Originally Posted By Princess Gabi My father is a very busy man, and has to work a lot, but somehow we manage to spend a day together at Disneyland every year. Yesterday, we headed over and got into the park around 1:30, after he surprised me with a new AP for a Hanukkah present! Throughout the day, we just seemed to have the best luck! I told him we should grab FP's for Space Mountain, but lo and behold, the line was incredibly short. So we went on, and man did he have a blast. My father's not one for roller coasters, so he was screaming like a little girl, but it was great. Next we hit Indiana Jones. Afterwards, I wanted to show him the "new" POTC. He loved it! When the Davy Jones waterfall appeared in front of us, he actually thought we were going to get soaked until we passed through and he realized it was mist! Hahaha. By the end of the ride, he was singing along and having a great time. After a bit of shopping, we were going to hit Haunted Mansion Holiday, but the line was too long so we went on Splash Mountain instead. Let me tell you, I have never gotten so soaked on that ride before. We were sitting in the 3rd and 4th seats in the log, but managed to get COMPLETELY drenched. We froze our butts off for a while, and then sat down and had dinner at Cafe Orleans. Even though I go to Disneyland quite frequently, this was my first time in Cafe Orleans. He had the Monte Cristo sandwich, and I had the 3 cheese Monte Cristo. Both of us were a little hesitant, but decided to go for it despite the way it sounded. It ended up tasting delicious! We were incredibly surprised at how good everything was. After dinner, we weren't quite ready for rides, so I decided to show my dad the Jewel Orleans. He loves antique jewelry (although he doesn't wear it, of course!) so he really liked the shop. We talked to the salesladies for about half an hour, and I even got to try on a $20,000 ring! Yikes! Next, we hit Haunted Mansion Holiday and talked to a very nice family from Georgia while in line. My dad claimed he was going to hate the Nightmare overlay, but he ended up thinking it was adorable. Next was Space Mountain again, Star Tours, and the Matterhorn. Here's where our incredible luck comes in. After the Matterhorn, I knew that everywhere was going to be insane due to the fireworks. So I suggested going to Fantasyland and finding a bathroom and a place to sit down. Lucky for us, right as we were leaving the bathrooms near the Village Haus, the holiday fireworks began! We had an awesome view, although we couldn't hear the music too well. It didn't matter though! We weren't squished in a huge crowd haha. I overheard a CM talking about a "line" for Peter Pan, and I asked what she meant since it was closed at the time due to the fireworks. She pointed me near a lamp and said, "If you wait there, we'll let you onto Peter Pan first!" I was so excited since I really wanted to go on it all day but wasn't up to the 45 minute wait for a 1 minute ride. After the fireworks, we got to be first to ride Peter Pan once it reopened! It was very fun. Next, we did a little shopping near the castle, then decided to go on Thunder Mountain. By this time, we were incredibly tired, so after Thunder Mountain we decided to call it a day and head back home. My dad wanted to exit to the right and go through Fantasyland, but I told him we should go to the left and exit through Frontierland. Lucky us, Fantasmic! was starting just as soon as we walked past the River of America. We saw a perfect viewing spot and decided to watch the show. We both loved it so much! It was really the perfect ending to a perfect day in Disneyland. =] Now that is some quality time with your dad, eh?
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 Sounds like you had a fantastic time together, YAY! What great luck too We also lucked into watching the fireworks by the Village Haus and then zipping over to the Peter Pan line, I think we were about 10th in line. It really is a fun little "secret" It was even fun watching the Pirate Ships "power up" wasn't it?
Originally Posted By chickendumpling Sounds like a great day, Princess Gabi. I'm glad you posted. I remember your trip report last year and was happy to see you guys had another fun time at the park together. I love the idea of the annual trip. Way fun.
