We only purchased one day passes to Disneyland and did not try to fit in Adventure Park on the same day. In hindsight I am very happy with this decision as I spent over 8 hours at Disneyland alone and had a great day.

Paul was not feeling well so I caught the ART (Anaheim Resort Transit shuttle- $5 per day pass) from our hotel to Disneyland at about 2.30 pm. The shuttle was an excellent service as it picked up at our hotel every 30 minutes from 6am until about midnight (depending on what time Disneyland closed each day.)

I managed to explore Tomorrowland and view the Innoventions displays. Then I took the monorail that circles the park – this gave me a good idea of where everything was and how much walking would be involved.

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Next I went to Fantasyland – great even for adults. There were marching bands on the streets and I loved ToonTown.

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At 4pm I found a spot on the kerbside to watch the Mickey Mouse Parade. I was blown away by the detail in the costumes and the fitness of the people taking the character roles as they danced their way the full length of the street – especially the chimneysweeps from Mary Poppins.

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From here I went to Frontier Land and was lucky enough to walk straight on to the last Paddle Steamer trip for the day around the Rivers of America area. This was a relaxing time and a chance to have a breather. From the river boat I was able to see where the night light show (Fantasma) and fireworks would take place so planned the rest of my day around getting a good position for the evening.

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I watched the Mickey Parade again at 6.30 pm as I loved it so much the first time. This time I thought I would not take any photos and just enjoy the moment – but you see so much the second time that you missed on the first round, that my camera was out again – it was fabulous!!!

Next I caught the Disney train that also loops the park. I particularly loved the tunnel with the Grand Canyon and dinosaur displays – I had no idea that was part of the ride so it was a good surprise. The train got me back to the front of the Park in time for another Marching Band performance and then I made my way to Frontierland about 8pm to get a seat for the night shows that started at 9pm. The area was already crowded but as I only needed one seat I was able to get a good spot and just sat and waited. There was plenty going on to keep me entertained for the hour and its amazing how many people just start chatting when you are sitting around.

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I was also amazed at how many people moved from the Adventure Park over to Disneyland from about 7pm to see the light show and fireworks. I could see them streaming through the entry gates when I was on the train.

Fantasma, was fantastic – a brilliant light show starring Mickey Mouse and lots of other characters, set over water on the Rivers of America area. This went for just over half an hour, then the fireworks started, This was the best I have ever seen as it was set to music and Disney stories so everything was sequenced and had a meaning. We had seen the fireworks from our hotel on previous nights and it was pretty to watch, but being there with the music and stories made it far more spectacular. This made my long day even more worthwhile!

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I had spent about 8.5 hours at Disneyland and I was lucky not to have waited more then 5 minutes in line for any activities I enjoyed. The only one I wanted to do that I missed was the Story Book boat ride but each time I went past it was closed as the characters got ready for the street parade.

As I left the park at about 9.50 pm there were again hundreds of people coming in to Disney land, from the Adventure Park that closed at 10 pm. It took me a long time to get to the exit as the streets were jam packed with people going in, not out. I got to th shuttle bus area at about 10 am to see lots of people getting on buses. I had to catch Route 15 which left at 10.15 pm. Some buses were overfull and could not fit everyone. My bus had 10 people waiting so I was thankful for that. It was only a 15 minute trip back to the hotel which was very efficient and a safe way to get around.

I had a wonderful day!!!! If we come back here I will do Adventure Park next time!