Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration continues as the park gets ready for more new summer magic

Disneyland continues to celebrate its big 60th Anniversary as the summer pushes forward. In both parks, work on new additions are underway. The extended refurbishment on Peter Pan’s Flight will wrap up on July 1, bringing major new enhancements to the classic Fantasyland dark ride. In Tomorrowland, work on Innoventions‘ major facelift progresses as the Tomorrowland Theatre goes dark following the run of the “Tomorrowland” movie sneak peek. Meanwhile, MARVEL’s Ant-Man is moving in at Disney California Adventure. There’s also plenty of new merchandise in both parks as well.

Don’t miss your weekly Disneyland Resort crowd forecast — provided by our friends at Mouseaddict — in the Weekly News and Information Roundup at the end of today’s update!

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There’s plenty to see today — let’s get started!

Welcome to Disneyland!

Disneyland continues to celebrate its 60th Anniversary as the busy summer moves forward.

A look at wait times Sunday afternoon

As usual, crowds at Disney California Adventure are a bit more manageable, even during the busy Diamond Celebration.

Wait times Sunday afternoon

Wildest Photo in the Wilderness

In Disneyland, a new Big Thunder Mountain Railroad-themed Diamond Celebration Photo Spot has sprung up along Big Thunder Trail, across from the Big Thunder Ranch Barbeque restaurant.

This now makes four Diamond Celebration Photo Spots open across both parks. I’m a big fan of these — They’re a lot of fun and are hugely popular with park guests.

Photo Pass Cast Members have been notified that two more are coming in July.

Refurbishment Roundup

Refurbishment projects are still underway in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, along with the installation of an all-new ride at Luigi’s Flying Tires in Cars Land.

Off to Never Land!
Peter Pan’s Flight’s extended refurbishment and enhancement project is about two weeks from wrapping up now as it prepares to open July 1 with new special effects and re-worked scenes.

The repainting at the old Pinocchio gift shop is now finished but the space isn’t being used yet.

Changing the Future
Meanwhile, Innoventions continues to get a big facelift behind construction walls as Disney works on still-unannounced changes to the fledgling Tomorrowland attraction.

The Innoventions marquee is now completely removed. Will the building get a new name altogether?

The Autopia Fastpass is behind walls and rumors suggest it may disappear permanently.

Nearby, the Magic Eye Theater is once again closed now following the end of the “Tomorrowland” movie preview’s run. No word on if Captain EO will return or if the theater will remain dark until the next movie preview.

“Tomorrowland” signage is still up

The exhibit of movie props in the back of the Starcade is also now closed, making the entire Starcade facility now closed.

A New Marvel Flick
Over in Disney California Adventure, A Bug’s Life Theater is now closed to make way for upcoming sneak preview of MARVEL’s Ant-Man, which will open this weekend.

Re-Tired
In Cars Land, work continues on the replacement attraction for Luigi’s Flying Tires.

The Disney Difference.

Merch Madness

In both parks, lots of new and recent merchandise continues to hit shelves. In Cars Land, lots of new Radiator Springs Racers and Cars Land-branded items are now available.

Park-specific toys.

The two Luigi’s Flying Tires merchandise items can still be found in shops, so if you wanted them you may want to grab them… no telling how long they’ll still be available.

Back in Disneyland, Pieces of Eight has a lot of new/recent Pirates of the Caribbean merchandise

And a great set of vintage postcards — but pricey at $25!

A few new Disney character shirts available in shops like the Emporium and Elias & Co.

Walt Disney World? Whoops!

And finally, the new line of Disney Tails pet products are available now.

Squeaky chew toys

Collars and leashes

Food bowls

This & That

Back in Frontierland, Big Thunder Ranch and the Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue are all decked out in red, white and blue for the summer now.

Old pictures of Walt and horses on display

Crayons and coloring sheets are available for kids

Big Thunder Ranch Jamobree is decorated for the summer as well but doesn’t have any sort of daily Jamboree entertainment running yet this summer.

• 6/1: Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration in full swing as summer hits the resort
  Catching up with the Diamond Celebration as it enters the busy summer season, including a look at new 60th Anniversary food and drink, fine art, and collectibles.
• 5/26: Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration dazzles with new decor, entertainment, and attraction enhancements
  A look at Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration decorations, updated daytime entertainment, and enhancements at attractions in both parks.
• 5/25: Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration kicks off with a bumpy 24-hour party
  A recap of Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration 24-hour party plus full coverage of the new nighttine entertainment including Paint the Night, fireworks and World of Color.
• 5/22: Your Guide to Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration Merchandise
  Take a look at a sampling of the over 500 new items designed specifically Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration.
• 5/21: Your Guide to Disneyland’s Diamond Celebration & 24 Hour Party
  A complete guide to Disneyland’s 24-hour party complete with information that’s useful throughout the entire Diamond Celebration

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Weekly News & Information Round-Up
Weekly Theme Park Hours June 15-21, 2015
[B]Disneyland Park[/B]	[B]California Adventure[/B]
Daily: 8 am – 12 am	Mon.-Fri.: 8 am – 10 pm Saturday: 8 am – 9 pm Sunday: 8 am – 10 pm
[CENTER]For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar[/CENTER]
[center]Closure and Refurbishment Schedule[/center]
[b][center]Disneyland Park[/center][/b]
Peter Pan’s Flight: Closed through July 1 for refurbishment and enhancements. Innoventions: Closed indefintely. Starcade: Closed indefintely. Tomorrowland Theatre: Closed indefintely.
[b][center]Disney California Adventure[/center][/b]
Bug’s Life Theatre: Closed to install Ant-Man movie preview. Movie preview opens June 19. Luigi’s Flying Tires: Closed for re-Imagineering into new attraction. Reopening not yet announced. Muppet*Vision 3D: Dark indefinitely while theater is used for Frozen-themed show. [B]Blue Sky Cellar:[/B] Closed indefinitely.
[b][center]Downtown Disney and Disneyland Resort Hotels[/center][/b]
None.
June 15 — 21 Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun For those busy times, try our unique new Wait Watcher! Just tell us how long you’re willing to wait for an attraction, and we’ll notify you on your iPhone or Apple Watch when the wait time goes lower. Only in the Mouseaddict app. Look even further into the future with two months of Tomorrowplan crowd projections. Activate now, only in the Mouseaddict app. The free Mouseaddict app for iPhone and iPad features more than five dozen categories of searchable resort information, weather forecasts, park and show schedules, the latest news and articles from MiceChat, and more. Download free on the App Store or at mouseaddict.com.
[center]Headline Roundup A quick look at noteworthy Disney theme park headlines from around the web.[/center]
The iconic Disneyland Band will soon be replaced by a new ensemble under a new name; a move that is sparking protest from long-time fans, band members. (KCET) The “I Support Walt Disney’s Band” Facebook group says today, June 15 is the final day the entire current band will play together, indicating some band members will leave following Monday’s performances. (Facebook) The California Assembly recently met to approve new vaccinations requirements laws that came in the wake of Disneyland’s measles outbreak (OC Register) A recent study found the Disneyland Resort generates $5.7 billion in revenue for the So. Cal. economy. (OC Register) Anaheim is trying to lure four-diamond hotels with big tax breaks. (OC Register) How theme parks like Disney World left the middle class behind. (Washington Post) Disney uses an army of moms to flood the internet with pro-Disney Parks content; pays them with discounts, perks. (Business Indier)

Alright, that’s it for this week’s Dateline Disneyland. Are you ready for Ant-Man? Special thanks to our Dateline Disneylanders! A very special thank you to all of our Patreon supporters for their monthly support keeping Dateline Disneyland alive, especially our special top-tier supporters: Kendra H., Brian A., Dusty Sage, Benjamin, and Jackie A! To help support Dateline Disneyland and get some fun swag in return, visit our Patreon page now! For more Disneyland news, be sure to read MiceChat’s weekly In the Parks blog. And be sure to check out our sister blog, Dateline Disney World – a fantastic weekly photo blog covering Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida! Thanks for reading. See you at Disneyland! [B]- Andy[/B]

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FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for this edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground.