Jon Fu
Editor-in-Chief Emeritus
Unlike the usual Universal fare, I decided to take a trip down south to see what the big mouse was up to. With the help of Jonathan (jmills on the forums), we decided to take a trip to Disneyland Resort. Here's what happened.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Since December 24 is supposedly one of the busiest days at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, we began our day rather early. I didn't drive my car down to Los Angeles for the winter season, so Jonathan was gracious enough to pick me up (of all places) at Universal Studios Hollywood at 6:30 in the morning. Universal looked eerie to say the least...
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We arrived at Disneyland Resort at 7:15 and boarded the world's longest tram.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Crowds seemed light, but I was told things would get exponentially worse later in the day. With our tickets in hand, we entered Disney California Adventure and picked up a Fastpass for World of Color.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
With our Fastpasses in hand, we decided to head on over to California Screamin' (which I learned had onboard music - apparently my first ride in 2011 didn't have working audio). Screamin' turned out to be fun and enjoyable as always, and it never hurts to get a proper coaster fix.
Toy Story Midway Mania was next. Being a newbie to the game, my score turned out to be pretty mediocre and I managed to win a happy beaver for my troubles. Jonathan, being a seasoned player, managed to win a festive deer (lucky him) that trumped my happy beaver. The ride was a fun concept that reminded me of what could happen if Universal Studios Hollywood was forced to build their own version of Men in Black. Screens screens screens.
Virtual deer and beaver in hand, Tower of Terror was next on our list.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Nothing special to say here. I have a vague memory of the version in Florida being somewhat better but California's version was a sufficient fix. Soarin' was up next followed by a trek down to Disneyland Park.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Having passed Jungle Cruise for the past ten or so years, I naturally wanted to revisit the attraction to see if I remembered any visuals. With its holiday overlay in full drive, Jungle Cruise turned out to be an ironic (and somewhat sarcastic) look at a jungle kingdom. Our skipper (are they called skippers?) seemed to be a bit irritable, and his deadpan delivery made for a funny - if not awkward - experience. His empty glare at our boat reminded me of sadness and despair (which only added to the hilarity). Take that for what you will about my sense of humor.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Same story here. Haunted Mansion was an attraction that I had managed to skip for the past ten years for numerous reasons. With a wait time of only 15 minutes, I naturally jumped in.
Verdict? For a ride that's over thirty years old, I was extremely impressed with the level of technology that they managed to cram in. Given what I saw, I would absolutely believe you if you said the attraction was built within the last decade - and that's saying something.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Having never done Splash Mountain (and having paid 100+ for a one-day park hopper), Jonathan and I headed on over for a refreshing mist. After seeing Song of the South as a kid, I couldn't help but inject some of the film's controversy into the ride itself. Nothing wrong with the ride per say, but recognizing the film's controversy in conjunction with the flume made for a surreal experience.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage ended up having the longest queue on our visit with a wait time of 60 minutes. Since I've never been able to find the ride's entrance in my previous trips, I was pretty thrilled to finally experience the famed submarine attraction first-hand.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Overall, I think it's fair to say there's nothing quite like it. The combination of projection screens alongside underwater effects made for a pretty unique and immersive experience. Definitely one of the highlights of my trip.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
By this time, the clock had only reached 1:00PM and the crowds remained surprisingly light at both parks. We picked up Fastpasses for Indiana Jones and Soarin' and spent the day strolling the resort at a leisurely pace. Since we had time to kill, we managed to see Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular and Mickey and the Magical Map - both of which were excellent shows with a surprisingly large cast. It's impressive to know Disney can afford to maintain such a large crew.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
(this show has a surprisingly large number of attractive people. Just putting that out there)
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We also managed to stop at the Disney Animation Building to try our hand at recreating some of Disney's most beloved characters.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Suffice to say, we really screwed up and our animation reel turned out to be an indistinguishable train wreck.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
At least our lesson resulted in something somewhat identifiable. That's supposed to be Scrooge McDuck if you can't tell.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We rounded off with Indiana Jones (still a great ride) and managed to fit in It's a Small World, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Star Tours and Captain EO (LOL) before the first showing of World of Color.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Part two coming soon...
Part two:
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Despite arriving at the start of our Fastpass appointment, I still managed to get the same spot as my previous visit for World of Color. I'm not sure how I got a front-row viewing during my first time around, but I guess I need to arrive an hour earlier to catch a decent spot... Lesson learned.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Despite the less than stellar viewing area, I was still impressed with the holiday overlay of World of Color. Who would have thought that they would mount a light backdrop on California Screamin...
I was also surprised to see that I was one of ten people with the color ears. I guess it's cumbersome for locals to lug their ears to every showing, but I'd expect more than ten people. Oh well.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Fantasmic was also amazing in its own right, and Jonathan was nice enough to book reserved seating for our showing. I was the only person with the glowing ears this time around, and apparently they also sync with this show as well. I was pretty conscious about pissing off my surrounding guests with the glowing ears, but apparently some guests found them interesting enough to compliment me on my headgear. Perhaps more promotion is needed to get the word out?
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Anyway, we ended our night with Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and I was surprised to see this portrait hanging in the lobby. Whatever.
Overall, crowds were surprisingly light, and I managed to knock almost everything off my Disney to-do list with the help of Jonathan. All in all, this was probably my most efficient visit to Disneyland Resort.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Since December 24 is supposedly one of the busiest days at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, we began our day rather early. I didn't drive my car down to Los Angeles for the winter season, so Jonathan was gracious enough to pick me up (of all places) at Universal Studios Hollywood at 6:30 in the morning. Universal looked eerie to say the least...
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We arrived at Disneyland Resort at 7:15 and boarded the world's longest tram.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Crowds seemed light, but I was told things would get exponentially worse later in the day. With our tickets in hand, we entered Disney California Adventure and picked up a Fastpass for World of Color.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
With our Fastpasses in hand, we decided to head on over to California Screamin' (which I learned had onboard music - apparently my first ride in 2011 didn't have working audio). Screamin' turned out to be fun and enjoyable as always, and it never hurts to get a proper coaster fix.
Toy Story Midway Mania was next. Being a newbie to the game, my score turned out to be pretty mediocre and I managed to win a happy beaver for my troubles. Jonathan, being a seasoned player, managed to win a festive deer (lucky him) that trumped my happy beaver. The ride was a fun concept that reminded me of what could happen if Universal Studios Hollywood was forced to build their own version of Men in Black. Screens screens screens.
Virtual deer and beaver in hand, Tower of Terror was next on our list.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Nothing special to say here. I have a vague memory of the version in Florida being somewhat better but California's version was a sufficient fix. Soarin' was up next followed by a trek down to Disneyland Park.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Having passed Jungle Cruise for the past ten or so years, I naturally wanted to revisit the attraction to see if I remembered any visuals. With its holiday overlay in full drive, Jungle Cruise turned out to be an ironic (and somewhat sarcastic) look at a jungle kingdom. Our skipper (are they called skippers?) seemed to be a bit irritable, and his deadpan delivery made for a funny - if not awkward - experience. His empty glare at our boat reminded me of sadness and despair (which only added to the hilarity). Take that for what you will about my sense of humor.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Same story here. Haunted Mansion was an attraction that I had managed to skip for the past ten years for numerous reasons. With a wait time of only 15 minutes, I naturally jumped in.
Verdict? For a ride that's over thirty years old, I was extremely impressed with the level of technology that they managed to cram in. Given what I saw, I would absolutely believe you if you said the attraction was built within the last decade - and that's saying something.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Having never done Splash Mountain (and having paid 100+ for a one-day park hopper), Jonathan and I headed on over for a refreshing mist. After seeing Song of the South as a kid, I couldn't help but inject some of the film's controversy into the ride itself. Nothing wrong with the ride per say, but recognizing the film's controversy in conjunction with the flume made for a surreal experience.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage ended up having the longest queue on our visit with a wait time of 60 minutes. Since I've never been able to find the ride's entrance in my previous trips, I was pretty thrilled to finally experience the famed submarine attraction first-hand.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Overall, I think it's fair to say there's nothing quite like it. The combination of projection screens alongside underwater effects made for a pretty unique and immersive experience. Definitely one of the highlights of my trip.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
By this time, the clock had only reached 1:00PM and the crowds remained surprisingly light at both parks. We picked up Fastpasses for Indiana Jones and Soarin' and spent the day strolling the resort at a leisurely pace. Since we had time to kill, we managed to see Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular and Mickey and the Magical Map - both of which were excellent shows with a surprisingly large cast. It's impressive to know Disney can afford to maintain such a large crew.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
(this show has a surprisingly large number of attractive people. Just putting that out there)
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We also managed to stop at the Disney Animation Building to try our hand at recreating some of Disney's most beloved characters.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Suffice to say, we really screwed up and our animation reel turned out to be an indistinguishable train wreck.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
At least our lesson resulted in something somewhat identifiable. That's supposed to be Scrooge McDuck if you can't tell.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
We rounded off with Indiana Jones (still a great ride) and managed to fit in It's a Small World, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Star Tours and Captain EO (LOL) before the first showing of World of Color.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Part two coming soon...
Part two:
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Despite arriving at the start of our Fastpass appointment, I still managed to get the same spot as my previous visit for World of Color. I'm not sure how I got a front-row viewing during my first time around, but I guess I need to arrive an hour earlier to catch a decent spot... Lesson learned.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Despite the less than stellar viewing area, I was still impressed with the holiday overlay of World of Color. Who would have thought that they would mount a light backdrop on California Screamin...
I was also surprised to see that I was one of ten people with the color ears. I guess it's cumbersome for locals to lug their ears to every showing, but I'd expect more than ten people. Oh well.
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Fantasmic was also amazing in its own right, and Jonathan was nice enough to book reserved seating for our showing. I was the only person with the glowing ears this time around, and apparently they also sync with this show as well. I was pretty conscious about pissing off my surrounding guests with the glowing ears, but apparently some guests found them interesting enough to compliment me on my headgear. Perhaps more promotion is needed to get the word out?
Untitled by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr
Anyway, we ended our night with Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln and I was surprised to see this portrait hanging in the lobby. Whatever.
Overall, crowds were surprisingly light, and I managed to knock almost everything off my Disney to-do list with the help of Jonathan. All in all, this was probably my most efficient visit to Disneyland Resort.
Last edited by a moderator:
