Happy New Year

A new year is a upon us and the parks are a buzz with activity.  In case you did not get over to Disneyland during this busy Christmas season, small world holiday will still be open through January 17th before going down for about 10 days to revert to the regular ride.  Check it out while you can.

Did you know?

Did you know that Disneyland's Main Street USA was home to a pharmacy from 1955 to 1970? Upjohn Pharmacy was located where now we find "The Fortuosity Shop." This same site has also been a watch shop for brands including New Century, Seiko and Timex.

In the original Upjohn Pharmacy, visitors could find old medical paraphernalia, period glassware, patented medicine powders, scales, books and pharmaceuticals. Free samples of vitamins were offered up to visitors.

Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland

Mickey's Halloween Party kicks off tonight.  It's back at Disneyland, which is exciting.  I'll be attending with Daytrippingmom and kids in tow.

The nights of the event are October 1, 5, 8, 12, 15, 19, 22, 26, 29, 31. Tickets are to the general public via Disneyland.com.  This event has been selling out at DCA in the past years.

New Star Tours 2.0 Information

From the Disney Parks blog, here is a look at the new film that will run in the queue for Star Tours 2.0 when it reopens next spring.  The blog notes that there is no guarantee these destinations will be part of the ride, but we have already heard that there will be multiple options on each ride.  We'll have to wait and see.

Disneyland Price Increase

reposted from MousePlanet:

Schedule of Disneyland Ticket Prices
Ticket	New Adult Price (Ages 10 and up)	New Child Price (Ages 3-9)
One day, one park	$76 ($4 increase)	$68 ($6 increase)
One-day Parkhopper	$101 ($4 increase)	$91 ($4 increase)
Two-day, single park	$151 (new pass type!)	$136 (new pass type!)
Two-day Parkhopper	$161 ($10 increase)	$146 ($15 increase)
Three-day Parkhopper	$206 ($2 increase)	$185 ($11 increase)

Annual Passports increased in price by $15-$30:
• Southern California Select: $184 ($20 increase)
• Southern California: $239 ($30 increase)
• Deluxe: $329 ($30 increase)
• Premium: $459 ($15 increase)
• Premiere: $700 (No increase)
• Parking Add On: $99 ($20 increase but still included as part of the Premium and Premiere passes)

Parking has also increased to $15 for a car.

A few thoughts on Star Tours 1.0

Disneyland had two incredible years to Tomorrowland back in the 80s.  1986 brought us the enclosure of the Tomorrowland Stage and the creation of the Magic Eye Theater.  "Magic Journey's" had played in the outdoor theater at night.  It began playing inside the Magic Eye Theater while production wrapped up on Captain Eo, which opened early 1986.  The premiere was held with a 60 hour party - where the park stayed open for 60 hours straight.  I remember stopping by late on the Friday night opening.  The line at that time was running down to Main Street.

The next year, Disneyland again held a 60 hour party for the premiere of Star Tours.  Adventure through Inner Space closed in September 1985.  Almost a full year went by before it was actually revealed that a Star Wars themed attraction was replacing it.  I remember imagining what the ride would be like, wrongly assuming the omni mover system would still used.  Ride simulators had just come on the scene.  Small self-enclosed units were beginning to pop up around amusement parks at that time.  Disney made sure to take advantage of the new technology and make it their own.

Star Tours opened to much fan fair and long lines.  Four ride cabins kept the line moving but during the first few years, the line often exceeded 2 hours on most days.

While these days, E-ticket attractions often open in Florida first and are later brought to Disneyland or co-debuted, Star Tours did not open up a travel hub in Florida until the opening of the Disney/MGM studios in 1989.

For the reboot, I imagine the ride mechanism will remain the same.  Hopefully the queue area is only mildly plussed.  The concept of multiple destinations is intriguing.  We'll have to see what the new 3D attraction experience when it returns in 2011.

Alice in Wonderland blues

As reported by Al Lutz at Miceage.com, Alice in Wonderland has been closed at the behest of Cal OSHA for a safety violation.  The outdoor leaf portion of the ride (where I actually proposed to my wife!) has no safety handrails in the event of a loss of electricity and/or evacuation of the ride.  Disney now must come up with a solution that fits the aesthetics as well as complying with the legal safety issues.  This could take awhile...