The Worst Things That Happened at Disneyland in 2019
Disneyland undeniably enjoyed more highs than lows during 2019. Still, some unfortunate events occurred. Disney officials were responsible for some self-inflicted wounds, but two of the most memorable incidents were entirely beyond their control. Here are the worst things that happened at Disneyland in 2019.
8. The Spa at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa Closed
No, this isn’t a joke. I admit that it sounds like one, but this really happened.
In June of 2019, Mandara Spa stopped accepted bookings at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa. They did this with little fanfare, but the move was clearly permanent. People figured this out when Mandara removed this location from their official website.
A few days later, Disney confirmed the situation. The hotel staff indicated that the resort wouldn’t go without a spa for long. And that’s good since, you know, it has the word ‘spa’ right there in the name.
Apparently, Imagineers are working on something called Tenaya Stone Spa. It should debut in the spring of 2020. Until then, Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa has a misleading name.
7. Matterhorn Piece Falls Off
Fantasyland’s Matterhorn Bobsleds turned 50 years old in June. At that age, not everything works perfectly. You never know which pieces might erode and possibly even fall off.
Park officials learned this the hard way back in August. During routine after-hours maintenance, a cast member noticed that a piece of the man-made mountain structure had fallen off.
If this had happened during regular park hours, the situation could have been serious rather than humorous. Thankfully, it didn’t, though. When Disneyland opened the following morning, Matterhorn Bobsleds operated with one track open. So, it was a no harm, no foul scenario. The entire situation makes for a terrible headline, though.
6. Huge Ticket Price Increases in January
The Walt Disney Company spent more than $1 billion constructing Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. The business had to earn back that money somehow, and everyone knew who would pay for it.
Even so, many Disneyland loyalists expressed shock and dismay in January. That’s when they learned that Disney had raised admission tickets by as much as 10 percent.
In fact, some Disneyland annual prices increased by over 20 percent! As you’ll learn, Disney officials came to regret this decision throughout 2019.
5. Financially Based Closures
As you know – and I’ll discuss in a bit – the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge didn’t go as expected. Disney executives learned that they had a budget shortfall due to disappointing park attendance. They reacted disappointingly.
Disney chose to close a couple of shows featuring live performers. Laughing Stock Co. at the Golden Horseshoe Saloon in Disneyland ended its run in mid-September. While that move surprised industry analysts, the other one absolutely shocked people.
At Disney California Adventure, Disney celebrated Pixar Fest during 2018. Pixar Pier’s Pixarmonic Orchestra became the anchor presentation from this event. It was a live show featuring marvelous covers of classic Pixar tunes. Everybody loved it, and if you’d told anyone in 2018 that it’d close one year later, nobody would have believed you.
Photo Credit: Twitter @DisneylandAP
The lesson here is that mistakes cause additional mistakes. Disney got greedy on ticket costs, priced guests out of a Disneyland visit, and then faced a budget shortfall.
Desperate to cut corners, the company canceled an outstanding show. The same thing happened at Walt Disney World, as a few popular live presentations got dropped as cost-cutting measures, too.
The Pixarmonic Orchestra performs at Disney California Adventure. (Courtesy of Disney)
If/when Bob Chapek doesn’t become the next CEO at Disney, remember this series of events.
4. FuelRod Debacle
When Disney signed an agreement with the manufacturers of FuelRod, the arrangement seemed win-win. Disney would populate its parks with FuelRod kiosks, thereby giving guests an easy way to keep their smart devices charged.
The popularity of FuelRod switching apparently became a problem for both companies. For whatever reason, Disney decided that it wasn’t earning enough revenue from the devices. The company quietly switched out its signs, the ones indicating that FuelRod exchanges were free.
As Disney fans watched nervously, the kiosks added new signage. It indicated that FuelRod swaps would cost $3 each. To frequent park guests, that sort of expense could add up quickly for what Disney had described as a one-time expense.
Within days of the change, class action lawsuits became news items. Disney and FuelRod both lawyered up, and the situation resolved in the obvious way. Disney totally recanted on the $3 exchange fee.
The only other alternative involved a lengthy court battle that might have cost more than the company would earn from FuelRod swaps. Someone at Disney really screwed up on this one.
3. No Lines at Disneyland for Galaxy’s Edge
The opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge clearly earns the title of the biggest overall Disney story of 2019. I previously mentioned it in the Best of Disneyland list, where it finished in first place. Imagineers deserve eternal kudos for the seamless integration of Star Wars Land into the existing Disneyland campus.
Unfortunately, cast members can’t control everything. Disney officials braced for the worst when Galaxy’s Edge opened. They’d allowed for every aspect of traffic congestion. What nobody at Disney anticipated was apathy.
Disneyland fanatics possess strong opinions about park visits. When Disney raised prices and changed blackout dates, many bristled. They felt like the company had abused their loyalty. As punishment, they engaged in a form of silent protest.
To the surprise of virtually everyone in the theme park industry, Disneyland attendance declined when Star Wars Land opened. Disney faced a wide swath of negative headlines about what went wrong.
Simultaneously, social media influencers published videos of non-existent lines at Galaxy’s Edge. Within 10 days of its opening, the themed land’s only opening day attraction had wait-times of less than an hour. Matterhorn Bobsleds consistently had longer lines throughout the summer, which speaks volumes.
2. Family Fight at Disneyland
Until this year, any search for “Disney family” would return results for Disney movies, theme parks, and/or merchandise. Now, Google Autofills those words with “Disney family fight” or “Disney family brawl.”
Presuming that you had internet access, you know the story here. A family visiting Toontown had suddenly had enough of one another. It was as if decades of longstanding frustrations finally bubbled to the surface.
A man started punching family members, including his sister and his girlfriend. Later, he tried to run over a cast member with his car.
Screengrab: Inman Entertainment YouTube
Suffice to say that the assailant faced many criminal charges in the wake of his actions. He (and the rest of his family) failed to appear in court to defend himself against five felony charges. That dude’s going to jail, but he’s never going to the Happiest Place on Earth ever again.
1. Disneyland Suffers Earthquake(s)
The July 4th holiday is always among the most crowded dates of the year at Disneyland. Alas, guests who visited on Independence Day in 2019 received quite the shock. Literally.
Southern California experienced an earthquake graded at 6.4 on the Richter scale. Some livestreamers actually recorded the entire incident on video. Amusingly, most of the Californians at the park that day barely registered surprise. Conversely, out-of-state travelers, the folks who aren’t used to earthquakes, spent a lot of the day freaking out.
Disneyland closed several attractions per company policy. Cast members dutifully examined these rides to verify that the earthquake hadn’t caused any safety issues. Then, the attractions re-opened.
Photo: CNN.com
However, Disneyland wasn’t out of the woods yet. The following day, an even more severe earthquake struck. It hit 7.1 on the Richter scale. Over a short time, geologists reported 3,000 (!) earthquakes, although the most significant of them only reached 5.4 on the Richter scale.
Park officials braced for a rough second half of 2019, as analysis suggested even more earthquakes. Thankfully, nothing significant happened after the 7.1 earthquake. So, the worst Disneyland story of the year could have been MUCH worse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnXGG2SKqZI
