- There is not one good cup of coffee to be found within 2 miles of Disneyland.
- Strange to say, but this place never gets old.
I don't know when we're heading back to Anaheim, but I suspect it will be a while. I can't wait to see what DCA looks like when we get there.
Posted by Gavin Shearer at September 12, 2008 9:38 AM. Posted to Disney | Travel.
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The crap food is nothing new. After three years of having annual passes, I can definitely say that the overpriced mediocre food has been the norm the whole time. It got to the point where the only place we'd eat is at the Grand Californian's restaurants.
Posted by: ginawallace at September 12, 2008 7:22 PM
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