ANAHEIM, Calif. — Twelve hours. Half a day.
That's how long it took Beth Von Sands, a 41-year-old mother of two from Aliso Viejo, to buy tickets to Disneyland on Thursday, the first day tickets to the California theme parks were made available.
After starting her day firing up her computer at 6:30 a.m., she spent most of her day staring at a screen of an animated roller coaster and a goat with the words "Thank you for your continued patience… Approximate wait time more than an hour."
She thought she was in the clear by the evening, ready to choose her date, but she was directed to another virtual queue.
"Disney makes you purchase the ticket and then makes you go into another queue to book the dates you would like to attend," she said. "Just like earlier, the waiting room states, 'Approximate wait time is more than an hour. Thank you for your continued patience.'
"At this point, I am completely disappointed in the antiquated system that Disneyland is relying on," she said. "I am beyond frustrated."
Others who are trying to snag tickets felt the same way.
After being closed for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure are reopening on April 30. Following the state's new theme park guidelines, Disney can only offer a limited amount of tickets – to California residents - per day to keep daily capacity low. One-day tickets for adults range from $114 to $154 a day.
But Disney's website and new reservation system were utterly overwhelmed by pent-up demand from theme park fans looking to visit the Happiest Place on Earth.
The Disney website placed customers in a virtual queue with an approximate wait time of more than an hour. But guests seeking tickets reported waiting several hours.
"We are experiencing high demand given the historic nature of the Disneyland Resort's reopening," a Disney statement later read on the website in the afternoon. "Wait times may be several hours or more depending on when you joined the queue. We still have plenty of reservation availability, and we plan to keep the system open throughout the night to accommodate the demand."
Fans vented their gripe and poked fun at Disney on social media.
Joshua Buan, a 32-year-old former annual passholder from Torrance, said he wasn't waiting in line to buy tickets.
Buan wasn't ready to shell out the high cost of a ticket. Before the pandemic, Disney had changed its ticketing system based on seasonal demand.
A single-day park ticket can range from $104 to $154. A one-day park hopper (visit to both theme parks) ranges from $159 to $209. So a visit just to Disneyland, or one theme park, for two adults and two children would cost $600. On the same day, visiting Disney California Adventure, a park hopper ticket, would cost that family of four $820.
Buan said people are shelling out big bucks for only half of an experience.
Because of the pandemic and precautions to keep guests safe, Disney has to modify and shut down some rides and attractions. Operating hours are also limited, with the park open at 9 a.m. and closing at 7 p.m.
As a way to prevent large gatherings in one spot, there won't be a daily parade nor a nightly fireworks show – usually a staple attraction for anyone visiting Disneyland.
Buan, who recently visited Walt Disney World, said California's theme park guidelines are stricter than Florida's, so there will be more limits at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure - for now.
"Everything will be half-open, half capacity. You're not going to get the true Disney experience that we were used to," Buan said. "Why would I pay so much for half the experience?"
Buan said many think reduced park capacity means being able to jump on rides sooner but "with all of the restrictions and precautions Disney is going to take, it's going to feel longer."
Since Southern California residents now have to pay full price, there is no rush to buy tickets, he said.
Still, many theme park fans persevered, regardless of the long wait. By the evening, the Disney ticket website was up and running. The wait time was about 45 minutes to get tickets.
Kristen Carr, a 39-year-old from Claremont, logged on at 7 a.m. and finally received her tickets at 4 p.m. Thursday. She and her family are going to the theme park on opening day and eight times total in the first two weeks.
Carr, who also hosts a segment on the Disneyland podcast Mousetalgia, said it was worth waiting.
"It was frustrating," Carr said, who was an annual passholder off-and-on for 17 years. "But I had faith in Disney."
When she finally got the tickets, "I geeked out. We miss Disneyland terribly. It's such a huge part of my and my family's livelihood."
She said she knows about the restrictions and precautions and paying full price for a limited experience, but it's worth it to her.
"For a year, we had nothing, so I'll take what I can get at this point," she said. "Disney is all about the experience and storytelling, so I know they are going to give me a great experience."
She just wants to walk into the park and soak it all in.
"I just have to go up to the [Sleeping Beauty] castle," she said. "When I went to Walt Disney World, I got emotional walking down Main Street, but I know it's going to be more emotional for me here. Disneyland is home for me."
Von Sands has been a Disney annual passholder for 15 years.
"I'm one of those lifers," she said. "I went three times a week. I freelance and worked remotely, so sometimes I would work at Disneyland. My kids grew up here. Disneyland has always been our playground."
When COVID-19 hit, she and her family were devastated. She missed Disneyland so much. She would often watch old YouTube videos of people hopping on and enjoying rides at the park.
"I can't wait to get my feet through those doors, walk underneath the train station tunnel and see Main Street, U.S.A. and the music and all of those familiar sights and smells," she said. "I know it's going to be instant tears for me just to be there."
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misidentified Joshua Buan. The error has been corrected. (April 16, 2021)