Inside Dateline Disneyland

Welcome to Disneyland! Touring Plans crowd forecast Happiest Place, Higher Prices Disneyland raises admission prices before the launch of its big summer season Magic Kingdom Makeovers Carnation Cafe expansion, Matterhorn refurbishment Brave Merida, Disney-Pixar's newest Princess, arrives at Disneyland California Construction A look at the on-going construction at Disney California Adventure... Buena Vista Street Hollywood Land Pacific Wharf Paradise Pier Cars Land Downtown Changes Downtown Disney remodels and changes This and That Stuff that is happening. Weekly News and Information Round-Up Weekly theme park hours, closures and refurbishments

Sponsored by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

There's less than one month until Disney California Adventure emerges from the maze of construction walls as more or less a brand new theme park. Now is the time to visit if you want to avoid the crowds certain to flock to Disneyland once Disney California Adventure reboots. TouringPlans.com can help you navigate the parks with our per-park Crowd Calendar, Lines - Mobile Wait Times App that gives access to current and estimated wait times for attractions, and Touring Plans detailing the best plan of attack for hitting the attractions. With holiday crowds on the horizon, it's a good time to subscribe to TouringPlans.com to plan your strategy to avoid the crowds!

Below are the predicted resort-wide crowd numbers for select days generated by the TouringPlans professional statisticians as measured for the upcoming week. For the access to the full year and per-park crowd level predictions, visit our Crowd Calendar.

— Fred Hazelton Statistician, TouringPlans.com

	RESORT-WIDE Crowd Calendar Prediction	Crowd Tips
Tues., May 22	3/10	Here are some quick-hit notes that we hope you'll find helpful as you prepare your visits for the week: Full block outs on Saturday. More Grad Nites this week. Disney California Adventure is a 3.1 on the Crowd Calendar on Monday.
Wed., May 23	3/10
Thu., May 24	3/10
Fri., May 25	8/10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded.
See Disneyland crowds for the next 365 days. Get Disneyland wait times on your iPhone, Android, or Smartphone. Do more. Wait less.

Disneyland Resort Ticket Price Update
As we have done in the past, we wanted to give our loyal Disney Parks Blog readers a heads-up that ticket prices at the Disneyland Resort will be increasing, starting on May 20. This summer is one of the most anticipated times in the resort’s history, and a visit to the Disneyland Resort has never been a better value. In the past few years alone, we’ve added new world-class attractions, such as The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure, “World of Color” and Star Tours: The Adventures Continue. Now, with the expansion of Disney California Adventure park, including the 12-acre Cars Land, Buena Vista Street and the Carthay Circle Restaurant, almost complete, there are even more reasons to visit.

And this summer, both parks will open each day at 8 a.m. and offer increased entertainment, giving you and your family more time to stay and play. At Disney California Adventure park, we’re adding an additional showing of “Aladdin – a Musical Spectacular” and Pixar Play Parade will be presented up to twice daily. At Disneyland park, you’ll find more shows and characters at Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree and increased performances at the Tomorrowland Terrace every day of the week, and the singing sensation “Voices of Liberty” performing at the Main Street Opera House.

We’re sharing the details here on the ticket prices, which also include increases to Disneyland Resort Annual Passports. Annual Passholders recognize that their investment pays for itself after just a few visits. Our California-based Annual Passholders have the added benefit and flexibility of a monthly payment program. This year, we’ll continue to offer unique passholder-exclusive entertainment and experiences, along with 10-20% discounts on select food and merchandise. As an example, you already know that Annual Passholders were invited to special viewings to celebrate the 20th anniversary of “Fantasmic!” And later this summer, Passholders also will have early access to the parks through a new Annual Passholder Early Entry program – just for them. [ FULL STORY ]

MAGIC KINGDOM MAKEOVERS

Carnation Café Reopens June 13 at Disneyland Park
At last! An expanded and spruced-up Carnation Café is getting ready for its debut June 13 on Main Street, U.S.A., in Disneyland park. There’s more seating, including indoor tables – and yes, cast member Oscar Martinez is back.

Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the new menu includes updated versions of classic comfort food, and a few of Walt’s favorites. For breakfast, the legendary Oscar’s Choice is back, with two eggs, breakfast potatoes and biscuit with bacon or (new) chicken-apple sausage links. They’ve added yummy apple-granola pancakes and a hearty huevos rancheros with corn tortillas, poached eggs, salsa and an avocado-black bean pico de gallo. And if you’re behaving, a healthful spinach-and-egg white frittata.

Lunch and dinner bring back the classic baked potato soup, and add a couple of “Walt’s favorites:” beef-and-pork meatloaf, served with trendy edamame succotash, and fresh fish, a sustainable catch of the day. Be completely decadent and have the Walt’s favorite chicken fried chicken breast with mashed potatoes, or enjoy a vegan burger. We can’t wait to try the green chile cheeseburger with a fried egg on toasted brioche. (Do we dare add a classic chocolate malt?)

Kids’ meals include chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes and veggies, a burger and fresh fruit or mac & cheese with fresh fruit. [ LINK ]

CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION A look at the on-going $1 billion remodel and expansion efforts at Disney California Adventure BUENA VISTA STREET

Preview the Newly Expanded and Re-imagined Disney California Adventure Park
Experience the all-new Cars Land and Buena Vista Street days before the Disney California Adventure Park grand re-opening to the public on June 15, 2012. Annual Passholders can explore the town of Radiator Springs and experience the California Walt Disney met in the 1920s!

Annual Passholders may purchase up to 8 tickets. All members of your party must be present and show a Disneyland Resort Annual Passport valid as of the date of the event for which the ticket was purchased — either June 9 or June 10, 2012. Event admission includes a 1-Day 1-Park Ticket to Disney California Adventure Park for the entire day.

To celebrate, Disneyland® Resort is donating a total of $500,000 to Children's Hospital Orange County (CHOC) and the Anaheim Community Foundation.

Cars Land and Buena Vista Street Preview
Ticket Cost: $50
Preview Times:

• 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
• 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Cars Land and Buena Vista Street Preview Followed by a Private World of Color Show
Ticket Cost: $75
Preview Time:

• 6:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Dinner at Carthay Circle Restaurant, Cars Land and Buena Vista Street Preview Followed by World of Color Show
Dinner at Carthay Circle Restaurant includes a 3-course meal, featuring modern cuisine that pays tribute to the bold and diverse flavors of Southern California, and a special wine presentation. The restaurant is located in the iconic Carthay Circle Theatre, a re-creation of the famous Hollywood movie palace where Walt Disney first premiered Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs almost 75 years ago.
Ticket Cost: $500 per person (includes tax and gratuity)
Dinner Reservation Times:

• 6:00 p.m.
• 6:30 p.m.
• 7:00 p.m.
• 7:30 p.m.

Includes:

• Entry into Cars Land and Buena Vista Street for preview from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
• Preferred boarding on Radiator Springs Racers
• Private World of Color Show
• Valet Parking is complimentary at Downtown Disney District. (Full validation will be provided.)

[ LINK ]

Details revealed about Disney’s Buena Vista Street
The new entrance corridor in Disney California Adventure is supposed to give a feel of 1920s Los Angeles, more precisely like a neighborhood similar to Los Feliz.

Buena Vista Street will open June 15 as part of the completion of California Adventure’s makeover. Disney has revealed some details:

• Some of the venues, including Mortimer’s Market, are designed after shops that used to sit along Sixth Avenue in Los Angeles. Originally, Walt Disney was going to give the name Mortimer to the character who became Mickey Mouse.
• The tiles and murals, including stained-glass windows, along the street were all designed by Disney workers. The tiles were custom crafted in Los Angeles.
• Disney creators researched the fountains of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power of that time period to design the fountain in Carthay Circle, the hub of Buena Vista Street.
• The Red Car Trolley Cars, based on the former Pacific Electric Railway, are actually battery powered. The wires are just props.
• [One of the trolleys has the number 623 — an actual number on one of the Pacific Electric Railway cars.
• Carthay Circle Theatre is designed after the former venue where “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” premiered. The address is 937 — an homage to 1937, the year the movie debuted.
• Disney recreated the carpet design from the original theater for the California Adventure building.
• New food locations along Buena Vista Street: Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe; Mortimer’s Market; Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream; and Carthay Circle Restaurant and Lounge. The restaurant and lounge will run in the same cornerstone building, Carthay Circle Theatre.
• A full-scale Starbucks will run in the 178-seat Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe, which will also carry standard Disney fare, including cinnamon rolls.

[ FULL STORY ]

Get on Board with the Red Car Trolley Collection at Disney California Adventure Park
Can you believe how quickly the time has gone? We are just less than one month away from the opening of Buena Vista Street and Cars Land at Disney California Adventure park, and I’ll tell you I’m not sure what I’m more excited for. It seems like it was only yesterday that we made a trek out to see some of the old railway cars and trolleys at a local Southern California museum. But it was Disney Design Group Principal Character Artist Brian Blackmore and Graphic Designer Tyler Dumas that led these designs down the right track, alongside Product Developer Lisa Bergman. So of course, when I had the chance to spend a few minutes talking to them, I had to get all the details, so I could share them with all of you.

“Our goal was simple,” Lisa explained. “Provide authenticity to the trolleys and railways systems of yesteryear.”

“There is a passion and romanticism around the Red Car Line as it harkens back to a time in SoCal when we had a great public transportation system with beautifully designed trains – alternative travel at its best, kids,” Tyler jumped in, going on to explain that “It was the inspiration from the trolley engineering blueprints being used to create the Disney California Adventure park vehicles, along with color palettes, old time tickets and collateral from the 1920s and 1930s that really drove home the concept for the Red Car Trolley collection. We wanted this program to excite young train fans, appeal to adult retro character fans and really become an homage collection for vintage transportation enthusiasts.”

But it was Brian who broke it down for us even further. “For the kids we tried to give the trolley a personality, something that would encourage them to play, dream and use their imagination. Sitting beside that is a more hyper-stylized version that we knew would appeal to an older audience. But the big key for us in creating this program was to make it feel very nostalgic, complete with vintage era-appropriate graphic styles, features and characters, especially when it came to the technical trolley version, where we were able to use mechanical and rail aspects to produce the look.”

This new collection, which will make its debut in Los Feliz Five & Dime on Buena Vista Street, will include ladies’ and men’s tees, fleece sweatshirts, hats, figurines, souvenirs, tin signs and more. [ FULL STORY ]

HOLLYWOOD LAND

PACIFIC WHARF

New blue awnings.

PARADISE PIER

Disney•Pixar’s ‘Brave’ to Join ‘World of Color’ at Disney California Adventure Park
Since “World of Color” made its debut back in 2010, the show has featured occasional updates and surprises, delighting audiences with forays into new worlds ranging from “TRON: Legacy” to “Prep & Landing.” Just in time for one of the biggest summers in Disney California Adventure park history, “World of Color” is set to introduce another new sequence, inspired by the Disney•Pixar film “Brave.”

Set to “Brave” composer Patrick Doyle’s stirring Scottish score, the sequence introduces us to the film’s adventurous heroine Merida, as she races across the Scottish Highlands, bow and arrow in hand, on her faithful horse Angus, and follows the mysterious will o’ the wisps on an epic journey to change her fate.

“Brave” opens in theaters June 22, but you’ll be able to catch the “Brave”-inspired sequence in “World of Color” starting June 15. [ FULL STORY ]

CARS LAND

Disney unveils new facts about Cars Land
Disney’s Cars Land is meant to give visitors a feel of walking right into Radiator Springs, the town in the “Cars” movies.

And Disney is adding a lot of touches to bring the new 12-acre land to life when it officially opens June 15 at Disney California Adventure. Preview days for annual passholders, Disney fan club members and other guests will be held the weekend before.

“When you walk into Route 66, you feel like you’ve stepped into this movie, but it’s real,” said Mary Niven, vice president of Disney California Adventure.

Here are some features of Cars Land:

• During the summer, Disney California Adventure will begin opening early at the same time as Disneyland, usually at 8 a.m. Early entrance into Cars Land will be allowed for some visitors.
• The Mater and Lightning McQueen characters will move and talk, unlike the static cars that now are staged in Disney California Adventure. Mater and Lightning McQueen mostly will be based at the Cozy Cone Motel, but also will travel down Route 66.
• Fastpasses for Radiator Springs Racers, the largest ride, will be available outside Cars Land by It’s Tough to Be a Bug theater.
• Radiator Springs Racers will have 23 full-size, animatronic figures from the first “Cars” movie. The height requirement is 42 inches.
• A neon lighting, including the illumination of the mountain range, will be held each night.
• A popcorn bucket shaped like Lightning McQueen and a drink cup shaped like a Cozy Cone Motel will be sold at the motel food stands.
• Flo’s V8 Cafe is based on MidPoint Cafe in Texas, famous for its “ugly crust” pies.
• Flo’s has retro light fixtures, 1950s music and juke boxes by the cash registers. Checkered flags line the windows. Artwork includes mechanic licenses and a diagram of a healthy combustion chamber.
• Flo’s has retro decor, including a starburst-like light fixture surrounded by fading pink and blue lights at the entrance. Jukeboxes sit by cash registers. Artwork includes mechanic licenses and a diagram of a healthy combustion chamber.

[ FULL STORY ]

Three New Faces Come to the Disneyland Resort: Manny, Mandy and Mona Monorails
If you’ve been to the Disneyland Resort in the past couple of days, you may have noticed a few new faces along the Disneyland Monorail line. Here to welcome their “Cars” friends to Cars Land at Disney California Adventure park, Mandy and Mona Monorails began making trips around the resort yesterday – and they will soon be joined by a third friend, Manny Monorail. You can tell each by their colors: Mandy Monorail is blue, Mona Monorail is orange and Manny Monorail will be red.

Each Monorail has its own personality, which Disneyland Resort guests will certainly hear when riding. Manny, Mandy and Mona Monorails are taking charge of the overhead announcements themselves – providing a new experience along the “Highway in the Sky.” [ FULL STORY ]

DOWNTOWN CHANGES

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WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION ROUND-UP
Weekly Theme Park Hours May 21 — 27, 2012
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
Monday-Thursday: 9 am - 10 pm Friday: 8 am - 11 pm Saturday-Sunday: 8 am - 12 midnight	Monday-Thursday: 10 am - 8 pm Friday-Sunday: 10 am - 10 pm
For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar
Expected Crowd Levels presented by TouringPlans.com
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
MEDIUM 2.2—7.4 out of 10	MEDIUM 2.4—7.8 out of 10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded. For daily crowd predictions for the next 365 days, visit
Closures and Refurbishment Schedule
Disneyland Park
Matterhorn Bobsleds: Closed for major refurbishment including the addition of new ride vehicles through June 14. Carnation Cafe, Blue Ribbon Bakery: Food service locations are closed for major remodel.
Disney California Adventure
Mad T Party: New nighttime dance party will begin June 15. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and Soda Fountain: New Ghirardelli chocolate shop and soda fountain will open in the space formerly occupied by the Mission Tortilla Factory. New dining location opens late-spring 2012. Buena Vista Street: Re-themed main entrance including new Red Car Trolley attraction are under construction through summer 2012. Cars Land: New 12-acre land opens summer 2012. Disney California Adventure: Entire park will be closed to the public to apply finishing touches and for a media event on June 14, 2012.
Downtown Disney & Hotels of the Disneyland Resort
La Brea Bakery & Cafe: Quick-service cafe portion closed. Reopens spring 2012 with significant modifications. Island Charters: Downtown Disney retail location closed permanently. It will reopen as WonderGround Gallery on June 9, 2012. Compass Books and Cafe: Book store and cafe closed permanently March 31. Earl of Sandwich dining location to open in space late-spring 2012.

Disney theme park poster art book to hit shelves The highly-anticipated "Poster Art of Disney Parks" will hit store shelves at Disney's theme parks later this month. You can also pre-order the book at a 35% discount on Amazon, which will ship the book on September 4.

‘Poster Art of the Disney Parks’ Arriving Soon at Disney Parks I recently visited California, where I had one of the most amazing experiences of my Disney career. Imagineer Vanessa Hunt gave me a tour of the Walt Disney Imagineering Art Library vault in Glendale. This place houses the original art of the most iconic images from Disney Parks’ history. Incredible! Vanessa shared that fellow Imagineer Danny Handke and she have written a book for Disney Editions called “Poster Art of the Disney Parks.” This hardcover book, with cover designed by Imagineer Glendon Lee, is coming to Disney Parks at the end of May. I asked Danny about the role that attraction posters have played. “Attraction posters entice, excite and educate guests with a preview of the adventures and experiences inside the Disney Parks,” explained Danny. “When Disneyland park opened in 1955, it was difficult for guests to understand what a ‘theme park’ was. The Disney Imagineers needed a solution to portray their attractions to a diverse audience. The idea to use posters at Disneyland’s Main Entrance was the perfect solution.” The book was in development for four years! They conducted extensive research by interviewing close to 20 people, including current and former artists. Vanessa said that they put extra effort into making a beautiful book that all Disney fans could enjoy. “We made an extra effort to ensure the posters in the book were printed as color accurate as possible,” continued Vanessa. “We even found a box containing several poster concepts that had never been published until now. The most challenge part was identifying artists. While many unidentified posters artists were later identified during our interviews, there are some that remain credited to ‘Unknown Artist.’”

Full Story: Disney Parks Blog: ‘Poster Art of the Disney Parks’ Arriving Soon at Disney Parks

Tokyo Disney allows gay marriage Tokyo Disney Resort is now offering same-sex marriage ceremonies at their wedding facilities throughout their theme parks and hotels.

Tokyo Disney Resort to allow same-sex wedding ceremonies URAYASU, Chiba -- Same-sex couples will be allowed to hold wedding ceremonies at several Tokyo Disney Resort hotels and facilities, including in front of the enormously popular Cinderella Castle inside Tokyo Disney Land. The move was pushed forward after same-sex activist and lesbian Koyuki Higashi, 27, recently contacted the resort, asking whether same-sex couples will also be able to take part in the park's new plan that promotes weddings in front of the famous castle, starting this September. Resort officials, however, told Higashi that although same-sex couples will not be exempt from the plan, one of the partners would have to wear a groom outfit, because "other visitors will also be watching." Higashi posted a summary of the exchange on Twitter, triggering an immediate backlash, including opinions stating that the fantasyland's response was "disappointing." A week later, Higashi was once again contacted by resort officials, telling her that after confirming the circumstances with the Walt Disney Company in the United States, they have reached a decision that same-sex couples could hold wedding ceremonies at the park wearing the same outfits. The second exchange was once again put on display on Twitter, this time triggering a wave of positive responses, including some that wrote, "applause for a new step forward." "Even though same-sex marriages are not legally permitted, we reached the decision that wedding ceremonies can take place," said an official with the resort's public relations department, adding that female couples will be free to have their ceremonies wearing wedding dresses, while male partners can both wear tuxedoes. "Japan still lacks favorable projects when it comes to sexual minorities, but the fact that Disney took this stance publicly means a lot," Higashi said. Higashi's girlfriend, Hiroko, 34, echoed the activist in her thoughts, saying, "I guess that they anticipated claims, but chose to go with the decision nevertheless, which makes me very happy." The two visited Tokyo Disney Resort on May 5 to deliver a thank you message to Mickey Mouse. "We are a couple. We came to express our gratitude," the pair said to Mickey, who apparently made a banzai pose in response.

Full Story: Tokyo Disney Resort to allow same-sex wedding ceremonies

Alright, that wraps up this week's update. Thank you for reading and be sure to join the discussion in the comments section below! Don't forget to visit our great sponsors over at Touring Plans when planning your next visit to Disneyland! You can help us by buying yourself something through one of our Amazon.com product links! All you need to do is click on any Amazon link you see in today's column. It doesn't cost you anything, but your purchases will help support Dateline Disneyland so we can keep the updates coming to you every week! To start shopping on Amazon using our referral code, click any Amazon item in today's update or click here. We're only here because of your continued support. If you've enjoy Dateline Disneyland over the last four years, please consider helping us out by donating a buck or two so we can pay the bills and keep the updates coming! You can donate with a click of a button via PayPal — click here! Don't forget that MiceChat has lots of new content throughout the week! For even more Disneyland news, photos and information check out the In the Parks column on Fridays. And MiceChat's Weekend Update, tours the world of Disney theme parks and other worldly sights and landmarks! See you at Disneyland! - Andy Interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities with Dateline Disneyland? Contact us!

Please support our sponsors Keep the updates coming! Please support us FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for the May 21, 2012 edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

]]> Dateline Disneyland http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3449-higher-prices-happiest-place-brave-cars-monorails-dca-previews-more.html http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3436-carthay-circle-reservations-commercial-cars-alices-new-window-matterhorn-more.html Mon, 14 May 2012 08:49:07 GMT The *Disneyland Resort* is entering the final stretch of its huge five-year expansion of *Disney California Adventure* and various remodeling and... The Disneyland Resort is entering the final stretch of its huge five-year expansion of Disney California Adventure and various remodeling and expansion projects in both theme parks and in Downtown Disney. At Disneyland, the finishing touches are being applied to the Matterhorn Bobsleds as that project gets ready to emerge from a major five-month refurbishment project. Nearby, the former Carnation Plaza Gardens is undergoing demolition as it begins its conversion into the new Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area. At Disney California Adventure, the park's new signature dining location, the Carthay Circle Restaurant on Buena Vista Street is now taking reservations as additional finishing touches continue to be applied throughout the new entrance plaza. In Cars Land, Disney has unveiled new restaurant menus along with the first TV commercial for the all-new 12-acre land. Meanwhile, work continues on various Downtown Disney projects, including construction on the new WonderGround Gallery next to the popular D-Street store.

Get a closer look at today's update! You can now click on any photo in today's column for a large, high-resolution version of the image.

We've got another big update this week, so let's get started!

Inside Dateline Disneyland

Welcome to Disneyland! Touring Plans crowd forecast Awarding Alice Imagineer Alice Davis honored with her own window on Main Street Magic Kingdom Makeovers Carnation Cafe expansion, Matterhorn refurbishment California Construction A look at the on-going construction at Disney California Adventure... Buena Vista Street Condor Flats Hollywood Land Pacific Wharf Cars Land Downtown Changes Downtown Disney remodels and changes This and That Wheelchair entrance, Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree Weekly News and Information Round-Up Weekly theme park hours, closures and refurbishments

Sponsored by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND!

Our friends at Touring Plans have their crowd level forecast.

It'll be another moderate crowd week at the Disneyland Resort as we entire the final month before Disney California Adenture officially relaunches on June 15. TouringPlans.com can help you navigate the parks with our per-park Crowd Calendar, Lines - Mobile Wait Times App that gives access to current and estimated wait times for attractions, and Touring Plans detailing the best plan of attack for hitting the attractions. With the big summer opening of Cars Land on the horizon, it's a good time to subscribe to TouringPlans.com to plan your strategy to avoid the crowds!

Below are the predicted resort-wide crowd numbers for select days generated by the TouringPlans professional statisticians as measured for the upcoming week. For the access to the full year and per-park crowd level predictions, visit our Crowd Calendar.

— Fred Hazelton Statistician, TouringPlans.com

	RESORT-WIDE Crowd Calendar Prediction	Crowd Tips
Tues., May 15	3/10	Here are some quick-hit notes that we hope you'll find helpful as you prepare your visits for the week: Full block outs this Saturday. Grad Nights continue this week. Disney California Adventure's lowest day this week is Monday, when it's a 2.0 on the Crowd Calendar.
Wed., May 16	3/10
Thu., May 17	3/10
Fri., May 18	5/10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded.
See Disneyland crowds for the next 365 days. Get Disneyland wait times on your iPhone, Android, or Smartphone. Do more. Wait less.

AWARDING ALICE

A small ceremony early Thursday morning finally honored Disney Legend and Imagineer Alice Davis with her own window on Main Street, U.S.A. Alice is best known for her costuming work on classic Disneyland attractions including Pirates of the Caribbean and "it's a small world." Her new window that makes reference to her as the "Seamstress to the Stars" is located next to window dedicated to her late husband and fellow Imagineer Marc Davis. Congratulations, Alice!






More on Thursday's ceremony from the OC Register's Around Disney blog:

Disney costume designer gets Disneyland window
Every time she visited the park, Disney designer Alice Davis looked up at the Disneyland window dedicated her late husband, Marc, and noticed that the window next to it was empty.

She wanted it for herself.

On Thursday morning, Alice Davis, 83, got her wish when Disney unveiled a window in her honor, right next to that of her husband that sits above the Disneyana shop along Main Street, U.S.A. Marc Davis’ window was added in 1992.

“It’s something I will enjoy forever and ever,” Alice Davis said.

With the window, Davis received one of the highest honors bestowed to individuals by the Disneyland Resort. Roughly 75 windows are part of the five-decade tradition started by Walt Disney to honor those who have made an impact on Disneyland.

The windows dovetail into the Anytown, U.S.A feel. Davis’ window, for example, says:
“Small World costumer Alice Davis
“Seamstress to the Stars.”

Davis designed many park costumes, including many of the 150 or so dolls in the “it’s a small world” ride and those of the animatronic characters in the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.

She was married to Marc Davis, an animator of movie characters, including Maleficent in “Sleeping Beauty” and Tinker Bell in “Peter Pan.” He later moved on to drawing concepts for park attractions. Marc Davis recruited Alice to design a costume for character Briar Rose that he could draw for “Sleeping Beauty.”

“That costume was exactly what he was looking for — and so was Alice,” said Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, in a speech at Thursday’s dedication ceremony.
Alice Davis’ favorite costume is that of the Pirates of the Caribbean’s redhead. She had to mold the costume to create the torso with corsets and tough plastic that would stay put as the animatronic figure moved.
[ FULL STORY ]

Video highlights of the ceremony from Disney:

MAGIC KINGDOM MAKEOVERS

Across the street from Alice Davis' new window on Main Street, work progresses at the Carnation Cafe remodel and expansion project.


The Cafe's greeter podium has returned behind construction walls.


Views from the Omnibus:


A new structure along the side of the cafe patio has gone up. Perhaps a shade structure for the outdoor queue that often forms for guests waiting to be seated?







At the end of Main Street, the Carnation Plaza Gardens continues the early stages of its transformation into the new Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area.




Views of construction from the upper deck of the Omnibus





On the other side of Sleeping Beauty Castle, the Matterhorn continues to finish up its major refurbishment project. All of the mountain's waterfalls are now running again and the entire mountain looks fantastic.


Good news for Matterhorn fans, last week Disney announced the return of the Matterhorn mountain climbers starting June 15.






Disney also recently gave a look behind-the-scenes at the Matterhorn's major repainting project that was recently completed. Take a look:











In Frontierland, the Shootin' Exposition's refurbishment continues...

CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION A look at the on-going $1 billion remodel and expansion efforts at Disney California Adventure BUENA VISTA STREET

A look at Buena Vista Street's continued progress...




Looks like another painted sign is going up


Oswald's Filling Station




Oswald's neon












The hand-painted Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe sign is up







The Carthay Circle Restaurant, DCA's new premiere dining location, is now taking reservations

Reservations Open for Carthay Circle Restaurant at Disney California Adventure Park
The exciting new Carthay Circle Restaurant opens Friday, June 15, at Disney California Adventure park, with reservations [now] open.

Recalling the grandeur of the original Carthay Circle Theatre in Los Angeles, where “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” premiered in 1937, the Spanish Colonia Revival-style restaurant is a warm setting to showcase contemporary Southern California cuisine – seasonal, artisanal ingredients; locally sourced produce, seafood and meats; hand-crafted cocktails, and California craft beers and wines.

Award-winning Executive Chef Andrew Sutton of Napa Rose brings his second concept to the Disneyland Resort, this time focusing on seasonal products and the diverse flavors found in Southern California. His protégé, Gloria Tae, also from Napa Rose, will be at the helm of the kitchen, while Chef Andrew will split his time as executive chef between Napa Rose and Carthay Circle Restaurant. “The culinary team is a group of true artists with passion and confidence for creating delicious food,” says Sutton.

Southern California’s cultural diversity is the foundation for the global flavors. For lunch, there are delectable tastes such as crispy firecracker duck wings finished with soy, lime and Sriracha chili sauce; sautéed northern halibut with roasted red bell pepper, caperberry and orange relish; and Angus flank steak cobb salad with Mine Shaft Blue Cheese, bacon, avocado and arugula with Cabernet essence.

The dinner menu showcases entrées like Colorado rack of lamb with fried zucchini blossoms, fennel puree and summer succotash; grilled Jamaican jerked kingfish with a tropical salsa of pineapple, mango, black beans and lime; and strawberry-lemon roasted organic chicken salad with jicama, haricot verts, upland cress (greens) and buttermilk-lemon vinaigrette.

You’ll want to save room for seasonal desserts, including toasted lemon pound cake with fresh marinated blueberries, lemon curd cream and Tahitian vanilla chantilly, and “Peaches In All Their Glory” with peach and white chocolate cannolis with fresh grilled peaches and peach sorbet. (But we think the best-seller just might be the fried banana split Monte Cristo sundae with raspberry and chocolate fudge ice creams, toffee nuts and warm caramel rum bananas.)
The 256-seat restaurant (200 inside, 56 on a terrace) on the second floor of the building is open daily for lunch and dinner. Diners at Carthay Circle Restaurant can also enjoy reserved center stage viewing at the World of Color nighttime spectacular. To request reservations, call 714-781-DINE, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., or email reservation requests to dine@disneyland.com.
[ FULL STORY ]

The food at the new Carthay Circle Restaurant sounds (and looks) incredible! Firecracker Duck Wings:


Halibut Ceviche


Lobster Pad Thai Imperial Roll


Carthay Circle Restaurant's Angus flank steak cobb salad


Grilled Jamaican jerked kingfish


More on the new dining options coming to the remodeled and expanded Disney California Adventure:

New Menus, Favorite Eats At Expanded Disney California Adventure Park
“If Main Street, U.S.A., is the romanticized version of Walt Disney’s hometown, Buena Vista Street is the next chapter of Walt’s life when he came to California,” says Ray Spencer of Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI). “It’s an extension of where we started at Disneyland park . . . and now our guests can step across the plaza and get the rest of the story.”

A big part of that story was the premier of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” in 1937 at the Carthay Circle Theatre in Los Angeles, and that landmark building is the inspiration for the spectacular Carthay Circle Theatre that anchors Buena Vista Street. This new landmark for Disney California Adventure park becomes one of the premier dining locations at Disneyland Resort, the Carthay Circle Restaurant and Lounge.

The upstairs Carthay Circle Restaurant and downstairs Carthay Circle Lounge recall the grandeur of the original theater’s 1920s Spanish Revival architecture with custom tiles, plaster arches, custom woodwork and other historic touches. The cuisine is the star of this production with artisan ingredients, locally sourced produce and seafood and meats from throughout Southern California. Executive Chef Andrew Sutton from Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa created the restaurant’s seasonal menu, and Chef Gloria Tae, also from Napa Rose, is at the helm in the kitchen.

“The culinary team is a group of true artists with passion and confidence for creating delicious food,” says Sutton.

Located on the second floor, the 256-seat restaurant (200 inside, 56 on the terrace) is open daily for lunch and dinner.

On the ground floor, the 68-seat Carthay Circle Lounge features cocktails from the 1920s with tableside service for signature beverages including martinis and classic punches. “The focus in the lounge is appetizers and tapas – international tastes that celebrate the diversity and heritage of Los Angeles in the 1920s and ’30s,” says restaurant manager and sommelier Joy Cushing.
Hours for both the restaurant and lounge are 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.


More Eats on Buena Vista Street
Buena Vista Street also offers three spots for quick bites: Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe; Mortimer’s Market and Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream.

The 178-seat Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe (134 inside, 44 outside) offers Starbucks coffee drinks; signature sandwiches such as a turkey Rueben, paneer and roasted vegetable and salami with olive tapenade, and roast beef and cheddar, as well as savory soups including vegetarian cream spinach, chicken tortilla, classic chicken noodle and cheesy enchilada. Sweet rolls, pastries and breakfast sandwiches are on the morning menu along with specialty coffees.

Mortimer’s Market will offer whole and cut fruits, bottled water, juices and soft drinks. (According to Disney legend, Mortimer Mouse is the name Walt Disney gave his new creation in 1928. He later changed it to Mickey.)

Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream features Dreyer’s ice cream, including bars dipped in milk or dark chocolate that guests can finish with sprinkles, pop rocks and other fun toppings. Hot fudge and strawberry sundaes and other frozen delights round out the sweet offerings.


A Culinary Journey Through Cars Land
With a nod to landmark diners along America’s historic Route 66, guests will feel as if they have stepped into the town of Radiator Springs at Cars Land, with a contemporary spin on classic tastes from the 1950s.

“We started working nearly four years ago on the concepts,” says Disneyland Chef Chris Maggetti. “For Cars Land, we’ve developed fast-casual restaurants with lots of fun tastes, from dill pickle popcorn to chili and cheese – we call it chili cone queso – in an edible bread cone.”
Cars Land has three spots for guest to fuel up: Flo’s V8 Cafe, Cozy Cone Motel and Fillmore’s Taste-In. Each location has a story, of course.

Flo’s V8 Cafe is inspired by timeless roadside diners and boasts “the finest fuel in the 50 states.” To cater to the growing number of Route 66 visitors and race fans coming to Radiator Springs, Flo expanded her place by adding a “showroom” dining area, the story goes.

“The showroom is part of the 300-seat dining room that looks out directly over the Radiator Springs Racers attraction,” says Chef Sean Layne, area chef for Cars Land. Layne developed the restaurant’s signature vegetarian dish, a veggie-tater casserole that’s sure to be a hit with guests.

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the menu for Flo’s will change often, with the centerpiece of the restaurant an on-stage rotisserie where guests will see meats grilling, such as New York strip loin, citrus-marinated turkey breast and pork loin flavored with Coca-Cola barbecue sauce. Breakfast specials include brioche French toast with salted caramel and bananas and chicken tamales with scrambled eggs. Craft beers from Bear Republic Brewing Co. in Healdsburg, Calif., and California wines also are on the menu.

House-made pies are the recipes of Disneyland Pastry Chef Jean-Marc Viallet. The single-serving pies come in strawberry-rhubarb, Apple-Cheddar, chocolate mud, cherry and blueberry-peach, to name a few.

Cozy Cone Motel is inspired by the quirky “wigwam” motels along Route 66 with each of five teepees offering tasty cone-themed treats. Cone Number 1 offers churro bites with cinnamon-chocolate sauce, cinnamon-spiced hot cocoa and Ramone’s Pear of Dice Soda made with dessert pear syrup, mojito syrup and Sprite. Cone Number 2 features soft-serve ice cream and “route” beer floats. Cone Number 3 offers savory bites all served in edible bread cones, such as a bacon-scrambled egg cone for breakfast, chicken verde or chili “cone” queso for lunch and dinner. Cone Number 4 is pretzel bites with cheesy sauce and Red’s Apple Freeze, a fat-free, frozen concoction with apple juice, toasted marshmallow syrup and passion fruit-mango foam. Cone Number 5 features two flavored popcorns daily, such as dill pickle and sweet & spicy.

Fillmore’s Taste-In is home to resident hippie, Fillmore, where “natural fuels” are on the shelves in his tie-dyed geodesic dome, including whole and cut fruits, bottled water and juices, and soft drinks. [ FULL PRESS RELEASE ]

New umbrellas have been placed on restaurant's upper dining terrace








The former Sunshine Plaza Candy Shoppe facade is behind tarps. It'll be the entrance to the Elias and Co. Department Store's jewelry shop.




Views of North Buena Vista Street from the Monorail:






Hand-painted signage on buildings as you face toward South Buena Vista Street about the Monorail

CONDOR FLATS

Tarps have gone up on the facade of Taste Pilot's Grill following the recent removal of the jet that was the centerpiece of the front of the building.

HOLLYWOOD LAND

Tarps have gone up around the pedestals that once featured the "Intolerance" elephants that marked the entrance to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot.






More of the extensive Mad T Party set-up continues to appear throughout Hollywood Land's "Hollywood Studios" back area


The Mad T Party's "rabbit hole" entrance portal...












New props on the stage for the Mad T Party band


Disney shared more information on Mad T Party's entertainment offerings:

Sharing the Splendiful Sounds of the Mad T Party at Disney California Adventure Park
Ladies and gentlemen, moms and dads, boys and girls, and Hatters of all ages! T-Time is coming soon to Disney California Adventure park! The party is almost ready – the decorations are going up and, the invitations have been sent and, of course, we are preparing the most wondiferous music your ears have ever heard! It’s almost time to let the Futterwacken begin!

But first, let me share with you a little about the music …

Our Mad T Party band will rock out each night, their playlist overfizzing with a multitude of party favorites, both old and new. In fact, the Mad Hatter has put together a list of songs – from Bruno Mars to the Beatles … from Maroon 5 to Prince … and from Gwen Stefani to Lady Gaga! These are songs that invite you to “Just Dance“… “Raise Your Glass”…“Go Crazy”…and show off your “Moves Like Jagger!”

You won’t want to miss the fantabulous Mad T Party band as they invite everyone to join in for the most fuminous T-Time ever!!

But that’s not all! Whenever the band is offstage, some of the most popular DJs around will kick up the party with their own special brand of musical magic!

Throughout the summer, taking on the role of the “White Rabbit DJ” will be Jason Jass, Michael Paul, Adam Auburn, Mi$$y B, David Bullock and Wendy Walker!!

These talented DJs will serve up the maddest mixes of muchness … the most popular tunes … the latest dance hits … and the best beamish beats that will make you bonkers … but, I’ll tell you a secret: all the best people are!
[ FULL STORY ]

Drink Me Bar:
















House of Cards bar and Mad Arcade

















Over at the Hyperion Theater, the stairs have finished their repainting

PACIFIC WHARF

Finally, some progress can be seen at the upcoming Ghirardelli Soda Fountain.


The new brick facade is now partially revealed.

CARS LAND

A quick look at Cars Land...


The first TV spot for Cars Land has hit the air. Take a look below:


Along with the new TV spot, Disney also launched a new interactive Cars Land website:


The site, CarsLand.com, takes you on a virtual drive down Route 66 where you can make stops along the way and learn about the various offerings in Cars Land.




Dedicated pages for attractions and restaurants offer sneak peeks at the new attractions and restaurants with fantastic photos.









Luigi's Flying Tires:







Mater's Junkyard Jamboree:







Flo's V8 Cafe:



The lines on the street have been painted




Disney recently shared a video showing car designer Chip Foose and his team applying the finishing touches at Ramone's House of Body Art in Cars Land:




Note the fences at the Cozy Cone Motel

DOWNTOWN CHANGES

Work continues on the La Brea Bakery remodel in Downtown Disney:







Catal's Uva Bar is still behind walls while it get refurbished.







With the temporary LEGO Store vacated, work is underway on the new WonderGround Gallery:

THIS AND THAT

Back at Disneyland, a new wheelchair/ECV entrance has been testing for a couple weeks now at the gate next to the stroller/wheelchair rental building.





Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree continues to settle in as the new home of Disney Performing Arts with character meet-and-greets and other activities to help draw crowds (which seem to have trouble materializing)


Country Bears!




Quilt-making demonstrations







Rumor has it that Monorail Orange will get a Cars Land wrap this summer. The back window is currently being tested for it.

Dateline Disneyland is sponsored by our good friends at the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground. A short walk from the park, HoJo Anaheim is conveniently located next to Matterhorn Mountain at Disneyland with nearby dining, freeway access, FREE parking and FREE Wi-Fi. For more information on HoJo Anaheim, room rates, or to book your stay today, visit HoJoAnaheim.com/MiceChat. MiceChat.com and Annual Passholder Discounts Available Every Day! The HoJo Anaheim is now offering deeper discounts for Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders! On select nights, Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders can get rooms for as low as $59 per night, plus tax. For more information visit the HoJo Anaheim Innsider Boards which features an up-to-date listing of available nights, or call (714) 776-6120 and ask for In-House Reservations to book. If your date isn't listed, the HoJo Anaheim still offers rooms for 20% off their best available rate if you call (714) 776-6120.

WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION ROUND-UP
Weekly Theme Park Hours May 14 — 20, 2012
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
Monday-Thursday: 9 am - 10 pm Friday: 8 am - 11 pm Saturday-Sunday: 8 am - 12 midnight	Monday-Thursday: 10 am - 8 pm Friday-Sunday: 10 am - 10 pm
For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar
Expected Crowd Levels presented by TouringPlans.com
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
LOW-MEDIUM 2.2—5.5 out of 10	LOW-MEDIUM 2.0—6.3 out of 10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded. For daily crowd predictions for the next 365 days, visit
Closures and Refurbishment Schedule
Disneyland Park
Matterhorn Bobsleds: Closed for major refurbishment including the addition of new ride vehicles through June 14. Carnation Cafe, Blue Ribbon Bakery: Food service locations are closed for major restaurant.
Disney California Adventure
ElecTRONica: Tron-themed nighttime dance parties ended April 16. The new Mad T Party evening dance party will begin June 15. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and Soda Fountain: New Ghirardelli chocolate shop and soda fountain will open in the space formerly occupied by the Mission Tortilla Factory. New dining location opens late-spring 2012. Buena Vista Street: Re-themed main entrance including new Red Car Trolley attraction are under construction through summer 2012. Cars Land: New 12-acre land opens summer 2012. Disney California Adventure: Entire park will be closed to the public to apply finishing touches and for a media event on June 14, 2012.
Downtown Disney & Hotels of the Disneyland Resort
La Brea Bakery & Cafe: Quick-service cafe portion closed. Reopens spring 2012 with significant modifications. Island Charters: Downtown Disney retail location closed permanently. It will reopen as WonderGround Gallery on June 9, 2012. Compass Books and Cafe: Book store and cafe closed permanently March 31. Earl of Sandwich dining location to open in space late-spring 2012.

New Disneyland tour explores the gardens of Disneyland An interesting new tour option takes guests behind-the-seeds of Disneyland's plants, trees and gardens.

Disneyland Resort Guided Tours: Cultivating the Magic With the Cultivating the Magic Guided Tour, you will learn about the landscapes and gardens that have transformed 260 acres of orange groves into Disneyland park. It’s not just pointing out plants – you discover how horticulture is used to tell a story and how it helped achieve Walt Disney’s vision for his original Magic Kingdom. On your tour, you will also experience select Disneyland park attractions in a whole new way and learn about the historical significance of trees that you may have walked past dozens of times in past visits to the park. Here are some things you should know about the Cultivating the Magic Guided Tour: The tour is approximately approximately two hours long. Theme park admission for Disneyland park is required to attend the tour. The tour leaves from Disneyland park Tour Gardens (left of City Hall) on Saturdays and Sundays at 9 a.m. and Mondays at 10 a.m. All guests who participate receive a collectable souvenir pin and exclusive seed packet. Attractions and entertainment are subject to change without notice. For pricing and booking information (and to find out about a special discount for Disney Rewards Visa and AAA card holders, Disney Vacation Club members and Disneyland Resort Annual Passport holders) call 714-781-TOUR (8687). Also, be sure to check out the other Disneyland Resort Guided Tours at Disneyland.com/Tours.

Full Story: Disneyland Resort Guided Tours: Cultivating the Magic

Disneyland breaks attendance records in early 2012 The popular 24-hour Leap Day event and spring break crowds helped break Disneyland attendance records. From the OC Register:

Disneyland marks attendance record in early 2012 Disneyland broke an attendance record for the first three months of the year, with boosts from the popular 24-hour Leap Day party and spring break, Disney reported today. Jay Rasulo, Walt Disney Co.’s chief financial officer, made the announcement during a conference call with investors about the company’s earnings. Overall, U.S. Disney parks experienced a 7 percent jump in attendance in the second fiscal quarter, which ran from Jan. 1 to March 31. That included record attendance at Disneyland for that calendar period, Rasulo said. He did not elaborate on specific figures. The quarter included a rare 24-hour party at Disneyland on Leap Day. The Disneyland party was so popular that freeways and streets clogged for miles as fans headed to the park. Disneyland closed gates for new entrants for part of the night. See pictures of Leap Day by clicking on the photo. Also, some of the bustling spring break season fell during March. U.S. Disney hotels saw a spurt in business, too: Overnight stays increased by 2 percent, resulting in 82 percent of rooms filled. Hotel visitors spent 7 percent more than in previous years as Disney hiked prices and cut back on discounts. Disneyland Resort in Anaheim is seeing an increase in international travel, while domestic visitors stayed flat, Rasulo said. Bob Iger, Disney’s chief executive officer, noted that upcoming events will help with attendance in Anaheim: Cars Land and other features open in Disney California Adventure on June 15. A years-long makeover, coming to completion, is widely reported as costing $1 billion. California Adventure’s expansion means that the park can “stand on its own,” Iger said. Together with Disneyland, it will “finally enable them to become the destination resort we envisioned. … “We’ve not announced any plans to increase our hotel inventory there, but we do have the ability to do so by expanding existing hotels and building a new hotel,” Iger said. “If we have an opportunity, we certainly will take advantage of it.” Disney is “ramping up” efforts to add Marvel elements in its parks, including in California, Iger said. Currently, Disney parks have strong sales of Marvel products, especially with the recent popularity of “The Avengers” movie.

Full Story: Disneyland marks attendance record in early 2012

Cast Members raise money for charity with rubber duck race Disneyland's fourth annual "Rubber Duck Derby" sent 500 rubber ducks through "it's a small world" for charity. More from the OC Register:

Rubber ducks race through Disneyland The rubber ducks were off on a race around the world – around the canal of Disneyland’s It’s a Small World, anyway. It was the fourth annual Rubber Duck Derby, an employee fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. “A couple of years ago, the Fantasyland management team thought that it would be fun for the cast members and (it) would be a good fundraiser,” said Tamarah Robb, a guest-services manager who organized this year’s derby. Nearly 500 rubber ducks were purchased for $5 and, after expenses, more than $1,700 was raised. On Wednesday morning, before Disneyland opened up for the day, the boats were taken from the attraction’s canal for the 15-minute race. About 200 Disney employees stopped by for the contest. The first-place finisher received a trophy with a rubber duck. So did the winners of other categories such as most creative, the duck that best resembled a Disney character, and best villain. The winning duck was “Brenda,” owned by Vanessa Valdavia, who works on the attractions in Fantasyland.

Full Story: Rubber ducks race through Disneyland

Alright, that wraps up this week's update. Thanks, as always, for reading! Just a quick publishing note: Dateline Disneyland will be taking next week off for a short vacation before we enter this year's huge summer season at Disneyland. Don't forget to visit our great sponsors over at Touring Plans when planning your next visit to Disneyland! You can help us by buying yourself something through one of our Amazon.com product links! All you need to do is click on any Amazon link you see in today's column. It doesn't cost you anything, but your purchases will help support Dateline Disneyland so we can keep the updates coming to you every week! To start shopping on Amazon using our referral code, click any Amazon item in today's update or click here. We're only here because of your continued support. If you've enjoy Dateline Disneyland over the last four years, please consider helping us out by donating a buck or two so we can pay the bills and keep the updates coming! You can donate with a click of a button via PayPal — click here! Don't forget that MiceChat has lots of new content throughout the week! For even more Disneyland news, photos and information check out the In the Parks column on Fridays. And MiceChat's Weekend Update, tours the world of Disney theme parks and other worldly sights and landmarks! See you at Disneyland! - Andy Interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities with Dateline Disneyland? Contact us!

Please support our sponsors Keep the updates coming! Please support us FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for the May 14, 2012 edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

]]> Dateline Disneyland http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3436-carthay-circle-reservations-commercial-cars-alices-new-window-matterhorn-more.html http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3428-cones-candy-mountains-mermaids-re-openings-remodels-revisions.html Mon, 07 May 2012 10:31:16 GMT It was a busy week at the Disneyland Resort! At Disneyland, three shops along Main Street, U.S.A. reopened after wrapping up extensive remodeling projects. The Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor, Penny Arcade and Candy Palace are all back with refreshed looks and layout adjustments that will help alleviate crowd-flow issues these shops often experience during the busy summer and holiday seasons. At the end of Main Street, the Carnation Plaza Gardens is now closed to begin its transition into the controversial Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area. The closure of the Carnation Gardens has resulted in the opening of Frontierland's new Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree to host visiting performing arts groups. Meanwhile, in Fantasyland, the Matterhorn Bobsleds continues its $1.3 million refurbishment project. Over at Disney California Adventure, the Little Mermaid got a minor makeover at her year-old dark ride. As Ariel received her new do, construction continued along Buena Vista Street as Disney Imagineers tested the new attractions in the 12-acre Cars Land area. We also take a detour today to the Fullerton Railroad Days to check out the Disneyland Railroad's Lilly Belle parlor car and the recently restored Combine car as they made a special appearance at this year's event.

Get a closer look at today's update! You can now click on any photo in today's column for a large, high-resolution version of the image.

We've got a HUGE update today, so let's get started right away.

Inside Dateline Disneyland

Welcome to Disneyland! Touring Plans crowd forecast Cones and Candy Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor, Penny Arcade and Candy Palace reopen after major remodeling projects Magic Kingdom Makeovers Carnation Cafe expansion, Carnation Plaza Gardens closes, Frontierland Shootin' Exposition and Matterhorn refurbishments Joining the Jamboree Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree opens California Construction A look at the on-going construction at Disney California Adventure... Buena Vista Street Hollywood Land Paradise Pier Cars Land Downtown Changes Downtown Disney remodels and changes Railroad Days A bit of Disneyland at the Fullerton Railroad Days This and That New Orleans Square refurbishments, Fantasmic! work, Flik's Fun Fair touch ups, more Weekly News and Information Round-Up Weekly theme park hours, closures and refurbishments

Sponsored by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less. and Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground.

WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND!

Spring break crowds will start to ease up mid-week. Our friends at Touring Plans their crowd forecast to help you plan you visit.

It will be another lightly crowded week at Disneyland with a slight spike over the weekend. Now is the time to visit if you want to avoid the crowds certain to flock to Disneyland once Disney California Adventure reboots. TouringPlans.com can help you navigate the parks with our per-park Crowd Calendar, Lines - Mobile Wait Times App that gives access to current and estimated wait times for attractions, and Touring Plans detailing the best plan of attack for hitting the attractions. With holiday crowds on the horizon, it's a good time to subscribe to TouringPlans.com to plan your strategy to avoid the crowds!

Below are the predicted resort-wide crowd numbers for select days generated by the TouringPlans professional statisticians as measured for the upcoming week. For the access to the full year and per-park crowd level predictions, visit our Crowd Calendar.

— Fred Hazelton Statistician, TouringPlans.com

	RESORT-WIDE Crowd Calendar Prediction	Crowd Tips
Tues., May 8	1/10	Here are some quick-hit notes that we hope you'll find helpful as you prepare your visits for the week: Full block outs this Saturday. Grad Nights start this week. Disney California Adventure is a 1.7 on the Crowd Calendar on Monday.
Wed., May 9	1/10
Thu., May 10	2/10
Fri., May 11	5/10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded.
See Disneyland crowds for the next 365 days. Get Disneyland wait times on your iPhone, Android, or Smartphone. Do more. Wait less.

CONES & CANDY

Last week three shops reopened along Main Street as part of the major remodeling project that took over nearly half of the street's west side. First up, the Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor reopened after a remodel that opened up its floorspace to allow for more queue for this popular ice cream location.




A look inside shows the large new queue space.


Nice new queue handrails




The passageway between the Gibson Girl and the former Blue Ribbon Bakery is closed off while construction in that space continues.


The ordering and cash wrap has been pushed further back, condensing the on-stage sundae kitchen behind the counter.


Great woodwork throughout the new Gibson Girl parlor


The menu (click for larger size)


The seating area that was located next to the old serving counter is been removed, along with the glass elephant. A new waffle cone display kitchen fills some of the space here.





Seating area with a view of Main Street, U.S.A.


Exit sign



New lighting fixtures









Next door, the Penny Arcade has reopened.


The majority of the arcade games that survived this remodel have been grouped up at the entrance to the space, which now, more than ever, functions primarily as overflow retail space for the Candy Palace.


Not many games were left when the Penny Arcade closed for this remodel, and not many of those returned.








The central cash wrap and candy display case have been reworked




You could previously walk into the Gibson Girl from a passageway here. With the space on the other side of the wall now home to the Gibson Girl's waffle cone irons, this is now a big wall of candy.


The organ is back, but you can no longer choose which song you want to hear and bins full of popcorn now sit in front, making the organ nothing more than a fancy display case for pre-packaged popcorn.


There are some nice details to find here...





Next door to the Penny Arcade, the Candy Palace is now open as well with a completely new interior.


The Candy Palace's door puts you into a slightly cramped corridor between Penny Arcade display racks and the Candy Palace's new, expanded onstage candy kitchen.






Nice new lighting fixtures overhead


Further inside the Candy Palace, the central candy display case and cash registers have been broken up and pushed against the walls. This change will definitely help with crowd flow in the store.




New cash register and display cases




Some great work done here in this remodel.


Gorgeous new lighting fixtures throughout the Candy Palace




Bottled sodas and energy drinks now available


The old indoor Coke Corner seating area has been lost in this project -- with the nearby Jolly Holiday Bakery patio offering plenty of seating for diners, the indoor dining area has now become retail space for the Candy Palace




Exit sign

MAGIC KINGDOM MAKEOVERS

Nearby the newly remodeled shops, the Carnation Cafe continues its expansion project.


At the end of Main Street, the Carnation Plaza Gardens is now closed as it begins its transformation into the new Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area.








With Carnation Plaza's companion restroom closed, the long-unused Aladdin's Oasis has reopened its companion restroom for the time being.


No, there isn't a show here folks, only a toilet.




Construction walls block off the old theater area and guide guests directly to the companion restroom.



Over in Frontierland, the Shootin' Exposition is closed and the front of the Westward Ho Trading Company is covered for refurbishment.


The store is still open







Meanwhile, the Matterhorn continues its six-month refurbishment that is set to officially wrap up in mid-June.


The OC Register's Around Disney blog had some details and a great infographic (check out the full article for the graphic) on the Matterhorn's refurbishment last week:

Matterhorn getting most extensive rehab ever
Disney crews faced a challenge – how do you paint Disneyland’s tallest structure?

With 20 levels of scaffolding, it turns out.

Since January, motorists have watched the work play out from the nearby I-5 Freeway as the 147-foot-high Matterhorn undergoes the most extensive makeover in its 53 years.

The mountain that bobsleds zip through and around was blanketed with a spider-web of scaffolding, which has since been removed.

Now, passersby see a brighter, bluish-white mountain that glistens with tiny glass beads to make the snow look more authentic.

“It really makes the mountain come to life,” said Jim Crouch, Disney’s field art director.

On June 15, the roller coaster will officially re-open with new bobsleds after a five-month closure.

The project, which cost at least $1.3 million for the mountain renovations alone, according to city of Anaheim documents, has included more than 100 workers. About 25 underwent special training for the paint job on the intricate scaffolding that rose 20 levels.

“It was the most amazing scaffolding job I’ve ever seen,” Crouch said.

The previous bobsleds had tandem seating, making for a cozy ride in which one passenger sat in between another’s legs.

The new bobsleds have three individual seats in each car. There are 25 trains, each with two cars.

“People didn’t like to snuggle up so much,” Crouch said. “They wanted their space.”

The journey on the world’s first tubular, steel roller coaster will remain the same. But riders will see 23 new pine trees to replace ones that had been gone for years.

The minimum height requirement for passengers will be seven inches taller – rising to 42 inches. [ LINK ]

JOINING THE JAMBOREE

With the Carnation Plaza Gardens closed, Disney has opened up the former Festival Arena in Big Thunder Ranch to host the visiting performing arts groups. The Festival Arena has a large footprint and to fill the space, Disney has also added character meet-and-greets, coloring tables and visiting artisan booths.




Visiting performing arts groups have a bigger stage now that they've been evicted from Carnation Plaza.


Character meet-and-greets




Horace Horsecollar


Clara Cluck


California Carvers Guild was visiting

CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION A look at the on-going $1 billion remodel and expansion efforts at Disney California Adventure BUENA VISTA STREET

More details emerge along Buena Vista Street as we get closer to its June 15th grand opening.


New streetlights peek over construction walls


Oswald's Filling Station




Los Feliz Five and Dime






The Condor Flats radar marquee has been completely removed.


Rumor is that John Lasseter called for its removal as a last-minute change in the park's remodeling efforts. Just last August, the sign finished a refurbishment that included fixing the rotating mechanism that had been non-functional for years. Below is our video from August 7, 2011 of the refurbished sign.


Now that the sign is gone, the time-lapse camera filming Buena Vista Street construction that was attached to the sign has been relocated.


The Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe:






Nice! Hand-painted sign



Annual Passholders can enter-to-win a spot at the California Adventure Annual Passholder preview on June 11. Details:

Enter for the Chance to Preview the Newly Re-imagined Disney California Adventure Park on June 11, 2012
Grab this chance — only for Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders — to be among the first to experience how the Happiest Place on Earth just got happier! As part of the preview, experience exciting attractions, dining and merchandise locations.

Step foot on Buena Vista Street — the main street of Disney California Adventure Park — to see the transformation. Imagine you have been transported to an idealized 1920's version of Los Angeles. Stroll past Art Deco storefronts, a sparkling fountain and see sights designed to invoke the energetic city Walt Disney discovered when he traveled to California in 1923.

And then enter a land like no other: Cars Land! Here, Radiator Springs has been brought to life and you'll feel like you've walked into the Disney•Pixar Cars movie. Cars Land comes fully loaded with exciting attractions, entertainment and plenty of Disney Character meet-and-greet opportunities. Get ready to be floored!

The expanded and re-imagined Disney California Adventure Park will open to the general public on June 15, 2012. [ LINK ]

Carthay Circle Theater:


Last week, Disney gave a sneak peek at the interior of the new Carthay Circle Restaurant:







As part of the new Carthay Circle Theater, Disney officially announced that the building will house a private lounge, exclusive to Club 33 members and their guests. "1901," named after Walt Disney's birth year, will be a hidden club on the upper level of the theater.




With the official announcement of 1901, Disney also announced that it would be opening Club 33 to new members for the first time in 15 years. 100 people on the Club's waiting list will finally be allowed to join and with their new membership will come access to California Adventure's new club on Buena Vista Street.

Disneyland opens up secret restaurant – for a price
For the first time in a decade, Disneyland is opening up new memberships to its exclusive Club 33 — the famous, secretive locale tucked inside the park.
Disney also is adding a private lounge for club members at Disney California Adventure.

Starting Friday, May 4, 2012, Disney will begin sending embossed invitations to the first 100 people on its 800-name waiting list, asking if they are interested in joining the club. Individual initiation fees cost $25,000 and annual dues are $10,000.

The club hasn’t even taken new names for the list in 10 years, said George Kalogridis, the Disneyland Resort president.

The openings come with new perks. The 1901 private lounge will open June 15 in Disney California Adventure as part of its $1 billion makeover project, Disney confirmed this week. The 1901 name comes from the year that Walt Disney was born.

Also, membership now will include private services, including valet parking and VIP itinerary planning.

Disney is adding new spots and amenities to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the club, which opened in 1967 in New Orleans Square.

Walt Disney was inspired to create the club after seeing the VIP lounges for corporate sponsors at the New York World’s Fair, said Kim Irvine, Disneyland’s art director who headed up a recent renovation of Club 33. Walt Disney wanted to offer a similar feel within Disneyland, spearheading dining rooms and a lounge alley that winds around the top floors of New Orleans Squares buildings. He passed away before the club opened.

Only club members and their guests are allowed behind the door next to a “33″ plaque, marking the address of 33 Royal Street. Club 33 is the only place in Disneyland where alcohol is regularly served.

Disney gave a Register news crew rare access inside Club 33 to announce the new memberships and lounge.

But Disney remains very closed about many aspects of the club: Employees won’t divulge how many members there are. They won’t name any members or guests, including celebrities. And they won’t say how many new members will be added, only noting that all 800 on the list won’t get in.

A 2007 Los Angeles Times story said that the club had less than 500 members. Celebrities who have gone to Club 33 reportedly include Tom Hanks, Michael Jackson, Christina Aguilera and Elton John.

For new members, Disney is starting with 100 invitations. Disney will ask interested parties a series of questions and set up individual meetings with a member-services employee, Kalogridis said. If there are more spots available, more invitations will be sent.

“We don’t even know how many of these we’ll be able to find,” Kalogridis said about the old addresses.

Disney also will start adding names to the list. Interested parties can club33interest@disneyland.com. [ LINK ]

Nice new wrought-iron handrails along the Carthay's upper level.






A peek through construction walls offers a glimpse at Trolley Treats.






New lights along the Hyperion Bridge



Elias and Co. Department Store.





A look at north Buena Vista Street from the Monorail:


...And South Buena Vista Street:
An advertisement for "Lyric Hotel" that can be seen from the Monorail:

HOLLYWOOD LAND

In Hollywood Land, the Mad T Party setup continues to grow...




The stage is dressed to look like a table and chairs from Wonderland




The backside of the stage


Drink Me bar:




House of Cards bar








They painted the floor leading up to the Mad Arcade black






The ElecTRONica wrap has been removed from the studio catering truck

PARADISE PIER

On Paradise Pier, the Little Mermaid ~ Ariel's Undersea Adventure underwent some quick changes last week.


Last week, the OC Register's Around Disney blog shared details on the Little Mermaid changes as the attraction closed.

Disney’s Little Mermaid ride will undergo changes
Less than one year after its debut, the Little Mermaid ride in Disney California Adventure will temporarily close starting today (Monday) to undergo changes. The dark ride will reopen Friday.
Disney officials said they received “guest feedback” and decided to make some changes to The Little Mermaid – Ariel’s Undersea Adventure, which officially opened June 3. See more pictures of The Little Mermaid ride by clicking on the photo, right.

Miceage.com, a Disney watchdog group, reported that John Lasseter, the chief creative officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studio and principal creative advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering, asked for some upgrades. Read the full story in the Miceage.com website.

Specifically, crews will update Ariel’s hair and change two animation scenes.

“Ariel will receive a new, floating hairdo in the ‘Under the Sea’ scene, and two instances of computer-generated animation in the descent and ascent scenes of the attraction will be replaced with animation sequences from Walt Disney Animation Studios, depicting Ariel as guests remember seeing her in the motion picture – the way they know and love her,” said Kevin Rafferty Jr., a Disneyland Resort spokesman. “With every new attraction, we listen to guest feedback and are always looking at the best ways to tell a great story.” [ LINK ]

The animation in the attraction has been updated to reflect a more classic, hand-drawn look




Ariel's new hair-do in the "Under the Sea" scene gets rid of her hair that earned her the nickname "soft serve" with Cast Members working the attraction.


It's great to see Disney come back in and make changes to a major attraction like this less than a year after opening. The CGI animation was one of my biggest pet peeves with the ride, and I'm happy to see they've made adjustments there.



Below, we have video clip of the attraction's recent changes:


Complete attraction ride-through with recent changes:


Complete attraction ride-through pre-changes:

CARS LAND

A look at Cars Land:


People going in to test Luigi's Flying Tires




New signs up in the queue area for Mater's Junkyard Jamboree




Nearby in A Bug's Land, tarps have gone up around the old FASTPASS distribution area for "It's Tough to be a Bug!" -- FASTPASS machines are returning here and will be the location for Radiator Springs Racers during its launch season.


MiceAge's Al Lutz had more information in his recent column:

Don't bypass the FastPass
The first big change the new DCA will attempt concerns the Fastpass distribution area for Radiator Springs Racers. Instead of distributing the Fastpasses for this huge E Ticket attraction in the nicely themed distribution area at the entrance to the ride, Fastpasses for Radiator Springs Racers will be distributed from the area once used for It’s Tough To Be A Bug Fastpasses.

It may be hard for younger viewers to believe, but in DCA’s early years the original TDA executive team thought It’s Tough To Be A Bug needed Fastpass, and the 3-D theater was outfitted with a half dozen Fastpass machines near the entrance. Those machines were yanked soon after DCA tanked upon opening in 2001, but new machines will be installed there along with a Radiator Springs Racers marquee at a side entrance along DCA’s parade route.

The thinking here is that people entering the park in the morning will first cycle through the new Racers Fastpass area in A Bug’s Land and pull their Fastpass ticket for the day, and then move on to DCA’s other attractions not necessarily in Cars Land. The DCA executive team has all visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando, and they desperately want to avoid the overcrowding and general mayhem that Potterland generates. TDA’s industrial engineering department weighed in and decided that the best way to alleviate crowds was to move the Fastpass distribution machines for the Racers ride outside of the land nearer the park’s main entry path, and the location in A Bug’s Land was perfectly placed for that purpose.

Visitors to Cars Land this summer will still see the original Racers Fastpass location near the attraction entrance, but the doors will be shut and there are no plans to use it for Fastpass until after this summer or perhaps even after the Christmas season ends in early 2013. So when you visit DCA for the first time after Bob Iger’s rededication speech on June 15th, don’t run into Cars Land looking for Fastpasses for what they are feeling may be the best new E Ticket since Indiana Jones. Instead, remember to veer left off the DCA parade route and into the unusually placed Fastpass distribution area in A Bug’s Land.

The unusual placement of Fastpass machines outside of the land, the first time that’s been attempted in a Disney west coast park, is just a part of the overall crowd strategy the Anaheim planners are forced to deal with for the opening summer. The giant elephant in the conference room at all those planning meetings is the massive amount of Annual Passholders, a demographic that’s been growing again and is now beyond the 1 Million mark. [ FULL STORY ]

You can spot folks test-riding the Flying Tires


New trees in at the Cars Land entrance in Pacific Wharf


A video from Disney on the plant life in Cars Land:


Radiator Springs Racers testing

DOWNTOWN CHANGES

Downtown Disney's LEGO Store has reopened after undergoing a major remodel.


A new interactive play zone for kids


Build-your-own LEGO race car and test it out


Woody and Buzz


Beauty and the Beast


Inside, the space is a lot more open and clean. It looks great.


The gang from Aladdin




Kids' play zone


Another play zone upstairs






With the LEGO Store reopened, its temporary location has now closed and will begin its conversion into the new WonderGround Gallery, a Disney home goods and art store.



Nearby, Catal's Uva Bar continues its refurbishment.

RAILROAD DAYS

Over the weekend, Disneyland leant its Lilly Belle parlor car and Kalamazoo hand car to the Fullerton Railroad Days. Along with the Lilly Belle and hand car, the folks from the Carolwood Pacific Historical Society brought the newly restored Combine car that was retired from the Disneyland Railroad in the 1970s. The event offered the very rare chance to see the two cars on display together and get to walk through both of them.










Inside the Combine car:





...and the Lilly Belle:







Also a rare treat: getting to take a photo on the Kalamazoo hand car that is usually on display (and off-limits to guests) in front of Main Street Station at Disneyland.




More on Fullerton Railroad Days, from the OC Register:

Railroad Days returns Saturday to Fullerton
Railroad Days, the weekend-long festival that serves as nirvana for train lovers, returns this weekend to the city where it began – the town with a rich locomotive history.
The festival is being held Saturday and Sunday, May 5—6, in the Fullerton Transportation Center, home to the busiest train station in the county.

Making its Railroad Days' debut will be Disneyland Railroad's Lilly Belle Presidential Coach – an elegant observation car festooned in Victorian décor that still rolls along in the Magic Kingdom. A former Disneyland combine coach for passengers and luggage that's now part of Carolwood Pacific Railroad Company in Griffith Park will be on display as well.

The lineup also includes three privately owned vintage cabooses, a modern diesel-electric freight locomotive, courtesy of BNSF Railway, and a steam locomotive from Fillmore & Western Railway.

All of the rail cars will be open for tours.

Enthusiasts can drool over more than 9,000 square feet of model train layouts, featuring gauges from G – the largest – to Z.

More than a dozen food booths will be set up, along with others manned by train-related organizations and nonprofit groups.

Crowds of up to 30,000 were typical when the event was in Fullerton from 1999 to 2008, and organizers expect this year to be no different.

"We have the location for it," Mayor Sharon Quirk-Silva said. "You often see people sitting and enjoying the trains, (and) I think people will be happy that it is back."

After the 2008 festival, the city and the Southern California Railway Plaza Association, the group that hosts Railroad Days, couldn't agree on the terms of building a railway museum in Fullerton that never materialized – so organizers opted to take the event to another city.

The festival was not held in 2009 and was in Brea in 2010. Last year, it was again cancelled.

In October, the City Council voted unanimously to welcome Railroad Days back, as long as the organizers could cover the cost. Through donations and sponsorships, organizers raised the needed $25,000, said association spokeswoman Donna Johnson.

Aside from waiving $1,759 in fees, Railroad Days won't cost the city anything. [ LINK ]

Carolwood Pacific Historical Society's booth:





Model trains:

THIS AND THAT

Back at Disneyland, the Tomorrowland Terrace menu boards have received a makeover







In New Orleans Square, the Le Masquerade d'Orleans facade is getting some work






Closed:



Over on the Rivers of America:





And back in California Adventure, the Flik's Fun Fair tunnel has completed its repaint:

Dateline Disneyland is sponsored by our good friends at the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground. A short walk from the park, HoJo Anaheim is conveniently located next to Matterhorn Mountain at Disneyland with nearby dining, freeway access, FREE parking and FREE Wi-Fi. For more information on HoJo Anaheim, room rates, or to book your stay today, visit HoJoAnaheim.com/MiceChat. MiceChat.com and Annual Passholder Discounts Available Every Day! The HoJo Anaheim is now offering deeper discounts for Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders! On select nights, Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders can get rooms for as low as $59 per night, plus tax. For more information visit the HoJo Anaheim Innsider Boards which features an up-to-date listing of available nights, or call (714) 776-6120 and ask for In-House Reservations to book. If your date isn't listed, the HoJo Anaheim still offers rooms for 20% off their best available rate if you call (714) 776-6120.

WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION ROUND-UP
Weekly Theme Park Hours May 7 — 13, 2012
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
Monday-Wednesday: 9 am - 9 pm Thursday 9 am - 10 pm Friday 8 am - 11 pm Saturday-Sunday 8 am - 12 midnight	Monday-Thursday: 10 am - 8 pm Friday-Sunday 10 am - 10 pm
For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar
Expected Crowd Levels presented by TouringPlans.com
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
LOW-MEDIUM 1.1—4.7 out of 10	LOW-MEDIUM 1.7—6.6 out of 10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded. For daily crowd predictions for the next 365 days, visit
Closures and Refurbishment Schedule
Disneyland Park
Matterhorn Bobsleds: Closed for major refurbishment including the addition of new ride vehicles through June 14. Carnation Cafe, Blue Ribbon Bakery: Food service locations are closed for major restaurant.
Disney California Adventure
ElecTRONica: Tron-themed nighttime dance parties ended April 16. The new Mad T Party evening dance party will begin June 15. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and Soda Fountain: New Ghirardelli chocolate shop and soda fountain will open in the space formerly occupied by the Mission Tortilla Factory. New dining location opens late-spring 2012. Buena Vista Street: Re-themed main entrance including new Red Car Trolley attraction are under construction through summer 2012. Cars Land: New 12-acre land opens summer 2012. Disney California Adventure: Entire park will be closed to the public to apply finishing touches and for a media event on June 14, 2012.
Downtown Disney & Hotels of the Disneyland Resort
La Brea Bakery & Cafe: Quick-service cafe portion closed. Reopens spring 2012 with significant modifications. Island Charters: Downtown Disney retail location closed permanently. It will reopen as WonderGround Gallery on June 9, 2012. Compass Books and Cafe: Book store and cafe closed permanently March 31. Earl of Sandwich dining location to open in space late-spring 2012.

Walt Disney World tests "NextGen" FASTPASS system Information on Disney World's new FASTPASS+ system from Inside The Magic:

Walt Disney World tests the Fastpass of the future, offering RFID enabled ride access and advance reservations In recent days, Walt Disney World has quietly installed colorful posts in front of many major attractions around the Magic Kingdom as part of a test of new Fastpass technology. Similar to the theme park entry tests that took place at Epcot in November 2011, these new posts each feature a familiar three circle Mickey Mouse icon, a scanning area used to read RFID (radio-frequency identification) equipped Fastpass tickets. Disney’s ultimate goal with the new system is twofold. The RFID-based system would replace the existing (and rather clunky) system of distributing paper Fastpass tickets to guests eager to bypass standby lines with a digital format that electronically stores all the necessary timing information, indicating when guests can enter a ride or show. But more importantly, this test is a first step in the previously-announced “NextGen” theme park experience that will include making ride reservations from outside the parks, often dubbed X-Pass or Fastpass+. The test is currently limited to a select group of Magic Kingdom guests and there is no way to sign up. But reports indicate that those who are involved were chosen in advance of their trips to the park and were asked to choose ride times that would fit their schedule. Special RFID-equipped cards would then store that information, granting access to rides at the scheduled times. Attractions currently featuring the new multi-colored Fastpass posts include The Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and Mickey’s Philharmagic, among others. The Haunted Mansion is the standout attraction in the group, as it has not offered Fastpass tickets in several years, as it generally has a short wait time. But with the “NextGen” system currently in testing, guests may not have to wait at all, even a short time, by simply setting up a time to ride in advance, scanning their RFID-eqipped ticket against the new Mickey head scanner, and advancing directly into the ride. During the test, Disney’s Cast Members have been staying on top of the new data using iPads, stationed at each of the technology-driven posts. The test is set continue in the park for around 2 weeks, after which the posts will disappear completely, just like the RFID scanners did after the Epcot turnstile test concluded. The attractions included in the test are not necessarily those that will feature the next generation of Fastpass when Disney eventually rolls it out officially. And the colorful posts are not themed to the areas they are in because they are only temporary. The final installation of this technology, whenever and wherever that may be, will be more elaborate. It was just over a month ago that Walt Disney World announced they would begin enforcing the 1-hour ride time return window on traditional Fastpass tickets. As expected, that rule enforcement change was made to prepare the park for the shift to the new RFID-based system, at least during the ongoing test. Disney has yet to comment officially and publicly about the “NextGen” Fastpass system, other than initially announcing they were working on it more than a year ago. An RFID-based system is also currently in development for the new version of Test Track at Epcot, which will allow guests to design vehicles in the queue, then bring that data onto the ride and into the post-show via RFID-equipped cards. But ultimately the sky’s the limit as to how much Disney plans to utilize this technology to further personalize the theme park experience.

Full Story: Walt Disney World tests the Fastpass of the future, offering RFID enabled ride access and advance reservations

Celebrate Mother's Day at Disneyland Information on this year's Mother's Day dining options at Disneyland:

Get Mom Out of the Kitchen for Mother’s Day, Special Dining May 13 at Disneyland Resort Mother’s Day is just around the corner and it’s time to pamper Mom. Disneyland Resort makes it easy, with four diverse dining options, all with special touches. Mother’s Day is a tradition at the Disneyland Hotel, and this year the theme is “Join Cinderella and Her Princess Friends for Disney’s Royal Buffet for Mother’s Day.” The fun starts at 10 a.m. with delicious, all-you-care-to-eat tastes served until 3 p.m. in the Disneyland Grand Ballroom – we counted more than 50 delicious items on the menu, including prime rib and herb-crusted leg of lamb. And of course, Cinderella and her friends – and special musical entertainment – take it over the top. With everything from breakfast classics like fresh omelets and French crepes to meats, seafood and artisan cheeses, it’s a real treat for everyone in the family. (Champagne and a chocolate fountain are the proverbial icing on the cake). Cost is $71.99, $20.99 for ages 3 to 9, plus tax and gratuity (Premium Annual Passholders get a discount). Four-hour complimentary self-parking is available. Both Blue Bayou and Plaza Inn at Disneyland park have special prix fixe menus for Mother’s Day. Blue Bayou is serving pan-seared, hazelnut-crusted sea bass with king crab legs, preserved lemon and butter sauce, sweet corn Green chili risotto, spicy mango jelly and Nicoise olive fennel relish. Cost is $39.99 – an easy way to impress mom! Plaza Inn is offering pineapple-glazed, spiced salmon with peach-strawberry salsa, rice pilaf, sautéed green beans and bread sticks for $16.99. A nice respite for a day in the park. Or start your day at Storytellers Cafe, in Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, where the all-you-care-to-eat buffet includes buttermilk biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, eggs Benedict, Mickey waffles, omelets, smoked salmon, fresh berries and yogurt and more. Cost is $31.99, $15.99 for ages 3 to 9, plus tax and gratuity. To request reservations for any of these and other Mother’s Day dining ideas, call 714-781-DINE, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., or email reservation requests to dine@disneyland.com.

Full Story: Get Mom Out of the Kitchen for Mother’s Day, Special Dining May 13 at Disneyland Resort

Whew! That wraps up this week's super-sized edition of Dateline Disneyland. Of course, many thanks for reading and please be sure to join the discussion and share your thoughts in the comments section below! Don't forget to visit our great sponsors over at Touring Plans and the Howard Johnson Anaheim when planning your next visit to Disneyland! You can help us by buying yourself something through one of our Amazon.com product links! All you need to do is click on any Amazon link you see in today's column. It doesn't cost you anything, but your purchases will help support Dateline Disneyland so we can keep the updates coming to you every week! To start shopping on Amazon using our referral code, click any Amazon item in today's update or click here. We're only here because of your continued support. If you've enjoy Dateline Disneyland over the last four years, please consider helping us out by donating a buck or two so we can pay the bills and keep the updates coming! You can donate with a click of a button via PayPal — click here! Don't forget that MiceChat has lots of new content throughout the week! For even more Disneyland news, photos and information check out the In the Parks column on Fridays. And don't miss our all-new sister column, Dateline Disney World by Cory Disbrow, reporting the latest news and photos from Walt Disney World in Florida! See you at Disneyland! - Andy Interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities with Dateline Disneyland? Contact us!

Please support our sponsors Keep the updates coming! Please support us FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for the May 7, 2012 edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less. and Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel & Water Playground.

]]> Dateline Disneyland http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3428-cones-candy-mountains-mermaids-re-openings-remodels-revisions.html http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3417-last-dance-carnation-plaza-matterhorn-testing-starbucks-buena-vista-st-more.html Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:06:02 GMT *Disney* fans gathered to mark the end of an era this weekend as the final swing dancing performances took place at the iconic *Carnation Plaza... Disney fans gathered to mark the end of an era this weekend as the final swing dancing performances took place at the iconic Carnation Plaza Gardens at the edge of Disneyland's Central Plaza. The performance space closes today to make way for the controversial new Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area which will temporarily evict the swing dancing and permanently displace the visiting performing arts groups that have called the stage home for over five decades. Meanwhile, work is wrapping up at Main Street's Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor and Candy Palace as those locations prepare to reopen this week after major changes. In Fantasyland, bobsleds are now hitting the slopes at the Matterhorn as that attraction begins ride testing now that its major repainting project has wrapped up. In Disney California Adventure, construction continued on the park's new main entrance area over the week as Disney officially announced the first in-park Starbucks Coffee location will open on Buena Vista Street this summer. We also take a first look at some views from inside Cars Land and in Downtown Disney, the LEGO Store unveils some fantastic new features.

Get a closer look at today's update! You can now click on any photo in today's column for a large, high-resolution version of the image.

We've got a huge update today, so let's get started!

Inside Dateline Disneyland

Welcome to Disneyland! Touring Plans crowd forecast Magic Kingdom Makeovers Carnation Cafe expansion, Gibson Girl and Candy Palace get ready to re-open, Matterhorn ride testing Last Dance Big crowds turn out for Carnation Plaza Gardens' final swing dance California Construction A look at the on-going construction at Disney California Adventure... Buena Vista Street Hollywood Land Paradise Pier Cars Land Downtown Changes Downtown Disney remodels and changes Sunrise to Sunrise A new E-Book from our friends at Touring Plans This and That AP-exclusive Fantasmic! 20th Anniversary party Weekly News and Information Round-Up Weekly theme park hours, closures and refurbishments

Sponsored by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND!

With crowds expected to be very light this week, this may be one of your last chances to see the parks with so few people for the foreseeable future. Our friends at Touring Plans their crowd forecast to help you plan you visit.

Expect another lightly crowded week at Disneyland. Now is the time to visit if you want to avoid the crowds certain to flock to Disneyland once Disney California Adventure reboots. TouringPlans.com can help you navigate the parks with our per-park Crowd Calendar, Lines - Mobile Wait Times App that gives access to current and estimated wait times for attractions, and Touring Plans detailing the best plan of attack for hitting the attractions. With spring break crowds here, it's a good time to subscribe to TouringPlans.com to plan your strategy to avoid the crowds!

Below are the predicted resort-wide crowd numbers for select days generated by the TouringPlans professional statisticians as measured for the upcoming week. For the access to the full year and per-park crowd level predictions, visit our Crowd Calendar.

— Fred Hazelton Statistician, TouringPlans.com

	RESORT-WIDE Crowd Calendar Prediction	Crowd Tips
Tues., May 1	2/10	Here are some quick-hit notes that we hope you'll find helpful as you prepare your visits for the week: Full block outs but light crowds on Cinco de Mayo. Thursday will be the lightest day for crowds this week in both parks. Disney California Adventure is a 2.7 on the Crowd Calendar on Monday.
Wed., May 2	2/10
Thu., May 3	1/10
Fri., May 4	5/10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded.
See Disneyland crowds for the next 365 days. Get Disneyland wait times on your iPhone, Android, or Smartphone. Do more. Wait less.

MAGIC KINGDOM MAKEOVERS

Work continues on the Carnation Cafe's extended refurbishment and expansion project.





Next door, however, the Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor is just about ready to reopen. Last week, the Disney Parks Blog announced that the Gibson Girl, Penny Arcade and Candy Palace would all reopen on Wednesday, May 2.

Candy Palace, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor and Penny Arcade to Re-Open May 2 at Disneyland Park
Has your sweet tooth been aching during the refurbishment of Candy Palace and Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor on Main Street, U.S.A.? If so, you’ll be glad to know that both of these Disneyland park favorites will re-open on May 2!

At the new, expanded candy kitchen inside Candy Palace, you will be able to watch our talented team of Candy Makers create some of your favorite sweet treats right before your eyes. Gourmet and caramel apples, toffee, fudge and other candy classics will line the shelves of this opulent turn-of-the-century location.

Next door, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor has undergone a transformation to make your ice cream experience easier and more convenient. With more registers and scooping space, you will be able to get your ice cream fix quicker than ever before!

You can get ice cream by the scoop or one of the specialty sundaes, but what I’m most excited about are the new floats added to the menu – in addition to the traditional root beer float, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor will offer Coca-Cola floats and Fanta Orange floats.

And you Penny Arcade fans will be pleased to know that the arcade will also re-open on May 2 alongside Candy Palace and Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor. [ LINK ]

A look at a new chandelier inside the Ice Cream Parlor:









A look at the new themed exit sign for the Candy Palace



Over at the Matterhorn, work has wrapped up on the mountain's complete repainting.




Some of the walls along the Tomorrowland side of the mountain have come down now that painting is done.


We've said it before here, but photos don't really do the new paint job justice. It really looks great.


The ivy has been completely removed from the Tomorrowland side of the mountain and it doesn't look like it will be returning. You can also see what effects the recent mud-throwing had around the base of the mountain. It looks good!


The new safety rail on this bridge is finished. The bridge has been widened to accommodate the new pillars that support the rope-themed handrail. It's a shame this addition was deemed necessary—the pillars and rope are completely out of scale.


On Saturday, Disney was sending the new fleet of bobsleds out for test runs.












The chalet at the attraction entrance is still getting some work done

LAST DANCE

This weekend marked the official end of the Carnation Plaza Gardens at Disneyland. The performance space will now begin its controversial transformation into the new Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area. The stage is expected to remain largely intact, with a Fantasyland-style redressing that will serve as a backdrop to story time with princesses and other kid-friendly activities. Still, the popular evening swing dancing events will be temporarily relocated to Downtown Disney and the performing arts groups visiting from schools around the world will be permanently displaced throughout Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

This weekend marked the final performances for both the performing arts groups and the swing dancers and big crowds turned out for Saturday's final evening of swing dancing and guests attending were lighting up Twitter with photos of the packed Carnation Plaza stage..



Last week, the OC Register shared fan memories of Carnation Plaza Gardens:

Fans share memories of closing Disneyland plaza
The iconic Carnation Plaza Gardens, a staple at Disneyland since 1956, is closing next week.

The plaza has been used for many purposes: It used to have an ice cream parlor. The floor has held swing dances since 1958. Community group performances also are hosted there.

After its final day Monday, crews will begin transforming the plaza into the Fantasy Faire, a princess meet-and-greet area that will open next year.

We asked readers to share their memories of Carnation Plaza Gardens. Here are a few of their stories, which were edited:

From Leona Owens of Anaheim:
“Carnation Plaza has been in my blood since before I was born. My parents would often dance there in the days when you could buy a general admission ticket and just roam the park listening to the bands. In fact, my dad proposed to my mom at Snow White’s bridge across the way.
Disney was, of course, part of my childhood. And I performed in Carnation Plaza, as part of Disney’s Magic Music Days several times, both as a performer and later, as a choir director.
Now, as a middle-aged woman, life has come full circle as I have enjoyed swing dancing for the last couple of years on Saturday nights at Carnation Plaza.”

From Ethelyn Bernstein of Fullerton:
“This took place during the first years it was open. Roy of the Mickey Mouse Club, the cartoonist, would sit out by the pavilion and draw characters for the kids. I have a Minnie Mouse signed by him. I don’t think too many people have that memory!”

From Larry Watkins of Monterey.
NOTE: Watkins’ father, Glen Watkins, was the lessee starting in 1957 for the ice cream parlor, according to Disney records.
“I was there opening day at age 8. My father was good friends with Walt Disney. Walt would come into the Main Street store for lunch and order a bowl of chili and a chocolate malt.
One day, Walt said to my dad that his daughter wanted a place to dance with her friends at Disneyland. My dad recommended that they build a place where the old music gazebo was and call it ‘Carnation Plaza Gardens.’ So, there it was born.
I started scooping ice cream cones at age 13 for my dad and later learned all aspects of the restaurant business at both stores. I was so proud. He would let me carry the day-before cash earnings in an old Bank of America cloth bag to the bank on Main Street at 9 a.m. every morning for a deposit. Over the years, I met several celebrities, musicians, dignitaries and politicians who used to come to the stores.”
Chris Rodriguez of Laguna Hills.:
“As a child, I remember my dad taking me to see Lionel Hampton and Tex Beneke’s orchestras’ perform. I still remember it now almost 40 years (later) — the way the couples would swing and the crowd would cheer. Standing room only. I still remember watching this one elderly lady always dancing by herself and having the best time as the music brought her back to her youth.”

From Tiffany Eliot of Fullerton:
“My memory is from 1985 when I worked there as an ROP student and that time in the corner by the stage was an ice cream place! I served up ice cream there. Many may not remember, but the area is still open just with tables. And soon it will all be transformed!” [ LINK ]

For more photos of Carnation Plaza Gardens, see our August 22, 2011 edition of Dateline Disneyland where we documented the area when the Fantasy Faire project was originally announced.



Meanwhile, back in Frontierland's Big Thunder Ranch, the old Festival Arena's stage upgrades are progressing. This area will open this Wednesday as the new Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree and will be the new home for Disney Performing Arts groups at Disneyland as well as additional character meet-and-greets, arts and crafts and other activities.

CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION A look at the on-going $1 billion remodel and expansion efforts at Disney California Adventure BUENA VISTA STREET

Construction continues in Disney California Adventure.


Work at Oswald's Filling Station




Los Feliz Five and Dime











Scaffolding has come down at the Carthay Circle Theater's tower



Last Monday, Disney officially announced the long-rumored arrival of Starbucks at Disney theme parks. The announcement came with the confirmation of Al Lutz's reports that the first Starbucks location in a Disney theme park will be at the new Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe in California Adventure's new Buena Vista Street area.


The OC Register's Fast Food Maven had additional details on the Starbucks announcement:

Starbucks: Six cafes coming to Disney theme parks
Mickey Mouse is getting a big jolt from the world’s biggest cafe chain.

Starbucks announced plans Monday to open six cafes at Disney theme parks in Anaheim and Florida. The first will open this summer at Disneyland California Adventure.
The other cafes are planned for Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort, including locations at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Starbucks announced Monday.

“Starbucks and Disney have many things in common,” said Arthur Rubinfeld, president of Global Development for Starbucks. “We share a passion for providing excellent customer service, delivering high quality in everything we do, and ensuring that every experience with our brand exceeds our customers’ expectations. This is something our customers and partners (employees) have asked for through MyStarbucksIdea.com since the site launched more than four years ago, so we are pleased to bring this idea to life.”

At California Adventure, Starbucks will be located in the Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Café on Buena Vista Street. (The cafe is named after the Three Little Pigs, Disney said.)
“The store’s location plays off the Spanish/Mexican architecture of the period, and baristas will wear 1920s-inspired attire,” Starbucks said.

On the menu: Starbucks coffee and espresso beverages, Frappuccino blended beverages, and breakfast sandwiches and pastries. “Guests also will have their choice of Disney favorites, including signature sandwiches and other items, as well as delicious desserts and sweet treats,” Starbucks said.

The “exact site” of the Starbucks location inside Disneyland has not been determined yet, Disneyland officials said Monday.

The addition of Starbucks comes as California Adventure prepares to unveil a multi-million-dollar makeover in June. The park revamp, set for June 15, will include Cars Land, a new entrance dubbed Buena Vista Street and new food options.

The Anaheim and Florida parks will not be the first to host a Starbucks. A Starbucks cafe opened in 2009 at Disney Village at Disneyland Paris [ LINK ]

Nearby the Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe, the new Trolley Treats candy store will be home to a great new model of Big Rock Candy Mountain, a tribute to a never-built Disneyland attraction. Disney gave us a small sneak peek last week.

So Good You Could Eat It! Rock Candy Mountain at Trolley Treats in Disney California Adventure Park
Trolley Treats is heading down the track and into your hearts on June 15 at Disney California Adventure park. So what will you find when you look inside? Well…in the window of Trolley Treats (the new confectionery store on Buena Vista Street) will be a model of Rock Candy Mountain.

For those of you who may not know, Rock Candy Mountain was originally envisioned for Disneyland park as part of the Storybook Land Canal Boats. The Casey Jr. Circus Train would have traveled around it. It was Imagineer and Disney Legend Claude Coats who worked on concept art for the mountain back in 1957, and while the project was never built, the idea will live on in the whimsical model that guests can enjoy in the front window of the candy shop. Climb aboard, because this journey will take you across the Rio Fudge, through Taffy Valley and over Dew Drop Hills to Rock Candy Mountain.

So, come one, come all! Pound for pound, this unique shop will offer temptations for anyone with a sweet tooth. Selections from our candy makers will range from gourmet marshmallows and hand-pulled taffy to caramel apples, dipped strawberries, toffee, fudge and other seasonal favorites.

Crave something more? Watch our Candy Makers amaze and delight you as they bring the magic of gourmet Disney candy-making to life, right before your very eyes.

If you’re wondering what’s next door…well, I’m glad you asked. A few additional shops will line Buena Vista Street, including Kingswell Camera Shop (sure to ‘capture’ special memories) and Julius Katz & Sons (gadgets and decor galore), as well as Atwater Ink and Paint (you’ll feel right at home).

Trolley Treats will be one sweet stop and one sweet shop! Are you tempted to try it? [ LINK ]

At the Carthay Circle Theater, scaffolding has come down from the building's tower. The scaffolding unexpectedly went up recently to remove the bumpy texture from the front of the tower. The bumps are all over the Carthay Theater structure as well as the adjacent Carthay Circle pump house and this texture is typical of this style of building and was found on the actual Carthay Theater in Los Angeles. For whatever reason, Disney has decided the bumps on the front of the tower needed to be removed, but they remain on the rest of the building. An interesting creative decision.




Theater marquee:




New lighting fixtures:





Elias and Co Department Store


Hyperion Bridge towers



Views from the Monorail — North Buena Vista Street:






South Buena Vista Street:







Last week, Disney released a reel of B-roll footage of the Buena Vista Street and Cars Land construction. Take a look:

HOLLYWOOD LAND

Over in Hollywood Land, the upcoming Mad T Party nighttime dance party continues to take shape.


The set-up in this area is already significantly larger than the former ElecTRONica structures.










Lights








The former End of Line bar is now the House of Cards






Flynn's Arcade is gone, but the Madcade will coming soon...

PARADISE PIER

The new California Screamin' queue canopies are all in place...




It's been a couple weeks now, but the Toy Story 3 toy box photo-op has finally been removed.





And the Cove Bar continues its refurbishment...

CARS LAND

Work continues in Cars Land as the land gets very near to completion..


The street has been paved




Last week, Disney released photos of the marquees for the three new attractions opening in Cars Land.









Mailbox at Sarge's Surplus Hut







Ramone's neon surrounded by scaffolding



Disney also released a series of day and night photos of the new land:


Wow!

DOWNTOWN CHANGES

Downtown Disney's various projects continue to make progress...


La Brea Bakery



Sunglass Icon's facade is completely stripped behind the tarps



Catal's Uva Bar is closed for refurbishment







The LEGO Store's fantastic new LEGO sculptures have been uncovered.








Buzz and Woody




Beauty and the Beast

SUNRISE TO SUNRISE

Our friends at Touring Plans have just released a new e-book by DisneyTouristBlog.com blogger and photographer Tom Bricker. Tom is well-known throughout the Disney community for his incredible Disney photography and this new e-book does not disappoint.

"Disneyland: Sunrise to Sunrise" chronicles Disneyland's 24-hour Leap Day event and is filled with over 200 gorgeous photos on 75 pages.

While the book doesn't follow any strict chronological order, every photo found within was taken during this year's One More Disney Day event. This book offers a unique look at the very rare opportunity of being able to spend a full 24 hours inside the Happiest Place on Earth. And, if the spectacular photos weren't enough, Tom includes fun facts and trivia with every photo in the book!

The book is available now in PDF format for only $8, but Tom and Touring Plans are offering it to Dateline Disneyland readers for 25% off with the coupon code SUNRISE2012! Click here to buy!

THIS AND THAT

Back in the parks, the center portion of the Soarin' Over California marquee has finally been replaced


This could use a touch-up, though



Over in A Bug's Land, the entrance to Flik's Fun Fair is getting some TLC







And finally, Disneyland Annual Passholders can now sign up to attend a special after-hours Fantasmic! 20th Anniversary event on one of four dates next month.

Disneyland plans exclusive events for Fantasmic!
Disneyland is inviting annual passholders to exclusive events to mark the 20th anniversary of the Fantasmic! show.

Disney sent email invitations starting Wednesday to passholders, who can sign up to attend one of four nights. No anniversary events are planned for regular park visitors, said Michele Himmelberg, a Disneyland Resort spokeswoman.

On May 13, Fantasmic! will turn 20 years old. Fantasmic! made its debut at Disneyland and later was added to Florida and Tokyo parks, as well.

To sign up for the anniversary events, passholders must visit a Disneyland Resort ticket booth to get vouchers. The events are set for 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. May 14, 15, 21 and 22.

On those days, annual passholders can watch Fantasmic! at 11:30 p.m. and stay after hours until 1 a.m. in Adventureland, Frontierland, and New Orleans Square.

Fantasmic! runs along the Rivers of America and features mist screens, characters and performances on boats. Several additions have been made over the years, including a 40-foot-tall animatronic dragon that debuted in 2009. [ LINK ]

Passholders must RSVP for the Fantasmic! events in-person at a Disneyland Resort ticket booth.

Dateline Disneyland is sponsored by our good friends at the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel - Anaheim Resort. A short walk from the park, HoJo Anaheim is conveniently located next to Matterhorn Mountain at Disneyland with nearby dining, freeway access, FREE parking and FREE Wi-Fi. For more information on HoJo Anaheim, room rates, or to book your stay today, visit HoJoAnaheim.com/MiceChat. MiceChat.com and Annual Passholder Discounts Available Every Day! The HoJo Anaheim is now offering deeper discounts for Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders! On select nights, Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders can get rooms for as low as $59 per night, plus tax. For more information visit the HoJo Anaheim Innsider Boards which features an up-to-date listing of available nights, or call (714) 776-6120 and ask for In-House Reservations to book. If your date isn't listed, the HoJo Anaheim still offers rooms for 20% off their best available rate if you call (714) 776-6120. See Disneyland from the comfort of home with the HoJo Mattercam! See Disneyland from home via a live rotating video feed of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park from the rooftop of Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel - Anaheim Resort! The HoJo Anaheim's newly upgraded Disneyland webcam now features new views including video feeds of Disneyland's nightly fireworks! Check it out now!

WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION ROUND-UP
Weekly Theme Park Hours April 30 — May 6, 2012
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
Monday-Thursday: 9 am - 9 pm Friday 9 am - 12 midnight Saturday 8 am - 12 midnight Sunday 9 am - 12 midnight	Monday-Thursday: 10 am - 8 pm Friday-Sunday 10 am - 10 pm
For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar
Expected Crowd Levels presented by TouringPlans.com
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
LOW 1.1—3.9 out of 10	LOW—MEDIUM 1.1—5.0 out of 10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded. For daily crowd predictions for the next 365 days, visit
Closures and Refurbishment Schedule
Disneyland Park
Matterhorn Bobsleds: Closed for major refurbishment including the addition of new ride vehicles through June 14. Carnation Cafe, Blue Ribbon Bakery, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor, Candy Palace, and Penny Arcade: Food service locations and shops are closed for major restaurant and shopping expansion projects affecting current spaces.
Disney California Adventure
ElecTRONica: Tron-themed nighttime dance parties ended April 16. The new Mad T Party evening dance party will begin June 15. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and Soda Fountain: New Ghirardelli chocolate shop and soda fountain will open in the space formerly occupied by the Mission Tortilla Factory. New dining location opens late-spring 2012. Buena Vista Street: Re-themed main entrance including new Red Car Trolley attraction are under construction through summer 2012. Cars Land: New 12-acre land opens summer 2012. Disney California Adventure: Entire park will be closed to the public to apply finishing touches and for a media event on June 14, 2012.
Downtown Disney & Hotels of the Disneyland Resort
La Brea Bakery & Cafe: Quick-service cafe portion closed. Reopens spring 2012 with significant modifications. Island Charters and LEGO Imagination Center: Downtown Disney retail location closed permanently. A temporary LEGO Store has opened in this location, with a permanent replacement yet to be announced. Compass Books and Cafe: Book store and cafe to close permanently March 31. Earl of Sandwich dining location to open in space late-spring 2012.

Ponzi scheme to sell milk to Disneyland gets women 3 years in prisonA strange story from the LA Times:

Women sentenced in Disneyland milk sale fraud Two Diamond Bar women were sentenced Monday to three years in Los Angeles County Jail stemming from charges that they defrauded seven people out of almost $600,000 in a Ponzi scheme to sell milk to Disneyland. Maricela Torres, 42, pleaded no contest to seven counts of securities fraud in a Pomona Superior Court room, according to the district attorney’s office. Juliana Celeste Menefee, 51, also pleaded guilty to the same charges. Between June 2008 and August 2010, the women, along with ringleader Eva Perez, 52, told victims they were investing in a contract with the Alta Dena Dairy to sell milk exclusively to Disneyland. More than 30 people invested between $2,000 to $100,000, and victims were promised “extraordinary” rates of return, according to the office. Perez pleaded no contest in April to seven counts of securities fraud and one count of using a device to defraud. She was ordered to repay more than $1 million in restitution and is now serving a 10-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the same scheme in San Bernardino County, according to the office. The two women were sentenced to three years in county jail and ordered to repay the seven victims a total of $590,000.

Full Story: Women sentenced in Disneyland milk sale fraud

Okay, that wraps this week's Dateline Disneyland. Thank you for reading and be sure to join the discussion in the comments section below! Are you sad to see the Carnation Plaza Gardens close? Are you happy about Starbucks joining Disneyland? Don't forget to visit our great sponsors over at Touring Plans when planning your next visit to Disneyland! You can help us by buying yourself something through one of our Amazon.com product links! All you need to do is click on any Amazon link you see in today's column. It doesn't cost you anything, but your purchases will help support Dateline Disneyland so we can keep the updates coming to you every week! To start shopping on Amazon using our referral code, click any Amazon item in today's update or click here. We're only here because of your continued support. If you've enjoy Dateline Disneyland over the last four years, please consider helping us out by donating a buck or two so we can pay the bills and keep the updates coming! You can donate with a click of a button via PayPal — click here! Don't forget that MiceChat has lots of new content throughout the week! For even more Disneyland news, photos and information check out the In the Parks column on Fridays. And MiceChat's Weekend Update, tours the world of Disney theme parks and other worldly sights and landmarks! See you at Disneyland! - Andy Interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities with Dateline Disneyland? Contact us!

Please support our sponsors Keep the updates coming! Please support us FTC-Mandated Disclosure: Promotional consideration for the April 30, 2012 edition of Dateline Disneyland was provided by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

]]> Dateline Disneyland http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3417-last-dance-carnation-plaza-matterhorn-testing-starbucks-buena-vista-st-more.html http://micechat.com/forums/blogs/dateline-disneyland/3406-red-cars-hit-tracks-matterhorn-safety-t-party-set-up-unis-transformers-more.html Mon, 23 Apr 2012 10:22:41 GMT Disney has announced its final arrangements for the popular entertainment at Disneyland's iconic Carnation Plaza Gardens as fans rally to save the dance-and-music venue from the upcoming Fantasy Faire meet-and-greet area. Meanwhile, work continues on the major Matterhorn Bobsleds refurbishment and the Main Street dining expansion projects. Across the Main Entrance Plaza, construction continues in the new Buena Vista Street area as the new Red Car Trolleys hit the tracks. In Hollywood Land, Alice is getting ready to move in with the upcoming Mad T Party nighttime dance party. We also take a detour to Universal Studios Hollywood this week to take a look at Universal's impressive new Transformers: The Ride 3D attraction which is currently in soft openings.

Get a closer look at today's update! You can now click on any photo in today's column for a large, high-resolution version of the image.

We've got a lot to cover today, so let's get started!

Inside Dateline Disneyland

Welcome to Disneyland! Touring Plans crowd forecast Magic Kingdom Makeovers Carnation Cafe expansion, Matterhorn refurbishment Last Dance Carnation Plaza Gardens gets ready to close as Disney avoids criticism California Construction A look at the on-going construction at Disney California Adventure... Buena Vista Street Hollywood Land Pacific Wharf Paradise Pier Cars Land Transforming the Competition Universal Studios Hollywood unveils its impressive new Transformers 3D ride Downtown Changes Downtown Disney remodels and changes Weekly News and Information Round-Up Weekly theme park hours, closures and refurbishments

Sponsored by TouringPlans.com | Do More. Wait Less.

WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND!

Our friends at Touring Plans are here with their weekly crowd forecast:

The next few weeks might be the only remaining weeks of the year that crowd levels are low to moderate at Disneyland. TouringPlans.com can help you navigate the parks with our per-park Crowd Calendar, Lines - Mobile Wait Times App that gives access to current and estimated wait times for attractions, and Touring Plans detailing the best plan of attack for hitting the attractions. With spring break crowds here, it's a good time to subscribe to TouringPlans.com to plan your strategy to avoid the crowds!

Below are the predicted resort-wide crowd numbers for select days generated by the TouringPlans professional statisticians as measured for the upcoming week. For the access to the full year and per-park crowd level predictions, visit our Crowd Calendar.

— Fred Hazelton Statistician, TouringPlans.com

	RESORT-WIDE Crowd Calendar Prediction	Crowd Tips
Tues., Apr. 24	4/10	Here are some quick-hit notes that we hope you'll find helpful as you prepare your visits for the week: Full block outs this Saturday. Thursday will be the lightest day for crowds this week in Disneyland. Disney California Adventure is a 4.6 on the Crowd Calendar on Monday.
Wed., Apr. 25	4/10
Thu., Apr. 26	3/10
Fri., Apr. 27	6/10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded.
See Disneyland crowds for the next 365 days. Get Disneyland wait times on your iPhone, Android, or Smartphone. Do more. Wait less.

Disney announced early last week that the popular "Voices of Liberty" 8-piece a cappella group from Epcot at Walt Disney World will begin performing at Disneyland's Main Street Opera House on June 15.

The Voices of Liberty Will Soon Ring Out at Disneyland Park
After nearly three decades, the talented 8-part a cappella group The Voices of Liberty continues to “wow” guests at Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort with their amazing harmonies on such American classics as “Ol’ Man River” and “Yankee Doodle.”

[ . . . ] Disneyland park is getting its very own Voices of Liberty, bringing one of the great traditions of Walt Disney World Resort to the Disneyland Resort for the first time. Soon, guests from sea to shining sea will be able to enjoy the impeccable sounds of this beloved group. The new Voices of Liberty will hold court at the Main Street Opera House, also home to The Disneyland Story presenting Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. [ LINK ]

Disney also shared a video of Epcot's group for those unfamiliar with this show. This will be a nice addition to Disneyland's Main Street Opera House, home of the very patriotic "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln."

MAGIC KINGDOM MAKEOVERS

Half-way down Main Street, work continues on the Main Street dining expansion projects.


Not much to see yet...







At the end of Main Street, the Matterhorn continues its refurbishment as the paint job appears to be just about finished.














This bridge is getting some new rope railings because, you know, in over 50 years this has particular spot has been so dangerous for Guests and Cast Members. We suspect this is another over-the-top Cal/OSHA-mandated safety measure. Kudos to Disney for at least trying to make it look thematically appropriate.

LAST DANCE

On the other side of Sleeping Beauty Castle, the final days for the Carnation Plaza Gardens are quickly passing as Disney turns a blind eye to fans rallying to save the iconic venue.


The Orange County Register's Around Disney blog featured a story over the weekend discussing fan efforts to save this small corner of the park from the upcoming Fantasy Faire princess meet-and-greet area.

Fans try to save iconic Disneyland dance venue
Walt Disney himself danced at Carnation Plaza Gardens at Disneyland. Entertainers, including Duke Ellington and the Osmond Brothers, performed there.

And every Saturday, dozens, if not hundreds, of swing dancers twirl on the classic dance floor tucked under a red-and-white-striped canopy.

After next weekend, the iconic plaza will begin a transformation that will displace the regular swing dancers for awhile and move other daytime entertainment.

Fans, especially the swing dancers, are trying to prevent the venue from becoming a princess meet-and-greet area called Fantasy Faire. On Saturday night, many of the regulars dressed up to show their support: Men sported zoot suits and pompadours and women dolled up with A-line skirts with petticoats and up-dos decorated with flowers and feathers.

See pictures of the Saturday swing dance at Disneyland by clicking on the photo.

“They should leave it the way it is,” said Lance Indes, 29, of Cypress, who started dancing at the plaza at age 13. “Keep it vintage. Keep it classic.” [ LINK ]

While the fans of the evening swing dancing fight to save their dance floor, the visiting Disney Performing Arts groups will have to settle for performance space that is being carved out for them in a far corner of Frontierland. Late last Friday, Disney officially announced the new "Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree" in the former Festival Arena. The Jamboree will play host to the visiting Disney Performing Arts groups on an upgraded stage area as well as offer character meet-and-greets and crafts and other activities.

Come on Down to the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree at Disneyland Park
Starting May 3, we’ll be rounding up some good times and bringing a whole new energy to Frontierland at Disneyland park with the opening of the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree.

Encompassing the former Festival Arena site, the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree will feature music, dancing, crafts, pin trading and plenty of Disney characters in their finest Western wear. Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, we’ll be throwing a good, old fashioned Hoedown, where you can kick up your heels with the likes of Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Chip ‘n Dale. From time to time, classic favorites like Horace Horsecollar, Clarabelle Cow, Clara Cluck or those silly Country Bears might even stop by!

What’s more, Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree is also going to be the newest spot to catch visiting performing ensembles as part of Disney Performing Arts. Disney Performing Arts provides an opportunity for middle and high school students and community groups from across the country to perform in Disney Parks as well as take workshops taught by entertainment professionals to improve their performance skills. You’ll be able to enjoy some of these young instrumentalists, singers and dancers as they put on the performance of a lifetime onstage at the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree. [ LINK ]

It's worth noting that Disney has made an effort to minimize the focus on the Fantasy Faire project by avoiding the topic altogether on its official Disney Parks Blog. It wasn't until two weeks ago when the fan site Epcyclopedia.com began reporting the Carnation Plaza Gardens closing date that Disney was forced to confirm the following day that the new attraction was still in the works. Until that point, Disney had been avoiding public talk of the project after its initial announcement was met with strong criticism from fans.


While the loss of the Carnation Plaza Gardens may be a blow to Disneyland's rich history, it's important to remember that change is necessary to keep the park progressing into the future. It could be argued that Carnation Plaza's time had come and it was time to find new use for this largely undeveloped corner of the park. Regardless of the park's entertainment needs, what is most frustrating here is Disney's avoidance of the issue and how they've completely ignored the concerns of fans in the process. In a time when Disney uses Walt Disney quotes to justify their actions wherever they see fit, it's sad that they are ignoring the concerns of fans who actually value the history of Disneyland and Walt Disney.

Below, Big Thunder Ranch will soon be home to Disney Performing Arts groups


The old Festival Arena (currently closed) will soon be open for performers and character meet-and-greets.


Looks like the stage and lighting are getting some upgrades

CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION A look at the on-going $1 billion remodel and expansion efforts at Disney California Adventure BUENA VISTA STREET

Work continues at the new Buena Vista Street entrance plaza...





















A ride on the Monorail gave an exciting sneak peek at one of the new Red Car Trolleys on the tracks in Buena Vista Street's Town Square area...


Gorgeous!









A look to the south gives a great view of Carthay Circle.





You might be able to see glimpses of the great new tile work along Buena Vista Street in our photos, but what you don't see is a lot of great detail that Disney has put into the Buena Vista Street tile work. Disney released a video discussing the Buena Vista Street tile murals that you'll be able to see when the area opens June 15.


Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe:


Last week, MiceAge's Al Lutz shared some information on the much-anticipated arrival of Starbucks Coffee at Disneyland. The plans are now for the first Starbucks-serving location to be the new Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Cafe on Buena Vista Street:

When Pigs Fly
The long saga of TDA executives trying to get Starbucks into the Anaheim parks is now over three years old, but it’s the closest to being public now than it’s ever been. After an initial deal fell apart in ’09, TDA has been doing a slow-motion dance with the Starbucks corporate team up in Seattle since 2011. Just as we’d reported back in ’09, the major sticking points still revolve around the training of Disney Cast Members who would be operating Starbucks’ equipment and using their proprietary materials and processes to create your drink. [ . . . ]

The first in-park Starbucks is now slated to open this June on Buena Vista Street with the re-launched Disney California Adventure. Starbucks will take up residence in the Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Café, as an odd hybrid of a regular Starbucks and a Disney-run operation. While the Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Café (dubbed the Pig Café by Anaheim’s Foods group) will maintain all the great 1920’s theming and architecture already shown to the public, subtle Starbucks logos in rubbed brass and period-appropriate signage will be added near the entrance doors. It won’t scream Starbucks with green awnings and bright logos like your neighborhood location, but once anyone gets within sight of the front door they’ll be able to spot the logo and tell that it’s a Starbucks. (Now you know why Bob Iger decreed that the huge tree already planted in front of the Pig Café be moved over a few feet at big expense, as he knows this new corporate alliance needs to go well and the subtle Starbucks logos can’t be too hidden.)

Once inside the Pig Café, the restaurant will operate like a traditional Starbucks during the morning hours just after the park opens. It’s at that time of day that the four separate espresso machines each staffed by a Starbucks-trained barista will be going full blast (where most of Starbucks’ “big” stores only have two machines), and the refrigerated cases near the front will offer a selection of Starbucks own grab-n-go breakfast and pastry items. Later in the day the location will switch over solely to a Disney created menu for lunch and dinner options, while Starbucks espresso drinks will still be offered through park closing. Over a hundred seats at a few dozen tables inside and out at the Pig Café should soak up most of the lunch and dinner crowd, although it’s expected that the morning business will be mostly to-go orders as people stream into the park and head to Cars Land with their Venti Latte and Danish.

While DCA jumps head first into the theme park Starbucks business, neither TDA nor Burbank thinks it should end there. The refurbished food locations on Main Street USA at Disneyland are also in the sights of TDA’s Project Orange team for the future, but the Pig Café location will be the first to open this June. Starbucks, for their part, is more hesitant and will be keeping a close eye on the Pig Café this June to make sure their product is being served correctly before they agree to more theme park locations. - Al [ FULL STORY ]

Carthay Circle fountain and the new Clarabelle's Hand-Scooped Ice Cream




Elias and Co. Department Store:








Hyperion Bridge


A look down Buena Vista Street and the Hyperion Bridge






The former Candy Shoppe facade is now this blue-gray color


The Carthay Circle Theater


Work continues on the Carthay tower

HOLLYWOOD LAND

ElecTRONica has mostly disappeared from Hollywood Land.


No more stage!






Set-up for the upcoming Mad T Party is already going up




The fountain still exists under the temporary ElecTRONica stage. The Mad T Party stage will also go up here.


The fountain wasn't around very long before being taken apart for ElecTRONica. It's a shame, it was a nice little feature for the area.


It's in pretty bad shape now...


Set-up for the House of Cards bar area is going up.


End of Line bar signage has been removed


Flynn's Arcade is no more (but the classic arcade games are expected to remain in a re-themed space for the Mad T Party)




Green boxes for the Mad T Party can be found scattered throughout the area.





Nearby, the Mosnters Inc. facade is now freshly repainted.


The colors are fresh and vibrant again, which is nice. It's just too bad the facade doesn't really fit in at the new DCA.




Hopefully this facade can get a major reworking in the future. The whole thing is a perfect example of the tackiness and cheapness that characterized Disney California Adventure when it opened in 2001. It's just painted walls!




This isn't a view you should see when walking by a family-friendly dark ride at a Disney theme park.



Meanwhile, more of the cheesy puns were recently removed from Hollywood Land's Hollywood Blvd.


The "Dial 'M' for Muscle" neon sign for a non-existent gym has been removed.


While this building still features a neon sign for "La Brea Carpets" (a riff on the famous La Brea tar pits), the cardboard cut-outs of oriental rugs that were once in the storefront windows have thankfully been removed.


Hopefully this will be leaving soon.


Next to La Brea Carpets, the Barber Shop window still exists, but it's no longer called "Ben Hair" (a play on "Ben-Hur")


At least the pun is gone...

PACIFIC WHARF

Not much to see yet at the upcoming Ghirardelli Soda Fountain.

PARADISE PIER

New awnings are going up at the California Screamin' queue after the awning structures were repainted blue


Looks good.

CARS LAND

A look at Cars Land work...




The finish line banner is now in place


Mater's Junkyard Jamboree





Disney recently gave a look at how virtual reality technology helped them create Cars Land:



Filming was taking place in Cars Land on Sunday...







Disney recently announced two new entertainment offerings coming to Cars Land:

Look Who’s Rolling into Cars Land June 15 at Disney California Adventure ParkWhen Cars Land opens June 15, the tiny town of Radiator Springs will also be teeming with atmosphere entertainment inspired by the Disney•Pixar film, “Cars.”

Big and red on the outside, gentle and good-natured on the inside, Red the Fire Truck shows up with his sirens blaring and his bell ringing, heading to meet up with his good buddy, a Volunteer Firefighter. The Firefighter lets everyone know the flowers in the area need watering. It’s “Red to the Rescue,” but each time the Firefighter attempts to use Red’s hose, it backfires on him! In all the fun, the plants manage to get wet, and you might too!

Bringing a completely different kind of beat to the street is “DJ’s Dance & Drive.” DJ, the ultimate party car, rolls into town with his giant speakers, built-in disc changer and his very own dance party, led by a girl named Spinner. This gang stops traffic everywhere they go, creating a spontaneous, interactive dance party. Spinner and the crew teach us moves like the Overdrive, the Reverse and the Hairpin Turn, while DJ calls up the hits, from “Life in the Fast Lane” to “Car Wash.” DJ’s going to shift Cars Land into high gear!

Cruise on down to Cars Land this summer at Disney California Adventure park. The residents there will be glad you rolled into town! [ LINK ]

The entrance sign is now behind cover until the grand opening.




Filming at Mater's Junkyard Jamboree

TRANSFORMING THE COMPETITION

Typically, I exclusively cover Disneyland Resort here at Dateline Disneyland but last week I, along with several colleagues here at MiceAge/MiceChat were invited by Universal Studios Hollywood to preview their new Transformers: The Ride 3D as it began "technical rehearsals." I wanted to share some thoughts on this new attraction here as we enter a major summer for Southern California theme parks. While on-ride photos and video were prohibited, we were allowed to take photos of the fantastic queue spaces. Do note that Universal Studios Hollywood comped our theme park admission for this preview.


I'm going to cut to the chase and just say that Universal Studios has a big hit on their hands. Transformers: The Ride 3D takes the technology pioneered at Universal Orlando's Spider-Man ride to the next level, seamlessly combining incredible 3D film footage with practical dark ride sets that you experience onboard a very unique ride system. MiceChat's April 19 edition of its In the Parks blog discussed the ride experience in more depth, but the real point I'd like to get across is that finally, Universal Studios has produced an attraction that can truly compete with Disney.


Don't let the attraction's unfortunate facade fool you, once you enter its doors you're fully transported into the world of Transformers and the experience doesn't end until you exit. From the fully-themed queue to the incredible on-ride experience, the attraction shows the remarkable level of quality that Disney is typically known for. The technology for this ride is truly impressive with all of its parts pulling together to form an impressively entertaining whole, all in spectacularly clear 3D.


While this ride may not be enough to compete against Disney's Cars Land, Universal is certainly taking the right steps to becoming a real competitor. With their new Transformers attraction and the upcoming Wizarding World of Harry Potter addition for the Hollywood park, Disney should take notice and start to take some chances. Universal has and they'll soon be reaping the benefits.


The huge indoor queue will be appreciated in the hot summer months


Great details and theming in the queue


If you haven't visited Universal Studios in a while, now would be a great time to revisit the park.

DOWNTOWN CHANGES

Back at the Disneyland Resort, a look at the changes happening in Downtown Disney. The La Brea Bakery expansion:





Remodel work is underway at Sunglass Icon


A temporary handicap ramp for Blink has been set up during construction.



Once the temporary LEGO Store moves out of the former Island Charters space, Disney will get to work on installing another Disney-branded shop, this time in the form of an art gallery. Disney announced the new WonderGround Gallery last week. Here's more information from D23...

WonderGround Gallery Comes to Downtown Disney at Disneyland Resort on June 9, 2012
WonderGround Gallery certainly adds new meaning to the phrase “state of the art.” The 1,442 square-foot store, which was just announced today on the Disney Parks Blog, will rotate and exhibit Disney’s latest commissioned artists and their works—with the help of the latest tech gadgets and trends—in a whole new way at Downtown Disney, Disneyland Resort, beginning June 9, 2012.

It will be the first of its kind, a tech-driven art store at a Disney theme park. And while specifics of how the social-media generation will interact with the art are still in the development phase, the WonderGround promises to be much more interactive than your traditional art gallery or store. “Shoppers are ready to use emerging technology in a Disney retail setting,” Barbara Romo-Cole, merchandise marketing manager, says. “At WonderGround, our unique products and displays will allow guests to be immersed into the show and to experience just that—the first Disney retail location to utilize the latest technology trends.”

WonderGround Gallery will showcase many pieces at one time—with varying styles, techniques, and mediums—so there’s bound to be something for every Disney art lover. And when it opens, more than 25 artists will display their interpretations of Disney’s most iconic stories, ranging from the classic Mickey Mouse to characters from the latest Pixar releases. “This first showcase will really focus on artwork inspired by Disney•Pixar films, characters and icons, and Mickey Mouse,” says Michelle Harker, merchandise marketing and communications. “We will offer some of these art pieces in a variety of formats, including originals, giclées, prints, and more. There will also be a selection of lifestyle gallery-esque merchandise available, including note card collections, journals, and novelty items. It will be great to see things in oil, digital, paper sculpture, tin, and more… all come together in one place!”

Wondering where the name came from? The official word is that “WonderGround Gallery draws inspiration from Disney’s deeply rooted art and storytelling-driven heritage, especially the idea of stepping through the looking glass, which the greatest artwork allows us to do.” And we Disney art collectors can’t wait to do just that!
“I think it opens up the door for new art and new interpretations of some of our beloved classic characters,” Michelle says. “It pays tribute to the history of Disney art and storytelling, but it lets new generations of artists tell their stories about these characters and what they mean to them. We’re hoping to change the way that people think about art.” [ LINK ]

Meanwhile, work continues on the main LEGO Store's remodel:





Not much progress yet at the upcoming Earl of Sandwich restaurant.

Dateline Disneyland is sponsored by our good friends at the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel - Anaheim Resort. A short walk from the park, HoJo Anaheim is conveniently located next to Matterhorn Mountain at Disneyland with nearby dining, freeway access, FREE parking and FREE Wi-Fi. For more information on HoJo Anaheim, room rates, or to book your stay today, visit HoJoAnaheim.com/MiceChat. MiceChat.com and Annual Passholder Discounts Available Every Day! The HoJo Anaheim is now offering deeper discounts for Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders! On select nights, Disneyland Resort Annual Passholders can get rooms for as low as $59 per night, plus tax. For more information visit the HoJo Anaheim Innsider Boards which features an up-to-date listing of available nights, or call (714) 776-6120 and ask for In-House Reservations to book. If your date isn't listed, the HoJo Anaheim still offers rooms for 20% off their best available rate if you call (714) 776-6120. See Disneyland from the comfort of home with the HoJo Mattercam! See Disneyland from home via a live rotating video feed of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park from the rooftop of Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel - Anaheim Resort! The HoJo Anaheim's newly upgraded Disneyland webcam now features new views including video feeds of Disneyland's nightly fireworks! Check it out now!

WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION ROUND-UP
Weekly Theme Park Hours April 23 — 29, 2012
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
Monday-Thursday: 9 am - 9 pm Friday 9 am - 12 midnight Saturday-Sunday 8 am - 12 midnight	Monday-Thursday: 10 am - 8 pm Friday-Sunday 10 am - 10 pm
For a complete listing of theme park hours, visit the Disneyland.com Theme Park Calendar
Expected Crowd Levels presented by TouringPlans.com
Disneyland Park	Disney California Adventure
LOW-MEDIUM 2.5—6.2 out of 10	MEDIUM 3.7—6.3 out of 10
Crowd levels are based on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least crowded conditions and 10 being most crowded. For daily crowd predictions for the next 365 days, visit
Closures and Refurbishment Schedule
Disneyland Park
Matterhorn Bobsleds: Closed for major refurbishment including the addition of new ride vehicles through June 14. Carnation Cafe, Blue Ribbon Bakery, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor, Candy Palace, and Penny Arcade: Food service locations and shops are closed for major restaurant and shopping expansion projects affecting current spaces.
Disney California Adventure
ElecTRONica: Tron-themed nighttime dance parties ended April 16. The new Mad T Party evening dance party will begin June 15. Ghirardelli Chocolate Company and Soda Fountain: New Ghirardelli chocolate shop and soda fountain will open in the space formerly occupied by the Mission Tortilla Factory. New dining location opens late-spring 2012. Buena Vista Street: Re-themed main entrance including new Red Car Trolley attraction are under construction through summer 2012. Cars Land: New 12-acre land opens summer 2012. Disney California Adventure: Entire park will be closed to the public to apply finishing touches and for a media event on June 14, 2012.
Downtown Disney & Hotels of the Disneyland Resort
La Brea Bakery & Cafe: Quick-service cafe portion closed. Reopens spring 2012 with significant modifications. Island Charters and LEGO Imagination Center: Downtown Disney retail location closed permanently. A temporary LEGO Store has opened in this location, with a permanent replacement yet to be announced. Compass Books and Cafe: Book store and cafe to close permanently March 31. Earl of Sandwich dining location to open in space late-spring 2012.

Disney plans to bring "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" to the big screen Nevermind that the ride is already based on a movie, Disney wants to make another movie that's based on the ride. Confused? We are, too.

Disney Plots A ‘Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride’ Movie Disney has feature film plans for Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, one of its longest-running theme park rides. The studio has set iconic commercials and video director Pete Candeland to develop a live-action/CGI mix feature that will bring to life a theme park ride that originated in Disneyland on its opening in 1955. The twisting, turning ride was also popular at Walt Disney World in Florida, but the geniuses at the park closed the ride in 1998 and replaced it with The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh, which by comparison is a 10-minute nap for parents. Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride is based on Disney’s adaptation of The Wind In The Willows. Tron: Legacy producer Justin Springer will produce Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, and the studio is looking for a writer to draft the plot into a film. Disney, which turned its Pirates Of The Caribbean attraction into a billion-dollar feature franchise, has a version of 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea with David Fincher among several percolating projects inspired by theme park attractions. The Verve-repped Candeland is best known for his work with animation and for creating and directing the music videos for The Gorillaz. He also worked with Paul McCartney to create a cinematic opening to The Beatles Rock Band for Harmonix.

Full Story: Disney Plots A ‘Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride’ Movie

Walt Disney World restores classic character We don't normally cover Walt Disney World in this column, but we thought it was important to share this bit of news about Disney restoring a significant piece of Walt Disney World history.

Historic Orange Bird Returns to Adventureland at Magic Kingdom Park Well, isn’t this a surprise? Early this morning, D23 representatives announced the return of the historic Orange Bird character live in Adventureland before a small group of D23 members. In case you aren’t familiar, Orange Bird was a character who was developed specifically for Magic Kingdom Park in the 1970s. This cheerful bird originally greeted families at Sunshine Tree Terrace in Adventureland, where guests could also enjoy citrus drinks and buy Orange Bird gifts. At one time, the character even had his own record, which was released in 1971 to feature “The Orange Bird Song” – a tune penned by the Sherman Brothers (composers of the songs in “Mary Poppins” and “The Jungle Book”). Beginning today, Orange Bird will return to Sunshine Tree Terrace signage and quirky drink cups, and a new line of Orange Bird merchandise has already appeared on the shelves! Also, an Orange Bird statue that was on display at Sunshine Tree Terrace in the 1970s was retrieved from the WDI Sculpture Studio in California, and is now on display. We’ll have photos to share from the announcement shortly, but in the meantime, here’s a brand-new desktop wallpaper by Jason “Tiki” Tackett for you to enjoy!

Full Story: Historic Orange Bird Returns to Adventureland at Magic Kingdom Park

Alright, that does it for this week's column. Will you miss Carnation Plaza Gardens? Are you planning on checking out Universal Studios this summer? Let us know in the comments section below! Don't forget to visit our great sponsors over at Touring Plans when planning your next visit to Disneyland! You can help us by buying yourself something through one of our Amazon.com product links! All you need to do is click on any Amazon link you see in today's column. It doesn't cost you anything, but your purchases will help support Dateline Disneyland so we can keep the updates coming to you every week! To start shopping on Amazon using our referral code, click any Amazon item in today's update or click here. We're only here because of your continued support. If you've enjoy Dateline Disneyland over the last four years, please consider helping us out by donating a buck or two so we can pay the bills and keep the updates coming! You can donate with a click of a button via PayPal — click here! Don't forget that MiceChat has lots of new content throughout the week! For even more Disneyland news, photos and information check out the In the Parks column on Fridays. And MiceChat's Weekend Update, tours the world of Disney theme parks and other worldly sights and landmarks! See you at Disneyland! - Andy Interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities with Dateline Disneyland? Contact us!

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