It’s hard to believe, but today’s post marks number 1000! Over the last few years, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to visit, research, photograph, and just enjoy the happiest place on earth. As I’ve wandered the park and snapped more photos than I can count, I’ve found some favorite little spots in each land. Some are my favorites because of their views, and others just because they’re full of personality. Here’s a roundup of my personal hidden gems across the resort. I hope they give you as much inspiration as they give me.
DISNEYLAND
ADVENTURELAND
In Disneyland’s jungle, my favorite place to take photos is definitely Tarzan’s Treehouse. From this space high up in the treetops, you get sweeping views of Adventureland, with a few peeks into neighboring lands too. Look down and you’ll see the jungle village below, or even take in the atmosphere around you – thatched huts in the trees, antique lanterns, and a few of your favorite Tarzan characters are waiting to be spotted.
CRITTER COUNTRY
A while back, I wrote about a hidden pathway through Critter Country that sweeps along the Rivers of America. Not only is it a fun little secret to explore, it also makes for a great photo spot. Along the path, you’ll have a close-up view of Fowler’s Harbor, a wide view of Tom Sawyer Island, and some unique views of Splash Mountain. Plus, since it’s so hidden, you’ll rarely have to deal with other people walking through your photos.
FANTASYLAND
Every possible vantage point in Fantasyland is beautiful, but my absolute favorite place to snap photos is actually on an attraction – the Storybook Land Canal Boats. This attraction has beautiful flowers and plants, intricately detailed miniature scenes, and views of the train track for Casey Jr. Different seats on the boats offer different close-up views of the environment, so you’ll never take the same photo twice.
FRONTIERLAND
I’ve found Frontierland to be one of the trickiest lands to photograph. The beautiful center plaza is almost always just flooded with people, so it’s hard to know where to point the camera or what to capture without just taking a photo of a crowd. For me, the best way to capture Disneyland’s frontier is to take a wider view – aboard the Mark Twain Riverboat. I’ve taken photos I love from all three decks, depending on what I’m trying to capture. I particularly enjoy riding the riverboat for photos of the waterfalls and island – and for a panoramic view of New Orleans Square as an added bonus.
MAIN STREET USA
Most guests arriving on Main Street immediately turn their attention down the road, facing the castle and central hub. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy that space too, but when I’m trying to capture the street itself, I turn around and pay attention to the town square, by the railroad station. The buildings here are some of the most beautiful on the street, and the little spaces by backstage doors on either side have very overlooked details and light foot traffic.
MICKEY’S TOONTOWN
Between city hall and Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin, Toontown has a busy little “downtown” area with several distinct buildings and lots of little gags. I love this area because it’s so bright and colorful; you really feel like you’re walking inside of a cartoon. Some of the buildings like the power house and fire house don’t change with the seasons, but I can’t help but snap pictures of them anyway, every time I visit.
NEW ORLEANS SQUARE
New Orleans Square is by far my favorite land at the resort, so it’s definitely my most-photographed. I always gravitate toward the train station area, from the central courtyard right onto the loading platform. If you look around, you’ll see so many details that suggest this is a real, functioning city – from laundry hanging on balconies to glowing lamps in windows. I’m always trying to get a better shot of the “homes” above the Mint Julep Bar at the back of the square – but I haven’t quite figured out how to get around those pesky trees.
STAR WARS: GALAXY’S EDGE
It took me a while to wrap my head around Galaxy’s Edge. The scale is just so massive compared to other lands; it’s hard to know where to look sometimes. But the more time I’ve spent exploring, the more I gravitate toward the street between the First Order area and the Millennium Falcon. The buildings along this street are so colorful and have really interesting architecture – not to mention the other-worldly plant life.
TOMORROWLAND
Tomorrowland’s lagoon is really an underrated treasure in Disneyland. You can walk from the Matterhorn‘s exit all the way to the Submarine Voyage along the lagoon, with changing rock formations and greenery as you make your way toward central Tomorrowland. It’s also fun to try to catch the passing Monorail and submarines in photos – though it does require a little more patience than I have most of the time.
CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE
BUENA VISTA STREET
Like Frontierland, I find Buena Vista Street’s crowds make it tricky to snap photos. However, I’ve had a lot of luck hanging out by Elias & Co. This shop faces an open garden area, which in turn overlooks the fountain, Carthay Circle, and passing performers. The Elias & Co. building itself has some gorgeous art deco styling, and the shops across the street have some great vintage billboards above them too. The trick to photographing Buena Vista Street is to look up – the balconies above you have some of the most interesting details you’ll find in this little land.
CARS LAND
Honestly, there’s no bad place to take pictures of Cars Land. But my go-to spot is the walkway behind Flo’s V8 Cafe. I mean, look at that view! You can see almost the entire mountain range from this path, and it’s beautiful to take pictures of in absolutely any light. Plus, if you turn around, you can snap some cool photos of the electric blue cafe – which looks particularly cool at golden hour.
GRIZZLY PEAK
There’s a really lovely area surrounding Grizzly River Run that so many visitors overlook. Waterfalls, a mill, and the big grizzly itself peek out from the dense trees. The buildings in this area sport really bright shades of red and yellow, and they just shine against the blue sky and green tree line. I also love snapping this attraction at night – the fog machines by the geysers seem to kick up that much more after dark.
HOLLYWOOD LAND
When a land is pretty much just a narrow street, you’re somewhat limited in your choices for taking photos. However, I really enjoy photographing the end of the street, on the side closest to the backlot area. There’s an interesting contrast between revealed facades (since it’s supposed to be a backlot) and “real” buildings meant to portray depth. Hollywood Land is admittedly not my favorite land to photograph, because I think its neighbors have a lot more interesting scenery, but it’s cool to see Disney reveal a little of its visual tricks deliberately in this land.
PACIFIC WHARF
When the main path toward the pier starts to curve, and suddenly the coaster and wheel are dead ahead, stop for a moment and look left. This is one of my favorite spots to capture Pacific Wharf. The rocky coastline, stilted buildings, and fish nets are an amazing likeness to Cannery Row in Monterey. Sometimes you’ll get lucky and even see a few ducks lounging on the rocks or swimming along the wharf.
PARADISE GARDENS PARK
Paradise Gardens Park is meant to capture the turn-of-the-century California boardwalk towns, with Victorian details and pastel colors. The best way to capture a boardwalk is…along the water. I like to take photos of this long and narrow land from the bridge to Pixar Pier, or on the platforms by the Silly Swings. It just doesn’t seem right to take photos of a beachside town without capturing as much of the water as possible.
PIXAR PIER
California Adventure’s zany pier is pretty densely packed. Sometimes, walking through feels like sensory overload – so many bright colors, noisy games, and crowds of people racing from Midway Mania to the Incredicoaster. Though it TERRIFIES me, I really like taking pictures of the pier from the Pixar Pal-A-Round (non-swinging cars, of course). From up high, you can really appreciate all the different structures within the pier, and get some great angles with the white coaster track winding in the background.
And finally, I couldn’t finish this post without giving a shout-out to my photography buddy. My mom accompanies me on many of the trips where I really focus on taking pictures, and she’s endlessly patient as I take photo after photo of the same things I’ve snapped a million times. May we all be so lucky to have a Disney partner like her!
