The Disneyland Book of Secrets 2014: One Local's Unauthorized, Rapturous and Indispensable Guide to the Happiest Places on Earth (225 page)

Note that the parks do
not
sell tobacco products, so bring your own if you plan to smoke.  Staying on property?  You cannot smoke inside the
Disneyland Hotel
,
Grand Californian Hotel
,
or
Paradise Pier Hotel
.  However, there
are
some comfortable designated smoking areas
outside
the hotels; there are comfy sofas and chairs in front of
Adventure Tower
entrances facing
Downtown Disney
, for example, and there is a lovely outside hearth at the
Grand Californian
where you can smoke to your heart’s content.  Smoking is permitted throughout
Downtown Disney
and there are plenty of ashtrays where you can safely extinguish the butts.  For reservations and current
Disneyland Resort Hotel
smoking policies call (714) 956-MICKEY or visit
www.disneyland.disney.go.com/hotels/
.

Snack Carts

It’s December 2011 in
Critter Country
, and an angelic little girl in a pink polka-dot sweater skips daintily toward her father, eyes bright, head tilted endearingly.  “Daddy,” she says sweetly, “I need twenty-five dollars.”  He’s a tall, cheerful-looking guy; he towers over his daughter.  He grins, startled but amused.  “You need
twenty-five dollars
?  For what?” The little girl takes his hand–and leads him toward a snack cart.  Ah!  The
Disneyland
snack cart
.
 
It can be your best friend or your most fiendish foe.  Play it penny-wise and not pound-foolish.  If you’re thirsty, a bottle of water for about $3 seems heaven-sent and won’t break your budget.  You can also refill it at park drinking fountains.  But why pay almost $5 for a small bottle of limeade, when you can get healthy fruit treats for the same price, or a meal like a hot dog, bag of chips,
and
bottle of cold water for about $10?  Before purchasing
anything
at a snack cart, ask for the price and do the math, especially if you’re buying for your whole family.  It might be less expensive and actually provide more food and drink if you head to a counter or cafeteria-style resort restaurant for your grub.  Unless you’re traveling with a hefty bankroll, invest your money in meals more than snacks.  A family of five would pay
more than twenty dollars
if each one bought limeade.  If each family member purchased an ice cream treat too, that could be
over forty dollars
–for juice and ice cream treats purchased at a cart!  Snacks really
can
make or break your budget at the resort.  If you’re on a tight budget, go for reasonably priced items (popcorn; fruit; fountain drinks; water) that family members can share.

Socks

At a resort with drenching water attractions like
Splash Mountain
(
Disneyland
),
Princess Dot’s Puddle Park
(
DCA
) and
Grizzly River Run
(
DCA
), and miles to walk in the So Cal heat, it’s likely you might want a change of socks sometime during the day.  I can’t say this too many times:  Even for a day trip, bring at least one extra pair of socks.  You can stow them in your pack or one of the park lockers.  Bring extra socks for the little ones, too.  You won’t regret it!  Also, it’s ill-advised to walk miles around the resort wearing shoes
without
socks.  If you do—hello, blisters and goodbye fun!
 


Strollers

Rent them for $1
5 per day (or two strollers for $25, if you have more than one child).  They’re available to your immediate right when facing the
Disneyland Park
entrance in the main plaza between the parks.  You can’t bring strollers on the attractions, but stroller parking is available at most attractions and restaurants within the parks.  Strollers rented from
Disneyland
are not permitted in
Downtown Disney
.

Sunblock

A must for So Cal.  Bring it.  Apply it liberally, even
during winter months.  Carry a small bottle or tube of it in your pack, or stow a big bottle in a locker, and re-apply it periodically.  If you forget, lose, or run out of sunblock, you can purchase it at most stores in the parks, but it’s not cheap.  The park stores usually don’t display sunblock on their counters (except in the
Emporium
) because it detracts from the
magic
, but if you ask for it in many shops, Cast Members will produce it from behind or under their counter, or direct you to the nearest park store that stocks it.

Themed Paving

For
Imagineers
, no detail is too subtle or small to warrant their careful attention.  They developed
Themed Paving
as yet another way to immerse Guests in the themed districts of the parks.  It’s precisely what it sounds like; the paving in a particular land is textured, colored, and otherwise treated to bring another level of reality to that area, to tell the story not only visually but through the soles of Guests’ feet.  Paving in
Adventureland
, for example, is rough, and paving in
Frontierland
has horseshoe and boot prints embedded in it.  There are seashells embedded in the pavement of the
Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
queue.  When you’re in the parks, take a moment to look at the ground beneath your feet.  What does it look like?  Feel like?  Are there any images or materials embedded in it?  What story is it telling?

Tips

Democratic America has always had issues with class and servants.  How can one equal American wait on another?  One way we keep the balance is by tipping each other for
doing a good job or going above-and-beyond in service capacities.

If you stay at one of the
Disneyland Resort Hotels
, or even an off-property hotel, bring a supply of one and five-dollar bills so that you’re ready to appropriately tip Cast Members and staff who go above and beyond.  A general guide for tipping in today’s America:


                     
Bellman
:  $1 – 2 per bag carried


                     
Concierge
:  $5 – 10 or more as appropriate depending on a task’s difficulty and timing


                     
Doorman
:  $1 – 5 for hailing a taxicab or performing a special service


                     
Housekeeping
:  $2 – 5 or more per night as appropriate; tip every morning, as different staff members might clean your room each day


                     
Room Service / Wait Staff
:  18% or at least $2
if
the gratuity is not included in the meal price; 20% - 25% for exceptional service

Triple Mountain Whammy

Guests who love roller coasters,
Disney Park
mountains, and a challenge will want to take on the
Triple Mountain Whammy
:  Riding
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
,
Space Mountain
, and
Splash
Mountain
on the same day.  Those are the three “official”
Triple Whammy
mountains, and the truly adventurous can add the
Matterhorn
to their agenda.  Do you and your group have what it takes to conquer a runaway mine train, outer space, and a perilous plunge into the briar patch–let alone the icy alpine lair of the
Abominable Snowman
?  At least you’ll have fun trying!

Turkey Legs

Disneyland Turkey Legs
, which got their start at
Walt Disney World
in the 1990’s, are legendary among Guests. 
Disneyland
and
WDW
Guests consume upward of 1.6 million turkey drumsticks
every
year!  Fans spend hours in their kitchens back home trying to replicate the
magical
brine marinate that makes
Disneyland
’s ginormous smoked
Turkey Legs
so mouth-wateringly delicious.  Apparently the secret is in the ham spices.  Go ahead, gobble one down, but seasoned veterans warn:  “Beware the splattering grease!”  Apparently no configuration of napkins or bibs can protect you from the spattering brine juices; you might want to don one of the plastic
Disneyland
ponchos that Guests wear to protect themselves from getting soaked on
Splash Mountain
and
Grizzly River Run
.  (Like the
Turkey Legs
, ponchos run about $10 each.) 
Turkey Legs
are now so beloved that fans can buy
Turkey Leg
caps, T-shirts, and air fresheners at resort stores.

Disneyland Turkey Leg
vending locations: 
Fantasyland
(
Edelweiss Snacks
near
“it’s a small world”
);
Frontier Land
(near
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
); and
Main Street
(in
The Hub
).

Disney California Adventure Turkey Leg
vending locations: 
Hollywood Land
;
Paradise Pier
(at
Don Tomas
on the waterfront).

Vow Renewals

Please s
ee “Weddings”.

Walt

When Cast Members mention “
Walt
”, they’re talking about
Walter Elias Disney
(1901 – 1966), the storyteller, artist, and showman who gave life to little
Mickey Mouse
and later dreamed and built
Disneyland
.  His imagination and creativity built the
Disney Company
.  He was a creative genius, and could be demanding; met religious leaders and heads of state; won Oscars and worked for the FBI (sort of); but at heart he was an everyman, remaining always accessible. 
Walt
always insisted that
Disney
employees call each other by first name, no matter their rank. This applied to
Walt
too; even the newest rookie employee who ran into him was supposed to call him simply
Walt
.  This was part of
Walt
’s down-to-earth Midwestern style. 
Walt
always wanted the best for his employees, Guests, and collaborators.  His staff members were driven to produce their best work because
Walt
always expected the best.  Some of the older
Disneyland
Cast Members you encounter might have met or at least seen
Walt
before he passed in 1966.  When he died, it was a devastating blow to all who knew him, or felt like they knew him, which was most of the world.  His older brother and business partner
Roy
went forward with the new park in development in
Florida
, and when it was completed, named it
Walt Disney World
for his beloved brother who dreamed and designed it. 
Walt
’s first-name tradition lives on to this day; Cast Members’ name tags bear only their first names and their home towns.  Much of my childhood was passed in a tiny Massachusetts village called “Turners Falls”; what a thrill and surprise it was to see a
Hub
Cast Member with “Turners Falls” on his name tag.  See if you can find a Cast Member from
your
home town when you visit!  To learn much, much more about the amazing
Walt Disney
read some of the books and watch some of the DVDs listed in “Resources & Recommendations”.