Travel Orange County: Family Fun at Disneyland Part 2

With the recent launch of a new direct flight between Toronto’s Pearson International Airport and the John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, CA, Air Canada teamed up with the folks at Disneyland and the tourism boards of Orange County, Anaheim, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, and Huntington Beach to send a select group of Toronto-based media to tour the West Coast paradise in order to get a feel of what there is to do and see over the course of a week. And there is something for everyone.

In the first entry about my travels I’m going to focus on family fun at Disneyland. Where to stay, which rides to spend your time waiting for and what to avoid, what kids and adults will and won’t love, and what to expect if you’ve never been. The article has been split into two parts for easier reading (read Travel Orange County: Family Fun at Disneyland Part 1 here).

What to do besides rides

If rides are not your thing (see the next section for the lowdown on rides), Disneyland offers guided tours, a retro move theatre, live musical shows and parades, special 3-D film experiences, fireworks, and a new evening water spectacular called World of Color.

Tour: We did the “A Walk in Walt’s Footsteps” tour and although it was very informative (our guide Ryan was a top-notch speaker and performer), it was also three hours long with only one short bathroom break. The tour included the Jungle Cruise, the Enchanted Tiki Room, and a ride on the Disneyland Railroad, and a boxed lunch was served at the end (your choice of sandwich and fruit or potato chips). At $64 USD per person though, this is too pricey (and boring) for kids and is much more suited towards adult Disney fans who don’t have children in tow.

3-D Films: Michael Jackson’s sci-fi-musical Captain EO was considered one of the best uses of 3-D technology back in the 80s. The production is laughably bad (terrible, actually) and should only be seen if you didn’t catch it the first time around or if you want to get out of the sun and take a break (it’s usually a short line, if any). Fans of Jackson will obviously enjoy it more than others but kids seemed extremely bored with it. The only other 3-D experience we tried out was Muppet*Vision 3D. It was cute, but if you don’t have kids with you, it’s a waste of time.

Parades: Skipping the many live musical offerings (Aladdin – A Musical Spectacular, High School Musical 3: Senior Year – Right Here! Right Now!, etc.), we opted instead to check out the Pixar Play Parade in the California Adventure Park. With characters from Toy Story, Cars, Monsters, Inc., The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Finding Nemo, and A Bug’s Life dancing on wild floats and shooting bubbles and water on the crowd, it’s quite a sight to see and the kids around us seem to love it.

Fireworks: Every night Disneyland hosts an amazing spectacle of fire in the sky that can be seen from pretty much anywhere in the park (we were able to watch them from the balcony of our room shortly after we checked in — what a welcome!). To ensure the best “seat” in the house, try to position yourself in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle at least an hour before they start (there is a VIP area in the middle but you can go in front or behind it and still get a great view).

World of Color: Words cannot describe how amazing World of Color is. The show tells a story using clips of Disney movies projected on water, along with lasers, fire, streams of light, and classic Disney music. It is a must-see attraction. You need to get a FASTPASS ticket (free) early on in the day to secure a spot in the viewing area. You can also purchase a reserved spot in advance. Find out more about World of Color on the Disneyland website.

Keep in mind: The schedules for parades, special events, and shows change often. Check the Disneyland website before heading to the park to get an idea of what is available during your visit.

Rides!

When it comes to rides at Disneyland, there are the family-friendly variety such as Pirates of the Caribbean, “it’s a small world”, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, and the Mad Tea Party, and then there are the real rides like Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Indiana Jones Adventure, and California Screamin’. Pretty much all of the real rides are worth standing in line for so I’m going to only focus on the family-friendly rides you should and shouldn’t do.

Rides you should do: Pirates of the Caribbean is fun and offers the closest experience you’ll get of a “real” ride with the young ones. Lines were surprisingly short and swift and we ended up going on it multiple times over our two-day visit. Kids really seem to enjoy Dumbo the Flying Elephant, the Mad Tea Party, Peter Pan’s Flight, and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride (no longer available at Walt Disney World so definitely catch it here). Soarin’ Over California is a rush and kids ages 6 and up seem to be able to handle it just fine. The interactive rides Toy Story Mania! and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters were both tons of fun, and Mickey’s Fun Wheel (pictured above) gives a great view of the park when you do finally make it to the top. The Haunted Mansion and Silly Symphony Swings are also cool but it comes down to your kids and whether they can handle them or not.

Rides to avoid: The #1 ride to avoid is the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. Not only were the lines ridiculously long and the ride cheesy, but it made me very claustrophobic and gave me a major panic attack. The Golden Zephyr, Astro Orbitor, and Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! were all very lame and not worth the wait in line. “it’s a small world” is harmless fun that kids seem to appreciate but, much to my wife’s chagrin, I find it extremely annoying and don’t recommend it.

Keep in mind: A lot of rides offer the free FASTPASS upgrade which will help you avoid long lineups. Some mild rides also have height restrictions so you should check ahead of time on the Disneyland website to see what your children can and can’t go on.

Shopping

You are going to want to load up on souvenirs during your visit and there are many places around every corner to purchase something Disney-related. Give yourself at least half a day of browsing before you start purchasing though. This will help you decide what is important to you and what is not. I would avoid purchasing DVDs and books as they can be found cheaper elsewhere. As for deals — the only one I found was a two-piece Disneyland luggage set at the gift shop in the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa for $10 USD (funny enough I only bought it so I could get the rest of the souvenirs home).

Celebrities

Because of Disneyland’s nearby proximity to Hollywood, it’s not uncommon to catch a glimpse of someone famous during your visit at Disneyland. Paris Hilton and her sister Nikki were there on one of the days we were and someone in our group got a photo of Shaquille O’Neal riding the Disneyland Railroad (or at least a person who looked exactly like him). I also heard some of the Hannah Montana cast were lingering around during our World of Color viewing.

Toronto connection

Being a native Torontonian and working for a major Toronto news outlet, I found this bit of Disneyland history to be of huge interest. The King Arthur Carrousel was originally from Toronto’s Sunnyside Amusement Park. Sunnyside was located on the Lake Ontario waterfront at the foot of Roncesvalles Avenue and operated between 1922 and 1955. It was torn down so the Gardiner Expressway could be built. Walt Disney purchased the carousel and moved it to California in 1954, a year before Disneyland opened, and made modifications to it so more people could ride it at once.

Final thought

Disneyland is not a cheap vacation but if budgeted properly, a three-night, two-day stay can be a nostalgic few days. One thing you will gain for certain is an amazing family experience that will bring out the kid in you and create magical, ever-lasting memories.

Have you visited Disneyland? Share your stories and favourite moments with us in the comments below, on our Facebook page, or via email at brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com.