“The Force is strong with this one.”
Darth Vader – Star Wars
The Jedi Training Academy experience was one of the highlights of our trip to Disneyland for my six year old son. He is a huge Star Wars fan and owns at least six different lightsabers of all different colours and sizes. We watched the promo video for the Jedi Training Academy together before we left on our trip and I really hoped my son would not be disappointed if he did not get a chance to participate. On the video it shows kids battling against Darth Vader and Darth Maul and I wasn’t sure what his chances would be among the throngs of other little children wanting the exact same thing. Anyone can attend to watch the demonstration but not everyone gets chosen.
The monorail station was nice and close to the Disneyland Hotel where we stayed and is a straight shot into Tomorrowland, where the Jedi Training Academy is located. This was perfect because on our second day at Disneyland we made it our mission to get our little guy Jedi trained. We checked our schedule and saw there were 6 different training sessions throughout the day. We knew our son wanted to do this more than anything so we decided even if we had to go to every single session, beg, plead and finally bribe, he would get to fight Darth Vader at some point on this trip.
It turns out all the drama and worries on our part were unwarranted. There are a few tricks to up the odds in your child’s favor and one of the Disney cast members was more than willing to share.
- Show up at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the show.
- Sit as close to the middle of the stage as possible in the seating area. Most of the children sitting in this area get chosen because the instructor knows they have been waiting there the longest; they are the coveted spaces.
- Be enthusiastic. Jumping up and down and screeching “pick me pick me” are not frowned upon.
- Make a sign. Some little cuties next to us had a sign that said “I Love Jedis” and, of course, got picked.
- Prove you are a Star Wars fan. Wear Star Wars t-shirts and paraphernalia. They like that too.
Prepared with these handy suggestions our little guy got picked the very first time (oh thank goodness) and had an absolute blast. The Jedi Master and his Padawan taught the Younglings a series of moves which they later put into practice when they took turns battling either Darth Vader or Darth Maul.
Needless to say, this is closest thing any of us are ever going to get for real Jedi training this side of Endor. The only real disappointment was that there was no Jedi training for the 35 year old child I married. He’s still pouting!
For more information about the Jedi Training Academy at Disneyland, visit http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/jedi-training-academy/
I will be writing a series about my family’s visit to Disneyland over the next couple of weeks. Here are my other posts about our adventure.
