I only spent one proper day at Disneyland, but I made the most of it! Read all the entries in this trip report here. Onward!
After a brief-with-a-capital-B rest in my hotel room, I was ready to tackle the remainder of my single day in Disneyland!
LIGHTNING LANE-A-PALOOZA
Thankfully the late afternoon line at security wasn’t bad at all, and I quickly found myself back in the Disney’s California Adventure and ready to use a bunch of Multipass Lightning Lane slots!
First up, the ride I was most excited about: Mission Breakout. I’m not a huge Marvel fan, but I was totally won over by Cosmic Rewind in Epcot. Despite being a tremendous proponent of Rod Serling, I had heard great things about the Tower of Terror reskin and I was eager to try it for myself.
… And now that I have, I’m not sure how I feel about it. Oddly enough, I think my favorite part is the preshow in Tivan’s office. The Rocket Raccoon audio animatronic is really well done and reasonably funny.
As for the ride itself? I did like it, but it all just happened so fast. To me, the Tower of Terror evokes a mood more than a plot, whereas in Mission Breakout a LOT of narrative elements happen VERY quickly. I do like the music element; I got the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” my first go ’round. Although I already had a very packed schedule, I was determined to ride another time or two before the day was out to hopefully try more songs.
AND NOW FOR A QUICK ARM WORKOUT
Next up: my Lightning Lane reservation for Web Slingers: A Spider-man Adventure. This also had a cute preshow and, well, a surprisingly cute story all-around. I know the spiderbots are the enemy, but they’re also kind of adorable?
Anyway, if you tend to come off Toy Story Midway Mania with jelly arms, you should know that I found Web Slingers even more exhausting. And I say that as someone who strength trains regularly (not that you’d necessarily know it by looking at me…). Start lifting weights now! To be fair, at least some of my depletion may have been down to not being sure exactly how the arm motions work. I did my fair share of flailing.
Somewhere in there I had subsequently picked up a Mike & Sully to the Rescue dark ride Lightning Lane time, which I cashed in next. I know this ride is closing to make way for new attractions soon, and while it’s always sad to lose a dark ride, I think we’ll get over this one. Admittedly those of you who disagree with me on the appeal of Boo may differ.
NOT ALL WHO WANDER DISNEYLAND ARE LOST
I know found myself with a bit of time to waste before my next Lightning Lane rendezvous. Even though I was approaching my day in Theme Park Commando Mode, I decided now would be a place for a Moment of Disney Zen. I grabbed a beer in San Fransokyo and spent a pleasant half hour or so wandering Pixar Pier while I drank it. Tragically Incredicoaster was down for refurb, so all I could do was look at it longingly as I strolled by.
I was starting to feel peckish, but my dinner plan placed me in Disneyland proper. No problem when the parks are right across from each other! I began to mosey on out of DCA, although not before getting distracted by a Cars Land PhotoPass photographer. [Audrey Hepburn voice] Take the picture!!!
I had a lovely conversation with the family behind me line line who were aghast about the lack of alcohol in Disneyland. They really should warn you about that on the ticket. And speaking of things they should do…
THEY SHOULD CALL THIS PLACE WALT DISNEYLAND
I was back in Disneyland in practically no time at all, but I was still susceptible to distractions. Instead of grabbing food as planned, I diverted into the new Walt Disney – A Magical Life audio animatronic show on Main Street.
I had about 15 minutes to poke around the exhibition hall before the show, which was actually pretty enjoyable in and of itself.
There were some new gallery pieces and interviews playing in honor of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary that would be well worth the look for any Disney history buff. I love old Imagineer interviews!
Finally I made it over to Red Rose Taverne to grab some grub – review to come! I thought about following it up with a ride on it’s a small world, but the first showing of the Paint the Night parade was about to start and I was afraid I’d wind up boxed in. Rather than risk it, I chose to – wait for it – wing it right back to Disney’s California Adventure. I really can’t rave enough about how easy it is to bounce between parks.
MISSION BREAKOUT WANTS ME BACK
I had a couple hours before my next Lightning Lane time. It was time to get acquainted with some standby queues.
I considered doing Radiator Springs Racers single rider again, but alas, the ride was down. Indeed, I noticed at this mid-evening hour quite a few rides were down across both parks. Not super helpful when you’re searching for short lines, but that’s the way the Baymax cookie crumbles.
At times like these, when it’s hard to tell which ride to shoot for, I find that any quick decision tends to be better than extended waffling. I decided to take a chance on another round of Mission Breakout. The sign showed a 60 minute wait time, but I was in an office in around 15 minutes! Yay!
My single rider status even hustled me through the line for an elevator faster, which is always a fun bonus. Sadly it kind of worked against me here, though, because I got the exact same song as my first ride – “I Want You Back.” I already CAME back, Rocket; I don’t know what else you want from me!!!
Naturally I circled around and got right back in line. The queue was longer this time, but at least I got a new song: Elvis’s “Burnin’ Love.” Unfortunately the people in my car were screaming so loud I could barely hear it. They need to juice the speakers in there!
P.S. I do like the bit where Drax declares we were completely unhelpful. Drax is my favorite. First there is toast, then there is cake.
AT MIDNIGHT DISNEYLAND TURNS INTO A PUMPKIN
By the time I emerged from my third Mission Breakout experience, Disney’s California Adventure was closed. I joined the small crowd heading for the exit, stopping briefly to admire this curious Halloween shop window display. Either someone was paying no attention at all or very careful attention indeed…
Thus I exited DCA. Was my day done? Certainly not! Disneyland was open until midnight, which gave me just over 90 minutes to work with. We can’t stop now; keep going, keep going! (Dr. Grant Seeker, 1998-2026)
It was also time to use my Matterhorn Lightning Lane. I had ridden this ride once before, back in 2014, and while I remembered it as enjoyable enough it didn’t make a major impression.
Well. It turns out the secret to a killer Matterhorn experience is to ride it at night. It was PITCH black at times, so whenever the Yeti suddenly popped up around a corner I was genuinely startled. Ten out of ten; would midnight Matterhorn again.
BEST KIND OF PARADE? A NIGHT PARADE
Disneyland happened to have a second showing of the Paint the Night parade that day, and I was delighted to discover tons of decent seating even right before the floats kicked off. Always do the second parade showing if you can.
I’m not normally a big parade person. Even as a Disney completionist, I rarely bother with their daytime parades. A night parade, however? I don’t know what magical alchemy occurs when you drape an otherwise normal parade float with lights, but whatever it is, SIGN ME UP.
As with any Disney night parade I’ve ever encountered, Paint the Night was a joy. Okay, one small quibble: I wish it incorporated a little less pop music. But that’s probably more of a me thing. Visually I adored it. Curiously, I found myself more drawn to the dancers and puppeteers in between floats than the floats themselves. My favorite were the Cars dancers, because they were just so WEIRD.
GOATED
I was definitely running low on park time, but I wasn’t deterred. I power walked away from the parade and headed straight into Frontierland for my final Lightning Lane of my Disneyland Day: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Yeah, yeah, I know; I said I was only doing rides that were unique to or appreciably different in Disneyland. But I’ve heard a LOT about the goat trick, which is a Disneyland exclusive and inviable in the Magic Kingdom, and I was determined to try it.
If you’re not familiar with the goat trick, it’s pretty simple. As you crest the first big drop on Big Thunder, you’ll see a goat chewing on a stick of dynamite. The idea is to fix your eyes on him and turn your head as you go past him until you can’t see him anymore. Allegedly it increases the intensity of the physics.
Having now tried it, I’m not sure 100% agree that it makes the sensation more intense. It does, however, make it feel swirlier, if that makes sense. I wasn’t any more thrilled, but I did find it amusing.
I’M RUNNING DOWN THE STAIRCASE – I’M LOSING ONE SHOE –
All right, now we were down to it: I had less than 30 minutes left to work with, and it was time to make a Last Ride Decision. I mentally ran through everything I had done that day and selected the Indiana Jones Adventure for the honored position of Last Ride of the Night.
Except that it wasn’t. As I made my way over, I happened by the Pirates of the Caribbean and saw a posted five minute wait. I was so incredibly impressed with the set design during my first ride that morning that I decided to sneak one more ride in.
I walked straight onto a boat and into the front row. Except I didn’t actually want the front row as that position comes with the greatest splash risk. Serendipitously, I happened to hear the dad and daughter behind me request the front row on the next boat. I offered them my row and moved one back as there was no one already placed there. Everyone’s a winner!
I must say, although it’s not the flashiest of rides, I’m so glad I did Pirates again. There is SO much to see on the Disneyland version of the ride. Even the float through the Blue Bayou is rich with detail. I love the little houses in the swamp, and the fireflies.
MY CLOTHES ARE TURNING INTO RAGS – EVERYONE’S A MOUSE AGAIN –
I got out of Pirates with eight minutes to spare. Plenty of time for a maximum speed walker like me! Off I sped to the Indiana Jones Adventure, sliding into line just before the cutoff. I was so down to the wire that when my ride ended and the car pulled into the load area, there was no one left in line! I don’t think I’ve ever had that happen before.
Anyway, I very much enjoyed pissing Mara off a second time, and I’m jazzed to see what the Imagineers do when they bring the franchise over to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
AND THAT WAS THE END OF MY ONE DISNEYLAND DAY
And that was it! Whether I had more gas in the tank was irrelevant; Disneyland was CLOSED for the day. I made my slow (for me) and leisurely way out of Adventureland, down through the hub and Main Street, and out of the park. From there I walked back to my hotel, got ready for bed (Indiana Jones & The Temple of Doom was on TV, which I thought was kinda funny), and went to sleep. I had to go to work in the morning. Blergh!
Alas, here ends the tale of my one day out there in Disneyland. I hope you found it even half as fun to read about as I had living it. Walking in Walt’s footsteps is always worth the time. Obviously there are a TON of things I didn’t do (I never even glanced into Batuu!), but everything I did do was delightful. And I certainly did a lot of it!
Fear not, though – I still have some Disneyland content to drop, including additional food reviews and an in depth analysis of whether I got my money’s worth. I haven’t made any calculations yet, but I feel comfortable providing this spoiler: I think I did! Don’t you?
Don’t forget, you can follow FRoA on Threads @fairestrunofall and on Instagram @fairestrunofall. If you have any questions or thoughts, leave a comment or email fairestrunofall@gmail.com. See ya real soon!