Today is a big day for fans of Marvel, theme parks, or those who just enjoy having fun. The Marvel themed Avengers Campus opens to the public today in Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim California.

Here are some details about the land, what is has to offer, and how you can experience it.

BACKGROUND

The Marvel themed land opened today, June 4th, in Disney California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort. The six-acre land took over the area of the park previously occupied by Bugs Life land, which was closed in 2018. The land was set to open on July 18th, 2020, but was postponed due to covid-19.

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RIDES

The land features two rides, one new ride (WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure) and one ‘adopted by location’ ride (Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout!). There was talk about a third E-Ticket ride that would allow guests to fly on a Quinjet to places like Wakanda. This huge addition was always planned for phase two of the land, but with the pandemic postponing a lot of Disney’s plans, this ride is not expected for many years, if ever. 

Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout! is a drop ride that was opened a few years back after a re-theme of Tower of Terror. The ride features characters from the Guardians of the Galaxy films, including a state of the art animatronic Rocket.

WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure is an interactive family dark ride. Guests use arm movements to trigger webs that fly toward objects and collect points. While these interactive game rides have been used before (Toy Story Midway Mania), this one is unique due to the technology that tracks guests’ movements. The ride utilizes 3D technology and has no height limit, allowing for all ages to enjoy.

This ride currently requires guests to join a boarding group, similar to Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance over in Galaxy’s Edge. Head over to the Disneyland website to get the specific details, but here is the gist:

• Boarding Groups available twice a day, 7AM and 12PM
• 7AM attempt, Guests must have a ticket (single park or park hopper) and a park reservation at Disney California Adventure
• 12PM attempt, Guests must have a ticket (single park or park hopper) and a park reservation at Disney California Adventure OR they must have a ticket (park hopper) and a park reservation at Disneyland
• 7AM attempt can happen anywhere (hotel, parking lot, bedroom, street corner)
• 12PM attempt must be done after you’ve entered either DCA or Disneyland
• You can only ride the ride once per day, so if you snag a 7AM boarding group, you can’t snag a 12PM one
• You cannot hold a WEB SLINGERS and Rise of the Resistance boarding group at the same time. So, if you have a Rise of the Resistance boarding group that has not been called yet and it is 12PM, you cannot get a WEB SLINGERS boarding group
• Our best advice is to plan ahead, watch a number of YouTube videos showing people actually getting the Boarding Groups, have a good internet connection, and use a ‘World Clock’ to countdown the final seconds before 7AM or 12PM so you can strike at the exact second. These go quickly, but they are not impossible to get.

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LIVE ENTERTAINMENT

The land has a number of live entertainment offerings. You can watch your favorite Avengers battle a number of villains outside of Avengers Headquarters, there is a full show performed by Doctor Strange in the Ancient Sanctum, the Dora Milaje from Wakanda put on performances throughout the land, and Peter Parker (Spider-Man) flips and jumps around the exterior of WEB SLINGERS’s show building, which includes a Spider-Man animatronic that literally flies high in the air before landing for a meet and greet on land, this is one of Disney Park’s most impressive visual effect to date.

FOOD

Avengers Campus includes a number of places to eat and drink between rides and shows. The Ant-Man themed Pym Test Kitchen is a quick service restaurant that provides snacks and meals with comically sized elements. Here you will get pretzels the size of your head and the infamous $100 sandwich (that is meant for 8 people). The Pym Tasting Lab offers a number of creatively themed cocktails for guests 21 and over. Terran Treats is the place to go for Marvel themed sweets, including a colorful churro spiral, and the Shawarma Palace recreates the famous Shawarma restaurant from the Avengers movies.

RETAIL

For those looking for an Avengers Campus shirt, spider-bot, or any number off add-ons to enhance your WEB SLINGERS experience, Disney has you covered. WEB Suppliers is a new retail store that sits next to the entrance of WEB SLINGERS and Campus Supply Pod is a kiosk that will provide everything you need for your recruitment.

FINAL THOUGHTS

There are a number of things for guests to remember before visiting Avengers Campus. The first is that it is small, probably smaller than you expect. This land is roughly 1/3rd the size of Galaxy’s Edge, so set your expectations accordingly and you won’t be caught off guard when you visit.

The land is beautiful and the artists that helped to create this immersive new world have really outdone themselves. It is visually stunning and there are plenty of opportunities to snap a memorable picture.

It is extremely satisfying to see Disney putting live entertainment at the top of the list for this land. With stunt actors climbing up walls, dancers performing throughout, a Spider-Man that sounds eerily like actor Tom Holland, and a Doctor Strange performer who is part actor and part magician. There was an uproar over Disney cutting live entertainment prior to the pandemic, hopefully this influx of new performers will counteract those cuts.

Finally, there is the issue of the timeline within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is a hot topic, especially after the decisions made regarding the Star Wars themed land Galaxy’s Edge. The best way to answer how this land fits in the MCU is to keep it simple: the timeline is much looser than Galaxy’s Edge. So far we have seen both Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson in the land wearing the Captain America suit and there is no discussion of ‘the snap’ from Avengers End Game. While this might frustrate some diehard fans who seek a strict timeline to help them better immerse themselves into the story, most guests will not notice and it gives Disney more freedom for future additions.

Now that you have all that you need, go and enjoy the new Marvel themed land, Avengers Campus, at Disney California Adventure. Do not forget that park tickets and park reservations are currently required, so a visit requires a bit more planning than in the years prior to the pandemic. Have fun and pack your patience, new theme park lands and attractions always draw huge crowds and this one is no exception.