Travel Archives - Page 13 of 65

How to survive and enjoy Disneyland with a toddler.

Building a droid at the Droid Depot, in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Enjoy a drink at Oga’s Cantina.

A guide to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Enjoy Donald Duck’s Seaside Breakfast.

Donald Duck’s Seaside Breakfast at Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel

March 10, 2020 / Anaheim, California, Disney Travel, Disneyland, Travel, USA / 0 comment

Meet favourite Disney Characters at a tasty breakfast and brunch buffet during Donald Duck’s Seaside Breakfast at Disney’s Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel.

This beach-themed character dining experience is a fun way to kick off the day with a breakfast or brunch buffet and entertainment from some of Disney’s most beloved characters.

Note: Disney’s PCH Grill is also open for dinner, however characters do not appear during that meal.

Bookings are highly advised for this popular character dining experience. Even with a booking you may have to wait a significant time to be sat at your table (we waited for almost an hour past our booking time).

The breakfast buffet includes: build-your-own-parfait station (with plain and strawberry yogurt, fresh berries, dried fruits, and housemade granola), eggs benedict, scrambled eggs, chilaquiles (with shredded beef, salsa verde, and queso fresco), chicken and waffles, omelettes, assorted breakfast pastries, muffins, breakfast breads, bagels, smoked salmon, sliced seasonal fresh fruits and berries, assorted breakfast flatbreads, egg white frittata, bacon, country pork sausage, chicken apple sausage links.

The kids’ buffet includes: Mickey waffles, Minnie pancakes, a selection of hot and cold cereals, sausage, bacon, seasonal fresh fruit, grilled peanut butter and banana with chocolate-stuffed French toast.

The brunch buffet includes popular breakfast items, like Mickey-shaped waffles, lunch specials including soups, salads, pasta, pizza, rotating seasonal options, mini pastries, beignets with dipping sauce, homemade bread pudding and other dishes.

We had the brunch menu and found there weren’t many vegetarian items to choose from, so the chef very kindly made me a special vegetarian dish he had been working on – an incredible vegan burger and quesadillas.

Donald's Seaside Breakfast, Disneyland California — My special vegetarian meal.

The main character at this dining experience is Donald Duck. He is generally located at the entrance and does not visit the tables. Minnie Mouse, Stitch and Daisy Duck all visited our table at least once during our stay, and spent a lot of time with us.

Minnie Mouse leads kids in a fun, beachy dance number during the brunch.

Reservations
Advance reservations are highly recommended and can be booked online up to 60 days prior to your visit. Reservations can also be made in person on a limited basis, subject to availability.

Parking
Complimentary 3-hour parking—your choice of either valet or self-parking—is included with a Disney’s PCH Grill validation and is available at Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel.

Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel
1717 South, Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA
Breakfast: 7am-11:25am
Brunch: 11:30am-1pm
Dinner: 5:30pm-9
disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/paradise-pier-hotel/disneys-pch-grill/

A Guide To Visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland California

March 5, 2020 / Anaheim, California, Disney Travel, Disneyland, Travel, USA / 0 comment

A Guide To Visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland California

Watch your very own Star Wars story come to life at Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland California.

This galaxy is not so far, far away – although it certainly feels like you’re light years away from the real world it when you’re immersed inside Disneyland.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is located inside Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California and Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. The themed lands encompass 14 acres at each park and are replicas of each other.

What makes Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge special?

What really makes Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge special is the detail. Every single tiny detail has been carefully planned to make guests feel as though they are on a different planet once they are inside.

The cast members have different uniforms here, and a back story that makes them a character in the narrative, and instead of having timed and greets, characters roam the land at will, engaging with guests at a much higher level than the rest of the park.

If you ask a cast member a question, they will answer it completely in character. The more fun you have with the interactions you have, the more fun cast members have, too.

So what can you actually do in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge?

Pilot the Millennium Falcon

The first ride to open inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was the thrilling Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. Guests can fly the Millennium Falcon on a thrilling interactive smuggling mission. There are six roles within each flight: two pilots, two gunners and two engineers.

Basically, the engineers don’t really do much (so it’s a great role for someone who is keener to watch then get involved), the gunners get to shoot things, and the pilots get to fly the ship.

The cast members will hand you a card signifying your role, however you can swap your role card with anyone else in your boarding party to change your role.

There is no FastPass available at time of writing, so the best strategy to ride this currently is to head straight to the ride when the park opens. Throughout the day, your best option is the Single Rider’s Line.

Join the Resistance

Galaxy's Edge, Disneyland California — Matt Stroshane, photographer

The second ride to open within the land, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, is a thrilling multi-stage ride where guests join the Resistance in a battle against the first order.

This ride is incredibly difficult to get on. Your choices are to rope drop the ride when Star Wars Land opens (it is NOT open for early morning entry) or book an Individual Lightening Lane pass to ride it without waiting.

You can get further details about how to ride Rise of the Resistance online.

Explore Black Spire Outpost on the Planet Batuu

The Disney Imagineers did a fantastic job creating a brand new world inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, the “long-forgotten planet named Batuu”. On the Planet Batuu is the village settlement known as Black Spire Outpost, which is filled with shops, food outlets and a smattering of scoundrels, rogues and smugglers.

There are many, many shops here, filled with all kinds of fun souvenirs from clothes to “pets” that are really odd, interactive toy creatures that have been completely made up and so creative and fun.

You can even buy a version of the “chess” game which is played in the movies!

Eat intergalactic grub

There are several food and beverage outlets inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge that are completely unique in their offerings to the rest of the park.

Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo

Grab a rustic plate of “local” cuisine (they’ve done a fab job of turning California produce into exotic offerings). Planet-based (vegan) offerings are available.

Ronto Roasters

This meat stall offers grilled sausage from the “ronto” (plant-based vegan is also available) wrapped in pita bread. A ronto is a massive beast native to the planet Tatooine.

Milk Stand

Try a cup of legendary blue or green milk, which is actually a planet-based concoction made from a blend of coconut and rice milk.

Kat Saka’s Kettle

Drop by this food stall for some Outpot Mix, a sweet and savoury popcorn (vegan available).

Coke stands

We loved these spherical coke bottles (also available in Diet Coke) that are made especially for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. We had no problems bringing our empty bottles back home with us on the plane.

Build a droid

One of the most fun things we did at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was building our own droids at the Droid Depot inside the Black Spire Outpost. We had intended to build just the one but it was so much fun that we ended up building two.

Read more about our experience building droids at the Droid Depot.

Make a custom lightsaber

Build your own lightsaber at Savi’s Workshop – Handmade Lightsaber Building Experience.

The Savi’s Workshop Lightsaber Building Experience, located in the Black Spire Outpost, is as much of an immersive experience about joining the Force as it is about taking home a fancy souvenir.

Read more about our experience at Savi’s Workshop – Handmade Lightsaber Building Experience.

Grab a drink at the cantina

One of the galaxy’s most infamous watering holes comes to life at Oga’s Cantina. The cantina specialises in fantastical drinks that will delight even the youngest crew members (that’s right, this is a family-friendly bar inside Disneyland!). Oga’s Cantina serves alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.

Read more about our experience visiting Oga’s Cantina.

Things to know before you visit Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will not be available during Extra Magic Hour or Magic Morning at Disneyland Park.

Disney FASTPASS service and Disney MaxPass are unavailable for attractions in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge looks amazing at night, so I highly suggest returning then to see Batuu lit up.

There are two ways to enter Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – through Frontierland behind Big Thunder Mountain and via Critter Country past the Hungry Bear Restaurant. There are no signs to show the way, so refer to the park map for entrance to the land a well as finding the attraction within.

Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA
disneyland.disney.go.com/destinations/disneyland/star-wars-galaxys-edge/

More Disneyland Resort California Tips

How to have the best Disneyland holiday ever.

A guide to using MAXPASS At Disneyland.

Celebrating Halloween at Disneyland.

Celebrating the holidays at Disneyland.

Hotel review: The Grand Californian Resort & Spa.

Character Dining: Goofy’s Kitchen.

Character Dining: Minnie & Friends Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

Character Dining: Mickey’s Tales of Adventure.

How to survive and enjoy Disneyland with a toddler.

Building a droid at the Droid Depot, in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Enjoy a drink at Oga’s Cantina.

Inside Oga’s Cantina at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California

February 26, 2020 / Anaheim, California, Disney Travel, Disneyland, Travel, USA / 0 comment

Oga’s Cantina at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California

A drink at Oga’s Cantina is one of the hottest tickets at Disneyland. There is no point lining up for this experience at this time – reservations are essential and can be made 60 days in advance online or on the app. Walk-ins will be accommodated when possible.

Oga’s Cantina serves drinks and very basic snacks. There is a menu with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available – plus “secret” items that aren’t listed on the menu (ask the bar staff for current items not listed on the menu).

Kids are welcome at Oga’s Cantina, but I wouldn’t say it’s very kid-friendly. Oga’s is a small, tight space with very little room to move around and no room for kids to play. Oga’s is definitely aimed at adults and tolerant towards kids.

What to expect inside Oga’s Cantina

Due to its extreme popularity there are lots of rules regulating this themed bar.

If you have a reservation, check in no earlier than 15 minutes prior to your booking. We lined up for around 15-20 minutes and were eventually admitted inside.

In order to manage the crowd inside the cantina, guests are shown to a spot where they can either stand or sit. You will be placed right next to strangers even if you are sat at a table, so be prepared to get squishy and make some new friends.

There is very limited seating – Oga’s Cantina mostly consists of standing room. Large parties may be separated.

You will need to show your ID to order alcoholic drinks. There is a two-drink maximum per person.

Be prepared for how expensive the drinks will be! They are pricey but they are also good. We ordered the .

Drinks arrive fast and you pay your server directly.

There is a 45 minute time limit to time spent inside the Cantina. After that time you must leave or you will be gently reminded to do so.

If you want to take a look around the Cantina (and you absolutely should!) do so after you’ve finished your drinks and are ready to leave – as soon as you vacate your designated spot, new people will be shown in.

There are some fantastic details around the bar that deserve a closer look. It is a bit tricky to navigate with the sheer number of people.

The coasters are very cool and yes you may take them home as a souvenier. Ask your server for a few brand new ones to take.

Oga’s Cantina Rules

At least one person in the party must be 14 years of age or older.

Reservations are non-transferrable and may not be sold or bartered.

Each person in your party must be present upon check-in. Please be prepared to present your reservation confirmation email, photo ID and the credit card provided at the time of booking.

Alcoholic Beverages: Guests must be 21 years of age or over to consume alcohol; valid photo ID is required. There is a maximum of 2 drinks per Guest.

Cancellations: You must cancel at least one day prior to your reservation to avoid a per person cancellation fee. If you fail to timely cancel and are a no-show, the credit card provided at the time of reservation will be charged $10 per person.

More Disneyland Resort California Tips

How to have the best Disneyland holiday ever.

A guide to using MAXPASS At Disneyland.

Celebrating Halloween at Disneyland.

Celebrating the holidays at Disneyland.

Hotel review: The Grand Californian Resort & Spa.

Character Dining: Goofy’s Kitchen.

Character Dining: Minnie & Friends Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

Character Dining: Mickey’s Tales of Adventure.

How to survive and enjoy Disneyland with a toddler.

Building a droid at the Droid Depot, in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

A guide to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA
disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/disneyland/ogas-cantina/

Savi’s Workshop Lightsaber Building Experience, Disneyland Resort California

February 25, 2020 / Anaheim, California, Disney Travel, Disneyland, Travel, USA / 0 comment

Savi’s Workshop Lightsaber Building Experience, Disneyland Resort California

Build your own lightsaber at Savi’s Workshop – Handmade Lightsaber Building Experience, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California.

The Savi’s Workshop Lightsaber Building Experience, located in the Black Spire Outpost, is as much of an immersive experience about joining the Force as it is about taking home a fancy souvenir.

The journey to becoming a Jedi is a covert one. It was quite tricky to find the workshop entrance as it’s not signed anywhere – look for a small group of people gathering in a little alcove area (pictured above). This area is a hotspot for storm troopers and Kylo Ren to drop by and interrogate people, so prepare your promises to serve the dark side incase of an encounter.

The lightsaber experience must be booked in advance. Limited amounts of walk-ins are taken each day, depending on how booked out they are. Bookings open 60 days in advance and I suggest making your booking then to ensure you get the time slot you want.

The experience was running behind when we checked in and we ended up having to wait around 30 minutes. I would suggest not having anything booked or scheduled after the lightsaber building for an hour in case of this.

Choosing and building a lightsaber

When checking in for the experience with the “Gatherers”, you will be asked to choose from one of four hilt themes and will receive a special cloisonné pin to identify your selection

Peace and Justice
Salvaged scraps from fallen Jedi temples and crashed starships in these Republic-era designs honor the galaxy’s former guardians.
Power and Control
Originally forged by dark side warriors, this style features rumored remnants from the Sith homeworld and abandoned temples.
Elemental Nature
This theme embodies the Force—an energy created by all living things, like Brylark trees, Cartusion whale bones and Rancor teeth.
Protection and Defense
Hilt materials bear mysterious motifs and inscriptions that reconnect users with the ancient wellspring of the Force.

Once the group has been called inside the workshop, the experience begins in earnest.

The lightsaber makers gather around the long table while guests can stand at the edges of the room.

The Gatherers help each participant select the heart of their lightsaber – a kyber crystal, which is available in red, blue, green or violet.

Next is assembling the hilt. Each theme receives its own box of parts to choose from.

Each box of parts includes:

1 hilt
4 sleeves (pick 2)
2 emitters (pick 1)
2 pommel caps (pick 1)
2 sets of activation plates and switches (pick 1 set)

Upon hilt completion, the unused parts are collected by the Gatherers and returned to Savi’s inventory.

The final step is the lightsaber blade. The Gatherers provide instruction on how to correctly do this and assist with this step. Each hilt is connected to a 31” lightsaber blade that can be lit and removed from the table.

The whole experience is so immersive that if feels like you are becoming a Jedi and about to join the ranks of Skywalker (or Kylo Ren if you’ve chosen the Dark Side). There were more adults than children in the room, experiencing their childhood Jedi dreams coming to life right there in their hands.

The lightsabers themselves are amazing quality. Extremely sturdy and with excellent lights and sounds.

Upon leaving the room, each participant is given a carrying case for their lightsaber that can be slung over their back for transportation. Be warned that is is very big and bulk and I would suggest taking it back to the hotel if that is an option.

Need to know details about building lightsabers

The lightsaber experience does not come cheap. The cost is $199.99 per lightsaber, plus tax.

Reservations can be made 60 days in advance and a credit card is needed to secure the booking. You must cancel at least one day prior to your reservation to avoid a per builder cancellation fee. If you fail to timely cancel and are a no-show, the credit card provided at the time of reservation will be charged $199.99 per builder.

One lightsaber per builder per experience.

There are additional lightsaber customisation items available for purchased at Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities.

The age recommendation for this experience is 5 years or older and I would absolutely agree with this and add that if you have a child under the age of 10 then it would be advisable to have someone accompanying them who can assist them if needs be as the constructing can be quite tricky and move quickly along – at times too quickly for your kids to keep up.

Younger children may accompany builders as a guest and watch the experience, however the workshop is inside a small, dark room with lights and noises that may frighten younger children (and did in fact terrify a toddler in our group to the point where he had to be removed for the remainder of the experience).

The experience area is limited to the builder and 2 Guests. At least one person in the party must be age 14 or older.

Check in no earlier than 15 minutes before your reservation time but also be prepared for the experience to be running late. Present your reservation confirmation, photo ID and the credit card provided at the time of booking on arrival.

The whole experience goes for around 30 minutes.

Transporting the lightsabers home

We took our lightsabers on an international flight from LA to Sydney with Qantas. We removed the hilts easily on our hotel and wrapped them in thick clothes, then placed the hilts in our hard cased suitcase.

We then took the blades onboard as a carry-on item. With the hilt removed the blades fit inside the overhead bins easily. We had no issues with security or customs on either end of our trip, and the lightsabers arrived safely and were easily reassembled on our arrival.

Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA
disneyland.disney.go.com/shops/disneyland/savis-workshop-handbuilt-lightsabers/

More Disneyland Resort California Tips

How to have the best Disneyland holiday ever.

A guide to using MAXPASS At Disneyland.

Celebrating Halloween at Disneyland.

Celebrating the holidays at Disneyland.

Hotel review: The Grand Californian Resort & Spa.

Character Dining: Goofy’s Kitchen.

Character Dining: Minnie & Friends Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

Character Dining: Mickey’s Tales of Adventure.

How to survive and enjoy Disneyland with a toddler.

Building a droid at the Droid Depot, in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Enjoy a drink at Oga’s Cantina.

A guide to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Building Droids at the Droid Depot Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California

February 25, 2020 / Anaheim, California, Disney Travel, Disneyland, Travel, USA / 0 comment

Droid Depot at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California

Build your own custom droid at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Disneyland Resort California.

First, register your choice of the BB-series unit or R-series unit with the clerk, who’ll provide a basket and blueprint for parts. Next, the builder selects the parts they want from a conveyor belt. You can take as long as you like to sort through the parts and decide what kind of droid you want to make.

After the parts have been selected, they are taken to the build station in the center of the workshop.

At the build station, follow the instructions on the placemat to assemble the droid in the proper sequence.

Once the parts have all been put together, the clerk will assist in pairing the droid with a remote control. Once activated, the droid comes to life.

The droids use bluetooth technology to communicate with other droids as well as certain other elements and objects in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. We loved watching our droids “chatting” with each other.

Once the droid is built it is placed in a cardboard carry box. Builders have the option of buying additional accessories such as sticker panels and personality-affiliation chips for their droids.

The whole droid experience can take as little as 20 minutes if you’re fast, but a lot longer if you take your time. We spent at least an hour making our droids.

Must Know Info About Building Your Own Droid

Pricing: At time of writing, the each astromech droid unit cost $99.99, plus tax.

The age recommendation is 3+, however I would suggest even older than this as it’s quite tricky to assemble the droid and our 8 year old needed assistance.

The experience area is limited to the builder and one guest, and at least one person in the party must be age 14 or older.

If you run into trouble with how to use your droid, instruction manuals are available online.

Reservations can be made for Droid Depot up to 60 days in advance, with a credit card number required at the time of booking and payment will be due upon arrival. We had trouble with the online reservation system but had no trouble walking straight in and building our droids without a reservation.

Theme park admission is required to participate in this experience, and you will have to buy your Disneyland Park ticket separately.

If you do make a booking and want to cancel it, you must do so at least one day prior to your reservation to avoid a per-builder cancellation fee.

Droids must be carried around the park. You may not take them out of their box and use them while you are inside the park. The droid is able to interact with elements around the park while being carried.

Transporting Droids Home

We took our droids on an international flight from LA to Sydney with Qantas. To transport our droids we removed them from the cardboard boxes and wrapped them in thick jumpers and jackets, then enclosed them in backpacks. The droids were then placed inside a hard shell suitcase. The droids arrived intact on the other end and we had no problems with security or customs.

Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA
disneyland.disney.go.com/shops/disneyland/droid-depot/

More Disneyland Resort California Tips

How to have the best Disneyland holiday ever.

A guide to using MAXPASS At Disneyland.

Celebrating Halloween at Disneyland.

Celebrating the holidays at Disneyland.

Hotel review: The Grand Californian Resort & Spa.

Character Dining: Goofy’s Kitchen.

Character Dining: Minnie & Friends Breakfast at the Plaza Inn.

Character Dining: Mickey’s Tales of Adventure.

How to survive and enjoy Disneyland with a toddler.