Splish splash, Disneyland gets a bath. Weekend rains washed out Mickey’s Halloween Party on Friday. The unfortunate guests missed out on the parade, fireworks, much of the outdoor entertainment, and most of the candy stations. While they paid more than the cost of a one-day admission to Disneyland to attend the party, there were no refunds or rescheduled tickets to a less soggy party night. Now that’s a Halloween trick. Luckily, we do have plenty of treats for you in today’s Disneyland Resort Update. Lots of construction walls come down, Monorail Blue returns, Salt and Straw opens, World of Disney officially relaunches this coming Friday, and we even spy the first sign of Christmas . . .
Salt and Straw
Something new opened in Downtown Disney this week. Boutique ice cream company, Salt and Straw, has taken over the old Haagen Dazs space. The flavors are much more inventive and conceptual than your average run-of-the-mill ice cream shop.
We were there for the grand opening and have some video to share (if you were following us on Instagram, you saw it all happen in real-time):
World of Disney Opening Friday
We have been anticipating the official reopening of the World of Disney store for what seems like forever. Well, that time has come at last! The latest scoop is the store will open this Friday, the 19th. As we were walking to towards the park today we heard the construction crew adding some of the last minute touches of magic into the store. We’re very interested to see what lies behind the doors this week.
Slide through the images below to see more of the store:
Fantasyland/Adventureland Ponds
The scrims surrounding the entrances to Adventureland and Frontierland have finally come down. Although it’s nice to see the ponds again, we can’t really figure out what happened while those walls were up. The walkways weren’t expanded or repaired and the fencing wasn’t changed. The landscaping has been significantly scaled back (looks almost bare in areas). But on the brighter side, the unsightly green screens are gone.
The stream is still blocked off in Adventureland.
The fencing is unchanged. Still cracked, rusted in spots. Though it does look like it all got a bit of paint.
The little pathway running between the Frontierland lagoon and Fantasy Faire Village is currently closed off with tall wooden walls.
Adventureland
Construction continues for the Tropical Hideaway, and it looks like it’s coming along nicely. It is an active construction site with equipment all over the place. While the rain may have held things up a little bit, it is definitely making strides towards completion.
You can see where the stream will flow through the area. There will be a series of bridges in the area which cross the stream. It’s a detail which will integrate the Hideaway with the Jungle Cruise.
The new Hideaway will evoke the earliest rendition of the area. Below is a vintage photo of the area as seen from the Jungle Cruise dock. You’ll note that it was wide open to the Jungle Cruise. We include this image because we’ve seen comments from some questioning why the Hideaway will be opened up to the attraction.
The reopening of the Tiki Room and the Enchanted Garden has certainly brought a lot of vibrancy back into the area. It looks like some of the floral accents around the garden got a sprucing up, and all of the Gods and Goddesses are looking sharp. There is a fairly obtrusive door near the rear of the garden with a secure access. That’s where the old disabled access lift was. It is no longer needed now that a ramp has been built through the old restrooms . . .
Mobile Order pick-up remains on the Enchanted Garden side of the Dole Whip hut.
Splash Mountain of Plastic Bags
Splash Mountain has started passing out Ziploc bags to keep guest’s items dry while they go for a quick plunge. The irony is that just a few weeks ago, Disney began phasing out plastic straws in the park. In theory, these bags are recyclable, but the reality is probably a little less green, with many of these bags ending up in the regular trash or thrown on the ground. It was awkward timing at best for this particular sponsor promotion.
Matterhorn
Matterhorn Mountain is getting close to reopening. With the projected reopening date in mid-November, there still is a lot to do. The attraction closed at the end of July, so this has been a long one. They’ve really cleaned up the waterfalls, and have done a lot of exterior revamping. While there’s some clearance, fall-safety, and repair going into the mountain, it’s the reworking of the walkways and gardens which may end up being the most notable.
Lots of new fencing.
The trees are being replanted. The walkways reconfigured a bit. Access for Single Rider and Fastpass will be streamlined.
Monorail Blue
Today was the first chance for me to take some shots of Monorail Blue after the removal of the Pixar Fest wraps. It had been sidelined due to paint damage when the wraps were removed. It’s hard to see with the glare, but it appears that the paint was either repaired or wasn’t significant enough to prevent normal operation. It’s good to see Blue back in the sky.
Jedi Training Coming To An End
November 3rd is the last day for the Jedi Training Academy. The popular show has been removed from the schedule beginning November 4th. It’s likely that some version of the experience will become part of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and casting for those experiences is underway.
Star Wars
The skyline for Galaxy’s Edge sure is changing pretty quickly. The existing rockwork is nearing completion, while there are newer rocks going up toward the perimeter of the area. 
Hotel canceled
As you probably already heard, the 4th Disneyland hotel has been canceled. While it is a mixed bag of emotions from Disney fans, it’s good that the west end of Downtown Disney won’t be left twisting in the wind for too much longer.
New Parking Structure
It’s always incredible seeing something built before your eyes. The new structure next to Mickey and Friends is going up really fast. We sure hope it’s going to be helpful in controlling the traffic flow, the line of cars waiting to get in can be painfully long at times. A new pedestrian walkway will soon be constructed as well.
Below you can see the supports for the escalators going in.
New concept art reveals a pedestrian bridge. This new bridge will cross Magic Way, and provide a path to the Downtown Disney District. Much quicker and safer than subjecting guests to the busy intersection. 
This and That
A Haunted Mansion Hatbox Ghost Tiki Mug arrives at Trader Sams this week! It’s sure to be a quick sellout. It will go on sale at Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar on 10/16 at 7am.
Earl of Sandwich Returns
Like a Halloween zombie movie, Earl of Sandwich has returned from the grave to serve you. We actually had a chance to eat here the other day and it’s remarkable how it feels as though it had never been closed at all. The sandwiches were tasty and affordable by Disney standards.
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Thank you for reading everyone! We look forward to hearing your comments about the projects which struck a chord with you this week.
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