Disneyland Resort

Jon Fu · Aug 4, 2013

I took a few videos that I'll share in the coming days, but what does everyone think of Disneyland and California Adventure?

Took a trip over there yesterday and it was a blast. Can't wait to share some photos.

...

So a bit of a disclaimer before I get started: I'm really oblivious when it comes to planning a Disney trip. In other words, I really go throughout both parks at a leisurely pace. It's a stark contrast to how I visit Universal, but there's less pressure to cover anything extensively as I do with Universal Studios Hollywood or any other Universal property worldwide. So if you're confused about my timing or pacing - that's why. It's a bit unusual, but I've purposely never planned a trip beforehand. So here we go!

...

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

1:00 PM. Parked in Micky & Friends, and away we go.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

First park: Disney California Adventure.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Entrance of the park. Reminds me a bit of the Grove - which is a good thing.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

I'm sure all of you have heard about Carthay Circle and the comparisons between the Carthay and Universal Plaza, but I can assure you - they're not the same. That being said, Carthay is really beautiful. I want to say there's a bit of Art Deco, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Next stop: Cars Land.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

I've only seen the first film, so I'm not exactly familiar with the entire franchise. But from what I do remember, they did an excellent job recreating the animated film into real life. Really nice work.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

First ride of the day: Radiator Springs.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Really impressive queue, though I'm always perturbed at the lack of monitors littered throughout the queue. I guess that's a Universal thing, haha.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

First impressions of the ride: pleasantly surprised. I didn't think they'd be much beyond a simple race track, but obviously I was wrong. Very fluid animatronics. If Universal is sort on anything - it's a large scale attraction like this that includes plenty of practical effects. Plus, nothing beats a good race.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Hey, I recognize this!

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

...and this!

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Next stop: who knows! I think I'm heading towards the Tower of Terror on this one.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Don't think I've seen this show before.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

...and here's Tower.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Oddly enough, I always seem to ride Tower on my visits to Disney - including Florida and Japan. It's a fun ride, but I really go in for the decor.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

I love the theming that goes into this attraction. Spider webs, plenty of art deco, flickering lights - just a huge fan. After all, who's not a fan of the Twilight Zone?

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Next stop: Paradise Pier. I've never understood the hate for this area.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Beautiful view from the bridge. Funny story: Goofy actually snuck up behind me and pulled the reach around as he was gearing up for a brief fountain show. That's something I can't say I'll get used to - but hey. It was fun and memorable.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

...and away we go!

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Sadly, Toy Story Mania appeared to be offline while I was there. Shame. I hear it's a good ride and plenty of people recommended it on Twitter. Maybe next time.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

...and finally Soarin' - my personal favorite. I'll usually not emotional when it comes to theme park attractions, but this one always hits home. Very well done.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

At around 5:00 PM, we head on over to Disneyland.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

What do we go on first? Disneyland Railroad of course.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

To be honest, we really don't do much from here but walk around.

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Disneyland Resort - August 3, 2013 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

Hope you all enjoyed the photos thus far. I'll have more photos tomorrow.

BruceTheShark · Aug 5, 2013

I love Disneyland. I've been visiting the place for as long as I have been visiting Universal. Universal was always the stop we'd make on the way to or from Disneyland. It really is considered the "theme park supreme" for a reason. California Adventure has made some much needed improvements and Cars Land is amazing in terms of feeling like you are in the movie.

alexvstorace · Aug 5, 2013

Universal And Disney are the best places Ever! Both Unique. and only places to ride the movies!

Quick Thought of CarsLand, since that area is the most crowded one, You can Definitely imagine the same Crowds as Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Hollywood.

Allen The Actor · Aug 5, 2013

Great pictures

The hate for Paradise Pier was more apparent before. It got some great aesthetic enhancements that make the area beautiful now. Certain Disney fans just cry fowl in terms of all the off the shelf rides. I used to not like it, but not I love it. It's retheme is still not finished yet. I'm glad you liked Cars Land though

William · Aug 5, 2013

Allen The Actor said:
Great pictures The hate for Paradise Pier was more apparent before. It got some great aesthetic enhancements that make the area beautiful now. Certain Disney fans just cry fowl in terms of all the off the shelf rides. I used to not like it, but not I love it. It's retheme is still not finished yet. I'm glad you liked Cars Land though

Really?? What's left of the retheme??

Steve · Aug 5, 2013

I love Disneyland. I only just recently went there for my first time but it left a lasting impression. Splash mountain is easily my favorite attraction (the damn music is still stuck in my head!). One thing Disney has over Uni is the history and heritage. Disney prides themselves in innovating but without leaving the past behind them. Granted, some of that is also an issue and I find some of the iconic attractions to be rather lame and need to be fixed/removed such as Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Matterhorn, and Winnie the Pooh.

I didn't care too much for CA honestly. There were some good attractions but it felt very sloppy navigating the park. They should just rename it to Pixarland honestly haha.

Overall I say USH is better, but Disneyland is awesome.

alexvstorace · Aug 5, 2013

Steve said:
I love Disneyland. I only just recently went there for my first time but it left a lasting impression. Splash mountain is easily my favorite attraction (the damn music is still stuck in my head!). One thing Disney has over Uni is the history and heritage. Disney prides themselves in innovating but without leaving the past behind them. Granted, some of that is also an issue and I find some of the iconic attractions to be rather lame and need to be fixed/removed such as Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Matterhorn, and Winnie the Pooh.

I didn't care too much for CA honestly. There were some good attractions but it felt very sloppy navigating the park. They should just rename it to Pixarland honestly haha.

Overall I say USH is better, but Disneyland is awesome.

Agreed. Universal will always be #1 and Disney #2.

Jon Fu · Aug 5, 2013

alexvstorace said:
Universal will always be #1 and Disney #2.

Personally speaking, this mentality has always been a pet peeve for me. There's sometimes the notion that in order for Universal to win, Disney needs to lose, which - to be frank - is an odd way at looking at things.

While we obviously favor Universal in many respects, I don't like ranking parks because it creates this win-lose mentality. They're all great destinations filled with memories, and I think both Disney and Universal do many things well.

We can be fans of both.

alexvstorace · Aug 5, 2013

I love how They have their own Unique Ways. Universal = Entertainment and Disney = Happiness.

Allen The Actor · Aug 5, 2013

William said:
Really?? What's left of the retheme??

It's not official that they'll continue retheming but they sort of stopped, considering a lot more funds went towards Cars Land. But a hypothetical (and hopefully eventual) Phase 2 of DCA's expansion would include this for Paradise Pier (a lot that was originally supposed to be included and can be seen in expansion concept art):

Additional Victorian theming of the rest of the attractions and shops to fully transport you to an old sea side amusement park. California Screamin' is rumored to get an enclosed new queue (with a roof theming similar to Toy Story Mania), as well as a new Victorian queue and exterior treatments for the Fun Wheel, more Victorian and ornate treatments for the shop's exteriors and interiors, completely different golden ornate enclosure for the Triton carousel, and a proper new dark ride replacing Goofy's sky school, an actual new ride taking up the old Maliboomer area, and another ride in one of the Screamin' helixes. Lots of great plans that never became finished for many of the lands. ESPECIALLY Hollywood Land. Hopefully we see more expansion soon.

In regards to Universal VS Disney, there's comparisons here and there, and sometimes I prefer one over the other, but overall I love USH and DLR almost equally, but for completely different reasons. They're two different animals and I love all

Jon Fu · Aug 6, 2013

My first ride on Radiator Springs Racers:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/0uuR1itdS0E?feature=oembed
I really walked in not knowing what to expect, but I managed to walk out pleasantly surprised. Beautiful animatronics. Smart use of projectors - that's for sure. And boy, they're fluid!

Allen The Actor · Aug 6, 2013

Great video! I'm glad you liked the ride! Nice that almost all the animatronics and effects worked your first time! Although not all

But yeah, I was blown away after my first time. I like the exterior of the ride more than the interior. Great animatronics but the actual show scenes are kind of bland and 2D compared to certain old rides, like Indy and Pirates.

But the exterior and rock work and mountain range.....breathtaking.

William · Aug 6, 2013

Cars Land is definitely photo-op central.

Jonathan · Aug 6, 2013

Bob Iger announced today that over the next couple of months they will be announcing some new things coming to Disneyland. We could be in for some great Theme Park competition between Disney and Universal!!!! This is a very exciting time for theme park fans!!!!

RyanTTD · Aug 6, 2013

Love Disneyland, go at least twice a month to the parks.

Jon Fu · Aug 6, 2013

Video of World of Color:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=UUE0uNMPt9qFSUDVdQxX0iRg
Love this show.

Allen The Actor · Aug 6, 2013

jmills said:
Bob Iger announced today that over the next couple of months they will be announcing some new things coming to Disneyland. We could be in for some great Theme Park competition between Disney and Universal!!!! This is a very exciting time for theme park fans!!!!

I...am...SO EXCITED!!!!!

And yeah Jon, I love it too

beautiful show. I cry almost every time.

William · Aug 8, 2013

What additions could we see in Disneyland?

Allen The Actor · Aug 8, 2013

Tomorrowland Update, Star Wars attractions, marvel attractions, technological update to the Fantasyland dark rides, Oz attractions, updates to Paradise Pier and Hollywoodland, and new fireworks and parades.

And in case you guys didnt hear, Disney announced that the long rumored totally new Winter version of World of Color will be premiering in November. So that's exciting

William · Aug 9, 2013

All of what you just listed sounds fantastic.

I was totally aware of the whole Tomorrowland update, I've got no idea why I didn't remember that.

I've always thought that the current Fantasyland dark rides should be the equivalent to Ariel's Undersea Adventure. I always go on that ride during my trips to DL because the animatronics are so amazing. Oh, and it's also air-conditioned in there.

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