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Kuzcofan
03-01-2013, 01:28 PM
Just announced on the AP webpage:

http://disneyland.disney.go.com/offers-discounts/fantasy-faire-preview-for-passholders/

cstephens
03-01-2013, 01:53 PM
Thanks for the info. Interesting that they've changed the reservation process from prior previews.

nbaum
03-01-2013, 03:39 PM
Thanks for posting.

zagirl2k
03-01-2013, 08:22 PM
We are going this weekend through Wed. Any guesses if there will be a chance at a soft opening in the next few days? For the last few openings, was there anything before the AP previews? Fingers crossed since we'll be there with 2 princess living girls.

olegc
03-02-2013, 08:25 PM
We are going this weekend through Wed. Any guesses if there will be a chance at a soft opening in the next few days? For the last few openings, was there anything before the AP previews? Fingers crossed since we'll be there with 2 princess living girls.

I believe for Carsland they did media previews, then CM previews, then AP previews (which were quite large and lengthy). However, nothing like past "hey lets open it and see if folks walk on".. Especially I would think where face characters and interactive shows are the only enticement. If it were a ride where they could shut it down it would be more plausible I believe.

So - if you're there go ahead and ask and see - but I would not plan on it.

candles71
03-02-2013, 09:10 PM
Hmm, I think Star Tours had moments during the other previews where people walking by could go in, but we arrived a couple f days into previews, iirc. We weren't that fortunate with Little Mermaid that same week, the wall came down later in the week and you had to be a CM to get in on those first couple of days.
Indy was letting CM's through the gate in the wall our last day in the parks in December and no matter how much we made the CM laugh, he wasn't letting us through.

olegc
03-03-2013, 07:42 AM
Hmm, I think Star Tours had moments during the other previews where people walking by could go in, but we arrived a couple f days into previews, iirc. We weren't that fortunate with Little Mermaid that same week, the wall came down later in the week and you had to be a CM to get in on those first couple of days.
Indy was letting CM's through the gate in the wall our last day in the parks in December and no matter how much we made the CM laugh, he wasn't letting us through.

that kind of goes with what I was saying - with a ride you can close it/open it whenever it may may not look different. I believe also there was a process in place for getting into the preview but CMs on site allowed for others to enter just by showing their AP on site when crowds allowed it. And I don't remember whether they had such limited hours. Either way - I am glad there is some sort of preview and will work my way through to get a glimpse of the architecture, design, and the non-princess elements up close. It will be quite a while before you can do that again.

olegc
03-07-2013, 03:35 PM
So no doubt you may have seen the walkthrough photo tour posted today on Mouseplanet. If not - take a look.

I attended the AP Preview of Fantasy Faire today, March 7th, at Disneyland. Overall - it is a really nice addition to the park and offers something for families as well as princess fans - but it will take your time from the park. And - the outside sounds of Main St. and Frontierland (and the sawing of Big Thunder construction) did intrude. The previews are 12pm to 6pm.

I arrived right at rope drop - 10am. The information on the website said 1030am line up at Westward Ho - but in reality there were so many people already there at 10 they decided to start the line at the Pretzel cart just inside the entrance to Frontierland and wind the line into Main St. and then back around into Adventureland. I'd say about 100 people were in line by 1030am.

Slowly the line started to move. They put the wristbands on us and told us to return to the Castle forecourt at 1130am. Of course, by 11 there was already a line to get into the line, so I got in it too. It ran past the Coffee cart and at 1120am the had us follow the neon tape, winding along the left side of the forecourt until we got to the bridge - waited a bit - and then were sent to wait more along the path toward BBB.

At 12 they let us in - offering us to get into line at the Royal Hall to meet the Princesses or see the Royal Theater show at 1215pm. I opted for the show - and the snacks. I sampled the cheddar garlic twist and the boysen apple freeze (with lemon foam) from Maurice's Treats. Drink was great, twist was a little dry but still tasty. I took some pictures around the area and then got in a seat for the show.

We were offered Tangled - and it's a fun show. Presented as a thespian group with simple props to handle some of the chores and the two main actors - Smythe and Jones - handling most of the roles except for Royal guests (in this case Rapunzel and Flynn). Strong vocals, solid timing, a live pianist to offer the music, and corny yet funny jokes and references to other Disney and pop culture items. Not as much as Genie but enough to make it enjoyable. The CMs playing the official characters were very well versed in the personalities of each. The show runs about 20 minutes or so. Before the show kids are offered a seat on rugs in the front - and interact with the ladies dressed in costume as the assistants to the theater. Then after the show there is a brief meet and greet with the royal stars.

At that time I walked around the area and took some pictures. Figaro is cute, and Clopin's music box, while charming, is already broken (Hunchback does not come out and the sun/moon don't change). The store, I was surprised, is very sparse. All princess stuff - but still not as chock full as I thought. I did not take in the Princess meet and greet as I was by myself and, well, just not into them enough to take the 30 - 45 min to wait.

The theater actors did a little bit in front of Rapunzel's tower about a Royal Lost and Found and naming items in the trunk. Fun for the kids to interact - a glass slipper, a tea cup, an apple, and an odd device that propelled a blue feaux light forward - like a sword :D

I stayed for the second show - hoping to see Beauty and the Beast and the Lumiere animatronic (edit - I guess it may be a puppet) live - but they did Tangled again. They had about 45 minutes between the end of Tangled and the start of the 2nd show - but maybe that's not enough time to switch out all the panels, moving screens, and props to do a second story. (some videos are already on the Youtube with the shows). I left out the path towards Frontierland and headed home (gotta work a little). on the way I did get the strawberry and chocolate twists to share with family and they offered me a bag to carry it in (a pastry bag - nice).

A couple of notes
1) for the previews stroller parking was on the old entrance to Carnation Gardens (after you enter) and one stretch of switchback.
2) There is an interesting speaker's stand with a small stairway to it in line with the Rapunzel tower sculpture (if you're looking at it from the castle bridge). It may be used in the future for interaction with guests.
3) ask CMs where to line up. I noticed 3 different lines when I left - one to get a wrist band, one to enter at the castle forecourt, and one along the pin store in Frontierland. It can get confusing.
4) I still wish there was not so much overlap in the hub. oh well.

Enjoy!

and an OT
I find it interesting that so much character merch - especially the feminine shirts - are in every single store. Port royal, pioneer mercantile, pooh corner, etc. I remember in the past there was this push with plush and general disney merch in every store and it seems the apparel thing has taken the place of plush. One CM at Port Royale told me a guests let her know that an amazing Maleficent scarf was purchased at the Emporium on Main St. - but was not available to put on the shelves of Port Royale. Just odd merchandising.

fishgal
03-07-2013, 04:01 PM
Went today, they cancelled all the Theater stuff for all but the first two hour group. It was really a let down because we could see the Rapunzel show finishing up as they were letting the 2-4 group in and then when you went to ask when the next show was they said they had no more shows for the rest of the day.

If you were in the 12-2 group you got to see it twice though. The rest of the area was okay didn't see the princess' as it was a 45min wait. Which meant after a stroll of about 30 minutes there was nothing left to see. Incidentally for anyone curious by 10:45am they were handing out the 2-4 wristbands. At 1:35 they were handing out the 4-6. Don't know when they ran out of bands, but they told all of us to come back and see the shows tomorrow which i guess means that they plan to run the theater tomorrow again.

Grateful for the chance to see it all, but it really was a bummer that the main show wasn't running. Oh and there were like 20 suits on hand filling up the whole courtyard so there wasn't any room to stand, and no where to sit either. Sure don't envy people going there when it opens to the public, it will be a zoo.

ogold72
03-07-2013, 04:25 PM
Found the tour in "General Columns"

olegc
03-07-2013, 08:50 PM
I wrote a quick review --http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/showthread.php?194172-AP-Preview-Fantasy-Faire

I agree about the seating - no benches or anything to hang out on and rest - only the theater. Fewer suits when I was there 12-2 but plenty of extra folks on hand - as expected I think for a preview.

Jenlelo
03-08-2013, 04:51 AM
We can’t wait to check out this new part of Disneyland. We are actually hoping to use it to help us create a very special reunion surprise moment for our family. My husband, Scott, will be arriving home soon from a 7 month deployment in Afghanistan. I will be taking my 2 children (Alyssa 4, Liam 1) to the new Princess Faire on 3/19 to see the Princesses we’re hoping they will let Scott in ahead of time & that he’ll be able to wait at the end. Depending on the set-up, when my daughter thinks she is seeing the last princess, my husband will be standing there instead for a BIG reunion surprise!

I hope we can work this out & that the Cast Members will be accommodating. Disneyland was the last place we went for family bonding time right before Scott deployed, so we thought it appropriate its where we all reunite again.

I've not been there yet, so if anyone has any information on the set-up at the Princess Faire to help us make this our "Magical Moment" I would really appreciate it. Thanks!!!

DesertWorshipGuy
03-08-2013, 06:49 AM
Jenlelo.. I can't speak about Fantasy Faire, but you may want to contact the Disneyland Resort before hand to see if they can help you set it up. Also.. please take lots of pictures/videos and share those with us, I personally love watching these homecomings. And please tell your husband, welcome home and thank you for his service!

fishgal
03-08-2013, 08:17 AM
I think Disney would love to help make this happen. I'm not exactly sure of who you would contact but maybe public relations? I would definitely try to call ahead of time and see if disney will help you set it up as that will be the easiest. It shouldn't be to hard as the exit to the princess' meet and greet is on the opposite side of the entrance so he should be able to sneak in the back with CM help. Really can't wait to hear how this go's. Sounds like a wonderful idea. Maybe you could get some help to pull it off from the Disneyland Today Twitter people or the Blog people since they are used to getting information for others quickly too :)

AVP
03-08-2013, 10:06 AM
I've not been there yet, so if anyone has any information on the set-up at the Princess Faire to help us make this our "Magical Moment" I would really appreciate it. Thanks!!!That should be extremely easy to set up, because the last princess is right at the exit. Scott could easily wait at the exit for you to come through, and I'm sure the CMs would be overjoyed to help. I would definitely contact Disneyland Guest Relations to ask if they could help set this up for you. Or, depending on when you're making your trip, I know some MousePadders would probably be available and more than happy to help.

Adrienne

ogold72
03-08-2013, 11:22 AM
For those that have attended the preview, did the Fairytale Treasures store offer anything that differed from what Bibbity Bobbity Boutique offers?

olegc
03-08-2013, 03:42 PM
I wanted to add that to me one of the more neat features is that the sound system control board for the Royal Theater shows is hidden and appears as a chest on top of a trunk near the side of the theater. The control operator simply opens the chest and all the controls for lights, sound, and effects are available to them. When the show is done the operator closes the lid on the chest and locks it up. Very neat way to work it into the theme.

DesertWorshipGuy
03-08-2013, 04:50 PM
AVP brought up a good point Jenleo. If there's anyway that us here on MP can be of assistance let u know. If there's anything that you need help with the day of in the park, I have an annual pass and more then happy to help.

ImAlwaysCrazy
03-09-2013, 07:45 PM
For those that have attended the preview, did the Fairytale Treasures store offer anything that differed from what Bibbity Bobbity Boutique offers?

They had different hats. They were like cone/teepee style hats. They had a cute purple tangled one with a hair braid coming out of it.

THpoohbear
03-09-2013, 10:50 PM
I too attended the preview on Thursday, March 7. I didn't arrive until past 1, there was no line to get a wristband for the 4 to 6 timeslot. I was disappointed there were no theatre shows during my time slot. But there was only a 10 to 15 minute wait to see the princesses. Since baby girl was so cute dressed at Minnie Mouse and I probably won't otherwise wait in line, I went through. All the princesses loved playing with baby girl and I got some cute pics. I really like the meet and greet area. It's very pretty and I like how each princess has her own area. We sawa Aurora, Cinderella, and Ariel.

I tried a cheddar garlic bread twist and was disappointed. They looked so yummy, soft, and cheesey in the window. What I got was pretty hard and dry and not very cheesey at all. I do want to try the chocolate one but decidedly will not order the cheese twist again. It was kind of a cross between an everything bagel and a pretzel.

bombardon3
03-09-2013, 11:10 PM
Question for those who attended the previews: are your PhotoPass photos available to view now or do you have to wait until the area officially opens like you were supposed to with the Cars Land preview (I say supposed to because all our photos showed up on their website the same day)? My sister had them put on her AP so I can't check. We actually asked a CM in Cars Land to take our picture with our own camera later in the day and a PhotoPass photographer came and told him not to take our picture because we were holding souvenir cups from Fantasy Faire Village.

disneyland addict13
03-11-2013, 11:50 AM
So, is the secret bathroom gone?

THpoohbear
03-11-2013, 12:35 PM
Gone.

And I haven't tried my photo pass yet.

HeavenOnEarth
03-11-2013, 01:38 PM
Who cares....this new area looks totally lame and have no desire to see anything in it. The one good thing, that it will attract all the kids there, which will open up shorter wait lines for rides :-)

olegc
03-11-2013, 02:04 PM
So, is the secret bathroom gone?

as TH said yes gone - but when you visit the last princess in your "set" you can visualize being in that place... if it's your thing..