Exploring Disneyland Cars Land at Halloween Time

Disney is fun to visit any time of the year. However, for the first time, you can see Cars Land at Disney California Adventure Park all decked out in cool Halloween gear! I’m sharing my experience, plus a ton of photos! 

Exploring Disneyland Cars Land at Halloween Time

It’s been on my bucket list for a while to visit Disney during a holiday. When I was given the schedule for the list of things we would be doing during the Thor Ragnarok event, I was super excited to find out we would be going to Disneyland! 

And did you know, for the FIRST time ever, Disneyland’s Cars Land was decorated for Halloween?! I’ve been to Disneyland several times. As a little girl, going to Disneyland was magical. As an adult, it’s still magical! It’s something about Disney that just brings the butterflies, chills, and excitement all at once. 

So let me tell you about experiencing Disney at Halloween Time… 

We started our evening in California Adventure park. When you step into this park, you will find bats flying around the Oogie Boogie restaurant, which is cool and freaky at the same time.

As you walk down Buena Vista Street, Halloween music is playing, and you will find Sleepy Hollow’s Headless Horseman to the left of the street.  

Before heading to Cars Land, we made a pit stop to try the new Guardians of the Galaxy ride, Monsters After Dark! Everyone kept hyping it up, saying it was going to be so scary and a rush of a ride. I’m not a huge roller coaster fan, so I was a little skeptical about riding it. However, I decided to tuck my fear into my back pocket and embraced my YOLO attitude. Along with my companion, Michelle (from The Modern Mom), we handled that ride like a boss. But to be honest, it wasn’t that scary. You go up and down a LOT, which gives a rushing and excited feeling, but it’s a lot of fun! 

Next, it was time to explore Cars Land. When we walked into Radiator Springs, we were all wowed and impressed by all the details that went into this fictional town. 

I mean, you have spiders made from car parts, exhaust pipes and tires strung up into spooky smiles, and gasoline cans transformed into pumpkin patches.

The designers behind the Halloween decorations win for the creativity and keeping the authentic look you will find in Radiator Springs. Here is a fun fact about Sarge’s Pump–kin Patch: Sarge is growing a patch of seasonal pump-kins. He plans on gifting these gas cans on a vine to his neighbor, Fillmore, to make some “organic fuel.”

We walked down the main road to find Jack-O-Lanterns on traffic cones. And all around the Cozy Cone Motel, the cones have Halloween faces. 

Fun fact: Sally seasonally creates a themed miniature model of the Cozy Cone Motel out of seasonal candy displayed for all to see. It is on display in the lobby of the Cozy Cone Motel.

All of these ideas would be great to use as inspiration for a kid’s Halloween party or a Cars Birthday party. And with Cars 3 coming out on DVD on November 3rd, this would be a fun way to have a movie night! 

After having dinner at Aunt Flo’s Cafe, it was time to explore Cars Land.  A tempting menu of Halloween food and beverage is available throughout Cars Land, including Car-achnid Pot Pie, Grape “Ghoul”-ant Shake and Mini Candy Cone Pie (Flo’s V8 Cafe); Vampire Mater Bread (Fillmore’s Taste-In); and Slow Burnin’ Mac & Cheese Cone and a Spoke-y Cone Macaron filled with marshmallow buttercream and candy corn (Cozy Cone Motel). Cozy Cone Motel also serves Junkyard JamBOOree Mix – flavored popcorn with optional “nuts and bolts” (green M&M’s, candy corn, chocolate-covered pretzels, Boston baked beans and more).

Of the many times I’ve been to Cars Land, I haven’t had a chance to go on the Radiator Springs Racers. With our Disney guide leading the way, we were able to race around the track. This is such a FUN ride, and I’m glad to check it off my bucket list. 

Throughout Cars Land, their jukebox music plays, but when you walk into Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree and Luigi’s Rollickin Roadsters, you will hear classic Halloween music. 

And let’s not forget the characters. Seeing Mater dressed as an all-purple Vampire was pretty cool. And I gotta say, Mater, dressed up as a Vampire is an upgrade from his rusty ole’ look! (lol) 

We were divided up into groups, and our group (Group B) was the best. 

We finished exploring Cars Land by catching a few more rides. This was another first for me. The last few times I’ve been to Disneyland, the boys didn’t want to go into Cars Land (because they thought they were too old. Whatevs #teens). We didn’t let our age stop us from having a good time on Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree and Luigi’s Rollickin Roadsters. 

Here are a few fun facts about Halloween time at Cars Land:

• Cars wear their favorite “car-stumes” for Haul-O-Ween – Mater dresses up as a “van-pire,” Lightning is a super hero, Cruz Ramirez is a pirate, Red the Fire Truck is a clown and DJ is a punk rocker.
• Sha-BOO! – This Haul-O-Ween, Cars Land is taken over by supernatural spirits each evening for a haunting Sha-BOO! Sheriff’s voice arrives on the scene to return the town to order and welcome guests to Radiator Screams.
• Trunk-or-Treating Tunes – The background music in Cars Land features a new lineup of kooky Halloween-inspired songs.
• Witchy Miss Lizzie – Flying over Cadillac Range is Old Witchy Miss Lizzie. Her curiosity shop, now appearing as if it belongs to a vintage witch, specializes in special Haul-O-Ween Boo-veniers!
• Horn-O-Plenty – This mysterious artifact was unearthed on Haul-O-ween Night in 1936. Every year the residents of Radiator Screams bring it back to its rightful home and adorn it with seasonal gifts.
• Mater’s Junkyard JamBOOree’s New Tunes ­– The tractors are spinning to new versions of beloved Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree songs as well as Haul-O-Ween-inspired parodies of Monster Mash by Bobby “Boris” Pickett (Monster Truck Smash) and Purple People Eater by Sheb Wooley (Purple Fender Bender).
• Luigi’s Favorite Holiday – Luigi and Guido never celebrated Haul-O-Ween before moving to Radiator Springs. Now it’s their favorite holiday, and they’re inviting the cousins to celebrate for the first time. Their “Terror-antella” tells the story of Luigi and Guido building the town’s beloved Scare-Car, Scary.
• Spiders – Guests will find 30 car-achnids lurking around Radiator Screams!

You can find more fun Halloween facts about Cars Land here.

Having a Disney guide is a fantastic way to see the parks. Not only do you get the Disney 4-1-1, but you also get to head right to the front of the line (no fast pass needed), as well as have someone guide you around the park making sure you have the best experience possible. 

Another new thing this year at Disney is the Disney MaxPass. With unlimited Disney PhotoPass downloads and the convenience of mobile Disney FASTPASS through the Disneyland App, this is a great digital tool to help maximize your experience at Disney. You can learn about the benefits of using Disney MaxPass here.

Some of my “friends from work” have already taken some of the ideas found in this post and created crafts and recipes for you to use. 

Desert Chica created Disneyland Halloween Treats: Cars Land Haul-O-Ween Cookies {these are so cool!} Karen also made a Cars Land Halloween T-Shirt! 

Dina from My Unentitled Life created a fun way for you to watch Cars 3 when it comes out on DVD and digital. Get her Poppin’ Tires Snack Idea on her blog! 

Patty with My No-Guilt Life put together a fun way you can watch Cars 3 with the family. Get her Ka-Chow Party Popcorn recipe here.

Vanessa made a Disneyland Cars Land Inspired Candy Corn Cream Pie recipe. You can find that on her blog, See Vanessa Craft! 

Sara put together a Disneyland Cars Land Inspired Spoke-y Cone Halloween Krispie Treats. { I love these!}

You can head over to Becca’s blog, My Crazy Good Life to find a fun trunk or treat Cars Land Halloween t-shirt, plus get the free download to make your own! 

There is so much to see at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park; I couldn’t begin to cover it all. However, seeing Cars Land decorated to the T with an eclectic and creative Halloween theme was pretty impressive. If you’re near Disneyland, I highly recommend you check out Cars Land by 10/31. 

Cars 3 DVD comes out on Digital HD 10/24 (TODAY), and on Blu-Ray & DVD on 11/7. Not only will this be a great Christmas gift to get the kids, but you can get the Digital HD version and plan a fun Halloween party around these ideas!  

Disney is hosting me on this all-expense paid press trip to the #ThorRagnarokEvent and other Disney press events. However, you will always be reading 100% of my own thoughts, squeals, and opinions!