Frontierland: Update

Ask and ye shall receive. Not even 24 hours after I posted about the neglect that Frontierland has received for the past two decades Honor Hunter has reported a Frontierland rumor.


Tony Baxter and Walt Disney Imagineering are working on a Wild West show that would tie in with the Lone Ranger move that could see theaters in 2010. While I would be happy for anything that made a little better use of the space I am hoping that this is not going to be a wild west stunt show like Universal Studios Hollywood has had for years. Disneyland has hosted some very impressive stage performances over the years and it would be a shame if they hosted a show in Frontierland that doesn't live up to the reputation that Aladdin has set for theme park shows.

Disney's Ghost Town

When you enter Frontierland who doesn't feel like a cowboy? You pass through the fort entrance and visit another time and place. Too bad there isn't a little more to it.

Big Thunder Mountain, Mark Twain Steamboat and what? The Frontierland Shootin' Exposition? Why are there constant rumors about Tomorrowland and needing to add attractions when Frontierland hasn't had an addition since 1979? It is hard to count the Pirates Lair on Tom Sawyer Island as an update to Frontierland when it makes the island more a part of New Orleans Square than anything else.


It is not like there isn't plenty of room to place a new attraction. Festival of Fools arena hasn't been used in years for anything but private events. Big Thunder Ranch will be open again next month for HalloweenTime and then it will go back into hiding. Why not use this space for something that can be open all year and give people a reason to use the trail between Frontierland and Fantasyland for something other than a place to puff a cigarette.


Disneyland is in a great place for a Frontierland attraction with Tony Baxter as the head Imagineer over the park. As the person most responsible for both Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain he has proven that he can design great attractions that fit well into Frontierland. He should cement his status as a future Disney Legend and give us an attraction or two in Frontierland.

What would you like to see in Frontierland? Would you prefer a thrill ride, a dark ride, a movie tie in, an original story, or a grand pageant like Pirates of the Caribbean? I don't think a Disney park will ever see the Western River Expedition but it would be great to get something similar to that. I would hope for a water based attraction loaded with animatronics. Something that tells the history of the west or like Pirates just moves you from scene to scene depicting life in the old west. Another ride capable of eating 3000 people per hour would make the busy days of summer a lot more bearable.


While rumors continue to swirl about a new E-ticket for Tomorrowland I will continue to hope for a west side addition. Maybe someday the dreams will become reality and Frontierland will finally get the attention it deserves.

Stop at this Dining Intersection

Often when friends are planning trips to Disneyland Resort they will ask me for recommendations on everything from hotels to tickets to restaurants. The restaurants are always my favorite to discuss. Disneyland and the resort as a whole offer a great variety and while the prices are higher than you would pay at a local eatery you are at Disney and that is worth a premium to me. Many of my favorite restaurants are located at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World.

When at Disneyland there is a concentration of great food right where New Orleans Square, Frontierland, and Adventureland meet. River Belle Terrace, Bengal BBQ, Royal Street Veranda, Cafe Orleans, and Blue Bayou make up the fab 5 of west side Disneyland dining. With the exception of Cafe Orleans and Blue Bayou they all have pretty distinct menus and all of them are special for different reasons.


When I think of breakfast at Disneyland I think of Mickey Mouse pancakes at the River Belle Terrace. I grew up eating on the patio overlooking the Rivers of America whenever the park opened early enough for us to eat breakfast there. Due to the great location right between Adventureland and the Rivers of America, dining there had a great soundtrack of Mark Twain's whistle and the Swiskapolka coming from the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. The soundtrack has changed a little over the years but the food is still some of my favorite and breakfast is still a must. I have graduated from the Mickey Mouse pancakes but it still gives me a smile every time I see one on the griddle.


Bengal Barbeque is a restaurant that has not been among my favorites for long. It was only a year ago that I finally ate there. Now I can't get enough. There is often a line and the service isn't that quick but they are well worth the wait. The skewers are excellent and I love a tiger tail. This is a very unique eatery for a theme park.


Tucked away, under the balcony of the former Disney Gallery, is a small counter serving Gumbo and Clam Chowder. At the Royal Street Veranda you can usually walk up and grab a bite to eat unless you wait until Fantasmic is about to start. Both the Gumbo and the Chowder are served in bread bowls and the service is very quick. I find myself eating here more during the cooler months but every time I walk past I think about the Steak Gumbo.


I have always enjoyed Cafe Orleans. Since their makeover into a full service restaurant a little over a year ago I enjoy it all the more. This is the location of my favorite appetizer and dessert in the resort. The Pommes Frites are are french fries with parmasean cheese and garlic. Every time we sit down here we order them. The Mickey Beignets make this restaurant worthy of a visit every trip. On top of all this they are now the second home of the Monte Cristo sandwich. How do you improve a ham and cheese sandwich? You batter it and deep fry it of course. The Cafe Orleans, like the River Belle Terrace, has a great patio looking out to the Rivers of America.


The Blue Bayou is probably the most unique dining experience in a Disney park. How many restaurants are located inside an attraction? This was the original Disneyland home of the Monte Cristo and you can get them to this day. During the Pirates of the Caribbean rehab last year they made several changes to the menu. They are trying to go a little more upscale while still offering a menu that your average person will love. After you enter the restaurant and are seated you may be indoors but it sure feels like you are sitting on the back patio of a southern plantation house. Every few seconds a boat will slip into the darkness. It has been copied in Tokyo and Paris and the Mexican pavilion at Epcot tries to imitate but there can be only one Blue Bayou.

While the original intention when writing this was not a restaurant review I can't help but run on about some of my favorites in the Disney universe. If this was expanded to cover all of Frontierland, New Orleans Square, and Adventureland I could probably go on even longer. When you find yourself hungry on the west side of Disneyland you know that good food can't be far away.

Individually themed lands...Not for merchandise

I spent a lot of time in Disneyland during the 80's and 90's. Almost every family vacation was spent visiting Mickey and friends. On our one big trip every year my parents would give my brothers and I an allowance of $100 to shop for souvenirs. Each trip I would buy a plush, a hat, a shirt, and a gun. Not much of it was spent on Main Street. The Pioneer Mercantile received a lot of money from my parents back then. Now they don't receive much from me. The only reason for this is because they don't have anything that I can't get at the Emporium.

I still can't figure out why anybody would buy a plush that they sell at the Emporium or World of Disney anywhere else in the park. I would rather not carry around a stuffed Pooh Bear all day if I don't have to. You used to buy frontier themed merchandise in Frontierland. You would make purchases earlier in the day because you didn't know if you would be back by this store and you knew that you wouldn't be able to get this item anywhere else.

The Pioneer Mercantile that I remember sold western themed clothing and toys, coonskin hats, wooden toy guns, and had a shooting arcade on the southern wall. You didn't have anything with pirates or princesses.

The South Seas Traders in Adventureland used to have exotic themed merchandise. Pieces of Eight in New Orleans Square was the only store in the park that sold pirate merchandise. Can you guess what the One-of-a-Kind shop next door sold? The Disney Gallery was lost just this month. The Villains Shop in Fantasyland was where I got my first Jack Skellington hat. This was before the goth craze that has made Nightmare Before Christmas merchandise available in its very own store in Disneyland and at ever Hot Topic in the country. If you wanted a hat you visited the Mad Hatter in Fantasyland or Main Street or Hatmosphere in Tomorrowland. Now every store in the park has a hat selection and it is the same at every store.

This is not to say that I don’t still enjoy the shopping in the park. Disneyana is still a unique shopping experience. While there is too much Pirate merchandise in the parks, Pieces of Eight is still a fun store with the courtyard between the original store and the recent expansion. For the fanboy in me I love the Star Wars portion of the Star Trader as you exit Star Tours.

On the other side of the esplanade at Disney’s California Adventure I love taking my son to Engine Ears Toys. My wife and I could spend hours in the Animation Building and upon exiting, Off the Page. This is similar to Disneyana but different enough to make it worth visiting every trip. I am also a sucker for Rushin’ River Outfitters. They are getting more and more generic but it might just be the environment that they offer you the same generic merchandise that I find appealing. My other favorite from DCA is Tower Hotel Gifts. Many people hate when attractions exit to a gift shop but in this case I love it. It gives you an air conditioned waiting place while we swap kids and it may be a little corny but I love all the Hollywood Tower Hotel merchandise.

Obviously we all want the Disneyland merchandise. That is why it is sold in so many stores. I am not a purist that thinks that everything should remain untouched. I would just like a little individuality as well. Make some stuffed critters only available in Critter Country and keep the Princesses in Fantasyland. Now that the Pirate craze seems to be dying some maybe they can move back to New Orleans Square.

If Disney gave me a unique place to shop in every land they would get more money from me. Every time you turned the corner you would have a chance to find something new. I don’t know if everybody agrees with me on this, but I think that some merchandise diversity would make for more fun at the parks.

Big Thunder Mesa

One of my earliest memories of Disneyland is being bribed to ride Big Thunder Mountain with my mom. I was four and scared out of my mind. My parents bought me a leather vest with a sheriff star and matching chaps. I know I didn't want to get on that day even after they had bribed me but now you can't keep me away.

Big Thunder is the first roller coaster that I ever rode. I believe for that reason it hold a special place with me. I can't help but think I missed out on though. I grew up watching old Disneyland specials on the Disney Channel and I always wished I could have ridden a donkey or taken the Mine Train through Natures Wonderland. When you hear that the Big Thunder concept came from a runaway train that was going to be housed on the show building for Western River Expedition you have to wonder what might have been. Yet this attraction will always be a classic.

Big Thunder takes you to another time. At Disneyland while you are in the queue you can hear the town in the buildings above you. Having the train wrap around the queue only serves to help make you feel separated from the rest of the park. I would like to know who doesn't smile when they are told to hang on to their hats and glasses. You whisk around goats, under waterfalls, and through collapsing caverns. You do all of this under a spectacular mountain and in an area in the middle of the park.

Frontierland doesn't have many attractions. At this time I think it may be down to just Big Thunder and the Mark Twain (I don't count the Shooting Arcade). It is still one of my very favorite areas of Disneyland. You can escape the crowds of Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, and Adventureland right here. And while you are visiting the old west what could be better than a train ride through a mountain?

If everything I have learned researching Thunder Mesa and Western River Expedition are true then I would have loved to see this attraction come to life. I can hold out hope that they will bring back the huge experience rides like Pirates and the Haunted Mansion. If they ever decide to use the Big Thunder Ranch for something other than private parties I would love to see a grand attraction there. The old west has so many stories and tall tales you could have blast visiting the old cowboys.


I have heard rumors of an E-ticket attraction being planned for Disney's California Adventure that would be similar to the Western River Expedition. I don't really believe them but that can't stop me from dreaming. I don't know if I am the only person that would be thrilled with more animatronics, but I think they are a huge part of what sets Disney apart from other theme parks. I believe this would make a great addition to Disney's California Adventure. Other than Hopper in It's Tough to Be a Bug, they don't really have any animatronics in the whole park. It would be great to see more over there. I would hope that $1,000,000,000 will buy a couple in the next few years. With a little luck we will get to board a boat and take a river ride through western mining towns. With a lot of luck we will get to board a boat and take a long river ride through western mining towns.