Stay, Stray, Play and Feast: Disney California Adventure Park: The Magic Continues (Anaheim, Theme Park City Series 3)

Disney California Adventure Park

The Magic Continues

(Anaheim, Theme Park City Series 3)

Located in front of Disneyland Anaheim

is the Disney California Adventure Park.

A visit to the original Anaheim Disneyland is never

complete without visiting its younger sister theme park.

Disney California Adventure Park brings to life well

loved classic Disney and the more recent Pixar stories

on eight theme park zones offering exciting attractions.

The fun begins at the Buena Vista Street where various
Mexican fiesta themed restaurants and stores are found.

Gone was all American themed restaurants and diners
and the miniature Golden Gate Bridge that was here
on our last visit after a major renovation few years ago.

It was replacedby a Hispanic looking arch instead.

There really no reason for one to stay long in this zone as
it only serves as the portal for other theme par zones but
with the Christmas Season coming the roadside carolers
made us linger a little bit more to listen to their angelic voices.

We went directly to the Cars Land, as this was one

of the reasons why we decided to return to Disneyland.

This attraction was still under construction three

years ago and this new themed zone based on the hit

cartoon Pixar movie Cars, awesomely came to life.

We directly to walked to Radiator Spring Racers and fell in line
on the new zone’s centerpiece attraction . and it was a perfect
concept of transforming the movie into an exciting ride.

The ride begins as a scenic leisurely drive in revved-up cars

to Radiator Springs to meet the talking-autos gang, and later

pit them against another carload of guests for a thrilling roller-

coaster ride pretending to be cars racing- to-the-finish finale.

There are two other attractions in this zone like the
Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree, and Luigi’s flying Tire.

We then crossed the Scenic Pacific Wharf where

a number of wonderful seafood restaurants are located,

...where we took our snacks and cookies,

…before going to the Pacific Pier where

a lot of exciting rides are located.

For those with young kids, they should

not miss the Toy Story Midway Mania,

The later leads to Midway Boardwalk, where newer
attractions are located, like Goofy’s Sky School,

…and Little Mermaid- Ariel’s Undersea Adventure,

which just like the Cars attraction was still being built

during our last visit here about three years ago.

There are other benign kiddie rides in this attraction, and

some extreme rides like the giant Mickey’s Fun Wheel,

…and the humongous wooden rollercoaster

the rickety looking California Screamin’.

The Grissly Peak, is just few steps away and

the Grissly River Run, a white water rafting ride

is the zone’s must not miss centerpiece attraction.

It is also in this zone that we let loose our son’s

hyperactivity where he could run around and

play in the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail.

The Candor Flats zone is easy accessible from here,

and one should never miss Soarin’ Over California,

where one can have a relaxing simulated hang glider

ride over several scenic California landmarks realistically

projected on a giant concave screen with 5D special effects.

This is also the best stop for burgers and fries for late lunch or even
early dinner as it is where the Taste Pilot Grill Diner is located.

Our last stop was the Hollywood Land, also the site of

several wonderful kiddie rides that one should not miss.

These are the Moppet Vision 3D, and Monster’s Inc.,
Mike and Sulley To The Rescue, where guests board
taxis on a journey through the streets of Monstropolis where
they meet various characters of Pixar’s hit movie Monsters Inc.

Also on this area is the Twilight Zone’s Tower of Terror,

located at the Hollywood Tower. It is one of the highest

structures in the park and an extreme accelerated drop

tower thrill ride themed as a seemingly ordinary hotel

elevator, with some mysterious supernatural influence.

My daughter and I tried this ride during our last visit

three years ago, but decided to skip it this time as we both

got dizzy and wobbly after riding this extreme attraction.

We did not stop the Bugs World.This is actually our least favorite
part of the park as most of the attractions here are also found in
most non- Disney theme parks and even on ordinary town carnival
fairs, but we posed to take some souvenir photos.

The centerpiece attraction for this zone is a 3D Movie,

called It’s Tough To Be A Bug based on a Pixar

movie, A Bug's Life, that guests should not miss.

We capped our visit with Disney California Adventure Park's
own version of Disney's Parade featuring cartoon characters
popularized by various Pixar hit films in the past,