Disneyland visitors celebrated a rare opportunity to spend a full 24 hours in the Anaheim theme park, which extended its hours to celebrate Leap Day. Vikki Vargas reports from Disneyland.
Disneyland opened the gates at 6:00 a.m. Wednesday and planned to stay open a full 24 hours in celebration of Leap Day, Feb. 29.
"I think it's exciting they're open all night," said tourist Kate Aranguren.
But the excitement may have morphed into frustration late Wednesday when the surface streets and freeways surrounding the park were jammed with commuters.
Tweets reported people being turned away from the park's event, which local news media promoted for days before the 24-hour opening.
NBC LA's story was trending in the top two spots for hours Wednesday night, garnering a significant amount of attention from viewers.
The day-long park promotion brought out hardcore Disney fans. The first 2,000 to enter the park walked away with free mouse ears.
"You'll probably see them on eBay for $100 in a year or two," said tourist Justina Estrella.
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The Magic Kingdom theme park in Florida also threw a Leap Day celebration, marking the first time the two parks were open for 24 hours straight.
Not since Star Tours opened in 1987 has there been this much hype surrounding an overnight stay in the park.
Think about it: in 24 hours you could ride the Jungle Cruise 205 times or spin your way through the Tea Cups 480 times.
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