This week, we go back in time to 2009, when a little app called MouseWait was born, and a magical community formed.

Here you leave today and enter a special 14th birthday edition of your favorite feel-good Disney newsletter!

Thanks to grumpy for the real-time pics in the Lounge. See more real-time pics and post your pics to the NEW Lounge!

MouseWait 14.3.4 is here!

Flavors of Fantasyland: Disney Dining Tips:

Here’s a way to land tough dining reservations at the Parks:

Try off-peak hours: Get creative with the time, try before or after 12-1:30 p.m. and 6-7:30 p.m. For dinner, try something like, “Blue Bayou for 2 November 4 7:45pm”. Make multiple requests and press “Yes” when asked if you’d like to track.

For example, your first request might be “Blue Bayou for 2 November 4 lunch”, then “Blue Bayou for 2 November 4 dinner”, then “Blue Bayou for 2 November 4 7:45pm”, “Blue Bayou for 2 November 4 5pm”. With MouseWait ALL-ACCESS, you can track all these slots without limit. The more you ask for, the better your odds. Unlike most dining reservation systems, you get unlimited dining alerts with MouseWait ALL-ACCESS!

To get the inside scoop on food at Disneyland and Disney World, upgrade to ALL-ACCESS and ask Kate, “What are the best ways to save money on food?”

The benefit of having your own Virtual Plaid is that Kate will search the web and other authoritative sources to provide you with a summarized answer, all inside the MouseWait App!

MouseWait turns 14

Thanks to Encinitasrunner for this real-time pic of the MW Paver!

It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that it’s been 14 years since MouseWait first launched in the App Store. The instant that Apple’s green-light email landed in my inbox, following a nail-biting month of uncertainty, my heart raced. We immediately dashed to Disneyland to support our sole feature at the time: wait times.

I had developed a rudimentary algorithm, grounded in my extensive park visits, that could estimate Disneyland wait times. However, it wasn’t yet a part of the app. So, on that inaugural day, Chelsea took the stroller and a few of our kids to Disneyland Park, while I took the rest to California Adventure.

It was a blast, but in the back of my mind I knew there was no way we could keep the wait times updated.

What happened next was nothing short of remarkable: our user base exploded. Within mere months, we clocked in over 100,000 installs. Then, so many wonderful people started flooding into our community. People like Coaster and other wait time warriors who kept our wait times so accurate, that even Disney used them to update their app!

This marked the start of an exhilarating journey, connecting us with an amazing community of people.

A heartfelt thanks for letting us be part of your adventures and for sticking around all these years!

Here are a few mementos to give you an idea of what it was like back when MouseWait first started, courtesy of the Parkendium Project.

To celebrate our 14th, for newsletter readers only, we’re running a quadruple Credits Sale!

The Neverland Navigator: A Weekly Guide to New Discoveries

Disneyland:

The 100th anniversary of the Disneyland Resort was marked with a whimsical backstage 23-hour party on October 16, showering appreciation on the cast members who continue to breathe life into Walt Disney’s legacy.

This unique celebration, part of the broader Disney100 Celebration, unfolded amid the enchanting ambiance of the very first Disney resort, offering a day filled with joy, camaraderie, and a shared reverence for the magical journey initiated in 1923.

As the cast members reveled in the festivities, the enduring spirit of Disney magic was ever-present, encapsulating a century of imagination and dreams come true.

Guess what, Star Wars fans? 🌌 Last week, Walt Disney Imagineering did a little “play test” at Galaxy’s Edge, and they brought along some free-roaming droids! 🤖

We can’t say when or where these droids will roll out next, but they’re already stealing hearts. 💖 So keep your eyes peeled—you never know when you might bump into these adorable bots! 🌟🛸

🌟 Your Disney Genie+ is granting even more wishes! 🧞‍♂️ Now, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway is part of the lineup at Disneyland! 🚂✨

But hold your seashells, because next month, The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure at Disney California Adventure is diving into the Genie+ fun too! 🧜‍♀️💦

Just a heads-up, Individual Lightning Lane pricing will keep on varying, so stay tuned for the scoop. 🌩️💰

Disney World:

The 4-day workshop, Disney Dreamers Academy, is a golden ticket for Black teens and students from underrepresented communities to explore exciting careers. 📚🌈

Don’t miss out! Head to www.DisneyDreamersAcademy.com to apply or nominate a deserving student. 📝💫 Your future could be a dream come true! 🌠✨

ALL-ACCESS and Club 333 Update

Thank you to all of our ALL-ACCESS members! Remember, we have a special live chat support button on the Virtual Plaid (Kate) page where you can ask us questions and keep track of our progress. It usually takes us a few minutes to respond, but you can always post your question and come back to the chat anytime!

As a reminder, here’s what you get with your membership:

✅ Unlimited Dining Alerts

✅ Expert Human Live Chat Support & Email Support. We help with whatever you need for your vacation!

✅ GPT-4 powered help 24/7 from your own Virtual Plaid

✅ Premium Ad-Free Access to our Disneyland, Disney World, + lounge.land Apps (ALL vacations covered)

✅ Exclusive Access to a Private Community of Disney Aficionados in the lounge.land private Lounge.

I’m also expanding our new AI system to help with more things in the Parks including low wait time alerts and more!

Become a LIFETIME Club 333 ALL-ACCESS member today and save! If you have paid for a monthly or yearly membership, I will credit that amount towards a lifetime membership. See everything you get here!

Upcoming Events at Disneyland & Disney World

Here is our updated list of upcoming events and refurbishments for both Disneyland and Disney World:

For a larger view, visit this page. You can also access it from the “Home” tab of the MouseWait for Disneyland and Disney World.

And now, let’s take a look at Walt Disney World:

VOYAGEERS: Finding Hidden Treasures in the Parks

In the spirit of the VOYAGEERS (available on Amazon), I’m including an intriguing historical fact (a.k.a Disney lore) about the Parks each week!

Last week, we talked about the history of the Dapper Dans. This week, I randomly found this neat connection with them and the Osmond Brothers. This is from several A&E documentaries about the Osmonds:

“Dapper Dan baritone Fred Frank had been in contact with the Osmond’s coach Val Hicks and had arranged a meeting at Disneyland with the Dapper Dans and the Osmond Brothers quartet. Val was hoping that the Dapper Dans could help the Osmonds meet the Disneyland managers. The Osmonds showed up early, then did a give-and-take performance with the Dapper Dans and were well received by the audience. T.J. Marker then took the boys up to Disneyland Entertainment Director Tommy Walker’s office in City Hall. Walt Disney happened to be in the park that day, came and saw the Osmonds, and as they say, the rest is history.”

Photo via Harmonize.com

Narrator on A & E Biography: “The impromptu performance led to an audition for Walt Disney himself. Disney hired the Osmonds to perform at the park that summer, and gave them a spot on Disneyland After Dark, a TV program showcasing the talent there. Among those watching the show was Jay Williams, the father of singer Andy Williams, who had his own TV variety show. The Osmonds reminded Jay of Andy and his brothers when they sang as boys. Realizing the Osmond’s potential, Jay introduced them to Andy.”

Unrelated, but equally interesting, our very own grumpypapa captured an incredible relic in Haunted Mansion Holiday! I did some research about Rolly Crump’s “Candle Man” and this is what I found:

The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland Resort undergoes a transformation with the coming of autumn, donning the eerie yet enchanting guise of the annual “The Nightmare Before Christmas” theme. This year, amidst the ghostly festivities, guests discovered a small but poignant tribute to the late Rolly Crump, an iconic Disney Imagineer known for his eccentric and macabre illustrations. A tiny, fully-realized statue known as the Candle Man, one of Crump’s whimsical designs, found its way into the mansion, delighting the observant eyes of Disney enthusiasts.

Rolly Crump’s imaginative flair was no stranger to the eerie corridors of the Haunted Mansion. His terrifyingly delightful illustrations were so impactful that they even gave Walt Disney nightmares. Crump’s vision was grand, perhaps too eerie for Disneyland at the time, as he envisaged a truly terrifying attraction unlike the lighthearted spooky ambiance the Haunted Mansion eventually embraced. His concept of a “Museum of the Weird” at the end of the ride was a tantalizing idea that unfortunately never came to fruition due to Walt Disney’s passing.

The Candle Man’s inclusion in this year’s Haunted Mansion Holiday is a sweet nod to Crump’s legacy, who passed away at the age of 93. Although subtle, the statue stands as a soft echo of Crump’s unbounded imagination and his lasting impression on Disneyland’s rich history. The 3-D printed appearance of the Candle Man, though minute, encapsulates a larger-than-life creative spirit that continues to inspire the magic and mystery enveloping the Haunted Mansion, especially during the Halloween season.