special events - 3/3 - TouringPlans.com Blog

All photos copyright Disney

The Disneyland Resort celebrated a special date last week. Did you bake a cake?

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Friday 7/20 was a 9 out of 10 at the resort, with DCA crowds at only 6.3.

Busiest Day: Tuesday 7/17 was a 10 out of 10 at the resort, with DCA crowds at 9.7.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

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The Australian Today Show broadcasted from Disneyland last week.

Disneyland Resort began settling into summer operations last week, with slightly smaller (but still substantial) crowds following mid-June’s well-publicized festivities.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Friday 6/29 was a 7 out of 10 at the resort overall, with Disneyland Park at only 3.3 and DCA at 9.0.

Busiest Day: Saturday 6/30 was a 9 out of 10 at the resort overall, with Disneyland Park at 6.8 and DCA at 9.3.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

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4th of July Fireworks over Sleeping Beauty Castle

As the excitement over June’s grand openings fades into memory, we are entering the first full month of regular operation at the new and improved Disneyland Resort, which is expected to continue to set new attendance records all summer long. The celebrities have gone home, but the crowds are still strong, so strap in for our monthly Anaheim update.

All photos copyright Disney.

Crowd Calendar

The Touring Plans crowd calendar pegs every single day in June as a “10 out of 10″ on our historical scale, so if you are visiting we advise arriving extra-early with your ticket and touring plan in hand.

Quietest Day: There will be no “quiet” days until after the summer, with peak crowds daily at DCA, but Disneyland Park will be “only” a 7.3 on July 7. Look for Saturdays to be slightly slower due to Annual Pass blackouts.

Busiest Day: Every day this month will be mobbed, but July 27 should be the busiest with a 10 in DCA and a 9.6 at Disneyland.

Subscribe to the Touring Plans Disneyland Crowd Calendar for full details on predicted attendance for the next 30 days.

Read the rest of this entry »

Welcome to the final May 2012 installment of “Last Week at Disneyland Resort,” as we race towards the Disney California Adventure relaunch next month. Hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! Here’s what just happened at the Happiest Place on Earth:

Crowd Calendar

Last week was the final “slow” week before the big buildup to the June 15 grand openings. Don’t expect to see lines that short again until long after summer.

Quietest Day: Tuesday May 22 (3 out of 10)

Busiest Day: Saturday May 26 (predicted 8 out of 10, actual 9)

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for full details on projected wait times for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• The final after-hours Passholder parties for Fantasmic! were held on May 21 and 22.
• Grad Nights were held on May 23-25.
• New television commercials, depicting Buzz Lightyear detecting “high levels of happiness” at Disneyland Resort, were released.
• Disneyland Resort announced it would offer Extra Magic Hours early theme park entry to on-site hotel guests beginning June 18. The program is similar to the current Magic Morning early entry, which will still be offered to purchasers of “bonus” parkhopper tickets. Extra Magic Hours will allow guests at Disneyland’s 3 hotels to enter Disneyland Park on Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and Disney California Adventure on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, one hour before the official opening time.

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

Disneyland Park

• Matterhorn Bobsleds remain closed until June 15.
• Frontierland Shootin’ Exposition reopened after a month-long refurbishment. The game is essentially unchanged.
• The special summer edition of The Magic, The Memories, and You! debuted May 25 on the it’s a small world facade. Images of sandcastles and surfing Sport Goofy are now integrated into the nightly video projection show.

Disney California Adventure

• Construction walls came down around the Carthay Circle theatre and fountain in preparation for DCA’s June 15 relaunch.
• More photos were released depicting life-sized Mater and Lightning McQueen characters amid the neon lights along Route 66 inside the under-construction Cars Land.
• New entertainment offerings featuring Chip and Dale, Goofy, and Cars characters were announced.
• Soft opening was held for the Mad T Party, a “hip” dance party inspired by Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, featuring costumed performers, a live band, specialty drinks, and custom games and merchandise.
• The Cove Bar reopened at Ariel’s Grotto.

Downtown Disney and Hotels

• Construction continues on WonderGround art gallery and Earl of Sandwich.
• The newly refurbished LEGO store held a Master Builder Event to celebrate their grand reopening. Guests could help assemble a model of “Brickley the Sea Serpent.”
• New souvenir cocktail glasses are available at Trader Sam’s at the Disneyland Hotel.

Elsewhere

• Transformers: The Ride officially opened at Universal Studios Hollywood. The 3-D dark ride/simulator hybrid has received rave reviews.

All photos copyright Disney

Welcome to the first monthly installment of This Month at Disneyland, TouringPlans.com‘s regular round-up of upcoming events and operations in and around the Anaheim resort. If you are planning a visit to Disneyland in the next 30 days, this is your one-stop-shop for imminent information that may impact your vacation.

In addition to Disneyland.com and the Official Disney Parks Blog, much of the following news and photography comes courtesy of our friends at MousePlanet and MiceAge. Visit those sites for more images and up-to-the-minute updates.

Crowd Calendar

May may be your last best chance for crowd-free touring at Disneyland in 2012, since we expect the resort to be packed following California Adventure’s relaunch in mid-June. Weekdays this May should be especially low-key, with growing wait times on the weekends building towards Memorial Day.

• Quietest Days: Resort attendance should be lowest (1 out of 10) on May 3 and 7-9.
• Busiest Days: Resort attendance should be highest (8 out of 10) on May 25-28.

Subscribe to the Touring Pans Disneyland Crowd Calendar for full details on predicted attendance for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• Disneyland celebrates Cinco de Mayo on May 5. Look for decorations around Rancho del Zocalo, and a special menu at Tortilla Joe’s in Downtown Disney.
• AIDS Services Foundation of Orange County holds a charity walk at Disneyland early on the morning of May 6.
• On May 10, Disney Legend Alice Davis will receive a long-deserved tribute window on Main Street USA. The Imagineer was responsible for the costume designs of classic attractions including Pirates of the Caribbean and it’s a small world. Her window will be next to the one honoring her husband, late Imagineer Marc Davis.
• To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Fantasmic! on May 13, Disneyland is holding after-hours parties for Annual Passholders on May 14, 15, 21, & 22.
• Grad Nights return on May 10 & 11, 16-18, 23-25, 30 & 31. Expect large platoons of busses delivering hordes of teenagers to the resort for all-night parties on those evenings.

Opening, Closures, and Refurbishments

Disneyland

• The candy store, Penny Arcade, and Gibson Girl ice cream parlor on Main Street USA reopen on May 2 following a major refurbishment. Carnation Cafe remains closed until June 2.
• The Carnation Plaza Gardens closed forever on April 30, to be transformed into the Princess Fantasy Faire in 2013. Saturday swing dancing will be relocated to Downtown Disney in the interim.
• Beginning May 2, the Frontierland Festival Arena stage will become home to the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree, with characters and crafts Friday-Sunday. This will also be where school musical groups perform.
• Matterhon Bobsleds remain closed for a major overhaul until June 15.
• Indiana Jones Adventure is closed for a quick refurb on May 1&2.
• Enchanted Tiki Room is closed May 7-10.
• Frontierland Shooting Exposition is closed now through May 25.
• A new summertime sandcastle sequence featuring “Phineas and Ferb” will be added to the Magic, Memories, and You show starting May 25.

Disney California Adventure

• Ariel’s Grotto restaurant is closed through May 3, and the attached Cove Bar is closed through June 1.
• Ariel’s Undersea Adventure is closed through May 3.
• Goofy’s Sky School is closed May 7-17.
• Buena Vista Street and Cars Land remain under construction until June 15, though some soft-openings are possible later in the month.

Downtown Disney

• The large LEGO Imagination store is under refurbishment, with no exact reopening date announced. The temporary LEGO store in the former home of Island Charter will become the WonderGround art gallery on June 9.
• Compass Books and Coffee is permanently closed, and will be replaced by Earl of Sandwich later this summer.
• The Sunglass Icon store is being remodeled and will reopen later this summer.

Other Area Attractions

• Transformers: The Ride officially opens on May 25th at Universal Studios Hollywood. The new 3-D dark ride is currently running in soft-opening; read the rave reviews on MiceChat here.