Disney unveils plans for Star Wars Lands at Disneyland and Disney’s Hollywood Studios during the the D23 Expo in Anaheim, including new attractions…
Archive for Disneyland
Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort Adds Spookiness To the Sparkle of the Diamond Celebration
Frightfully good fun adds to the excitement of the Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration this autumn, as the Halloween season arrives at the resort Sept. 11 and runs through Nov. 1. The annual, family-friendly Halloween experience includes spooky transformations of Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain, plus special décor, themed foods and merchandise. In addition, the separate-ticket Mickey’s Halloween Party offers guests an opportunity to visit in costume and trick-or-treat throughout Disneyland Park, on 17 selected nights.
Haunted Mansion Holiday in New Orleans Square has become a thrilling Disneyland Halloween tradition, with Jack Skellington from the Walt Disney Pictures classic “Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas” moving into the Mansion to spark a collision between Halloween and Christmas. As in past years, some eerie new touches have been added to the Haunted Mansion Holiday experience. The Hatbox Ghost, who recently rejoined the Mansion’s happy haunts, is staying to celebrate Halloween and Christmas with Jack Skellington and his friends.
Inside the Mansion, the 15th annual Haunted Mansion Holiday gingerbread house resembles a leaning and careening “house of cards” this year. A corps of zombie gingerbread men in orange-frosting safety vests stands beneath the towering confection to supervise construction while a team of “helicopter bats” hover above the teetering tower. The “helicopter bats” are lowering spiders that will add the final gingerbread cards to the tower from their sticky, suspended webs.
Another Halloween favorite is Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy, a Halloween-themed reimagining of the popular thrill ride in Tomorrowland. Guests on board the speeding Space Mountain vehicles are thrust into a ghostly galaxy where they are bombarded with eerie screams, sound effects and music. Spine-chilling spirits pop out of the darkness, appearing to reach out and menace space travelers.
In Frontierland, guests will enjoy the observation of the traditional Mexican “Dia de los Muertos” celebration with a skeleton display near Rancho del Zocalo restaurant.
The popular separate-ticket, after-hours Mickey’s Halloween Party returns this year, expanding to 17 nights beginning Friday, Sept. 25, with an array of special entertainment. For the first time, the “Paint the Night” parade, which made its debut in May for the Diamond Celebration, will be presented during this special event. In addition, the “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular and the “Monsters U Dance Party” at Tomorrowland Terrace are exclusive to Mickey’s Halloween Party.
Tickets for Mickey’s Halloween Party* may be purchased online and on mobile devices at Disneyland.com/party, as well as at the Disneyland Resort main gate and by phone at 714-781-4400. Guests may check online for availability for the 17 nights: Friday, Sept. 25; Monday, Sept. 28; Wednesday, Sept. 30; Friday, Oct. 2; Monday, Oct. 5; Wednesday, Oct. 7; Friday, Oct. 9; Monday, Oct. 12: Wednesday, Oct. 14; Friday, Oct. 16; Monday, Oct. 19; Thursday, Oct. 22; Friday, Oct. 23; Sunday, Oct. 25; Tuesday, Oct. 27; and Thursday, Oct. 29. Online and mobile purchases are not available the day of the event.
Tickets purchased in advance are available at a discount on select nights. Tickets purchased on the day of the event are $77 each. All tickets to Mickey’s Halloween Party on Thursday, Oct. 29, are $84 each. Mickey’s Halloween Party is a non-smoking event. Smoking will be permitted only in the Esplanade outside the Disneyland main entrance.
Throughout Halloween Time at Disneyland Resort, guests also will be able to enjoy the 60th Anniversary Diamond Celebration with its sparkling enhancements on Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland and the Carthay Circle Theatre in Disney California Adventure, plus a dazzling array of after-dark shows. In Disneyland, the “Paint the Night” parade creates a river of color down Main Street, U.S.A., with spectacular special effects, sensational floats, energetic performances and unforgettable music. The “Disneyland Forever” fireworks show in Disneyland lights up the resort with dynamic pyrotechnics and magical projections that surround the audience.
In Disney California Adventure, the Diamond Celebration comes alive in “World of Color – Celebrate! The Wonderful World of Walt Disney.” The magical water show – filled with film, lasers, music and special effects – pays tribute to Walt Disney with colorful fun and surprises, honoring the man whose fertile imagination led to the creation of Disneyland and so many beloved characters.
Halloween thrill-seekers will enjoy visiting Disney California Adventure to sample year-round excitement on California Screamin’ roller coaster, Radiator Springs Racers, Soarin’ Over California and Grizzly River Run. Guests may also mingle with the ghosts in The Twilight Zone™ Tower of Terror, or dance the night away in the after-dark Diamond Mad T Party.
For more information about Halloween at the Disneyland Resort, see www.Disneyland.com/Halloween. This site will be updated with frightfully fun details.
The Twilight Zone® is a registered trademark of CBS, Inc., and is used with permission pursuant to a license from CBS, Inc. ©Disney/CBS, Inc
*Tickets are subject to availability and are valid only for specific event dates and hours. Each ticket is valid for admission to the event and parking for one (1) vehicle (larger vehicles may require an additional fee) on the specified event date. Online and mobile purchases unavailable on day of event. Space is limited. Limit eight (8) tickets per person, per event date. Tickets are nonrefundable and may not be resold. Costumes subject to Disney guidelines and should not be obstructive or offensive. Ages 2 and under: no ticket required. Subject to restrictions and change without notice. Mickey’s Halloween Party is a nonsmoking event. Smoking will be permitted in designated areas outside Disneyland® Park in the Main Entrance Plaza.
Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou – New Premium Dining Experience During Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland Park
During this fall’s Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland® Resort, guests will be able to take part in a new premium dining experience – Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou.
After dinner, guests will receive a limited-edition custom lithograph featuring art from a Disney Animator. Finally, the Shadow Man bids his guests adieu as they are escorted to a special viewing area for the “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular
Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou will run from 7-9:45 p.m. during Mickey’s Halloween Party nights Sept. 25-Oct. 31, 2015. The cost is $150 per person for adults and children (ages 3-9). Tax and gratuity are included. Admission to Mickey’s Halloween Party is not included and must be purchased separately.
Disneyland designers face pressure to ensure Star Wars Land doesn’t flop
As Disneyland engineers tinker on top-secret designs for the park’s new Star Wars Land, a mothballed attraction at nearby Disney California Adventure provides….
Jungle Cruise Sunrise Safari Breakfast Experience Coming to Disneyland Park
A wild and once-in-a-lifetime experience is coming to Disneyland® Park. The Jungle Cruise Sunrise Safari Breakfast will take place on select dates from Sept. 21-Dec. 2, 2015.
Guests can head deep into the African veldt for a delicious breakfast as they join the newest batch of recruits for the world-famous Jungle Cruise attraction.
After the feast, guests will get a crash course in Jungle Skipper training before getting behind the wheel of their own boat to recite that famous spiel. Upon Initiation into the elite “Fraternal League of Secret Skippers,” guests will receive an exclusive keepsake—a tribal mask inspired by original concept art for the Jungle Cruise attraction.
The price is $300 per person, including tax and gratuity. Disneyland Park admission is not included in the tour price. Guests will be escorted out of the park at the end of their adventure. If guests have purchased admission for the park on the day of their reservation, they will be able to re-enter once the park opens.
Reservations are extremely limited and are now being accepted via Disneyland.com/dining.
Mickey’s Halloween Party Expands to 17 Nights As Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration Adds Sparkle To Halloween Time 2015
Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort receives a Diamond Celebration infusion for 2015, making the season shine as never before as Halloween Time sparkles with Diamond Celebration décor and entertainment. The one-of-a-kind celebration of chilling, family-friendly fun will begin Friday, Sept. 11, and continue through Sunday, Nov. 1, with 17 nights dedicated to Mickey’s Halloween Party.
The popular, separate-ticket Mickey’s Halloween Party expands to 17 nights beginning Friday, Sept. 25. The after-hours party treats guests to an array of special entertainment, along with traditional Halloween Time fun. For the first time, the “Paint the Night” parade, new for the Diamond Celebration, will be presented at Mickey’s Halloween Party, along with a new superhero-themed dance party at Tomorrowland Terrace. These offerings are in addition to the “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular, a guest favorite that is exclusive to Mickey’s Halloween Party. Adults and children are encouraged to dress in costume for the party as they trick-or-treat throughout Disneyland park for a scary good time.
Highlights of Mickey’s Halloween Party include:
- Early entry to Disneyland: The opportunity to play in Disneyland park for three hours before the party starts, then go trick or treating – for candy and healthy treats – in the ultimate Disney neighborhood.
- “Paint the Night – All-New Electrical Parade”: The dazzling, all-new Disneyland nighttime parade creates a river of color flowing down Main Street, U.S.A., for Mickey’s Halloween Party. The parade features favorite Disney and Disney●Pixar characters and songs, along with more than 1.5 million brilliant LED lights that flash and glow as Mickey Mouse uses his vivid imagination to “Paint the Night.”
- The “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular, hosted by “Master of Scare-omonies” Jack Skellington (presented exclusively for guests of Mickey’s Halloween Party).
- An all-new superhero-themed dance party comes to Tomorrowland Terrace. Super Goof invites all of his friends to join the party, which features a DJ, dancers, lively music and superhero dance moves. Super Goof is super-excited to host his very first dance party in Tomorrowland and he is bringing to the stage all of his special “BAM!” “POW! and “ZAP!” Guests are encouraged to show off their “superhero side,” no matter what costume they choose to wear this year.
- “Villains Square”: Throughout the evening, the Disney villains will arrive in Disneyland Town Square as the “Bad Apple Party Crashers,” riding a black horse-drawn carriage accompanied by thunder, fog and special lighting effects. These favorite wicked tricksters will appear for photos and character greetings, and guests are invited to “Party Like a Villain.”
- Enhancing the eerie atmosphere along Main Street, U.S.A., new animated Halloween images – ghosts, bats, pumpkins, skeletons – are projected on the facades of buildings throughout the evening.
- The ghoulish Cadaver Dans quartet will perform Halloween tunes aboard a drifting graveyard-themed raft on the fog-filled Rivers of America in New Orleans Square and Frontierland.
- Guests will enjoy special photo locations with popular Disney pals, plus Disney villains. For Mickey’s Halloween Party only, Disney characters will be dressed in their Halloween costumes. During the day and on non-Halloween Party nights, Disney characters will wear their special Diamond Celebration attire.
- Nearly all the favorite Disneyland rides and attractions, plus Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy, will be operating.
- Complimentary parking for one standard-size vehicle is included with the ticket.
During Halloween Time, on non-Mickey’s Halloween Party nights, Disneyland guests will see the “Paint the Night” parade along with the new Diamond Celebration “Disneyland Forever” fireworks spectacular.
Also for Halloween Time, Jack Skellington makes his annual appearance in Disneyland to take over the Haunted Mansion and bring Haunted Mansion Holiday back to New Orleans Square. This year, for the first time, Jack is joined by a fearsome new friend, the Hatbox Ghost, who took up residence in the Mansion just as the Diamond Celebration was getting underway. Haunted Mansion Holiday is inspired by the classic animated film “Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas” and transforms the Mansion with a collision of Halloween spookiness and Christmas cheer.
Spooky Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy in Tomorrowland is one of the guest favorites during Halloween Time. The unique Halloween-themed experience launches voyagers into a haunted section of the universe, where ghosts appear out of the starry darkness and swirling galaxies of Space Mountain, reaching out as if to grab guests as they speed through space. The exhilarating drops and curves are punctuated by piercing screams, creepy sound effects and haunting music.
In Frontierland, the traditional Dia de los Muertos is observed with a holiday skeleton display.
Tickets for Mickey’s Halloween Party* may be purchased online and on mobile devices at Disneyland.com/party, as well as at the Disneyland Resort main gate and by phone at 714-781-4400. Guests may check for availability for the 17 nights: Friday, Sept. 25; Monday, Sept. 28, Wednesday, Sept. 30; Friday, Oct. 2; Monday, Oct. 5; Wednesday, Oct. 7; Friday, Oct. 9; Monday, Oct. 12; Wednesday, Oct. 14; Friday, Oct. 16; Monday, Oct. 19; Thursday, Oct. 22; Friday, Oct. 23; Sunday, Oct. 25; Tuesday, Oct. 27; and Thursday, Oct. 29. Tickets for Halloween night, Saturday, Oct. 31, are sold out. Online and mobile purchases are not available the day of the event.
Tickets purchased in advance are available at a discount on select nights. Tickets purchased on the day of the event are $77 each. All tickets to Mickey’s Halloween Party on Thursday, Oct. 29, are $84 each. Mickey’s Halloween Party is a non-smoking event. Smoking will be permitted only in the Esplanade outside the Disneyland main entrance.
For more information about Halloween Time at Disneyland Resort, see www.Disneyland.com/Halloween. Entertainment and attractions are subject to change without notice. This site will be updated with frightfully fun details.
*Mickey’s Halloween Party tickets are subject to availability and are valid only for specific event dates and hours. Each ticket is valid for admission to the event and parking for one (1) vehicle (larger vehicles may require an additional fee) on the specified event date. Space is limited. Limit eight (8) tickets per person, per event date. Tickets are nonrefundable and may not be resold. May not be combined with other discounts. Costumes subject to Disney guidelines and should not be obstructive or offensive. Ages 2 and under: no ticket required. Subject to restrictions and change without notice.
On Disneyland’s 60th anniversary, a high-tech upgrade
Disneyland is adding some extra sparkle for the theme park’s 60th anniversary “Diamond Celebration.”
Disney buys Anaheim land, sparking expansion speculation
The Walt Disney Co. has purchased three parcels of land near its Anaheim resort, sparking speculation that the property would free up land for a future park expansion involving Disney’s Star Wars or Marvel’s superhero characters.
Disneyland Resort Celebrates 60th Anniversary;Announces Million Dollar Philanthropic Program Benefitting Local Nonprofits During Diamond Celebration
Sixty years ago today, Walt Disney dedicated his dream project: Disneyland – a land beyond the boundaries of the motion pictures with which he’d made his reputation, a park where families and guests of all ages could be immersed in worlds of fantasy and adventure.
Today, as part of its Diamond Celebration, the Disneyland Resort honored 60 years of that dream by announcing “Million Dollar Dazzle” at a ceremony at Sleeping Beauty Castle. Each month during the Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration, the Million Dollar Dazzle Crew will surprise one or more local nonprofits that exemplify Walt Disney Parks and Resorts’ Better Together philosophy with a $60,000 gift, totaling more than $1 million. Girl Scouts of Orange County was surprised with the first gift earlier today. The funds will support the organization’s Comadres outreach program that helps the Girl Scout experience transcend language and cultural barriers for girls in low-income neighborhoods.
“What makes our Diamond Celebration so special is the opportunity to share even more Disney magic with our guests in the parks, and our neighbors in the community,” said Michael Colglazier, president of the Disneyland Resort. “Our ‘Million Dollar Dazzle’ program proudly supports local organizations that enrich the lives of children and families.”
The ceremony at Sleeping Beauty Castle also included the tradition of playing the recording of Walt Disney’s July 17, 1955 welcome to the first Disneyland guests. Mickey Mouse and all his friends were in attendance, and Disney Legend and Academy Award-winning composer Richard M. Sherman (“Mary Poppins”) was joined by actress and singer Ashley Brown (star of “Mary Poppins” on Broadway) singing “Feed the Birds” and leading Disneyland park guests in singing “Happy Birthday.”
Later in the day, a cavalcade down Main Street, U.S.A., featured current Disneyland Resort cast members along with those who worked at Disneyland in 1955. Guests were invited to show their 1955 Disney side by dressing up ‘50s-style in the elegant manner of the guests on Disneyland opening day, and to enjoy special anniversary photo locations and ‘50s-inspired entertainment. Large video screens in Disneyland and Disney California Adventure parks and the Downtown Disney District displayed anniversary moments of the day. In addition, all guests were treated to special Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration cupcakes. More than 100,000 were prepared for the occasion.
For six decades, Disneyland Resort has explored the frontiers of interactive storytelling and entertainment technology, bringing exciting attractions and inventive entertainment to life for guests from around the world. The Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration is highlighted by three new nighttime spectaculars that, once again, raise the bar on creativity and entertainment technology to keep the resort and its guests forever young.
Disneyland Lights Up the Night for Diamond Celebration
- “Paint the Night – All-New Electrical Parade” – When the lights go down in Disneyland, the Diamond Celebration illuminates the park with a brilliant, new parade. The luminescent parade creates a river of color flowing down Main Street, U.S.A., with an array of Disney characters and more than 1.5 million brilliant LED lights that flash and glow as Mickey Mouse uses his vivid imagination to “Paint the Night.” With dazzling special effects, unforgettable music, energetic performances, fun surprises and spectacular floats, “Paint the Night” is more vibrant than any parade in 60 years at the Disneyland Resort.
- “Disneyland Forever,” presented by Honda – The dazzling new fireworks spectacular “Disneyland Forever” is a street-to-sky, immersive experience like nothing seen before at the Disneyland Resort. Guests are surrounded by the worlds of timeless Disney tales, from the tips of their toes to the sky high above, thanks to the largest installation of projection mapping technology in a Disney park and surprising special effects. The “stage” for “Disneyland Forever” fireworks will extend from the sky above to the buildings of Main Street, U.S.A., the façade of “it’s a small world,” the Matterhorn and mist screens along the Rivers of America, with specially designed digital projections offering guests new experiences at each location.
- “World of Color – Celebrate! The Wonderful World of Walt Disney” – Award-winning actor Neil Patrick Harris joins Mickey Mouse on a magical water canvas to entertain guests in this fun-filled new presentation of the popular, nighttime “World of Color” spectacular in Disney California Adventure. Both epic and intimate in scope, “World of Color – Celebrate!” brings to life the remarkable story of Walt and The Happiest Place on Earth with animated imagery, live-action film, fountains, lasers, special effects and a stirring musical score.
All three of these electrifying new shows are presented nightly, making Disneyland Resort sparkle as never before during its Diamond Celebration.
Disneyland Opened 60 Years Ago And Entry Was $1
On July 16, 1955, Associated Press reporter Bob Thomas wrote a story about the imminent opening of an elaborate theme park in California that was conceived by none other than Walt Disney. The park opened the next day.
