The childers are now 3 and 7 so it was time to banish old ghosts and bring them to Disneyland. I was on a school tour back there when I was 14 and I spent my time in Frontier Land outside Big Thunder Mountain. Now out of all the roller coasters in the park , this one was the least scary considering Space Mountain put you upside down and Indiana Jones looed like hell. So there I was for the whole day in the rain deciding whether to go through with it. Now at that age and being from rural Ireland, the closest I had come to a roller coaster was the swinging boats at a local Strawberry fair and I found these terrible so this was a big deal to me. I chickened out in the end and suffered the abuse of a class full of 15 year olds who had went on it so I had a few psychological skeletons to banish on this trip.
We were staying in Newport Bay , the nautically themed hotel which was beautiful and well laid out. It was also massive and one of the Disney Characters would pop around every evening for a meet and greet which was bigger than I imagined. Grown adults with no children well rubbing their knees in anticipation to get a hug with a Disney character. Something I found a bit strange but went along with anyway.
Anyway the youngest is 3 so we spend a couple of days doing the cups and saucers and the small little rides which were great. Disneyland is huge and well done. The parades were great and so were the shows in the Disney Studios which is a new addition since my last venture there. In this park there is a great cars and Toy Story theme going on as well as the Avengers. I think there is a Frozen land in the pipeline as well.
Back to the park it is made up of
Frontierland , Adventureland, Discoveryland and my little ones favouites Fantasyland as all the rights are not scary and they are great fun. My 7 year old loved it there so we had to spend most of our time there doing the Alice in Wonderland maze, Peter Pan, The boat one about the different countries (forget the name) , the carousel, Dumbo and Mickey Mouse but she enjoyed herself. I liked Adventure Bay where you could explore the pirate caves and walk on the rickety bridge and go up in a tropical Robinson's treetop room which was nice. Discovery land then was Star wars and the Autopia which is car driving round a track. It also had a cool Buzz Lightyear ride where you shoot at aliens. The grandparents were meeting us on Day 3 so it was time to pawn the kids off and do the faster rides. Big Thunder Mountain was first on the list. Instead of queueing with the riff raff , our time without the kids was precious so we purchased fast passes to go on a couple of roller coasters and not have to wait an hour. This was great and well worth it. The time had come and I was in the seat of Big Thunder Mountain. Screw you old memories. I am conquering my little 14 year old fears and feeling good about it. Thunder Mountain was fast and it was a bit hairy on the climb. The drop was huge. When it went down however there were twists which actually made it fun. At one point you think you are going to take you head clean off but it dips just in time. I am sure they would have solved that problem before I got there anyway. Thunder Mountain was fast and I am not sure my 14 year old self would have liked it all that much. But I spend two days on cups and saucers and Dumbos that I needed a bit of a fright and excitement and it did not disappoint. Will we go on Indiana Jones I asked my wife. Nahhhhhhhh!! I was happy enough doing the one or two fast rides and then heading back to the kids.
Off we went to Disneyland studios for a couple of shows and a look around Toy Story themed land and the Avengers new section which was very cool. Disney did well buying up this franchise as it means the future of Disney for years to come. Disneyland is all very well done and very tasteful. The place is spotlessly clean and well kept. Well it would want to be for the entrance fee and the amount of people in the park. They make an absolute fortune from park fees alone before you even buy anything in the shops. Then leg it down for the end of day parade at 5.30 where all the princess and characters come together on floats and say goodbye to everyone. It is absolutely class. There is a Million Splashes of Colour parade twice a day as well which has a nice catchy song and many more parades but the end of the day one was great.
There are a number of meet and great locations also to meet your favourite characters and my kids met quite a few. Goofy, Donald, Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan and each character was very good at their actions. Remember they cannot say anything so I would say it is hard to do the actions for hours in these kind of costumes. Disney staff are also called Cast members as well and dressed impecibly in their own regions gear. So for example they are all wearing cowboy gear in Frontier Land where in Fantasy Land they wear these green capes. It most cost quite a few pound to dress 17,000 of the staff but all these details make them the best at what they do.
On Day 2 we were wrecked from Day 1 so took it a bit easier that day, The little man was wrecked from day 1 and you could see he was on the cranky side. The thumb went in his mouth around 10am which is unlike him so we took it a bit easier and stopped for more snacks. Food is actually reasonable there and you snack your way around the park. The children got money from all their relations before they went so they spent their money in the shop on teddys. The little man purchased the lad from Monsters Inc and the little one got goofy. They also got these little shoulder teddys which sat on your shoulder with a little magnet to go in under your top so they perch on top. They were great. Overall a great experience and look forward to going back in a few years time.
