Disneyland Diamond Celebration
Paint the Night Parade, Disneyland Forever, World of Wonder, Sleeping Beauty’s Castle and a visit to Cars Land at California Adventure
I couldn’t believe it, I was finally going to visit Disneyland after all these years, and not ‘just’ Disneyland, but the Disneyland 60 Diamond Celebration! Having grown up most of my life in Florida, I’ve always just gone to Disney Orlando. Still, I always wanted the opportunity to visit the original park. There’s something incredibly nostalgic about the idea of it being the first. So, when I got the news that I’d be hitting the park after the D23 EXPO day’s events, I was elated.
It was twilight when we arrived to the park, so I couldn’t take many day time pictures. And it was packed. Pretty much a triple whammy for being packed actually since it was summer, it was a weekend and the D23 EXPO was going on. Still, Main Street, U.S.A. was magical as ever and right away I was in bliss.
I had two nights, a park hopper pass and a mission. My biggest objectives were to see the night events and swing over to California Adventure and see Cars Land for the first time ever! Here are the night events:
- Paint the Night Parade
- Disneyland Forever fireworks show
- World of Color water show
Paint the Night Parade for Disneyland 60 Diamond Celebration
I’ve never been a huge fan of parades in general so believe me when I tell you, this parade ROCKS! Maybe it’s just my undying love for neon lights, but this electrical parade was about the only thing that could get me off the Disneyland park bench after a loooooong day of D23 and Disneyland exploring. I was totally wiped. Believe me when I tell you, it’s totally worth saving a good seat for.
I watched as a luminescent parade of color took over Main Street, U.S.A with a lineup of Disney characters, digital graphics, music and dancers. It was so cool, even the dancers were wearing neon lights! Here are the characters I saw:
- Cinderella
- Rapunzel
- Monsters Inc.
- The Little Mermaid
- Beauty and the Beast
- Toy Story
- Cars
- Frozen
- Fantasia
- Tinkerbell
- All your favorites like Donald, Goofy, Mickey and Minnie
Disneyland Forever
WOW! Can I just say it again, WOW! Okay so let me just tell you, I’ve seen probably over a hundred Disney World fireworks in my life. The Disneyland Forever show is amazing in comparison with a “street-to-sky immersive experience like nothing seen before”.
There were projections on our surroundings to bring characters to life, characters flying through the air, a spectacular light display for Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, music and of course fireworks. This is from the press release, which I couldn’t have explained better myself:
One minute they will be standing on Main Street, U.S.A., and the next they could be stampeding across Simba’s Pride Lands, dancing with King Louie from “The Jungle Book,” traveling “Under the Sea” with the Little Mermaid, flying over London with Peter Pan, dripping in honey with Pooh in a whimsical dream of heffalumps and woozles, or shivering as Queen Elsa brings a glimmering blanket of snow over Disneyland. -Disney Parks
Here’s a cool video on Disneyland Forever:
You’ll also get to see the facade of “It’s a Small World” the Matterhorn and mist screens along the Rivers of America, with specially designed digital projections offering guests new experiences at each location.
What I thought was the coolest was seeing Tinkerbell and Nemo flying over Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.
California Adventure
Cars Land
A definite new and exciting experience for me. I didn’t have much time to explore so I’m totally not able to share much, but fear not! I’ve enlisted in the help of my fellow Disney bloggers and am able to provide you with a killer California Adventure mom blog post. Enjoy.
What I did get to explore however was Cars Land which I absolutely, cotton picking, flicking LOVED!!!!!!! As soon as I took the bend and saw the infamous canyons and neon lights I was in heaven. Seriously, I could’ve easily hung out there like all night.
I got to ride the Radiator Springs Racers which raced to the top of my list of my favorite Disney parks rides. I actually periscoped the whole thing haha!
World of Color
All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. -Walt Disney
Watch this cool World of Color video:
Neil Patrick Harris joined Mickey Mouse for a water show telling the story of Walt and the Happiest Place on Earth. It’s was an experience of live-action film, animated imagery, fountains, lasers, special effects and music. I loved seeing the journey through Walt Disney’s legacy of animated moments and the dream of the Disneyland Park. One thought I kept going back to over the course of the entire weekend was “Walt would be so proud”.
Disneyland Diamond Days
So while I didn’t get to experience a whole lot of the park by day, I do have the skinny on what you can expect for Disneyland Diamond Days.
- Weekly prizes like a one-carat custom engraved diamond with a stay in the Disneyland Dream Suite, crystal Cinderella slipper, with diamond and topaz pendant, and private experiences in the park such as a party in Fantasyland or a romantic cruise aboard the Mark Twain Riverboat. The available prize will vary each week
- Daily prize packages for that day includes an individualized tour of the parks with dining, preferred access to select attractions, and VIP viewing at some of the dazzling, new nighttime spectaculars
- New dazzling costumes for Mickey and friends
- A dazzling Sleeping Beauty Castle
- Carthay Circle Theatre in Disney California Adventure glisten with gleaming veneer and diamond medallions
- Diamond Mad Tea Party
- Food and bev carts are dazzling
- Fun commemorative souvenirs
For more information on visiting Disneyland and California Adventure click here.
I absolutely LOVED visiting Disneyland and California Adventure and now I know it’s an ABSOLUTE MUST I bring the Little back to California to experience these parks in full.
Need Help Picking Which Disney Park to Visit? Check This Out!
A special thank you to Disney. While they sent me on an all expenses paid trip for D23 EXPO to include visiting the parks, it in no way shapes my opinion.
