Disney fans know the drill – theme park attractions, experiences, resort hotel pools, and more are periodically closed for refurbishment, which could involve updates, repairs, and more. It’s never fun when construction walls or decorative scrims surround any of our favorites during our meticulously planned Disney vacations, but somehow, when they surprise us during our vacation, it’s almost worse.
If you’ve never seen a scrim in a Disney theme park before, it is essentially a building-sized “blanket” made from thin material, usually attached to scaffolding, that has the image of the attraction or building it is covering printed or painted on. Although Disney does a great job with the look of these scrims, you can always tell that you’re looking at one, not the actual object hiding behind it. Of course, the construction walls are far more plain than the scrims, but sometimes they’ll have signs hanging on them explaining what’s being done in the background in a fun and whimsical way.
As often as I’ve been to Disneyland, I’ve never been to Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe. I KNOW, I’m just as shocked as you are, trust me. A Mary Poppins-themed eatery just off Main Street, U.S.A., in Disneyland is screaming my name, and the only thing I have to say for myself for not having been is that when it opened in 2012, we had already moved to the East Coast, so Walt Disney World was our park of choice. I was pretty bummed to see the scrim covering the cafe, and even more so when I saw that it wasn’t open during construction. Sad panda.
I’ve been back to Disneyland a few times since 2012, but I didn’t visit Disneyland Park on every one of those visits. I was really looking forward to seeing and experiencing this restaurant during my recent trip, but it’ll just have to wait until next time.
It didn’t take long for the construction walls to present themselves once I arrived. The first one I saw was around the main entrance of the theme park. You may have seen my article earlier this week showing off the beautiful new glass doors in each turnstile, which is likely what is hiding behind these walls. One section was revealed during my trip, and I was so happy to have been able to see them in person!
Here’s the kicker: once I entered the park, more walls were around the Disneyland Railroad, making capturing that iconic photo nonexistent. I arrived knowing that neither the train nor the monorail were running, and as disappointed as I was reading that, I didn’t expect to see walls around the train station that were so high you could barely see the word Disneyland. Sigh.
I headed straight for Fantasyland once I entered the park. I always love seeing the façade of the “it’s a small world” attraction and how the Casey Jr. Circus Train runs right behind it. I especially love the little “show” presented to guests every 15 minutes, where the clock tower opens to display a parade of 24 animated figures similar to the ones you see inside the attraction. Once the procession ends, two toy jesters appear and announce the current time. It’s the cutest thing ever and one of my very favorite things!
I was so bummed to see walls up around the entire attraction. I know removing the holiday layover takes a long time, but I didn’t expect the outside to be hidden behind walls. Fortunately, the “it’s a small world” Toy Shop was not surrounded by construction walls and was open for business. Keep an eye out, as I’ll be sharing a look at some of the adorable merchandise I found inside this whimsical retail location soon.
I was most surprised to see walls around the brand-new Madame Leota’s Somewhere Beyond shop next to the Haunted Mansion attraction in New Orleans Square. This shop had just opened not long before my Disneyland trip, and I was not expecting to see most of the new building to be covered with walls. How unfortunate!
Moving over to Disney California Adventure Park was a different story during my time there, as there weren’t any construction walls or scrims to be found. But just a couple of days later, the guys from our Si Disney team spotted construction walls in addition to scrims around Carthay Circle Restaurant.
While it’s always hard to see our favorites covered up with construction walls or closed during our Disney trips, I think it’s better to know ahead of time so the disappointment doesn’t hit like a ton of bricks. Stay tuned as we’ll share the newest What in the Scrim is Happening at Disneyland each month.
