A visit to Disneyland can be an exhausting experience. The line for a ride can be hours long; there are hordes of overstimulated children and the sheer quantity of gift shops is overwhelming. When the park first opened, on 17 July 1955, an adult ticket cost $1 and kids were 50 cents: now a single day’s entry for one person can easily run $200 or more.
Despite all the kitsch and cartoon capitalism, though, Disneyland still delivers moments of actual magic, and that’s largely due to the inventiveness of its theme park rides.
