Was California Adventure’s theme worth saving?
With the Red Trolley Cars gone, this means the two major attractions left from the original California Adventure and its concept are Soarin’ and Grizzly River Run. It appears Disney seems to be letting go of the original theme of the park and most will think that’s good as it was never something that connected to Disney guests.
Yet as someone who visited DCA in 2003, there was a charm to the park that had vanished in a 2023 visit. Sure, it was flawed, it didn’t have as many exciting rides and could be mostly wrapped up by late afternoon. Nevertheless, there was something original in the idea that was separate from the main Magic Kingdom, and you could tell there was some effort by Imagineers of the time to make it different.
There was also the lack of Disney influence in it. There was an Animation building and bits such as Bug's Life yet it felt different from the Magic Kingdom as it wasn't putting Disney stuff so front and center. That was refreshing for the time and a bit of a break from the neverending merchandise you see at other Disney parks. A Disney park that didn't shove IP in your face was a better bet for many guests to feel unique and a bit of a shame that DCA has moved on from that.
Oddly, some parts of the current park seem to call to that concept as Cars Land is a perfect fit for California. Likewise, Avengers Campus seems to fit a park for outlandish stuff and there’s still the joys of the Midway and other spots that link to the state. Disney had some decent ideas, but the lack of planning and budget kept them from fully realizing them from the start.
Perhaps if they’d gone for WestCOT or another concept, we’d be talking about Disneyland’s second gate in better terms. Yet the idea that California Adventure was a total waste doesn’t quite have merit as there’s still some fun there. It’s why cutting off another aspect of the original concept may hit long-time parkgoers, and this park always lived up to the Adventure aspect pretty well.