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Visit Date: 6/22/12
Steps: 21,181
Parks Miles: 8.0
Time in Parks: 9.5

 
Trip Log:

Started off this great summer afternoon heading for Disney California Adventure. Stepped onto Buena Vista and strolled down to Carthay Circle to check out the line board. Then walked through Condor Flats and around GRR to grab a Fastpass for World of Color. Then walked through the Bay Area, Wharf and into Cars Land. Wandered by Radiator Springs Racers, which were down, and out to Route 66. Spent some time taking pictures around Cars Land and then strolled down the Parade Route and Hollywood Blvd on my way to Stage 17 to check out Dancin With Disney. Then it was time to head for Disneyland, so walked back up Hollywood Blvd and over to Disneyland. Wandered down Main Street USA and through toward the Matterhorn. Some went for a ride on the Matterhorn and then walked through Fantasyland and out to the Big Thunder Ranch to check out the Billies show there. As the show wound down it was time to head back to DCA so walked back through Fantasyland, through the Castle and down Main Street. Once at DCA walked the Parade route out to the Pier and found a spot for the Instant Concert. After the concert made a loop of the Pier walking by Paradise Gardens, then the Fun Wheel, Toy Story, Screamin, and Avalon Cove. Had some time to kill still so walked back through Cars Land and then found a shady spot to sit for a few minutes before the new Instant Concert started. After Goofy concluded his concert walked through Ghirardelli and then back into Cars Land. Hung around Flos for a while waiting for DJs and then watched DJs Dance N Drive. After the show decided to head for Disneyland and watch the College Band preparade sets before dinner. For dinner it was back to DCA and I grabbed something at Taste Pilots and then met the rest at Cafe on Buena Vista Street. After dinner decided to go back to Disneyland to catch the last College Band set of the evening then back to DCA and out to Cars Land to catch the lighting moment for the Neon. Spent some time roaming around Cars Land taking pictures then headed for Paradise Pier to find a spot for World of Color. After World of Color made my way to Buena Vista Street and took some pictures of the window displays before heading for the Mickey and Friends Garage (by foot since the trams were backed up), car, and home to call it a night.

Other Interesting Stats:
* Moderate Walking Stats (meaning over 2.5mph): 15,340 steps, 134 minutes.


For Comparisons to other trips or more park miles click here to visit our park Miles Section.

Note: These totals may be skewed because the pedometer is zero'd when we start and then left alone and read when we leave. So attractions, and other things may cause extra "steps" to be counted. The pedometer that we use basically measures up/down motion as a step, so if your standing in line and moving up and down it may be counting steps, etc.. so the total distances traveled and steps may be off.. so use these as rough distance comparisons between trips and they may not be accurate in terms of actual distance traveled.
Pictures & Video From this Trip:


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My Thoughts & Observations:

Hello all,

Summer has officially begun and the Disneyland Resort was alive with activity. Both parks had what I would call solid crowds. Most of the usually long wait attractions were in the 45 min range. Cars Land was longer, with the Racers in the 2.5 hour range and the Flying Tires over an hour. As you walked the parks they felt busy but not jammed. Was hoping that the crowds at DCA would all be in Cars Land and other attractions would have shorter than usual waits but Toy Story for example was still in the 40 min range, so it looks like the crowd spread out around the park.

Jason

Trip logs and mileage reports are in the Park Miles section.

Thoughts and Observations:

  • It is still a bit odd to walk into California Adventure and be greeted by Buena Vista Street. It is a good odd, but it still throws me off a bit. I need to get used to it.

  • I thought it was great the 4th of July overlay that was on the street. It is only a week old and they already plussed it to match the season.

  • First stop of the day was to grab a World of Color Fastpass. I was excited that I recieved a yellow one for the first show and I thought it was a sign of a mild day at the parks. Come evening I learned that Red has disappeared again and Yellow is where Red once was.. from what I could gather it seems the preferred dining section was larger and yellow was basically the old red section and maybe a bit more. But it was hard to tell and I was late getting there.

  • Walked through Cars Land. The Racers were down again, one note for those planning to ride, remember it is a complex and new attraction so expect a lot of down time till all the bugs get worked out. Also note that the cone shapped plastic cups are currently sold out and have been removed from the menu boards at the Cozy Cones. I saw online that there was an official sound track for Cars Land. I did not see this last week, guess it was released Friday and I missed it. Anyway it was long gone and sold out already too.

  • Stopped by the Dancin with Disney festivities at Stage 17 in Hollywood Land. I caught the Girls set of characters out this time around. If you are looking for a place for your kids (or you) to have some character time and run around a bit this is a great event. It is happening daily between 1:00 and 5:00pm. And as of now it seems to be under utilized/a hidden jewel so take advantage before word gets out and the crowds appear.

  • Walked around the Matterhorn and some in the group went for a ride using the single rider line. They reported back that the new seats were not the most comfortable and the ride felt even rougher than before to them.

  • Stopped by the Big Thunder Jamboree to see the Billies. They will be performing out there daily through the summer. The Billies seemed a little more loose being outside. The music sounded ok, but the sound system out there is not the most inspiring and they were having some mic issues during the performance I saw. The audience seemed a little light but definitely more than I have seen on some previous stops by the Jamboree. Also noticed this trip that there was only one character out at a time. Not sure if this was because of timing or something new because of the light crowds we have noticed there.

    A couple video clips of the Billies:


  • Headed back to DCA to catch the two Instant Concerts I missed last week. I think it is a nice addition to bring some life into the Bay. The shows are short but with some variety hopefully that means repeat viewing by guests. I have not walked around during the show, anyone know is the audio just in the Paradise Park area or is it wider around the Paradise Bay?

  • While waiting for DJs show to start in Cars Land pulled up a table outside and Flos and just watched the world go by for a while. It was great to see the ebb and flow of the masses. Cars Land had a lot of people moving around but it seemed reasonable and not over crowded. Also saw Mary Niven (Vice President of DCA) walking around the park, she is a very visible leader for the park which is great to see.

  • Finally caught DJs show. This is a dance party that rolls into Radiator Springs several times a day featuring several cast members that lead the routines and DJ, a car with a sound system that provides the tunes. They play a mix of music and try to engage the crowd and kids in several of the dance routines. I thought it was a nice little show. The energy of the cast was good and the car was interesting to see. The kids that joined in the dancing seemed to be having a good time and I thought the mix of music was good. Seeming the lighting on DJ at night added a little to the show as the sun was setting compared to the afternoon showing.

    Here is my video of the show:


  • Stopped back by in the evening to catch the lighting moment on Route 66 when it comes alive with the neon. The moment has been happening just after 8pm (8:08 Friday), but it will shift as the days become shorter. I thought it was a cool moment watching the buildings come to life and listening to the music. I would have liked to have seen a little more to it. The lights come on in the first 1/4 of the song or so then nothing else seemed to happen as it played out.

    Here is my video of the lighting:


  • I was curious to see how or if the Glow with the Show Mouse Ears have caught on. Excluding the cast members who all had them on there seemed to be very few and the effect was pretty much lost on Friday. I did find a couple sets nearby and stood behind one of them to play with for my pictures. I also over heard several people commenting on how cool the ears were and that they wanted some but not sure if that translated into a sale later or was just some comments within a group. The guests that had the ears seemed to really be enjoying it, but the wow/cool factor of the ears is lost without a good number of guests having them on. Wonder if after the Annual Passholder events if they will show up with the ears on to help seed the crowd a bit.

  • On the way out spent some time roaming around Buena Vista Street and pushing through the exiting World of Color crowd. I thought seeing the Disneyland fireworks was a different/interesting vantage point. Also took some pictures of the window displays, since the glare was at a minimum.

Interesting Web Finds/Notes:
Below are some interesting links, notes, and rumors I found/stumble across/or have been informed of since the last Geekspeaks column.

Be sure to check out the picture update that goes with this Geekspeak column, it can be found in our Disneyland Resort Pictorial Update section

Stop by the Geek's Forum to discuss this and other Disney topics.. click here

Send comments, questions, any other email to: disneygeek@disneygeek.com
Pictures & Video From this Trip:


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