Guardians of the Tower of Terror

So five years after buying Marvel and making piles of money in the process, Disney still doesn't have a high profile Marvel presence in the Disneyland / Disney California Adventure theme parks.  Or sure, there have been a slew of meet and greets along with various movies prop displays, but nothing with a WOW factor.  So the rumor is now out there from various blogs and Disney gossip websites that rather than spending gobs of money on a Marvel attraction (especially while large sums of cash are being plowed down on Star Wars efforts), why not just take an existing attraction that doesn't quite fit the Disney profile anyway and re-theme it to a Marvel movie tie-in.

And so we get the highly probable rumor from various inside sources that Disney will take the existing Twilight Zone Tower of Terror attraction in Disney California Adventure and re-theme to Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (a second Guardians movie is due out next year).  Sounds like a pretty workable idea to me.  I wouldn't mind getting frightened out of my wits on a a scary ride with a fresh look.

Return of the Mad Hatter

Oh no!.  Just in time for Memorial Day Weekend, Johnny Depp returns as the Mad Hatter in Alice Through the Looking Glass.  And here come my nightmares.  And there go my hopes of giving DCA's Mad T Party the boot. It's not going anywhere.

The World of Color Dessert Party

Mrs. DisneylandTraveler is not huge fan of DCA's World of Color water show spectacular. Oh, the show is fine, glorious in fact. Mrs. DLT's issue is the endless standing. Standing to wait for the show to begin, standing throughout the 25 minute performance. After and hour and half of standing around, it's then time to leave and Mrs. DLT, after being on her feet in one spot for that long, is pretty cranky.

But the Disney people are solutions oriented and understand the issue with their guests having to stand for endless amounts of time for a nighttime show after running around their theme parks all day. The good folks at Disney announced a World of Color Dessert Party offering last week which promises a nice seat with the prime view of the show. And you get a dessert to boot. The cost for a seat and something like a cupcake? How about a nice $79 per person (but that includes tax and gratuity).

Mrs. DLT is sleeping in this morning. Can't wait to tell her that Disney is finally offering a seat for the World of Color show. She'll be thrilled. And when I tell her it's only $79, she's probably going to want to break something. I'll tell her the good news, probably at a safe distance of about 20 ft.

Frozen in May

Brrrrrrr.......Shiver........ The new Frozen musical opens at the Hyperion Theater May 27.  I've been Frozened to death over the last year or two and sure didn't want this.

Please remember fondly the great 12 year run of the wonderful Aladdin musical. Gone but certainly never forgotten.  We'll miss you Genie.

DCA Turns 15 Years Old

It's hard to believe Disney California Adventure turned 15 years old this month. A lot has changed because a lot had to change for the much maligned park that opened back then. I guess you could say most of the changes of have been for the better and it is a far better park now than when it first opened. These are few of the Disneyland Traveler's pictures of DCA in 2002 - views that have been radically altered if not completely eliminated.

The Tower of Terror - Anxiety Revisited

A couple of years back in a posting on another website, I wrote that I has officially retired from going on The Hollywood Tower of Terror. Anxiety had got the best of me. It wasn't the ride that got to me. From the time you strap in, the ride experience is what?....maybe 40 seconds long? It's easy to think that in less than a minute a relatively benign ride will have me walking towards the exit (which is a store of course with plenty of do-dads that tell you how you survived the Tower or Terror).

No it wasn't the ride, it was the waiting to get on the ride that eventually led to my retirement from the Tower of Terror. The little waiting room scene with Rod Serling on the TV added to the the rides immense theming and didn't bother me. The ghouls that made sure everyone got strapped in didn't bother me. What finally got to me was standing there waiting for the elevator doors to open. That was the moment that did me in.

I could feel my heart beat faster, the anxiety level rise. The waiting....however brief it was......got to me. The ride was only the finishing step to getting out of the place.

It's been 4 years now since I've been on the Tower of Terror and I'm fine with it having made the elevator plunge at least a dozen times in my lifetime. The only way I could see getting on the ride again would be to go with someone who wanted to spend the time waiting for the elevator doors to open talking about the weather or where we are going for dinner. Sometimes distractions from what is about to be are a good thing,

Around Disneyland - September 12, 13 - Pictures - Part 2

Aladdin 

Continuing on with my friend and his wife with the photos he passed on to me from his Disneyland trip a week ago.

Aladdin - Wonderful Show Still Going Strong:  Aladdin has been showing to packed houses in DCA's Hyperion Theater for about 11 years or so. There was a bit of down period when the show's best sequence - the Whole New World, flying carpet ride segment - had to be tamely altered following an accident with the carpet. But the flying carpet is back and the show is restored to its total glory. These really are some good pictures.

I know - Jafar is the bad guy - but he really is a good bad guy

We could all use a magic lamp, a genie, and 3 wishes

The Genie - Still the best part of the show and the movie

Cars Land at Night:  As regular readers know, I spent so much time in Cars Land during my week at the Disneyland Resort last spring that by the time I left, I was sick of the place - crowded and over hyped, lacking in any substance other than one really great, great ride. But even I have to admit, the place makes for beautiful pictures at night glowing in neon and accented by the gloriously lit mountains.

Sun going down - lights coming on at Cars Land

World of Color's Winter Dreams

Official Disney artwork for World of Color Winter Dreams

I guess the official announcement was made last week on one of the days my surgically repaired face was hurting so much that the pain medication made Disneyland the furthest thing from my mind. It had been a rumor for a few months but now it's a reality. World of Color will have a brand new holiday themed show featuring the blending of some new characters from Disney Animation's November film release - Frozen - and the classic characters from Disney and Pixar we all know and love. And the promise is the new show will be more narrator driven which will lead the audience into yes..... singing. 

This is welcomed news (I think). Certainly Disney California Adventure needs its holiday theming to be picked up a notch because it does lag behind Disneyland's efforts. There is also the unsubstantiated rumor that DCA is upgrading their holiday theming because Disneyland is about to put their special holiday features behind a separate admission event similar to Walt Disney World's Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.

Again, whether I make it back to Disneyland this year or not, what WOC's Winter Dreams means is the return of the herd and the show packing people in like when WOC first opened a few years ago. And it will make someone in my demographic age group almost certainly buy some sort of dining package to avoid at least a little bit of the intolerable lines and waiting (and waiting, and waiting) I would expect.

The show is set to debut November 15 - first day of the official Disneyland Resort Christmas season but I would expect a few days of perhaps soft openings and preview shows. 

Soarin' Over California - A Great Ride Grows Stale

Someone recently asked me if I had gone on Soarin' Over California on our most recent trip to Disneyland. Eh...no.... It was closed four of the five days we were there over occupational health and safety issues. Now once upon a time a Soarin' closure, especially an  unexpected one, would have met with a reaction somewhere between sadness and fury. But this time being shut out of Soarin' just caused me to move on. There was no crying, no whining, no fist shaking.....just move on to the next ride.

You see over the years, the must-do Soarin' Over California attraction in DCA has grown a bit stale. I wouldn't say it's boring, just the sense of "been there, done that" a few too many times. The excitement just isn't there as it once was. Kind of a shame really because the technology behind the ride is really amazing and the understated but dramatic queue line with a great music score may be my favorite line to stand in.



With Soarin' - it's all about the movie and there is only so many times you can see the same movie before it gets old, even if you are flying through it. You here it all the time on Disney forums and message boards that the film needs to be updated. Been hearing that for years. Well now the time has finally come, especially considering the huge improvement that was made to Star Tours and the ability to take you to multiple destinations on the ride.

Yes, the film shown in Soarin' should now be able to made digitally on computers without having the expense of sending a film crew all over the world to shoot it. The film could then be easily adapted with more computer work to the movements of the erctor set seating arrangement that sends you into the air. And multiple films could be made and adapted to the same seat movements giving the illusion of several ride experiences when there is really one with multiple destinations projected in front of you.

 

The complacency that has set in with Soarin' Over California is quite fixable but I suppose as long as there is a demand to get on the ride by park guests, the budget money needed to get the attraction back to its original greatness can be used on other projects. Hopefully changes for the attraction come sooner rather than later. It is far too great of a ride attraction to allow it fall by the wayside with other park and ride updates that are seemingly always taking place. 

 

 

Me and Karl Strauss Check Out The World of Color

Prepare to Assemble

They were dropping like flies. It only took 3 little words to send others in my traveling party to go scurrying out of the parks and into "we've got other things to do tonight". The 3 words are World of Color. Mrs. DisneylandTraveler - "I think I'm going back to the hotel to do some laundry." My sister and her husband - "I think we're going over to Tony Roma's for dinner, are you sure you don't want to join us?"

No...it was World of Color night and I'm going to see it. Let's explore.

Mrs. DLT and I watched the Pixar Play Parade, went over to Flo's for dinner, then parted company for the next several hours - she to her laundry and me to the World of Color. Showtime was probably still 2 hours away.

WOC - an insidethemagic.com photo. My pictures of WOC stink.

You've heard and read (and probably seen) what a great show World of Color is. It is. But I'm here to tell you about the other side of WOC, the side that sends some Disney fans fleeing into the night in the opposite direction.

The wait for WOC is an ordeal, an effort in patience and the eventual onset of mighty sore feet. Knowing what my like was going to be like for the next several hours, I paid a visit to an old DCA friend, the Karl Strauss beer truck found in the Pacific Wharf area. Most DCA regulars over 21 know exactly where it is.

So I sat down and thought about my day (fun) and pondered my night (my poor feet) over a couple of the San Diego based micro brewery fine beers - The Red Trolley Ale. Not as potent as the Tower 10 IPA but rich, smooth, and balanced for those that like their hops. And even after finishing, I still had time to kill before the ordeal was to begin.

The Karl Strauss Red Trolley Ale - I'll take two please.

I wandered around Paradise Pier and had a good time watching people have a good time. In general, Paradise Pier may be my favorite area of DCA. Disney wanted to capture that seaside amusement park look and feel, and while not perfect, they have improved that area of DCA. Paradise Pier has a feel of completeness about it. Probably easy to do when it basically goes around in a circle.

Bayside Brews - Paradise Pier

It's a long walk from the Pacific Wharf area to the far side of Paradise Pier (well, not really) but a man can work up a thirst on the walk around Paradise Pier. Disney thought of that and put up a beer hut next to the Boardwalk Pizza & Pasta and Paradise Garden Grill restaurants. Over here they serve different kinds of beer from the horrid Bud Light to the excellent Sierra Nevada Torpedo IPA. But this was a night for me and Karl Strauss and the Bayside Brews served up the Karl Strauss Pintail Ale a far more herbaceous brew than the Red Trolley Ale. After the Red Trolley Ale, the Pintail Ale tasted like brewed up freshly mowed grass clippings which is kind of funny because I had a Pintail Ale two days earlier with the 5 cheese ravioli from the Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta and enjoyed it thoroughly. There's a lesson here somewhere.

Before I made it to the World of Color Mosh pit, there was one more stop to make on the way. Yep, the Corn Dog Castle. The corn dogs from the Corn Dog Castle are so large (and greasy) that me and Mrs. DLT usually split one. Since Mrs. DLT deserted me on this night, I got the whole greasy corn dog to myself. Word of advice that I have passed on before - Disney offers either potato chips or sliced apples with their corn dogs. Pick the slice apples, it cuts through the grease that will begin to do a tap dance in your belly.

And so I arrive at my World of Color viewing area 3 beers (4 if you counts the Racer 5 I had at Flo's with dinner) and 1 corn dog down at about 8:15. Gee, I only have an hour to wait before the scheduled 9:15 show performance. And now you know why everyone else I was with disappeared when it came time for World of Color. As Tom Petty once sang, "the waiting is the hardest part". And for me, not just waiting - standing and waiting. Of course in my younger years, I could have done what many did around me and take a nice comfortable seat on the concrete ground. But I'm now many years on the other side of 40 (or 50) and the sitting on ground part of my trips to Disneyland is something I left behind years ago. No more. So I stood and waited for the World of Color. I actually go a spot by a post and chain link barrier which allowed a slight bit of leaning for some degree of relief. But its no fun, no fun at all waiting for the World of Color.

Another insidethemagic.com WOC photo. I've given up trying to take pictures of it.

So after standing and waiting for the show to begin an hour or more, the show starts. Its 25 minutes long of still more standing. I've written about the World of Color before, its a wonderful spectacle to see but could be better as the show tends more to meander rather than build. Some of the animated sequences work, some don't (Mufasa death scene from The Lion King). If you have never seen the World of Color - you just have to. If you have seen WOC a bunch of times like have, the biggest enjoyment from World of Color comes from the people around you seeing it for the first time. It's more Vegas than Disney. Fantasmic over in Disneyland is still the better nighttime show.

And so my exhausting World of Color night comes to an end. Thanks Karl, I couldn't have done it without you.

PS. For ten bucks ahead cover charge you can see World of Color from a seat at the Cove Bar. Yeah, it's a view from the side and maybe the back but that seat is a valuable commodity at my ages. I smell a new addition to my Disneyland Bucket List coming on.

Cars Land is Great...BUT...

I still remember a co-worker a few weeks ago telling me how amazed she was at Cars Land. "They really did create the town of Radiator Springs" she said. Yes they did as I gazed upon the new star of Disney California Adventure for the first time. Cars Land is amazing, exquisitely detailed in the daytime, jaw dropping gorgeous lit up in neon at night. And you can see why everyone says that the Cars Land signature attraction, Radiator Springs Racers, is Walt Disney Imagineering's greatest attraction since the Indiana Jones Adventure in the early 90's.

Radiator Springs Racers is a great ride, about 4 minutes of pure fun and amazing sights. And it's fun for all ages proving that great ride enjoyment isn't dependent on a roller coaster as is the route for most theme parks. The only disappointing part of Radiator Springs Racers is the fun seems to end much too quickly. It whips through the amazing show building at a pretty good clip, then really takes off when the ride gets out on the track. The ride gets an A+ in my book though if you were to push me up against a wall, I would say Toy Story Midway Mania is still my favorite ride in DCA.

We ate at Flo's V8 Cafe twice during our stay. They serve a fine meal at a good price considering it's Disney. And they serve the Racer 5 IPA to boot, a fine beer on a warm day. We also visited most of the "Cozy Cones" for their snack food concoctions and drinks and found them to be very good for the most part. If you want to eat in DCA, you could do worse that what is served up in the town of Radiator Springs in Cars Land.

Of the six days we spent at the Disneyland Resort, about 3 days were spent in Disneyland, about two and a half days in Disney California Adventure, and about a half a day in Downtown Disney. That seems about right. By the time we left DCA last Wednesday for the last time, I had seen enough of Cars Land. Too much of a good thing perhaps? I don't know, I just know that I had spent enough time there and knew I was done with the place even though we still had two more days left on our trip. Here is the problem. You can build themes for park areas around Paradise Pier or Adventureland, building area themes that are actually based on movies is a bit more trickier as is the example over in ToonTown or A Bug's Land - these are park areas based on movies that are now quite old and mostly forgotten. What will Cars Land be like in 10, 15, 20, years from now? Cars remains a hot property for Disney and Pixar despite the fact that Cars 2 was Pixar's worst movie by far, but will it always remain that way?

There are other problems with Cars Land. One, there is little shade there. With the place still pulling in large numbers of people, a hot day in there can be stifling. Two, the Luigi's Flying Tires attraction is silly and a bad idea (Mater's Junkyard Jamboree on the other hand is far more delightful). And finally my main reason for why Cars Land grew tiresome - the voice of Larry the Cable Guy as Tow Mater seems to be heard constantly almost everywhere. To me, that voice is like fingernails across a blackboard.

Now that I have experienced Cars Land, as an adult, I can only think of two reasons to spend any amount of time there - I like Flo's as a counter service dining restarurant and Radiator Springs Racers is great and a must do on every trip. The rest of it - well I can mostly leave it.

Aladdin's Carpet Soars Again

Easily (and I mean easily) the highlight of Disney California Adventure's stage spectacle Aladdin at the Hyperion Theater was the sequence that saw Aladdin and Jasmine fly through the air on a magic carpet ride while performing A Whole New World. Well that sequence has been grounded for about a year and half after a technical mishap had the carpet with its strapped-in performers dangling upside-down waiting for rescue. Since that time (Sept. 2011), the flying carpet has been removed from the show and the song performed from the stage rather than soaring from the rafters.

Without the flying carpet, many fans of the show, myself included, have said that well...maybe...it might be time for another show. After all, Aladdin is about 10 years old and is a bit long in the tooth (but still plays before packed crowds). Well, good news. The flying carpet / A Whole New World sequence has returned to performances as of last weekend. And now fans of the show who have seen it multiple times, can return to saying that Aladdin is clearly one of the best things Disney California Adventure has to offer.

Welcome back carpet....

The Things I Will Avoid On My Next Trip To Disneyland

Sorry to miss Thunder Mountain Railroad on my next trip
Closed for refurbishment till Halloween

I can't say officially that the Disneyland light is on and our next trip is on the calendar but we're getting close to that point. A few text messages went back and forth last week with my sister and maybe, just maybe, a trip to Disneyland at the end of April or the beginning of May is a pretty good possibility all things considered.

It's easy to make plans or get excited about all the things you plan to do. Just as easily for me is tell you all the things I plan to avoid with a pretty good degree of moral certainty. Nothing is for sure but below are places, rides, attractions I have a pretty good idea I will be staying away from.

No horse drawn street car rides for the Disneyland Traveler

Let's start right out on Main Street where many people avoid Lincoln or the Main St. Cinema like the plague. Not me. I go to those places out of respect and tradition more than anything else. What I won't do is allow one of those beautiful horses drag my sorry butt up Main St. in a street car. Sure that is what the horse is bred to do and Disneyland horses are probably some of the best cared for animals on the planet but nope, I'm not letting one of those beautiful creatures haul me around. Can't do it.

I have seen the last of Captain EO.

The Disneyland Traveler is just a bit on the old side for the Astro-Orbitor

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage? Just don't care for the claustrophobic cartoon ride.

Love ASIMO - Can't stand the rest of Innoventions

A wave from Mrs. DisnelandTraveler and the Boy from years ago
Sorry, I know how to drive a car. So does the Boy now.

Tomorrowland seems to have my most sure fire losers. You can start with Innoventions. I have no use for what is nothing more than a commercial sales pitch and a total waste of time outside of ASIMO, the Honda robot. They can't tear this place down fast enough for me. Autopia is a nice ride for its kind and extremely popular but since I spend many hours a week driving around in a car, driving one in Disneyland doesn't thrill me much. I love the subs but don't care for the Finding Nemo cartoon overlay minimizing the once proud Disneyland vessels. The Astro-Orbitor is fine for what it is but just not for me. Just a bit too old for it. And without any hesitation whatsoever - it would be fine with me if Captain EO shut down permanently at the close of business today. It was a silly 80's remnant when it closed in the 90's. It's even more silly now - even for many Michael Jackson fans. I forgot to show a picture of Red Rockets Pizza Port. I've never eaten there. Have not intention to - ever. Also I never have or will ever stick a coin or token in a Starcade game. Why?

Storybookland Canal Boats - Sweet, historic, boring as all get out

Pinocchio's Daring Journey isn't really daring.

King Arhur's Carousel - A merry-go-round by most accounts

Over in Fantasyland I've said in the past that Mrs. DisneylandTraveler usually go through all the dark rides every few years. Will this be the year? Probably won't know till we get there. We go through rides when we know we can do them all quickly in a short amount of time although waits usually are always present for Peter Pan's Flight and Alice in Wonderland. At the bottom of the dark ride list is Pinocchio. Other than the music, it just doesn't offer much to most people. I can easily, easily pass on it even if I went on other Fantasyland dark rides. Speaking of boring, here comes the Storybookland Canal boats. It's has its charm, is an original Disneyland ride created by Walt himself, but defines what a boring ride is. Someone said to go on it at night. I did. Same ride, just dark outside. (I prefer the Casey Jr. Circus Train which covers the same territory - a little more fun, a little less boring). King Arthur's Carousel? My merry-go-round days are over.

Thunder Mountain Railroad - Love the ride - closed most of 2013 for refurbishment.

I've never been to the Davy Crockett Shooting Exposition as an adult

Riverbelle Terrace for lunch - the most overpriced food in the park

Out in Frontierland, Thunder Mountain Railroad is closed for a complete refurbishment. That's too bad. I'm not avoiding the great ride on this next trip. It's sadly avoiding me. I keep wanting to walk over to the Shooting Gallery and give it a try but I never do. Probably because I am a terrible shot. I'm mentioning the Riverbelle Terrace as a place to eat lunch or dinner. At close to $15 a pop for a carved meat sandwich, this is probably the most overpriced food in Disneyland for what you get. Breakfast is a little easier on the wallet and has possibilities but for some unknown reason, it has just kind of dropped off our list. The Riverbelle Terrace is where we camp out for Fantamic. Food is brought over from other nearby choices.

Gadget Go Coaster - It's a kids ride.

I could say that I would avoid ToonTown completely because that possibility certainly does exist. But I have to make allowances for the great Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin and the fact I need some new pictures of the place. I'll make a special note about Gadget Go Coaster. Even if it is a ride primarily aimed at giving kids their first coaster ride, I will never understand that 30 minute wait for a 30 second ride. Just....wow!

Tarzan's Treehouse. Kind of gets in the way

The Adventureland, New Orleans Square, Critter Country corridor is my favorite area of the park. It's a favorite for many which is why the foot traffic sometimes approaches near gridlock. And right there getting in everyone's way is Tarzan's Treehouse. Once again, I keep saying that I am going up in there, if nothing else, to take pictures but I just never do. Too many better things available in that neighborhood.

That's it for Disneyland. Let's take a walk over to Disney California Adventure park and see what I can avoid there.

The loathsome Mad T Party

Aladdin - just maybe past it's prime

I've never seen it but I already no I want no part of Mad T Party. I'm not sure why Disney keeps pursuing the nighttime street party gatherings (well money is at the bottom of everything) but I have absolutely zero interest. If there is any reason to go there at all, it would be to confirm just how much I had this abomination. If I wanted to spend money on an overpriced "cocktail" I'd go to the Cove Bar and at least be an adult. The flip side of the nighttime Mad T Party is the neighboring Aladdin show at the Hyperion Theater. Aladdin was a great show. Seen it many times and enjoyed it every single time. I said 'was' a great show. The Whole New World flying carpet sequence was my favorite moment of the show. It has been removed as a safety issue for the performers. Without the flying carpet, it just doesn't seem like Aladdin anymore and it might be time to move on to something else.

What's next - nothing really

I don't have a problem with Blue Sky Cellars where Disney gets to show off it's new upcoming creations for the 2 parks. Stopped in there several times and learn a lot. It's just that if nothing changes over the next month or two, they really don't have anything to show in there at this time, at least nothing I'm interested in. That's too bad.

A grown man, not small, suspending on a swing from a couple of chains?
I don't think so.

Guess what the maintenance guy that is in the picture is cleaning up from the bottom of
Mickey's Fun Wheel?

Jumping Jelly Fish - not exactly an adult replacement for the Maliboomer

Now That Ariel's Grotto is just a meet and greet dining experience, I'll skip it

Paradise Pier gives us the child rides of King Triton's Carousel and Jumping Jelly Fish. Too old so I'll pass. I'll also give a big pass on Silly Symphony Swings. Just the thought me swinging around the air on a swing suspended by a couple of chains gives me the heebie-jeebies. No way. Also, the same goes for the swinging gondolas on Mickey's Fun Wheel. Even though I'm not a person who handles heights very well, I've got used to the non-swinging gondolas. Not going near the ones that swing though. Ariel's Grotto used to offer a World of Color dinner dining package. They stopped doing that and meed the dining facility strictly a princess meet and greet eatery and an expensive one at that. The last time Mrs. DisneylandTraveler and I ate there, we had a very nice dinner and we walked over with WOC passes and had a great viewing spot. Nice. But up until that last meal, I would have to say that Ariels's Grotto gave us some of the worst dining experience Mrs. DLT and I have had in either park. Walking away from this dining establishment is not hard at all. It could be so much better on many levels.

I don't even know what's in here.

A Bug's Land - A nice place to visit but I wouldn't want ride there

I'll close with A Bug's Land and the 4 little rides that live there. They are for small kids and their parents. Unlike many people, I'm perfectly fine with that. I find A Bug's Land charming.

Well that's about it. I'm sure there are many places I will miss on my next trip. Time is precious when making a trip to Disneyland and even with the best plans, there just isn't time enough for everything it seems. But the best plans begin with eliminating the non-essential.