Disneyland Update: Treehouse Triumph, Jungle Turbulence & ToonTown Turmoil

Welcome to our weekly Disneyland update! We’re just a few days away from the start of the Christmas season and there’s a lot happening at The Happiest Place on Earth. This week, get ready to scale a new adventure in a classic location at the rejuvenated Adventureland Treehouse. I got to take an early look and share my thoughts. We also share news about an unexpected detour for the Jungle Cruise. Glimpse the rapid decking of the halls as holiday splendor arrives at Disneyland… but is it also a little tired? and dive into some big construction progress, upcoming refurbishments, and the latest wild news. Grab your mouse ears, folks… it’s time for our weekly Disneyland reality check!

Worth The Wait

At looooooooong last, Disneyland’s Treehouse reopens this Friday (Nov 10th) as a whole new attraction. The Adventureland Treehouse, Inspired By Walt Disney’s Swiss Family Robinson, is finally ready for guests after more than two years of development and construction.

I joined Kim Irvine, Executive Creative Director of Walt Disney Imagineering, on an early morning walk through the new attraction on Friday.  The attraction absolutely feels like the original Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, but with far more detail and whimsical touches. You’ll find movement in each of the rooms, as well as incredible detail. Running water, moving animal figures, and the show-stopping organ with embedded violin, bells, and whistles. 

The attraction looks and sounds incredible. The giant water wheel produces power for all the elements of the treehouse and provides water to all of the rooms (at least that’s the story). 

Take a moment to walk through the treehouse…

 

But the thing that most put me into the spirit of the attraction was the music. Instead of the short, repetitive, original version of Swisskapolka… the song has been reorchestrated with added depth and a different version for each room of the Treehouse. You’ll hear birds singing along, frogs croaking to the tune, and the incredible orchestration in Mother’s music room. 

Each of the rooms is inspired by a different family member’s passion. The daughter, for example, is a budding astronomer. She’s also interested in becoming a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (S.E.A) – which helped her craft her telescope out of found materials. 

Twin boys share the smallest room, which is FILLED with birds, frogs, and a mischievous monkey. 

Father’s space is at the base of the tree. This is also the wheelchair-accessible portion of the attraction. Here, you’ll find the kitchen and art studio. 

The purpose of the art studio is to give guests who can’t climb the stairs a sense of what the rooms above look like. There is a potential audio version of the attraction in the works as well, which would provide another way for disabled guests to experience the attraction. 

Throughout the attraction, look for easter eggs and nods to past versions of the treehouse and other Disney movies and characters. The most obvious of which is Jane the Ostrich (an homage to the Tarzan attraction)

The Treehouse is a stunning achievement and a big win for fans who miss the simple classic storytelling attractions of days gone by. While this is the farthest thing from a blockbuster ride, there is a huge need for smaller attractions that don’t have long lines and allow guests to fill in the blanks in their busy schedules. The treehouse will be fun for all ages and occupies a minimal amount of resort real estate. 

But what’s perhaps most interesting about the Adventureland Treehouse is that it isn’t based on any Disney characters. In an age where characters are shoehorned into existing attractions and non-IP attractions are rare, the Adventureland Treehouse proves that a good idea is always welcome, even if it isn’t based on a hot Disney franchise. 

For more information and thoughts about the new attraction, please visit our dedicated article:

NOW OPEN: Disneyland’s Adventureland Treehouse – Photos, Video & Info!

Palm Breeze Bar Opens 

It wasn’t just the Treehouse that opened this week. A brand new poolside lounge also opened at the Villas at the Disneyland Hotel this week. It’s a great space, with lots of Mary Blair Small World inspired details. And, because it’s covered, this should be a comfortable space year-round. 

Screens above the bar showcase a stylized animated video mural of Disneyland.

A painted version of the mural is on the back wall. 

 

But while the bar is comfortable and easy to access, the menu is quite limited and very expensive. We tried the hummus, steak salad, chicken sandwich, and beignets. We certainly enjoyed our lunch. But our lunch for 2 was over $100 (not at a fancy restaurant, but at a poolside bar). 

The menu features sharables, sandwiches, salads, and pizzas, and some interesting desserts. 

 

 

 

 

 

The filled beignets were acceptable. However, they taste NOTHING like a beignet. These are more like a dense powered-sugar doughnuts with a tiny amount of filling and dipping sauce. 

They are dry and cake-ish and not the crunchy and chewy texture of a beignet. Perhaps they should just change the name and call them doughnuts. 

 

     

Also, we walked past the new bar a few times since it opened and never saw it full. That’s unusual for a brand-new restaurant. Perhaps the menu and prices aren’t appealing to guests.  But we certainly enjoyed the space.          

The Tiger Escaped

The Jungle Cruise suddenly closed without warning last week and remained closed through the weekend. The culprit appears to be crumbling infrastructure near the tiger (across from the Indiana Jones temple). But what makes this all seem strange is that the ride just underwent a massive refurbishment in 2021, which brought new scenes and figures in many parts of the ride. But the tiger scene wasn’t one of them. Out of sight, out of mind. 

No time was wasted to begin repairs, and the ride is still being staffed… but with the skippers standing out front interacting with guests. 

If we look not very far into the jungle (just past the snake statue supporting the giant pearl), scaffolds and scrims hide the problem area. 

We suspect that the scene will be hidden away and the ride reopened as soon as possible while repairs are made. An additional set of scrims are already in place in front of the scene, even though guests can’t see it. 

The Christmas Flood

In this week between Halloween and Christmas everything will change. It’s really quite the jarring transition from scary to merry in just 10 days. And while it’s a real shame that Disney gave up on Thanksgiving a long time ago, the money made from the jollydays is just too irresistible.  

The holiday season is shaping up to be almost exactly as we remember it from the last few years. Same decorations, same ride overlays, same festival; it’s mostly just the merchandise and food that is freshened up year to year. 

But as pretty as it all looks at first glance, some of the older decorations are starting to suffer from the wear and tear of being used a little too long. 

The snowy castle rooftops are dirty, cracked, and don’t mesh up like they did when they were new. 

ToonTown’s decorations look good. But they are the same old ones from prior to the renovation of the land. New land, old decorations (you’ll hear this theme repeated in San Fransokyo as well). But it’s still one of the best-decorated areas in the park. 

New Orleans Square is a little less over the top each year. The cutback in the volume of decor has been slow but steady for the last decade. We’ll see how it looks when the holidays officially launch on Friday. 

I particularly love the giant moon and stars in the tree outside of Tiana’s Palace. 

Critter Country will play host to Santa as usual. His meet and greet hadn’t arrived yet when we shot this update. But the land has its usual smattering of garland.

We noticed that some of the decor is hidden behind the construction walls for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. 

Although the decorations in Frontierland are minimal, there’s something about their natural earnestness that makes this one of my favorite areas in the park this time of year. 

Main Street is in a slow transition. The garland and tree had not shown up yet for our photo shoot… but they’ll arrive any minute now. 

Princess Fantasy Faire is ready for the holidays. 

And over at California Adventure, they’re preparing for the Festival of the Holidays. 

On Friday there was still a mix of Halloween and Christmas. But all of the spooky stuff has been packed away by now. 

This is the first Christmas for San Fransokyo… but most of the decorations are left over from the old version of the land, Pacific Wharf. Because the restaurants themselves are also leftovers (with some new menu items), it all still works… but doesn’t quite fit the new Big Hero Six theme. It would have been interesting to see what the creatives would have come up with for a real San Fransokyo Christmas.  

There’s a tinge of whimsy to the rustic decor in the Grizzly Peak area, particularly at the airfield. 

The lightning bug jars have returned. 

And the light-up animated sweater is back on the giant bear. 

The festival booths have also arrived. I’m looking forward to Winter Sliderland…

It appears that the booths will be offering a very limited number of items. Selection is down, but prices are up. $9 for a tiny slider. 

But there’s still 4 days of decorating left. And one of the biggest jobs hadn’t started yet…

The stores have been ready for Christmas for quite a while. 

I like the nostalgic feeling of the merchandise this year. The red and green is classic. And the teal is an interesting mid-century twist. 

Check out Natalie’s guide to the holiday merchandise: 

Unwrapping Disneyland’s 2023 Holiday Merchandise

And for those of you with a sweet tooth, the treats are mostly what we remember from years past with only slight changes. 

More about the Festival of Holidays and the Christmas food lineup: 

All the Sweets, Treats, and Holiday Eats at The Disneyland Resort

The Disney Company has been supporting Toys for Tots for more than 75 years. In fact, it was Walt Disney and his animators who designed the Toys for Tots train logo! You’ll find toy bins in select shops now through December 15th. 

CONSTRUCTION KINGDOM

Annnnnnd now it’s time to take a look at construction. I’ll spare you the details this week since we’re so heavy on new stuff above, but there was some exciting progress on one project and questions galore about another. 

Downtown Disney

While the build of various Downtown Disney projects are lumbering along at a glacial pace… The West Side is preparing to open a new stage and lawn. Walls are being shifted around and as soon as the stage is ready, the green scrim you see below will be removed and a large lawn will be available for guests to sit. Then the stage in front of Star Wars Trading Post and the old ESPN Zone will be removed and the area under it will be repaved. 

Like ToonTown park, the lawn here isn’t flat. It has lots of hills, similar to a mini-golf course. What could possibly go wrong?!

Construction hasn’t broken ground on the future Earl of Sandwich yet, but that should start in the next month or two. 

ToonTown Troubles

It pains me to say this, but ToonTown is a bit of a mess. Much of the brand new land is in the process of being fixed. Things are already needing paint touchups, areas are being repaved, grass lawns leveled, play equipment replaced, and a fountain is being reworked.  

That hasn’t kept guests away. Roger Rabbit had the longest wait in the park for a while on Friday…. 80 minutes!

ToonTown park is back from its 2nd refurbishment in less than a year. 

But the fountain is STILL beyond walls. 

The area on one side of the fountain was paved with brick instead of grass. 

Now it’s time for Goofy’s Play Yard to be fixed up. They are even working on the beehive. 

Donald’s Boat splash pad, which has yet to open to guests, remains closed as well. 

And in the quiet spot at the back of the land, they are painting a bench for the 2nd time in a year. 

REFURBISHMENTS

There are a slew of refurbishments in the works and on the way. Take note…

Currently Under Refurbishment:

• Tarzan’s Treehouse – Transformation: (September 1st, 2021-November 10th, 2023)
• Splash Mountain – Conversion to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure: (May 31st, 2023-Late 2024)
• Schmoozies!: (July 30th-November 12th)
• Mark Twain Riverboat: (September 17th-TBA) – It’s an extensive refurbishment. 

• it’s a small world – Holiday Install: (October 23rd-November 9th)

• Goofy’s How-to-Play Yard: (October 30th-November 9th)
• Donald’s Duck Pond: (October 30th-November 9th)
• Redwood Creek Challenge Trail – Holiday Change Over: (November 1st-9th)

Upcoming Refurbishments

• Indiana Jones Adventure: (November 27th-30th)
• Astro Orbitor: (November 27th-TBA)
• Incredicoaster: (November 27th-December 1st)

DISNEYLAND LIVE

Now, if I haven’t bored you to tears, take a little over an hour to walk through the Disneyland Resort with me. We stroll through Disneyland, California Adventure, and visit the new Palm Breeze Bar…

Follow us every Friday at 5pm (Pacific) on YouTube or Facebook for our Disneyland Live!

THIS AND THAT

We have a few more things for you that we’d like to share…

Cedar Fair Six Flags Merger

This isn’t a Disney item, but many Disneyland fans are wondering how the merger between regional parks chains Cedar Fair (owners of Knott’s Berry Farm) and Six Flags (owners of Magic Mountain) could impact two of Disneyland’s biggest competitors in the LA area.

Here’s the good news, Cedar Fair is now the 51% owner of the merged companies and Cedar Fair’s CEO will lead the new company. While the company will be called “Six Flags” and the board of directors will be split 50/50 between the two companies, we do expect the Cedar Fair management to have the upper hand.  

But mergers are usually paid for by cost cuts and asset sales. So, we do think that some parks could be sold off as the company attempts to improve performance. For example, the land under Magic Mountain is highly desirable. We can imagine a scenario where the park is sold for the cash it would generate. A merger is a time for a company to reevaluate priorities and not be held back by sentimentality. 

So, we don’t think this is necessarily bad news for Knott’s, but just about anything could happen as the new company figures out its finances and priorities. Knott’s is the odd duck in the new collection of parks. The rare family theme park in a giant collection of coaster parks. 

HULU Power Play & Pray

Disney is buying out Comcast NBC Universal’s 33% share of HULU for at least $8.61 BILLION. Why are we mentioning this in our Disneyland Update? Because Disney is still paying down the huge debt on the purchase of FOX (at least $40 Billion still owed) and loans they had to take when theaters and theme parks closed in 2020/21. Disney is now loaded with debt, starved for cash, and trading 50% off its highest stock price. You may not see the sharks and corporate raiders circling, but they most certainly are. The question is, what will Iger do to keep them at bay? 

Bob Iger’s contract runs through the end of 2026. There isn’t much time for him to figure out how to save the struggling movie and streaming business, the dying broadcast television business, and figure out how to pay off all this debt before a replacement takes over. And who would that replacement be? 

Tale of the Lion King Closes Jan  7th

It wasn’t a long run for this high-energy show on a budget in the Fantasyland Theatre. The cast and music were amazing. But, the show didn’t have the big production value of previous efforts on the stage. So, instead of running for a decade, Lion King will have run for a little less than two years. 

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Let’s Hear From You! 

As the pixie dust settles on another week of Disneyland news, we’d love to hear your take. What are your thoughts on the new Adventureland Treehouse? Are you glad to see a non-IP addition to the park, or do you wish it had a popular franchise attached? What do you make of ToonTown’s tribulations? Do you feel that Disneyland’s holiday offerings are getting a bit stale? And with Lion King ending in the Fantasyland Theater, Disneyland will once again have no major theatrical performance at the resort. What would you like to see at Disneyland’s two big theaters? Chime in below.  

I’d like to leave you with just a few more fun photos from the week: 

MiceShots