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Disneyland Resort

Monday, 8th October 2018
I'd originally booked to stay in the Disneyland Hotel for this trip but decided to switch to the Grand Californian due to the pending construction works surrounding the new hotel planned for the Downtown Disney area.  Of course that was no longer an issue by the time of my trip.
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Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa
Arriving at the hotel early evening left plenty of time for a wander around Downtown Disney.
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Halloween Candy Apples being made at Marceline's Confectionary
Tuesday, 9th October 2018
Busy day with my friends Paulina, Kristina and Lisette ahead of Mickey's Halloween Party - MaxPass was certainly put to good use!
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The Matterhorn (Currently closed for refurbishment)
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Haunted Mansion Holiday
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Halloween Balloon
The Cove Bar was one of my favourite spots at Disney California Adventure so I was looking forward to visiting its replacement, Lamplight Lounge, to see how it compared.  With a whole new menu to try out, I actually ended up visiting the Lounge three times during the course of the week!
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Lamplight Lounge
Haul-O-Ween was one of the things I was most looking forward to seeing and it did not disappoint.  The level of detail in the overlay is incredible - my personal favourite was probably the Brakes Motel display in the Cozy Cone office (view more Halloween photos here).
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Cruz Ramirez
Madam Leota's Crystal Ball was the highlight of the Halloween dining package at the Blue Bayou - we were also presented with a large bag of candy each, to get our Trick or Treating off to a great start!
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Madam Leota's Crystal Ball - Halloween Dining Package @ The Blue Bayou
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Constance Hatchaway
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Winnie the Pooh
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Headless Horseman Rides Again Pre-Parade
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Frightfully Fun Parade
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Frightfully Fun Parade
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Halloween Screams - A Villainous Surprise in the Skies Fireworks
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Pirates of the Caribbean
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Haunted Mansion Holiday
Wednesday, 10th October 2018
Spent the day in DCA, further exploring Haul-O-Ween and Pixar Pier - pleased to say Jack Jack's Num Nums definitely lived up to my expectations!
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Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT!
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Haul-O-Ween at Cars Land
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Jack-Jack Cookie Num Nums
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Bing Bong's Sweet Stuff
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Coco - Plaza de la Familia
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Mickey Mouse
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Donald Duck
The ofrenda paying tribute to Doc Hudson, tucked away in Ramone's House of Body Art, was another highlight of the Haul-O-Ween overlay.
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Ofrenda paying tribute to Doc Hudson
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Haul-O-Ween at Cars Land
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Haul-O-Ween at Cars Land
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Black Panther
There is an incredible amount of detail to take in at Lamplight Lounge but I asked for an outside table on this occasion because I love the view of the pier and the Fun Wheel - and of course you're free to wander around the inside of the bar in any event.  
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Pixar Pier
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Lamplight Lounge
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Lamplight Lounge
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Knick's Knacks
I still love Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off!  It's just FUN.
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Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off!
Following a couple of hours back at the hotel I headed back to DCA to watch the wonderful Musical Celebration of Coco - a show to just make you happy!
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Grand Californian (edible) Halloween Display
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A Musical Celebration of Coco
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Dora Milaje
The Carthay Circle Paint the Night Parade Dining Package included a four course meal and reserved seating outside the restaurant to watch the parade.  It's an expensive option and the limited set menu won't appeal to everyone.  However I knew I'd be making a reservation at the restaurant during my trip in any event so was happy to give it a try.  In years gone by, I'd camp out an hour or more in advance to guarantee a good view but to be honest, I'm now at the point where if there's a package for parades/fireworks etc, I'll take it!
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Paint the Night Dining Package at Carthay Circle
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Reserved seating for Paint the Night
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Paint the Night Parade
Thursday, 11th October 2018
A quiet start to the day - no queue for Space Mountain and a boat to myself on it's a small world.  There's definitely something to be said for being in the parks at 7am every day!
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it's a small world
Lots of character interaction at the Plaza Inn - dining solo means there's always a spare chair for visiting chipmunks etc!
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"Minnie & Friends - Breakfast in the Park" at the Plaza Inn
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"Minnie & Friends - Breakfast in the Park" at the Plaza Inn
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Galaxy's Edge spires rising above Rivers of America
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Galaxy's Edge display at the Star Wars Launch Bay
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Chewbacca
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Seeking refuge from villains on Main Street!
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Five & Dime
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Poison Apple-tini with Purple Glow Cube @ Carthay Circle Lounge
An early finish to my day in the Parks today as I met up with Paulina and Kristina at Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar and ended up crossing another item off my Disney bucket list as I finally got to try an Uh Oa!  Such a fun evening, finishing up with coffee at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen Express to go with the shortbread I'd brought them from Buckingham Palace!
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Uh Oa! @ Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar
Friday, 12th October 2018
No regular park admission today so I had a relatively late breakfast at Storyteller's Café and then wandered down to the Disneyland Hotel (Pluto appeared to be on guard outside the main reception area) and then back through Downtown Disney where the opening of Salt & Straw was generating excitement.
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Mickey's Tale of Adventure Breakfast Buffet @ Storytellers Cafe
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Pluto @ the Disneyland Hotel
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Opening day at Salt & Straw

I had a ticket for the Halloween Party but the evening didn't turn out quite as expected.  Following dinner at the Blue Bayou I headed for the pre-party at Toontown. I was in line to meet Mickey (whilst admiring Minnie's Candy Corn dress in the adjacent line) when it started to rain - not too heavy, but there was some very impressive thunder and lightning in the distance.  I was a few guests from the front when it started to rain properly - this actually worked out in my favour as Mickey and Minnie ended up posing together under shelter!

I did some character meet and greets and then headed for the reserved viewing area for the parade.  The rain had stopped by this point and Main Street was packed with hopeful guests, albeit there were regular announcements that the parade "may" be cancelled.  Sadly, with about 5 minutes to go before the Headless Horseman pre-parade, the parade was indeed cancelled.  Those of us with reserved seating were informed that this would still apply if the later parade went ahead. 

I popped into the Red Rose Taverne for a hot chocolate - and went I went to leave discovered it was now raining harder than before which pretty much ended any hope that the later parade would go ahead.  At this point, without a coat and rather wet, I joined the max exodus from the park and headed back to the hotel.  Having changed (and this time with a coat!), I went back to the parks to take advantage of the shorter lines.  Wet feet aside, it was a remarkably peaceful experience walking around near deserted parks (DCA in particular) - and of course the neon of Cars Land looked even more striking than usual in the rain. Obviously I was disappointed not to see the parade again (and of course I'd paid for the Dining Package) but at least I'd seen it earlier in the week - and I feel so sorry for those who missed their one opportunity.
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Mickey's Halloween Party
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Halloween pre-party in Toontown
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Peter Pan & Wendy
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Mickey's Halloween Party
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Pirates of the Caribbean
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Pixar Pier
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Radiator Springs Racers
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Flo's Cafe
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Cars Land
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Tiana
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Haunted Mansion Holiday
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"Partners"
Saturday, 13th October 2018
The heavy rain from the night before had gone, to be replaced by a constant drizzle. Fortunately, a large part of the day was spent inside.
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Graveyard Cupcake @ Jolly Holiday
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Jungle Cruise - the backside of water!
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Elsa & Anna
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Olaf
Having already booked the Paint the Night Dining Package at the Carthay Circle, I also decided to splash out on the package for "Frozen - Live at the Hyperion". There was really no need for this - after all, unlike parades, every guest is guaranteed a seat and view of the show and I've never had a "bad" seat at the theatre.  Maybe I just really wanted that Olaf dessert! In any event, I have no regrets as the meal was superb (I had no complaints with the Paint the Night meal but preferred this one). When it comes to the show itself, guests are shown into the theatre via a back entrance and are then free to sit anywhere in the theatre.

And yes, guests also receive a collectible pin!
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion" Dining Package @ Carthay Circle
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion" Dining Package @ Carthay Circle
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion" Dining Package Souvenir Pin
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion"
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion"
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"Frozen - Live at the Hyperion"
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Carthay Circle
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Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
Sunday, 14th October 2018
A busy start to my last morning, packing in Mission: Breakout, Radiator Springs Racers & Soarin' during Extra Magic Hour - plus a couple of character meet and greets.  
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Lightning McQueen
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Captain America
Back over to Disneyland as I wanted to meet Rey for the first time. Lines were short so I took a quick trip to the Dark Side too.
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Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room
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Tinker Bell
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Rey
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Kylo Ren
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Darth Vader
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Boba Fett
One last visit to Lamplight Lounge where I finally tried the donuts!
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Donuts @ Lamplight Lounge
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The Pixarmonic Orchestra
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The Pixarmonic Orchestra
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The Pixarmonic Orchestra
Nick and Judy are my current favourite characters to interact with.  The guests in front of me had shown them toys from Japan where they were dressed as other characters.  This had caused much hysteria - Nick seemed particularly taken overwhelmed by the experience and was trying to show every guest in the area his toy.

Judy is subsequently seen writing him a ticket for standing in front of her when I was photographing them.  
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Nick Wilde
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Judy Hopps & Nick Wilde
A quick dash back to Pixar Pier to catch the always fabulous Edna Mode.  By then it was time to head back to the hotel for my shuttle pick-up but as luck would  have it, I decided to walk back via the Pacific Wharf entrance to Cars Land where I found Red the Fire Truck posing for photos against possibly the best backdrop in the resort.  
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Edna Mode
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Red
Now to start making plans for next year - looking forward to new additions to Pixar Pier, the opening of the Tropical Hideaway and, of course, Galaxy's Edge!
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  • Home
  • Blog
  • Disneyland Resort
  • Dining
  • Archived Photo Galleries
    • Disneyland Paris >
      • Disneyland Park >
        • Main Street USA
        • Adventureland
        • Discoveryland
        • Fantasyland
        • Frontierland
      • Walt Disney Studios Park >
        • Front Lot
        • Production Courtyard
        • Toon Studio
        • Backlot
      • Characters
      • Disney Village
      • Fantasia Gardens
      • Resort Hotels
    • Disneyland Resort >
      • Disneyland Park
      • Disney California Adventure
      • Downtown Disney
      • Resort Hotels
      • Characters
    • Walt Disney World Resort >
      • Magic Kingdom
      • Epcot
      • Disney's Hollywood Studios
      • Disney's Animal Kingdom
      • Disney's Boardwalk
      • Disney Springs
      • Resort Hotels
      • Characters
    • Disney Dining >
      • Dining - Disneyland Paris
      • Dining - Disneyland Resort
      • Dining - Walt Disney World
  • Photo Gallery Index
  • Videos
  • Disney Parks Seasonal & Special Events
    • Disneyland Resort: Christmas 2019
    • Disneyland Resort: Halloween 2018
    • Disneyland Paris: Marvel Summer of Super Heroes
    • Epcot Flower & Garden Festival 2018
    • Disneyland Resort: Christmas 2017
    • Disneyland Paris 25th Anniversary
    • Walt Disney World: Christmas 2016
    • Epcot International Food & Wine Festival 2016
    • Disneyland Paris: Swing into Spring 2016
    • Disneyland Resort: Christmas 2015
    • Disneyland Diamond Celebration
    • Star Wars: Season of the Force
    • Epcot Flower & Garden Festival 2015
    • Disneyland Resort: Halloween 2014
    • Disneyland Paris: St Patrick's Day 2014
    • Walt Disney World: Christmas 2013
    • Epcot International Food & Wine Festival 2013
    • Disneyland Paris: Christmas 2012
    • Epcot Flower & Garden Festival 2012
    • Disneyland Paris: 20th Anniversary
    • Disneyland Paris: Christmas 2010
    • Stitch's Great Escape! Opening Day
    • Disneyland Paris: 15th Anniversary
    • Disneyland Paris: Halloween 2003
  • Trip Reports
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2019
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2018
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris 2018
    • Trip Report: Walt Disney World 2018
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2017
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris 2017
    • Trip Report: Walt Disney World 2016
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris 2016
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2015
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris July 2015
    • Trip Report: Walt Disney World 2015
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2014
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris July 2014
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris March 2014
    • Trip Report: Walt Disney World 2013
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Resort 2013
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris November 2012
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris July 2012
    • Trip Report Walt Disney World 2012
    • Trip Report: Disneyland Paris 2011
  • Disney Cinderella: The Exhibition
  • The Muppets Take The O2
  • Universal Orlando
  • Walt's Barn/Griffith Park
  • Tumblr
  • About