Sunday, April 4, 2010

Disneyland Day 1

The Hope family is back at Disneyland for spring break 2010 for 6 days of Disney Fun. We got off to a rough start. One of our 3 bags didn't make it to California. Alex had no clothes. A bunch of my stuff was also missing. They had no record of the bag at that time. Luckily, when we called in the morning they had found it and it was on a plane to meet us. It arrived by 3 in the afternoon and we were set for our trip.



I will admit it, we are Disneyphiles. We love the Disneyland Resort Parks, and we take out visits there very seriously. We love the Parks, but not the crowds. During spring break the crowds can get crazy. We stay at a hotel directly across the street from the parks so we can come and go easily. The parks open at 8am and close at mignight, so for a week our lifestyle is like deer. We are up early to be at the park when it opens. The lines are very short and much fun can be had. As early afternoon comes and crowds grow we head back to the hotel for swimming in the pool and a nap. Then in the evening we head back to the park as the crowds begin to shrink.

This year we kept a log of the rides we did each day. You can easily see which rides we like the best. We focused on Disneyland day 1. No California Adventure until day 2.

Ride List

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
Pinocchio's Daring Journey
Pirates of the Caribbean
Haunted Mansion
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Captian Eo
Space Mountain
Jungle Cruise

Afternoon Break

Splash Mountain
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Splash Mountain
Pirates of the Caribbean
Indiana Jones
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters

We met up with Buzz right after our first ride on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. Bart is very skilled with the blaster and usually gets the high score for the family.



We ran into Woody and Jessie behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.




Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is one of my favorites. Great roller coaster! We call it BTMRR (pronounced Bit-a-mir). "Its the wildest ride in the wilderness."





Loading the boat on the Jungle Cruise. Alex loves this ride.

Disneyland Day 2

Day 2 got off to a slow start. First after standing in line for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage for about a half-hour, the ride went down. We did get a "magic" coupon allowing us to immediately get on almost any ride. Then we got in the line for Autopia and it shut down after waiting for 20 minutes. No coupon this time. Threw us off out rhythm for the morning as you can see from the ride list below. The crowds grew quickly. We were tired so we took a long nap.




Ride List

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage (abort)
Autopia (abort)
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Star Tours
Snow White's Scary Adventures

Afternoon Break

Toy story Mania
California Screamin'
Soarin' Over California
Soarin' Over California
Peter Pan's Flight
Matterhorn Bobsleds
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Autopia
Space Mountain



Bart and Alex meet the Queen of Snow White fame. She was nicer than she looks.



In the afternoon, we went to California Adventure Park. Here is Grizzly River Run under Bear Mountain. Didn't bring our ponchos. We would do it twice on the last day.



Picture from California Screamin. We love that ride. The biggest and fastest roller coaster in both parks.




As part of the changes at California Adventure they put Mickey Mouse on the big Ferris Wheel. Makes a cool reflection on the water. At the top of the picture you can see some of the spouts for the World of Color show that opens this summer. We got to see some tests that looked very cool! Wish it was already running.



After doing Soarin' Over California twice (my favorite ride at California Adventure) we headed back to Disneyland. Guess which ride we went on first?




The family in front of their portholes, ready for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.




Alex is now tall enough to comfortably reach the peddles in the Autopia cars. Both of the boys are good drivers.



Bart and Alex driving for real is a scary concept.

Disneyland Day 3

Day 3 was a Monday. Spring break crowds are getting bigger.




Ride List

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Haunted Mansion
Splash Mountain

Afternoon Break

Tower of Terror
Toy story mania
California Screamin
Soarin over california.
Space Mountain
Jungle Cruise
Indiana jones


There was no one in line yet at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We were able to do two runs in about 20 minutes. Please enjoy this video of the second run. "Its the wildest ride in the wilderness"!



Here is a nice picture of the Constance the Bride on Haunted Mansion. Some how her husbands keep losing their heads.



Family picture of the big fall on Splash Mountain. Another great ride.



We moved over to California Adventure after our nap. The first ride was The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Great Ride with moments of weightlessness.




Join us on a night time ride of California Screamin'




We got into the habit of getting a California Screamin' fastpass and then getting in the Toy Story Mania line. By the time we finished that line we could walk onto California Screamin'. Definitely a family favorite.



Space Mountain is probably the most popular ride in Disneyland. With a fastpass the line is pretty reasonable. A lot of fun!

Disneyland Day 4

Day 4 was the most crowded of all. It was an early opening day (7 am) and the place was packed from the get go. It was also the hottest day. No sneaking a ride on one of the big attractions this morning. Although temps in the 80's sounded great after a Chicago winter its pretty tough being cooked by the SoCal sun when you are not used to it. We didn't make it to midnight this night. We decided to go to bed early with the hope of a better day tomorrow.



Ride List

Alice in Wonderland
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Pirates of the Caribbean
Haunted Mansion
Enchanted Tiki Room
Tarzan's treehouse
Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough
Snow White's Scary Adventures
The Disneyland Story featuring Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln

Afternoon Break

Maliboomer
Toy Story Mania
Mulholland Madness
Soarin' over California
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Indiana Jones Adventure

Day 4, our trip is half over.




Enjoy a bit of Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters.




On our way to lunch at the Blue Bayou we were attacked by a group of pirates. Arrrrrggggghhhhhh!



Then and Now. Bart and Alex with Pluto in 2007 and 2010.




Here are the seats for my favorite ride, Soarin' over California. An amazing hang glider simulator.

Disneyland Day 5

On day 5 the weather changed. It got much cooler and it was supposed to Rain. It finally did rain sometime between midnight and the morning. The crowds were the lightest of the week. We started by hitting the Disneyland rides we had not yet ridden. In the evening the crowds were great. We were able to get in a bunch of rides. We stuck it out until midnight. The next day was our day off. We went shopping in Downtown Disney (we had a 20% off coupon). That was followed by lunch at the Rainforest Cafe. Alex's favorite. AFter lunch there was swimming and a hot tub. We went to bed early in preparation for of final big day.




Ride List

Astro Orbitor
"it's a small world"
Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin
Gadget's Go Coaster
Disneyland Railroad

Afternoon BreaK

Muppet Vision 3D
Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
Disney Animation Academy
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Mulholland Madness
Disney's electrical parade
Soarin over California
Indiana Jones Adventure
Pirates of the Caribbean
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Casey Jr. Circus Train
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
Matterhorn Bobsleads
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters




Diane and Alex get ready for a ride on the Astro Orbitor.




We ran into Pluto in Toontown.




Goofy was also there. Who would have thunk it?




Bart and Alex enjoy Gadget's Go Coaster in Toontown.




We had a nice ride around Disneyland on the Railroad.




In California Adventure they have Disney's Electrical Parade. Lots of flashing lights (and some slightly annoying music). Its Fun!

Disneyland Day 6

Day 6, our last day at Disney. No breaks or naps planned for today. Just want to do as much as possible. We can sleep on the plane home tomorrow. 16 hours, how much can we do?????



Ride List

Horseless Carriage, Main Street USA
Matterhorn Bobsleds
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Pirates of the Caribbean
Haunted Mansion
Splash Mountain

Lunch

Pixie Hollow, Diane Meets Tinkerbell
Mad Tea Party
King Arthur Carrousel
Winnie the Pooh & Friends
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Grizzly River Run
Grizzly River Run
Brother Bear play area
California Screamin
Toy Story Mania!
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Soarin' over California
Indiana Jones Adventure
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Space Mountain
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters


On the way in we ran into the Mad Hatter and Alice. The Mad Hatter was a real goofball.




The family is ready to go for the big last day.




First real ride of the day, the Matterhorn Bobsleds.




It was a cool morning and no one wanted to be in front for Splash mountain. The person in front usually gets soaked. I thought it would be fun to make a video from the front.




Here we are captured by the Disney camera as we plunge down on the same run.




After the first row plunge I was totally soaked. Because my knees were under the front of the boat I was dry from the knees down (including my shoes, Thank you). Braer Bear didn't seem to care.




Diane is a BIG fan of Tinkerbell. It was the first time we were able to meet her.




Diane was SOOOoooooo excited to finally meet tinkerbell.




Next ride was the Tea Cups. They make me too dizzy and nauseous. I'll just take the pictures thank you!




We went on the Storybook Boats and the Merry-go-round. With those two rides we had completed all of the rides currently functioning in Disneyland. WOW!




Its only early afternoon and Alex is already looking a bit tired. I hope we can make it to midnight.




Winnie the Pooh through the years. The Pooh and the spot stay the same. The Boys keep getting bigger and bigger.




It all started innocent enough. Tigger and Alex both seemed to be in a good mood.




Then for no reason that I know of Pooh punched Alex in the stomach.




Alex didn't like the cheap shot. When he turned around he backhanded Tigger, who started bouncing around. The Disney staff stepped in quickly and broke it up. Luckily we had the picture of the cheap shot by Pooh, so they didn't throw Alex out of the park.




Alex was still in a mood when we got to Grizzly River Run.




I wasn't going to let anything ruin my mood. I was looking forward to my first run on the rapids. We were protected by our ponchos and ready to go. It was a little cool so the line was short. We did two runs in a row. Didn't get too wet. What fun!




Later that night we did Indiana Jones for the last time. Alex was now in a better mood and found a skull he rubbed for luck while waiting in line.




Bart hit the wall in the line for Space Mountain. The line was moving slow and he had a chance to sit on the floor and take a breather.




The family at the fastpass entrance to the Space Mountain ride. A great coaster in the dark.




A fun shot of people getting on and off space mountain. It was a low light long exposure. By bracing the camera on a railing I was able to hold it still for the shot. Immobile objects are fairly clear while the moving people are smears.




In the end we had 6 great days at the Disneyland Resort. By the end we were limping like we had walked a hundred miles on pavement. Maybe we did walk that far. Diane's pedometer said we were taking almost 10,000 steps every day. The blisters that Diane and I had didn't help. Diane packed us up and we were in bed before 2 am. Up at 6 am we easily made the plane and got home safe and on time (with all our bags). Happy but exausted! In my mind another perfect vacation.