Believe in the Magic: 7+ Days at Disneyland Resort

cdatkins

Mouseketeer
Joined
May 30, 2011
Just sitting in the airport waiting to fly home, and put some thoughts together about what we loved, liked, and what could have been better after a week+ at the Disneyland Resort. We stayed at the GCH.

Summary: amazing trip. Everyone young and old had a great time.

Bottom line is the magic definitely exists at Disneyland Resort and, biggest surprise of all, there is most definitely a “Disney bubble” if you stay onsite.

Here are our general thoughts, will probably go into a bit more detail in some other posts.

Thanks to everyone here for all the amazing tips and information that helped make our trip so magical!

Disneyland 2019

Loved: Galaxy’s Edge (Smugglers Run/Savi/Droid Depot/Cantina), Fantasyland (always magical), River Belle Terrace Fantasmic Premium Dining (we had a table right on the rail), Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout (amazing, never laughed so hard in a ride before), Napa Rose (pricey but amazing), Grand Californian Hotel (location and /pool), Wine Country Trattoria (amazing value), Cars Land (impresses us every single time - also the Luigi dancing ride was a hit with the kids), Cafe Orleans (amazing taste and value), Carnation Cafe breakfast (amazing taste and value and love the location on Main Street), Hyperspace Mountain (better than the normal ride in some ways), Storytellers character breakfast (went early around 7:30 and got to see all the characters multiple times), Plaza Inn character breakfast (tons of great characters and decent food), Package shipment back to GCH (a nice convenience), Carthay Circle dinner (amazing pork chop), Mandarin Spa (too bad it’s closing!), generally the close proximity of everything at Disneyland is amazing, the Disney “bubble” definitely exists at Disneyland, Walk in Walt’s footsteps tour, the accommodation at Turtle Talk after my son did not get called on - CM followed us outside and asked if she could make it right - next show they called on my son second (FYI he is on the spectrum and cried hard after he was the only kid not called in during the first show we attended)

Liked: Steakhouse 55 (food was good but almost as expensive as Napa Rose), Carnation Cafe dinner (good but not great, decent value though), padded seats on Matterhorn (finally!), walkways were not as busy as before, Disneyland fireworks (good show but missed seeing Tinkerbell fly)

Could have been better: Blue Bayou (poor service and could not see food), FastPass entrance control (every fastpass line is a logjam where the guests scan their barcodes), no Star Tours variance (got the same ride 3x), Autopia (behind slow driver), Storytellers dinner (no longer offers a menu), Droid Depot lack of items in stock (droid backpack and personality chips), temperature in Grand Californian main area (way too cold), need more accessible laundry location in GCH, would have preferred a locked off bathroom area in GCH room, no drink service at Plaza Inn (missed kids with characters three times when getting own drinks) and had to tell CMs that coffee was out, Indiana Jones sound and ride elements (could not understand Salah or Indy, some rooms seemed like they were missing elements), could not take CBD oil into parks, line at GCH store was always long, World of Color needs a new show (same as 2014), no Rise of the Resistance ride
 
Thank you, I love reading about peoples experiences!! Sounds like you had a great trip! Glad to hear about the bubble. I've been to Disneyland quite a few times but never stayed on site. We stayed on site for our first WDW trip last year and I was blown away. So we booked at the DLH to see if we could get the same type of feel.

What was the longest you waited for Smugglers run?

I really want to do the Walk in Walts Footsteps tour. I'm trying to talk my husband into it. Did you do the morning one or the noon one?
 
Thank you, I love reading about peoples experiences!! Sounds like you had a great trip! Glad to hear about the bubble. I've been to Disneyland quite a few times but never stayed on site. We stayed on site for our first WDW trip last year and I was blown away. So we booked at the DLH to see if we could get the same type of feel.

What was the longest you waited for Smugglers run?

I really want to do the Walk in Walts Footsteps tour. I'm trying to talk my husband into it. Did you do the morning one or the noon one?

Glad you enjoyed the trip report!

My youngest is on the spectrum so we were able to use the DAS for return times for smugglers run. Before he could work up the courage to ride, we waited about 60 minutes in the standby. The times were anywhere from 40-90 minutes while we were there.

They were only offering the afternoon tour times. Really fun. Especially for seeing Walt's apartment.
 


What a great trip! We are debating staying on property when we go in 2020. What makes it worth paying 2x the price of one of the hotels across the street? When I say we, I mean I am sold but I need to convince my husband ;-)

Also, I am surprised to hear that about WOC. We've never seen it - it was closed when we were there in November, so I assumed it would be different now.
 
What a great trip! We are debating staying on property when we go in 2020. What makes it worth paying 2x the price of one of the hotels across the street? When I say we, I mean I am sold but I need to convince my husband ;-)

Also, I am surprised to hear that about WOC. We've never seen it - it was closed when we were there in November, so I assumed it would be different now.
If you go in November again you can go to dapper days and qualify for their hotel discount rate.
 


What a great trip! We are debating staying on property when we go in 2020. What makes it worth paying 2x the price of one of the hotels across the street? When I say we, I mean I am sold but I need to convince my husband ;-)

Also, I am surprised to hear that about WOC. We've never seen it - it was closed when we were there in November, so I assumed it would be different now.


So I would not pay the 2x unless you are doing the GCH. You get your own security line into DTD (which doubles as a security line into Disneyland Park) and your own entrance into DCA. Those two things are worth quite a lot.

GCH also has the shortest walk of any hotel unless maybe you are staying at a hotel right next to the iHOP on Harbour, and even then you have to get across Harbour and through the security.

You get magic morning every day of your trip, versus I think once on a multi-day ticket. The parks are quite deserted during that magic morning.

You can have your packages sent back to the GCH instead of carrying them around with you.

You have access to an amazing pool area with the most comfy lounge chairs I have every been in, a waitress which will bring you drinks or food right to your chair, and umbrellas that keep you out of the sun during the hot afternoons.

Most of all, and related to that last point, it’s super easy to come back from the parks to the GCH in the afternoon for a 3-4 hour break. That makes the rest of the day much more fun and manageable.
 
here are some more details about Galaxy’s Edge that I put together on the long plane ride back home today:

Disneyland 2019 - Galaxy’s Edge

While we were overdue for a Disney vacation, the primary reason we went to Disneyland in summer 2019 was because Galaxy’s Edge would be open there first. We made our reservations for July because that month was best for our schedule, and then we decided to keep our reservations when it was announced that Galaxy’s Edge would open on May 31.

Since we were there for a week, we got to visit Batuu several times. We spent two entire mornings there, and went back on a couple of evenings for brief visits.

While we were certainly excited to go, we had several apprehensions as well. First, we are more fans of the original and prequel films (and the stand alones like Rogue One and Solo). While we like the sequel trilogy films AS films, we are a little less enamored with the overall story. So the fact the entire land was themed based on the sequel trilogy did not get us excited in a way that a land based on the original trilogy would have. Second, we were not sure how well our littler kids would enjoy the land: would Smugglers Run be too much for them, would they enjoy the “lived in” atmosphere, would they actually like building a lightsaber and a droid, would there be food they would eat, etc.

Happily I would report that our apprehensions proved to be wrong, and we greatly enjoyed Galaxy’s Edge - enough that we went back several times over the course of the week. Here are some thoughts on each element:

Smuggler’s Run: a really great ride. Most of us did all three types of roles, and since we were a party of 5, we always had the pick of which roles to do. Pilot and Co-Pilot are definitely the best, because you have eyes on the screen the entire time. The flight controls are very sensitive, however, and over steering is very easy to do. Gunner was probably my least favorite, as its basically just pushing a single button as fast as you can most of the time. Engineer was surprisingly fun, as you never knew when you would be needed, and you had to hit different buttons in rapid succession and all while the ship was rocking around. It certainly was not easy! Overall a really great ride, certainly the next evolution of what they have done with Star Tours. I will say it’s not a headliner though for an entire land expansion, which makes me think Rise of the Resistance will be the headliner. I would like to see them vary the missions that you go on, to really make it feel like Star Tours 2.0.

Savi’s Workshop: pricey but you are paying for the experience, not the lightsaber. And the experience really pulls at the Star Wars heart strings. The CMs do a great job of leading the build, and really set the tone early by quietly ushering everyone in. The CM taking payment even stopped and asked me to put my credit card away when some stormtroopers came by - that was cool. The lightsabers themselves are really nice and strike a nice balance between being just a heavy ornament and the play type lightsabers. I will say that we had some issues with my middle son’s and had to take it back and they fixed it right up for us. Really recommended if you have the $$. My only meta thought about Savi’s is - will it last? Will there be a steady stream of people willing to pay $200 for a lightsaber? Because I know if we go back we won’t do it again.

Droid Depot: not as pricey as Savi’s, but the experience itself is not as great, although you get a more functional items as a result. The assembly line is genius and really builds anticipation at the same time that you get to see all the different options at once. Both my sons built droids - one built a replica of BB-9E from The Last Jedi and the other built a unique looking BB droid. I was kind of disappointed they did not want to build an Astromech but oh well. Unlike Savi’s you are a little more on your own for this one the CMs are just there to guide, until the end when they walk you through activating your droid. And also unlike Savi’s, I could see us building a new droid every time we go. So thumbs way up here.

Cantina: I was really unsure we would even get to experience this, but we got in twice - once when all 5 of us went, and then another time when I took my oldest back. When we walked in, Rex was playing music that sounded similar to the original Cantina music, so that just made the ambience for us. The drinks and snacks were literally out of this world, though my two youngest just got water and lemonade. I was amazed they had something called “Gold Squadron Lager” because my favorite ship from Star Wars is the Y-Wing (SW fans you will understand this!). Oga’s Obsession was very unique and tasty. When we went back the second time, my oldest got the Blue Bantha which turned out to be her favorite version of Blue Milk because it was smooth and already melted. And when I was there with my oldest the second time, they played the original cantina music from Star Wars which was a nice treat.

Food/Snacks: so this is where Galaxy’s Edge fell a little short for us overall. We had breakfast at Docking Bay 7 and although we thought it was good, it is definitely different and our two youngest found nothing on the menu they wanted. We did not try Docking Bay 7 for lunch or dinner. The popcorn was really, really weird and I was the only 1 of 5 that liked it at all and I did not like it well enough to have it again. Only 2 of us liked the blue milk (my oldest and I really liked it) and none of us liked the green milk. We did not try Ronto Roasters because there was nothing that looked interesting to us. They really need a table service restaurant here as well - and I have read rumors they have room for it (in fact, there appears to be a door sort of across from the cantina that looks like it could lead to a space where they could have a restaurant or another attraction of some kind).

Characters: really great character interactions. First, we loved the fact that the Stormtroopers harassed every one. That happened constantly. We also observed the mini show where Kylo Ren and the Stormtroopers search for the Resistance. There are some really funny lines between Kylo and the Stormtroopers if you listen closely. We saw Rey once and she was terrific but she stays on the move a lot and rarely stops. Chewbacca was amazing and he stopped to visit with my oldest. Overall the characters were really great.

Play Disney: we did this a little bit and had a blast. We wish we had allocated more time to do it, and complete a job. But this is something we will definitely look forward to when we go back.

General look and feel: just amazing. The ships are really cool, especially the Falcon of course. There are so many little things that we were noticing, like a rack of micro binoculars, a dianoga in a tank above a water fountain, inside the Falcon you can see the switch that Leia was trying to throw before Han put the moves on her in Empire Strikes Back. Just so many little details like this that are awesome to see for Star Wars fans.

Well that is really long but I think it fairly summarizes our views on Galaxy’s Edge, overall we cannot wait to go back!
 
In regards to Savi's lightsabers, I think it just depends. My friend's boyfriend made one last week and he says over time he plans to make all 4 designs ($800 in lightsabers :scared1:). He has a pass so he can go whenever and make one. He wants to display them in his house.We think he's crazy lol
 
Great TR, thank you.
I still love Indy but yes, some elements have been removed over the years. I had to google after my trip a few years ago to see what was different from my previous trip but it’s still a great ride.
All the best.
 
Great TR, thank you.
I still love Indy but yes, some elements have been removed over the years. I had to google after my trip a few years ago to see what was different from my previous trip but it’s still a great ride.
All the best.

It is still a great ride but I rode it in late 2014 or 2015 after a good refurb and it was amazing and that is my frame of reference. I mean if you can’t even understand what the main character is saying at the beginning or the end, does the ride have a story? It just seems like stuff like that should be table stakes for the ride. IMHO
 
What a great trip! We are debating staying on property when we go in 2020. What makes it worth paying 2x the price of one of the hotels across the street?..
If you go in November again you can go to dapper days and qualify for their hotel discount rate.
For anyone who wants to use the Dapper Days convention rate, please support the convention by buying tickets to the Dapper Days Expo and by buying merchandise (either on the DD website or at the Expo). This prevents abuse of the discount rates.
 
It is interesting that security has started asking about CBD products at bag check this summer. I don't remember them asking about this earlier this year. But they have started being more consistent about asking and checking for CBD products and telling guests to return those products to the car or to their hotel rooms. I don't use or carry any CBD products, but security CMs have been curious about my Aveda products a few times.
 
... Summary: amazing trip. Everyone young and old had a great time.

Bottom line is the magic definitely exists at Disneyland Resort and, biggest surprise of all, there is most definitely a “Disney bubble” if you stay onsite...
So glad that you and your family had a great trip!
 
I'm glad you had a great trip! I would love to stay at the GCH someday, maybe when I win the lottery. :rotfl:

I've never understood the complaints about it being too dark in Blue Bayou. That just hasn't been my experience at all. For a few minutes in the beginning I suppose that's the case, but once my eyes have adjusted to the dark I can see pretty well. But, I'm also sensitive to bright lights - my husband complains because I almost never turn the lights on at home. So maybe I can also see better in the dark?

I totally agree about the sound in Indy. I swear it didn't used to be that bad. I have no clue what he's saying anymore.
 
7 days!?!?! Man, that sounds great. I got to do that a few times when we had our APs. Instead of the typical 5 day PH pass, staying 7 days with maybe a trip to a concert or a beach during the week made it an awesome trip.

Glad you experienced the "bubble". I still have not felt that at DL. I've stayed at PPH and DLH, and didn't feel it there. I would imagine with the "escape" feeling you'd get at GCH with the lodge feeling, plus the proximity to the parks, that would be the ultimate bubble feeling. Should I ever get to the point where I can part with money for rooms THAT expensive, maybe I can get that feeling, too. But...for that kind of money, I can fly the family to WDW where I know I'd get the bubble.

And I'm with you on the FP queues. They're an absolute mess getting into and then piling up. They seem to give away way too many now.
 
7 days!?!?! Man, that sounds great. I got to do that a few times when we had our APs. Instead of the typical 5 day PH pass, staying 7 days with maybe a trip to a concert or a beach during the week made it an awesome trip.

Glad you experienced the "bubble". I still have not felt that at DL. I've stayed at PPH and DLH, and didn't feel it there. I would imagine with the "escape" feeling you'd get at GCH with the lodge feeling, plus the proximity to the parks, that would be the ultimate bubble feeling. Should I ever get to the point where I can part with money for rooms THAT expensive, maybe I can get that feeling, too. But...for that kind of money, I can fly the family to WDW where I know I'd get the bubble.

And I'm with you on the FP queues. They're an absolute mess getting into and then piling up. They seem to give away way too many now.

We took it real slow over the 7 days. We would do a single land in the morning, then go back to the GCH for rest and swimming when it got hot. Then dinner and some select shows and attractions in the evening. Made for a nice relaxing week.
 

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