Update for November 26 – December 2, 2007
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Candlelight ticket crunch | More
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Candlelight ticket crunch
In 2002, when Disneyland first offered dining package for the annual Candlelight
Ceremony and Procession, visitors complained about inconsistent policies at
the participating restaurants and confusing seating arrangements at the Fantasyland
Theater. When the event returned to Main Street in 2003, the dining package
program was still novel enough—and so poorly publicized—that guests
could actually make same-day reservations during Candlelight weekend.
MousePlanet readers and staff alike were taken by surprise when the Disney
Dine Line began accepting reservations for a 2004 Candlelight dining package
three weeks before the event, as a Disney food-service manager had previously
told us that Disney would not offer a dining package due to the lackluster
sales the prior year. That event sold out in a matter of days, as did the
2005 event, though readers complained that they had to wait on hold for as
much as an hour to make their reservations.
In 2006, Disney moved to an online registration system for the Candlelight
Dining Package, which was expected to eliminate the endless busy signals
and long hold times. They even publicized in advance the date on which tickets
would go on sale, a frequent complaint from prior years. Though they forgot
to share what time registration would begin, demand for the tickets caused
the Disney server to crash shortly after reservations finally opened. Disney
was forced to halt new registrations for three days until they could manually
complete the registrations that had already been placed, and the event sold
out shortly after reservations resumed.
Many readers tried in vain to purchase Candlelight tickets, but could not
advance past this message screen. Image by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
When Disney announced details of the 2007 Candlelight Dining Package, it
looked like more of the complaints from previous years had been addressed.
Package details were officially announced three weeks before reservations
opened, including on-sale dates and times. While not announced to the public,
word had already leaked out that Candlelight cast members had been told that
Jane Seymour would narrate the event, which meant that many visitors knew
who the narrator was before they made reservations. The biggest concern was
that reservations would once again be accepted only via the Disney Web site,
with many fearing a repeat of last year’s server crash. Those fears were realized
when the server crashed just 10 minutes after registration opened to the public
last Monday morning. It appeared to be down for about 15 minutes, during which
a variety of error messages were displayed. Sold-out messages began appearing
next to the most popular seatings after about 40 minutes, and the entire event
was sold out just 90 minutes after registration opened.
While many MousePlanet readers reported that they had been able to complete
their registrations, others were not so lucky. Several spent more than an
hour in front of their computers, but could bring up nothing but an error
message advising them to try again later. A few got all the way through
the payment screen, only to find that they tickets they had placed in their
shopping cart were no longer available after they had entered their credit
card information. Others just decided to skip the hassle altogether, and
hope to find a good spot along the sidelines from which to watch the show.
It’s hard to figure out how to “fix” Candlelight. The event obviously
has a huge following, so much so that thousands of people are willing to shell
out between $75 and $125 per person to reserve a seat; even when it means
sitting down to “dinner” before the sun even sets. It would be difficult
to expand the seating area in the already-cramped venue, and the alternatives—moving
the event back to the Fantasyland Theater, or over to Disney’s California
Adventure—would likely create howls of protest from Candlelight purists.
Disneyland could host the event on multiple weekends, but that would mean
leaving the bulky Candlelight stage in place just as Disneyland enters the
busy holiday season.
Whatever Disney decides to do with the event itself, there is clearly room
for improvement in the registration process. Candlelight is no longer a locals-only
event, and many visitors travel to Disneyland just to attend the event. These
visitors want the event date to be confirmed far enough in advance that they
can book their travel without paying a premium for last-minute reservations,
and they want to be able to book their Candlelight dining package more than
two weeks before the event so they can make alternate arrangements in the
event that they cannot obtain tickets. Fortunately Disney’s computer network
administrators were able to get the reservation system up and running again
fairly quickly after this year’s crash, but the fact that there was another
crash at all points to a larger problem.
In the end, those who did not end up with tickets this year may find themselves
grateful after all—Weather.com forcasts an 20 percent chance of rain
both Saturday and Sunday.
More holiday magic
Today’s update includes holiday photos from Disney’s California Adventure
park and Disneyland, as well as a brief listing of the holiday treats and
entertainment available in both parks. Click on any photo to see a larger
version.
The CALIFORNIA letters in front of DCA are once again decorated with candy
cane stripes and larger-than-life characters. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Santa’s Reindeer Roundup
Santa has returned to Disneyland, transforming Big Thunder Ranch into Santa’s
Reindeer Roundup. Comet’s Crafts offers coloring activities for younger
visitors, while Mrs. Claus’ Cookie Kitchen allows kids of all ages to decorate
their own holiday cookie. Each cookie kit is $6 and comes with a plain cookie
in your choice of snowman, gingerbread man or Christmas tree styles, along
with icing and sprinkles to create your own masterpiece. Mrs. Claus is on
hand to supervise and offer decorating tips if you need some creative inspiration.
A variety of live entertainment is available throughout the day at Santa’s
Reindeer Roundup. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Santa’s Reindeer Roundup is open from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Santa makes
“surprise visits” to the nearby cottage between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. each
day. A herd of reindeer are on exhibit, but you will not be able to get near
enough to pet them. There is a Christmas tree lighting staring “Pluto
the Reindog” shortly after dusk each night, and Disney characters make
random appearances throughout the day to sign autographs.
Mrs. Claus’ Cookie Kitchen offers visitors the chance to decorate their
own cookies. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Santa’s reindeer settle down to dinner at Disneyland. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Santa’s Beach Bash and Disney’s California Adventure
Santa’s Beach Bash appears to be unchanged from prior years. A Hawaiian
shirt-clad Santa is on hand throughout the day to greet children, and the
Disney characters rotate through the area to sign autographs and pose for
photos. While there, visitors can decorate a giant “snowman” made
of sand; compete in a hula-hoop contest and demonstrate their drum skills
to accompany the live band in a rendition of the Beach Boy’s Wipeout. Santa’s
Beach Bash is open daily from 10 a.m. until park closing or 8 p.m., whichever
comes first.
Pluto hangs out at Santa’s Beach Bash. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.
Santa plays air guitar while waiting to greet his fans. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.
The DCA Christmas tree looks much the same as last year. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.
The decorations are complete outside Flik’s Fun Fair. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.
With the holiday decorations come the seasonal treats that are only available
for a limited time each year. Here is a brief rundown of this year’s offerings:
