Disneyland Update: The Slippery Slope

Our epic Independence Weekend Disneyland Update continues. Yesterday we brought you Red, White & BOO, and today we share major returns to the resort that have things feeling downright normal(ish). Let’s take a look at more attraction returns, restaurants reopened (and not), treats, merchandise, and some fun park photos for your Disneyland fix…

What Would You Pay for FastPass?

Disneyland Paris has begun charging for FastPass. They are altering some popular attractions to have standby and paid FastPass only (which they are calling Premier Access). A guest can purchase one Premier Access experience at a time with a fee ranging from £8 (approximately $9.50) to £15 (approximately $17.75) depending on the attraction. 

At first, the service will be available on this odd mix of attractions: 

• • Autopia
  • Big Thunder Mountain
  • Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast
  • Hyperspace Mountain
  • Peter Pan’s Flight
  • Ratatouille: Rémy’s Totally Crazy Adventure
  • Star Tours: The Adventure Continues
  • The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror

To keep wait times from ballooning out of control, some attractions will also implement a virtual queue at times when the wait gets too long. But you’d still be able to buy a Premier Access spot. See what’s going on there? There might be times when the only way to ride an attraction might be to buy a spot.  

Like the US parks, Disneyland Paris will be pushing an all-digital future. You’ll book your dining, park reservations, check in to your hotel, reserve stand-by for rides, and book your Premier Access for rides all in the park app. That’s a lot of planning. Does it sound like a carefree day in the park to you? 

Of course, you want to know what will happen here at Disneyland. And, while nothing is ever set in stone, our contacts tell us that it is highly likely that the service will roll out at Walt Disney World and then Disneyland in the not too distant future. With FastPass already disabled at the US parks, this is the easiest time to implement something new. And Disney can use the excuse that they need to find ways to recover their losses from the 2020 park shutdowns. 

If you are of a certain age, like I am, you’ll recall that Disneyland charged per attraction from the very beginning. The cost to get into the park was reasonable, but then you’d pay extra for the attractions you wanted. This helped the park create budgets for attractions. When an attraction could no longer support itself with ticket sales, it was often replaced. Eventually, rides were bundled into a much higher gate admission and the modern model was born. The big difference this time around is that the front gate price won’t be reasonable, but rather the highest prices that Disney has ever charged, and the cost of Premiere Access will be added on top of that. The accountants (and Bob Chapek) must be thrilled.  

So, what would YOU be willing to pay to ride an attraction like Space Mountain? What about Rise of the Resistance? And once this rolls out state-side, will it enhance your park visits or just make them more confusing and expensive? 

River Alive!

The Rivers of America have slowly returned to normal. We spied Princess Tiana waving to guests from aboard the Mark Twain. Canoes paddle alongside rafts ferrying people from New Orleans Square to Tom Sawyer’s Island. Even the Columbia was being tested yesterday. 

The canoes and Tom Sawyer’s Island have limited hours of operation. Be sure to check your app to make sure you schedule your visits when the attractions are open.

 

The Columbia has been under refurbishment for weeks, but it was out on the river for cast member training yesterday. 

We also noticed that some of the caves with tighter clearances are still closed.

But much of the island feels exactly as we remembered it. 

On the main Fantasmic stage, one of the trapdoors was barricaded. 

Fantasmic! Rumors

We have seen some recent internal information that Disneyland has brought back at least 60 entertainment cast members. These positions are behind the scenes and are necessary to handle the costuming needs of shows like Fantasmic and parades. We have also witnessed work being performed on the Columbia during park hours. As Dusty has been saying for weeks, it appears that Fantasmic will return to Disneyland sometime in August or September. We also suspect that a parade is returning to Disney California Adventure. 

Horseless horse-drawn streetcar

On July 1, we noticed an unusual sight: a horseless horse-drawn streetcar. We asked the CM what happened and he explained that they had been using a new horse that wanted to stop in the wrong places. They took him backstage for more training, and later in the day he could be seen pulling the streetcar with no problems.

Toy Story Parking Lot Now Open

The Toy Story parking lot opened in mid-June, and since it has buses that drop you off fairly close to the gates, it’s a good option for those that prefer to avoid the walk from Mickey and Friends (which still has no trams). Reminder – Masks are required on buses regardless of vaccination status.

I decided to get there early on July 1st so I could describe the process in today’s Update.

First, let me say that if you want to be first at the park turnstiles, the Toy Story lot is not an option. Even if you are first at the toll booth and you are first through security, you still have to take a bus to the park. Since all security screening stations open at the same time, or roughly the same time, you will still arrive after the guests going through security on the Harbor side.

Also, if you arrive near park opening, the line for the buses can be very long. I drove by the Toy Story parking lot entrance around 8:30am on July 2nd, and there were massive amounts of people walking because the bus lines were so long.

Here is a timeline of my arrival process for an 8am park opening on July 1st:

• • 6:45 – Security gate opens.
  • 7:00 – Toll booths open.
  • 7:05 – Security starts screening guests.
  • 7:10 – Boarded a bus.
  • 7:25 – Arrived at the park.
  • 7:35 – In front of Disneyland turnstile waiting to have ticket scanned.
  • 7:50 – Waited on Main Street. Rope drop was the traditional one where the rope is at the end of Main Street.

The Toy Story parking lot is ideal if you plan to arrive an hour or two after park opening, and you plan to leave before the park closes or before any night entertainment ends. If you want to arrive before the park opens, or leave right after fireworks or the park closes, it can be an ordeal because there are so many people waiting for buses. My recommendation if you want to avoid waiting in a long line for a bus at a peak time would be to park at the Anaheim Hotel, Garden Walk, or just park at Mickey and Friends and walk.

The Anaheim Hotel currently charges $25 for daily parking with the MiceChat offer (see below), when space is available. Yes, it’s the same price that Disney charges, but it’s just a short walk from the park entrance.

Finally, it’s really important so we will mention it again, if you are planning to use the bus to get to or from the Toy Story parking lot, masks are required for all guests regardless of vaccination status. 

Mickey’s Runaway Railway Construction

The heavy machinery that was seen knocking down the front of some buildings is now out of sight. We can now see the framework that will make the attraction entrance, and the hole in the show building that is covered with plastic. 

Avengers Campus

The craze is over. There is no longer a wait to get into Avengers Campus, and mobile ordering is going smoothly. The only time you will see large crowds is when there is a character performance, but even then it’s bearable.

 

World of Color

The wooden structures that house the show lighting have been removed. It appears that there is extensive work in progress, and the show is not likely to return any time soon.

Restaurant Operating Status

As the parks welcome more and more guests, facilities need to keep up. Not only are more restaurants reopening at the Disneyland Resort, open restaurants are returning more tables as well.

Hungry Bear (Open)

Disneyland’s number one burger joint has reopened. Hungry Bear has a huge seating area with river views. This is a much needed return.  

The Snackin’ Place (Closed)

Just in front of Hungry Bear, this outdoor vending cart remains closed. 

Harbour Galley (Open)

Across from the Haunted Mansion, Harbor Galley is serving up soups, sandwich and lobster roll . . . but not in a bread bowl. For now, soups are served with a roll. 

Alien Pizza Planet (Open)

Tomorrowland’s pizza place has reopened as well. The large seating area, with air conditioning, has long been a go-to for us on hot or rainy days. But don’t get your hopes up too high on the mediocre food. 

Blue Bayou (Open with reduced capacity)

Blue Bayou has been open for a few weeks now but with just a handful of tables. This week they increased to about 40. But the establishment is capable of hosting about 70 tables when at full capacity. The main issue here is that they are still short-staffed. 

Carnation Cafe (Closed)

Disneyland needs more table service restaurants. With reservations for Blue Bayou, River Belle Terrace and Cafe Orleans booking up so quickly, it would be great for this Carnation to return as soon as possible. 

Coke Refreshment Corner (Closed, but will open any day)

Guest Relations informed us that Coke Refreshment Corner had reopened, but when we stopped by to take a picture it was still closed. Expect it to open any time now.

Lucky Fortune Cookery (Open)

The food here is pretty good. The problem is finding an open table to sit and eat.  

Corn Dog Castle (Open)

We are so happy to see Corn Dog Castle return… mostly because it means that Award Wiener’s can return to its regular menu (it had previously been hosting the corn dogs to make up for the loss of this establishment).  

Treats

Whew! This is a pretty big Update, and there’s so much more! Let’s take a break and enjoy some treats from Disneyland.

Yes, I bought a few treats on this trip. But Disney calories don’t count. Right?!

Pickles! 

Merchandise Fun

I’m not a merchandise expert, so forgive me if these aren’t new. But they’re items that caught my eye. 

Is Orange Bird a thing in California? I’d expect to see these in the Florida parks. 

  

A few fun items from Disneyana on Main Street. 

 

Jungle Cruise Movie Merchandise

The Jungle Cruise movie premieres in theaters and on Disney+ on July 30th. But you can find tie-in merchandise at the Adventureland Bazaar now.

Around the Parks

My favorite hobby is to take pictures inside Disney theme parks. The shots below aren’t news, they are just for fun. 

      

 

 

The Star Wars suite. A few photos from Galaxy’s Edge: 

 

 

Thanks For Reading!

Have you enjoyed our epic two-part Disneyland Update? We hope it helps you decide when the right time to return to the resort is for you. But just a tip, current crowd conditions likely aren’t going to get any better than they are now. We expect to hear more about Halloween plans any minute, and when they are finally announced, tickets are going to go fast. Let us know your thoughts on any of the topics above. And if you missed the awesome Part One of this update, please take a look here: 

Disneyland Update – Red, White & BOO!

And a few parting shots from this amazing weekend: 

Mickey’s Mix Magic with 4th of July tag. It was so nice to have fireworks back in the park!

Bye bye…

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