By: Daisy Carrasco
As a person who will spend any free moment possible at Disney, I had to take advantage of this chance.
It was a bright and sunny day; a perfect day to visit the happiest place on the earth, Disneyland. As a little celebration, my friends and I decided to go to visit Disneyland in April to celebrate all our accomplishments and have a bittersweet day together. We are graduating soon, and these are our last days at Neuwirth.
We started our day at Disney California Adventure Park at 8 am when the park opened. Having visited before, I knew the main attractions to stay away from at opening were Incredicoaster and Guardians of the Galaxy. Those two lines get smaller as the day goes on. We started in Hollywood Land by visiting Mike and Sully on the Monster’s Inc ride. [If you’re in a time crunch and wanna enjoy your full day, this is one of the rides I wouldn’t recommend waiting more than 5 minutes to get on as it is a short and boring ride that goes through the events of the movie]. From there we decided to go towards Pixar Pier as my friends wanted to get on Incredicoaster. We decided to buy the Genie Pass for $25 as we thought the line for the ride was going to be long but it wasn't that bad of a wait. I was the designated bag holder - you will not find me anywhere near that line due to my fear of heights. Seeing my friends get off that ride, the emotions were mixed. The scare level was a range of 6-10. Definitely don’t get on if you know you will not be able to handle it, don’t give into peer pressure.
One of my friends bought us the Jack-Jack Cookie Num Num warm Chocolate Chip Cookie. I have heard good things about it with a scoop of ice cream but the cookie alone was so good. The weather was a bit cold at this point of the day so it hit so good. From that ride we decided we needed to chill a bit so we made our way to Pacific Wharf and Paradise Gardens where we got onto Silly Symphony Swings and Inside Out. Fun rides, but definitely not worth waiting over 15 minutes for each of them. Inside Out is more of a relaxing experience and a time to rest from walking so much. Those swings can be very scary, so don’t sit on the edge seats because you will feel as if you are too close to falling off the chairs.
Out of fear from what I’ve seen on TikTok, I have never gotten onto Goofy’s Sky School, but thankfully my friends pressured me to get on because it wasn’t bad whatsoever. As soon as we got in line, we waited less than 5 minutes, and we were off. The turns were said to be the worst as they were sharp and fast but weren't bad compared to other rides. Definitely not worth the hype but should be a ride you get on at least 1 time in your life. This day was full of me facing my fears.
We used the fast pass on Soarin’ and Grizzly River Run. Soarin’ is not bad at all to people, but I hate the illusion it gives as if you’re flying. Don’t get on with a fear of heights, this is one of the rides I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle either but I still got on. Everything feels real on another level due to it smelling as if you were in the place shown. 100% recommend that you get on Grizzly River Run whenever you visit. As someone who is a baby about literally everything, it was so worth it. Especially with the right people, seeing my friends laugh and scream on the drops, it made the experience so much more. But all the good aside, be ready to get wet, this is one of the rides you need a poncho or full coverage on.
Again, we had to cool down and went onto the Little Mermaid. This ride is always packed but when we went, the line wasn’t bad at all. There is an AC in this ride so definitely a good ride to get on after being soaked from the Grizzly Run.
From there, we ended our time in California at Mater's Junkyard Jamboree. There we met the sweetest little girl, Charlotte. One thing about Disney is that there are smiley and crybaby kids everywhere. They either kill your mood or make things so much better. Typically they kill my mood, but this little girl was sooo smiley and so excited to get on the ride. Once we got on, this ride is one of my favorites because it's a children's ride. You get to relax but as the trucks are “dancing,” they turn so rough so whoever you get on the ride with, it’s so much fun.
Disneyland Park has all the best food, so we park hopped and went to eat around 12pm. After eating our snacks, we used the Genie Pass on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. I have heard how scary this ride was, I didn’t want to get on whatsoever but I did. My favorite ride went from being Indiana Jones to this one. The thrill was so exciting. It does go fast and the turns are fast but that is what makes it so great. 10/10 recommend this ride with a level 4 on how scary it was.
We made our way towards Autopia. As someone without a license, this ride makes me want to get one (still push it back but whatever). Letting go of the steering wheel is always best and will make whoever you are on the ride with hate you.
We headed towards Star Wars to get on Smuggler Run. This ride needs 6 people. 2 to control the ship, 2 gunners, and 2 people fixing the ship. I would never be a driver as you need to make sure you drive well and avoid anything in your way so the ride doesn’t shake. My friends were decent drivers so it wasn’t that bad of a ride.
After this ride, we went to the Gadget Go Coaster in ToonTown. Last time I visited I didn’t get on out of fear of the drop. My friend and I made a deal that if anyone made a sound on the ride, they would pay for Starbucks. I was so scared I would be the first to scream, but as soon as we got on the ride, my fear went down. It wasn’t bad at all, level 1 scary. The ride lasted less than 2 minutes.
We stopped by the castle to take pictures and the memories that these pictures hold will forever be cherished.
We park-hopped back to California, and as my friends did the genie pass for Guardians of the Galaxy, I found a nice spot to enjoy checking TikTok. I could tell they had a good time as soon as they got off, their voices so hoarse from how much they screamed. I was already getting hangry so I decided to go get food back at Disneyland Park. I usually love eating at the Red Rose Tavern because it is a Beauty and the Beast Restaurant but instead we went to Galactic Grill for Chicken Tenders. Best tenders there, 8/10. One thing I will encourage you is to not get pizza from Pizza Planet, it sucks.
After eating, we met up with my friends in Downtown Disney. If you need anything, they most likely have it. Out of all my visits, I have always wanted the Disneyland balloons but I never buy myself one because of the thought of where I would leave it on rides. Thankfully my amazing boyfriend bought me a pink balloon. All my friends got one so we felt like little kids the entire time hitting each other with them. Definitely worth the price for the enjoyment one gets with it.
Because of how much we enjoyed it, we decided to go back to Disneyland to ride Big Thunder Mountain. It was so cold at this time, so the ride felt so much scarier. After this ride we went to Pirates of the Caribbean, no matter how long the line is, it always goes by fast. The drops aren’t bad at all and one of the best rides for me. To end the night, we visited the tropical hideaway. It was a MUST visit. You need to purchase a Chile Mango Dole Whip. It is a Pineapple and Mango swirl with chamoy and tajin and topped with fruit like Jicama, Mango, Cucumber, and Pineapple. 10/10 recommend trying it, just the thought of it makes me want some. There is always a long line because of how good it is.
We said goodbye to Disneyland Park and went back to Downtown Disneyland to shop and get Starbucks. The experience with my friends was a memorable experience that I will cherish forever. Knowing that in a month we will all be separating into different paths, it made the day enjoyable on another level. This was a day just for us to experience on our own and come to terms with what will happen on June 14, graduation day. Disneyland is the happiest place in the world and I will take any chance to visit the park, no matter what.