A lot can happen in 7 days and this week proves that in many ways. Today’s Disneyland Update looks back at the events of the last week which brought us the return of Magic Keys, the closure of a popular attraction for the change of seasons, spooky details popping up all over, and continued construction on a variety of projects. Give us a few minutes and let’s get you caught up on what’s going on at Disneyland and a few things to keep your eyes on as we approach D23 Expo…
Magic Keys Unlocked
Disneyland’s unfavorables have been waiting quite a while to hear about the return of Magic Keys and renewal information. On Thursday, those within 30 days of their expiration were finally able to renew their passes… well, at least try to. As you might suspect, things didn’t go as smoothly as Keyholders nor Disneyland would have liked.
Well before the 9am expected relaunch of the program, the Disneyland site began experiencing errors with “Someone ate the page” messages popping up.
Those attempting to renew waited hours just to give Disney their money… but we’ve all been there before. For some, the process was easy enough… log into your account… select a pass… agree to new terms and conditions… make a payment. But for others, there were errors, repeated transfers to pages that didn’t allow renewal, unanswered calls to customer service, and general frustration.
Things were particularly bad for those attempting to renew via cell phone. After the long wait for their turn to renew, most were automatically redirected to the Disneyland app… which didn’t have an option to renew! The word went out online that to complete the registration, you’d need to uninstall the Disneyland app first and try again. Ouch! For a company that has been FORCING guests to use the app, we can’t understand why the entire transaction would be so difficult.
Many Keyholders also attempted to use Disney gift cards to make their payment, which was supposed to have been allowed… but didn’t work at first. However, Disneyland quickly fixed that error and you can now attempt to pay via gift cards.
But the big surprise was the discontinuation of the top-level Dream Key, which theoretically had 365-day access to Disneyland (with required park reservations, of course). In its place is a new “Inspire Key,” which blocks out 10 days around Christmas and costs $200 more for the privilege. To make the new key feel a little more worth the price increase and availability cut, Disneyland added PhotoPass downloads and 20% off Genie+.
All of the Keys went up in price by at least $50, and with prices always going up, I thought it might be good for us all to pause for a moment and really figure out which passes are really best for us… if at all. So I stayed up late the night before the announcement to list out all the Annual Passes and Dream Key features and prices since 2018. You’ll note that an Imagine Key in 2022 costs more than a Premier Key (which included both the Disneyland Resort AND Walt Disney World) cost in 2018. That’s a big jump.
If you haven’t already, you might want to take a look at that article as I also compare Magic Keys to regular admission and multi-day tickets. For anyone who visits less than 20 times per year, take a look… you might just be better off using standard admission.
LOCKED! Disneyland Magic Key Sales Paused: Everything You Need To Know
And as long as we are chatting about Keys… Enchant and Believe Keys unlock on most weekends in September before returning to restrictions in October. So we can expect the great imbalance between busy weekdays and less crowded weekends to reverse for a while.
Were you able to earn your Magic Key renewal badge or did you encounter problems?
Halloween Creeps Closer
For the last few weeks, we have been reporting on the gradual change from summertime to Halloween, which starts at Disneyland on September 2. While the temperature is a steady reminder that we’re still at the peak of our warmest days in SoCal, seeing the Halloween decorations take their place gives us something to look forward to now that the tourist season is mostly at its end and kids are headed back to school. While the fall season starts earlier at Disneyland than on the calendar, there’s still quite a bit left that needs to be installed before the resort is completely decked out for Halloween. Let’s see all the spooky and kooky details making their way into the resort.
Disneyland Halloween
The main area where Halloween takes place in Disneyland is on Main Street. And while the first glance of the area still shows a tremendous amount of patriotic banners and bunting, the window displays of nearly all the shops have now transitioned over to Halloween. All along Main Street, there are Halloween displays in the storefronts, plus a whole lot of Halloween merchandise inside the shops…
Many of the pumpkins evoke the theme of the shops.
The barber shop pumpkins are a hoot. Love the whimsy!
And is that a cat or one of Mickey’s cousins in this window?
The biggest change this week is the redressed of many shops for the spooky season… including one of our favorites. Although the main room of Disney Showcase & Plaza Pointe have been Halloween-ified for a couple of weeks now, other shops like China Closet and Fortuosity are now getting the fall-time treatment as well.
The shelves of Plaza Pointe may look like vintage antiques, but most of these items were handcrafted by Disney artisans for the new shop.
The Disney Showcase was one of the first to transform.
Of all of the Halloween makeovers on Main Street, my favorite is Fortuosity. For the fall season, the store is overrun with crows and ravens like a scene out of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds.” The murder of crows certainly add a lot of charm. We particularly love the ones that have little accessories like a witch hat or broom.
And, of course, the shops themselves are now filled with Halloween items… including some really adorable Star Wars themed Halloween merch. How cute is this baby Grogu?!
You can see all of the merchandise currently on the store shelves in Natalie Kipper’s updated Disneyland Halloween Merchandise Guide:
There’s still a lot more decorating left to do before Main Street is the picture-perfect turn-of-the-century Halloween paradise. All of the current red, white, and blue banners and bunting across the storefronts and lampposts will need to be switched out with orange and yellow versions, complete with leaves and wreaths. Here are some of our archive photos from last year…
And the pumpkin patch of jack-o-lanterns throughout Main Street still need to be installed as well.
Plus, there’s the big Mickey Pumpkin that still needs to be set up at the point of Town Square.
But, for now, Main Street awaits it’s true transformation…
Disney California Adventure Halloween
Across the way at Disney California Adventure, there’s even more Halloween work being done. Since DCA hosts the after-hours Oogie Boogie Halloween parties, more of the park gets the Halloween treatment.
Like Main Street, Buena Vista Street still has its 4th of July bunting up, but the window displays have nearly all changed over to Halloween decorations.
And, like Disneyland, the big props are still missing. Buena Vista Street still needs to add the rest of its fall décor of autumn-colored bunting and its assortment of pumpkins along the exterior of the buildings. Plus, there are three major elements that still need to be installed: the Headless Horseman statue, bats in the belfry at Carthay Circle, and the Giant Oogie Boogie (and tortilla Moon) over the entry to the park.
Some archive shots from last year…
Here’s how the entry turnstiles looked from the front last year…
And as you exit…
But Buena Vista Street is just the opening act, the real star of Halloween at DCA is Cars Land. The Honkin’ Haul-O-Ween postcard billboard at the entry to the land has yet to arrive, but a lot of the Halloween decorations were put in place over the last few days.
Right from the entry point of the land, you can see the additional telephone poles that have been installed to hang the spiders and cobwebs across the street.
Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree already has its holiday overlay signage in place for the Jam-BOO-ree. The music hasn’t switched over to the Halloween theming yet, so you can still enjoy the normal soundtrack for a little while longer.
There are some smaller decorative touches that have been put in place for Halloween, including the monster cars around Mater’s and the grinning oil barrels by Filmore’s Taste-In.
Sarge’s Surplus Hut already has its light-up spider webs installed on top of the building
Although the land is very tame in terms of scare factor, there is actually one component that is a bit spooky. Over by the Curio Shop, there is a zombie car with a tree growing out of it. Once the Halloween season starts, the ancient car will occasionally sputter to life a bit with flickering headlights and steam from the radiator. It’s delightful!
We did notice that the “This location is unavailable” sticker has been removed from the door. We hope that means the Curio shop will return.
One of the most charming details of Haul-O-Ween in Cars Land are the spooky jack-o-lantern cones at the Cozy Cones Motel.
Luigi’s also does a minimal overlay for the holidays. Not only is the tire tower haunted with orange stripes and a ghostly face, but the ride will eventually get some Halloween music as well.
And the touching ofrenda to the Sheriff (the Hudson Hornet) has returned to Ramones…
Downtown Disney Halloween
We should see the gardens throughout Downtown Disney switch out for the season soon. Meanwhile, World of Disney, the Home Store, and Marcelines are filled with Halloween items and displays.
Marceline’s continues to underwhelm with a smattering of decorations.
They haven’t started offering Halloween treats yet. But the mix here has gotten so boring. We will frequently visit in the hopes there will be something good, but it’s always the same old apples, rice crispy treats, cookies, cake pops, and cupcakes in their various seasonal varieties.
World of Disney probably has the best display of items in the resort.
SoCal Theme Park Halloween Activities
Disneyland isn’t the only theme park with Halloween on the mind. MiceChat contributor Samantha Davis-Friedman wrote an article detailing the major Halloween activities in Southern California theme parks. You’ll find scares from mild to spicy (on Samantha’s scare meter):
Southern California Theme Park Halloween Events – From Spicy to Mild
Disneyland Updates
It’s not all Halloween and new merchandise at the Disneyland Resort, there is a lot of construction and refurbishment going on as well!
ToonTown Pastels
There’s a new color palette taking form in ToonTown. The reimagined land is expected to open early next year and we are starting to see signs of finishing details on the hills, El CapiTOON Theater. But it’s still hard to tell what’s happening in the reworked walkways around Roger Rabbit, Goofy’s House, Donald’s Boat, and whatever the new theme is for Gadget’s Go Coaster.
The old queue garden at Goofy’s has been completely removed.
The lagoon around Donald’s Boat has also been removed.
The entire Go Coaster is now covered in scaffolds (including the queue), as well as the front of Mickey’s house, and the remaining ToonTown hills. Some square pits have been dug throughout the land so shade trees can be planted. With a major new attraction on the way (Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway) ToonTown needed some additional queue space and lots of shade. That’s part of what this project is all about. At the same time, the Imagineers are taking the opportunity to freshen up the land a bit and tie it in to the new attraction.
Haunted Mansion Transition
The 999 ghosts of the Haunted Mansion are taking a quick break while their Nightmare Before Christmas pals are added back in for another four-and-a-half-month run.
The pumpkins hadn’t made their way to the rooftop when I took these photos… but they are waiting very close by…
Haunted Mansion Holiday returns on September 2nd.
And just outside the Mansion in the Magnolia Gardens circle overflow queue area, a construction wall has gone up. It’s obviously for more pathway expansion and garden reshaping.
MagicBand/Star Wars Bounty Hunter
MagicBands are coming soon. We expect to hear something definitive at the D23 Expo. Meanwhile, Disneyland is quickly working on a clone of Walt Disney World’s Star Wars Bounty Hunter game in Galaxy’s Edge.
Players will soon use the Disney Play App DataPad and a MagicBand to find outlaws in Batuu and earn points. If you want to know what’s happening behind those walls, check out the video below. When Johnny scans his arm, that’s what’s being installed here:
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We recently took a look at the new MagicBands and Game at Walt Disney World.
Necessity or Nuisance: MagicBand+ Lights Up at Walt Disney World
Matterhorn Mania
Do you miss the Matterhorn? We still don’t have a return date. But Scaffolds are up in various places around the mountain.
And in the old FastPass garden, the recent construction has wrapped up. The old FastPass equipment was fully removed and the area resurfaced.
Tale of the Lion King
We had worried that the wonderful Tale of the Lion King show had already been canceled because it had no show times after August 29th. However, we have learned that they are training new cast members now and that the show has an open-ended run. That’s good news.
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique Opens This Week
Look above the door and you’ll spy Smee, Capt. Hook, and Tick-Tock.
Tomorrowland Needs a Lifeline
As we approach D23 Expo, I just wanted to point out the derelict sections of Tomorrowland that we expect to hear more about soon. No other land (except for huge sections of Star Wars land and Hollywood Pictures Backlot) has more unused space at the Disneyland Resort. For a land all about the future… this one sure does seem stuck in the past. Thankfully the Imagineers are hard at work on a new vision of Tomorrow… which we HOPE will be announced in just a couple of weeks (if the budgets haven’t been Chapek’d).
The massive old Carousel building remains closed.
Same with the Magic Eye Theater (former home of Captain EO and so many other 3D films).
The beloved PeopleMover (and briefly the Rocket Rods) has become just a shade structure for guests in an otherwise hostile land (shade-wise).
Even the shop at the base of the loading tower is closed.
And the Starcade (which hasn’t offered games in well over a decade) is just an empty shell.
If everything works out as planned, our future will be on the move again as the next big project after ToonTown. Crossing our fingers on this one…
Personally, I’d like to see elements of this new Space Mountain concept swooping its way through our dated world of tomorrow…
And look how well the image above blends with the Tron coaster (which could easily use part of the old PeopleMover right of way to speed above our land on the move)… to dream the impossible dream…
Shifting gears… Let’s head over to Disney California Adventure to see what’s new over there this week.
There are a handful of projects taking place at DCA. Obviously, the biggest project is the transition to Halloween that we already covered above. But there are a few more things going on in this park.
Hollywood Land Construction
Once you enter the Backlot area of Hollywood Land, it’s impossible to miss the gigantic stretch of construction walls. The whole back side of the land from Monsters Inc. to Hollywood Lounge is currently behind construction walls as both offerings are currently under refurbishment.
Monsters Closed
A loooooong construction wall runs nearly the entire North side of the Hollywood Pictures Backlot. It’s just a regular refurb for Monsters…
The wall also contains the Hollywood Lounge, which is getting a pretty extensive refurbishment. Before that big blue scrim went up, all the neon was removed from the tower.
Looking back from the Hollywood Lounge you can see how long that wall really is!
While the Hollywood Lounge is closed for refurbishment, there’s a temporary replacement to help fill in the gap. One of the Food & Wine booths has temporarily been set out in the land, just behind the Studio Store, with a selection of drinks from the Hollywood Lounge.
This booth is one of the locations in the Disneyland Resort where you can try the new Coca-Cola flavor: Dreamworld. It’s supposed to taste like “dreams” and is inspired by “Gen-Z’s approach to personal interpretation.” Whatever that is supposed to mean. It’s a fun novelty to try a new flavor. This one tasted like Coke mixed with a nondescript artificial fruit flavor. But we just think of it as broken dreams in a blue bottle.
Grizzly River Rapids
For the last few weeks that we’ve been at DCA, we noticed that the geysers of Grizzly River Rapids aren’t working. It’s surprising considering that it was down for a lengthy refurb a few months ago, and we can’t recall if the geysers were working at the time it came back online. The simple fountain action adds a lot of excitement to the area, especially for onlookers. We hope that the geysers will be returning eventually.
Redwood Creek Challenge Trail Halloween Conversion
The outdoor activity area of DCA remains closed as the entire area is getting a Halloween makeover. While there isn’t a whole lot to report on in terms of visible changes, we saw lots of workers in black shirts walking around, climbing ladders, working on lighting, etc. The area will look pretty much the same by day, but at night becomes Villains Grove… a slightly-scary walk-through experience exclusive to the sold-out Oogie Boogie Bash.
She-Hulk Synergy
With the recent launch of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law on Disney+ last week, there’s a new promo in the land for the new show. But don’t get too excited… it’s just a bench:
Not unlike the bench seen in the Disney+ promo image:
There are two benches in the land, one across from the dining area by Hyperion Theater and one before Pym Tasting Lab. The bench is intentionally dented to appear that She-Hulk had been sitting there.
Our Disney+ content reviewer, Scott Renshaw, enjoyed the series so far. He picked up on some tasteful nods to the 90s show Ally McBeal as a creative inspiration for the new Marvel show. Take a look at Scott’s review of She-Hulk in the article below.
Disneyland Resort Refurbishment Calendar
Here’s a list of the ongoing and upcoming refurbishments around the parks. Generally, the fall was a time we’d see a lot of attractions down for a touchup. But it’s not too bad this year.
Currently Under Refurbishment:
- Adventureland Treehouse: (September 1st, 2021-TBA) – Keep your ears open at the D23 Expo for more info on what’s going on here.
- Mickey’s Toontown (March 9th, 2022 – early 2023)
- Redwood Creek Challenge Trail: (August 1st-19th)
- Matterhorn Bobsleds: (August 8th-TBA)
- Haunted Mansion Holiday Install: (August 15th-September 1st)
- Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! : (August 15th-September 2nd)
Upcoming Refurbishments:
- Paradise Garden Grill: (August 27th-31st) – Please, please, please give us a better menu!
- Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island: (September 6th-8th)
Does it seem like Disneyland’s two big ships have been getting lots of refurbishments? Well, there’s more ahead…
- Sailing Ship Columbia: (September 12th-15th)
- Mark Twain Riverboat: (September 19th-22nd)
This & That
To close out today’s Disneyland Update, here are a few of the other stories from around the Disneyland Resort.
Magic Key Popcorn Bucket
With the recent renewals of Magic Keys, there is a new collectible popcorn bucket emblazoned with a Magic Key insignia. The shape of the popcorn bucket is familiar, a metallic ombré Mickey-balloon shaped.
But Keyholders who are all paying more for their new passes aren’t happy that the new buckets don’t offer cheap refills as Disney has done in the past. Effectively, this is a Magic Keyholder-exclusive item that doesn’t offer any perks, making it just like any other popcorn bucket in the resort… but this one let’s everyone else know you’re part of an unfavorable attendance mix.
World Princess Week
A few weeks ago, we reported on the construction walls at Downtown Disney with art of Disney Princesses on it as part of the Ultimate Princess Celebration (that is admittedly lame). Disney has announced that this week, August 21-27, is World Princess Week and there are a variety of snacks that can be found around the domestic Disney Parks. Once again, Disneyland is getting the short end of the stick in comparison to Walt Disney World. Here’s what the celebration entails.
The snack stand at the Grand Californian Hotel has reopened with an array of princess-themed treats. The selection is less extensive than previous iterations, but we really enjoyed the Mint Chocolate Chip Princess and the Frog Macaron.
There is also a cupcake and a donut that can be found at the Craftsman Grill also at the Grand.
There is a special sipper that will be at Disneyland in a handful of quick-serve locations, including Red Rose Tavern, Sleeping Beauty Castle Churro Cart, Maurice’s Treats, and more.
At DCA, there will be a Magic Keyholder-exclusive photo op in Stage 17. Last year, there were numerous photo ops located throughout Downtown Disney. It looks like they’re scaling back things this year.
Broken Windows on Main Street
Once again, the animated windows on Main Street appear to be having problems. Any guesses as to which ones are down? If you guessed Peter Pan and Princess & the Frog, you would be right! Several of these windows seem to have maintenance issues that force long refurbishments… but they always end up nonfunctional shortly afterward. But these windows were never supposed to have lasted forever. For decades the animated windows were refreshed for Disney’s newest animated features or for special promotions and events. And while these elaborate windows are a treat, they are also very long in the tooth.
Live at Disneyland with Dusty Sage
Not ready to give up your Disney addiction for the day? Lucky for you I spent about an hour and a half walking through the parks on Friday. Take a stroll with me…
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Let’s Hear From You
Did you renew your Magic Key (or do you plan to when your renewal time arrives)? What do you make of the new “Inspire” key which offers fewer days for $200 more? We love Halloween at the resort, but we had a friend tell us this week that she hates the spooky season and skips Halloween as much as possible until Christmas arrives. What about you?
I’d like to leave you with a few more images from my visit this hot, but enjoyable week…
