Summer is officially underway at the Disneyland Resort. The SoCal annual passes are now blocked out until the end of August. 4th of July festivities are about to ignite park attendance. And a power surge shuts down much of Disneyland and California Adventure. Today, we will highlight the nearly complete exterior of Alice In Wonderland and the refurbishments happening at Space Mountain and Captain EO.  Andy Castro is on vacation and will be back soon. We hope you enjoy this special Monday edition of In The Parks.

Tomorrowplan Crowd Estimates for Disneyland Resort from Mouseaddict


June 30 – July 6, 2014

MONDisneyland Resort, Power Surge – Never a Dull Moment at the Disneyland Resort

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FRIDisneyland Resort, Power Surge – Never a Dull Moment at the Disneyland Resort

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SUNDisneyland Resort, Power Surge – Never a Dull Moment at the Disneyland Resort


  • Space Mountain, Alice in Wonderland, and Imagineering Blue Sky Cellar are all scheduled to reopen this week, along with a new preview of Guardians of the Galaxy.
  • As summer takes hold, you’ll find that despite conventional wisdom, the parks are more crowded during weekdays than on weekends. Crowds are heavier in the afternoon and evening.
  • Hotel rooms are widely available all week.
  • The Key Club International Convention takes place Wednesday through Sunday.
  • For next week’s crowd projections, check out the new Tomorrowplan feature in the Mouseaddict app.

The free Mouseaddict app for iPhone and iPad features more than five dozen categories of searchable resort information, weather forecasts, park and show schedules, the latest news and articles from MiceChat, and more. Download free on the App Store or at mouseaddict.com.

Disneyland Resort, Power Surge – Never a Dull Moment at the Disneyland Resort

SPECIAL MICECHAT EVENT JULY 13th – DOWNTOWN DISNEY!

If you are a fan of extinct Southern California theme parks, we have a very special treat for you. Christopher Merrit, theme park designer and author of Knott’s Preserved, is about to release another amazing book on a fascinating part of theme Park history, Pacific Ocean Park.

Meet the amazing authors behind Pacific Ocean Park: The Rise and Fall of Los Angeles’ Space Age Nautical Pleasure Pier and hear all about this one of a kind Los Angeles destination which has been all but lost to history. The authors will lead us through a colorful presentation about the park, followed by a book signing. As with all of our ESPN Zone events, there will be a fabulous breakfast (yes, there will be plenty of awesome maple pepper bacon).

Seating is limited and will sell out quickly.  Be the first to get this book, meet the authors, and have your very own copy signed.

BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE

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There was a time when summer was Disneyland’s busiest season. But, due to the dynamics of many annual passes being blocked out for much of this period, Disneyland is entering a period of very enjoyable conditions.

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Let’s take a walk down Main Street USA.

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The red, white and blue flowers have grown in and are a stunning accent for the 4th of July festivities this coming weekend.

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There are also new plantings at the hub around the Partners statue.

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Power Surge

Sunday at about 2pm, a power spike struck portions of the Disneyland resort, temporarily closing many attractions for hours.  At one point, all of the following attractions were suddenly closed:

  • Haunted Mansion
  • Pirates of the Caribbean
  • Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
  • Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye
  • Monorail
  • Winnie the Pooh
  • Grizzly River Run
  • California Screamin’
  • Midway Mania
  • Mickey’s Fun Wheel

There were no injuries and all guests were evacuated safely until the attractions could return to normal working order.

4th of July Fun

Tonight will be your last chance to catch Magical until Saturday night. July 1st, Disneyland will present its annual patriotic fireworks spectacular. Disney’s Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky will be performed at 9:25pm from July 1st to July 4th.  But there is more in store for the Fourth in the park…

  • 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing Band – This outstanding military band from Miramar, California, is returning to Disneyland park for another year! The band will be performing several times throughout the day on Friday, July 4.
  • Catch the band in a brief cavalcade along the parade route at 3:30 p.m., just ahead of the “Frozen” pre-parade and the first performance of Mickey’s Soundsational Parade.
  • The band will help retire the colors at the Disneyland park flag retreat ceremony in Town Square at 5:30 p.m.
  • Immediately following the flag retreat, at 5:45 p.m., the full band will perform along the parade route, all the way back to “it’s a small world.”
  • You can enjoy the full band in concert on the stage of the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree, starting at 7:15 p.m.

 

Alice in Wonderland
The new railings recently made their debut on the exterior of the Alice in Wonderland track.  Keeping with the whimsical aesthetic, imagineers have essentially widened the platform and added a railing along the left hand side of the track that is up against the show building.

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Vehicles were cycling through the attraction with no stops at the station this week.  One after the other, caterpillars were crawling from the upper level, down the exterior path, and back into the show building below.

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We are very curious to hear your thoughts on the look of this solution to the OSHA mandate. Was it worth the 3 year wait?

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage

Over in the dry submarine lagoon, we see plenty of work getting done out in the exterior show scenes of the attraction.  Set for a return of September 27th, the ride sat long dormant until recently when refurbishment work finally got underway and the tight purse strings in Burbank were loosened enough to reopen the attraction in time for the 60th anniversary of the park.

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Sleeping Beauty Castle

Taking a moment from the newsy bits of the update we jump to Sleeping Beauty Castle for a little bit of local color.

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Somehow, Disneyland’s quaint castle seems perfectly at home amidst the americana on Main Street.
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Walt and Mickey await 4th of July fireworks

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Space Mountain

The pathway leading from the exit and along the Starcade have been blocked off.  It seems that the cul-de-sac that was used as the disabled riders waiting area and also where the restrooms were located is getting some attention.  Let’s hope that is feels a little less claustrophobic when the ride reopens on July 4th.

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Guardians of the Galaxy Merch

Over in the Starcade we are seeing the first Guardians of the Galaxy merchandise hitting the shelves.

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This works out nicely as the Magic Eye theater will reopen on July 4th with a special extended preview of Guardians of the Galaxy.

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Just like the upgrades that occurred when Muppet Vision 3-D housed previews of Tron, and It’s Tough to be a Bug hosted a Maleficent preview, it’s likely that the Magic Eye Theater will get a digital projector upgrade.

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That’s Precious

A new set of Precious Moments dolls were released featuring Anna and Elsa from Disney’s mega-hit Frozen.  The twist?  They also featured the same characters in patriotic, American attire.  Odd.  The dolls were selling for $49.95 a piece.

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Regular Elsa on the right, Wonder Woman Elsa on the left.

Arcade Mania

The lockers along Main Street are still closed as the new backstage overflow path on the east side of Main Street is constructed.

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MiceChat Podcast

It’s another special episode of the MiceChat Podcast. This time around the block, we chat with outspoken original Mouseketeer, Lonnie Burr. He’s lively, funny and full of stories you’ve likely never heard before.

Direct Link | iTunes Link

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4th of July World of Color

On July 4, a special patriotic pre-show will be presented at the start of both the 9 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. performances of “World of Color.”

We close today’s update with a pictorial from Disney California Adventure.

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The Five and Dime players are still around entertaining guests.

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Chardonnay grapes grow near the Blue Sky Cellar.

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The low tide lagoon with Mickey’s Fun Wheel in the distance.

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The gazebos are STILL under refurbishment. Will they ever finish with them?

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the vista looking back over Paradise Pier is lovely.

 

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That wraps things up for our Monday In the Parks from Disneyland.  Please return on Friday when we will have a full update from Knott’s Berry Farm, including a progress report on how the refurbished Calico Mine Train is performing, along with reviews of the new Summer entertainment being offered.

We’ll see you again soon, In The Parks.

Norman Gidney
Norman Gidney, also known as Fishbulb, has produced and edited many of the articles on MiceChat over the years.