Our most revered family tradition is a multi generational family favorite/tradition. The first day at the park, we lineup very early so we are among the first in the park.  Once we are in the park we quickly make our way up Main Street, past the sculpture of Walt and Mickey at the Hub, through Frontier Land, to New Orleans Square, and finally arrive at the Blue Bijou restaurant. Once we have arrived we request our reservation for that evenings dinner and head to our first and Favorite ride, Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates is always our first ride and most of the time it is our last.  These days you can actually call ahead to the Blue Bijou and get your reservations over the phone something you could not do before 2004.  But even with that knowledge we still make the same trek to the Blue Bijou and Pirates of the Caribbean every time we go to Disneyland, a family tradition we hope will continue with our children, our children’s children, and so on.

We hope you can join us someday in making the dash for food and fun!

Another of our favorite family traditions would be the first kiss under the castle.  This tradition started right after our marriage which was the first time we went to the Disneyland together. After getting our reservation at the Blue Bijou and taking a spin with the Pirates we made our way to the Castle.  Once there we admired the beauty of the castle and reminisced of our early childhood memories of romance and falling in love which Walt and this Castle has so often inspired.  While talking about the Myriad of castle inspired romance stories made famous by Walt and the whole Disney Crew, we had our first kiss right under the arch of the castle.  To this day we look forward with longing for that first magical kiss under the arch of the castle, right between fantasy and fairytale.

One of my favorite things to do is to go to splash mountain, we always stop by the fruit stand picking up some grapes along the way. We stand in line waiting for our turn on the ride eating grapes and thinking about the adventure to come.  Once on the ride it’s fun to sing along and think back to when most of these characters were in America Sings, as we glide along in our log. Riding and singing along with the music we start to anticipate our thrill to come,  As we start going toward the top of the hill, our heart begins to beat a little harder knowing the drop that is moments away.  We top the hill, look over the  edge at the park and then plunge straight down.  Flash, Splash, and it is all over.  We get out, look at our picture on the wall and head over to Pooh’s Honey Spot for something sweet to eat. We love Critter Country.

One of my most favored attractions is not a ride but a show that is put on every day in Frontier Land.  If you spend a little time in Frontier Land you are sure to catch the act. I don’t want to spoil it for you, but it is play out in the streets of Frontier Land for all to see and it has to do with destined love, a scared stiff cowboy, and the ugliest girl in the west (no offence intended, that is what they refer to her as).  This is a must see, time and time again.

U-G-L-Y you don’t have an alibi, your ugly…  This is a reminder to those who have seen the show before!

One of my favorite holiday themed rides is the Haunted Mansion Holiday compliments of Jack Skelington of Nightmare Before Christmas. This is the best holiday makeover in the park. I like the Haunted House theme that is playing year around, but I LOVE the Haunted Mansion Holiday makeover. All I can say is if you have a chance to be at the park during the Christmas season, this is a must see, again and again.