Reimagineering Disney's California Adventure

Is there anything that is more exciting to a Disney Park nut than new construction in the parks. construction walls? You have the excitement of new attractions that nobody has ever experienced. The first construction walls that I really remember were for Splash Mountain. Over the course of a couple years as we would visit and watch the progress they made I couldn't wait to get on that ride.

For the last year every time I would visit I would look at the wall around the lagoon and wonder what it was going to be like to ride the submarines again. I think the expectations may have got the better of me since I was not that thrilled with the new ride. Maybe I will love it when the line is under an hour.

Now when you visit Disney's California Adventure they have a big section of Paradise Pier walled off for construction of the Toy Story Mania attraction. I hear this 3-D shooter attraction will be similar to Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters only more interactive. Since this has been under construction I find it harder to enjoy California Screamin' because I spend so much of the ride just trying to get a glimpse of the construction. I truly can't wait until this opens so we can see what the imagineers were able to come up with this time.


This is going to be a very exciting time for everyone, like me, that likes to see construction walls. As DCA prepares for a major rehab, refresh, and re-theming the walls will start going up sometime in October and they will be up in one area or another for the next several years. I have heard estimates anywhere from five to ten years. In my book that means several years of anticipation.

I would go into detail on all of the rumored changes to DCA but if you are reading this then you probably know them already. If you are in need of more details I would suggest reading Al Lutz's article on MiceAge.com or one of the posts by Honor Hunter on his Blue Sky Disney blog. Needless to say there are rumors of the whole park being changed and rethemed and several E-ticket attractions being added to the roster. There is so much unconfirmed information out there right now that if even half of the reported changes come true it will make DCA a special place. I am not among the masses of people that hate DCA. I really like it so this makes me a little odd as a Disney fan. I have always felt that DCA is small and could use some growth and that the western side of Paradise Pier needed serious work. I am sure that both of these issues will be addressed behind construction walls during the years to come.

If Disney is absolutely committed to fixing DCA then who knows what we may end up with? There isn't the space for a grand overhaul of the entire park and turning it into Epcot West or Tokyo DisneySea East, but they will surprise most, delight many, and disappoint a few. I believe that I will be surprised and delighted. Take DCA, throw a billion dollars at it and see what you end up with.

If you would like to keep updated on all of the latest rumor and rumblings regarding DCA I recommend the following sites:

Miceage
Blue Sky Disney
Jim Hill Media
Mouse Planet