Adventure Is Out There (If You Have $5)!

Last Friday, Disneyland Park debuted a new experience that’s very similar to the other new experience they debuted a few weeks ago. For those of you who took part in the Legends of Frontierland role-playing “game”, the park debuted a similar version of that game in Adventureland with one catch – you have to pay to play.

The Adventure Trading Company invites guests to take part in specific adventures, ranging in difficulty and theme where guests who take part ultimately end up with the treasure of the jungle called Juju if they complete their adventure. The different adventures happen in and around Adventureland itself and provide curious guests a new way to look at a place they’ve known about or just simply have strolled through for so long.

We took part in two of the six available adventures on opening day: one that had us seek knowledge and the other was a bonus adventure that helped a fellow adventurer and Adventureland icon in a special task. We were pleasantly surprised to see all the subtle touches they created for these challenges whether it be learning how to tell jokes like a Jungle Cruise skipper or decoding messages on tablets discovered by a famed archeologist that seemed to have been there all along.

This in-park game does have a lot of benefits including a variety of challenges and structure to them unlike its Frontierland counterpart, but that does not mean that Adventure Trading Company is without its own concerns. Since the challenge has a “home base” located in the Indiana Jones Outpost, guests trying to find the experience might just pass it by since it doesn’t have that inviting element to guests just walking by that Legends of Frontierland has. Additionally, the Cast Members working the experience seem to be “out of character” perhaps because of the difficulty of their explanations.

We also can’t forget about the cost of going on these adventures. They cost $5 each (with no discounts) and ultimately go toward the Juju you receive once you complete your tasks. The Jujus themselves, one seen on the right, are beautiful little souvenirs and correspond to the adventures you take on. For the knowledge adventure we completed, we got Mara’s all-seeing eye Juju. Just like the variety of Vinylmations, the Jujus are collectible and are scattered in the adventures and elsewhere in Adventureland that you’ll have to discover yourself…if you have money, too!

Altogether, Disneyland Park’s newest interactive game certainly extends the storytelling and use for the “lands” within Disneyland and we love that. Time and guests’ desire to take part in a paid-experience for small souvenirs instead of riding rides will ultimately tell management if more experiences like this will be had in more lands and more Disney Parks.

– – –

Oh, we should also note that you can also get two more Juju by purchasing select food items around Adventureland that cost $7.50 + tax. Let your adventurous spirit guide you as you search for them.

Will you be taking on the adventures from Adventure Trading Company? Do you think $5 is too much for an experience inside the park? Do you think that Disneyland Park and other Disney Parks should have more games like these? Comment below!