There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who love all things Disney, and those who don't.
I am one of the former. My parents were married in August, 1955 -- just weeks after Walt opened the theme park that forever changed the game for everyone else. They visited on their honeymoon... and four years later, they initiated their toddler daughter (ME!) into the wonders of the Magic Kingdom.
From that point on, I visited Disneyland on a regular basis -- sometimes two or three times in a year (and even got to shake hands with Walt Disney himself after he followed us off the Monorail). As an adult, it became a family tradition to celebrate my parents' anniversary at the park. It's just the way our family rolls.
And then I married a man who doesn't share my Disney love. He'll go - but only because it's something the family is doing (especially when my sister and her brood come down from Northern California specifically to do Disney).
To be fair to him, he doesn't enjoy the attractions (he describes Dumbo as a "scary ride"), so I understand why he's not all that enamored with the place. When our daughter was little, they would patiently hang out in the Tomorrowland arcade while I rode Space Mountain alone. And now that she's a teenager, he's stuck at the arcade alone, because Megan loves fast roller coasters as much as I.
That's why I left the hub at home last weekend when I attended a blogger event to enjoy Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort (running through November 1). This allowed my daughter to bring a friend in his place. And it was a relief to enjoy the scary thrills of my favorite ride in its October incarnation: Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy, where you not only speed up and down in the dark, but you get chased by a fiery ghost. The girls and I ended up going on that one THREE times. I shudder to think of how much money my husband would waste in the arcade if he'd been around for that.
Both Disneyland and California Adventure are festooned with orange and black Halloween decorations. I especially loved the whimsical "candy corn" farm at the newer park, featuring the ubiquitous orange and white triangles growing as grapes, tomatoes and (yes!) corn.
While at California Adventure, you can get into the spirit of the holiday over at the Tower of Terror... but I am unable to tell you much about that one. I rode it on a visit to the park four years ago and vowed I'd never do it again, because the fast drop made me worry I'd have a heart attack. (This is the only type of fast ride I'm afraid of.)
Much more copacetic were the California Screaming roller coaster with the awesome Mickey Mouse loop, and the whimsical Toy Story ride where you can compete against your ride-mates in an old-timey round of target practice. These are not especially Halloween-y... but loads of fun.
Beginning tonight visitors to California Adventure can attend Mickey’s Trick-or-Treat Party, where you and your kids can dress in costume and enjoy 25 Treat Stops located throughout the park. (This is a separate-ticket nighttime event. See more information here - click on "Tickets and Offers.")
Back at the original Disneyland park, it wouldn't be Halloween without a trip to the Haunted Mansion. Once again, the Disney creative team has modified its classic "chill" ride with elements from "Nightmare Before Christmas": Jack Skellington, Sally and Zero are all there, as well as a real gingerbread house for the ghosts to feast upon. (This really made me hungry, for they piped in the smell of the gingerbread, too.)
And do plan to stay into the night for a special Halloween-themed fireworks show. I admit that I have always looked at the park's live entertainment as an opportunity to get on rides (the lines aren't as long when so many people are angling for a good view of the shows). So I guess that's why when I do stop to watch, I am always amazed at how GOOD they all are. The Halloween show is beyond brilliant, and employ all kinds of cool technology: lasers, projection, lighting and yes - amazing fireworks.
As long as you're watching the entertainment, do mosey on over to the Rivers of America (Frontierland/New Orleans Square/Haunted Mansion) for Fantasmic!, which the Disney folks describe as "a special effects spectacular," featuring most of your favorite Disney characters, clips from some of their classic animated films and a 45-foot, fire breathing dragon.
Find out more about Halloween Time at Disneyland on the park's special events website here.
DISCLAIMER: All the opinions expressed in this post are my own. I received no monetary compensation for writing this post, nor did I promise a positive write-up. I was comped 2-day park-hopper tickets for my family and an overnight stay at the Paradise Pier hotel, and the bloggers in attendance were treated to dinner at the Big Thunder Barbecue. My parents really did visit Disneyland on their honeymoon in 1955 and buried somewhere in storage, they've got a home movie of our chance meeting with Walt Disney circa 1962.
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