You may love the attraction, or you may hate it, but Captain EO is leaving Walt Disney World very soon. On December 6th, the attraction, which returned to the park after the death of the attraction’s star, Michael Jackson, and has stayed since then will close for good.
Image via Disney Parks Blog
In recent months, the Golden Eye Theater has largely been used to display previews for new Disney and Pixar movies. Both Inside Out and Tomorrowland had preview films playing there. Now, it seems Disney is turning this into a more permanent event.
Replacing Captain EO in the Golden Eye Theater will be a brand new movie experience. Inside, guests will soon be able to view Disney and Pixar animated shorts!
As part of the changes to the theater, it will be converted to a 4D theater from its current 3D state. Opening this December, this renovation definitely sounds like it will be an interesting and fast way to improve an existing attraction! I’m glad it will be open by the Holidays so I can experience it!
What do you think about this new twist on the Golden Eye theater? Let us know by commenting below! Be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter! You can also find us on Periscope, YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Finally, TP&T is now available on Apple News! Just search “Theme Parks and Travels” in the app, and hit the subscribe button!
In August of 2015, the TP&T team hopped on a plane and flew out for an incredible adventure in California. The visit included visiting several of Southern California’s incredible list of theme parks and learning about the history of the Walt Disney Company. In our visit, we went to The Jim Henson Company, Walt Disney Studios, Imagineering, various Hollywood attractions, and the Disneyland resort as part of the Adventures by Disney Backstage Magic tour. After the five day tour, we continued our journey as we visited Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal Studios, and Six Flags Magic Mountain before returning home. In this article and several other articles full of photos, we invite you to join us in TP&T’s California Adventure! So sit back, relax, and get ready to journey into the Wonderful World of the entertainment industry!
For those of you first reading this series, welcome! I strongly recommend reading some of the previous articles. Links are below!
Part 1 – Hollywood – We visit several Hollywood destinations as our Backstage Magic tour begins! Enjoy photos and information from Disney Studios and our fantastic visit to Imagineering. You can find the article here!
Part 2 – An Evening in Disneyland – In this trip report, we journeyed through endless traffic on the Los Angeles highways and wound up at the happiest place on earth, Disneyland! This article will take you within the gates of the original theme park as we spend a very exciting evening in the park. You can find the article here!
Part 3 – A Day in the Happiest Place on Earth – With this photo update, you follow us into the original theme park as we venture through a park filled with hidden finds and awesome attractions. Oh yeah, we also went into the Dream Suite (and I have pics)! You can read the trip report here!
BONUS – I’ve got a Fantasmic! video up on the YouTube Channel! You can view the video here!
Just in case you couldn’t tell from the title, our next leg of the California trip brought us to Disney California Adventure. After our long day in Disneyland, we got some sleep, and woke up early the next day to meet with the Adventures by Disney group. After getting ready, we had a character breakfast at the Grand Californian, and made our way into the park!
It was early in the day when we entered Disney California Adventure, which meant that the Grizzly Peak section of the park looked beautiful with the light!
We were unsure of where we were going, but our Adventure Guides took us over to Grizzly Peak Airfield.
I have to say, the area looked like an airport, but it was not the best themed Disney land.
In the distance, the glamorous 1930s Hollywood soared above the park.
Soon, we were told we would be riding Soarin’ over California!
The buildings were nicely themed and fit very well into the land as a whole.
We talked with a member of the Soarin’ maintenance team, and then the group was escorted into the massive building.
We rode Soarin’, which had been updated with new 4K projectors as part of the ride’s recent renovation. As always, it was a fun attraction that fit very well into the area. It was also nice that we didn’t have to wait for it like we did in Florida! Afterwards, we were told to stay in the area, so I got this unique shot of what it looks like above Soarin’.
Soon, we were escorted behind the projector for the ride! Although I was unable to take pictures, I did find this picture via InPark Magazine
Vekoma also had a good picture that could show what we experienced back there. They let us stay down there during a ride through of the attraction, so we got a nice view of how it works. Although the ride has minimal movements, it really creates an immersive experience. The cars appear to travel up and down a little bit and tilt from side to side. That’s all it took. A few tricks are also used on the ride to create the illusion of flight, one of which was that when tilting to the left, the car on the right is highest, and left is lowest, which adds to the effect.
Next, we went into the backstage areas of Soarin’. Inside, they showed us the chemicals they use to recreate smells and showed us the erector kit model that the ride was based on. The chemicals come in a salt-like form from what I remember. When Soarin’ Around the World flies in next year (read that last sentence again if you didn’t notice the pun), I expect to smell all around the world!
After soaring over California, it was time for everyone’s favorite place, the restroom! By that point in the day, we knew about an unannounced Disney ride (at the time), Soarin’ Around the World. That’s right folks, I reported it two whole days before it was announced (we were at DCA August 13th, it was announced August 15th)! Anyway, now that I’m done bragging, I’d like to share my thoughts on the coming attraction. It will be great in Shanghai and Epcot, but terrible in DCA. The ride is in a park themed to California, and the land was just renovated to fit even more closely to many of the places featured in the ride (Sequoia/Yosemite). I’m sorry, but I think that explains it all.
Anyway, I think that concludes my Soarin’ rant. Everyone’s said what I said before, but I just thought I’d say it too. I loved the rock work in the land. It looked fantastic in the morning light!
The buildings were the perfect colors and style too. I think the renovation looks fantastic.
While waiting in Grizzly Peak Airfield, I caught a glimpse of our next destination, Carthay Circle.
In the park’s “hub,” guests were starting to pour in.
Standing up above was the beautiful Carthay restaurant!
The decorations on the building for Disneyland’s 60th Anniversary looked fantastic!
Inside, we took a long tour of the restaurant. Inside, there are a number of pictures of Walt and interesting details hidden throughout. Just look at the tabletops, you may notice something in the wood!
After a while of touring the restaurant, I was yearning to ride something. It looked like we were done, but we had another stop on the restaurant tour.
We entered DCA’s exclusive Club 1901, which is what the Adventure guides described to us as “Platinum Level Club 33.” Although the inside was beautiful, I needed a thrill (or a soda, but they weren’t giving us food/drink because it appeared to be closed).
Finally, after an hour of touring the restaurant, we began our walk to the next attraction!
The moment we got here, I was incredibly excited!
We entered the beautiful Radiator Springs, which is one of the best theme park lands out there (and that’s coming from someone who hates the movie Cars)!
The land looked as if it was straight out of the movie, assuming you replace Cars with people, and stick about quadruple the population of the town into it.
The Cozy Cone was one of the nicest looking buildings in town, I just wish they’d made it a real hotel!
Flo’s Cafe looked just like the one in the movie.
It reminds me of a nicer version of Sonic. 🙂
I wonder how many people have tried to knock down this tower?
Overall, Radiator Springs was a beautiful land. Disney added several little details to enhance the land as they always do. Some of the most noticeable details were how the stoplight flashes slightly longer one time than the others, and when night comes the land lights up slowly in segments.
Finally, it was time for an attraction! Half the group went backstage while half of us walked up to Radiator Springs Racers! The “Paddle of Power” photobombed my shot, I tried three times and I missed getting an unobstructed picture for different reasons every time.
The queue for the ride was beautiful!
On my one ride, I filmed a mounted POV of Radiator Springs Racers! I do not recommend doing this unless you are experienced with filming rides. I used a GoPro Jaws Flex Clamp mount and attached it quickly and easily to a bar on the ride. I am saying this because this is probably the easiest and only way you can do what I did. There was nothing in the rules of the park at the time saying this was not allowed (and as far as I know it still is allowed), and our Adventure Guides found out afterwards and did not say it was bad, but instead said how awesome that was. As far as I could tell, everything was okay, but I urge not to film without experience in that manner (I’ve done a couple of mount tests before on a car).
Here’s a fun game, is it Radiator Springs Racers or is it real?
How about this one?
Last, but not least, this one! Be sure to comment below or send us your answers on Twitter!
Radiator Springs Racers was an incredible attraction. It brought Test Track to a new level. The racing aspect, rock work, indoor theming, and a course that wasn’t just a circle all combined into a fantastic ride!
Shortly afterwards, we were escorted behind the ride and into the machine room of Radiator Springs Racers. Inside, we learned bit about what they do for maintenance and how the ride works. Essentially, these cars are a disaster for maintenance. Frequently, they are taken into the shop and are completely rebuilt (I believe this is every nine months, but I can’t remember). After the extensive rehab, which takes weeks, but used to take much longer than it does now, the cars return to regular circulation. There are SEVERAL cars on the ride and in maintenance at once.
Radiator Springs Racers also has one of the most detailed control panels available in its maintenance shop. The televisions within display every aspect of the ride for the crews to view. The animatronics frequently break and are repaired overnight. I believe two of them were down by the time we rode.
After the backstage adventure, we walked through cast member only zones and into Paradise Pier. There, we waited for the remainder of the group before our next attraction.
That next attraction was Toy Story Midway Mania. The entire tour group was brought onto the ride. Due to the fact that I was sitting next to an Adventure Guide who helped expose some of the secrets of the game for me, I proudly beat the rest of the TP&T crew!
While in Paradise Pier, California Screamin’ was down (it was testing in this picture).
Since we were getting hungry, we decided to go grab some lunch!
The hot California sun didn’t help our thirst either as the tour group dispersed (with five any-attraction fastpasses)!
Using the Disneyland app, we found a nice sit down restaurant in the white building.
The Cove bar had delicious food with a beautiful view of Paradise Pier. Food options were mainly appetizers, but the sliders, pizza, and spinach and artichoke dip were all delicious. The service was very good too!
Mickey’s Fun wheel was one of the few attractions I wished I had rode, but didn’t get to ride while at Disney California Adventure.
Testing continued throughout lunch, that ride has a lot of trains running at once!
During lunch, the ride reopened, and waits instantly soared up to thirty minutes or so.
I love the California Screamin’ logo!
California Screamin’ was one great Intamin! It really is what ties Paradise Pier together as a land. It was a very smooth, long, and flat out fun ride!
Speaking of California Screamin’, I filmed a POV of the awesome coaster! Unfortunately, my GoPro mount broke (literally, the main container holding the GoPro) before I got on. Unfortunately, I had to hold onto the camera throughout the ride, but luckily the footage still turned out pretty good!
I have to say, the new DCA is just a beautiful park. If Hollywood Studios looks like this once it’s complete, my excitement will be through the roof!
Across the way from California Screamin’, it was time for us to venture Under the Sea!
I thought The Little Mermaid was a fun attraction. It essentially summarized the entire movie for guests, but it is definitely a good dark ride for the little kids!
The building also had some beautiful architectural details!
After riding the Little Mermaid, we walked our way around Grizzly Peak trying to get into Hollywood. I’m not sure why, but we did take that long route!
Grizzly Peak reminded me of Yellowstone!
Even the plants fit in perfectly with the rapids ride!
It almost looked like a hot spring back there.
Passing through the hub again, the crowds were noticeably lower than before.
Overall, Hollywood Land was a decently themed area.
The facades looked great, with designs that look much better than those of actual Los Angeles.
Even Disney Junior fit well into the land.
The only problem with the land was this. I think the painting is very well done, but it just doesn’t fit well enough into the landscape of the town. I understand doing this at a place like Hollywood Studios, where the Streets of America represent a movie lot, but they should have placed an actual facade here.
It was time to be terror-fied! 🙂
We entered the queue, went through the pre-show, and entered the service room for the hotel. All of a sudden, we were going upstairs into a second service room above. It was strange, but it made sense to increase loading capacity. The ride started with a move backwards into the ride’s scenes. Eventually, you make your way up, and quickly transition into the drop sequence (unlike the Florida ride, which features a forward moving section of the drop tower). In this version, I felt like the drop sequence was longer, which is great. I love the drop on these rides, and they are the only drop towers I’ve ever enjoyed.
It was getting late and hot that afternoon. While some members of the tour took advantage of reserved seating at the Aladdin show, we went for a ride on Monsters Inc! Like Ariel, it was another fun ride that essentially summarized the movie. These two rides bring the classic dark ride into a modern context.
Since we were going back for a break in the hotel, we walked down through Grizzly Peak.
Using one of the fastpasses, I got one soaking and fun ride on the park’s water ride! I loved it! In my opinion, it was very comparable to Animal Kingdom’s Kali River Rapids (although I haven’t been on that in a while). I liked the overall theme more, and would rank this slightly above.
As it got late in the evening, we relaxed in our room for a little while before returning into the park for dinner and some more fun! Included in our tour was a meal at the Carthay Circle restaurant (as you recall, I “loved” touring it). Unfortunately, the service was slow, but my meal was okay. I had one of three items listed on the limited menu they gave us, the chicken. The meal just took a lot of time (and if you don’t have my diet coke out within fifteen minutes from me ordering it, that brings you down several points in my book).
We finished the meal, and moved on to Paradise Pier for the evening’s showing of World of Color! Meanwhile, our friends from Extended Queue also happened to be in the park that night (sadly, we didn’t bump into them). Adventures by Disney then brought us to a reserved area with a great view of the show. Overall, it was a decent show. Essentially, it was a very long Disney commercial. I wouldn’t say NPH ruined the show, but I would say that it wasn’t as good as some of the other shows at the Disneyland Resort due to the nature of it. It had a high emphasis on Frozen (we were “privileged” to listen to the entirety of “Let it Go”) and otherwise it was mostly a Disneyland commercial. Not particularly exciting.
Afterwards, it was almost time to go. While the rest of the group went back to the hotel, I got one more ride in on Soarin’ before I left. Although the people surrounding me on the attraction were rude and annoying (leaning on me, swearing loudly with young kids near them, and swinging the car while cast members requested for them to stop), it was still a magnificent ride. It was a great way to end my visit to the Disneyland Resort. The next day, we’d head down the road to what was once a family owned berry farm!
What did you say for the questions earlier in the update? Let us know by commenting below! Also, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter! You can also find us on Periscope, YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! TP&T is now available on Apple News! Just search “Theme Parks and Travels” in the app, and hit the subscribe button!
That’s right, if you want to buy a custom MagicBand on your trip to Walt Disney World, you now can. The new MagicBand on Demand station opened recently in the Tomorrowland Power & Light Co. building, which is located next to the exit of Space Mountain.
Inside, guests can choose from eight colors and over forty graphics to create their own personalized MagicBand. At the end of the process, the MagicBand can be customized to include the guest’s name.
In addition to customization of MagicBands, the location will also feature the ability to customize a D-Tech phone case. The price of these MagicBands is $21.95, and the addition of a name will bump that up to $29.95.
Overall, this sounds like a pretty cool new way to customize your experience at Walt Disney World, but I’m not sure that I would pay over $20 to customize something I will only wear on my trip to Disney World. It’s overpriced unless you will be visiting multiple times throughout the year (and even then I’m not sure it’s worth it).
What do you think of these customizable MagicBands? Let us know by commenting below! Also, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter! You can also find us on Periscope, YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr!
In August of 2015, the TP&T team hopped on a plane and flew out for an incredible adventure in California. The visit included visiting several of Southern California’s incredible list of theme parks and learning about the history of the Walt Disney Company. In our visit, we went to The Jim Henson Company, Walt Disney Studios, Imagineering, various Hollywood attractions, and the Disneyland resort as part of the Adventures by Disney Backstage Magic tour. After the five day tour, we continued our journey as we visited Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal Studios, and Six Flags Magic Mountain before returning home. In this article and several other articles full of photos, we invite you to join us in TP&T’s California Adventure! So sit back, relax, and get ready to journey into the Wonderful World of the entertainment industry!
For those of you first reading this series, welcome! I strongly recommend reading some of the previous articles. Links are below!
Part 1 – Hollywood – We visit several Hollywood destinations as our Backstage Magic tour begins! Enjoy photos and information from Disney Studios and our fantastic visit to Imagineering. You can find the article here!
Part 2 – An Evening in Disneyland – In this trip report, we journeyed through endless traffic on the Los Angeles highways and wound up at the happiest place on earth, Disneyland! This article will take you within the gates of the original theme park as we spend a very exciting evening in the park. You can find the article here!
BONUS – I’ve got a Fantasmic! video up on the YouTube Channel! You can view the video here!
After staying in Disneyland until shortly before closing time, which meant we left around 10:30 or 11pm, we went to sleep only to wake up around 6am. I woke up in my five foot long bunk bed not ready to go into the park. We wandered down to a place I honestly am not a fan of, Starbucks. Luckily, my hot chocolate (I am not a coffee person) was actually good (it had enough chocolate in it for once) and helped me wake up and get ready for an incredible day in Disneyland! Shortly afterwards, we continued our trek through Downtown Disney as we made our way to the gates of Disneyland, where we entered before anyone else!
We were the very first guests to walk through Disneyland’s turnstiles that day!
Upon entry, it appeared that I found a hidden Mickey! 🙂
Disneyland 60 decorations looked fantastic on the train station!
It’s amazing what a simple banner can do in terms of aesthetics!
Here’s another beautiful decoration at the train station!
As always, the decor of Main Street was beautiful, but the lighting of the sunrise gave it an even better glow.
Here’s Elias Disney’s window! 🙂
As we were walking down, there were a number of items that we were not allowed to take pictures of. Staff was cleaning, so I only took pictures of the buildings. Here’s the Crystal Arcade!
Eventually, I was able to get a shot of the castle!
I love the way the sun looks in this shot!
I wish every town in America looked as good as Main Street’s facades do.
Decorations for the Disneyland 60 celebration were lining several of the buildings on Main Street.
This shot almost looks like an illustration (it was edited to look that way).
Here’s a shot of the famous partners statue. If you look behind it you can see filming of what I believe was a RunDisney New Balance shoe commercial at the castle!
The members of the Adventures by Disney tour were the only people on Main Street! It was fun to see it so empty!
The California sun looked beautiful over the Plaza Inn!
The filming of the New Balance commercial halted for us to get pictures in front of the castle.
The decorations on the castle looked fantastic!
The decorations were detailed and beautiful, I love the look of this tower.
Again, simple banners go a long way!
Another castle shot!
Off to the right, you could see the first ever steel coaster!
The park was still closed as we got ready to walk over to breakfast.
Poor Peoplemover, I wish you were still operating!
As we explored the hub, a Disneyland ambassador came over and talked with the group for a minute.
Next, it was time for a character breakfast at the Plaza Inn! We were the first in the restaurant and had a Mickey Waffle buffet to start our day. As always, the waffles were delicious and we met several characters who I rarely see, such as Max and Rafiki. Eeyore was there too! 🙂
After breakfast, we walked over to Adventureland!
It was time for what was one of the most anticipated attractions for me to ride, Indiana Jones Adventure!
Indiana Jones Adventure was our first backstage experience for the day! We went into the machine room and got an incredible tour of the area. The highlight of the tour was when they allowed us to take a vehicle which was in storage at the time’s motions into control. We launched it up and down and jerked it from side to side! It was an awesome experience!
Afterwards, we rode the ride. It was INCREDIBLE! The theming was amazing, the ride was thrilling, and it was all out fun! I liked it SO much more than Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom, which was not operating correctly when we rode and resulted in us getting stuck for 45 minutes and eventually evacuated from the ride. We unfortunately got stuck in the downhill moment seconds before the Dinosaur ended, and we were the last to be evacuated. It was uncomfortable and not fun. On the other hand, Indiana Jones took the ride system and put it on an incredibly higher level!
Shortly afterwards, we passed by the world famous Enchanted Tiki Room, but we were not going there yet.
Instead, our group walked its way down Main Street USA.
Crowds were beginning to rise as we walked back down Main Street.
Does anyone want some ice cream?
The Disneyland 60 banners looked great!
Does anyone know what’s up there, because it was our next destination!
While waiting to go up into Walt’s Apartment, I got some shots of some little details on Main Street. I love all of the tiny textures on the Main Street buildings!
Just look at the curves bordering the window!
So many little tiny elements combine to form a beautiful land!
Next, we entered the apartment. It was small and we could not take pictures in it. The inside had designs to the tastes of Lillian Disney.
A light always shines on the inside of this window in honor of Walt.
While the other half of the group toured Walt’s apartment, we toured Main Street!
Again, I love the Disneyland 60 banners!
DIAMONDS!!!!!!
“To all who come to this happy place: Welcome.”
he crowds were definitely high by the time we were on the tour.
As part of the tour, we went into one of the buildings (I believe it was Town Hall, but I’m not completely sure). Inside, there were a number of interesting Disney historical artifacts!
The coolest artifact was this early Disneyland model!
Fantasyland
Main Street, Adventureland, and part of Tomorrowland.
Tomorrowland
Frontierland
This window on Main Street is a tribute to the previous owners of the land Disneyland sits on.
So was the one above it (I think, it has been long enough that I am uncertain of this).
It was 10:23ish and I was getting ready to ride an attraction. As much as I love history, I like riding things much more!
After our Main Street tour, we made our way back to New Orleans Square!
New Orleans Square is just as detailed and beautiful as Main Street!
Ooh, the leaves are beautiful in this shot!
In New Orleans Square, we rode Pirates of the Caribbean again with half of the tour group while half of the group was touring the Disneyland Dream Suite above. I’m happy I got to ride Pirates again, it is an amazing experience at Disneyland and my camera ran out of batteries the original time. Shortly after riding, we walked into the exclusive suite!
The suite was elegant and beautiful. Every room had hidden surprises.
In particular, Walt had “goodnight kisses” installed to several of the rooms.
At the flip of a switch, the rooms are transformed into different environments!
The picture changed to include a mermaid.
The Dream Suite had a fantastic view! Soon, this view will completely change as the Rivers of America are changed forever!
It’s the Mark Twain!
There’s Big Thunder Mountain Railroad!
Again, I was reminded how amazing Fantasmic is!
Below, we observed guests eating their meals.
By far the coolest room in the Dream Suite was the Wild West themed room. It was incredible to watch the room’s goodnight kiss, which featured a train and several western themed items zooming around the room on shelves above!
After a delicious lunch at the French Market Restaurant, we took the Disneyland Railroad around to It’s A Small World!
The facade on Small World is beautiful, it’s much nicer than the version at WDW.
Another shot of the beautiful art!
The only bad thing about Disneyland’s Small World is when you get stuck trying to get back into the station. The California sun is HOT!
This was one of the only times the Disneyland Railroad has been re-routed.
This small world exits into a gift shop.
Shortly after our independent Small World adventure, the group was set to meet again in Mickey’s Toontown!
This land is a very wacky, but cool land. It is one of Disneyland’s biggest differences from WDW.
The land was so cheesy it was fun.
For those who are wondering if we got the credit, no we did not.
What were we in ToonTown for? We were meeting Mickey Mouse himself!
After meeting Mickey Mouse, we were escorted backstage.
Backstage, photography was prohibited, so the following backstage photos are from Google Earth. We walked backstage and eventually, we arrived here. This is where Disneyland launches their fireworks! We were fortunate to meet with the man in charge of launching the fireworks (I forgot his name). Once every few months, the buildings surrounding the fireworks launch zone, which is pictured, or possibly other buildings such as Small World, catch on fire. This tells me that Star Wars Land, which will not be too far from here, will be catching on fire a lot. Okay, back to our normal talk! After chatting with us, we had the privilege of watching as they did the daily test of the fireworks system! It was a fun experience that very few get to do!
Here’s what ToonTown looks like from backstage (via Google Earth). I forget the exact number, but that wall cost Disney a lot to build!
After our backstage adventure, we decided it was time to do one of Disneyland’s FastPass free attractions (we had five passes valid for any attraction that accepted passes at any time). What is it? Well, it’s what was the first ever steel roller coaster, the Matterhorn!
I have to say, the Matterhorn might have better animatronics than Expedition Everest after its renovation. It was a fantastic experience!
The Matterhorn Bobsleds were a very fun attraction. I was going to do a mounted POV of the ride (it’s not against any Disneyland rule from what I saw when reading the rules on their site), but my GoPro didn’t actually charge the night before. Luckily, I happily used my regular camera!
After riding the Matterhorn, it was time for another Disneyland exclusive attraction, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride! Mr. Toad was a fun attraction. I had never been on it at WDW, so I really had no idea what to expect, but I did definitely enjoy it!
It’s definitely a unique ride compared to other theme park attractions.
Shortly after riding Mr. Toad, we hopped on Pinocchio because why not? Then we walked back around Big Thunder and into Adventureland. I love the look of this Big Thunder shot!
In Adventureland, I went in the Tiki Room for the first time ever! That may be an old attraction, but I loved it! I wonder where we went next?
It’s somewhere in Tomorrowland – The land with SEVERAL abandoned attractions in plain sight!
The answer, it was time to ruin WDW’s Space Mountain forever!
After riding, WOW! With an overall better ride, fantastic soundtrack, and more noticeable stars, the Disneyland Space Mountain was SO MUCH BETTER THAN at WDW! It was a great attraction!
Since it was getting late in the afternoon, we decided to go back to the hotel room for a short break. Later in the evening, we walked out to Downtown Disney feeling refreshed and ready for an evening in Disneyland! After grabbing some dinner at Downtown Disney’s Mexican Restaurant, which was delicious, we walked down to the park and rode Star Tours. As always, Star Tours was a fun simulator. Next, we made our way to the hub to get reserved seating for both Disneyland Forever and Paint the Night! Disneyland Forever was a fantastic fireworks show. The fireworks were spectacular and projections on the Castle and Matterhorn were cool. Paint the Night was alright, but I’ve realized I’m not much of a fan of the parades. It was enjoyable, but not as good as Disneyland Forever and Fantasmic. What probably didn’t help was the emphasis of Frozen on the parade. Finally, to end our night, we went back into Tomorrowland to ride a couple more rides. Since it had no line and one member of our party wanted to ride it, we rode the most claustrophobic attraction in any theme park, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. That ride was awful. I felt almost as sick as I did after Mission Space. If it were bigger and had better A/C, I would have liked the ride, but it just wasn’t good for me. To end my night at Disneyland, I used a FastPass to hop on what could have been my favorite attraction in the park, Space Mountain. It was a wonderful ending to a wonderful night! I ended up leaving the park after closing, which is something I had not done in the past! We went back to the room, I hopped into the bunk bed (I cringe thinking about how cramped it was), and got to sleep! After all, we were going to have a California Adventure the next day!
After a several month long transition phase, Disney Springs finally became the official name of Walt Disney World’s shopping and entertainment district today (September 29th, 2015). Signage has been replaced in the shopping district and a celebration of the new name took place in the afternoon.
The highlights of the transition involved the additions of several new retail and dining establishments along with new parking structures as improvements to the infrastructure of Disney Springs. Some of the new dining offerings include The Boathouse, Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar, and Morimoto Asia, which opened earlier today.
Even with the name change, Disney Springs still is not complete. Disney’s indoor experience, DisneyQuest, will soon close to make way for a brand new NBA Experience and what was once Pleasure Island will rise up as a brand new bar called The Edison. Also, rumors are pointing to renovations of some of the shopping district’s other establishments.
Are you excited for the new Disney Springs? Will you miss Pleasure Island? Let us know by commenting below and be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter! You can also find us on YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr!
A few weeks ago, we visited the great state of California. Our trip began with an Adventures by Disney tour, which brought us to places such as Disney Studios and Imagineering (to hear more, you can find the article here). After an incredible visit to Walt Disney Imagineering, we hopped on the bus and drove to our next destination, Disneyland! When we arrived to the Grand California Hotel, we went to our room for a few minutes, and got ready to head into the park. After meeting in the lobby, we began the walk to the famous park.
The moment we exited the hotel, Frozen appeared in the California sun.
As we walked through Downtown Disney, I noticed a distinct difference from the other theme park shopping centers, it has a different look. The Grand Californian combines with it to make a nice design. It definitely makes the area feel different than your average shopping center.
I love the sculpture outside of the World of Disney store!
As we arrived at bag check, I spotted the world of the future! Just a warning – if you don’t have a bag you can’t walk ahead of those with the bags, security got a little bit mad when I did so (I didn’t know, no other park has that policy).
When we passed through the bag check, Disneyland was on the left and Disney’s California Adventure was on the right.
This is one of the most beautiful sights on Earth, the Disneyland train station!
I love how intricate all of the buildings on Main Street are. So many details that you don’t initially see!
The sun was already starting to set when we walked into the park.
I love the 60th Anniversary decor on the train station!
The train arrived as we were taking pictures in the plaza.
Next, our Adventure Guides took pictures of us in front of the train station.
Finally, it was time to leave the world of today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow, and fantasy!
Main Street is so beautiful!
Crowds were pretty high when we entered.
The Emporium is a beautiful building.
Next, I got my first glimpse of the castle. Here’s my first impression as someone who’s only been to WDW – It’s so small. I mean, I knew it was smaller, but not that small!
Main Street USA, featuring the glorious Adventures by Disney Paddle of Power in the bottom left!
There’s the Crystal Arcade!
More Main Street Architecture!
Look what we have here, the world’s first steel coaster!
I just love the look of the sun with the buildings of Main Street.
The DAZZLE was everywhere!!!
Wow Disney, isn’t trash in the lake more of a Six Flags thing (look towards the bottom of the plants in the water).
We had no idea where we were going, but all of a sudden the Paddle of Power took us into Frontierland!
It was packed in Frontierland!
The sunset cast a beautiful light on the landscaping of Frontierland.
Of course, I also love the look of the Frontierland buildings!
Here comes the Mark Twain Riverboat!
Soon, we arrived at our destination, the River Belle!
The River Belle was a great restaurant with good service and good food. The chicken was delicious, it was also nice that it was included in our tour!
The only bad thing about the restaurant was that there were no bathrooms anywhere near it. You had to move through large crowds into Adventureland to find some.
On the ceiling I found what looked like a hidden Mickey!
After dinner, the sun was starting to set.
Pirates looked fantastic in the dark!
The sunset over Tom Sawyer Island.
I decided to turn my camera into a better mode for the night. It’s not a great night camera, so the pictures are blurry, but still okay!
Next, we ventured into New Orleans for a little bathroom break before a “surprise.”
New Orleans Square was a new land for me. I definitely enjoyed walking through the land as a first time visitor!
In the distance I could see one of the Disney mountains!
Next, our Adventure guides surprised us as they announced that we were going on Haunted Mansion!
As we entered, our Adventure Guides recommended we sit down and feel our descent because our group had a private elevator, but unfortunately the ride ops wouldn’t let us do it.
I’m not sure which Haunted Mansion I like more. The only real difference between the two is the facade and that Disneyland’s has a real elevator.
After Haunted Mansion, we tried to make our way over to the Tiki Room before Fantasmic, but we didn’t make it over there. As we tried to find our seats for the show, I got a shot of Splash Mountain at night!
Next, I saw Fantasmic for the first time! I loved the show! It was probably the best show I’ve ever seen in a theme park! I took video of it, so stay tuned on the YouTube channel! It should be up within the next six months (sorry for my slow editing).
Afterwards, we joined a new friend on Pirates of the Caribbean! So much better than the WDW version! I love the caves in the beginning of the ride!
After Pirates, we went on Big Thunder Mountain! I’m not sure if I like the WDW or DL version more, the show scenes were better at DL, but I like the station and swinging of the cars on the lift hills at WDW.
*EDIT – I forgot to mention that we had a very fun ride on the original Jungle Cruise!
After riding Big Thunder, it was getting late. We began to head out of the park. We rode Buzz Lightyear (I lost, TP&T Kate took control of the spinning of our vehicle), and then we got stuck in the park during Paint the Night. Afterwards, we left, and got a few hours of sleep. The next day, we were going to have an early start, to find out why stay tuned on our site!
This afternoon, at the D23 Expo, Stan Lee showed up to help Disney unveil new details on Hong Kong Disneyland’s newest attraction, the Iron Man Experience.
On this ride, guests will follow Iron Man on a journey to defeat Hydra as the battle through Hong Kong. The new attraction sounds similar to rides such as Transformers at Universal Studios and Spiderman at Islands of Adventure.
The ride will open in 2016 as the first Marvel attraction within a Disney theme park. The ride seems to be an exciting and fun experience. I hope something similar comes to the United States in the coming years.
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Yesterday, at the D23 Expo, a new restaurant was announced for the Magic Kingdom. The restaurant will be themed to one of the most famous and popular attractions at any Disney park, the Jungle Cruise.
The restaurant’s name will be the “Skipper Canteen.” It will feature rooms themed to things such as the Jungle Cruises skippers’s mess hall and a once hidden adventurers society room. The staff will be Jungle Cruise skippers. The restaurant is slated to open later this year.
To me, this sounds like it will be a well themed and fun restaurant. I definitely need to eat there next time I’m at the Magic Kingdom!
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Today, at the D23 Expo, more details about Animal Kingdom’s transformation into a bigger and better park were revealed. A couple of years ago, Disney announced that a new nighttime show called “Rivers of Light” and “Pandora – The World of Avatar” will be coming to Animal Kingdom. These two experiences were designed to turn Animal Kingdom into a park that you can spend the entire day in. Today, they revealed even more about these experiences and the transformation of Animal Kingdom into a full day park.
The first of these details were new information about the park’s newest land, Pandora – The World of Avatar. The highlight attraction of this new land is going to be “AVATAR Flight of Passage.” In this new attraction, guests will be able to ride on a banshee. This will recreate one of the most thrilling scenes of the film in a more personalized and fun experience.
Another new detail was of the “Rivers of Light” show. This new nighttime spectacular will combine floating lanterns, music, water screens with projections, and animal imagery. The ride is expected to open in the spring of 2016.
The final detail was the announcement of a new nighttime Kilimanjaro Safari tour. This will involve extending the hours of the popular attraction and bringing new animals into the ride. These new animals will be African dogs and hyenas.
Are you excited about these new announcements from the D23 expo? Let us know and get more updates by following us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! You can also find us on YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Thank you for visiting Theme Parks and Travels! Be sure to follow us here on WordPress and share with the buttons below!
Today, at the D23 Expo, Disney announced several new additions to their parks. One of these new additions will be new Star Wars Experiences in Disneyland’s Tomorrowland and Walt Disney World’s Hollywood Studios parks.
The first new experience will be a “Star Wars Launch Bay” attraction. This will be a meet and greet style ride where guests will meet their favorite Star Wars characters. The Star Wars Launch Bay will also be featured in the new Shanghai Disneyland’s Tomorrowland when the park opens in 2016.
Another new Star Wars experience will be a new scenario on the popular “Star Tours – The Adventures Continue” rides. Both of these parks have this simulator ride, which features around fifty ride experiences. This new scenario will be added to these ride experiences and will be themed to the new Star Wars movie, which will premier in December.
The final experience will be the “Season of the Force” event. This will be a limited time event at both of these parks. It will be an extension of the popular “Star Wars Weekends” event, which currently occurs in these parks. There will be new restaurants, shopping, and more at this special experience. In Disneyland’s Tomorrowland, the Space Mountain roller coaster will become “Hyperspace Mountain” temporarily to celebrate Star Wars. For Hollywood Studios, there will be a new Star Wars firework spectacular coming. This short experience will begin in early 2016!
Are you excited for these new additions from the D23 expo? Let us know and see updates as they are announced by following us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! You can also find us on YouTube, Google+, and Tumblr! Thank you for visiting Theme Parks and Travels! Be sure to follow us here on WordPress and share with the buttons below!