Candy Canes at Disneyland: Christmas 2024 dates, virtual queue information and history

Disneyland's handmade candy canes have been a Christmas tradition for decades, building a loyal following. This buying guide covers the 2024 holidays when you can score one of these coveted sweet treats, tips and tricks on how to get one before they sell out, and a little history about what makes these hand-pulled candy canes so special.

A tradition since 1968, Disneyland's famous candy canes are handmade during the holiday season. They're made from scratch in a two-hour process that involves mixing the ingredients and pulling, rolling, and twisting the candies by hand. The results are colorful swirls of oversized sweetness that measure 18 inches long!

This 50+ year tradition produces candy canes that have better flavor and texture than those made with modern machines, which is almost all others. As far as I know, Logan's Candies is the only other candy store in Southern California where you can buy carefully handcrafted candy canes that also has a passionate following among locals.

Hand-pulling candy canes is a lost art, and some of the Disneyland Resort candy makers have been practicing their craft for decades. At one point, the longest-reigning master candy maker had been with Disneyland for over four decades. Sadly, Rob McHargue passed away in December 2017 after dedicating 43 years to the craft of making sweet treats at Disneyland. (Rob can be seen in the video below.)

Hand pulling candy canes is the traditional way to make a candy cane from scratch, but it is a difficult process that requires talent, knowledge, and patience. As you can also see in the video below, most of the candy makers at the Disneyland Resort are old hands – we can only hope they pass on their knowledge to younger Cast Members to prevent this art from truly being lost to the sands of time.

Candy cane makers at the Disneyland Resort begin the two-hour process of hand-making candy canes at 5 a.m. by mixing corn syrup, sugar and water heated to 313 degrees, then adding food coloring. Once it has cooled sufficiently, the candy makers pull the candy on a hook and add the peppermint flavor along with the strips.

Here's a cool video showing the entire candy cane making process at Disneyland:

A very limited number of these impressive candy canes will be made by the Disneyland Resort Candy Makers during the 2024 holiday season. Below are the dates the candy canes will be sold at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

Candy Palace & Candy Kitchen at Disneyland:

• November 29, 2024
• December 1, 2024
• December 3, 2024
• December 8, 2024
• December 10, 2024
• December 15, 2024
• December 17, 2024
• December 22, 2024
• December 24, 2024

Trolley Treats at Disney California Adventure:

• November 30, 2024
• December 2, 2024
• December 4, 2024
• December 9, 2024
• December 11, 2024
• December 16, 2024
• December 18, 2024
• December 23, 2024
• December 25, 2024

In order to purchase one of the candy canes this year, wristbands or a mobile waiting list system will be used as quantities are very limited. Once the mobile waitlist is activated, you can add your name and phone number at the location to receive a text message with the time when you can return to the location for the opportunity to purchase your candy cane, subject to availability.

To be clear: Candy Canes are NOT available through the Mobile Order feature on the Disneyland app. Although Disney calls this a mobile waitlist, to avoid confusion, the more accurate term is virtual queue.

An extremely limited number of Candy Canes will be available for each release date, while supplies last. Personal purchase required. Limit 1 per guest. Subject to restrictions and changes without notice, including, but not limited to, changes in release dates and prices. No discounts apply. No exchanges or refunds. If a mobile waitlist is used, data and messaging plans and other restrictions may apply.

Park entry requires both a valid admission and a theme park reservation for the same park on the same day. Park reservations are limited, subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed for a specific date or park. Additional restrictions apply. Attractions, experiences, entertainment and offerings may be changed, limited in availability or unavailable and are subject to change or cancellation without notice.

When it comes to tips and tricks for successfully scoring Disneyland's handmade candy canes, it's important to arrive early. Both parks open at 8 a.m. in November and December, with the turnstiles opening earlier. There is no exact time, but you can expect it to occur about 45 minutes in advance. (I haven't aligned the early entry schedule with the candy cane dates in 2024, but that's irrelevant – the turnstiles and Main Street/Buena Vista Street open to everyone at the same time; Checkpoints are beyond that.)

Ideally, you want to be among the first 100 or so guests at the turnstiles. In our experience, this is much easier if you stay on-site or at an off-site hotel within walking distance of Disneyland. Parking and handling the trams adds (at least) two additional layers of friction to the process. Check out ours Guide to Rope Drop at Disneyland Further information on arriving early, going through baggage check, etc.

When it comes to demand, our anecdotal experience is that the most popular days are those closer to the beginning and end of the candy cane “season.” This shouldn't be too surprising since Disneyland fans love being first. The closer Christmas gets, the greater the crowds of tourists going on excursions. On the positive side, almost all Magic Key annual pass holders are then blocked, so there is less competition from locals.

Although I'm not entirely sure, it also appears that demand is lower at Disney California Adventure. This also makes intuitive sense. Many die-hard Disneyland fans have had a family tradition of getting these candy canes for years or decades. That wouldn't even have been possible in DCA until recently, so Disneyland remains the iconic, traditional or historic destination for the handcrafted candy canes.

As for the comment, we Love that Disneyland still does this. It's one of those “little things” that make Disneyland a special place, with a deep sense of history and attention to detail. While there is no direct connection to Walt Disney, the tradition harkens back to a bygone time when Disneyland was a more intimate place that did many of these things and carefully considered and considered every element of the guest experience.

Still, over the years, I've heard many Disney fans scoff at these candy canes: “Why waste precious vacation time on a piece of candy?” “What kind of idiot would spend $20 and that much time to buy a candy cane at an amusement park ?” The list of such cynical feelings goes on and on.

These Grinches are completely missing the point. This is about the experience, the fond memories it creates, and the tradition – both on the Disneyland side and for the families who love those candy canes on Main Street (or Buena Vista Street, as the case may be). to buy. Yes, more than $20 is a lot of money for a candy cane, and from a value for money perspective, there's little justification for it.

This one is bigger though. In short, it's the difference between Disney theme parks and Disneyland more than anywhere else. It is the attention to detail, the sentimentality and the little things that have a lasting impact on the guest experience and leave a lasting impression. If all you care about is getting on as many rides as possible, that's your prerogative. But it's quite a lot everything else, Aside from the big rides, Disney is different from other theme park operators.

I worry that this will truly become a “lost art” at Disneyland at some point. Either because the qualified cast members to do it no longer exist, or because even at a cost of more than $20 per person, Disneyland is still losing money considering the labor costs of the time-consuming process. (There's a reason few other places do this – it's inefficient!)

Sarah and I value traditions and try to think of new ones to adopt as Baby Bricker gets older. I can't think of anything better than getting up at the crack of dawn on a chilly morning every December, waiting in line, taking a photo of her with a giant candy cane in front of the Christmas tree on Main Street… and then watching this Every year candy canes get smaller and smaller while it gets bigger and bigger. I really hope we have the opportunity to do this every December for the next decade. To suit everyone, but I'll remember it a lot better than if we had taken part in Peter Pan's Flight or whatever rope drop.

Planning a vacation to Southern California? For park admission deals, see Tips for Saving Money on Disneyland Tickets. Learn more about on-site and off-site hotels in our Anaheim hotel reviews and rankings. For where to eat, check out our Disneyland restaurant reviews. For unique ideas on things to enhance your trip, check out What to Pack for Disney. You can receive comprehensive advice from us Disneyland Vacation Planning Guide. Finally, for travel guides beyond DisneyCheck out our Southern California itineraries for day trips to Los Angeles, Laguna Beach, and many other Southern California cities!

Your thoughts

Is it a tradition for your family to get up at the crack of dawn to enjoy a hand-pulled candy cane from Disneyland? Do you think these live up to the hype, or are they overpriced and overrated sweet treats? Will you be purchasing a handmade candy cane at Disneyland or Disney California Adventure for Christmas 2024? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Still questions? Hearing your feedback – even if you don't agree with us – is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please let us know what you think in the comments below!