A Solo Trip: It's the Spirit of the Season at the Disneyland Resort! Dec. 1-7, 2017! *COMPLETE 1/26*

sounds like a really productive day despite sleeping in a bit - you really were making good use of the fast pass system there!

Seems like a nice parade and nice to have the holiday parade and not have to pay for a party or anything
 
sounds like a really productive day despite sleeping in a bit - you really were making good use of the fast pass system there!

Seems like a nice parade and nice to have the holiday parade and not have to pay for a party or anything
I was one that was very skeptical the first time I used the MaxPass service. I did some more research for this trip, and there were several times I was holding 3 fastpasses.

I really like that Disneyland doesn’t have the Christmas Party. It makes it a lot easier to enjoy the holiday season when you can still see the parade, fireworks, and overlays without going to a party. They do have the Halloween Parties though.
 
I was one that was very skeptical the first time I used the MaxPass service. I did some more research for this trip, and there were several times I was holding 3 fastpasses.

I really like that Disneyland doesn’t have the Christmas Party. It makes it a lot easier to enjoy the holiday season when you can still see the parade, fireworks, and overlays without going to a party. They do have the Halloween Parties though.

I like the concept of Maxpass, but wish it wasn't charged per person. $50/day for my family to use it is quite a bit
 
Day 5: Happy Birthday Walt Disney!

Welcome to day 5 of my trip home to Southern California! This would be another full day at Disneyland, and a really early day for me.

It was also a very special day at Disneyland. That is I would be going to Disneyland on Walt Disney’s Birthday!

My 5-day ticket to Disneyland included one Magic Morning admission to Disneyland Park. Select attractions in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland are only open during this time.

So, this was my only day to experience Disneyland an hour before it opens. This means I was off to the park really early.

I would arrive to A LOT of people. I guess I wasn’t the only one planning on going into the park an hour early. This was the lines to get into the park about 15 minutes before the Magic Morning time started.



I would finally get into Disneyland!!!









Since it was Walt Disney’s Birthday, I thought the best thing to do first was get a picture in front of the Partner Statue. I told the CM why I was taking the picture first, and she didn’t even know that it was Walt Disney’s birthday.





I would make my way through Sleeping Beauty’s Castle and enter Fantasyland.



At this point, the line for Peter Pan was to long, and I was not going to waste the entire hour just in the Peter Pan line. So, I decided to go on some other Fantasyland attractions.

My first ride of the morning was Snow White’s Scary Adventure.



I would then travel on Pinocchio’s Daring Adventure!



Next, I would go on the Carousel!



My final ride of the Magic Morning hour would be Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride!





A beautiful morning in Fantasyland!



At this point, it would be about 10 minutes until the park officially opened. I decided that I would relive my childhood and wait 10 minutes for Casey Jr. to open. This used to be my favorite attraction at Disneyland as a kid, and I would ride it over and over again. My favorite area to ride was always in the very back, and I was fortunate to get that spot on this trip on Casey Jr.











The park was open so I was off to Frontierland! I would take the newly opened back pathway.



This path will be one of the entrances into Star Wars Land.



This will be the other entrance into Star Wars Land in this area.



I would walk past Big Thunder Mountain on my way to New Orleans Square to see some pirates.



It was time to go on Pirates of the Caribbean!



Goodbye redhead. :(



This is one of my favorite scenes in Pirates of the Caribbean. I wonder if the dog will ever give up the key?



It was time for my first fastpass of the day which was for Haunted Mansion Holiday.



There was no wait for Splash Mountain so I made my way there. I would get my own log again! :)





Here is a view of the Star Wars Land construction from Splash Mountain.



After not really getting wet since I was the only one in the log, I would walk down a pathway along the Rivers of America.





The pathway will serve as the 3rd entrance to Star Wars Land, and I was able to get a construction picture from here.



I would now make my way to the New Orleans Square Train Station.
 


Day 5: A Great Morning At Disneyland!

It was time to go on the Disneyland Railroad! I would catch the train at the New Orleans Square Train Station which is the station before the new railroad route.







The train would finally arrive.



I would get a Star Wars Land construction photo from the train.



I spy the Mark Twain!



This new railroad route is absolutely beautiful. I was very skeptical of it when it was first announced since this area has always been my favorite route to ride on the train. I will say that I enjoy this route more than ever now.





I would take the train to Main Street Station where I would exit Disneyland and enter Disney California Adventure.

I would make my way to the back entrance (and my preferred entrance) into Cars Land.







My 2nd fastpass of the day was for Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout! So, many of you might know that I am not a Marvel fan. I am not a superhero fan. So, I have not seen Guardians of the Galaxy. I will say that this is a fun attraction. However, I miss Tower of Terror. I would rather have it still be Tower of Terror than a Guardians of the Galaxy attraction.







You can really see how excited I was about this attraction being changed to Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout!



I was off to my 3rd fastpass of the day which was for Soarin Around the World!





Next, I would leave Disney California Adventure, and I would go to Downtown Disney where I would get some pictures of the Christmas decorations.











The main reason to come to Downtown Disney this afternoon was to get a smoothie at my favorite smoothie place which is Jamba Juice!



It was time to enter Disneyland again, and I was off to the Downtown Disney Monorail Station!
 
Day 5: Star Wars, Star Wars, And More Star Wars (Construction)!

The monorail would arrive at the Downtown Disney Monorail Station, and I was heading back into Disneyland.



I would make my way to my 4th fastpass of the day which was for Star Tours!



It was time for me to go on a voyage on the Mark Twain.









I would get some photos of the Star Wars Land construction from the Mark Twain.



















One thing about this new area I like is you can potentially get some really good photos of the Disneyland Railroad from the Mark Twain!





This is a very peaceful ride which makes it a great way to escape the crowds.







I always prefer to travel the Rivers of America on the Mark Twain. I really don’t like riding on the Columbia.



I would then go up into Tarzan’s Treehouse!



Here is a photo of the Star Wars Land construction from the tree house.



This tree offers great views of Disneyland.



I really like the theming of this tree.







After going up in the tree house, I would venture into the jungle on the Jungle Cruise.





It was time for my 5th fastpass of the day which was for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad!



Big Thunder Railroad is my favorite ride at the Disneyland Resort. So, I usually can’t go to Disneyland without riding it at least once.

I would then make my way to a land that is unique to Disneyland!
 
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Day 5: A Great Afternoon At Disneyland!

I would make my way to Mickey’s Toontown! This area is themed really well. It is probably one of my favorite themed lands in a Disney Park.













Star Wars Land construction from Toontown:





As a musician, I really like this fountain.



Minnie’s House:



It was time for me to go inside Mickey’s House!



As you wait to get your picture with Mickey, they show Disney cartoons.



I would finally get my picture with Mickey Mouse!



Chip and Dale’s Treehouse:



Roger Rabbit fountain:



It was time for my 6th fastpass of the day which was for Roger Rabbit Car Toon Spin!



It was now time for me to make my way out of Toontown, and I would eventually find myself right by Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.



I can’t go to Disneyland without getting a churro!



I would then find a spot on Main Street for the parade. I would be lucky enough to find a curb spot again. I guess that is a benefit to being a solo traveler.

A Christmas Fantasy Parade would begin!





It was time for my 7th fastpass of the day. I would make my way back to Big Thunder Railroad and ride that again.



Here is a picture of the Star Wars Land construction from Big Thunder!



I always like the Christmas decorations in New Orleans Square!





It was time for my 8th fastpass of the day! I would make my way to Indiana Jones!



Sleeping Beauty’s Castle will soon light up with lights, but I had a fastpass for an attraction before I got to see the castle lighting!



I would use my 9th fastpass of the day for It’s A Small World Holiday!







I would get a great spot to watch Sleeping Beauty’s Castle light up for the holidays!







I would then leave Disneyland, because I was meeting a good friend of mine at Downtown Disney for dinner.
 


Day 5: High and Fast Winds (Continued)!

I would make my way to Downtown Disney where I would be meeting a really good friend of mine at Tortilla Joes!



I would order the table-side guacamole which was amazing!!!



We also got chips and salsa with the meal.



Due to health reasons, I had chicken tacos and plain rice. The tacos are normally different, but they accommodated me very well with this dish. It was still good.



After saying bye to my friend, I would make my way to Disney California Adventure.

I had gotten a fastpass for World of Color earlier in the day. I would make my way to Paradise Pier where I would find out something very surprising.



There were Cast Member’s everywhere making sure everyone knew that the performance of World of Color: Season of Light that evening was canceled. I would ask that I have never experienced World of Color being canceled this early before showtime. I would find out that World of Color can be canceled due to fast winds. This was a first for me. The CM would then tell me that the fireworks had also been canceled which I was expecting.

It was definitely windy that night. The only way that this effected me is I would not be able to see a nighttime show on my final two evenings at Disneyland. That is since I left early the night before which I expected the fireworks to be canceled then as well.

I was not going to let this cancelation ruin my final evening at Disneyland.

I would then make my way to Cars Land where I would go on Radiator Springs Racers at night. I really like this land a lot in the evening.





I got the red card!!! :D



If you ever go to Disney California Adventure, I highly recommend riding Radiator Springs Racers during the day and at night. They are two totally different experiences.

I would then make my way out of Disney California Adventure since that park was now closed. I would make my way out slowly and take several pictures of the park.

Here are pictures of Cars Land at night:













I really like these toy soldier decorations for the Festival of Holidays.



Carthay Circle:





Disney California Adventure Christmas Tree:





It was now time for me to leave Disney California Adventure and make my way back over to Disneyland.





I would enter Disneyland, and the tree is really magnificent at night.



It was time for my It’s A Small World Holiday experience that I will NEVER forget.



This would be my 10th fastpass of the day.



So, normally a fastpass line is supposed to take no more than 20 minutes. I know that can change depending on the line, but I hadn’t experienced waiting longer than 15 minutes for It’s A Small World Holiday so far on this trip in the fastpass line.

Well, lets just say 40 minutes later, I reached the merge point. I was getting really annoyed very quickly, but I wasn’t the only one. At first, it seemed like Disney was starting to get rid of some of the boats because they would send about 5 empty boats before loading anyone on. I don’t know if that was later the issue.

15 minutes after I reached the merge point, I finally made it onto the ride. That was a 55 minute fastpass line experience, and I still had a 17 minute ride to enjoy.

So, the ride started, and I quickly noticed that the boats were going slower than normal. I am going to let all of you know that this was the longest It’s A Small World experience I have ever gone on. Twenty-six minutes later, our boat exited the building, and a cast member was there waiting to tow our boat to the loading/unloading dock.

When we got back, I realized that Disney had shut down the attraction for the night due to technical reasons. Part of me really wishes that they would have mentioned this while I waited in the fastpass line for so long, or right before I decided to get on the boat. It wasn’t like this was a “surprise,” but they just kept loading people onto the ride.

Anyways, I was off to the Toontown Train Depot where I would decide to ride the train around Disneyland.



It’s A Small World…good bye!



We would arrive at Tomorrowland.



This is my “annoyed” look.



We would arrive at Main Street, and I decided to take the train around one more time. I really wanted to see the new train route at night which I had not experienced yet.



New Orleans Square Station:



I really liked the new train route at night. I liked that they kept the area “dark,” but had some lights in appropriate places for you to see some unique aspects of the area.

I would arrive back at Main Street, and it was time for me to leave Disneyland.



I was exhausted and still annoyed from my It’s A Small World Holiday experience that I was ready to get back to my hotel and go to bed.

I would have one more morning/afternoon at Disneyland the next day.
 
What a fun filled day!

I can't believe that CM didn't know it was Walts birthday!

I haven't seen it in person but I think they did a great job on the rock work and details of the new Frontierland areas going in Star Wars.

That experience on Small World sucks. I have had a similar experience on Splash in WDW before.
 
Oh boy! Great installments to your report and really fantastic pictures! The pictures with you and Walt on his birthday are very good and definitely keepers! Looking forward to reading more.
 
Oh boy! Great installments to your report and really fantastic pictures! The pictures with you and Walt on his birthday are very good and definitely keepers! Looking forward to reading more.
Thank you! it was definitely a great experience getting to be in Walt's Park on his birthday.
 
VIDEOS - Disneyland Resort Entertainment!

Hello everyone! Here is all of the videos I filmed on my trip other than the Candlelight Processional. If you would like to see my videos of the Candlelight Processional, check out my update I posted earlier. These videos will show part of the NEW Fantasmic, A Christmas Fantasy Parade, It’s A Small World lighting, and Sleeping Beauty Castle Lighting.

Make sure you watch all of my videos in HD.

NEW Fantasmic - Dragon Scene/Finale!

This show is really spectacular! I would get "video bombed” by cast members in the middle of the video though.



A Christmas Fantasy Parade - Toy Soldiers!


My favorite part of A Christmas Fantasy Parade is always the Toy Soldier Trumpet Players!



A Christmas Fantasy Parade - Finale!


Here is the finale of A Christmas Fantasy Parade where if you are lucky, you might get a chance to sing along with Santa Claus!



It’s A Small World Lighting!

This is what it looks like when 500,000 lights turn on each evening on It’s A Small World!



Sleeping Beauty Castle Lighting!

The Castle at Disneyland is lit each night to a beautiful song, and the castle lighting also means that it finally snows at Disneyland!



I hope you enjoyed the videos! :)
 
Day 6: Final Day At Disneyland - Part 1!

It was time for my final day at the Disneyland Resort! I would only be spending the morning and afternoon at the parks since I had another activity planned in the evening.

I would arrive at Disneyland!









There is one thing that I realized I hadn’t done the previous 4 days I had spent at Disneyland. That was ride Peter Pan’s Flight. So, that was my first stop even if the line was pretty long.





My next ride would be Pirates of the Caribbean!



I would then use my first fastpass of the day for Haunted Mansion Holiday!





Zip-A-Dee-Do-Dah!!! I was on my way to Splash Mountain since it didn’t have a wait at all.



I would then travel on the Disneyland Railroad to see the new railroad route one more time. I would board the train at New Orleans Square Station.



While traveling on the new train route, I was able to have a great view of the Mark Twain Riverboat!



I would get off the train at Main Street where I would make my way over to Disney California Adventure!



I would decide to ride Monsters Inc!



It was then time to stand in line for Radiator Springs Racers! I would go in the single rider line which wasn’t that long of a wait compared to what it usually is.





It was time for me to say goodbye to Paradise Pier. Sadly, at the time I am posting this update, Paradise Pier is closed. Disney has decided to re-theme this area of the park to Pixar Pier which I am not in favor of at all. We will see how the final product is, but this is one area of the park that I thought was great the way it was. I guess Disney needs to attach an IP to everything these days.





It would then be time for my final ride on California Screamin. I would use a fastpass for this ride.



I will miss the California Screamin soundtrack so much!



I would then use a fastpass for Toy Story Midway Mania where I would get the "best in vehicle" score!







Farewell Paradise Pier! You will be missed.

My final ride in Disney California Adventure would be the Little Mermaid attraction!



It was time to head back to Disneyland!
 
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Day 6: Final Day At Disneyland - Part 2!

I would make my way to the Esplanade which separates both Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and Downtown Disney.





I would make a last minute decision and head to Downtown Disney to get a smoothie at Jamba Juice. After I got my smoothie, I decided to walk to the other end of Downtown Disney just to take the monorail in.



I would end up getting a spot in the back of the monorail this time.





My next fastpass of the day was for Space Mountain. I really enjoy Dineyland’s Space Mountain a lot more than Walt Disney World’s version.



I would then make my way to Indiana Jones Adventure where I would use another fastpass.



It was then time for me to get a spot to see A Christmas Fantasy Parade one more time. I would make my way to Town Square where I was able to find a nice spot by sitting in the back. I was crunched for time, so I wanted to make sure I was at the start of the parade route.













Another attraction/show that I realized I hadn’t done yet on this trip to Disneyland was the Enchanted Tiki Room. I still don’t know how I didn’t see this until my 5th day at the park. This is one of my favorite things to see when I’m at Disneyland.





My final fastpass for this trip was for Haunted Mansion Holiday. I enjoy this overlay so much that this would be my 2nd time riding this attraction in the same day.





At this point, it was time for my to leave Disneyland. So, I would make my way to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle to say farewell to my favorite Disney Theme Park.





It’s never a “goodbye" at any Disney Theme Park. So, “see ya' real soon” Disneyland!!!

It was time for me to head to the bus stop where I would get ready for my next event that evening.
 
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Day 6: Lets Go Ducks!!!

After I said goodbye to the Disneyland Resort, it was time for me to go cheer on my favorite sports team! That team is the Anaheim Ducks! The Anaheim Ducks are an expansion franchise for the National Hockey League, and they came into the league in 1993. Now, who was the first owner of the team? That would be Disney. When the Anaheim Ducks came into the league, they were known as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Now, isn’t there a Disney movie called the Mighty Ducks? Yes there is! There is actually D2 and D3!

So, I would make my way to the Honda Center (formerly known as the Arrowhead Pond) to watch the Anaheim Ducks face-off against the Ottawa Senators!



I would arrive in time to watch the teams warm up. I would also have the best seats I have ever had. I decided to splurge a little bit and get bottom floor level seating. Normally I sit up top, but I got a real good deal on some seats in the lower level.





It was now time for the pre-game show where the mascot for the Ducks, Wild Wing, skates onto the ice to begin it all.





The pregame festivities would then begin with a cool light show before the teams skate onto the ice.





It would be time for the National Anthems. Since the Ottawa Senators are from Canada, the Canadian National Anthem (O’ Canada) would be performed before the American National Anthem (Star-Spangled Banner).







It was time for some Anaheim Ducks hockey!!!



I usually sit up there, and now I’m down here. :D



The first period would end tied at 0-0, but it was a very aggressive period by both teams.

The second period would begin, and I was able to get some pictures of our players including the goalie.





The Anaheim Ducks would score two goals in the second period to take a 2-0 lead into the 2nd intermission. You can say I was happy at this point since my team was winning with 20 minutes to go.





It was time for the 3rd period! Would the Ducks win the game? Would Ryan Miller (Ducks goalie) complete the shutout? Would the Ottawa Senators score a goal? It would all come down to the final 20 minutes.





The Anaheim Ducks would score a 3rd goal due to the Ottawa Senators pulling their goalie for an extra attacker.



The Anaheim Ducks would win tonight’s game over the Ottawa Senators by a score of 3-0!!!









After a great win for the Ducks, it was time for me to leave the Honda Center.





I did come to the game with a really good friend of mine. So, after we got to my rental car, I would take him home before heading back to my hotel.

It was really getting late so I would head to bed knowing that I had a long travel day ahead of me the next day.
 

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