Disneyland Park Update

Update for June 25 – July 1, 2007

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

Anaheim development battle heads to the voting booth | Mickey Mouse to participate in art festival’s opening day ceremony | 2007 NFFC Annual National Convention

News and Views

Anaheim development battle heads to the voting booth

Last week, the Disney-backed “Save Our Anaheim Resort” group submitted enough

signatures to force the Anaheim City Council to schedule a public vote that

could overturn its decision to allow residential development in the Anaheim

Resort zone.

The members of the City Council could avoid a public vote by voting themselves at the council’s next meeting (scheduled for July 17, the anniversary of Disneyland park), to overturn their previous vote on the issue. If the five-member council, which was divided three to two in favor of the zoning change that will allow residential development in the Anaheim Resort zone, does not overturn that earlier decision, they will be required to set a date for the issue to go before the residents of the city.

Mickey Mouse to participate in art festival’s opening day ceremony

A little more information about Disneyland’s participation in the upcoming Laguna Beach Festival of Arts was released last week. As previously mentioned here, Disneyland will host an exhibition, “Dream, Imagine, Create: The Art of Disney Parks,” which will feature pieces commissioned from artists from within the Walt Disney Company. The exhibit will also include 12 pieces of artwork created by young artists at the Orange County Children’s Therapeutic Arts Center.

Mickey Mouse and a Disneyland Resort Ambassador are scheduled to attend two opening-day ceremonies next Sunday, July 1, on the Festival (10:30 am, repeated at 12:30 pm) to unveil the Disneyland-sponsored exhibit. Admission is $7 ($4 for seniors and students), while Laguna Beach residents and children 12 and under get in free. The 2007 Laguna Beach Festival of Arts is open daily through August 31, with the exceptions of July 4 and August 25.

2007 NFFC Annual National Convention

The National Fantasy Fan Club’s Annual National Convention will be held Wednesday,

July 11 through Tuesday, July 17 in Anaheim. Disney Imagineers, artists, voice

performers, authors and animators will participate in seminars during the convention,

and Magician Dana Daniels is scheduled to perform at the convention’s Celebration

Banquet. The event concludes with the worlds largest Disneyana Show and Sale

on July 15. The schedule of events:

July 11: Welcoming Reception

July 12: Collectors Breakfast; Chapter Reception. Seminar topics:

Andreas Deja, Disney animator, on Walt Disney’s “Nine Old Men.”
Ron and David DeFore (children of television star Don DeFore) on Don DeFore’s Silver Banjo Barbecue and the early days of Disneyland.
Joel Harlow on the make-up and prosthetics for the Pirates of the Caribbean films
Author panel with Robert Tieman (The Mickey Mouse Treasures), Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman (Walt Disney’s Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series), Greg Ehrbar (Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records), Russell Schroeder (Disney’s Lost Chords) and Kendra Trahan (Disney’s California Adventure Detective).

July 13: Celebration Banquet featuring comic magician Dana Daniels. Seminar topics:

Charles Ridgway on his memories as a publicist for Disneyland and Walt Disney World.
Tony Baxter on Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.
Michael Jung on Finding Nemo: The Musical.
Becky Cline on Treasures from the Disney Archives.
Ed Squair with the top 50 images of the Disney Photo Library.
Dave Smith on the 25th anniversary of Epcot.

July 14: Business meeting; Luncheon with a Disney Legend. Seminar topics:

Voice panel with Wayne Allwine and Russi Taylor (the voices of Mickey and Minnie), Eddie Carroll (the voice of Jiminy Cricket), and Susanne Blakeslee (Lady Tremaine in the Cinderella sequels.)
Neal Gabler, author of the new biography Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination
Margaret Kerry hosts a panel discussion of Peter Pan.

July 15: Disneyana Show and Sale

July 16: ~~NFFC Ryman Arts Foundation Benefit Breakfast at Club 33 (sold out);~~ Part of Their World Dinner at Ariel’s Grotto in DCA. Margaret Kerry, Eddie Carroll, Terri Harden, Greg Ehrbar, Russell Schroeder, Philo Barnhart, Bill Farmer, Tony West, Susie Lum and Susanne Blakeslee are all scheduled to attend the dinner.

Update: Dennis Ritchey of NFFC has informed us that the Ryman Arts Foundation Benefit Breakfast at Club 33 has been cancelled. The event has been moved to Napa Rose, with Imagineer and Ryman Arts Foundation Board member Marty Sklar appearing as a special guest. The cost is now $60/person, which includes breakfast, tax and tip and a $15 donation to Ryman Arts Foundation. With the move from Club 33 to Napa Rose, there are now plenty of seats available for this event; check the NFFC Web site for registration details.

July 17: Disneyland anniversary

Full registration for the convention is $279 per person, and a variety of a la carte tickets are available for individual events or sessions. You must join the NFFC to attend any of the convention activities; a one-year membership is $29 per person. The full schedule of events and registration forms are available at the NFFC Web site (link).

Current Refurbishments and Attraction Closures

Disneyland

Tarzan’s Treehouse is expected to reopen on June 30.

Work continues on Tarzan’s Treehouse, which is expected to reopen by the end of June. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Disney’s California Adventure

Midway Games closed 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.

The Mark Twain returned to service on June 19th. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Events

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

July

The Art of Disney Parks ~ Where Dreams Come True exhibit.
July 1 ? August 31 at the Festival of Arts. For information about the Festival,

visit the official Web site (link).
Adora Belle Disneyland Dream Breakfast with Marie Osmond.
July 7 at Disneyland. Tickets on sale now. See the event Web site (link)

for more details.
“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.
“Breakfast Tea in the Garden” with Jayne Seymour. Saturday,
July 28 at Disneyland. Tickets go on sale June 27, 2007 at 11 AM Pacific

/ 2 pm Eastern through the Disney Gallery Web site (link).

August

Bats Day in the Fun Park (unofficial event) Friday-Sunday,

August 17-19. (link)

“Disneyland in Miniature” Product Release & Signing.

Date TBA, at Disneyland. New releases include the Plaza Pavilion / Enchanted

Tiki Room / Aladdin’s Oasis sculpture and additional Main Entrance accessories.

September

Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend. September 2 and 3. Family Fun

Run 5K on Saturday, September 2, Half Marathon on Sunday, September 3 (link).

Los Angeles Unified School District schools closed. Thursday, September

13th. This annual “no school” day usually results in huge crowds

at the Disneyland Resort.

The Art of Disney Parks ~ Where Dreams Come True event.

September 13-14 at the Disneyland Resort. Will include an auction of artwork

from the Festival of Arts exhibit and 50th Anniversary. Keep an eye on the

event Web site for updates as they become available (link).

Downtown Disney artist weekend. September 15-16. An exhibit

‘dedicated to the art of local artist participants.’ No additional details

are available at this time.

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).

Mickey’s Halloween Treat. October 5, 12, 19 and 26; 7:30

pm. – 11:30 pm. and October 4, 11, 18, 25, 29, 30, and 31; 6:30 pm. – 10:30

pm. Tickets currently available to Annual Passholders via the Disneyland

Annual Passholder Web site.

CHOC/Disneyland Resort Walk in the Park Sunday, October

21 (link)

2007 UEA convention. October 29 to 30 (in Utah). Many Utah public

schools close so teachers can attend the Utah Education Association convention,

which creates a four-day weekend for the students. Expect the resort to

be busy that weekend—some claim ‘UEA’ stands for ‘Utah Escapes to Anaheim.’

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)