We've waited a whole year! It has been a little over a year since the official closure of Disneyland and California Adventure. A year of missing all the sights, sounds and flavors that makes the parks so Magical. When I heard A Touch Of Disney was arriving to California I knew I had to get my hands on some tickets, and luckily I did! My family and I got to rediscover the magic of the Disneyland Resort through the sights, sounds, and flavors we had all been craving. It all felt absolutely magical and it was everything our Disney loving hearts desired. I'm going to share with you some tips, all the yummy food we sampled and everything we got to enjoy during our visit. If you have your tickets and will be visiting soon, hope you find this post helpful!
Food
of course one of the many things we missed about the Disneyland parks was the food. Sitting inside the park, enjoying these delicious treats with the music playing just made it so Magical. Your $25 A Touch of Disney Dining Card that comes with the tickets is redeemable for food and nonalcoholic beverages at select dining locations within the Disneyland Resort. It is very important you download or update your Disneyland mobile app, as this is the primary way to order food and beverages at quick-service dining locations and Marketplaces during your experience. Keep in mind, few of the carts will not have a mobile ordering option, so there will be a bit of a line to wait in.
Using the mobile app is really the best way to make the most out of your time and avoid any long lines. After you do it once you will see how easy and convenient it is! Plan ahead by Mobile Ordering at Select Locations. Choose an arrival window that works for you, order food and beverages and pay via the Disneyland app to help limit your contact with others. You’ll get an alert when your order is ready, so kick back and relax while your food is prepared.
TIPS
When you place a mobile order for food and nonalcoholic beverages, you will be able to redeem your A Touch of Disney Dining Card at checkout. Simply tap “Add a Card” under Payment Methods, choose the Disney Gift Card/Disney Dining Card option and enter the 16-digit account number that appears on the back of the card. The app will not remember your 16 digit number so you WILL have to manually input it every time.
Have a credit card saved on your app to be able to purchase alcohol or food after you run out of your $25.
Check time slots when ordering food. The later it gets the longer the waits, specially for popular items like Dole Whip
A Touch of Disney Dining Cards cannot be used to purchase alcohol and only ONE card can be used per order.
Ok now for the fun part! Here's what we got to taste and some of our favorites! Initially I was bummed we didn't get a reservation at any of the restaurants, however, there was plenty of delicious food so I really don't feel like we missed out on anything.
Everything was delicious BUT if I had to choose a favorite it would have to be the pork belly sandwich! Oh and the specialty churros were amazing too.
Parking
Parking for the experience is included and is at the Mickey & Friends Parking Structure beginning at 11:30 AM.
TIP: After hearing many reviews about wait times at the Mickey and Friends Parking structure we decided to park at The Grand Legacy Hotel right across from the Parks. For $10 all day parking, we were able to park there and avoid any traffic. It was an easy 4 minute walk which still included a bag check and temperature screening area that had zero wait time.
Disney Photopass
With every ticket you get unlimited digital downloads of Disney PhotoPass photos. We got so many cute ones!
As SOON as you enter the park link your ticket to the app. That is the only way to have your pictures saved to your photo pass. Here's how!
Open the app
Hit the plus sign at the bottom
Click on link PhotoPass photos
At the top click link PhotoPass card
Scan the code at the back of your card.
TIP: Instead of having to open the app every time you want pictures uploaded to your account, do this! Take a snapshot of the code and save it as your wallpaper. The photographer can just scan your code directly from the wallpaper saved on your phone and your photos will still be linked to your account. Makes it so much faster and easy.
Things To Do With The Kiddos
You might be asking yourself what you can do with the kiddos besides eat. Well there is plenty!
Character Sightings
Now you can see some of Disneys favorite characters from afar! It's a fun and easy way to see the characters while maintaining social distance and you can make a game out of it. We were able to spot Goofy, Minnie Mouse, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Joy!
Dance Like No One Is Watching
They have music playing all throughout the park. Some of our Disney favorites are playing with a whole new twist. Stop and have a little dance party like no one is watching! Great way to have fun and entertain the kiddos.
Play Games
They had a few carnival games to choose from which are always fun for the kiddos! There was a line for the games but went fairly quickly. And of course all games were disinfected after each use!
Legacy Passholder
Are you a Legacy Passholder? You are considered a Legacy Passholder if you held active PassPorts as of March 14, 2020. If you are, make sure you visit the Legacy Passholder corner right next to Boardwalk Pizza and Pasta. There you will find a special picture opportunity as well as be able to receive your Legacy Passholder magnet and pin. You will have to show your passes on the app as well as a photo ID.
Here are other fun photo opportunities you can't miss!
Safety
As always Disney priority is maintaining all of its guest and employees safety.
Face coverings are required for all Guests (ages 2 and up) and Cast Members, including those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine. You may remove your face covering while actively eating or drinking, but you must be sitting and maintaining appropriate physical distancing. Temperature and Security Screenings are being done prior to entering the park and you will see cast members cleaning frequently touched as well as sitting areas. Hand sanitizers and hand washing areas are also located through out the park. There is signage to maintain physical distancing throughout the park as well as ground marking to remind us all.
To sum up, our visit was amazing! We enjoyed the food, music, and just simply walking around the park again. The Magic was Alive! It was everything we expected from Disney and more. Unfortunately, tickets are sold out but if you were lucky enough to get tickets to this amazing limited time ticketed experience, hope you find this post helpful.
Talk to you later!
