Trip Report Never Grow Up…Disneyland 2022

Hi All! Long time, no trip reports! As in - it’s been over a decade (I think?) since I’ve written one! I’ve really enjoyed the Besties Disneyland report and thought I’d share a little bit of my trip out to DL.
My trip almost (but not quite!) over lapped with the Besties.
When: President’s Day Weekend 18-20 February 2022
Who: Myself and my 18 year old son - who graduates from high school this year (can’t believe it!)

A photo of my son on his first trip to WDW in 2008:

(Honey I shrunk the kids playground anyone?)

And here he is now (with me - so hello everyone!):

He grew Just a little bit! But, no matter how tall he gets - here’s hoping he always has room in his heart for a little bit of Disney magic!

A little bit about me/ us. As mentioned -Our first WDW trip was in 2008. My in laws took us and put us up at the Poly. I really wasn’t looking forward to the trip - I thought it would be cheesy and I wouldn’t like it. Well, joke was on me because despite it being Easter weekend and the parks being absolutely packed, we LOVED everything about WDW. Then I found these boards and the wonderful agents at Kingdom Konsultants (shout out to Marie who planned not one but two trips for my crazy extended family over the years!) - and the trips started being booked and haven’t really stopped since!
At times we’ve been AP holders, at other times we’ve only gone once or twice a year. As my kids have gotten older, my daughter still loves all things Disney but my husband and my son have wanted to focus on other trips to other destinations.

That’s why this trip was so special - my husband and my son travel together for fishing and sport events, etc and my daughter and I have done a solo trip to WDW - so when my son agreed to go with me to DL I jumped at the chance!

We had been to DL one other time when we drove Route 66. A side by side of my son from that trip and this one:

 

[erstwo]

Day 3 - continued

For the life of me, I can’t remember why - but I had to wait for my son for a little while. Maybe he rode Incredicoaster without me?? But I rested in the area between Little Mermaid and Embarcadero Gifts. Basically, the stroller parking area.
While there, I noticed that the windows needed some attention. Peeling paint and the curtains looked so old they had started to tatter.

After my son was done with whatever it was he did () we went on Little Mermaid. I loved the queue:

And the ride:

 

[erstwo]

Next we headed up towards the front of the park. We passed Goofy fishing on the way:

We stopped by Philharmagic so my son could see the new Coco scene.

Next we went to Monster’s Inc. My son had a neat story about how this ride originally was designed to be a ‘paparazzi chasing after a famous actor’ style ride to fit with the old Hollywood vibe of the front of the park. Apparently, right before it was put together, Princess Diana passed away after being chased by paparazzi and the idea was tanked. My son said the animatronic, yellow ‘sanitation guys’ are all repurposed Hollywood stars like Jackie Chan and the like.
No idea if that was true, but that story must be out on the internet somewhere!

Next, we went inside the Animation Academy where we walked through the exhibit areas.

We had a LL for Guardians so we headed back to the Avengers campus.

 

[erstwo]

Day 3 - continued

This was where my son fell in love with Guardians.
I took this photo in the queue because I think these are fiddle leaf figs and I’d never seen them so big. Love this photo because of the halo. I know it’s just the sun, the angle, yada yada but since I lost my mom 2 years ago, I get a lot of halo effects like this in my photos on trips with my kids.

I thought this raccoon was so cute! (Spoiler!!! - Well done with the tail, then the full raccoon and finally the little raccoon hand grabbing the Walkman!)

I enjoyed my ride but didn’t love it. So while my son charmed his way into a second LL - I mobile ordered on the app and I walked over to the Cozy Cone for the chili frito cone.
No photos of the food (bloggers take better photos anyway) but it was really good!

Evening was headed our way. It was time dir Incredicoaster again.

And, of course, as long as I’m there…..

Then my son decided on the regular line for Guardians and I made my way to…

Turtle talk!

And then I took a drawing class:

Don’t worry - I kept my day job.

 

[erstwo]

Day 3 - continued

The rest of this night is kind of a blur. Carthay Circle is gorgeous at night.

I did go inside Firejumpers and here are the photos to prove it.

Next we went to Soarin’

And then back to Guadians.

After Guardians it looked like we had time for two more rides. So we went over to Webslingers.

 

[fractal]

Loving this report! Reminds me of my trip with my son. I'm finding it humourous how difficult it was for you to get a cup of coffee each day

 

[muddyrivers]

Next we went to Monster’s Inc. My son had a neat story about how this ride originally was designed to be a ‘paparazzi chasing after a famous actor’ style ride to fit with the old Hollywood vibe of the front of the park. Apparently, right before it was put together, Princess Diana passed away after being chased by paparazzi and the idea was tanked. My son said the animatronic, yellow ‘sanitation guys’ are all repurposed Hollywood stars like Jackie Chan and the like.
No idea if that was true, but that story must be out on the internet somewhere!

The ride did exist for a little while and was called Superstar Limo. For everything you wanted to know about the ride, I highly recommend this YouTube video: Defunctland: The History of Disney's Worst Attraction Ever, Superstar Limo

 

[erstwo]

Loving this report! Reminds me of my trip with my son. I'm finding it humourous how difficult it was for you to get a cup of coffee each day

Thank you! You might say I’m a little high maintenance and too impatient/ worried about missing park time to wait too long for coffee! I probably make it out to be worse that it was!

The ride did exist for a little while and was called Superstar Limo. For everything you wanted to know about the ride, I highly recommend this YouTube video: Defunctland: The History of Disney's Worst Attraction Ever, Superstar Limo

Fascinating- Thank you for this!

 

[erstwo]

Day 3 - continued

It snowed last night in the Deep South, so I have no motivation to go outside and get things done so…..Let’s see if I can wrap this thing up!

We really enjoyed Webslingers. No way in the world it is worth more than a 15 minute to hour wait (depending on how much you want to ride it/ enjoy the ride) but another example of Disney employing technology in a way that amazes most people (me included). How does it know where my hands are???
We were in a car with a couple who were locals and had ridden many times before, so my son and I weren’t the high score but we hung in there!
While waiting in line for Webslingers, we kept watching the clock tick towards the 10pm park close. I really wanted to ride RSR one last time and my son thought we’d never make it over to the queue in time. So we agreed on Guardians one final time.
We raced off of Webslingers and ran towards Guardians - only to arrive to - closed gates and a 275 minute standby wait time??? What?

The CM posted at the front explained they were down to one or two operating cars and so they had decided to cut off the line. Heartbroken we were about to run back to Webslingers, when we noticed we still had 7 minutes to park close. Could we make it??

We made it with 3 minutes to spare.
RSR was the final ride.

My son and I thought these tiny car covers for Luigi’s were just the most adorable things.

Goodnight cars!

We Ubered back to the hotel, packed up and turned in.
The next morning I tried out the hotel breakfast for the first time. Sharing these in case anyone wanted to see more of the Suncoast Park Anaheim hotel:
Pool area was cute but it was too cold while we were there to use it. Too cold for me to even walk outside and photograph it. Ha.

They had a nice store area with snacks/ bottles of water, etc for late nights after coming home from the parks.

Again, it was a great stay.

We stopped by a few LA places, put our feet in the Pacific and headed back to LAX.

A few more thoughts I can post later, but that’s a wrap!
Thanks to everyone for reading!

 

[erstwo]

Just a few more random things from the trip:

1 - There was a CVS right across the street and maybe a block down from the entrance to DCA/ DL where we got waters, protein bars, and a few other essentials the first night of our trip. Just an FYI for those traveling to Disneyland who might wonder if there are places like that within walking distance.

2 - At some point during our Disneyland day, I did get to see Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and I loved it. I just can't remember when we got to watch it - it was after I was turned away for the 'exclusive event' that happened around 3 or 4 pm, but before park close (obviously ) If I could have remembered where it fit in sequential order, I would have put it in the trip report. I think I also forgot to mention we rode Indiana Jones. Which leads to my next point...

3 - we got a lot done in 3 days. I think if I had wanted to do every single thing, 4 days would have probably have been more than enough. However, we rode every ride worthy of a Lighting Lane at least once, if not more than once and plenty of rides that weren't LL worthy.

4- Only one day in Disneyland meant we didn't get to do some things that I had prioritized on our last trip to Disneyland. Things like riding down Main Street and exploring every nook and cranny of New Orleans Square. I have to say, I wish I would have made time for those things again on this trip. If I'm lucky enough to make a third trip to Disneyland, I'll be sure to prioritize those things again.

5 - There are probably more things, but just like forgetting where Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and Indiana Jones fell into my Disneyland park day, I've forgotten them already. I'll try to come back an add them as I remember them!

Finally, I'd just like to say how much I love these WDWmagic boards and appreciate the people who moderate them and - of course - those who post to them. Life got busy and I took a long break from these boards. I only occasionally, if ever, checked in for about 4 or 5 years. When the pandemic hit, this was the first place I came to see how WDW was faring, what was going on with all the CMs, and what the status was for reopening.

In those difficult times, I was so thankful for those who posted their (pre- pandemic) trip reports. A bright spot in those crazy first few months. I remain thankful for those who continue to share their trips and transport us back to one of my happiest places! Much love to you all.

I was supposed to be in WDW next week, but plans changed and with a trip out of country planned for this summer, I bet I won't be back at WDW again until at least October. And....I'll probably do such an insufficient job of keeping notes and taking photos (just like parts of this trip ) that I might not be able to post another trip report for maybe another decade. But until then -again - my deepest thanks to those who take the time and make this part of the forum so magical! We might age, but we can always keep that magical part of childhood in our hearts, right? Cheers to the magic of Disney!

 

[TheMouseFan]

Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us! I really enjoyed following along!

 

[Loco_driver]

Nicely done! I’m enjoying the DL reports lately since I have a trip planned for the fall! Thanks for sharing!

 

[MickeyCB]

Thank you so much for sharing and that last photo brings tears to my eyes!

 

[riverside]

Thank you for the lovely TR!! I really enjoyed it & your last post was very touching in so many ways!!

 

[amjt660]

Great report of a great trip with your son
Thank you for sharing

and...

don't be a stranger, come back and say "hi"

Max

 

[erstwo]

Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us! I really enjoyed following along!

Thank you for reading! I'm looking forward to your first DL trip report!!! (and your next WDW one of course! )

Nicely done! I’m enjoying the DL reports lately since I have a trip planned for the fall! Thanks for sharing!

Thanks so much for reading! I know you will have a great time! Hoping for a trip report (no pressure though! )

Thank you so much for sharing and that last photo brings tears to my eyes!

Thank you for reading! I have always loved that photo. We were waiting to be called to an early dinner at Crystal Palace. Every time I see that photo, I'm transported back to that moment. I can still hear their little voices. I know you definitely understand - they grow up so fast! I hope you and your family are doing well!

Thank you for the lovely TR!! I really enjoyed it & your last post was very touching in so many ways!!

Thank you for reading! I really do appreciate so much those, like you, who take the time to post these trip reports!

Great report of a great trip with your son
Thank you for sharing

and...

don't be a stranger, come back and say "hi"

Max

Thank you! And I will definitely be 'lurking' around here . It's my favorite middle of the work day break!

 

[cgersic]

What a great report!! Thank you for taking the time to write it and I look forward to the next one!

 

[amjt660]

It's my favorite middle of the work day break!

me too!


Max

 

[MickeyCB]

they grow up so fast! I hope you and your family are doing well!

For sure! I'm sure it feels like your son was just a toddler 10 minutes ago!
We just got to visit with crazy girl in Sac who was (no lie) dancing with a band playing at an outdoor party place! She's 14 months already!
We're doing ok, thanks.

 

[Darstarr]

Your trip report….

Thanks for sharing. I enjoyed it immensely!!!

 

[erstwo]

What a great report!! Thank you for taking the time to write it and I look forward to the next one!

Thank you so much for reading!

Your trip report….

Thanks for sharing. I enjoyed it immensely!!!

That is so kind. Thank you for reading!