Big crowds continued through the final week of Disneyland‘s busy spring break season. As the final crowds of spring break hit the parks, work continued on Disneyland’s various on-going projects. In Fantasyland, work continues on the upcoming Mickey and the Magical Map stage show while Frontierland‘s Big Thunder Mountain Railroad continued its major 10-month refurbishment. Nearby, Disney will bring some rare characters out for meet-and-greets at the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree during “Long Lost Friends Week,” the latest Limited Time Magic offering. At Disney California Adventure, a big selection of new Cars Land merchandise has hit the shelves.
Get a closer look at today’s update! Click on any photo in today’s column for a large, high-resolution version of the image.
Welcome to Disneyland! |
Disneyland hosted its final week of spring break crowds last week and the park will once again enter a slow period with reduced hours until Memorial Day weekend next month.
A look at wait times midday Friday.
New Dumbo-themed souvenir popcorn buckets have debuted at Disneyland.
They’re very cute and were already popular with guests Friday morning.
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Refurbishment Round-Up |
On Main Street, the Market House and Disneyana shop enter their final week of operation before they close April 15 to make way for Disneyland’s new Starbucks location.
We took a detailed look at the Market House and Disneyana in our March 25 update. The current footprint of the Market House will expand into what is currently the Disneyana shop. The Disneyana shop, originally added to Main Street in the 1970s and moved to its current location in 1986, will be folded into the current Disney Gallery in Town Square.
At the end of Main Street, the “Corner Cafe” sign has been reinstalled at the Refreshment Corner archway.
In Fantasyland, scaffolding went up on part of the Alice in Wonderland show building last week.
Meanwhile, the Fantasyland Theater continues to move toward its reopening as a real theater with its new show “Mickey and the Magical Map.”
More stage dressing can be seen
In Frontierland, Big Thunder Mountain’s extensive refurbishment project continues along…
The Mark Twain Riverboat’s extended refurbishment should be wrapping up by April 17.
Limited Time Magic |
[center]Long Lost Friends Week
at Disneyland Park
April 8 — 14, 2013[/center]
Disney announced some rare characters will make appearances during “Long Lost Friends Week,” the latest offering from the ongoing Limited Time Magic promotion.
Walt Disney World hosted its own version of Long Lost Friends Week back in January which proved to be popular among fans. Disneyland’s version will take place in Frontierland’s Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree and will include special food items and a variety of characters selected by fans in a recent online poll.
- Esmeralda, Clopin and Frollo (From “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”)
- Pocahontas, John Smith, Meeko and Governor Ratcliffe (From “Pocahontas”)
- Robin Hood, Friar Tuck, Prince John and Sheriff of Nottingham (From “Robin Hood”)
- Scrooge McDuck and Ludwig Von Drake
- The Three Little Pigs
Food offerings will include “Monte Cristo Strips” and “Zany Cotton Candy.”
Annual Passholders can enjoy Long Lost Friends Week all week a half-hour before regular park guests. Details below:
[center]Long Lost Friends Photo Moments
Limited Time Annual Passholder Magic Event
at Disneyland Park
April 8-14, 2013[/center]
- Long Lost Friends Photo Moments – Annual Passholder Character Greeting
- April 8-14, 2013
- Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree, Frontierland.
- 10:00 – 10:30 a.m.
Please note that Annual Passholders may be admitted to the Character Greeting area at Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree at 10:00 a.m. — 30 minutes prior to regular Guest admittance, which is at 10:30 a.m.
- All participating Guests (ages 3 and older) must be valid
- Annual Passholders on the day of event participation. Children under 3 years of age are permitted to attend the event as long as space is available.
- All participating Annual Passholders must present their active Annual Passport to the event Cast Member at Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree in Frontierland at Disneyland Park. Photo ID may be required.
- The event is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. and lasts for 30 minutes each day.
- Participation does not include early Disneyland Park entry or parking.
Strike a pose with some long lost friends — 30 minutes before regular park Guests get to enter the Character Greeting area in Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree each day — with this special Limited Time Annual Passholder Magic opportunity. Annual Passholders will be admitted to these special half-hour Character Greetings with some rarely seen Disney Characters for some fantastic photo moments.
- Date
- Event Location
- Event Time
- Event Details
Space is limited. Admission to the area will be granted subject to capacity, scheduled park events and other restrictions.
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The Gumball Rally Strikes Back! MAY 4, 2013 |
Can you conquer every attraction at Disneyland in a single day? MiceChat’s famous Gumball Rally returns this spring to put you to the test — Tickets on sale now!
- When: May 4th, 2013.
- Where: Disneyland Resort (both parks) in Anaheim, California.
- Cost: Approx. $27.50 per person.
- How Do I Sign Up?: Eventzilla Gumball Rally Registration Page
- How Does the Rally Work?: Details on the Rally Information Page.
Welcome to California Adventure |
California Adventure continues through the spring without any major projects following five years of remodeling and expansion.
In Hollywood Land, Muppet*Vision 3D has returned following the run of the Oz: The Great and Powerful sneak preview
Cars Land is still drawing big crowds
New signage directing guests to Radiator Springs Racers has gone up on both sides of the Route 66 and Cross Street intersection in Cars Land.
A new drink cooler recently popped up on the Radiator Springs Curios front porch
Guests select their bottled Coca Cola beverages and pay for them inside the shop. A Cast Member stationed on the porch keeps an eye on the cooler at all times.
More Cars Land neon sign-themed shirts, hats, mugs and toothpick holders are now available at Radiator Springs Curios. It’s good to see a lot of land-specific merchandise available. Hopefully this sort of land and attraction-specific merchandise can trickle into other areas in both parks.
Over at Sarge’s Surplus Hut, two new hats are available for $24.95 each.
Below is the new Cozy Cone hat, which Disney is promoting as part of its Limited Time Magic offerings, but will likely stick around even after the promo.
And a new Red to the Rescue! firefighter hat
This and That |
Back in Disneyland, a new Haunted Mansion-themed shirt has hit the shelves
And in Downtown Disney, the new permanent stage by ESPN Zone has opened up.
Iron Man 3 banners are up at the Downtown Disney AMC Theater, which recently installed an IMAX Theater.
Iron Man 3 will be offered in IMAX here, but be aware that it will only be the IMAX picture and sound quality on a slightly larger screen, not the full IMAX-size screen that you’d find at the Irvine Spectrum IMAX or at the Universal CityWalk IMAX theaters. You won’t be getting the full IMAX experience, but you will pay the full IMAX price!
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Weekly News & Information Round-Up | ||
Weekly Theme Park Hours April 8 — 14, 2013 |
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[B]Disneyland Park[/B] | [B]California Adventure[/B] | |
Mon.-Thurs.: 9am – 9pm Fri.-Sat.: 9am – 11pm Sunday: 8am – 11pm |
Mon.-Thurs.: 9am – 9pm Fri.-Sat.: 9am – 10pm Sunday: 8am – 10pm |
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[CENTER]For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar[/CENTER] |
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[center]Closure and Refurbishment Schedule[/center] | ||
[b][center]Disneyland Park[/center][/b] | ||
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[b][center]Disney California Adventure[/center][/b] | ||
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[b][center]Downtown Disney and Disneyland Resort Hotels[/center][/b] | ||
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[center]Headline Roundup A quick look at noteworthy Disney theme park headlines from around the web.[/center] |
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Alright, that’s it for this week’s Dateline Disneyland. Thank you for reading. Did you celebrate the holiday at Disneyland’s Spring Fling? What did you think of the Bunny Hop? Let us know in the comments section below!
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FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for this edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground. |