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View Full Version : Disneyland Trip Report – Circa 1973



MotorBoat Cruiser
03-10-2004, 01:04 AM
Preface:

I have become very fond of writing trip reports of my recent visits. With this in mind, I thought it might be fun to get a little more nostalgic for a change. My memories of the park as a child are pretty vivid. I don’t recall all of the details of course, especially from visits when I was in a stroller. I think I remember enough though that I can piece together a typical day for my family in the early 70’s. For reference, I was born in 1966.

My family always loved Disneyland. By family, I mean Mom, Dad, and myself. I’m an only child. We generally visited about once a year because we were living in NY at the time. So it was a special day for us when we went. It would usually be in the summer and very hot and crowded. My dad pretty much took care of our itinerary, making sure, of course, that mom got to go on all of her favorite rides. We had a specific routine that we followed, working our way through in a counter-clockwise direction, starting in Tomorrowland.

Anyway, enough of that, lets get started on our day…

We would always arrive as early as possible because it was important to try and fit in as much as possible. I remember driving south on the 5 freeway from LA. It always seemed like we would never get there. Then, right as I almost lost hope, the Matterhorn would appear in the distance and my heart would start racing. Driving through the entrance, I was always amazed at how huge the parking lot was, wondering how we would ever find our car again. I’m sure it unnerved dad a little as well. I always hated to wait for that damn tram to come get us but once we boarded, I knew where we were headed and it always seemed like an attraction in itself. We would finally get to the gates and have to wait, yet again, while Dad picked up some ticket books for us. Finally, we would be able to enter.

We would walk down Main Street, which pretty much still looks as I remember it, although many of the stores have changed. I would seek out the Magic Shop, making sure it was still there. It always was. We would head towards Tomorrowland and jump in line for the Adventure Thru Inner Space. It was usually a pretty long line but you got to watch people shrink. I loved the omnimovers and especially, the big eye!

From there, we would head over to Circle Vision 360, my mom’s favorite attraction. We would give her a hard time, but truth be told, we all loved it. We would wait in the room with the square couches or walk around and play tic-tac-toe against a computer (wow!), or maybe try to beat the switchboard operator. I remember the cast members always asked where you were from and wore those jumpsuits. Finally, the doors would open, and we would stand in awe, watching this beautiful tour of America.

We would try to hit as many of the attractions in Tomorrowland as we could at this point. There were so many that it took a good chunk out of our day. We would hit the Carousel of Progress, the subs, the Mission to Mars, the People mover, and then it would be lunchtime. We usually ate at the Tomorrowland Terrace, at the blue tables and chairs that are still present today. We always got the Magic Kingdom Burger combos and I loved them. After lunch, it was always the Motor Boats and It’s a Small World. I loved being on the boats for both of these rides! We would then head over to the sky cars and make our way to Fantasyland.

We mostly rode the dark rides there. We would start on one side and work our way in a circle to fit them all in. Peter Pan was always my favorite, followed by Mr. Toad’s. I also always loved the Pirate Ship. This area took a lot of time, just because of all of the waiting in line. This area always seemed to be the busiest for some reason. We would end with a spin on the teacups, then head to Frontierland.

I don’t recall us ever really doing much in Frontierland, other than the shooting gallery and the Mine Ride. In fact, I’m not sure there was much more to do. I do remember the Mine Ride though with the cool boxy yellow cars and the animals and the tar pits. Regardless, by the time we finished up, it was usually approaching sundown. We would head over to the Tiki Room and Jungle Cruise, my all-time favorite ride, next to the Motor Boats. It still amazes me how much bigger the jungle seemed when I was little. I always jumped when the skipper would fire his gun at the hippo and always felt relieved when the elephant didn’t shoot water at us.

From this point, we would go to the Pirates, with the, IMO, dreaded waterfall. I always was scared of that, the skeletons and pirates not fazing me. The thing I remember most is how the queue used to wrap around the left side of the entrance and how it seemed like we had to wait forever to get on. It was always so nice when you finally got inside the building. Same thing with Haunted Mansion, our next stop. The outdoor queue isn’t remarkably different from the way it was then. It was another long wait though. One thing I remember being different is that, once you got out of the elevator, you would spend much more time in the hallway. The reason being that the queue leading to the omnimovers wrapped back and forth a few times. Ugh, more waiting! I was never really too scared of this ride though. Well, with the exception of the heads pooping up and the ghosts. I couldn’t wait to see which hitchhiker we were going to get.

We would usually take the train from NOS all the way around the park, so that we could see the Dinosaurs and the Grand Canyon. I always thought everything looked so real back then. Due to Dads good planning, we could usually head back to tomorrowland just in time to have dinner, followed by seeing the fireworks and Tinker Bell sliding down the mountain. When the fireworks were over, we would make our way to the exits, with a few mandatory stops. I always was allowed to pick out one magic trick for myself and that usually took some time. My dad would take a little time to pick out the one for him as well. Then we would end by getting a Mickey balloon. Not the current Mylar one but an old school Mickey balloon made of, well, whatever they used to make balloons out of. With balloon and magic trick in hand, we would head back to the tram, hope that we got off at the right spot, and make our way back to the freeway. I was usually asleep by that point, magic trick in hand.

I sincerely hope that you have enjoyed reading this trip down memory lane. For myself, it reflects a simpler, innocent time and I sure had fun reliving, in my mind, a day at Disneyland as a child. I would love to hear your memories or comments!

innerSpaceman
03-10-2004, 02:15 PM
Ah, that was dreamy.

Andrew
03-10-2004, 02:21 PM
Originally posted by innerSpaceman
Ah, that was dreamy. Good description. I could feel myself slipping into those long-ago memories. Nice work!

cirquelover
03-10-2004, 02:23 PM
Thanks:crying:

Cadaverous Pallor
03-10-2004, 02:46 PM
Thanks for this belated report! :D It really made me wish we went more when I was a kid. We couldn't afford to go very often at all, so my memories of Dland in the 80's are very scattered.

I remember the Subs most clearly. My father loved that ride and became as excited as a kid when we got inside. I remember not being able to figure it out - were we diving or not? From the outside it looked like the subs didn't go any deeper, but the interior/spiel/etc was so convincing!

Nancy
03-10-2004, 05:13 PM
Thanks for the great memories!! I remember looking forward to the mule ride most of all. It was as close to horseback riding as I could get!!!:D

PapiBear
03-10-2004, 05:18 PM
Ahhhh, memories. THAT is what a Disneyland experience is supposed to be like. Great job!

(Minor factual quibble, fellow born-in-1966'er: Mission to Mars didn't arrive until 1975. In 1973 you would have gone to the same place and experienced Flight to the Moon (1967-1974). http://www.yesterland.com/moonrocket.html )

MotorBoat Cruiser
03-10-2004, 08:18 PM
I'm glad that you enjoyed it. I was a little nervous at first. I had like 100 views and no replies and wasn't sure what to think. I thought, "Hmm, I hope this wasn't inappropriate or just plain stupid" :)

And thanks for pointing out my error, PapiBear. I had a feeling that some of the trips would sort of run together, especially after it being almost 30 years. As someone who can't usually remember where he placed his keys, I'm surprised I remember the trips at all. I guess that is a tribute to how strong the memories of this place can be.

Anyways, thanks again for the comments. Hopefully, more people will share their recollections of this era. It was truly a great time to be at the park!