What You Miss Makes the Magic

Disneyland is an overwhelming place. Its dozens of attractions, plethora of eateries, and its many shows and parades, it's impossible to see and experience everything.

The intricacies of Sleeping Beauty's castle

On top of all that, Disneyland has many hidden gems put in place to add that extra spark of magic that makes the park such a unique place.

On my last trip, I tried to take as many pictures of the little things I noticed as I could. First off, on Main Street, Disney has some great window displays, depicting scenes and characters from their popular films. This not the least well known of things at Disneyland, but they're easily missed.

In Fantasyland, there's a myriad of little things here and there that, if in a hurry, are easy to look over. First off, a walk through Sleeping Beauty's castle makes for a great discovery. It functions as a kind of walk through dark ride, with different scenes from the movie portrayed with animation and art. It's a great experience, and hardly ever crowded.

In front of the castle you can visit Snow White and her seven dwarves. This makes as a good lesson in fixed perspective, as the marble statuettes are all the same size, but arranged in such a way that Snow White looks bigger than the dwarves. While you're there, make a wish at Ms. White's well.

Then, if you look above Snow White's Scary Adventures, the evil queen will open the shades and maliciously peer out every so often. To the right of that, you can see Rapunzel's hair flowing out of her tower. Or the beautiful clock hanging below the entrance of Sleeping Beauty's castle, or the suit of armor in the same area. Go through Fantasyland quickly, and you'll miss it.

In Adventureland, there are the hieroglyphics on the "Indiana Jones" que that Imagineers made up specifically for the ride. There's also the record player at the end of Tarzan's Treehouse that plays the old Swisskapolka song used for the original Swiss Family Robinson treehouse.

 Look at the rooftops in New Orleans Square, and you'll see sails, as if there were a harbor behind them. Open your ears at the train station, and you'll hear part of Walt's opening day speech in Morse code.

Another thing I recently noticed were the statuettes of the other classic Disney characters surrounding the classic Partners Statue. It's a great touch, and extremely fitting. The symbolism was not something that escaped me, reminding me of why I love Disney.

But, I did have five days to wander the parks, giving me the extra time needed to notice such fine details.  Even if you don't notice them, you do subconsciously, because it's those things that make the park exactly what Walt wanted it to be.

Tired of Pavement? Try Walking on Ropes: The Redwood Creek Challenge Trail

Let's face it, we all get into a routine when it comes to the Disney parks. Even people who are visiting for the first time have a sort of pre-fab routine planned out for them: do all the big attractions. For more frequent visitors, it's the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" routine, where you visit your favorite attractions, and forget about all the others. Well, at least I have a routine.

The Redwood Creek Challenge trail original sketch

This routine had made it so I only see certain parts of the park every time I visit, and since I like to see myself as well rounded when it comes to all things Disney, on my last visit, I decided the monotony had to end: I was going to do every attraction on the map. I know, I've talked about it before (and thanks for reading more than one of my posts), but it was an instrumental part of the trip, and opened my eyes to many new things.

One of those new things was the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail in the Golden State area of California Adventure. I'd been to it once before, when the park opened, but I skimmed it more than I embraced it.

This last trip, I took some time and really explored the whole Disney's-version-of-a-jungle-gym in full, and guess what? It was great. I've always loved gigantic play structures, probably because that's the only size that has ever been able to accomodate me.

Realistically, anytime anyone thinks about a jungle gym, they think small children and ball pits with hidden surprises. A fair assumption that is...generally. At the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, there are none of those pesky height, age, or weight limits (unless you want to ride the tire-ziplines, then you're out of luck).

The course

The huge towers with webs or rope connection them and rickety bridges were almost more fun for me than they were for little kids. Running up and down them at top speed (probably a little dangerous), I whisked by many youngsters creeping up the webs with a look of extreme caution on their faces.

It was great being able to let my inner kid out again, having a playground that was big enough for anyone to play on again. And to think, I skipped the area because I thought it was geared towards younger people!

Next time you're in California Adventure, you've got some free time, and you want to experience what it's like to be a kid again in a more first hand point of view, then take a hike down Highway 49, and pull over at The Redwood Creek Challenge trail. Because you know you miss that good ol' playground.

How to Never Wait in Line

I recently discussed how having a plan can make all the difference when you visit a Disney park. It's a tested theory that has always proven true and my recent trip to Disneyland was no exception.

All in all, we probably spent no more than  hours in line during our entire 4 and-a-half day stay. Considering we were there during some of the busiest days of the year, and we got every attraction on the map done, I'd say our group did pretty well.

How'd we do it? Fastpasses. Clean and simple.

The first thing we did right was getting to the park when it opens. The parks take about an hour to really start filling up, so you've got a good amount of time to dash to your favorite attraction and hop right on.

But before you get on, get a Fastpass. You know you're going to want to hit up that attraction at least one more time that day, so it makes sense to ensure you skip out on the line your second time around too.

Since it's early in the morning, there are not a whole lot of people lining up to get Fastpasses just yet, which means it's only about an hour's wait until the Fastpass becomes valid. This means two things: you don't have a long time to wait to get back on the ride, and you can get another Fastpass in a decent amount of time.

Something new I discovered this time around is that you can often get another Fastpass before your current one becomes valid. The rule is, according to my Disney College program ambassador Jovanie Seghers-Narvaez, the official rule is that you can get your next Fastpass either at the time of your current Fastpass, or in 2 hours, whichever comes first.



Now my next tip is kind of cheating, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. If you have a Fastpass that you didn't use from a previous day, chances are you'll be able to use it after the date on the pass. The Fastpass attendants really only pay attention to the time the Fastpass becomes valid, so as long as it's after the first time listed on the pass, regardless of the date, you should be good. Another tip that could fall under the category of cheating, according to my fiend Jovanie, is that you can get one Fastpass from one park, and then another Fastpass in a different park. Say, "Space Mountain" and "Soarin'" at the same time.

Now, there's the odd attraction here and here that's an E-ticket experience, yet has no Fastpass. "it's a small world holiday," "Matterhorn Bobsleds," "Pirates of the Caribbean, "Peter Pan's Flight" and "Toy Story Midway Mania" are the ones that stick out. For the former two, get there when the park opens, or just before it closes. I can just about guarantee you there will be no line.

"Peter Pan's Flight" was built pre-Fastpass, but its counterpart has a Fastapass at Walt Disney World, so there's no good excuse. It's the most popular dark ride, so there's always at least a 20 minute wait. The best time to hit that one up is closer to closing time.

 For "Pirates," just don't go between 1 and 5. Any other time the line moves swiftly because of the attraction's hundreds of boats.

With "Midway Mania," you're going to have to wait. I don't know why there isn't a Fastpass, it's hugely popular and was constructed post-Fastpass, so there's no excuse to not have one. I'd say your best bet is to check on the wait time, from a smartphone app if you have one, around noon. Getting there right when the park opens is a bad idea. That's what we did, and it was a 70 minute wait almost instantly. When the gates open, everyone heads straight to "Midway Mania." So skip the opening rush and stick around until the line dies down a little. But good luck getting on the attraction with less than a 30 minute standby time.

With this advice, the only obstacle crowds should provide is slowing you down while you dash to the next attraction, where you can laugh out loud at the 110 minute wait time.

Plans Make Perfection

I recently got a call from my mom about our upcoming trip to Disneyland this Thanksgiving break. She gave me ring because she had just finalized the plans for our upcoming trip, completing all the dining reservations and such.

Almost every time we go to Disneyland, we form some sort of plan. Even though, as a family, we've been there around 20 times, a plan never hurts. We know where everything is, but there's a lot to do on any one day, and it can become overwhelming. Add into the equation that as the day gets longer, people will get tired, and when people get tired, things can go south, and a little direction can be your savior. Yes, even at the Happiest Place on Earth, bickering and arguing can occur.

So what do you do? Formulate a plan. Make reservations at the limited number of restaurants that let you, for other meals, mark out a quick service restaurant on a map that everyone can agree on. Food is a big thing, at least for my family. An empty belly can often lead to rash reactions.

Then there are the attractions. I have heard people refer to Disneyland as "Disney-line." Yes, popular attractions can often be accompanied by long lines. If you have a plan, you can avoid waiting in lines though. Use Disney's Fastpasses to your advantage.

Know the nuances of the Fastpass

A trick I learned a couple of years ago is that Fastapasses don't expire after the hour window of time printed on the tickets. As long as it's after the primary time, you can use your Fastpasses any time after that within the day. And don't feel like the only rides worth your time are the E-Ticket attractions with the lengthy lines. There are many, many other attractions that rarely have long lines and can pass the hour-plus you have to kill waiting for you Fastpass for Space Mountain to become valid. Check out Fantasyland: generally only Peter Pan and Dumbo have long lines for the most parts. There's many hidden gems for you to discover.

This upcoming trip, my family and I have decided that we're going to every attraction listed on the maps. We've got 5 days to do it, so it shouldn't be a problem, but timing is key. We can't just systematically go through each land and wipe out the lot. You've got to do the E-tickets mid morning or before closing, use the Fastpass to your advantage, know when certains rides will have shorter lines, and be cognizant of the parade and fireworks times when lines will be minimal.    

Disneyland and Walt Disney World are some of the most popular destinations in the United States, but that doesn't mean you have to spend the entire day in a confused, flustered state. Go in with a battle plan, and you can make time your pal, not the enemy.