Another week, another boat load of changes and work at the Disneyland Resort. Since our last update, reservations were released for the first month of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and then sold out within two hours. The smoking ban and stroller limitations also took effect on the 1st of this month . . . and the world didn’t come to an end. Meanwhile, memory bubbles are popping up on Pixar Pier, construction walls are shifting, and the force has returned to Space Mountain.
Smoke-free Disneyland Resort
On May 1st, the Disney Parks began enforcing new rules regarding smoking & strollers. We haven’t seen any illicit smoking in the parks, but we have seen a few wagons slip through. Perhaps there is a bit of a grace period for those who plead their case.
Star Wars
Saturday “May the Fourth,” was Star Wars Day. Disneyland celebrated with the relaunch of Hyperspace Mountain, March of the First Order, a popcorn bucket, and some special foods.
A special popcorn bucket arrived, but it didn’t seem to create the sort of lines that the Mickey and Minnie buckets did at the start of Mickey’s 90th birthday celebration.
Galactic Grill and Alien Pizza Planet were serving up Star Wars-inspired snacks. We tried the Dark Side Chicken Sandwich and Loaded Fleet Fries (seasoned waffle fries topped with bulgogi shredded pork and Asian slaw).
Hyperspace Mountain Returns
The popular Star Wars overlay of Space Mountain has returned in celebration of Star Wars Day. No end date has been given for this limited-time run. If you love this version of the ride, it’s time to make a trip to the resort. We think it would be a good idea for Disney to keep this version running through the opening frenzy for Galaxy’s Edge. So many people are going to be shut out of the new land that this might give them a bit of a consolation prize.
The line for FastPass Return stretched all the way down the ramp! Yikes!!
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Symphonic Suite
The legendary John Williams has recorded the music for Galaxy’s Edge and it’s just like walking into a movie. Here’s one of the movements to help get you in the mood:
The entire Symphonic Suite (two disks worth) is available for streaming or purchase on Amazon HERE.
Star Wars Land Construction
While we are on the topic of Star Wars, let’s take a quick look at the mostly complete construction that we can see from the park.
Cast Members are now testing the Millennium Falcon ride, construction scaffolds have mostly disappeared, painting and set dressing are wrapping up, and Disney is preparing for those of you lucky enough to secure reservations for the first month of operation.
We all knew that reservations for Galaxy’s Edge were going to be popular. But when tickets became available at 10 am Pacific on Thursday, a whole month worth of them went in just a couple of hours. Amazingly, there were no major outages or site crashes, things seemed to run smoothly . . . at least for those who got tickets. There were reports that some missed the “Add guests” button and ended up making a reservation for just themselves. There were no changes or cancelations, so this got a bit messy. Disney is addressing the situation on a case by case basis and many folks are being allowed to add one guest to their reservation. And many folks waited and waited in the queue for an opportunity to reserve a spot only to find that everything was totally full.
Were you able to get a reservation to see Galaxy’s Edge in the first month?
The latest Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge drone footage:
A fond farewell to a gentle giant – A disturbance was felt in the force last week when Peter Mayhew, the actor who played Chewbacca, passed away. Shelly Valladolid wrote this lovely tribute on MiceChat:
ToonTown Trials
A lot of work is about to begin in ToonTown. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway will take up residence behind the Gag Factory and Five & Dime. While the ride will enter through part of the current shop, we believe the rest of the clever store will remain.
Do you think the current theme of the store will be suitable as an exit gift shop?
Nearby, the ToonTown hills continue to decline. We assume that all of this will be rebuilt before the new ride opens. There are quite a few things in ToonTown that seem to be very difficult to maintain, the new ride is a great excuse for Disney to address the other issues in the land.
I think you’ll aggress that this level of decay isn’t acceptable. Stripping the paint entirely would look better than this long-neglected display:
For more information about Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, check out our story:
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway Announced for ToonTown at Disneyland
Castle Nearing Completion
The plan is for the Castle to be unwrapped before Galaxy’s Edge opens. The media of the world will descend on Disneyland to see Star Wars in all its glory . . . a castle behind construction scrims wouldn’t look very pretty on the evening news, so you can be sure they are doing everything they can to get this one done on time.
The new colors are saturated and the rooftops vibrant. I’m loving the look. But it can’t stay this way forever in the unforgiving California sun (let’s not forget about the current state of Toontown). So let’s enjoy it while we can. When those scrims come down it’ll be prime picture time.
Stardusting
The construction over at Hungry Bear looks to be adding shade to the outdoor seating area. This large outdoor restaurant sits at Galaxy’s Edge, so to speak, and will likely be busier than ever once the new Star Wars land opens. Enhancements to the mostly unshaded back patio would be a godsend.
The Adventureland entry expansion is halfway complete. The iconic Adventureland sign and its obstructions have been removed, and guest flow has been much improved. But the sign will return soon without need for the side support that blocks the pathway.
Walls near Jolly Holiday have shifted again. The curbs and gardens around the old Guest Relations wait time board have been reshaped, though the board itself has not returned (yet).
The south side of the Jolly Holiday patio (nearest Coke Corner) is behind a new set of walls. We suspect that the patio will be pushed back a bit to make it easier for guests to access the crowd overflow route behind Main Street.
The gardens near Plaza Inn are also being redefined, though, no walls were up when we took these photos, Rather, some simple low barriers are in place. They are less obstructive than walls.
Most of the work in the area is to lower curbs.
The walls in front of Frontierland’s Bonanza Outfitters have been up for a while. The little garden which runs along the wooden walkway are being pushed in a bit.
Other Construction
Alien Pizza Planet facade is being refurbished. But it also looks like Pizza Port is not coming back. The construction scrims tell the tale. It appears that a new permanent Pizza Planet sign is on the way.
Maintenance Needed
With all the construction and refurbishment going on throughout the park, the poor Main Street Train Station could use some care. A number of shingles are missing or in disrepair.
Emotional Whirlwind
Construction is moving rapidly now at the new Inside Out attraction on Pixar Pier. The ride mechanism is in place and ready for the ride carriages to be installed.
The previously gold stars on the Incredicoaster supports near the attraction have been painted purple.
Silly Symphony Swings
The swings are still down for refurbishment.
But the elements are finally coming back together.
Marvel Land
While the Spiderman ride (at left below) is well under construction, the rest of Marvel Land (at right) is still mostly flat.
Jessie’s Critter Carousel
This isn’t news . . . but this is my first visit to the resort since the Critter Carousel opened and I found it photogenic.
The fountain on the Toy Story side of the carousel was off . . .
. . . perhaps that has something to do with the fountain on the Incredibles side being behind refurbishment scrims.
PhilharMagic
This next item is telling of how SoCal regulars visit the resort. PhilharMagic has only been open for about a week. Normally a new attraction would be swamped with Passholders and tourists alike. However, the attraction has been pulling in crowds not much larger than the movie previews it replaced. It seems that folks just can’t get excited about movie screen attractions . . . even good ones like this. As a former WDW local, I loved this attraction (and the air conditioning it brings). Perhaps things will pick up once the SoCal heat hits this summer.
Carthay Outdoor Seating
Last month we told you that Carthay was working on a lounge expansion. Guests can now opt for al fresco sidewalk seating.
I took these photos before seating opened for the day. It’s not a huge space, but it does look nice.
It’s also a calling card that lets guests know that there’s a restaurant and lounge inside.
Downtown Disney
With Black Tap and its famous Crazy Shakes now open in Downtown Disney, we are feeling bad for Ballast Point upstairs. Black Tap has a whole building of doors which lead inside . . . poor Ballast Point has just one corner to draw attention. And it appears that some guests are confused that these are two different establishments as we heard a guest as the hostess at Ballast Point if they needed a table to order a Crazy Shake to go.
All those black windows and doors are for Black Tap, the red windows above and on the far right corner are for Ballast.
Another potential victim of Black Tap is Salt and Straw. We love their ice cream . . . but how to do they compete with a Crazy Shake.
Pop-up Disney!
Another venue which seems to be under-performing is Pop-Up Disney. It’s only been open for a week and doesn’t seem to be selling out far in advance. Friday mid-day, all times were still available.
Get Your Ears On
Although “Get Your Ears On” has been going on for a while, this was my first time seeing all the decorations. Here are some of the ones I liked, even though they might be repeats for our regular readers.
Around the Resort
All of our Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge content can be found at the following link:
Looking to plan your Galaxy’s Edge getaway? MiceChat has you covered with special discounts:
Hotels:
Discount Disneyland Tickets:
Want more Disneyland? Dusty, Doug, Scott and Andy are back with a new MiceChat Podcast that takes you to Galaxy’s Edge and beyond!
Well, that does it for today, but be sure to come back tomorrow for a special Disneyland Rumor Update, and again on Wednesday for a Brady MacDonald exclusive.
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