In January of 2013 we visited Disneyland for the first time. We held off for many years because we felt that there was more value in a Walt Disney World vacation, what with the larger Magic Kingdom, and the addition of so many other Theme Parks.

But in the end, the allure of Walt’s First pulled us onto a plane headed for California, where we saw:

Which way to go first?

Of course, the only choice had to be ‘Disneyland’ itself with Downtown Disney and Disney California Adventure waiting for another day. Maybe you notice the peculiar lack of people? I was early to take advantage of an Extra Magic Hour to get in line for tickets to the limited engagement of the Golden Horseshoe Revue revival. Unfortunately, Frontierland is not opened for this extra time, so I had to find something else to do to kill an hour before the regular hours began.

And ‘Yes’, I chose to take photographs!

Notice again how these areas are empty

Having much of the Park almost to myself to take some uncrowded pictures was magical, to say the least. As others were running to E-ticket attractions to get in an early ride with low wait times, I was enjoying a uninterupted walk around Walt’s dream. I think I made the better choice!

So empty, even the Cast Members were missing!

But the ducks were getting ready to great Walt’s guests

OK, I did manage to squeeze in a few rides, like the Matterhorn (never again!) But I’ll always remember this visit for the time I spent ‘alone’ walking the pathways that Walt had walked, and maybe seeing the Park like he did: Like an eager host just waiting for someone to entertain.

EDITORIAL UPDATE: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic (2020), pictures like the ones in this post are all-to easy to obtain! Things will open up again, but let’s not hope for a Park with too many guests, as short wait times for the attractions is a definite plus!