Back in December 2022 our family of three visited Disneyland and California Adventure. It was our toddler’s second time at Disneyland and she enjoyed it even more this time around as she was now a little older, and parades, fireworks, and character meet and greets are back.
We booked a Costco Travel package that included a 2-night hotel stay and 2 day, 1 park per day tickets. As a bonus we also received lanyards and pins. I chose the Cortona Inn, one of the cheaper options that provided free breakfast and was within walking distance of the Toy Story parking lot shuttle. The 10 minute walk felt pretty long, though.
We also stayed at Staybridge Suites Anaheim At The Park on our arrival night. It was very spacious and was a true suite, with the bedroom separated from the living and kitchen area by a door. The sofa bed was a little lumpy but comfortable enough for a night. The kitchen had a dishwasher and full size fridge and dinnerware was provided. The complimentary hot breakfast buffet was excellent. Unfortunately, the walk to the parks was rather far and took about 20 minutes.
Day 1: California Adventure
Even on a Monday in early December the park felt very crowded with long wait times. We weren’t able to go on as many rides as the previous visit because a lot of time was spent waiting for the parade and fireworks, as well as traveling to and from the park in the middle of the day. The lines to meet the princesses and other characters were long, too. We were fortunate to run into Goofy and snapped a photo with him.
We started off with Toy Story Midway Mania since it’s one of the rides that tends to have long wait times. It’s fun, however, it jerks you around a bit and our kid didn’t really like it. We decided to go on a calmer ride afterwards, Pixar Pal-A-Round, in the non-swinging gondola. We all enjoyed the view.
Next we rode Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind. Nothing special there.
Then we did Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Even though our daughter is a fan of The Little Mermaid, she did not like this dark ride either, because of the scary sea witch who she thought was Ariel’s mom.
We took a potty and snack break and ordered a Chile-Lime Mango Dole Whip from Adorable Snowman Frosted Treats.
For lunch we left the park and went to Nếp Cafe in Fountain Valley. I had been wanting to try this trendy Vietnamese brunch place for some time. I ordered the coconut ube coffee, bánh mì chảo with filet mignon, and everything tasted great though the portions were rather small. We also stopped by The Alley since it was just next door.
In the evening we returned to the park in time for the tree lighting. It was a bit anticlimactic but did look quite festive. We missed the lights turning on at Cars Land. It looked incredible and magical by the time we arrived, though.
We rode Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree. This turned out to be the kid’s favorite ride. We also got in line for Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters but unfortunately it started to rain and they closed the ride. It did create a beautiful scene, though.
We ran over to Web Slingers: A Spider-Man Adventure instead which had a moderate 40 minute wait. I don’t remember much about it other than my arms being tired from all the web slinging.
John wanted the Quantum Pretzel from Pym’s Test Kitchen “for the ‘gram” and also ordered the Not so Little Chicken Sandwich. It took us a while to find an empty table as most people were sitting inside to avoid the rain. We couldn’t finish the gigantic pretzel.
We caught the Disney ¡Viva Navidad! Street Party. It was festive, though very short, and Mickey made just a quick appearance at the end.
Afterwards we rode Golden Zephyr. Because of the height restrictions on most of the rides, our toddler was limited to only a few, and so we did Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree again.
We arrived just in time for the last showing of Mickey’s PhilharMagic, then rode Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek. Then it was time for World of Color: Season of Light. We had gotten in the virtual queue and found a decent viewing spot away from the splash zone. I hadn’t seen the show for a long time and it was spectacular.
Sadly by the time we got back to Buena Vista Street, Mickey was no longer posing for photos. We took the shuttle back to the Toy Story Parking lot to return to the hotel and rest after a long, fun day.
Day 2: Disneyland
Disneyland offers more rides and attractions for young children than California Adventure, but as the queues are often long it’s difficult to get everything done. We didn’t make it to rope drop and the Fantasyland rides were already at 20+ minutes so we checked the Disneyland app for rides with shortest wait times. We got on Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and Storybook Land Canal Boats.
There were quite a few new seasonal food items throughout both parks. Nothing really appealed to me, though. We ordered the Mickey gingerbread cookie from Jolly Holiday Bakery, and it was cute but not really worth $7. Again we left the park to grab some Vietnamese takeout from THH Sandwiches & Coffee for lunch and nap at the hotel after.
For dinner we went to Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo to try the seasonal dish, Trandoshan-style Pasta with Braised Bantha. It was much spicier than I would’ve liked.
The evening run of A Christmas Fantasy parade is more festive and better, lighting-wise.
The crowds at Fantasyland rides had died down a bit by nightfall so we were able to ride most of them, except Peter Pan’s Flight and Alice in Wonderland which still had long waits. The toddler loved Mad Tea Party, and we were able to get on multiple times since it’s one of the less popular attractions.
We decided to watch the fireworks in front of “it’s a small world” where the projections were also being shown. It’s not the best view of the fireworks but it’s much less crowded than in front of the castle.
After the fireworks we rode the railroad, carousel, and “it’s a small world”. The park looks much more magical at night.
Although it wasn’t our most productive Disney trip, and navigating the crowds was frustrating, we really enjoyed the ambiance and cheer of the holiday season.
Pearl Grey 