The Happiest Place on Earth

So, the results of the expirement in shameless blog promotion are back.  It appears that selling out to corporate America is worth the occasional 77% bump in readership stats.  And since my sense of propriety is ambiguous, at best, I'll be continuing the trend.  This weeks post is brought to you by the fine folks at Disney.

Due to a remarkable lack of impulse control, we decided to go to Disneyland during the Christmas break.  Because this impulsivity is also a chronic problem, this will make our third trip to the magic kingdom in 3 years.  We've learned quite a bit about it by now, but I think we learned the most on this most recent trip.  The most important difference in this trip is that Big Red is still recovering from ACL surgery last month, and was in a leg brace and using a cane.  This would be enough to disuade a normal person.  But not us.  We borrowed a wheel chair from a neighbor so that Kellie wouldn't have to walk, which would have caused painful swelling in her leg.  We didn't really know what to expect as far as accomodations for the handicapped, but we went to Town Hall (to your left immediately as you enter Town Square) and asked.  They told us that the wheelchair is our handicap pass and that we should go to any cast member at the attraction, and they would direct us to the handicapped accomodations for that ride.  In most cases, that accomodation is that you enter the ride thru the exit, wait in a very short, though slow moving line of other gimps, and board there.  Most rides we only waited 5-10 minutes.  That.  Is. Awesome.  On the other hand, many of the newer rides queues have been built to accomodate wheelchairs.  In particular, Big Red's favorite Tower of Terror has no accelerated boarding for the disabled.  Not even if you whine about it.  (oh, but on that subject, we have noticed that the length of that line is affected greatly by any parades at the front of the park, or by the Alladin show.  Try to show up just before the end of either or both of those at the same time and the wait can be as little as 10 minutes.)

Everyone knows about fast passes, and the only trick that we have learned for using them is that you should remember that you don't have to use one fast pass before you get the next.  As I recall, you can get new fast passes every 2 hours.  OK, I've noticed one more thing.  Fast Pass or no, there is no fast way to get on Space Mountain or Nemo after about noon.  On one occasion, we got a fastpass for Space Mountain at noon with a return time of 9:30.  A better bet is to get there in the first 30 minutes that the park is open, or after midnight.

The best bet for avoiding lines, and our biggest discovery this trip.... maybe ever, is the Single Rider pass.  Many rides that are built specifically to hold 2 or three people have Single Rider queues.  These are for people who don't have someone to ride with, and can take any empty seat.  Now, before you tell me that you can't take that, because you are with your family, keep this in mind.  Do you want to stand in line at the California Screamer with your family for an hour, before your 3 minute ride?  Or would you rather spend 3 minutes in line, possibly with the same family, take an odd seat, and spend the next hour watching a parade or eating?  On this last trip, Mikayla and I both rode California Screamer 3 times in about 30 minutes.  Words cannot describe the awesome.  (Or the backache.)

Our other big discovery came on our first recent trip, 2 years ago.  We had waited at Space Mountain for about an hour, and just as we were approaching the front, they closed the ride.  FOR THE REST OF THE DAY.  No passes, no nothing.  Just out of luck.  So we went to Town Hall and complained.  Well, it turns out that was the right thing to do.  Not only were they interested in our complaint, but they gave us buttons that said (I think) VIP.  And a couple of fastpasses.  And, we mentioned that both of the kids had a birthday the next week, and they gave them buttons that said Happy Birthday.  Big deal, right?  Well, for the rest of the trip, EVERY SINGLE cast member that saw the kids would wish them Happy Birthday.  We even saw one cast member cross the street just to wish them a happy birthday.  THAT was fun.

Another thing we learned on this trip is that there is SERIOUSLY no cheap food in that place.  We feel like it is worth the time and trouble to leave the park and get fast food, and re-enter.  There used to be a VERY busy Denny's across the street, but that place is a parking lot now.  There are a few places in Downtown Disney that are slightly cheaper than in the park.  If you can't stand to leave, get the car, eat, and park again, the only alternative that we have found is Pizza Oom Mow Mow in California Adventures.  The single slices aren't that great a deal, but they sell a whole pizza for $32, which, when split 5 ways, gives you about twice as much pizza for the same price as a slice.

Oh.  And one last thing that I just remembered. From October until January, the Haunted House is redecorated in The Nightmare Before Christmas motif.  Possibly over decorated.  If you like Jack, the Pumpkin King, be sure to go between Halloween and Christmas.

Next post, I think I will sing the praises of Priceline.com, which made this trip possible.