DISNEYLAND UPDATE! Christmas Out, Prices Up, and Changes Ahead

Happy Holidays to all of our MiceChat family and readers. Was Santa good to you? The man in the furry red suit may have flown back to the North Pole for a little rest, but our job here at MiceChat never stops. We visited the parks on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to bring you today’s Disneyland Update. With holiday crowds, Genie’s impact on standby lines,  a Lightning Lane price increase, construction advancements, and the latest news, there’s a lot to share on our last Update of 2021. Plus, I’ve got a special Christmas Day video walkthrough of Disneyland (including a chance encounter with Josh D’Amaro!) which shows you exactly what’s going on at Disneyland right now (there are some dramatic sunset views and even some rain to enjoy on the video as well). Well… let’s unwrap this one last holiday present…

Holiday Time at Disneyland

You might think I’m nuts for subjecting myself to a Christmas Day at Disneyland… and in the past, that would have been mostly true. The week before and after Christmas are traditionally the busiest of the year and in the past would have resulted in multiple days where the park would reach maximum capacity. But in the new world of park reservations, Disneyland was busy, but not the uncomfortable shoulder-to-shoulder conditions we remember from the past. That is’t to say there weren’t trouble spots and things that could be improved. We’ll take a look at all of that below. 

Entering Disneyland at 2pm on Christmas Eve, I was met with a wall of people and parked strollers. My mistake… parade time (A Christmas Fantasy Parade is performed at 2pm and 4:30pm daily)!  

A quick stop by the Guest Relations wait time boards in the Hub show surprisingly reasonable waits for Christmas. Part of that is that so many people are watching the parade. But look at that 100 minute wait for Space Mountain (INSANE) but the low-ish 85 minute wait for Rise of the Resistance.   

It’s important to note that now that Genie+ has launched, the Lightning Lane attractions can have much longer waits than they previously did, but it’s also unpredictable. 

One minute Space Mountain was listed at a 120 minute wait, and just half an hour later it was 75 minutes. 

At one point Genie showed the attraction at 200 minutes when it was only about half that at the attraction itself.  

This could just be a glitch, but we’ve been noticing many inflated wait times in the app. We can’t help but wonder if Disney is inflating numbers purposely to convince folks to buy Genie+ for Lightning Lane access. 

But that’s not the only Lightning Lane thing to note. Prices for the extra selection Lightning Lane for both Spider-Man and Radiator Springs Racers has jumped from around $7 to $18 this past week. 

When an attraction has a posted 110 minute wait, you might just consider paying $18, particularly if you aren’t a park regular and the attraction is important to you But it’s out of my range unless it’s a very special occasion or I have a big Star Wars fan in from out of town.. 

Rise of the Resistance remains at $20 daily and typically sells out of Lightning Lane availability early in the day. We are waiting to see if Disneyland tests pricing above the current $20 threshold. 

Everything Is NOT What It Appears

While Space Mountain was insanely crowded (but not the 200 minutes posted), and Matterhorn also had some longer than normal waits, it wasn’t that way all day every day. 

Rides like Haunted Mansion and Pirates could have epic waits one moment and reasonable waits the next. I passed Mansion on Christmas Eve with a posted 85 minute wait, and when I wandered by again just an hour later, most of the overflow queue was gone with just a normal length line (likely 40 minutes long).  

Here’s Pirates. As we have seen many times, much of the center part of New Orleans Square was a giant switchback. But there were times when little of the overflow queue was in use at all. 

It appears that the free version of Genie recommends attractions that have lower waits and folks flood to those spots, resulting in longer than normal waits. Things then quickly change as Genie realizes that the attraction is overwhelmed and it starts suggesting other attractions. As a result, you’ll now find that just about any attraction can suddenly develop an uncharacteristic wait due to the power of suggestion.  You might be best off to ignore the Genie suggestions and just look at park wait times to figure out where to go next on your own.  

The real measure of crowds are the pinch points in the park. Fantasyland could slow to a crawl in a couple of spots, as could Adventureland. 

But then, things could suddenly shift. Above is Adventureland one minute…. and below, just an hour or so later…

The image below shows another impact from Disney’s mobile efforts. While you don’t see a lot of crowds packing the walkway in Tomorrowland, you do see dozens of people all waiting for a churro.  As it has become more and more difficult to order food via standby at restaurants throughout the resort (Disney wants you to Mobile Order instead), lines for anything with standby have grown. Waits for a turkey leg, popcorn, and churros have all been growing.  

At Pizza Planet, the wait for standby switchbacked in front of the restaurant.  

I can almost hear some of you wondering why these folks aren’t just mobile ordering… well, many folks just don’t want to. I find myself just getting in lines rather than dealing with the hassle of mobile order. I certainly know how to do it, I just don’t like doing it.  So I don’t.  

This is a time of flux in the parks for sure. Nothing operates exactly as you remember. Waits are longer at times. Everything requires a mobile element to use to avoid these artificial new waits. And now there are all the new up-charges as well. Meanwhile, because it’s all so new, it doesn’t all work perfectly. Systems can crash (and do). Data can be wrong (and often is). Incorrect suggestions can be made (and frequently are). 

But it’s also not a horrible experience overall. I’ve had terrible holidays at Disneyland in the past with waits well over 2 hours to buy food or ride attractions, lines for restrooms, and so many people that you couldn’t even find a place to sit. This Christmas was MUCH more enjoyable than that. Reservations have prevented those packed conditions. And while Genie and Mobile Order are an inconvenience, you can get by without using them most of the time. This turned out to be the most enjoyable Christmas I’ve spent at the resort in many years.  

It’s Not Over Until It’s Over

Speaking of Christmas… the big day has come and gone, but the holidays will be celebrated at the Disneyland resort until January 9th this year.  That means you still have a chance to visit. And there are many Park-Hopper & Dream Key days still available.  

Here’s what the Park-Hopper availability looked like as of last night: 

If you can handle a bit of rain, you might find some additional days open up as those with reservations cancel them. The coming week looks as though we might have a few of those rainy or drizzly days ahead. Personally, I love the rainy days, which is good because both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day had rain (didn’t bother me at all).  

And where there’s rain, there’s rainbows! I was headed into New Orleans Square mid day on Christmas Eve when I noticed a little holiday miracle…

The jolly old elf himself is still around. You can find him in Critter Country.  

And in Disney California Adventure… Santa’s been replaced by Santa Goofy.  

And while there’s no Jingle Cruise this year, you can ride holiday versions of “it’s a small world” and Haunted Mansion. Small World will be the last holdout of the holiday season and will be sticking around until January 23rd (that allows the park to quickly remove the Haunted Mansion overlay before starting on Small World).  

And you’ve got a bit more time to use up those tabs on your Festival of the Holidays lanyards. We had a harder than normal time finding things we really liked at this year’s festival. There were far fewer offerings this time around. However, there are still a few things we’d like to try again. There’s a delicious cheesesteak, a great gingerbread cookie, and a pretty good Nashville Hot Turkey Slider. But, having just come back from visiting EPCOT’s Festival of the Holiday’s, we’re jealous. There were far more (and better) selections in the Florida version of the event this year. Hopefully Disneyland can step things up for next year, as it really is a great event.  

Some things may start disappearing before the official end of the season. The hotels are generally the last to get their decorations up and the first to remove them.  

If you happen to be in the Grand Californian Lobby, stop by the holiday snack stand and pick up a gingerbread Mickey. It’s delicious.  

Disneyland’s new holiday store opened in time for the season, but it will be all things holiday (and not just Christmas) throughout the year.  

ToonTown didn’t do much decorating this year due to all the construction, but we did notice something a little funny.  Pluto’s Dog House and Daisy’s Diner both decorated…

But Clarabelle’s didn’t. She must be Mooish.  

It should get a little easier to find a spot to watch the parade after January 1st. Guests are traditionally less interested in the parade after the New Year.  

But you don’t have to leave your couch to enjoy the parade… We have a great video of A Christmas Fantasy for you from Photomatt. He was in the perfect spot to give you the maximum wide angle view: 

If you’re not ready to give up the holidays just quite yet, there’s still a lot of seasonal celebrating going on elsewhere in SoCal. We’ve rounded up a list of things for you to do that continue through the rest of the year and into January, 2022! And these activities are really geared towards theme park fans like you…

Jolly Holiday Activities for SoCal Theme Park Fans Through the End of the Year

And the Walt Disney Mansion in Hollywood is hosting a special Christmastime event this Wednesday. The home was built by Walt Disney in 1932 to raise his family. It’s an absolutely gorgeous little castle at the top of the Hollywood Hills with stunning views. Guests of the event will see a screening of a Christmas Silly Symphony in Walt’s movie room. They’ll then be the first guests to hear the 1901 piano played (from the same year Walt was born). And hear stories from Tania McKnight Norris, an early Imagineer who designed elements of Club 33 and the Haunted Mansion and went on to do interior decorating for Walt Disney himself. She has a great story to tell about decorating the Disney home for Christmas one particularly difficult year. There’s even a Christmas present Walt Disney gave to his daughters in 1937 which is still in the residence all these years later. 

There are just a few tickets left, but you can get yours $20 off with this MiceChat discount code: XMAS20

A Merry Little Christmas with Walt, presented by the Walt Disney Storybook Mansion – HERE

Disneyland LIVE With Dusty Sage

It was rainy, somewhat busy Christmas Day, and the sun was just starting to set… And I was thinking about all the folks who might not have anything to do, or who might be alone, so I went live from the park. I think it was meant to be… just a bit into the video, we ran into Josh D’Amaro (Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products), who says hello. Treat yourself to a little slice of Disneyland: 

As always, there are dozens of little things going on at the resort at all times. Here are a few of the important ones…

Merlin’s Marvelous Miscellany shop

The old holiday shop in Fantasyland was closed not too long after the Plaza Point Christmas shop opened on Main Street. It is being replaced by something called Merlin’s Marvelous Miscellany.  Sounds promising. 

ToonTown Projects

The only new ride under construction at Disneyland, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, has had a bit of progress in the last week. The facade for the new ride is starting to shape up. 

The bones are really starting to look like that concept art above. 

Nearby, I wanted to capture a shot of that conductor Mickey fountain as the whole land is set to close in early 2022 for a remodel in advance of the big new attraction. The land is set to get more trees and green space. And one of the things missing from the concept art was this fountain.  

The walkway repaving into ToonTown recently wrapped up, but something has been bothering me about it. At first I assumed that the new bricks on half of the walkway were just dirty. But after weeks of use, regular cleaning, and rain, half the walkway just looks different. It appears that the bricks don’t match, or have a different finish. 

You can clearly see the line between the two halves of the walkway (they completed the walkway in sections so guests could still get to ToonTown).  

By Disneyland standards, this is unusually sloppy work. 

DIVE DIVE… Sub’s Resurfacing Soon

The Submarine Lagoon has been repainted and looks vibrant. Even the subs themselves have a new coat of paint. It won’t be too much longer until the lagoon is refilled. 

I would LOVE to be able to walk through this construction site to see all those details up close. 

Fantasyland Theater

While Mickey and the Magical Map is canceled and the sets have been removed, I’m really pleased that the giant Fantasyland Theater will get some programming next year. In addition to a Gospel Festival, the charming Tale of the Lion King show from Disney California Adventure’s Paradise Bay amphitheater will be moving here in 2022. This is a MUCH better and more comfortable venue for the show.  

Here are some shots of the previous version: 

And a little video…

World of Color 

Progress on the World of Color lagoon. We previously showed you that the lagoon was refilled. Now the fountain platforms have been submerged as well. However, the projection towers have yet to return to the back of the lagoon.  

Those wooden planks are there so workers can install the new projection towers. 

You can see the platform bubbling as it sinks in the video below: 

Tarzan’s Treehouse STILL Wrapped

It’s been a long refurbishment for Tarzan’s Treehouse. Not sure what is taking so long, but you’ll recall that just before the park shutdowns, there was an incident where one of the boards broke under a guest’s feet. 

Upcoming Refurbishments

The Monorail, Emotional Whirlwind, and the Mark Twain will all be getting some TLC in the near future. Here’s the list of current and upcoming refurbs around the resort:

• Haunted Mansion: (January 10th-20th)
• it’s a small world: (January 24th-February 3rd)
• Splash Mountain: (January 10th for an expected 6-week refurbishment)
• Sailing Ship Columbia: (January 24th-TBD)
• Grizzly River Run: (January 24th-TBD)
• Mark Twain River Boat: (January 31st-TBD)
• Disneyland Monorail: (January 31st-TBD)
• Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind: (January 31st-TBD)
• Mickey’s Toontown (Spring 2022-2023)

Downtown Disney Updates

There have been some recent additions to Downtown Disney. The newest stores are Pele Soccer and Lovepop and are located next to Sprinkles Cupcakes in the space previously occupied by The VOID. Both opened within a day of each other last week, however, when we visited on Christmas Eve Lovepop had a hastily written closed sign and never reopened over the weekend.

Lovepop is a greeting card company that specializes in pop-up designs. Some very intricate and clever designs. They also have a line of Disney cards. So there’s at least a loose connection to Disney. I buy Lovepop cards online all the time and have even purchased some from their Disney Springs location at Walt Disney World. 

The other new store seems like a bit of an outlier. Pele Soccer is just a sports store not unlike something you’d see in the mall. It has a basic design and non-Disney items for sale. We’ve got to wonder who is making a trek all the way to Downtown Disney to buy these items when they could much more easily go to their local sporting goods store.  

I find the new mix of stores (with the exception of the detailed Star Wars Trading Post) to be overly basic and lacking in Disney detail and whimsy. It’s all too mall-ish and not special or creative enough. If Disney can’t find clever new tenants, perhaps they should develop some new concepts of their own.  For the trouble and expense of parking in the Downtown Disney lot and dealing with the airport-style security setup, the reward of shopping here should be much higher.  

This week’s Disneyland Merchandise Update takes a look at the new stores plus a view of all the latest Disneyland merch offerings. Take a look at all the latest Disneyland merch below:

Post-Christmas Disneyland Merchandise Update: Long Time, New Merch

This & That

And now for some of the smaller stories from around the resort:

New Carpet at Disneyland Hotel

If you head towards Goofy’s Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel, you’re bound to notice the new carpet that was installed this week. This tribute to Sleeping Beauty features a forest scene that looks like it came straight out of the movie. Our friend David Yeh snapped a great photo of it:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CXt3i7MP2jJ/

Favorite Things

It’s no surprise that we think Disneyland is a magical place for the holidays. With the cheery lights, spirited Christmas music, and the overall feeling of nostalgia, the magic of the holidays really hits a peak at Disneyland. As a little holiday gift to our readers, our friend and new MiceChat contributor, Adam Kent, shared some of his favorite holiday shots from Disneyland the year. If you didn’t see this over the weekend, do yourself the favor of clicking through!

Merry Christmas From Disneyland: These Are A Few Of Our Favorite Things…

And as long as we are on the subject of favorite things.  Here’s a few more photos that just didn’t quite fit in above that I don’t want you to miss out on…

The World-Famous MiceChat Gumball Rally Returns!

After a long hiatus, it’s time for the big return of the MiceChat Gumball Rally at Disneyland. The event is a competition to see who can ride the most attractions at Disneyland in a single day. Guests compete in small groups of 2 to 4 members and spend the day doing what Disney fans love most… riding the attractions!

So, say goodby to those nice people on the dock… because the Gumball Rally is rolling your way on February 12th.  

Book your theme park reservations NOW and then sign up for the Rally! We are also offering discounted theme park admission and discounted hotel rooms this year via our partners at Get Away Today.  Don’t miss out! 

Gumball Rally Event information * HERE *

Discount Theme Park Tickets and Travel

Our travel partners at Get Away Today are here to help you make new family memories with discounted theme park tickets and hotels. Extra days, big savings, travel packages and more. Snap up those deals while you still can, with your MiceChat partners at 

Get Away Today- HERE

(MiceChat has worked with Get Away Today to provide you with the best theme park travel deals and we may make a small commission on any sales made through our links)