Disneyland Park Update

News and Views

Nemo previews available to Annual Passholders only by lottery.

Got your lucky fin? Disneyland is giving up to 2,275 Disneyland Annual Passholders the opportunity to win a preview ride on the new Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage on June 6th and 7th. If selected, each AP can bring up to 5 Passholder guests. The previews are scheduled in one-hour windows, and passholders can register for one or more windows to increase their chances of winning. The times are:

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

9 a.m. ? 10 a.m.
10 a.m. ? 11 a.m.
11 a.m. ? 12 p.m.
12 p.m. ? 1 p.m.
1 p.m. ? 2 p.m.
2 p.m. ? 3 p.m.
3 p.m. ? 4 p.m.
4 p.m. ? 5 p.m.
5 p.m. ? 6 p.m.
6 p.m. ? 7 p.m.
7 p.m. ? 8 p.m.
8 p.m. ? 9 p.m.
9 p.m. ? 10 p.m.
10 p.m. ? 11 p.m.

Thursday, June 7, 2007

8 a.m. ? 9 a.m.
9 a.m. ? 10 a.m.
10 a.m. ? 11 a.m.
11 a.m. ? 12 p.m.
12 p.m. ? 1 p.m.
1 p.m. ? 2 p.m.
2 p.m. ? 3 p.m.
3 p.m. ? 4 p.m.
4 p.m. ? 5 p.m.
5 p.m. ? 6 p.m.
6 p.m. ? 7 p.m.
7 p.m. ? 8 p.m.

Note: Disneyland closes early on June 7 for Grad Night.

To register, visit the Annual Passholder page on the Disneyland

Web site. Winners are notified by e-mail on or about June 1 and have 48

hours to respond. June 7 is a blockout date for So Cal Select and So Cal passports,

but Disney will allow winners with those passports entry to Disneyland for June

7 if selected.

In a few short weeks this construction wall will be replaced with lines of visitors waiting to find Nemo. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Some have noticed that if each winning passholder brings the maxiumum number (5) of guests with them, the resulting total of 13,650 passengers far exceeds the capacity of the attraction during the hours the preview will be running. Since you must request a specific number of tickets when you register for the drawing?you can’t add people after you are notified you have won?we assume Disney will take steps to make sure the winning passholders and registered guests for each time slot do not exceed the hourly capacity of the attraction.

However, this likely means that non-passholders who were hoping for a sneak peek of the ride may need to just keep swimming. Between AP previews on June 6 and 7 and media previews June 8 to 10, the best chance at catching the ride is to be there bright and early on June 11 when the ride officially opens to the public.

According to a park manager, the queue for Nemo is planned to stretch from

the attraction entrance, around the lagoon and in front of Fantasia Gardens.

The extended queue will snake down towards “it’s a small world,” including switchbacks

on the terraced area on the east side of the corridor, and stretch possibly

as far as ToonTown if necessary (with a managed break to allow the parade to

pass).

Arrgh?Pirates premiere tickets sell out in 14 days

The Walt Disney Studios announced last week that tickets to the world premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World’s End sold out in just 14 days. According to the Disney press release, ticket buyers from countries such as Australia, Japan, Germany, Belgium, Canada and Mexico, and 35 U.S. states including Hawaii raced to log on to PiratesPremiere.com and purchased tickets to the event at $1,500 apiece. Ticket buyers making the trip to Anaheim next month for the event include a family from Chicago, where the father is having his kids volunteer at a children’s hospital so they can fully appreciate their tickets. A doctor from Canada is sending her mother as a thank you for working multiple jobs to put her through medical school. A soldier currently serving in Iraq is sending his parents from Oregon to let them know he loves and misses them.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation will benefit from the $3 million raised from the ticket sales, which includes a $1 million direct contribution by Disney.

Fans have been waiting to learn which of the film’s stars and other celebrities would be making the trip down the red carpet, and Disney published the list earlier this week.

From the film: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, Chow Yun Fat, Naomie

Harris, Stellan Skarsgard, Bill Nighy, Keith Richards, Kevin McNally, Jonathan

Pryce, David Schofield, Lee Arenberg, Martin Klebba, David Bailie, Vanessa Branch,

Jack Davenport, Greg Ellis, Reggie Lee, Peter Donald Badalamenti II, producer

Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski. (Note, Kiera Knightly is not

expected to attend)

Other guests include: Laila Ali, Jon Voight, Rhianna, Adrieene Bailon, Sabrina Bryan, Cheryl Burke, Ricardo Chavira, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Bill Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Janice Dickinson, Joey Fatone, Leeza Gibbons, Carrie Ann Inaba, Kyle Massey, Alyson & AJ Michalka, Apolo Anton Ono, Emma Roberts, Brena Song, Dylan & Cole Sprouse, Kiely Williams, Dave Winfield, Amanda Bynes, Tommy Lee, Pat Riley, Tony Scott.

We’ve learned that Disneyland is going to flip the red carpet setup this year, with guests on the west side of Main Street and media on the east side. This will provide guests with far easier access to the City Hall and Carnation Cafe restrooms, as well as the Blue Ribbon Bakery, Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor and Coke Corner. An enhanced outdoor vending presence is planned for Main Street as well, to satisfy the food and beverage needs of those who are expected to spend the day saving prime viewing spots along Main Street.

Film-theme menus return to Disneyland

Disneyland’s Blue Bayou and French Market will once again feature entrees themed to the most recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie, but you’ll want to act fast if you want to take home one of the souvenir menus from the Blue Bayou. Souvenir menus will be offered for two weeks only?one week before and one week after the film is released?but are available only while supplies last. The menu items themselves should be available through the summer.

Café Orleans is not participating in the Pirates promotion this summer because the place will instead be overrun by rats. A special menu themed after the Pixar release Ratatouille will be offered at Café Orleans starting in mid-June. Ratatouille fans will be enchanted by the souvenir children’s menu, which is supposed to resemble a chef’s toque with the film’s star Remy perched on top. Children’s dishes will come with a side of Remy’s newest culinary create, fruitatouille.

This lucky family rides to Disneyland in a horse-drawn carriage instead of the Disneyland tram. The carriage ride is one of the little “dreams” that individual resort departments have created as part of the Year of a Million Dreams. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Food and Wine Weekends continue

The 2007 Food and Wine Weekends are halfway over, and event organizers pronounce themselves satisfied by the response. Though sales of the marketplace foods looked slow to our eyes (very short lines even during peak lunchtime both weekends), attendance at the complimentary cooking demonstrations and tasting opportunities exceeded the capacity of even the expanded venues (four locations this year, instead of two in the innagural year), and the majority of the premium cooking classes and chef’s dinners sold out well before the event.

The complimentary tasting events and culinary demonstrations have been filled to capacity during the 2007 Food & Wine Weekends. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The schedule for the remaining weekends can be found on the event

Web site. If you are interested in attending one of the complimentary sessions,

you should try to arrive at the venue at least 30 minutes before the scheduled

start time to get your admission ticket.

Still time for Taste

Tickets are still available for Taste, an Annual Passholder-exclusive event at Disney’s California Adventure on Saturday, May 12th. Stage 17 in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot (the former home of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire: Play It!) is the venue for what one event coordinator called a “grazing” event. 14 Disneyland Resort chefs and restaurants, including Club 33 chef Marcel St. Pierre, are offering dishes from their repertoire. Celebrity chef Jamie Gwen will also participate in the event, offering “meatball sliders on mini-brioche with spicy tomato sauce.” Desserts will be designed by Jean-Marc Viallet, the talented Disneyland pastry chef responsible for the annual Haunted Mansion Holiday gingerbread sculpture.

Guests 21 and older can enjoy samples from nine wineries and the Karl Strauss

Brewery. Soft drinks and other non-alcoholic beverages will also be available.

The Barrage Band (billed simply as Barrage when they perform at Disneyland)

will provide entertainment for the evening.

Visitors line up for the tequila tasting seminar on Cinco de Mayo. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

A complete menu in PDF form is available from the Disneyland Web site. Registration is available only online through the Disneyland Annual Passholder Web site. Tickets are $100 per person (includes tax and gratuity), and no discounts apply. Disney recommends this event for guests 21 and over. The event runs from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Note: May 12 is a blockout date for all Disneyland Annual Passports except Premium Passports. DCA admission is required to attend the event, so passholders with a So Cal Select, So Cal or Deluxe passport will need to purchase a blockout day ticket for $30.00 to attend the event. Blockout day tickets are available for purchase only at the Main Entrance tickets booths, and must be purchased the day of the event.

Higher prices, and time for an update

MousePlanet contributor David Michael noticed that prices for food and drinks were raised across the Disneyland Resort last week. According to David, “Popcorn went up 50 cents to $3.50 for a small container, the Popcorn buckets also went up 50 cents to $5.50.” Other price increases were noted, especially at the bars of the resort.

A resort-wide price increase means it’s time to update the menu information on the MousePlanet Web site, and we’re looking for a few readers to help out. If you are available on Sunday, May 20 and would like to participate in a major update of the menu information, please e-mail Tony Phoenix at this link. The project should take just a few hours, and lunch will be provided at the Disneyland Resort.

If you are not available on this date but would be interested in participating in future projects, please contact Tony as well.

MouseAdventure update

A full recap of the Spring 2007 MouseAdventure is available now on the MousePlanet

home page, though team photos have been delayed due to circumstances beyond

our control. Note: The Fall 2007 MouseAdventure is not taking place on

November 4 as previously tentatively announced. We are working with Disney to

find another date, so expect an announcement in July or August.

This-and-That

…An upcoming episode of The Oprah Winfrey show is expected to include a segment

filmed this past Saturday at Disneyland. In the segment, Oprah recognizes a

Southern California resident who operates a hotline and adoption-placement service

for pregnant women in crisis. The segment will be used this Wednesday in an

episode titled the “Cheers To You Extravaganza!” A MousePlanet reader

who was on hand for the presentation in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle wrote,

“Actor John Stamos picked the woman (Debbe) up in a limo this morning and brought

her to Disneyland. They said the windows were blacked out so she had no idea

what was going on. They managed to drive the limo all the way up Main Street

and open it in front of the castle, where she was greeted by Oprah and hundreds

of onlookers.”

Disneyland is once again offering plus sized clothing, including two collections designed exclusively in larger sizes. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

…The Disneyland Resort has once again begun to offer an expanded size range in many logo shirts, offering sizes up to XXXL in some styles. In addition, Disney Clothiers on Main Street has two new collections of plus-size T-shirts available only in 1X, 2X and 3X.

… David Michael also reports that the Albertsons Grocery Stores in Southern California (and maybe elsewhere) are offering 2 free tickets to Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World’s End if you buy $25 (or multiple thereof) of qualifying Coca-Cola, Kelloggs and Unilever products between May 2 and 30.

…La Brea Bakery in Downtown Disney has been closed for renovations. The quick-serve counter reopened last week with a limited menu, and the sit-down restaurant eopens May 10.

…Disneyland Resort annual passholders can attend an opening weekend screening of the new Pixar Animation Studios feature Ratatouille at the El Capitan Theater on Saturday, June 30. Tickets are $18 (plus a $2 service charge) each, and include your theater admission, popcorn in a souvenir bucket, regular-sized drink, a “movie keepsake” and the pre-film stage show. Order tickets by phone at 1-800-DISNEY6.

This grassy field outside Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is dotted with survey markers. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

…A reader noticed a few weeks ago that survey markers dot the perimeter of the grassy field outside Disney’s Grand Californian hotel sometimes used for outdoor wedding receptions and such. Cast members tell us that the neighboring parking lot has similar stakes. Many speculate that a new wing of the Grand Californian, rumored to be built on this site, will become the first Disney’s Vacation Club property in California.

…Disney’s Jr, Chef program celebrated its 50,000th guest during the Food

& Wine Weekends this past Sunday at Disney’s California Adventure. The young

chef was presented with FastPass tickets and a whole bunch of chocolate chip

cookies.

Little girls love to sparkle and twirl, and this $100 dress provides the perfect, if pricey, costume. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

…A Halloween preview ? cast members tell us that this $100 Minnie Mouse dress, complete with fiber optic effects in the skirt, has been flying off the store shelves.

Tip of the Week: Need cash? Skip the ATM.

Most of us are used to hitting the ATM when we need to get cash from our checking

or savings accounts, but fees and surcharges can add up when you are using an

ATM that is not in your network. If you find yourself short of cash when you

are at the Disneyland Resort, you can use your credit card to buy Disney Dollars

or a Disney Gift Card at many store locations. Better still, these transactions

are viewed as merchandise purchases by most credit card companies, so you won’t

be hit with cash advance fees.

There are a few stipulations. Disney Gift Cards can not be redeemed for cash, so you’ll need to spend the entire amount, but they are good at most Disney-owned stores, restaurants and hotels at the Disneyland Resort. You can only purchase $50 of Disney Dollars each day with a credit card, but small amounts of Disney Dollars can be redeemed for cash at the end of your visit. And of course neither can be replaced if lost or stolen, so treat them just like cash.

Don’t keep it to yourself! Send us your news tips, rumors,

and comments. E-mail us

here.

Current Refurbishments and Attraction Closures

Disneyland

Splash Mountain closed January

22 – May 18 for major refurbishment. No major changes are expected but lift

mechanics are being replaced.

Professor Barnaby Owl’s Photographic Art Studio closed January 23

– May 18 due to closure of Splash Mountain (store is primarily for sale of

Splash Mountain ride photos).

Tarzan’s Treehouse closed until

May 18.

Mark Twain Riverboat closed through

May 25.

Tom Sawyer Island dark February

5 – May 24 due to add new pirate themed elements to the island.

Fantasmic! dark February 12 – June

14 due to work on Tom Sawyer Island.

Disneyland Railroad closed May

7 – June 8, likely to allow heavy equipment access to Finding Nemo Submarine

Voyage.

Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride closed May

14 – May 18 and then again June 4 – June 7.

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is currently under construction and

is scheduled to open to the public on June 11, 2007.

Disney’s California Adventure

Playhouse Disney – Live on Stage! closed May 29 – June 7.
Midway Games close June 20 for an unknown duration. The future of the games has been somewhat questionable due to the Toy Story Mania project.
Toy Story Mania under construction. Opens 2008.

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.

May

Taste Saturday, May 12 at Disney’s California Adventure. An Annual

Passholder-exclusive Food & Wine Weekends event. Tickets available at

the event

Web site.

2nd Annual Food and Wine Weekends continues through May 20. Special

dining and food events on each Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (link)

Pirate Disney Dollars, May 15. The third series of Pirates
of the Caribbean Disney Dollars will be released on May 15, 2007 at the Disneyland

Resort. More information about current and future Disney Dollar releases is

available at this

link.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End premiere, May 19. Disneyland

is scheduled to close at 5:00 p.m.

Grad Night events: Thursday, May 17; Thursday, May 24;

Thursday, May 31

June

Grad Night events: Thursday, June 7; Wednesday, June 13;

Thursday, June 14 and Thursday, June 21

Finding Nemo Annual Passholder previews June 6 & 7. Tickets available

by “opportunity drawing” only. To register, visit the Annual Passholder

page on the Disneyland

Web site.

Camp Pin-E-Ha-Ha. June 16-17. A pin collecting event. Registration

opens March 21, 2007 (link).

July

“Disneyland in Miniature” Product Release & Signing. Sunday, July 8 at Disneyland. The Disneyland marquee accessory will be available for purchase as part of a larger Disney Gallery anniversary event.
“Disneyland in Miniature” Product Release & Signing. Saturday, July 28 at Disneyland. New releases include the Plaza Pavilion / Enchanted Tiki Room / Aladdin’s Oasis sculpture and additional Main Entrance accessories. (This date is tentative and subject to change)

September

Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend. September 2 and 3. Family Fun Run 5K on Sunday, September 2, Half Marathon on Monday, September 3 (link).

October

Gay Days at Disneyland (unofficial event) Friday, October 5 through Sunday, October 7. Event attendance will be higher at Disneyland on Saturday, DCA on Sunday (link).

Summer 2008

Disney Magic returns to Pacific Ocean itineraries. May 25-August

17, 2008.

Current Discounts & Promotions

Several current promotions offer discounted admission to the Disneyland Resort. For convenience sake, we have grouped the discount offers based on the number of days the tickets are valid. Check out the category that best matches the amount of time you plan to spend at the resort, and pick the offer which works best for you. And keep those tips coming ? let us know if you find a better / different offer, so we can share it with other readers!

This first section is a list of discounts on ticket only purchases. This first section is a list of discounts on ticket only purchases. Though it has become more common in recent years, Disneyland tickets are rarely offered at deep discounts unless you are a resident of Southern California or Northern Mexico. For residents outside that area, the best discounts available tend to be simple advance purchase discounts.

This information is pulled from many sources but much thanks must go to MousePlanet sponsor MouseSavers.com for providing the bulk of the information. If you know of any additional discounts, offers, promotions, or contests that should be listed in this section, drop us a line (link).

One Day One Park

Regularly $83/$73

Southern California 1?Day Park Hopper ? Disney is

not currently offering a Southern California 1-Day Park Hopper at the

Web site. Southern California AAA offices and Vons Supermarkets may be

selling these tickets, but call ahead to confirm. Proof of residency will

be required when redeeming them at Disneyland (Vons will

happily sell you the ticket voucher regardless of where you are from but

you still need to be an appropriate resident to use it. If you do see

these available anywhere, email us to let us know.

Two Day Park Hopper

Regularly $122/$102

AOCVCB 2-Day Bonus Ticket ($119/$100) ? The discount

(from the Anaheim-Orange County Visitor & Convention Bureau) is $3 (adult)

and $2 (child) and shipping on all orders is at least $10 (link).

So if you are ordering more than 10 days in advance and your discount would

be less than $10, you’ll still come out ahead by ordering at the Disneyland

Web site.

Three Day Park Hooper

Regularly $179/$149

Advance Purchase 3-day Park Hopper Bonus Ticket ($159/$129) ?

A discounted price for advance purchase through the Internet or select

dealers. Available at the Disneyland Web site (link)

where shipping is included if you order more than 10 days prior to your

travel date. Also available from AAA offices in Northern California, Nevada,

and Utah (not currently listed at the AAA Web site, you may need to call

your local office). Disney Stores (California), Safeway grocery stores

(California and Arizona), and certain travel agents may also sell these

tickets. It is best to call and confirm before visiting a location, however.

“Bonus Tickets” include one early admission day (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday,

or Saturday). If purchased from AAA, the tickets come with free parking

at the Mickey ∧ Friends parking garage (an $11/day value)

Southern California CityPass($235/$189) ? This pass

includes a 3-Day Disneyland Resort park ticket (including one early-entry

day). It also includes one day admissions to SeaWorld San Diego, Universal

Studios Hollywood, and either the San Diego Zoo or San Diego Wild Animal

Park. The CityPass expires 14 days after first use at any location. Purchase

CityPass through the Disneyland Web site (link)

or onsite at the ticket booths of Disneyland Resort or the other theme

parks included in the pass. You can also purchase directly from the CityPass

Web site (link)

though this has a minimum $7.50 shipping charge (no shipping charge from

the Disney Web site if purchased more than 10 days in advance).

The Southern California City Pass can also be purchased online from Costco

at a cost of $209.99/$169.99 (adults/child),

5% surcharge if not a Costco member and shipping fees apply. Booklets

may be available for sale in some stores but varies widely. If you want

to buy in person it would be best to call ahead and confirm availability.

If you do buy at a Costco, you will initially purchase a large plastic

container which you must trade for ticket books prior to leaving

Costco!

AOCVCB 3-Day Bonus Ticket ($155/$126) ? The discount

(from the Anaheim-Orange County Visitor & Convention Bureau) is $4 (adult)

and $3 (child) and shipping on all orders is at least $10. So if you are

ordering more than 10 days in advance and your discount would be less

than $10, you’ll still come out ahead by ordering at the Disneyland Web

site. Tickets include one early admission day (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday,

or Saturday) (link).

Four Day Park Hopper

Regularly $209/$179

Advance Purchase 4?Day Park Hopper Bonus tickets ($179/$149)

? A discounted price for advance purchase through the Internet or

select dealers. Available at the Disneyland Web site (link)