Avengers Campus is now open in Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort! The addition of this new lands marks the culmination of several years work by Disney as it transitioned the land that was once Bug’s Land into a newly themed place for guests to see and experience the stories and characters of Marvel’s Super Heroes!
The day began for thousands who wanted to visit Avengers Campus quite early. Shortly after 4:00 AM a line had already begun to form outside of the security perimeter at the Disneyland Resort. As the sun began to rise, the crowds began to grow. By 7:00, lines could be seen snaking back and forth outside of security on the Harbor Blvd side of the Resort as guests eagerly awaited entry. At 7:00, the virtual queue for boarding groups for WEB-SLINGER: A Spider-Man Adventure opened. Within seconds, happy cheers could be heard in line by those who had obtained their boarding groups for the attraction and land.
Entering the Land
7:00 came and went and guests continued to come and fill in the line. Several times, the line was readjusted and felt like it was moving forward as more space was created for more guests. At the 8:00 hour things really began to move forward and guests began entering the park and experiencing the land, along with the new attraction. For those who weren’t able to get a virtual boarding group or had one that was later in the day, a standby queue was available. This quickly grew in length. It began at the entrance of Avengers Campus, wrapped down through Carthay Circle and all the way to the Hyperion Theater and back. Then it snaked up the parade route to Paradise Gardens Park where it wrapped back and forth. It then even went up to Silly Symphony Swings and back to Paradise Gardens Park before making its way back down the parade route to Avengers Campus. Guests who stood in the standby line waited for hours. The longest line DAPS MAGIC was able to independently verify was a gentleman who waited approximately seven hours to get into the land.
Once guests’ boarding groups were called or they had waited in the standby queue, they were able to enter the land. The land is basically the same footprint as Bug’s Land. However, it has been expanded to include Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! and currently also the queue area for Hyperion Theater where there is extra dining space.
The entrance has guests walking in over an arc reactor that powers the land along with a sign that says Avengers Campus. On the left, Spider-Man can often be seen greeting guests (or soaring over the building) throughout the day. The building he is in front of is for WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure. Continue on and the entrance will be found around this building on the left. Straight ahead is the Web Suppliers store. Continue on into the land and the Ancient Sanctum could be seen along with Pym Test Kitchen and Pym Tasting Lab, the Shawarma Palace, Avengers HQ, and eventually Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!
Shortly after the park’s official opening, all windows for mobile ordering were filled. Later, Cast Members began informing guests in the standby line that contrary to what the mobile app had said, mobile ordering would allow guests to enter the land. This led to some guests leaving the line to enter the land. It led to other guests voicing frustration after already canceling their mobile order because of the guidelines on the app.
Inside the Campus, guests began to fill up the land. To say it was a popular place to be would be an understatement. With so much to see, guests could be seen crowding around many of the different offerings. This included the new attraction, shows, dining establishments, photo opportunities (including the full-sized Quinjet!), and shopping options. As guests wandered around and explored (there is a lot to explore for the size of this land!) music with various themes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe could be heard. This added to the excitement of the land. All of the Easter Eggs also added to the exciting energy of the land. Guests could most likely spend a good portion of the day hunting for the plethora of Easter Eggs in the land.
Super Heroes
Many Marvel Super Heroes could be seen throughout the land. Some were in the stunt shows, others were meeting guests, and Doctor Strange had a Mystic Arts show. The DAPS MAGIC team saw (and might have missed some) the following characters on opening day:
- Spider-Man
- Captain America (Steve Rogers)
- Captain America (Sam Wilson)
- Ant-Man
- The Wasp
- Iron Man
- Thor
- Loki
- Captain Marvel
- Black Widow
- Black Panther
- General Okoye and the Dora Milaje
- Star-Lord
- Gamora
- Taskmaster
With the large number of characters to be found at Avengers Campus, there really was someone for everyone to be excited about. People would cheer for their favorite character(s) as they appeared in various locations throughout the land. This added a feeling of something always going on in the land along with a heightened sense of excitement.
The dining locations were consistently busy throughout the day with lines stretching around their entrances, even with mobile ordering. It was also quite common to see guests walking around with trays of food looking for places to eat throughout the day. These issues will most likely dissipate once the land is open to enter and exit at a later date without capacity restrictions.
WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure
WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure is the new attraction found at Avengers Campus. It starts with an open house for guests visiting the Worldwide Engineering Brigade. Peter Parker is the host of this tour. He shares about one of the inventions that has been created there, Spider-Bots. However, as he is sharing about them it quickly becomes apparent that something has gone wrong as they continue to self replicate over and over. Soon, the tour has turned into a rescue mission as guests are drafted to help contain the Spider-Bots throughout the Campus. Leaving the open house room, the guests soon find themselves slinging webs and assisting Spider-Man in neutralizing the out of control Spider-Bots.
The attraction was enjoyed by guests and received positive reviews from guests DAPS MAGIC talked to throughout the day. It is another fun attraction that is fun for the whole family to enjoy together. The storyline is fun, the experience is interactive, the WEB Tech that can be added is a nice addition, and overall it leaves guests smiling.
Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!
Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! is the second attraction in Avengers Campus. To experience it, guests must either stand in the standby line for the land or have a boarding group for WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure. Other than now being included as part of Avengers Campus, the attraction is the same. There are some exterior details that have changed that add to the story of it being in the location. There is also a new food stand that can be found near it called Terran Treats.
Entertainment
There is a lot of entertainment going on in Avengers Campus. This really is a highlight for the land. Throughout the day guests can see a quick show as Spider-Man swings around the outside of WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Story and then soars above it before climbing down the wall and eventually making his way over to visit guests. Black Widow and Black Panther fight Taskmaster and two of his cohorts over at Avengers HQ multiple times throughout the day. General Okoye and the Dora Milaje teach the disciplines of the Dora Milaje throughout the day as well. Finally, Doctor Strange shows off the ways of the Mystic Arts at the Ancient Sanctum. All of these are enjoyable to watch and each show is different than the other. It is definitely worth waiting around to watch them all. It should be noted that there aren’t set times that are announced for any of these shows. Instead, things just sort of happen. Watch what is going on in the land and where people are going, though, and most likely you’ll be able to catch these entertainment offerings.
Evening at Avengers Campus
As day turns to night, Avengers Campus lights up even more. The lighting at night for Avengers Campus is beautiful and also diverse. The land really comes alive at night in a completely different way than during the day. During the day, the Avengers really is the focal point at Avengers Campus. With so much going on, they really do attract a bulk of the attention. However, once the sun goes down the Campus becomes the star. Throughout the campus, there were multiple views that made for fantastic pictures. Photographers of all levels of skill and equipment could be seen taking photos as the evening went on. This ranged from guests with phones to others with fancy tripods and cameras.
The night did lead to a slight lessening in how busy Avengers Campus was. As the park closed, lines could still be seen for food and shopping locations in the land. Because of this, there was no hurry to clear the land. People continued to take photos in the land and also at the front of it near the illuminated Avengers Campus sign before heading out for the night.
Overview
The opening of Avengers Campus was an exciting day for the thousands of guests who visited on Friday, June 4, 2021. As with all opening days, there were a few hiccups. However, the good easily outweighed the bad. Avengers Campus is a new land that fans of all ages and knowledge of Marvel will enjoy. There are things that are simply fun that the whole family will enjoy. There are also some smaller details that more dedicated fans will geek out about. The opening of Avengers Campus is good and will only continue to get better.
For guests wanting to visit Avengers Campus, definitely, be prepared for boarding groups and mobile ordering ahead of time. It is probably a good idea to read DAPS MAGIC’s guide before visiting. You can also see what Avengers Campus looks like both during the day and at night with the pictorial articles already published. If you want, even more, check out the DAPS MAGIC Avengers Campus Page!
What do you think of Avengers Campus? Have you visited it yet? What’d you think? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
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