While I was back in California, I obviously hit up my second home (read: Disneyland) as much as I could.

That included two separate stays at the Disneyland Hotel – one night just cause, and another night after Mickey’s Halloween Party!

I’ve actually always been more partial to the Grand Californian Hotel, cause of the location (right next to Disney California Adventure), the ambiance (woodsy CA vibes), and the fact that it holds the most happy memories for me personally (my family has somewhat of a tradition to stay at the Grand over the Christmas and NYE holidays). BUT! I have come to LOVE the Disneyland Hotel too. The Grand Californian is very subtly Disney (much like the Grand Floridian in Walt Disney World). Everything is very rustic yet ornate, with little touches of Disney sprinkled in here and there.

The Disneyland Hotel is IN YOUR FACE Disney. And not gonna lie, it’s cheesy in the best way.

Whenever you stay at a Disney hotel, they always hook you up with the cutest little greeting packages, complete with: park guides, Magic Morning details, general hotel info, and other unnecessary-but-oh-so-necessary Mickey and Minnie stationary type things.

The Disneyland Hotel headboard probably accounts for about 58% of the magic of the hotel. It lights up and even plays a little tune if you press a button on one of the lamps. ~ Magical ~

(Another 10% comes from that pillow.)

Room service is always a must if you stay at a Disney hotel.

Two words: Mickey waffles(!!!!)

(And yup, I stood on the edge of the bed to take this. #Instagrammersareweirdos)

Pro tip: always get the bananas foster topping as your waffle side. ALWAYS.

(Also, insider secret, but… I never actually eat the Mickey waffle. I’m much more of a savory breakfast person so I dig the bacon and the eggs and basically anything salty. But I NEED the Mickey waffle for photographic reasons, obviously. And then, instead of letting it go to waste, all sugary and sad, I just make Mark eat it. Poor him, what a chore, eating those delicious sugary carbs.)

If you have a room in any of the towers facing inward, then you’ll have a view of the pool. Not at all shabby.

If you have a room in the Adventure Tower facing outwards, you’ll have a pretty nifty Downtown Disney view.

This is actually the view from the Disneyland Hotel’s E-ticket Lounge, which is on the 10th floor of the Adventure Tower. It’s basically a little cafe area where they have all-you-can-eat breakfast, snacks, dinner, desserts, coffee, and alcoholic drinks throughout the day. You get access to the E-Ticket Lounge if you get a “club level” hotel package.

It’s obviously more expensive to get a room with “club level” access, but I’d say it’s worth it just to eat at these pimped out Tinker Bell tables. Am I right, or am I right? Mark and I ended up using the lounge to pre-game for Mickey’s Halloween Party. Remember, Disneyland doesn’t serve alcohol inside the park. So this pre-gaming was clearly very important.

If you haven’t had a chance to do Mickey’s Halloween Party, I could not recommend it enough! For under $80, you have access to Disneyland for almost 8 hours of ghostie and ghoulie fun. And because they have a nightly cap on how many tickets they sell for each Party, it is MUCH less crowded than a typical Disneyland day.

Special Halloween festivities include:
– Getting to dress up, no matter what your age
– Getting to people-watch all the other creative souls, parading around in EPIC costumes
– Trick-or-treating at various candy stalls all throughout the park
– Halloween fireworks
– Listening to the “Cadaver Dans” as they float along the Rivers of America
– And probably a lot more that I’m forgetting…

Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy! Literally my favorite Disney Halloween specialty ever. They spookify the ride for Halloween, adding all of these ghosts inside that essentially chase you as you speed along the track. It’s kind of terrifying, and they even have one of those “May Be Disturbing for Young Children” type signs at the line entrance.

If you follow me on Snapchat, you’ve have seen Mark and I dressed up as Michael and John Darling, respectively. And if you’re wondering what that means… YES, I did make Mark wander around Disneyland all night in a pink onesie, holding a teddy bear. And they were FOOTIE onesie, so he couldn’t even wear shoes. (Now you know what the pre-gaming was so important!)

Anyway, here we are with the rest of our Peter Pan crew. Kasey = Tinker Bell, Ky = Peter, Wayde = the crocodile, Jenna = Wendy. I was in the back with Mark, hiding behind my top hat because GHOSTS. (Not pictured: Nikki and my mom as Lost Boys, my dad as Smee.)

xoxo