Disneyland Spring 2012 Trip Report Pt 2
After we dropped off the car (after getting lost in the hotel parking lot area), we decided to eat at Tangoroa Terrace since there was live music playing in the area. While Walt Disney World definitely does a better job with the “self-contained resort” feeling, Disneyland Hotel, with its new offerings comes really close. We’ll definitely be staying here sometime soon!
We had VIP seating for Fantasmic!, and we realized the show was set to start in 20 minutes, so we had to really hustle from Disneyland Hotel to get back to the park. Luckily we made it through bag check and the turnstiles quickly, and managed to get in the VIP section 5 minutes before the show. Interestingly, while the viewing area for Fantasmic! was packed, no one else was in the VIP section! Usually we’re in the very back because we arrive late, so seeing Fantasmic from the front at Disneyland was a new experience for us.
We’ve seen Fantasmic! at Disneyland before, and I’ve previously commented that it absolutely trounces the Walt Disney World version (seriously, they’re like night and day), but seeing it from a good spot made it all that much better. I can see why Annual Passholders still line up for Fantasmic! hours ahead of time even though the show is 20 years old. Disney got it right with Fantasmic–from the story to the technology to the beautiful music.
I prefer World of Color, but I do think the story in Fantasmic! is better. Still, I’m betting in 20 years, World of Color will still be pretty popular, too. The advantage it has is the ease of changing the show (as we’ve already seen) to integrate new movies and seasons. I’ll bet World of Color is still running in 20 years, but I’ll bet it barely will resemble the version we have today.
Next up was Space Mountain, since we had FastPasses from earlier in the day. Luckily, Disneyland doesn’t enforce the return windows! The more I ride Disneyland’s Space Mountain, the more it grows on me. I’ve previously said that I prefer Walt Disney World’s due to (admitted) nostalgia for it, but the more we visit Disneyland, the more that nostalgia wears away, I think.
There’s no doubt that Disneyland’s is a better experience as an attraction, and it is really growing on me. As of right now, I still prefer Walt Disney World’s Space Mountain, but who knows how I’ll feel in a few years. I guess that’s the nature of nostalgia–it’s somewhat fluid. Maybe our kids will grow up on Disneyland’s Space Mountain and I’ll someday feel the same type of nostalgia for it because of all those experiences as I do now for Walt Disney World’s…
From there, we did a couple more attractions before closing out the night in New Orleans Square and Frontierland. It was another beautiful night with a picturesque blue sky. When you get a nice blue sky like this in California, you embrace it and take as many photos as you can!
Another thing that has grown on me is Sleeping Beauty Castle. I think that’s largely due to sights like this. The hub, with all of its beautiful flowering trees and red brick pavement looks so great!
As the crowds began to clear, we headed down Main Street and took as many photos as we could before calling it a night. We were both still recovering from “One More Disney Day,” so we immediately went back to our hotel and went to bed!
For previous installments in this Disney trip report, visit its index.
PLUG: If you like Disney photos, I strongly encourage you to check out the eBook I wrote (and more importantly, photographed), Disneyland: Sunrise to Sunrise, by clicking here.
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Even though its 3+ years later, I cried a little bit when Sarah’s Matterhorn Macaroon hit the ground.
What a sad day for THE BEST dessert ever.
I’m going to go light a candle…
Random and probably useless trivia but it looks like the chocolate frosting is ganache. Basically ganache is chocolate and cream in different ratios. Depending on the ratio you use it can be soft and used to fill cupcakes, candies, etc or it can be firm and used to top cakes and such. It’s delicious.
I love the photos which show both Partners & Sharing the Magic. I know people have different views on what Walt and Mickey are talking about but when I went on the Keys to the Kingdom tour, we were told the version that Walt is pointing towards the statue of Roy & Minnie and telling Mickey that whilst he won’t be around much longer, Mickey will always have family there. And I think that story seems even stronger when you see the two statues in such close proximity.
Isn’t Burbank, CA beautiful? The mountains are spectacular to look at and I love the neighborhoods and the beautiful homes. I live in Los Angeles and while I love it, I’d move to Burbank in a heartbeat. The Studios are beautiful and amazing. I love my visits there.
We went to Disneyland for the first time this year (and stayed with a friend about an hour away to the north both before and after) and we were definitely worried about the traffic. We did avoid rush hour for the most part (it wasn’t entirely possible with everything we wanted to do), but traffic was not the absolute nightmare I’d feared–it seemed about the same as DC to me (I’ve never been to Chicago so I can’t compare)–and much less stressful than NYC. The Studios sound great!
I’m so jealous of your Disney Studios tour. Whenever I think about relocating back to California, I can’t muster the will to picture living anywhere farther south than Lake Tahoe, but I would totally move to Glendale if I could get a job archiving for the ARL or something. I can deal with the LA traffic for that. (By the way, I think Chicago’s traffic is obscene compared to LA’s. So are all the tolls!)