Disney California Adventure - Soarin' Over the World and Humphrey's

I love Soarin' Over the World!

I wasn't sure I would. I have been really fond of Soarin' Over California. I love the idea of hang gliding (I haven't actually done it) and how they made the concept work for the ride. I loved the footage of the different places in California and the scent. I also thought it was a shame that DisneyWorld duplicated it instead of doing Soarin' Over Florida, because that idea certainly had potential.

(As I couldn't really take pictures inside, enjoy these pictures of the surrounding area.)

We got there early via the Grand Californian entrance and waited for the attraction to open. On my list of concerns would be whether they had changed the inside decor or taken away Patrick Warburton's introduction. Those were not issues. The queue area still pays homage to the history of aviation, with plane parts and photos of flying pioneers. Puddy is still there, and as his role is to talk about ride safety, without any specific mention of locations, that made sense. One nice change was that instead of the destination names simply appearing against a cloud background, they were shown on a map with a flight path shown between locations.

If there was no more Redwood Creek and Anzo-Borrego Park, what would there be? And suddenly there was a breathtaking icescape with polar bears, and before you were done being impressed with that an orca leaps out of the sea. Then it just kept getting more beautiful. There were still scents. There were more animals. My favorite was the footage of Iguazu Falls. It can look pretty impressive from the ground, but seeing from overhead is a whole new world.

Since we're in the area, let me mention the little shop across from the ride. It was once the Fly n' Buy. You cannot find it the Disney Site. It was supposed to be named Humphrey's Service & Supplies after the renovations, but I am not sure that has officially happened.

It is set up to look like a little store you might find on the way to a national park, or at least how it would have looked several decades ago. That picture is complete with a loaded up station wagon parked outside.

Maybe for my generation the gas pumps looked different (though some of those little places don't get updated too fast), but we see them in cartoons and old movies and there is a lot of familiarity, even if my family trips happened in a Suburban.

If they are not calling it Humphrey's yet, that may be to an inability to get going with Humphrey merchandise, but it is amazing how many people still love that bear. Maybe next time.

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2015/05/humphreys-service-supplies-sets-up-shop-when-grizzly-peak-airfield-opens-may-15-at-disney-california-adventure-park/

Room Service at the Grand Californian

Although I was concerned about money and had brought bagels for our breakfasts, I thought it would be good to try room service once. There are restaurants in (and near) the Grand Californian, but you can also fill out a menu at night with your order and the delivery time. Hang it out your door before midnight and breakfast will arrive warm and promptly, with a knock at your door.

That is an important detail. My previous experience with room service had been on a cruise, where they can leave the food on your door. As everything is included with the fare, and any errors or completely new orders can be resolved with a simple phone call, this works well.

Here, you are paying for this breakfast. That makes it not only reasonable that there is a higher level of service where you will have your attendant bring in the cart, but also practical that he will left the covers so you can inspect your meal and make sure everything looks right.

As reasonable and practical as that is, it did not occur to me until later, therefore - despite my setting the time for them to come - I was in my nightgown and my mother was still in bed. The staff isn't going to act like they even notice, but I was aware.

The food was pretty good, and there are nice little touches. The leftover butter and jam for the toast made the next day's bagels fancier, there was a bowl of marshmallows for the cocoa, and there was an adorable little bottle of Tabasco. We didn't use it at all, but it was still so cute!

The tray was actually a rolling table that they leave. In theory you can put chairs around it. For our room it was a little snug between the beds and the dresser, so I ended up carrying the plates to the table already in the room and using the chairs already there. I am sure some people take their food onto the balcony.

When you are done, they request that you call the front desk and let them know you are putting the table out. I do remember the cruise ship passageways being full of trays and plates. Visually that is not the image that Disney would want, but there is also a practical issue with having the hallways clear for access. That is something I love about Disney - they consider all of the details.

I would not have wanted to do it every morning, but I am glad we did it once.

Rooms at the Grand Californian

Last week I did write about the hotel, but not about the rooms. There were specific things that I wanted to get to there that would have made the post too long.

First of all, I know that there are bigger (and I assume fancier) rooms than what we had. I know there are options where they bring you cookies and milk at night. We did not do any of that, because staying at the Grand Californian was already a big indulgence.

The rooms are still nice. They fit in with the design of the overall hotel, and they have little touches of Disney. That print on the wall appears to be of the Seven Dwarfs' cottage, and there are some familiar faces on the shower curtain.

Almost immediately after getting to our room there was a knock at the door, bringing us Ghirardelli chocolates and asking if we wanted the beds turned down.

On subsequent nights it happened while we were out, but the chocolate and turn down service continued.

I think every room has a balcony, with courtyard views being more standard, but some other views (like Downtown Disney) being available. There was a table with two chairs, and although we never used that, we did use the sliding glass door itself for fresh air and natural light.

There was another nice touch in the bathroom. Outside the bathroom were two lights. One immediately turned on the main light.

The other turned on some overhead lights but at a gradual rate. In theory, if you wake up in the middle of the night needing to go to the bathroom and are not so groggy that you hit the main light switch, your eyes get a gradual introduction to the light instead of being blinded by brightness. I think I have seen similar setups before, but they were always connected to the fan.

Finally, I need to give a special mention to the towels. I have complained before (not on the travel blog) about fluffy towels that feel like they are depositing lint on you instead of getting you dry. These towels were perfect, both comfortable and drying. Well, Mom thought they were a little heavy, but I loved them.

https://www.sobelathome.com/
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/hotels/grand-californian-hotel/

Disney's Grand Californian Hotel

The first thing I noticed was the bears.

We arrived at the Grand Californian at night, so didn't think a lot about the driveway or how the entrance looks as you go in, but once inside there were bears.

Bears danced along tiles all over the check-in counter. Later I would find them on other furnishings and in the gift shop.

That makes the Grand Californian fit in well with the Grizzly River Run - the nearest ride when you enter California Adventure through the hotel's entrance. It also fits in with the California state flag, and that goes along with California Adventure's original celebration of the state of California. There were two other things the decor brought to mind.

It reminded me of the decorations along Buena Vista Street, California Adventure's Main Street equivalent. The decor there - especially in Clarabelle's Hand-Scooped Ice Cream - truly evoke a time and place, of the Hollywood that Walt Disney came to when starting his career. The Grand Californian accomplishes this with American Craftsman Style architecture and Tiffany-style lamps.

On a different level, the structure reminded me of the lodge in Yellowstone Park, and I suspect many other parks in the early 20th century, where people explored the wilderness while still staying in rugged luxury. This came from the vaulted ceilings and lighting fixtures, but also from many places where you could sit around a fire, whether the temperature required it or not.

The biggest surprise for me was that such a beautiful place (with such care for details) would have such ugly bird statues flanking the elevators. I grew to appreciate their oddly-shaped forms as each time I saw them they reassured me that I had once again successfully navigated the large hotel.

Staying there does give you some additional entertainment options. There was a television surrounded by kid-size chairs playing classic Disney cartoons, and you are invited to movie nights at the other hotels.

There was also Pinocchio's Workshop, where children can be dropped off for fun activities.

But the most important factor for us - and the reason that I chose to spend extra (though I did get a good deal, but still) was for the special park entrance. I was worried about fatigue for my mother, and I wanted to reduce the need for walking long distances and climbing up and down shuttles.

That part worked great. There is a bag check and metal detectors and ticket checks - just like the main entrances. But they are closer together, and once you are through there is the big rafter bear statue, and you are in. It was so much easier, and I can't say enough about how much that helped. I'm sure if you go at a busier time of year that getting through will take a little longer, but it was quick and easy and we appreciated it.

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/hotels/grand-californian-hotel/