My Disneyland trip

[enworldatemylogin]

Last time I was at Disneyland was more than 5 years ago and the submarine ride was gone then, or maybe it was just closed. I really would like another ride like that.

I've heard about the changes to Pirates of the Caribbean. Lame.

The whole Tom Sawyer and steam boat thing I've never experienced, everytime I went with the family they chose other areas. I'd bet they wont impress me at this age.

But you gotta ride "It's a Small World"

 

[MrFilthyIke]

A shame, I have only been to Disney WORLD in Orlando, but Tom Sawyer is my fondest disney memory, I still have two rifles and two pistols from when I was a kid that I bought at the Frontierland area store.

 

[Teflon Billy]

...You actually sound disappointed that It's a Small World wasn't working... I just wish I had helped in disabling it....

All those little shiny faces, singing over and over and over and over again. "It's a small world after all"

The only reason I'm here at all is because I felt that a trip to Disneyland was a nice touchstone for my kids (I know it was a really nice memory for me when I was around their age).

It's a Small World is pretty much the kind of thing they seek out in their Day-today lives: Flashy, Doll-focused and Musical.

 

[stevelabny]

i went to DisneyWORLD last summer for the first time in 17 years, and although i did question some of the changes, overall I still had fun.

Of course, knowing how huge it is now, and that I'd only be there for 4 days, I heavily researched it before I went, and was prepared ahead of time for certain changes. We went in mid-summer so everything was open, and because of my planned itinerary we hit almost every ride.

That seems to be the flaw in your trip..you went to Disneyland at one of the slowest times of year, when everything is closed for repair or redecorating.
It might seem like you'll avoid crowds, but in reality, the bigger summer weekday crowds are serviced by longer hours and more "cars" on each ride.

Any Disney nut who reads this thread and wants a very long-winded play by play of a cynical NYers trip to Disneyworld can go here...

the hotel and mini golf and downtown disney:
http://www.intercot.com/boards/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/5/4447.html

epcot:
http://www.intercot.com/boards/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/5/4449.html

mgm:
http://www.intercot.com/boards/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/5/4453.html

magic kingdom:
http://www.intercot.com/boards/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/5/4457.html

animal kingdom:
http://www.intercot.com/boards/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/5/4475.html

yes i'm insane. this is the first disney thread i've seen though so i figure i'll pimp my old threads on my trip. theres some good planning advice in there.

 

[The Sigil]

I have one link for you.

www.yesterland.com

Describes what Disneyland was like when it was actually there as an attraction in and of itself, rather than one big, expensive, live commercial to encourage you to buy more Disney stuff.

Disney lost its soul LONG ago, I'm afraid.

 

[green slime]

25 years ago.

They managed to have everything open.

'79? Me too. As a kid on a trip to Europe from the antipodes. One and only time I've ever been to Disneyland. Man it really was sad reading your experiences. Somethings just cannot be revisited.

 

[der_kluge]

I think some are getting DisneyLAND confused with DisneyWORLD. I've been to the latter once, and never to the former.

I was in my 20s when I went to DisneyWorld, and never went as a kid. My family was too cheap for that kind of vacation. Of course, as a parent now, I completely understand, since that's uber expensive.

I must have been there around the same time that Laurel was, because Cinderall's castle was a huge cake when I was there, and yea, that kind of disappointed me as well.

Overall, I thought DisneyWorld itself was quite boring and juvenile. I thought Epcot center was pretty neat, though. And those 360 degree theaters are the coolest things - evar.


If you really want an interesting theme park, consider Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. It's got an old frontier theme, and you can watch people blow glass, or make barrels, or forge things in a working blacksmith shop - and you can buy all their wares. It's really quite educational, historical, accurate, and really done pretty well. In terms of rides, there are not a ton, but it's a neat place, and Branson has a ton of other attractions and shows to make the trip worthwhile. Plus, the area is just gorgeous.

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

If you really want an interesting theme park, consider Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. It's got an old frontier theme, and you can watch people blow glass, or make barrels, or forge things in a working blacksmith shop - and you can buy all their wares. It's really quite educational, historical, accurate, and really done pretty well. In terms of rides, there are not a ton, but it's a neat place, and Branson has a ton of other attractions and shows to make the trip worthwhile. Plus, the area is just gorgeous.

If you like this sort of thing, you need to go to Williamsburg, VA, since you are now only an hour away in Richmond. It's a great historical town, and you can actually walk around for free (but if you want to enter the buildings you need to buy a visitors pass). The College of Willam & Mary is there too, and is very pretty in it's own right. ANd a couple miles down the road, there is Busch Gardens Williamsburg where you can get your fill of all the rides you want.

 

[der_kluge]

If you like this sort of thing, you need to go to Williamsburg, VA, since you are now only an hour away in Richmond. It's a great historical town, and you can actually walk around for free (but if you want to enter the buildings you need to buy a visitors pass). The College of Willam & Mary is there too, and is very pretty in it's own right. ANd a couple miles down the road, there is Busch Gardens Williamsburg where you can get your fill of all the rides you want.

Sounds pretty neat. I'll have to keep that in mind when the family comes up.

 

[Umbran]

I just got back from a Disney "Land & Sea" vacation for my honeymoon. Three days down in DisneyWorld in Orlando, then four days at sea, visiting Nassau and Disney's "private island" Castaway Cay. I had a wonderful time.

Folks who remark about it all being a arketing machine are stating the obvious - of course it's a marketing machine. Same goes for every theme park. Disney isn't a charity, you know. They don't give you a vacation out of the goodness of their hearts. They give it to you because they get money from you. The question isn't if they're going to try to sell you things. The question is if those things give you a bit of happiness and distraction and remind you of your youth for a while.

At DisneyWorld, "It's a Small World" was closed for refurbishing. Not surprising, really. The attractions run day in and day out, for years. You'd excpect they'd need a overhaul every once in a while. October and early november are typically an off-season for theme parks, so if a numbe rof them needed work after the summer rush, you'd expect them to be down around now.