Dining Events in Disneyland- everything you need to know

Hey guys!

So this week, we booked our dining reservations. The first few times I went to Disneyland, we had no dining reservations and did not even eat at a sit down restaurant. However, I have to say, since doing so, that it is definitely worth it to book at least one fancy lunch or dinner while in Disneyland. You are on vacation, after all!

Along with standard dining reservation, Disneyland also allows you to make dining reservations that include premium fast passes for Fantasmic! in Disneyland park and World of Color in California Adventure. From what I am aware of, the Fantasmic! Dining package is fairly new, as it was not in place when I was at the park 2 years ago. But I am really happy to see they have started a fast pass system and look forward to seeing what it will be like this time around. Previously, you just had to find a spot to stand/sit in New Orleans Square and hope you got a good view and someone wouldn't be shoving you over to see.

For Fantasmic! You are only able to book a dinner, and the time you eat will decide on which showing of Fantasmic your fast pass will be for.  The two showings are 9:00 and 10:00, so if you have dinner before 6, it's guaranteed you will be getting the 9:00 passes, With the Fantasmic! Dining option you have two restaurants to choose from:

Blue Bayou Restaurant, at $61.00 per adult and $23.00 for children ages 3-9
Dining starts at 4 pm and includes a starter, entree, non alcoholic drink, and dessert. It's a Prix-Fixe menu, but I'm pretty sure it's almost all the same options you get otherwise. Based on the prices of their dinner this is actually a very good price, depending on what you are planning on eating. Not only do you not have to worry about picking up Fantasmic fast passes, but you also get a great three course meal for almost the same, if not less what you would be paying to eat at the Blue Bayou anyways.

Blue Bayou is in high demand and it is always recommended that you make reservations if you want to eat there, whether fantasmic or not.

River Belle Terrace,at $41.99 per adult, $21.99 per child ages 3-9
If you're bringing kids, the price for children is not much different. River Belle Terrace is also a buffet style meal, so it all depends on whether you would like a fancy meal or something more casual such as this.

We decided on Blue Bayou purely for the atmosphere. I feel that even if the food isn't perfect, its something everyone should experience at least one time in Disneyland. However, I was planning to book our Fantasmic! meal on a Tuesday, but it just wasn't popping up, even when I waited until less than 60 days before I wanted to eat there. We called to discover that they do not do fantasmic shows during the week in their slower seasons. So if you are planning to go in the fall or any slow season, make sure you have a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday in the park, as those are the only showing days.



Now for World of Color. With World of Color, you have your choice of three restaurants. Two offer lunch or dinner, and one only dinner. The lunch option will most certainly get you into the first showing of World of Color. Once again, menus are Prix-Fixe but include a starter, entree, non-alcoholic drink and dessert. Here are the options:

Ariel's Grotto: DINNER ONLY $45.35 Adults and $23.75 children ages 3-9
Ariel's Grotto has mediocre food at best, and the service is not the best, as they are constantly busy. I can only recommend this option if you or your children REALLY want to meet all the Disney Princesses, as this is the easiest way to meet Snow White, Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, and of course, Ariel. Other than Ariel, whom you must meet and take a photo with before you are seated, each princess makes the rounds during dinner and will come to your table to chat, take photos/ sign autograph books. If this is a must for you, then choose this restaurant.

Wine Country Trattoria: Lunch $32.39 adults $20.50 ages 3-9
                                            Dinner $45.35 adults  $23.75 ages 3-9
Speaking from experience, Wine Country has amazing food and good service. This is a great choice for your party whether it includes children or not. This is the option we chose, and we chose to go for lunch. We also chose this option for our World of Color dining when we went to Disneyland two years ago. Lunch is very reasonably priced. We also found that it wasn't super busy, and it's also nice and tucked away, so if you're wanting a little quiet and a great view of the park, this one's a winner.

Carthay Circle Restaurant: Lunch $42.13 Adults $19.44 ages 3-9
                                           Dinner $63.73 Adults $21.60 ages 3-9
This is by far the most expensive option for World of Color and the only one I have not eaten at myself. However, if the menu itself and the look appeals to you, go for it! The blurb suggests that the food is the flavors of Southern California.

All in all, I feel that if you are going to book a more expensive dinner, or were planning to eat at one of these restaurants anyways, it is certainly worth it to make it a Dining Event reservation and get a little extra. It saves the stress of remembering to pick up your own Fast Passes, and you get much better viewing areas then others do. There are tiers within the restaurant options, with the most expensive options being closest to the action. So prepare to get a little wet!

Halloween in Disneyland - September 2015

Hello all! We are still planning out our trip to Disneyland this September, and as we do so,more events are popping up!

Last week, Disneyland finally announced their dates for the Mickey's Halloween party in 2015! The very first party falls when we will be in the park, and we decided we will attend!

If a Halloween party falls on a day you go, you have a couple options. You can just get a regular day ticket/park hopper, but the park will close around 7 to non- Halloween ticket holders. You are still free to visit California Adventure park.
Your other choice is to purchase a ticket for the party, which generally goes from 7 pm - midnight. However, they allow entry up to 3 hours before the party, meaning you can enter the park at 4 p.m.! The price for the tickets increases as it gets closer to Halloween, but based on what's included, I feel that it will be worth it.

So, for the purchase of a ticket, here's what you get this year:

-Early entry into the park (so you get 4pm to midnight in the park!)
-Complimentary parking
-Lots of characters only present during the party! (If you love Villains, this party is for you!)
-Access to almost all rides (I'm not sure which ones will be closed for the party, but I will update as soon as I can figure out that information. I'm pretty sure the biggest and best rides will remain open,and I'm mainly hoping to ride Indiana Jones and Jungle Cruise a few times that day.)
-Special Halloween Screams fireworks (These will only be shown during Mickey's Halloween party, regardless if you are there close to Halloween and not at a party.)
-Trick or Treat stations- stocked with both candy and "healthful" treats. Which I assume to be dried fruit or something of the like.
-Paint the night parade (which I believe is also what they do on regular nights during the 60th anniversary)
-Dance Party with characters from Monsters U!

Another important thing to note as that there is NO SMOKING in the park WHATSOEVER during the event. However, they will be allowing exit and re-entry for those who need to smoke. I find it quite interesting that they wouldn't just leave the designated smoking areas as they are, but I'm sure they have their reasons.

I'm not going to be trick-or-treating myself, but I will definitely be dressed up for this event. We have decided to go as Ariel and Eric, with my husband's mom as Ursula, with a little twist! (Which is extra funny, as my husband was terrified of Ursula growing up.) Being that Halloween and dressing up are two of my favorite things, I could not be more excited.

A couple things you need to consider with your costume:
1. COMFORT. You want to be able to make it from 4pm to midnight in this costume. That means you might want to re-think wearing high heels, uncomfortable makeup, or tight/restricting clothing.
2.CHILD FRIENDLY. If you're an adult, you need to make sure that your costume will not frighten children, and also covers your body appropriately. It's better not to risk it if you are unsure of your costume choice, as if your costume cannot be altered, you WILL be denied entry, even though you paid. Also, cannot drag on the ground, for obvious reasons.
3. NO WEAPONS that can be mistaken for the real thing. I assume foam swords and nerf guns would be acceptable. Though, another thing to consider is that you might not want to be toting something like that around the park all night long.
4. MASKS are okay, as long as they aren't obstructing vision. I was actually surprised at this, as I figured masks would be a no-go. I wouldn't be wearing  a mask for comfort reasons, but to each their own!
5. If you dress as a Disney character, you cannot pose for photos with other guests or sign autographs. This one is most likely because they don't want people mistaking you for a cast member, whom are properly trained for those sort of interactions. They have an image they wish to uphold.

Though, I feel that if you're going to a Disneyland Halloween party, wouldn't your first choice be to dress as a Disney character? Maybe that's just me.

As we had already purchased a 5 day ticket plan when we booked our trip, this now means that we will also be able to go to the park the first afternoon we arrive, which it will be my first time doing so in Disneyland! I'm actually kind of glad, because then we can see the fireworks, or possibly ride some of the busier rides during fireworks. At first, we planned to visit Uva in Downtown Disney for dinner on the first night, but that plan may change as we will want to maximize our time in the park.

But I'm rambling. This leaves us half the day on Friday to go shopping or just relax if we wish. Then we will enter the park as soon as we can and make the most of our last day in Disney by enjoying a Halloween Party! Sounds pretty great to me!

Also, you will be given wristbands to identify that you are a Halloween party guest. Anyone not found to be wearing one after 7 pm will be escorted from the park. Make sure yours is visible at all times!

Mickey's Halloween party tickets for Disneyland go on sale July 29th to the general public, and can be purchased at Disneyland's website. This is recommended as you save money by buying in advance!
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/tickets/events/