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California Adventure

Lunar New Year celebration at Disney California Adventure

The Lunar New Year celebration at Disney California Adventure is bigger-than-ever this year as the year of the Rooster is celebrated over 17 days ending on Sunday Feb 5th. Mickey, Minnie, Mulan, and Mushu join special performers, fun-filled activities, and special food booths, as part… Read More »Lunar New Year celebration at Disney California Adventure

Bob Iger Comes Clean on DCA

Businessweek recently conducted an interview with Disney CEO Bob Iger during which the recent extreme makeover of Disney California Adventure was a centerpiece. What I found interesting about the interview was how candid Iger was about some of the things went wrong with the original… Read More »Bob Iger Comes Clean on DCA

DCA History Tour: Paradise Pier…The Finale!

Can you believe it! This is the last DCA History Lesson! More importantly, the week we have been waiting for since it was announced in 2007, DCA’s 1.1 billion dollar expansion will finally be completed. Time has flown. To celebrate, I thought the only way to cap off an incredible expansion of this size, would be to go to the most iconic part of DCA…Paradise Pier. Strap in screamers, we have 4 topics to cover. Sit back, face forward, and hang on!

The focal point of Paradise Pier was (and still is) the Ferris wheel. Being 160 ft. in diameter, it is hard to miss. WDI decided that the essence of California could be represented by the sun (hence the Sunshine Sculpture at the front of the park), so they stuck it on the side of the wheel. Based on Mexican folk-art, one of the main “defining features” of the park also featured a very fun, and sometimes thrilling, ride. With 16 swinging gondolas, it brought Ferris wheels to a whole new level. Once the expansion was announced and the direction Paradise Pier was taking was different than what the sun represented, they announced that the Sun Wheel would now becomes Mickey’s Fun Wheel. The attraction closed in Oct. of 2008 and reopened in May 2009 with the Mickey head.

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Numbers Reveal Scale of Change at Disney California Adventure

We’re just a few short days away from the grand unveiling of the (mostly) remade Disney California Adventure. On June 15 two highly anticipated themed lands, Cars Land and Buena Vista Street, will open completing a five-year expansion of the Disneyland Resort. Add new attractions, merchandise locations, entertainment and food offerings, plus opportunities for families to have fun together, and guests will find an immersive experience full of memory-making opportunities for the whole family.

Here’s a closer look at Disney California Adventure, by the numbers.

280,000 – Square feet of rockwork in Cars Land, making Ornament Valley mountain range the largest rockwork created in a domestic Disney theme park; built to an unusual level of complexity with very few 90-degree angles

125 – Height in feet at the tallest peak of Ornament Valley range in Cars Land

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Virtual Cars Land Map Online

Disneyland has put together a really fun interactive map of the soon to open Cars Land at California Adventure. It’s not exactly a virtual world (you can only move forward and backward) but three is a lot to explore. It’s also a great preview of… Read More »Virtual Cars Land Map Online