It had to happen eventually. A combination of Fall Break for schools, the upcoming Columbus Day holiday, and Halloween activities led to the busiest week for Disneyland since the opening of Galaxy’s Edge. But it’s not really about packed walkways today, there are construction projects, a new way to think of Fastpass, the tumbling of the ToonTown hills, and a bit of mystery too!
Crowds Return
If you went to the parks this week, it was pretty hard to ignore the massive influx of people. The last few months have been very light on crowds. The last truly busy week was before Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opened. But this week was reminiscent of last year’s crowds.
Every attraction had moderate to high wait times, walkways and restaurants were busy, and more people were constantly entering than exiting. All the old pinch points were pinching, Pirates and Big Thunder had long waits, the Disneyland Railroad had a line heading down the stairs. Normally, this wouldn’t make us happy, but it means that Disneyland IS still capable of pulling in big crowds. And perhaps it means that some of the emergency entertainment and staffing cuts can be reversed sooner rather than later.
Halloween at Disneyland is a big deal, it has become as important to the Resort’s bottom line as Christmas. I’m sure that Disneyland management is relieved by the turnout.
After months of Pirates being a walk-on attraction, there was finally a switchback line outside the courtyard. They had an extended queue set up that stretched halfway across New Orleans Square (but they didn’t use the bridge this time).
Haunted Mansion Holiday had to use the Magnolia Gardens fountain/park area for queueing as they did for the entire Halloween season last year.
I love Storybook Land, but I wouldn’t wait 45 minutes for it.
But it’s not just Disneyland that’s busy. DCA has been packed during the day as well, even more so on Halloween party days. Daytime and nighttime crowds overlap to create a crowd-storm.
It was a hot week as well, which made rides like Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run extra popular. The line you see below is for Fastpass return. It stretched all the way to the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail! (Is it time for the Disneyland Resort to embrace MagicBands to eliminate the Fastpass return confusion?)
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More Oogie Boogie
One more success of the Halloween season are the Oogie Boogie Bash parties, which sold out about a month in advance. Not wanting to miss out on the extra revenue potential, Disney added tickets for the remaining sold-out Oogie Boogie Bash nights. Of course, they promptly sold out as well. We don’t know how many were added for each night or how much more crowded they will make the event, but please let us know your experience.
Tomorrowland FastPass Test
It was a bit of a surprise this past week when Disneyland installed new digital Fastpass distribution machines in Tomorrowland. On or around the 15th, Disneyland will begin testing consolidated Fastpass distribution for all of the attractions in the land. No paper tickets will be given. Guests will continue to scan their admission tickets at Fastpass return as they have. If you’ve linked your admission ticket to the Disneyland App, you’ll be able to see your return times there. Otherwise, we recommend taking a photo of the distribution screen or writing your return times down.
If this test is a success, Disneyland can begin claiming Fastpass distribution real estate for other uses such as stroller parking and queue extensions.
We’re optimistic about these Fastpass changes. We can envision clusters of these new machines in convenient locations rather than having to run to the far corners of the park to snag a Fastpass. For more information, read the article below:
But there’s some additional construction near the Fastpass machines which remain a bit of a mystery. some of the concrete railing on the corner of the Space Mountain terrace (Tomorrowland Theater roof) has been removed, the area under it is a construction zone as well. This is immediately adjacent to the new Fastpass machines and across from the vacant Starcade.
ToonTown Hills & Runaway Railway Construction
Now that Star Wars land is open, the next major addition to Disneyland has begun construction. Last week, some of the hills in ToonTown were cleared away for construction on the upcoming Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Presently, we’ve got a crystal clear look at the Team Disney Anaheim building, but we should see the framework for the new show building soon.
Once you’ve got to the top of Donald’s Boat, the hill removal is much more obvious.
Some demo has been done backstage in preparation for the construction. I’m curious about what they’re doing for the backstage traffic route.
You can see a pile of dirt and rubble in the open space in front of the yellow building:
We’re looking forward to this attraction opening sometime in 2022. It’s going to be in construction for a while.
For more information about this project, check out our article here:
Construction Projects
Beyond the big projects listed above, there is even more construction going on in the Resort.
Tomorrowland
Work continues on the removal of the french fry rocks at the Tomorrowland entrance.
With the main entrance to the land from the Hub restricted to a pathway in front of the Astro Orbitor, it makes getting in and out the land a nightmare during the extra large crowds we’ve seen this past week. We’re glad to see the rocks go, but they can’t finish this project up fast enough.
On the other side of those construction walls, things are still churned up and not looking like they are close to completion.
The construction walls now stretch all the way to the Plaza Inn, blocking access to Tomorrowland from that direction. There is a Cast Member redirecting people away from the walls, only letting guests into the restaurant if they’re planning on eating there.
Tomorrowland Walls
Because of the Santa Ana winds this week, many construction scrims were pulled up throughout the resort. This gives us a unique view of some of the current projects.
The printed scrims which were covering the textured walls at the entry to Tomorrowland were rolled up, exposing that the geometric tiles have been removed (for now at least).
It’s interesting to see the work in progress.
Main Street
More rolled-up scrims at the Opera House on Main Street.
The gilded crest on the top of the building has been plastic covered.
Adventureland Sign
Last week, we reported that the new Adventureland sign had finished construction. Now that the walls are down, it is much more visually pleasing.
Although, it does appear stark and plain in comparison to the Dole Whip Stand across the way. Adding a grass skirt and some masks might make it feel more complete.
Matterhorn Repairs
Emergency repairs continue on half of the Matterhorn, causing waits to skyrocket during this busy week. Waits soared to over 2 hours.
Avengers Campus
Construction continues on Avengers Campus, DCA’s upcoming Marvel land. More framing has gone up on the buildings. We should start seeing siding going up shortly.
From the Guardians’ side, more basic framework has been erected. (We apologize for the late afternoon shots, but thought you’d enjoy this view of the construction site)
It’s very much still a hard hat zone, but it’s neat to see how quickly this is coming together. It wasn’t that long ago that this area was covered with greenery and oversized clovers.
This and That
Parking Structure Updates
Over at Mickey and Friends/Pixar Pals, there are a few construction projects that are wrapping up before it is fully complete.
Elevator Construction
The new elevator at Mickey and Friends looks like it’s ready to have the exterior panels installed. It will good to have an additional set of two elevators for this structure to match Pixar Pals’ four.
There are new vertical bars going across the front of the structure to match the bars next to the already installed elevator.
The landing in front of the new elevator is still being lined with pavers; although, it is nearly complete.
Mickey Ball Statue
Fencing and some greenery have been installed for the future Mickey ball statue. We have yet to see the statue’s appearance, but it should look similar to the Pixar ball across the way.
The landings of the escalators are a little cramped because of the installation of the statue and the escalator. With projects happening on either side, it creates a tight space to navigate. But, it’s only temporary and will probably resolve in the next week or two.
Bridge Usage
We have been loving the pedestrian bridge from the parking structure. It’s been handy to get to or from the parks when the trams are busy. Plus, it’s a great way to get those extra steps in for the day.
We noticed some new signage has gone up.
Simba Parking Lot Construction
Over at the Simba lot, new parking ticket booths and barrier gates have been installed. This is a welcome addition because we have heard horror stories from our readers about taking over an hour to leave the lot.
Red Car Trolley
Some of the construction walls have been reduced on the Red Car Trolley on Beuna Vista Street, revealing the new charging pad at the station. The Trolley has been under refurbishment since April 1st and it is scheduled to reopen in 2020.
It’s Beginning to Look a Little Like Christmas?
Over at Mendocino Terrace, the first decorations for Christmas have been installed over the refrigerators. It’s terrifying to think that we’re almost done with the year and THIS DECADE! Christmas begins at the Disneyland Resort on November 8.
Enjoying the Lights
We’ve been spending more time at DCA this season due to the wonderful Halloween decorations. There’s a lighting ceremony that happens at dusk (around 6:30).
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HEADS UP!
Gumball Rally – February 8th, 2020
The MiceChat Gumball Rally is a competition to see who can ride the most attractions at Disneyland in a single day. This is the most fun you’ll ever have in the parks. So, gather together a team of 2 to 4 people and sign up today! Gumball Rally Info HERE
And that’s the end of this week’s update. We’ll be visiting the Walt Disney World later this week and have lots of adventures planned. We’ll do our best to share on our social accounts and right here on the site.
Well, what do you think of those new Fastpass machines? ToonTown construction? Do you like the new Adventureland sign? How would you like the new Tomorrowland entry to look? Did you score any extra Oogie Boogie Party ticket
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