Here are our top tips on how to get a handmade Disneyland candy cane during the holiday season.

The most wonderful time of the year is almost here again! Main Street, U.S.A is set to become all aglow with twinkling lights and draped garlands when the holidays officially begin at Disneyland Resort on November 10, 2023. While the decorations and festivities throughout the theme parks and hotels are exciting, there’s a tradition that determined Disney guests have their eye on: those handmade Disneyland candy canes!

Each year, the Happiest Place on Earth becomes the merriest place on Earth when Disneyland Park confectioners begin making their world-famous candy canes. And these candy canes are no average peppermint treat. In fact, saying guests are serious about the candy canes would be an understatement. Since Disneyland first began making them in 1968, the Christmas confections have become increasingly popular. These days, Disneyland attendees wait for hours before the park opens to secure their place in line to purchase just one of these peppermint delights.

With all this hype, those candy canes have to be good. So, how do you get a Disneyland candy cane of your own? Find everything you need to know below:

• What Makes Disneyland Candy Canes So Special?
• How Much Do Disneyland Candy Canes Cost?
• How Do I Get a Disneyland Candy Cane This Year?
• Where Are Candy Canes Sold at Disneyland?
• 2023 Disneyland Candy Cane Schedule

What Makes Disneyland Candy Canes So Special?

Before I discovered the magic that is Disneyland candy canes, I’d never put much thought into how candy canes were made. As it turns out, it takes a lot of work to make this Christmas staple.

Disneyland confectioners gear up each year to craft thousands of oh-so-perfect candy canes. A cast member hand-pulls a glob of an extremely delicate yellow-colored sugar mixture on an old-fashioned candy-pulling hook as a second cast member carefully incorporates peppermint oil throughout the batch. Pulling the candy allows for air bubbles to enter the mixture, which subsequently turns the candy white.

Once the candy has been pulled to perfection, it is then mixed in with long ropes of dyed sugar — this is what creates those red and green stripes that perfectly wrap around the cane. Slowly and carefully, the mound of candy is rolled into thin tubes. Finally, two cast members work together to cut, weigh, and shape the canes before they head off to be packaged. The entire process takes about 40 minutes to complete – and that’s just for one batch!

This difficult and time-consuming process creates a smooth, refreshing, minty candy cane like no other. As time has passed, the art of candy cane crafting has all but died out. Big factories churn out case after case of sub-par canes each year as the holidays approach, which most of us believe to be the real deal. However, there are still a few corners of the world where those traditional candy canes exist… and Disneyland is one of them!

💡Insider Tip: Taking your candy cane home and waiting ’til Christmas to crack into it might sound like the best idea, but these treats are actually best when they’re still just a tad warm.

How Much Do Disneyland Candy Canes Cost?

Disneyland candy canes aren’t your typical store-bought stocking stuffer. Not only are they tastier than your average candy cane, but they’re also much bigger. Each one measures about 18 inches long!

Considering their size and quality, it shouldn’t be a surprise that these treats will cost you a bit more than their supermarket counterparts. These 5-ounce candy canes cost $19.99 each in 2022. You can expect a similar price when Disneyland’s candy canes become available in 2023.

Prepared to buy these handmade candy canes in bulk? Well, Disneyland candy canes are in such high demand that Disney actually has to set a limit on how many guests can buy at once: You’ll only be able to purchase one!

How Do I Get A Disneyland Candy Cane This Year?

Photo courtesy of Disney

Because Disneyland’s annual candy canes are so incredibly popular, getting your hands on one isn’t as easy at it seems. You can’t just walk into the resort’s candy shops and pick up a freshly made one; you’ll actually have to visit Disneyland Resort on specific candy cane dates during the holiday season.

Candy canes are only sold on select days throughout December, and those days are quite competitive. Seasoned park-goers suggest that guests show up to the park at least one hour before it opens so as to enter as soon as possible. Once you gain access to the park, you’ll be given the opportunity to join a mobile waitlist in the Disneyland app. This means that you’re in line, but only virtually – so you can enjoy the park and all its offerings as you wait!

However, a place in line doesn’t guarantee you a candy cane. Due to the careful process hand-pulling candy canes requires, only about 135 are made each day. With an average of 50,000 people in the park each day, you’re looking at a lot of competition!

Many wait all day for a candy cane with no luck. If you’re lucky, you’ll receive a text to let you know that your time has come. The text will let you know where to convene, and you’ll receive your candy cane safely packaged in protective bubble wrap. Proceed with caution: if you break your candy cane, you won’t get a replacement!

Where Are Candy Canes Sold at Disneyland?

Photo courtesy of Disney

You can’t get these legendary treats just anywhere. There are only two locations throughout the Disneyland Resort that offer candy canes. And you’ll have to have park admission to get a chance at grabbing a candy cane – these bad boys aren’t offered outside of the parks. To avoid overcrowding, the two locations offer alternating candy cane days (meaning when one is serving candy canes, the other will not be).

Here’s a look at both of Disneyland’s candy cane shops.

Candy Palace at Disneyland Park

The Candy Palace is located right on Main Street, U.S.A inside Disneyland Park. Here, confectioners hand-pull candy canes in a workroom surrounded by windows, where passersby can watch in wonder as a big glob of gooey sugar is transformed into elaborate candy canes.

Trolley Treats at Disney’s California Adventure Park

Trolley Treats is located on Buena Vista Street inside Disney’s California Adventure Park. Getting your candy cane at Trolley Treats gives you the chance to stroll the streets of old Hollywood, all decked out in holiday dressings.

While Candy Palace is an undeniable classic, the retro vibes that inhabit Buena Vista Street really conjure that one-of-a-kind midcentury holiday spirit. The choice is yours!

2023 Disneyland Candy Cane Schedule

Remember, Disneyland’s candy canes are only available at certain locations and on certain dates. You don’t want to make the mistake of showing up on a day they aren’t serving them or getting tickets to the wrong park!

Photo Courtesy of Disney Eats Instagram

This year, Candy Palace at Disneyland will offer distribution on December 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, and 24. Trolley Treats at Disney California Adventure will offer distribution on December 4, 6, 11, 13, 18, 20, and 25. So, how does distribution work? For a chance to get one of the candy canes, you’ll need to use a mobile waitlist system, as quantities are very limited. Once the mobile waitlist is activated the day of, you can add your name and phone number at the location to receive a text back with a time to return. Candy canes will be limited to one per guest per day.