A Touch of Disney

“Welcome To A Touch of Disney” Image by Vero x L.A. Mama 

A Touch of Disney is an all new event that brings all your favorite Disney eats and Characters into one tasty and Disney nostalgia filled food festival. The event is a limited ticketed event (currently sold out) That will go from March 18 through April 19, 2021. $75 gains you entry and includes a $25 Dining Card, Parking in the Mickey and Friends Parking Lot and unlimited photo pass downloads. We were lucky enough to secure tickets, so I’ve put together some tips and things of note that you should know before you go!

Arriving

The event time is from 12pm – 8pm. Parking is included in the Mickey and Friends Lot. The parking lot opens at 11:30 am as you can imagine everyone arrives at that time. We arrived to the parking lot at noon and there was no line to park. We moved through security and temp checks quickly and were walking in the park by 12:30. So, if you don’t mind missing those 30 minutes, I recommend not arriving right at opening to avoid any crowds.

Upon arrival, there are temperature checks on the ground level of the parking lot, where you would catch the tram. There are no trams to transport you to the esplanade. Instead, the tram road is open for walking to the entrance. There are photo ops along the way and you’ll be so excited, you won’t mind the walk. Do keep this extra walk in mind when planning to visit with young children and those with walking limitations. *This walk is a great time to download that Disneyland App and or update it!

Selections from Smoke Jumpers Grill at A Touch of Disney

Things to know when using Your Dining Card

Upon arrival you will be given a paper ticket as well as a $25 dining card. ***Make sure your Disneyland App is downloaded and updated*** You will need the app to mobile order in almost all locations. Keep in mind that the app does not remember your dining card and you will have to manually re-enter the 16 digit number every time you order until you have spent the full amount. Here are a couple other things to note… You cannot use multiple cards in a single transaction and if your order has an alcoholic beverage in it, you cannot use it to pay. You will have to make separate orders for food and alcohol as the dining card cannot be used for alcoholic beverages. You cannot use it on merchandise or goodies at Trolley Treats. It’s a little rickety ordering everything mobile, especially if you are not used to mobile ordering. Some places do not have a mobile pick up window (like the churro cone at the Cozy Cone!) even if you mobile order, you will have to stand in the same line, which can get long. And some lines are longer for the mobile order pick up! The churro line at the Cozy Cone was the longest line we stood in. The Adorable Snowman in Pixar Pier the walk up line to order was no line while the mobile pick up stretched down the pier.

Dining Reservations

If you were not lucky enough to snag a dining reservation ahead of time, there is a stand by wait list on the mobile app! However, do keep in mind that sitting down for dining will take up a great chunk of your time. We were there 7.5 hours and had just enough time to see and taste everything. We did not have reservations so we had plenty of time and stomach to visit almost every booth available! All in the name of science, of course! Click below to check out our favorites!

Top Eats at A Touch of Disney !

 

Things to know for visiting a Touch of Disney With Kids

• The Childcare Center is open! It is located by the Ghirardelli shop in the Pacific Wharf area. We found it to be very clean and is always great for the tiny potty, changing tables and nursing stations. You can also pick up baby essentials you may have forgotten to pack.
• The Midway Games are FREE!!! There are no rides and walking around eating might get a little boring for littles. The Midway Games at Pixar Pier were a great activity for the kids. They can play three different games as many times as they’d like. The games are cleaned after every party!

• Characters! All of our favorite characters are there for newly imagined distant interactions and they are fantastic!! No waiting in line to say hello to your favorite character! Our favorite was Goofy and Max fishing in the Pacific Wharf! We grabbed a table right in front of them and brought food back from the nearby booths while the kids watched Goofy and Max fish! It was like character dining!
• Photo Ops! Lots of fun photo ops along your stroll! In Cars Land you can find cars from the Luigi’s Rollicking Roadsters for the kids to climb into and take a photo.

Kids waving at Goofy and Max in Pacific Wharf area

Silicone mask chains gifted from  Bravely

*Picky Eaters*

Picky eaters gotta pick! Unfortunately, at Touch of Disney, you cannot ask for any modifications to your food items. Everything comes as is and everything has adventurous flavors that might put off a discernable palate. Here are some things I found that were familiar and as plain as possible for my picky eater…

• Waffle Fries at Smoke Jumpers
• Juice box at Smoke Jumpers
• Corn Dog at Award Wieners (comes with Lays potato chips)
• Mickey Waffle at D’lish (it does come with *berry compote and cream)
• Churros at multiple locations
• Mickey Pretzel at Bayside Brews (I also saw Babybel snack cheese on the menu there!)
• Lemon and Pineapple Whip at Adorable Snowman on Pixar Pier is dairy free!
• Chicken drumsticks at the poultry palace (it does say they are “seasoned” and comes with slaw)
• Impossible Cheeseburger Mac n’ Cheese this made our top 10! Is was so good. If your kid loves Mac n Cheese and tolerates ground beef they will love this! Also it Vegan!
• Treat Packs found at Trolley Treats include cheese crackers, pretzels and gummies

 

Over all, A Touch of Disney was the touch of normalcy we needed. We felt very safe walking and eating outdoors. Tables are spaced and plentiful. Surfaces are cleaned and disinfected often. Hand sanitizing and hand washing stations are plentiful and found throughout the park. It is expensive. Tasting portions are priced at around $7 so your dining card only takes you so far. The price is a little steep for small kids who don’t drive / need parking and are picky eaters but, Disney days have always been a splurge. The feeling of being out and seeing the kids running down their favorite place and for just a moment forgetting the trauma of the past year was absolutely worth the ticket pricing. We had a great time getting a taste of our favorite Disney eats. Also, it was a great workout! I recorded 5.25 miles on my watch!

Are you visiting Touch of Disney? I hope this guide helps you navigate your visit! If you didn’t snag tickets to this limited event, don’t worry, Disneyland has announced an April 30^th opening with limited capacity! Can you imagine a full Disney Day with RIDES and *gasp* NO CROWDS!?

All opinions are my own. Images are my own and not to be copied or reproduced without consent.