Disneyland Park Update

Update for January 9-16, 2006

Go directly to: News & Views | Current Refurbishment/Attraction Closures | Park Events | Discounts/Promotions | Park Schedule/Blockout Dates

News and Views

Still room for Japan

While enough people have signed on to make sure that the MousePlanet trip to Japan will become a reality, there is still space and time for additional people to sign up. Full details on the itinerary can be found on this page. The highlights are an eight-day trip (March 7-14) to Tokyo with stays at the Hotel MiraCosta at Tokyo DisneySeas and the Disney Ambassador Hotel and sightseeing days in Tokyo and Mount Fiji.

If you have any questions at all, contact Two Bears Travel at travel@twobearstravel.com or 818-767-1762 (866-902-3277 if calling from outside of California). If you would have an interest in attending an informational meeting in Southern California about this tour, let them know and something can be set up.

Again, welcome to the people who have already signed up, and if you’re still just thinking about it we hope we’ll see you in Japan.

Disneyland price increases

Disneyland managed to raise prices for non-annual pass tickets last week without much in the way of anticipatory buzz (in fact, we hear that some in management first learned of it by walking by the ticket booths and seeing the new prices). The details were a late addition to last week’s update, so in case you missed them, here it is again.

Single and multiple day ticket prices have increased as of today (January 3). Here are the new prices with the adult price listed first and the child prices (3 years to 9 years old) listed second. In parentheses is the amount of increase.

Single park, single day: $59/$49 (+$3/+$3)

Single day, parkhopper: $79/$69 (+$3/+$3)

Two day parkhopper: $116/$86 (+$11/+$1)

Three day parkhopper: $169/$139 (+$10/+$10)

Four day parkhopper: $199/$169 (+$10/+$10)

Five day parkhopper: $219/$189 (+$10/+$10)

Annual pass prices are not affected at this time.

New ticket prices went into effect last Tuesday. Photo by David Michael.

Christmas tree fire correction

We want to be sure to correct a bit of misinformation in last week’s park update. The Disneyland Fire Department was the first responder to the December 28 fire at the Grand Californian Hotel and put out the the flames. Our apologies for incorrectly stating that the Anaheim Fire Department was the first response.

New AP discount programs

Two new “spotlight” programs for Annual Passholders have been announced for January and February this year. The January Spotlight is that annual passholders can get reserved seating for the Animation Academy show at DCA’s Animation Building. This isn’t a huge benefit since waits don’t tend to be very long anyway, but it’s there if you want it.

The offer is available Monday through Thursday in the month of January (excluding January 16). To get the reserved tickets present your AP to the guest relations window just inside of DCA. Up to four tickets can be reserved per annual pass and no more than 10 reserved tickets are available per show.

Some will find the February Spotlight more interesting in that it involves

free food. Available every day in February, the purchase of an adult entree

and soft drink at Rancho del Zocalo in Disneyland will get you a free crispitos

dessert. Crispitos are a bag of cinnamon-sugar coated tortilla strips. The

purpose of this spotlight is to bring attention to the new “El Fuego Grill”

entree selections at this restaurant but does not require the purchase of

one of those entrees. Up to two free crispito desserts can be had per transaction

(requiring the purchase of two adult entrees and two soft drinks). Your annual

pass must be presented at the time of purchase.

For you pin collectors, there are two Annual Pass exclusive pins being released in January. The E-Ticket Enchanted Tiki Room pin will be released on January 15 at Fantasyland’s Bonanza Outfitters. The edition size is 1,500 and it will be sold for $12.95. Limit two pins per annual pass. Throughout the year, each month will see the release of another “E-Ticket” limited edition Annual Pass exclusive pin.

Two annual passholder exclusive pins are being released in January. Images © Disney.

In the dining pin series, January will see the release of a pin celebrating

the Village Haus restaurant, which opened in 1983 with the name Village Inn.

This pin will also release on Sunday, January 15. To pin is free with a single

purchase of at least $30 (before tax, discount, and excluding alcohol) at

one of the participating restaurants. The participating restaurants, standard

for these releases are: Plaza Inn, Carnation Café, Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante,

and Blue Bayou Restaurant at Disneyland; Ariel’s Grotto, Pacific Wharf Café,

Taste Pilots’ Grill, Vineyard Room, and Wine Country Trattoria at the Golden

Vine Winery at Disney’s California Adventure; PCH Grill and Yamabuki at the

Paradise Pier Hotel; Goofy’s Kitchen, Hook’s Pointe, and Granville’s Steakhouse

at the Disneyland Hotel; and Storyteller’s Café at Disney’s Grand Californian

Hotel. Offer available while supplies last.

DCA rental location on the move

Disney’s California Adventure has followed Disneyland’s lead and closed its

regular in-park stroller and wheelchair rental location. Now both parks will

offer strollers, wheelchairs, and ECV rentals at the esplanade rental area

next to the kennel. You can move from Disneyland to DCA with the same rented

equipment, though you will not be allowed to go outside of the security checkpoints

to Downtown Disney, the hotels, or the tram loading areas. There are signs

warning of this change in the esplanade.

If you need to rent a stroller or wheelchair once you get inside DCA, you

will be able to rent one at Greetings from California. You will pay for your

rental at the designated cash register, and a cast member will bring your

stroller or wheelchair from the back room. The cast members at this location

were not happy about this test – they feel that they were not given enough

additional staff to shuttle the strollers and wheelchairs back and forth –

nor are they thrilled about the amount of room the rentals are taking up in

what was designed to be a stockroom.

Some cast members speculate that this entire test is to determine whether

a shared rental venue constructed in the esplanade would be feasible. Such

a move would allow them to turn the current rental locations at both parks

into some other sort of facility, perhaps a dedicated photo center near each

park’s exit (which Kodak has been pushing for).

This and that…

…”Fairytale Faces” is a new face painting service available inside the park,

next to Matterhorn Bobsleds, near the old Fantasia Gardens motorboat dock.

…Goofy’s Bounce House in Toowntown is now closed and behind construction walls. Exact details of the plans for the area are not known but apparently the intent is to create a toddler friendly outdoor playground area along the line of Pooh’s Playful Spot at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.

…In a shocking turn (note: sarcasm) park guests are, at least momentarily, left one short in their quest to see all 50 of the 50th Anniversary logos throughout the park. The logo atop the official Disneyland Christmas tree replaced the logo that was on the stagecoach outside of Big Thunder Ranch. Currently neither the ranch or the stagecoach are in place. Of course, this isn’t a big deal, but we’re just curious if the stagecoach will be returning or if it will wait until the return of Haunted Mansion in March for another logo to reappear.

…Just a reminder as always that things are subject to change at Disneyland. Bad weather last week lead to both parks closing earlier than had originally been scheduled. Frequently through the last couple months the parks have ended up staying open later than expected. For some…let’s say heartfelt…debate on the issue of closing early see this thread on our message board.

…If collecting is your thing, the NFFC Strictly Disneyana Show & Sale

will be held this Sunday, January 15, at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Garden

Grove, California.

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Don’t keep it to yourself! Send us your news tips, rumors, and comments. E–mail us here.

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Current Refurbishments and Attraction Closures

Disneyland

• Snow White, An Enchanted Musical closed. On hiatus during off season; expected to return for final season in summer 2006.

• it’s a small world closed January 4 – 18, 2006, to remove holiday overlay.

• Haunted Mansion closes January 18 – March 9 for removal of the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay and more extensive refurbishments.

• Pirates of the Caribbean closed March 6 – June 16, 2006 for major refurbishment and show updates.

• Blue Bayou Restaurant closed March 6 – June 16, 2006 for the duration of the Pirates of the Caribbean closure.

• Disneyland Monorail goes into shuttle mode (one way trips only) January 2006. Complete closure for station redesign will not happen until later in 2006.

• Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is currently under construction and will open sometime in 2007.

Disney’s California Adventure

• Department of Untapped Hilarity (D.U.H.) on hiatus. Might return for the 2006 summer season.

• Disney’s Electrical Parade on hiatus for the off season, except for a two-week run starting December 16.
• Monsters, Inc.: Mike and Sully to the Rescue is currently in soft opening and will officially open January 22.

• Redwood Creek Challenge Trail closed January 3 – February 28, 2006, for major refurbishment.

Note: Refurbishment schedules are estimates only. All information is subject to change without notice. To get the most recent updates, call Disneyland at (714) 781–7290.

Events

If you know of any events, official or unofficial, that should be listed here, let us know.

January

• Monsters, Inc.: Mike and Sully to the Rescue.: Dedication and grand opening. No word yet on what ceremony may be happening, but it will happen on January 22 and/or 23.

July

• Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest premiere: Details unknown but the world premiere is again expected to be held in Disneyland’s New Orleans Square. The movie opens July 7 and the premiere will be up to two weeks prior to that.

September

• Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend. September 15-17. For more information and registration see the official Web site (link, warning: horribly annoying embedded music)

Park Schedule/Blockout Dates

DL: Disneyland
DCA: Disney’s California Adventure
Annual Pass blockout dates:

• SL – Southern California Select Annual Pass

• SC – Southern California Annual Pass

• DX – Deluxe Annual Pass

Visit our Annual Passholders Blockout Dates 2005 page to see more dates. You can see future calendar schedules at Disneyland.

Entertainment schedule: Go directly to the Disneyland Resort schedule for this week at Disneyland.com here.