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I’ll start off by warning you, this is going to be a bit of a nerd post. Su and I had some time this Monday to swing by Disneyland, and I brought my camera along. The best time to visit the parks is right now. The crowds are light and it’s the first time we’ve been back since all the Project Stardust walls came down. I don’t think we saw any construction walls in Disneyland proper for the first time in a really long time. It’s also the first time we have been back since Galaxy’s Edge “opened”. It’s under reservations until later this month (ours are in a week or so). So we decided to go see what was new and what the parks were like now that the new land is open to the public.
The first thing to note, aside from the light crowds, was the Adventureland sign is back.
Even the ducks took the whole family out to see Galaxy’s Edge.
The New Castle Paint Job
The castle has finally been unwrapped to show off its new facelift. It looks a bit like a little kid who got into their mom’s makeup. But I’m sure I’ll get used to it.
It’s bright, but actually it isn’t that bad. In fact, Su and I kind of like it! I just needed to find something to complain about because of the lack of suffocating crowds in June (Seriously, it is June, right?). We were actually able to walk into Fantasyland through the castle because the crowds were so light. We decided to check out the updated castle walkthrough.
Adventureland
We took a stroll back by Big Thunder Ranch… eeer Galaxy’s Edge, and it, again, wasn’t crowded.
We grabbed fast passes for Big Thunder Mountain.
Being that it’s June, Disneyland was operating for summer crowds. So the Columbia and the canoes were out in action.
We decided to head over to California Adventure to see how that park was faring with the galaxy’s Edge hype.
No Crowds Between the Parks
Ahhh, the summer crowds.
This is seriously the best time to visit Disneyland this summer.
There were predictions of hour long waits just to get into the parks. That hasn’t happened… yet. I’m sure it’s coming when Galaxy’s Edge opens with no reservations. But for now, it’s fantastic.
Guardians of the Galaxy
With the wider Promenades at DCA, it really felt empty.
We went from Guardians over to Pixar Pier to check it out. Still, not a lot of people. And did I mention this is in June?
Of course, our favorite path to Pixar Pier is through the bakery tour.
Walking across the bridge, I stopped to take a picture of something I’ve noticed quite a few times. It’s another, less noticed part of Project Stardust.
Pixar Pier
We made our way over to the Incredicoaster, but not before taking the obligatory “from the pier” shot.
It’s too bad the collapsable railing on the launch section of the coaster is always up now. I rarely see it in the collapsed position.
Lines, again, were not long. We got a Fastpass, But it wasn’t necessary.
It was such a short line that we waited for the front. Something we never do since the ride is great from any seat.
We headed back for the exit to get some lunch in Downtown Disney. As we went past Grizzly River Run, it was backed up. Something had shut it down for a few minutes.
Downtown Disney was a lovely walk in the light crowds. Again, amazing that it’s June and this empty.
Back to Main Street
After Lunch, we went back to Disneyland to ride Indiana Jones.
Indiana Jones Adventure
Indy had a bit of a line. But it was all inside where it should be.
One nice surprise, that I wasn’t expecting, is that the ceiling in the spike room actually moves again! It’s been ages.
Seriously, this is nuts… This is the best time to visit Disneyland this summer.
We decided to take the train from New Orleans square back to Main Street and call it a day.
While we were staying in line, we overheard a kid say that the tapping sound was Walt Disney typing out his speech. Haha, stupid kid, Walt didn’t know how to type.
The number 4 train was pulling the forward facing coaches. It always gives a good view of the backstage areas of the park. And sitting on the left side of the train, you get a great view of the first time in Disneyland history that the train makes a left turn!
It also gives you a great view of the Disneyland roundhouse in the backstage area.
The forward facing seats are great, until you get into the old Ford pavilion.
The Parking Structure
Back at Main Street it was time for us to head out. But not before taking a look at the next big Disneyland Attraction – The Pixar Pals Parking Structure.
And that wraps up our quick trip to Disneyland while not stepping foot inside Galaxy’s Edge. It’s definitely the best time we have seen to visit the Disneyland during the summer. It is a little weird knowing there is a section of Disneyland that is open that you can’t get into, but if you just pretend it’s Club 33, it’s not so bad. If you want to visit the rest of the park or DCA, now is the time.
2 Comments
Jeff
Great photos and story!
Ryan
Thanks! We’ve been having fun posting stuff.