Ten Ways To Improve Disneyland

Disneyland, The Happiest Place on Earth, has always been considered a crowning achievement in the theme park industry. Since the park opened in 1955, it has welcomed millions of fans from around the world, who come to forget their cares and enjoy a little Disney magic.

In July, 2026, Disney even welcomed its one billionth guest. Though the park chose its honoree, 8-year-old Andres Robles, by approximation and as a symbolic gesture, attendance still reached that impressive milestone.

With such staggering numbers, it’s unsurprising that Disneyland ranks as the second most attended theme park in the world, and a favorite for many fans.

That being said, it doesn’t mean the Resort (which also includes Disney California Adventure) can’t stand some improvements. From day-to-day operations to “blue-sky” possibilities, certain changes to Walt Disney’s original park would make one of the world’s superior parks even better.

Despite high attendance the past few years, few fans would deny that the live entertainment has been sorely missed. Thankfully, the parks have not been without live entertainment entirely. Disney still has live music, including the Dapper Dans, the Straw Hatters, and the Boot-strapers. Royal Fantasy Faire also features mini-performances of Tangled and Beauty and the Beast, and the Fantasyland Theater recently welcomed Bluey’s Best Day Ever. Over at DCA, there’s Disney Junior Live, Five & Dime, and the Spider-Man Show.

One may ask: why do we need more live entertainment given all these examples? However, we’ve lost a lot of live entertainment over the past decade. The Doctor Strange show in Avengers Campus ended in 2024, and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge shows quickly went by the wayside. The most significant loss has been the shows that ran at the Hyperion Theater in DCA. Frozen ended in 2020 due to COVID. Its successor, Rogers: The Musical, a much smaller, 30-minute production, only ran a few months, ending in August 2023. The Hyperion has sat empty ever since.

Disneyland should definitely bring back what’s been lost, and maybe even consistently add more live entertainment to Galaxy’s Edge, Avengers Campus, and Tomorrowland. However, the Hyperion should be at the top of that list. A new or returning favorite would increase guest satisfaction and, with a capacity of 1,984 people, do wonders for crowd dispersion for multiple hours during the day.

Speaking of empty spaces and live entertainment, the Golden Horseshoe deserves some much-needed attention. This beautiful piece of American western nostalgia and craftsmanship remains one of the park’s true gems. With ample seating, guests can sit on the ground floor in front of the stage or at one of the stage-side balconies. They can also choose a table on the second floor or a second-floor stage-side balcony, which offers incredible views.

Currently, this building exists as a place to eat, with a mediocre menu to boot. Except for the Cookie Butter Churro Sundae, a menu consisting of chicken tenders and mini-corn dogs isn’t anything to write home about. Some park-goers also bring in outside food to enjoy a meal in this fun setting, but doesn’t such a beautiful place deserve better? Walt Disney and his wife Lillian celebrated their wedding anniversary here, after all.

Sadly, the Golden Horseshoe has suffered from budget cuts and lulls. Its original Golden Horseshoe Revue, a vaudeville-style saloon show, ran from 1955 to 1986, earning it a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. Its successor, and my childhood favorite, was The Golden Horseshoe Jamboree, which had live music, dancing cowboys, can-can dancers, and comedians. This show ran from late 1986 to October 1994. Then came the more low-key music comedy show Billy Hill and the Hillbillies from 1994 to 2012. After that show ended, the comedic Laughing Stock Company ran for 8 years from 2012 to 2019, while dueling piano players had a brief stint from November 2019 to March 2020, before entertainment went by the wayside completely.

To revive this Frontierland jewel, Disney should bring back either the original show or the Golden Horseshoe Jamboree, overhaul and improve the menu, and perhaps begin selling beer and sarsaparilla like an authentic western saloon. Trust me, these changes would be a big hit with guests.

The Disneyland Resort is no stranger to ticket deals. In fact, they typically have deals in the Spring, and sometimes in the Winter. However, deals that Disneyland or retailers like Costco offer are always for three or more days. The savings can be significant. This past Spring, Disneyland offered park-hopper tickets for California residents at nearly half the regular price.

As much as these deals save guests, they still must spend a significant amount, especially if they have a family. If Disney wanted to improve morale and create a positive atmosphere in the Disney Parks fandom, they should periodically offer ticket deals for one or two days.

The 1-day ticket would not be worth it for out-of-state guests, but California, especially Southern California residents, would love it. Moreover, the chance of this happening doesn’t feel that far-fetched, as this past summer Disneyland briefly offered a nighttime ticket for $59.

2-day tickets would be appreciated for all. And while these deals rarely extend to non-California residents, they should seriously consider changing that practice.

When Tom Sawyer Island was updated with pirate details to connect with the new Pirates of the Caribbean films, opinions were mixed. After all, what do these films have to do with the classic Mark Twain book Tom Sawyer? However, as that story has Pirate elements, and the island sits across from both Frontierland and New Orleans Square, I think it still works.

Regardless, Pirates Lair on Tom Sawyer Island has been in a sad state lately. Many interactive elements do not work, and other areas are cut off for guests. The island is in need of some major tender loving care, and a few updates. Multiple elements need fixing, and the bridges need to be opened and made safer for guests. It would also be great to reopen the treehouse and make it more open and accessible.

Lastly, the island would be vastly improved and more of a destination if they built a restaurant and created more fun activities such as treasure hunts and character interactions. Depending on location, the restaurant could go in two directions. They could lean into the Tom Sawyer story, such as Aunt Polly’s restaurant that sat on the now-demolished Tom Sawyer Island at Magic Kingdom. Or, they could have a more pirate-type tavern such as the Tortuga tavern from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

At the D23 Expo in July, 2026, Chairman of Disney Experiences, Thomas Mazloum, announced that Disneyland will finally be getting an updated Tomorrowland. With a single image and caption that read “Yesterday’s tomorrow, today,” the crowd erupted into applause and cheers. Of course, after the hoopla wore off, fans were left wondering what a new Tomorrowland will look like.

The balance between dreaming and practicality can be difficult, but if Disney wants to truly improve the land, they should do a few things. Firstly, the People Mover track needs major repairs and changes if we have any hopes of bringing back a PeopleMover. With its track so interconnected with other attractions, this may be timely, but it’d be worth it.

Secondly, the Launch Bay/Carousel of Progress building should be demolished, leaving room for a new attraction or the “open space” Mazloum spoke of. The Astro Orbiter should be removed from the entrance, reimagined, and relocated to its former location in the center of the land.

Lastly, Disney needs to find a way to keep the Submarine Lagoon and part of the Autopia track, while freeing up the remaining space for something new.

In recent years, Disney has taken away quite a few perks. One of the most recent at the Disneyland Resort was eliminating Early Entry for on-property Hotel guests. Before 2020, hotel guests could enter Disneyland and DCA (depending on the day of the week) one hour before regular park attendees. That changed to 30 minutes in 2021, which, though a downgrade, still left time to ride a few top attractions before the park opened.

In 2026, Disney decided to eliminate this perk. Instead, hotel guests now get one Lightning Lane for their stay. Not analogous in the least, a shorter line for one attraction for your entire stay remains an inferior perk.

The Disney Hotels, which are excellent and in proximity to the parks, also come with a hefty price tag. In this day and age where prices are skyrocketing everywhere, the least Disney can do is allow their high-paying hotel guests that extra hour (yes, it should go back to an hour) of early morning magic.

At Disneyland, one of the highly debated questions remains: which version of the Haunted Mansion do you prefer: Original or the Nightmare Before Christmas Overlay? Personally, I enjoy both but prefer the original. Whichever one you prefer, a bigger issue arises when debating the two versions: how long the overlay takes over the attraction.

With the Halloween season starting earlier than ever, the Nightmare Before Christmas Overlay takes over from late August to early January. As impressive as the Overlay remains, taking over for nearly half the year is overkill. Likewise, it’s ridiculous that guests cannot ride the Original Haunted Mansion during the Halloween season.

In the future, despite the significant transformation, which takes a few weeks, the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay should run from November to January. If it misses the official start date of the Holidays, so be it. It’s time the Original Haunted Mansion gets more of a presence, especially for infrequent visitors. I’m not the only one who feels this way. Just ask actor Ryan Gosling.

In recent years, certain merchandise items have become all the rage, such as popcorn buckets, pins, and Disney Lorcana trading cards. While it seems like Disney doesn’t care because these bring in a lot of money and excitement, ignoring the issues it creates leads to guest dissatisfaction.

While Disney does put limits on purchases, resellers still manage to work around them. Consequently, the 2-per-transaction limit amounts to nothing, and these people walk out with 10 or more of these items. What’s the solution? That’s difficult to say- but it should be addressed.

However, Disney could easily handle the issues that pin and Lorcana releases have caused. The days of these releases, especially the pin releases, create huge crowds in the hours before entering the park. Sometimes the line to enter goes all the way back towards Harbor Blvd. It can also create havoc in the stores with guests rushing to purchase these pins.

The solution is simple. Disney doesn’t need to stop releasing these items, but stop doing so on the same days each month. Make the releases random, sporadic, and unpredictable. Doing so levels the playing field and eliminates these long lines and rushes.

In 2025, the D.A.S. System, or Disability Access Service, changed dramatically at Disney Parks. Previously, those with physical, mental, and developmental disabilities (and up to 6 people total) were given a pass to bypass the standby line and enter the Lightning Lane queues at designated times. This system covered those with mobility issues, severe anxiety disorders, heart problems, and other physical conditions that make standing in a long line difficult to impossible. Those who sought a D.A.S. Pass would register in person at Guest Relations or online via a virtual chat. Although it was left up to the discretion of Cast Members, people who truly needed it rarely had issues.

In 2025, everything changed. Now, the system only accommodates those with developmental issues such as autism. Unfortunately, this has left many out in the cold. The change likely happened because of individuals who found a way to abuse the system and received passes without truly needing them. However, the changes Disney made were much too drastic.

The answer may not be simple, but at the very least, Disney parks should bring back the previous system to accommodate those with physical ailments- but with a few changes. Perhaps adding a Doctor’s Note requirement would prevent those from cheating the system. Regardless, the current state of D.A.S. remains unacceptable.

The Disneyland merchandise offerings have become more frequent and more popular than ever. Indeed, new merchandise is constantly released, with an abundance of choices from Spirit Jerseys to T-shirts, mugs, and art. At the same time, individual stores throughout the lands have lost some of the unique items that were sold years ago.

Three prominent examples would be stores in Adventureland, Frontierland, and New Orleans Square. Losing stores like the Perfumery in New Orleans Square is understandable (stores do need to make a profit); the Pioneer Mercantile and Adventureland Bazaar merchandise is another story. Years ago, both offered specifically themed items and home decor like hand-painted wooden figures, signs, and boxes.

The Adventureland Bazaar still has a few niche items, but much less than before. The Pioneer Mercantile has a few themed items interspersed with generic merchandise you can find on Main Street. It may seem trivial, but brightly colored neon spirit jerseys don’t scream Frontierland to me. I fondly remember buying a hand-painted wooden snowman at the Pioneer Mercantile, and a Hand-carved wooden box from Adventureland Bazaar, which still sits on my dresser. If they feel the need to make these items Disney somehow, so be it. But fans would eat this type of merchandise up, especially frequent parkgoers.

Lastly, Disney used to sell lovely yet affordable porcelain figurines. Today, the only comparable options are by Jim Shore and Walt Disney Classics Collection. While these are beautiful and high-quality, they’re also very expensive. A more humble option should be available for those who enjoy something special but can’t afford the higher price tag.