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Some queued for hours to secure their reservations earlier this month. Others recently returned to work in the parks after an extended furlough. At least one ditched school. (And, honestly, who can blame him?)
All were euphoric and present Friday for the highly anticipated reopening of Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, which had been closed to the public for more than a year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Times photographer Dania Maxwell captured the vibrant masks, glittering ears and ecstatic faces of a dozen lucky Californians in their full Disney gear as they passed under the Disneyland sign on Anaheim’s Harbor Boulevard, which welcomed them home to the Happiest Place on Earth.
Emotions run high as Disneyland reopens after an unprecedented yearlong pandemic closure. A lot has changed.
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The passholder
Vilma Urbina, 37.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Vilma Urbina, a 37-year-old assisted living home owner from Los Angeles, visited Disneyland monthly before the pandemic. She was among the annual passholders who were reimbursed by Disney after the program was suspended amid the public health crisis.
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The video blogger
Lindsey Conway, 39.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Disney video blogger Lindsey Conway once performed in Disneyland parades, which have been halted for the park’s reopening to prevent crowding. Before arriving at the Harbor Boulevard entrance, the 39-year-old from Irvine had already predetermined her first ride of the day: the freshly updated cult favorite Haunted Mansion.
With COVID-19 abating in California, Disneyland reopened on April 30. After 13 months away, how did it feel?
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The ticket master
Cynthia Rivera, 23.
(Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times)
Cynthia Rivera of Los Angeles had been “counting the days” leading up to her first post-pandemic Disneyland trip after synchronizing her tablet, her computer, her phone, her boyfriend’s phone and her mom’s phone to increase her chances of scoring opening-day tickets via the park website’s notoriously arduous virtual queue. The 23-year-old was excited to share the Disney magic with her 10-month-old daughter, whose first birthday party will be Winnie the Pooh-themed, just like her mother’s umbrella.
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The Californian
Lydia Sweatt, 67.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
How does one distinguish a California resident from an out-of-state tourist visiting Disneyland? “California Disney guests take it easy ... and go with the flow,” said Jen Burton, a 42-year-old librarian from Oakland. Cases in point: Burton and 67-year-old Lydia Sweatt, who has been coming to Disneyland since she was a child, had no plan of action upon arriving at the park. “I think we’re just going to walk around,” Burton said. “It’s nice to be around people who are in a good mood.”
Disneyland is reopening only for Californians until all COVID-19 restrictions lift. Here’s how to take advantage of the rare ‘local-only’ experience.
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The essential worker
Lola De Los Santos, 21.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
In her job as a phlebotomist at Howard Hospital in Willits, 21-year-old Lola De Los Santos affixes a “Little Mermaid” sticker to her badge to bring joy to her patients, “especially the little ones.” In her free time, she runs a Disneyland fan account on Instagram. “Disney’s my escape from working at the hospital,” De Los Santos said. “As you can imagine, during COVID, it’s been very, very difficult. But I’m just so happy that it’s open and [I] can have a place to get away from reality and all the chaos that’s happened this year.”
Here’s how deep Kim Irvine’s connections are to Disneyland: About three years before she started working for Walt Disney Imagineering, the creative arm of the company responsible for theme park experiences, the then-15-year-old simply wanted her mother to stop embarrassing her.
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The rider
Dallin De Graw, 16.
(Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times)
Don’t let the Goofy hat fool you. Sixteen-year-old Dallin De Graw of San Luis Obispo is an avid “Star Wars” fan who looked forward to experiencing the immersive Rise of the Resistance attraction at Disneyland’s newest sector, Galaxy’s Edge. “I watched some ride run-throughs before the pandemic,” he said. “It looks pretty cool.”
Sit back and enjoy the ride? No more. From Disney’s new Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance to Japan’s upcoming “living video game” Super Nintendo World, theme-park audiences must participate to get the full experience.
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Looking ‘Up’
Lareina Pedriquez, 44.
(Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times)
After enduring many “ups and downs” as a physician working through the pandemic, Lareina Pedriquez was ready to “feel normal” for a day. The 44-year-old from Torrance purchased her colorful dress, inspired by the Pixar film “Up,” in 2019 along with her ticket to Disneyland, both of which went untouched until Friday.
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Coming home
Jose Guerrero, 32.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Jose Guerrero, a 32-year-old retail worker from San Francisco, considers Disneyland his “second home.” He waited six hours to reserve his opening-day ticket after waking up at 6 a.m. on April 15 for a prime spot in the park website’s virtual queue. Asked what he planned to do first upon entering the park, Guerrero said, “I guess I’m going to cry.”
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On a mission
Jeremy Macaranas, 20, and Angelica Palomares, 20.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Marvel fan Angelica Palomares of Anaheim was afraid of roller coasters before discovering her new favorite ride at California Adventure: the plummeting Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: Breakout! The 20-year-old nursing home assistant and her boyfriend of 11 months, 20-year-old Marine Jeremy Macaranas, can’t wait to visit Disneyland again this summer upon the grand unveiling of California Adventure’s Avengers Campus.
Delayed by COVID-19 closures, Avengers Campus, which will include a family-focused interactive Spider-Man ride, is set to open June 4 at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim.
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Pit stop pro
Derek Ballesteros, 37.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
After being furloughed for about a year, Derek Ballesteros returned to work at California Adventure’s Radiator Springs Racers in Cars Land on his 37th birthday. The Anaheim resident, who started his Disney career as a custodial worker in the flagship park, will celebrate his nine-year anniversary with the company in June. Up next, he’ll serve on the opening team of the star Spider-Man attraction coming to California Adventure’s Avengers Campus.
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The dreamer
Chloe Ashbach, 19.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
If a dream is a wish your heart makes, 19-year-old Chloe Ashbach’s dream upon graduating high school is to work at Disneyland in merchandise or as a character performer.
While her favorite princess is Rapunzel from Disney’s “Tangled” (obviously), the petite Dana Point resident hopes to someday portray Alice from “Alice in Wonderland” or Tinkerbell from “Peter Pan” inside the park.
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Shhhh ... Hunter’s day off
Hunter Shimoda, 8.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Eight-year-old Hunter Shimoda, whose favorite Disney movie is “Moana,” skipped school Friday. But if his teachers and classmates in Fountain Valley ask, he was never here.
