Summer continues at Disneyland with changes around the parks, including progress at the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Market House projects. On Main Street, Disneyland has introduced a new art collectible program and over on Buena Vista Street, new merchandise has hit the shelves while new thematic enhancements are added at the Carthay Circle Restaurant. Meanwhile, Disneyland celebrated Christmas in July as part of the ongoing Limited Time Magic promotion with a selection of desserts and pastries but not much else.
Don’t miss your weekly Disneyland Resort crowd forecast — provided by our friends at MouseAddict — in the Weekly News and Information Roundup at the end of today’s update!
Get a closer look at today’s update!
Click on any photo in the blog for a large, high-resolution version of the image.
| Welcome to Disneyland! |
Summer crowds continue to hit the parks. A look at wait times Saturday afternoon.
| Ink & Paint |
In Town Square, the Disneyana shop is now home to the Disneyland Ink and Paint Department.
The new hand-painted cel art program is an import from Walt Disney World and employs the team of artists from Disneyland’s now-defunct artisan watch program.
This piece based on the Disneyland Railroad is available now from $125 to $230.
Refurbishment Round-Up |
On Main Street, the construction walls at the Market House have shrunk a bit since we last saw them.
Looks like a new door may have been added here to help with crowd flow at what will likely be a very popular spot when it reopens as Disneyland’s new Starbucks location.
Nothing to see at the old Disneyana facade, except a missing awning.
Over in Frontierland, the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment continues. The project expanded last week to include the repaving of Big Thunder Trail, which was closed throughout the week.
Looking to get through to Big Thunder Ranch? You’ll have to go through Fantasyland.
Big Thunder Trail is being repaved, hopefully the unthemed slurry in this area will finally be replaced with themed pavement that matches the rest of Frontierland.
I take a trip on the Mark Twain Riverboat every week to get photos of the Big Thunder Mountain progress and I can’t recommend the Rivers of America more for any park guests that is looking for a great, classic Disneyland experience.
Unfortunately, despite the overall Rivers of America experience being really enjoyable, some of the river show scenes could use some work. Some of the river animal figures could use a cleaning:
The bald eagle vignette is perhaps the scene that needs the most help.
The wing feathers are looking pretty rough
And this Osprey’s nest could get fixed up. The blue wire frame for the nest is showing through.
On Tom Sawyer Island, Tom and Huck’s Treehouse is still closed after being closed due to Cal/OSHA fall-safety concerns.
On the Island, ropes and temporary barriers block guest trails and stairs up to the treehouse.
Despite the closure of the Treehouse, Tom Sawyer Island is still a fun escape from crowds on the Rivers of America.
That’s not to say, however, that the Dead Man’s Grotto cave on the island could use some TLC. The animatronic pirate prisoner, in particular, could use some refreshing. He was once one of the park’s more compelling special effects, but aging projection effects have made this pirate come off as second-rate rather than Disney quality.
| Limited Time Magic |
[center]Christmas in July
at Disneyland Resort
July 22-28, 2013[/center]
Last week’s Christmas in July offering consisted of an ice cream sundae at the Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor and a few other sweet treats at Disneyland’s Candy Palace and Jolly Holiday Bakery. The limited time offerings were barely promoted inside the park, with no signage advertising the sundae at the Gibson Girl and just Christmas-themed confections in the display case at the Candy Palace. Only at the Jolly Holiday Bakery was there any special signage mentioning “Limited Time Magic” or “Christmas in July.” Overall, the offerings last week seemed on-par with much of the rest of the Limited Time Magic promotion: half-baked and underwhelming.
Waffle cones with red and green holiday sprinkles… with no explanation.
The only sign mentioning anything about Christmas in July
[center]The Monstrous Eye-Scream Sundae Returns
at Disneyland Resort
July 29-August 4, 2013[/center]
For this week’s Limited Time Magic, Disneyland is once again putting the spotlight on its Monstrous Summer Eye-Scream Sundae. The Limited Time Magic site will lead you to believe the sundae went away and it’s returning for this week only, but it never actually went away. The sundae has been available at Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor and Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream since the Monstrous Summer All-Nighter at the end of May. Limited Time Magic? Not quite, but it does look like Disney is increasingly running out of ideas for this promotion.
Prepare yourself for the return of a monster-sized pleasure! Courtesy of a little Limited Time Magic, you can enjoy the reappearance of the Monstrous Eye-Scream Sundae at Disneyland Park. Stop by Gibson Girl Ice Cream and Clarabelle’s Ice Cream to discover this chilling treat, which comes complete with 2 scoops of mint chip ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, cookie horns, a chocolate eye and sprinkles, all inside a crunchy waffle cone. Don’t miss your opportunity to scare up some summer fun‚Äîdig into this delightful dessert before the offer melts away!
[center]Cars Screening, plus Planes Preview
A Limited Time Annual Passholder Magic Event
at Disney California Adventure Park
July 22 & 23, 2013[/center]
Annual Passholders can attend a special screening of “Cars” with a preview of Disney’s upcoming animated movie “Planes.”
- Cars Screening with preview of Planes
- Registration and wristband distribution for the event will begin at 12:00 PM on the day of event at the Main Street, U.S.A. Opera House (home to Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln) in Disneyland Park.
- This is an all-ages event. However, all participating Guests ages 3 and older must be valid Annual Passholders on the day of the event. Guests under the age of 3 do not need an Annual Pass, but will need a wristband to attend.
- Registration must be completed in person at the Main Street, U.S.A. Opera House on the day of the event only; no phone reservations or other registration will be accepted.
- It is recommended that all members of your party register together to help ensure that everyone receives a wristband.
- All participating Annual Passholders must present their active Annual Passport to the event Cast Member, who will check event availability. Photo ID may be required.
- For assistance, please call the Annual Passport Member Services team at (714) 781-PASS (7277).
Passholders can enjoy a short preview of the upcoming movie Disney’s Planes before it opens in 3D on August 9, 2013 and enjoy a full screening of the original Disney-Pixar film Cars during this Limited Time Annual Passholder Magic event.
Dates and Times
Wednesday, July 31, 2013 at 5:00 and 8:00 PM
Film Screening Location
Main Street Opera House in Disneyland Park
Event Registration and Wristband Distribution
| Welcome to California Adventure |
In California Adventure, summer continues with the park maintaining big crowds thanks to the new Cars Land, Buena Vista Street and Paradise Pier additions.
A look at wait times Saturday afternoon
The Carthay Circle Restaurant’s new terrace awnings have received some new wrought-iron details so they better match the rest of the building.
The awnings were added earlier this summer so guests could use the dining terrace without eating in discomfort due to the harsh summer sun.
New details like this have been added so the awnings blend in better with the rest of the building. It’s a nice touch.
Supports with new themed wrought-iron additions
Compare the new awnings with the railings and awnings over the faux balconies.
| Winter Color |
Last week Disney officially announced the long-rumored holiday-themed version of World of Color. The all-new version of the show — “World of Color: Winter Dreams” — will debut this holiday season. Despite the busy concept art below, hopefully this show will be a nice new addition to California Adventure’s growing line-up of quality holiday-themed offerings.
The new show will replace the regular World of Color show during the holiday season and will prominently feature Olaf and other characters from Disney’s upcoming animated feature “Frozen.”
Below, Disney Imagineer Steve Davison announces the new “Winter Dreams” show.
http://youtu.be/GB9z0svniX4#aid=P-AsJUjs-_M
| This and That |
Back on Buena Vista Street, a ton of new merchandise for Disney’s upcoming “Planes” animated film has moved in at Big Top Toys.
There’s also a fun new Buena Vista Street hat available across the street from Big Top Toys at Julius Katz and Sons.
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| Weekly News & Information Round-Up | ||
| Weekly Theme Park Hours July 29 – August 4, 2013 |
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| [B]Disneyland Park[/B] | [B]California Adventure[/B] | |
| Daily: 8am – 12am |
Daily: 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] A weekly look at projected crowd levels at the Disneyland Resort.[/center] |
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About This Week’s Estimates
Are you already a Mouseaddict? Be sure to submit your wait times to help us help you! Download the free Mouseaddict app for iPhone and iPad for current crowd estimates, crowd maps, and wait times along with 60 categories of searchable resort information and your favorite MiceChat blogs.
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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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| OK! That’s all for this week’s Dateline Disneyland. Thanks for reading! Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments section below!
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