Wow, you posted this in the Los Angeles forum, so I assume you want info on the one in Anaheim. (Orlando? DUH!)
1. Today the highs are 80-85. The Santa Ana winds are blowing. Two weeks ago, we had heavy rain, with temps around 60. Weather will probably be warmish, around 70. Dress in layers.
2. Bengal BBQ is really a place to grab a snack. It's tasty, meat on a stick, but there isn't much to it. The chicken tends to be a little too dry. The beef is much better. Try a couple flavors, if you have the funds.
3. You know the Electric Parade is in California Adventure, right? And that it's going to Florida after its run this spring? Best place used to be over by Golden Dreams or by what was the Orange Stinger (being remodeled into Silly Symphony Swings). But they are cutting the parades short, ending them by the entrance to the Boudin Bakery Tour. If that's the case, grab a spot by Blue Sky Cellar.
4. Aladdin Show in DCA. SO worth it.
Soarin' Over California.
Sit in the Animation Building lobby and enjoy all the animation tributes. Then go see Turtle Talk or draw a character.
Don't miss Captain EO. It's back!
5. I think in front of the castle is one of the best shots anywhere. Or Walt's Statue in the Plaza. If you go to Toontown, you can get a nice shot with Mickey. On the DCA side, getting a shot in front of the Golden Gate Bridge is good (do it before they tear it down next year), or over by Grizzley River Run or Grizzley Peak. Another good shot will be of the lagoon, but I don't think that they will have the construction walls down yet.
6. Look at the windows on Main Street, Frontierland, etc. Those are tribute windows, tributes to people who have achieved considerable success at Disney. The names are real.
At the Frontierland train station, the morse code is typing out the speech that Walt Disney used to dedicate Disneyland: "To all that come to this happy place... Welcome! Disneyland is your land..."
Main Street is built with an optical illusion. If you stand in Town Square when entering, the castle looks larger than it actually is. That's because the buildings on on the Town Square end of Main St. are actually bigger than the ones closer to the castle. And the street itself is wider by Town Square. In addition to making the castle seem larger, this also has the effect of making the return trip seem shorter. Walt wanted people to walk back, not take the Disney transportation system. That way, guests would be more likely to stop into a shop. This is also why there are so many entrances to the stores, and why they are almost all interconnected. He knew some people might take a "shortcut" through the store, and then buy something.
The Indian statue on Main Street has a twin and had a purpose! At one point he stood in front of the tobacconist shop on Main Street. His twin is in Frontierland was in front is the general store which is now the candy shop.
Walt Disney's apartment in Disneyland was above the fire house on Main Street. Cast members used to be alerted that Walt was in the park when the light was on in the upstairs window. The light was turned off when he was not in the park. The light now stays on continuously as a tribute to Walt.
Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room was originally designed to be a restaurant; that is why there are restrooms in the attraction (the only ones, I might add).
The Fantasmic Dragon used to be called "Bucky", but now he's been renamed "Murphy, the Reluctant Dragon". It's a tribute to an old Disney SIlly Symphony, and the fact that when the new updated dragon appeared in 2009, everything that could go wrong DID go wrong.
In the pond area across the walkway from the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad exit, you can still see what remains of Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. Every few seconds, "phantom fish" will jump up from the water. This is left over from when trains would pass by a scene with Audio-Animatronic bears swiping at fish in the water. The effect was just never removed when the ride was taken out.
Do you know who Thurl Ravenscroft is? He's the original voice of Tony the Tiger, among other things. But he's also the "ghost host" of the haunted mansion, the narrator on the Mark Twain, a lot of the pirate voices on "Pirates of the Carribean" , and the lead singer (with the deep voice) of the singing busts in the Haunted Mansion. He's the broken head.
The title of the song in the Haunted Mansion is "Grim Grinning Ghosts". The theme is played in a number of formats, from the very beginning to the end.
Look for the entrance to Club 33 after exiting Pirates. It's on the left. Club 33 is a private club, and the only place in the park that serves alcohol. Look for a #33 on the door. You can look, but can't go in.
Many of the Audio-Animatronics that appear in Splash Mountain originally starred in the now-replaced Tomorrowland attraction America Sings.
Have fun!