Disney California Adventure Characters

So you may have noticed that I enjoy meeting characters at the Disney parks.  ;)  A few weeks back I had about two hours in DCA to do whatever I wanted all by myself, so I set about taking as many character photos as I could.  I took all those above and more!  

Anyway, I thought people might like some tips on how to have the most efficient character experience at DCA!  If you get to these areas and don't see a character, keep an eye out for a PhotoPass photographer and/or character host.  The host can be identified by the rectangular "Ask me about Characters" buttons.  That's a good sign that a character is on their way, but you can certainly ask the host as they have the schedule.  

First up, when you enter the gates, scan to the left and right.  On the left, by Oswald's Filling Station is the newest M&G, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.  To the right, you may see Chip & Dale.  I have usually found them near the benches in front, near the trolley.  I've yet to meet Oswald, so I would make a beeline there!  Continue down Buena Vista Street and you can meet some of the Fab 5 in their 1930's garb.  Typically you will see Mickey, Goofy, or Pluto outside of Elias and Co. on the left and Trolley Treats on the right.  On very rare occasions I have seen Minnie, Donald and Daisy but that tends to be for special events.  Also wandering around are the Citizens of Buena Vista Street (Molly the Messenger, Donna and Lady, PhiPhi the Photographer, and Officer Blue).

After BVS, head towards Hollywood Land.  Over by the Animation Building, in front of the Once Upon a Time costumes, you will find Disney Junior characters like Sofia the First, Jake (Neverland Pirates) and Doc McStuffins.  A little further down I sometimes see The Incredibles characters (Mr. & Mrs. or Frozone), either on the corner or over in front of the Hyperion Theater.  Make a left to Monsters U and see if Sulley is greeting.  Remember, he doesn't sign autographs and his line often closes quickly, so don't daudle!  It's best to look for him early, I don't often see him out after 3.  If you are a Disney Visa customer, present your card at the special M&G behind the House of Cards from 10:30-1:30. Normally I see Minnie and Stitch there, but lately Daisy and Pluto have been spotted as well.  Remember to use the voucher they give you for a free 5x7!  

At this point, you can walk over to A Bug's Land.  The only character I know that meets here now is Flik.  I believe Atta used to appear as well.  There is a little area over by the watermelon of Heimlich's Chew Chew Train where he is usually to be found.  

As you leave A Bug's Land, you might see Red the Firetruck on the right, across from Luigi's Flying Tires.  I've also seen him meeting at the Cozy Cone Motel, alternating with Lightning McQueen and Mater.  Obviously none of the cars sign.  DJ also comes out for a little street show, but does not do M&G

If you've made it this far, you're doing pretty well, half way there!  Walk through Pacific Wharf up to Paradise Pier.  Duffy is no longer meeting over at Treasures in Paradise, so keep walking to the gazebo next to the Cove Bar (Ariel's Grotto).  In the past I've met Captain Mickey here, but usually it's Sailor Donald or Daisy.   Walk around towards Toy Story Midway Mania.  Across the way is a covered area where characters sometimes meet.  I've met Phineas and Ferb there, but this is not typical.  Past the boardwalk shops on the left is the Toy Story M&G, where you may see Buzz, Woody, or Jessie.  On that day, I caught Buzz and Jessie enjoying a little "Spanish mode" fun.  

Over near Paradise Garden Grill there is sometimes seasonal entertainment with character M&G, though nothing is going on right now.  For example, last Christmas they had a Mexican theme with the Three Caballeros and Mexican costumed Mickey, Goofy, etc. and for Lunar New Year Mulan and Mushu rotated with Chinese costumed characters.  

Turn left at Ariel's Undersea Adventure to Redwood Creek.  Sometimes you may see Russell or Dug meeting out near the Eureka building of Grizzly River Run.  However, usually Russell greets guests after the Wilderness Explorer Ceremony inside the Redwood Creek Challenge area.  Dug can also be found inside the entrance.  

Finally, look for the propeller plane over at Condor Flats to see Aviator Minnie.  She used to wear an Amelia Earhart type flight suit, but currently dresses in her "Fly Girls" uniform.  Goofy also used to meet here, but I haven't seen him in years.  

Well, I think that's it!  If you haven't caught all of the characters at this point, but have more time, you can always circle around back, lol!  Hope that's been helpful and maybe I'll do a little walk through of the Disneyland characters sometime.  

Do You Wanna Meet a Princess (and Queen)?

*photo from insidethemagic.net 

I had heard they were issuing return times for the Frozen meet and greet, so yesterday my friend and I stopped by and talked to Guest Services to find out more.  I haven't been inside to see Anna and Elsa since before Christmas, when the lines were still under 30 minutes (hence I had to google a picture, lol!).  While we didn't get in, we did learn some information that will be helpful for future possible visits.  

1) Go straight to the Frozen meet and greet when you arrive, preferably at opening.  We went on a Saturday and were told they were full by 9:45AM.

2) You will need to show your ticket or annual pass to get a return time.  If you are picking up for other guests, you will need their passes or tickets.  Return times are linked and not transferable.  

3) Your return time is a 20 minute window some time during the day, you must return with your ticket and get in line at this time.  

4) At this point, you will wait in line.  There may be up to 20 other people in line with you, as that's about how many tickets they issue per window.

5) There is NO STANDBY line, you MUST have a return ticket.  

6) The meet and greet seems to be running later these days, up to 8PM, so you may have to stick around or come back later in the evening than you might like.

If you don't get a return ticket for the meet and greet, you can also see Anna and Elsa on their float in the pre-parade before Soundsational.  Another tip is to have a snack inside the Village Haus restaurant.  The Arendelle royals usually walk through here on their way to break time.  They most likely won't stop for pictures or autographs, but it's more up-close than the parade.  

Halloweentime!

Yup, it's that time of year again, Halloweentime at Disneyland!  The festivities officially began this Friday, September 12, on what may be the hottest weekend of the year.  Since I haven't been to the parks in a while (I was in Maui!), I paid a visit on Saturday to see what new wonders await.  

 

Priority #1 for me:  the Conjure a Villain tent.  It is here that you can meet the Disney Villains, such as the Queen of Hearts, Jafar, Captain Hook, The Evil Queen (and her alter ego The Hag) and Maleficent.  I cannot tell you how many times I cycled through the tent last year, only to miss Maleficent.  Well, luck was on my side Saturday as I met her on my first try!  For the uninitiated, this is how it works: 1) wait in the queue, sit on hay bales; 2) enter the air conditioned (thank you jeebus!) tent, only about 30 at a time; 3) participate in a brief "show" where a villain is "conjured" via magic spell, you will not be told which villain you will meet; 4) line up for your meet and greet opportunity, line starts on the left.  While there did not appear to be anything new here, I did see a "gypsy" appear in front of the tent on occasion to entertain guests in line.  

There are also games and crafts to entertain guests of all ages if you choose to mill around.  You can check out the pumpkin carvers, I've already seen Groot, Maleficent and Han Solo in carbonite pumpkins and many more.  They continue adding to the collection all season.  The Pirates League is also set up here if you are interested in getting made up for the occasion.  

The Fab 5 and Chip and Dale also make appearances here throughout the day, dressed in their Halloween costumes.  They will stop for pictures and autographs, but every so often they do a Mask-a-Rade where they parade around with the kids and stilt walking scarecrows and witches.  

The newest major feature here is the magic show.  On this day, the magician was John George (not sure if they use different magicians).  While some of the illusions were enjoyable, it was a little bit long and at times slow, especially when we were sitting in 100 degree temps.  Also, little use was made of the scarecrows and witches who mainly just stood in front of the stage looking pretty, or "Zester," who cleared the props and made announcements.  When Sorcerer Mickey arrives, I expected the action to pick up a bit, but that just spelled the end.  All in all, I think the live music they used to have on stage was a better fit.  

We also visited the Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy.  After all the major updates to HMH last year, we didn't notice much this time around.  The current gingerbread house is actually an iron maiden, with candy spikes.  I thought GG seemed to be even faster than normal, which is not a bad thing!  I'm anticipating seeing all the hysterical children crying at the end of this one.  

If you want to visit the ranch, be sure to get over there before 6pm, as it closes well before the rest of the park.  Fastpasses are not (currently) available for HMH this year, but you can get them for SMGG, so plan accordingly!  

Haunted Mansion Prints

Can I say how much I love this set of prints?  Created for the 45th anniversary of my favorite ride, The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, the artwork represents the four portraits seen in the "Stretching Room."  

They are exclusive to four of the restaurants of Disneyland:  Tightrope Minnie at Rancho del Zocalo, Widow Daisy at Plaza Inn, Mickey and friends at River Belle Terrace, and Barrel Goofy at French Market.  They are printed on a canvas material and rolled up, they would look amazing framed!  

Unfortunately, you are required to make a single food purchase of $30 or more to buy the prints for an additional $5.  The total must be after any applicable discounts.  You may need to buy someone lunch, lol!

Surprisingly, there are a limited number of prints still available.  I have managed to talk friends into dining at three of these, so now I just need to bite the bullet and have breakfast at River Belle!  

Wreck-it-Ralph

I think Wreck-it-Ralph is one of the more underrated movies in recent Disney history.  Maybe it was too geeky, too 80s?  Like most of their movies lately, I didn't have great expectations for it beforehand, but I loved it once I watched it.  

Thus, when the Wreck-it-Ralph meet and greet opened at the Starcade in 2012, I only hopped in line because it was about 5 people deep.  At the time, the movie hadn't yet opened, so when Vanellope motioned for me to do a driving pose, I had no idea why!  I was even asked to sign a release for Disney Parks Blog, in case I was featured in their promo materials.  

I really appreciated all the work they put into revamping the Starcade for the promo, which included the meet and greet backgrounds (patterned after the outlet "stations") and refurbished classic 80s arcade games.  Unfortunately, the meet and greet closed rather prematurely, and the arcade games and decor were pushed aside to make more room for merchandise.  You can still meet Ralph and Vanellope at Walt Disney World, so it's too bad Disneyland doesn't have them.  Tomorrowland doesn't have a lot of meet and greet opportunities and the theming here was spot-on.

There are still remnants of Wreck-it-Ralph at the Starcade.  You can see the "stations," although they have faded into the background.  I believe there were originally 5 Fix-it Felix games, but last I visited, I only saw 3.  These games are actually free play, and are similar to the free app that was available.  Love it!  Lastly, for the pressed penny collectors, there is the specially themed penny machine.  Get 'em while you can!

Treats: Raspberry Rose Mickey Macaron

I've been meaning to try the new Raspberry Rose Mickey Macaron at Jolly Holiday for a couple of weeks now, and today was the day!  At first glance, you might not realize the size of this baby, but the plate is about the size of their massive cinnamon rolls, and you probably know how big those are.  Plus, look at the fresh raspberries...there must be at least 8 in there!  

Upon getting my macaron, I set about trying to eat it, lol!  I wondered if I should pick it up and eat it like an Uncrustables pb&j.  Instead, I broke off the ears, one at a time, as you do with anything Mickey shaped.  Then I broke the rest in half, savoring every chewy, creamy, sweet-tart bite.  

For $4.99 (before AP discount), this is a decadent, but reasonably priced treat, perfect for a warm summer day.  

Frozen Pre-Parade

I know, totally on the late train here, but I had never seen the Frozen pre-parade...until Sunday.  We were leaving Disneyland to head over to Ghiradelli when we saw the float round the corner onto Main Street!  Surprisingly, there didn't seem to be any music or fanfare until they had made it about halfway down the street.  We would have missed it if not for a companion turning to take one last look at the castle.    

If your little darlings just LOVE Frozen but the 2 hour wait for a meet and greet just isn't in the cards, you'll want to check this out for a glimpse of Arendellian royalty.  This pre-parade is only before the FIRST run of Soundsational, so make sure to check the park schedule.  (**I recently caught the parade on 9/13 and they have added it to the second run as well!). The float makes it's way along the main parade route from It's a Small World to Town Square, some good last minute viewing spots include the Main Street train station and The Mad Hatter.  

In other Frozen news, it appears that shops in the parks are fully stocked with merchandise now.  Previously hard to find items like the dolls were readily available on Sunday afternoon, even Elsas.