Are you ready for the Rose Parade? The Disneyland Resort Cars Land-themed float will be crossing the television cameras at 9a.m. PST on Tuesday, January 1 and you aren’t going to want to miss it. 

Yesterday, I had the honor of viewing the float in its final stages of completion and received a wonderful tour “behind the scenes” that I am thrilled to share with all of our readers!




As mentioned in the video, there will be dancers, 45 animated pieces, and the beauty and grandeur of the Rose Parade that we all love. Before grabbing your coffee on the morning January 1, here’s some fun facts about Disney and the Rose Parade — past and present:

Volunteers getting a baby tractor ride vehicle covered for the parade. Very special guests will be traveling down the parade route in the ride vehicles!

• This year’s float will have undergone 20,000 man-hours of work before making its way down Colorado Blvd.
• Disney’s relationship with the Tournament of Roses began in 1938 when characters from the newly premiered “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” were prominently featured in the parade.
• The Rose Queen and her Court, along with the competing Rose Bowl football teams, have visited Disneyland Resort each year since 1960. I may or may not know some tour guides who were very excited about those Rose Bowl teams coming to the park each year back in the 1990s. (Wink, wink…) 
• In 1966, Walt Disney served as Grand Marshall of the parade. Roy E. Disney, Walt’s nephew and the head of Disney Animation, served as Grand Marshall in 2000. Members of the Disney creative team from Walt Disney Imagineering and Disney Entertainment have served as 
  

  It was so cold in the float warehouse! In the 40s! We were blowing smoke when we talked!

  float judges numerous times.

• In 2004, Disneyland Resort presented “A Sudden Drop in Pitch,” the tallest float in Rose Parade history (110 feet, with live performers at the top). The float’s title played off that year’s theme of “Music, Music, Music,” and the float was inspired by The Twilight Zone™ Tower of Terror” attraction, which opened in Disney California Adventure that spring.
• The 50th Anniversary of Disneyland was celebrated in 2005 with both a dazzling Rose Parade Opening Show and a spectacular castle float called “The Happiest Celebration on Earth.” Mickey Mouse served as Grand Marshall.
• In 2006, the longest float (150 feet) in Rose Parade history, entitled “The Most Magical Celebration on Earth,” celebrated Disney Parks around the world.

Volunteer getting the scaled down version of the cars for the Radiator Springs Racer replica on the float. The attention to detail is nothing short of amazing!

• In addition to Rose Parade float entries, Disney has presented many Rose Parade Opening Shows through the years, celebrating such milestones as the 35th Anniversary of Disneyland in 1990, the debut of the Indiana Jones Adventure in Disneyland in 1995, and the motion picture premiere of “Fantasia 2000,” in 2000.