For the last year, Mickey’s Toontown in Disneyland has been mostly closed in preparation for a reimagining. It was a substantial undertaking for Disneyland, but the aim was simple: to make Mickey’s Toontown more inclusive while retaining the spirit of the land. After attending a media early access event for Mickey’s Toontown, it’s easy to see that Disneyland has succeeded in its goal of revamping the land so that it is just as fun as it was before but for a wider audience.

Mickey's Toontown New Design

The entrance to Mickey’s Toontown still has that transportive element as guests walk under the railroad bridge. Disneyland has deployed a similar concept to Galaxy’s Edge or Avengers Campus, making attendees feel as if they are stepping into a whole new world, but instead of a Galaxy Far, Far Away, Toontown takes you into the world of Mickey & Friends.

With a cartoonish backdrop comprised of more muted colors, Toontown isn’t as aggressive in its design as the original version. Disneyland has made sure that the potential for overwhelming younger guests is minimal, at least as far as the looks and the sounds of the land are concerned. There is a new fountain at the center of Toontown that is pretty to look at, but also doubles as a water table for its own form of play. Everything in the land seems to have a purpose, whether it’s to give guests something to do, something to play with, something to ride, or even a place to relax. Crucially, a lot of the chokepoints that used to make Toontown feel small have been removed, and casual grassy areas have eliminated the overly concrete aesthetic.

New Play Spaces in Toontown

Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy still occupy their houses in the center of Toontown, and the meet and greets are sure to be a major selling point once again. Mickey’s house, in particular, is packed with Easter Eggs and photo ops that waiting in line to actually meet the mouse is sure to create its own memories. But while Mickey and Minnie’s houses are relatively the same, Donald’s and Goofy’s spaces are fairly different.

Goofy’s How to Play Yard encompasses his house (which has been transformed into an interactive “candy-making” space) and a small playground with its own inclusive elements. The roller slides are kinetic, meaning they won’t generate static electricity and guests of different abilities will be able to slide from top to bottom with ease. There are also ramps for easier access to the slides, which is a welcome touch.

Donald’s Duck Pond has a lot more interactivity now, including some screens built into the boat that let guests interact with Donald’s nephews. Again, the space feels like an elevated playground with interactive elements, places to play, and soft flooring to protect little ones should they fall.

Toontown Dining

Café Daisy and Good Boy Grocers are the two dining options in Mickey’s Toontown, with the former favoring the sit down and grab a bite to eat approach and the latter being more for the on-the-go guest. Café Daisy’s two main options are hot dogs (a basic version and a dressed-up version with mac and cheese and chili on top) and pizza flop-overs, which are basically folded pizzas. Kids can get smaller versions of the main items or mini corn dogs as well. Beverages are meant to be cooling/refreshing and the one we tried, the Watermelon lemonade, was delicious and had some tasty watermelon gummies in the bottom.

While the Café Daisy dining area has umbrellas for each table, shade is likely to be the biggest obstacle. For those that want to get out of the California summer heat and have some lunch, it isn’t going to be easy to consistently provide that. That being said, the food is good (the hot dogs have a nice snap to them) and there are some clever twists on theme park staples.

Good Boy Grocers operates more like a gas station market where guests can pick up things like Cuties or Apple Sauce pouches. But what makes the stop so appealing is the Perfect Picnic Basket – a $25 purchase that includes a 3 items selected from Good Boy Grocers, an amazing picnic basket, and a blanket. Because Mickey’s Toontown now has some grassy areas, the basket allows from grabbing a quick bite and sitting with the family.

Toontown Delivers a Top-Tier Disneyland Ride

Of course, the main draw for Mickey’s Toontown for a lot of guests will be the ride. The renamed but mostly unchanged Chip n Dale’s Gadgetcoaster is back, offering an introduction to roller coasters for younger guests. It’s short and sweet and not too intense. Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin is also up and running again, highlighting a zany part of animated features that serves as counterprogramming to the cheery and colorful Mickey stuff. The big change on Roger Rabbit’s ride is the characterization of Jessica Rabbit, who has now been made a detective with greater agency than merely a damsel in distress.

Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is the new attraction for Mickey’s Toontown, which opened ahead of the land in January. This trackless ride is one of Disneyland’s best, boasting a queue packed with fun details and photo ops, a clever transition from line to ride, and a lot of clever effects once you actually board Goofy’s train. There are a few differences between this version and the one at Disney World, with the DLR version adding a scene. Next to Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – arguably Disneyland’s most complete experience – Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is Disney Imagineering at the top of its game.

Mickey’s Toontown feels exactly as it did a year ago, but the approach has been widened to make the land more inviting to everyone. A new ride that should rank towards the top of everything Disneyland has to offer is the major selling point, but it can’t be overstated how the little touches go a long way towards making this a more inviting space. There isn’t a one size fits all solution for theme parks, however, Toontown tries to catch as many guests within its wide net with inclusive design elements that don’t feel like sensory overload. When everyone is constantly rushing from ride to ride throughout the rest of DLR, Mickey’s Toontown slows the pace down and is all the better now as a result. And a little quality time with Mickey and Friends always brings a smile to anyone’s face.

Mickey’s Toontown is open now at Disneyland Resort.