South Meets West: Our First Trip to Disneyland

[popsicletrees]

Greetings, everyone! I have not been on the website for awhile, but during my two month hiatus Disneybird and I took our first trip to Disneyland. The trip dates were January 1, 2009 - January 6, 2009. Yes, I realize this all took place over two months ago. This trip report will include plenty of photos, along with pictures of Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion and the Holiday Edition of It's A Small World. Anyways, on with the show...

The trip was sort of a whirlwind of planning. My brother-in-law's grandmother lives near Anaheim, and my brother-in-law (John) and sister (Amanda) wanted to take my nephew (Victor) to visit her. The plan was to take my nephew on his first theme park experience while in California. Disneybird (mom) and I were pulled into the plans officially around November. The trip was very much unplanned considering the time and the effort that mom and I normally put into planning a trip, but it was nice to go to California not having much of an agenda.

Mom and I flew out of Nashville early on the morning of Thursday, January 1. I don't think mom has flown since I was born, and I am 22 now. Fortunately, our flight was smooth and we arrived in Dallas on time. My sister, brother-in-law, and nephew arrived around 40 minutes after us. Mom and I boarded our next flight and arrived at John Wayne Airport around 2:45. The rest of our group wasn't scheduled to land until about two hours later. My mom's step-brother lives in the area, and he picked us up from the airport and drove us to the hotel. Not having transportation during this trip turned out to be a bad idea.

We all stayed in a room at the Disneyland Hotel our first night. Our room was very nice. Our balcony overlooked DTD.

We had 7:00 PM reservations for Goofy's Kitchen. John's grandmother and aunt were going to meet us for dinner. While we were waiting, I took some pictures of the lobby.

Presenting the little monster (and Mickey Mouse):

I LOVE Disney Christmas decorations.

 

[popsicletrees]

Victor turned two a little over a week before our trip. We had no idea how he would react to the characters. He can be pretty shy and stand-offish around strangers. Add in larger than life fluffy characters, and we had no idea what we were getting into. There was no better way to find out how he would respond than to take him to a character meal first thing.

Once your name is called for your reservation a CM takes you to the corner where your group has a picture made with Minnie. As soon as Victor spotted Minnie we could barely hold him back. That was a relief at least. I don't have any pictures with Minnie, but in all but one (because my sister was holding him) he had his back to the camera looking straight up at Minnie.

On to the meal:

The buffet was very good. They had a great selection of foods for the entrees and the desserts. The dessert area was by far larger than the entree area. I tried the blueberry and apple cobbler and the apple cider jello. They were both delicious.

We sat Victor where he could see the characters, and he absolutely loved it! Goofy came to our table first.

Victor spotted Goofy:

I had Victor in my lap when the rest of the characters came. So, I did not get his interaction with the others. While Chip was at our table our waiter brought over a special birthday cupcake with a candle for Victor. Chip held it while we all sang "Happy Birthday" to Victor.

His cupcake:

Victor blowing out his candle:

With my buddy:

 

[Disneybird]

Aw, I forgot about the picture of Victor with Mickey that you took.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

Yay, a Disneyland report!! Keep it coming!

 

[Pluto Princess]

I love Disney Land reports!!! I have never been there before so they always get me really excited to go one day!!! :sohappy:

Keep it coming! :wave:

 

[popsicletrees]

After dinner we were all tired. I mean, exhausted. We had been up and going since about 5:00 AM CST. Still, mom and I decided to check out DTD for a bit. After all it was right outside of out hotel. I really liked DTD. They had a Sephora. That was enough for me.

LEGO store:

There were a lot of street performers out and about. This guy was really good. I don't remember his name, but mom bought a cd of his for my dad.

We got back to our room between 9:30 and 10:00. We could barely keep our eyes open. Immediately we went to bed because we knew that due to the excitement and time change we were going to get up at a really early time.

 

[popsicletrees]

The next morning we woke up expecting to head out into sunny California, with our whole group in tow, and watch Victor's excitement on all of the rides. Only it was cold, raining, and my sister woke up sick. Much to our surprise my sister and brother-in-law agreed to let Victor go with my mom and me to Disneyland.

It was early entry for resort guests. So, at 8:00 we boarded the monorail. The monorail was nice, and CMs were present to make sure that there were only enough people on the monorail to have seats. My only complaint was that the entrance was very low going into the monorail. The monorail dropped us off into Tomorrowland. We took Victor on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. This version is completely different from the version at WDW. You can actually pick up the laser guns to move them around instead of only being able to move them left, right, slightly up, and slightly down.

Victor wasn't exactly a fan of Buzz Lightyear. We decided to head to Fantasyland next. Our first attraction in Fantasyland was Peter Pan's Flight.

Foxy Grandma and Victor in line for Peter Pan's Flight:

After we got off Victor blew the ride a great big kiss. This seemed to be his trademark for rides that he liked. We rode the carrousel, Dumbo, and some other attractions while making our way towards It's a Small World.

 

[popsicletrees]

I had no idea until I saw the front of It's A Small World that there was a holiday edition. Mom and I absolutely loved this version. It was completely redone for Christmas. Now a photo journey through It's A Small World:

Victor already decided that he liked the ride:

 

[popsicletrees]

 

[BrerKev]

Fantastic trip report. Seeing your pictures takes me back to our first trip to DL a few years back. Makes me want to start planning a return trip. Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your trip!

 

[popsicletrees]

Around 11, mom and I took Victor back to the room for lunch and a nap. The CMs at Disneyland Hotel were nice enough to extend our checkout since my sister was not feeling well (we were checking in to Howard Johnson across the street that afternoon). We had to be out by 1:30, and my sister was feeling much better by then. Our luggage was picked up to be held until that afternoon. At 2:30 we had reservations for Mickey's Birthday Party.

We got in line and received a Pooh stamp and a Mickey birthday hat. The CMs sat us at our own table.

John, Victor, and Amanda:

Then, our host Pat E. Cake came out.

Pat E. Cake did a little song and dance before the CMs passed around individaul miniature birthday cakes for us to decorate.

We had about five minutes to decorate our cakes for a competition, in which everyone was eventually named the winner. Next, Pat E. Cake gathered all the kids who were there celebrating a birthday to gather around him in the center. Amanda held Victor in the back of the group. Once all the kids gathered we alll sang "Happy Birthday." After the song, Pat E. Cake told all of the kids to turn around for a surprise.

Tah-Dah:

Mickey and Minnie slipped in the back of the crowd while everyone sang. It was a great surprise for the kids. As you can see, Victor was right in front of Mickey. He kept a look of awe on his face throughout each of his encounters with Mickey (this being his first). With all of the other characters he walked right up to them, waving, ready to play, but with Mickey he was in too much awe to even know how to react. Next was photo time with the characters.

This was really a great treat for the kids. Plus, we got free birthday cake.

Mom and I took Victor to Critter Country to ride the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Earlier that day we searched all over Fantasyland to find Pooh. We should have looked at a map, but we mistakenly thought the ride would be in Fantasyland like it is at WDW. We asked a CM how to get to the ride. He told us it was a long walk all the way around the park, or we could take the train all the way to Frontierland, and walk up to Critter Country. We were expecting him to say, "Just kidding. It is right around the corner," but he was serious. Now we were ready to make our way to Critter Country. On our way we saw the pirate ship.

From there we spotted a meet and greet with Pooh and Tigger. Victor loved meeting Pooh and Tigger. It was all we could do the hold him in line.

Victor's idea of hugging a character was really just kind of falling into them.

When we got to Tigger, Tigger crouched down to Victor's level. So, Victor crouched down too. Tigger had to pick him up for a picture.

While we were in line, I finally found Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade:

The load area for Pooh was outside, and the ride was considerably shorter than the version at WDW.

 

[popsicletrees]

From there, Amanda and John took Victor while mom and I went on rides for guests 40 inches and above. On our way we passed by the Haunted Mansion but didn't go on yet.

A gargoyle from the Haunted Mansion:

Our first stop was Space Mountain. The queu was insane! It went up and around, inside and outside. The loading area was really nice though.

The track also moved in the loading area where a vehicle could easily be moved to the side for guests in wheelchairs who needed extra time to load. This didn't disrupt the flow of loading, and once everyone was ready, the track moved the vehicle back in place. I will say that I really enjoyed riding a longer version of Space Mountain, but I didn't necessarily enjoy the music track that played the entire time nor did the longer track make it any more thrilling or intense than the WDW version (there seemed to be fewer sudden drops). It was such a smooth track though, and the space shuttles were really nice. After riding this I am really interested to see how much WDW will borrow from this version.

From here, mom and I went to Adventureland to ride Indiana Jones. This was my FAVORITE ride in both of the parks. It had the same concept as Dinosaur, but the attraction itself was so much better. I think we ended up riding this the most.

Here is a picture from inside the queu:

From there, we walked through New Orleans Square and took pictures of the Christmas decorations.

At this point, mom and I decided that it was time to ride the Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion. On our way I got a better shot of Columbia.

 

[popsicletrees]

We approached Nightmare Before Christmas HM with mixed feelings. Mom has never seen the movie, and I can't even sit through it (I've tried multiple times). So, first off we aren't fans. Secondly, we were wondering if the characters from the movie were just randomly placed throughout the ride, was the story any different, really just exactly how this was going to work. Well, we were much more than pleasantly surprised. We both ended up loving the attraction. So much so that we rode it roughly 10 times. The ride was completely redone. There was a different track, storyline, and feel to the entire ride. Even the stretching room was different. These next few pictures are a compilation of about 4 ride throughs. I will apologize in advance for the quality of the photos.

One of the portraits in the stretching room:

The ceiling of the stretching room (once the lights go out and the body is usually seen hanging there):

The loading area:

Going through the hallway:

 

[popsicletrees]

The attic scene:

I didn't get any pictures of the ballroom scene, but in place of the birthday cake and whatnot on the table there was a gingerbread coffin and the lid would open with a gingerbread sitting up. It was very funny.

Going into the graveyard:

Jack and Zero standing where the man and dog normally stand:

I could not get a good picture, but the busts that sing "Grim Grinning Ghosts" were replaced by singing pumpkins.

Throughout the graveyard were these angels with pumpkin heads.

And finally where the hitchiking ghosts normally stand:

So, the ride was completely different and sooo good. We were both equally impressed by all the attention, detail, and time that obviously went into this attraction, but that's just Disney for you. I, for one, would not be disappointed if something like this was done at the Haunted Mansion at WDW. Even if you hate the movie, this was just a really good ride, with a well-done story line, and excellent theming.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

I totally agree. I'm not a Nightmare Before Christmas fan but they fit it all so nicely into the ride. And Indianna Jones is awesome!

Great report!! Can't wait for more!

 

[TP2000]

Now we were ready to make our way to Critter Country. On our way we saw the pirate ship.

FYI, that's not a "pirate ship", but many people not from the West Coast make that mistake, so we won't take away any points from you. That ship is an exact replica of the Sailing Ship Columbia, which Walt chose to include on the Rivers of America because it was the first American flagged vessel to carry our flag around the world in 1787.

During its global journey the Columbia was trading with the Indians of the Pacific Northwest, the first time those Indians had ever seen our nations flag, and the ship crossed a sand bar on the Pacific coast. Crossing the sand bar they found the mouth of a massive river, and named the river after the ship, which became the Columbia River in what is now the great state of Oregon.

Every school kid in Oregon and Washington and any history buff knows the significance and importance of the Columbia to our nations development, and so did Walt. You can go below decks and see the carefully reconstructed crews quarters and maritime museum. It's really very beautifully done.

The big tipoff that it is not a pirate ship is the huge Colonial Flag flying off the ships stern when it is sailing. They explain the history of the ship and fire the cannon during the journey, which kids love. Also, the CM's wear colonial sailors outfits and they are far more polite than any pirate. Why they didn't include this ship in Liberty Square at WDW, I have no idea, as it is PERFECT for that colonial seaport.

The Sailing Ship Columbia is a Disneyland exclusive. And it also makes Fantasmic! a heck of a lot better too! :lol:

 

[justducky78]

Thanks for the trip report - I love seeing the pix of the park, etc. You guys look like you had a lot of fun. Victor is so cute!

My niece is celebrating a b-day in April and we're planning on visiting DL in early April. Do they do Mickey's b-day party everyday at 2:30? Do I just call the main reservation desk to reserve our spot? Is there a charge and if so, how much? Where is it located in the park?

Sorry about all the questions, I've just never heard of this and think it would be so much fun for her - she's turning 4 and we won't be there with her to celebrate her REAL b-day!

Thanks so much and again, keep the pictures coming!

EDIT: I actually found the info I was looking for, so just thought I would post it for others. Thanks, popsicletree, for the idea!

Celebrate a "My Disneyland Birthday Party" with Mickey and Minnie!

Searching for a magical way to enjoy your big day? Make plans for a "My Disneyland Birthday Party" at Disneyland® Park's Plaza Inn! Join your host, Pat E. Cake, for a happy, fun-filled celebration featuring music, merriment, laughter and cake decorating — with a special appearance by Mickey and Minnie Mouse. All Guests receive a party hat, souvenir sipper cup, mini birthday cake, icing and cake toppings.

Seating daily. Priority Seating can be arranged at Plaza Inn, City Hall, Guest Relations information kiosks and by phone.
Price: $15.99 per person*

For reservations, information and pricing, please call
(714) 781-DINE†.

 

[popsicletrees]

I totally agree. I'm not a Nightmare Before Christmas fan but they fit it all so nicely into the ride. And Indianna Jones is awesome!

Great report!! Can't wait for more!

It really does fit in so well! I'm glad you are enjoying my report!

FYI, that's not a "pirate ship", but many people not from the West Coast make that mistake, so we won't take away any points from you. That ship is an exact replica of the Sailing Ship Columbia, which Walt chose to include on the Rivers of America because it was the first American flagged vessel to carry our flag around the world in 1787.

During its global journey the Columbia was trading with the Indians of the Pacific Northwest, the first time those Indians had ever seen our nations flag, and the ship crossed a sand bar on the Pacific coast. Crossing the sand bar they found the mouth of a massive river, and named the river after the ship, which became the Columbia River in what is now the great state of Oregon.

Every school kid in Oregon and Washington and any history buff knows the significance and importance of the Columbia to our nations development, and so did Walt. You can go below decks and see the carefully reconstructed crews quarters and maritime museum. It's really very beautifully done.

The big tipoff that it is not a pirate ship is the huge Colonial Flag flying off the ships stern when it is sailing. They explain the history of the ship and fire the cannon during the journey, which kids love. Also, the CM's wear colonial sailors outfits and they are far more polite than any pirate. Why they didn't include this ship in Liberty Square at WDW, I have no idea, as it is PERFECT for that colonial seaport.

The Sailing Ship Columbia is a Disneyland exclusive. And it also makes Fantasmic! a heck of a lot better too! :lol:

Thanks for the information.

Thanks for the trip report - I love seeing the pix of the park, etc. You guys look like you had a lot of fun. Victor is so cute!

My niece is celebrating a b-day in April and we're planning on visiting DL in early April. Do they do Mickey's b-day party everyday at 2:30? Do I just call the main reservation desk to reserve our spot? Is there a charge and if so, how much? Where is it located in the park?

Sorry about all the questions, I've just never heard of this and think it would be so much fun for her - she's turning 4 and we won't be there with her to celebrate her REAL b-day!

Thanks so much and again, keep the pictures coming!

EDIT: I actually found the info I was looking for, so just thought I would post it for others. Thanks, popsicletree, for the idea!

Celebrate a "My Disneyland Birthday Party" with Mickey and Minnie!

Searching for a magical way to enjoy your big day? Make plans for a "My Disneyland Birthday Party" at Disneyland® Park's Plaza Inn! Join your host, Pat E. Cake, for a happy, fun-filled celebration featuring music, merriment, laughter and cake decorating — with a special appearance by Mickey and Minnie Mouse. All Guests receive a party hat, souvenir sipper cup, mini birthday cake, icing and cake toppings.

Seating daily. Priority Seating can be arranged at Plaza Inn, City Hall, Guest Relations information kiosks and by phone.
Price: $15.99 per person*

For reservations, information and pricing, please call
(714) 781-DINE†.

I would really recommend this. The four adults in my group enjoyed it, and I know all of the kids in attendance were giddy with excitement, especially when Minnie and Mickey appeared.

 

[popsicletrees]

Our packed day was coming to an end. Actually, the time change was really taking a toll on all of us, and we decided to check-in to Howard Johnson and call it a day. My brother-in-law went back to Disneyland Resort to pick up our luggage, while the rest of us went to check-in. Howard Johnson was conveniently located across the street and was no more than a 7 minute walk to the parks. After we were settled in our rooms, Amanda and John went out to the parks a bit longer. Mom and I took a very tired and hungry Victor to Mimi's Cafe, which was right next door. We really like Mimi's Cafe, and the menu has a good variety. After dinner we went back to the hotel and let Victor stay in our room for the night. We knew we were not going to be awake by the time Amanda and John returned to their room. In fact, we were sound asleep by 9.

The next morning Victor awoke us around 5:30 going "Wee! Whoo! Whoa! Yay! Whoo-Hoo!" I guess he had a great time the previous day. We got up and got ready and were back in Disneyland by 8:00.

 

[popsicletrees]

Amanda and John took Victor on a few rides while mom and I rode Haunted Mansion, Indiana Jones, Space Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain. I really liked DL's version of Big Thunder. It was much longer than WDW's version, and a better ride overall IMO.

The only Hidden Mickey I really found during our trip:

The entire group met up and headed over the California Adventure for lunch and to spend the rest of the day.

For our first attraction we went to Soarin'. There was hardly a line. While we were waiting for Amanda and John, mom and I took Victor to go see the Cars characters.