You Can Take $35 Exercise Classes In Disneyland Before The Park Opens

Some may consider a full day of walking around a theme park a workout in itself, but Disneyland also offers fitness classes in the parks before they open for visitors looking for an extra burn. While trying to reserve a massage at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel during a recent staycation, I discovered a fitness section of their booking website that included yoga and boot camp classes at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park.

I’m a frequent Disneyland visitor, going to Anaheim at least five times a year, but I wasn’t aware that these group fitness classes existed before my recent stay. Disney quietly introduced them for guests staying at the Disneyland Resort Hotels — the Grand Californian Hotel, Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel, and the Disneyland Hotel — in 2022, and added a Sunrise Yoga in Disneyland Park experience just last year. Anyone who signs up for this $89 experience gets to go inside Disneyland before it opens and take an energizing yoga class in front of Space Mountain. Plus, you don’t even need a park ticket to book it.

The location of your class may change, depending on what’s going on in the park, but it’s always a breathtaking view as the sun rises over some of your favorite attractions. And along with getting this one-of-a-kind, magical experience — when the park is completely empty — you get to take home a fitness towel, snacks, bottle of water, and a professional digital photo snapped by a PhotoPass photographer as well.

Unfortunately, this experience wasn’t available during my stay (it’s only offered a few times a month), but I found plenty of other Disney morning fitness classes that are actually more budget-friendly. They take place in California Adventure Park before it opens, so I decided to sign up for one.

I Tried A Power Walking Class In Disney’s California Adventure & It Was A Unique Experience

There were a few fitness classes available during my trip to Disneyland to choose from. One was the Adventure Boot Camp ($35), but this is a much more high-intensity workout that includes push-ups, squats, and sit-ups. The 45-minute class also requires you to jog around the park, and while I’m all for pushing it to the limit (as High School Musical’s Corbin Bleu would say), this was my staycation and I wanted to keep it relaxing. So instead, I chose the Power Walking Workout in Disney California Adventure Park class.

I’m a natural speed walker, so this $35 class was right up my alley. During the 45 minutes, you get to power walk two miles through California Adventure, stopping along the way in different lands, like Avengers Campus and Cars Land, to do a few stretches and low-intensity exercises, like bench planks and bicep curls with resistance bands. California Adventure opens at 8 a.m. most mornings, so this class began at 6:30 a.m. to give you plenty of time to workout and then head back to your room to get ready.

It was a little difficult to wake up, but I made it to check-in — which is at the Grand Californian Hotel at the Tenaya Stone Spa — on time. Once you sign you, you can grab as many granola bars, bottles of water, and hair ties as you need before you’re escorted into the park through the side entrance, which is exclusive for Grand Californian Hotel guests.

Our instructor led us through the park to Pixar Pier, where we did our first set of exercises — which included side shuffle jumps. Afterwards, we walked along Pixar Pier and our instructor pointed out different hidden Mickey Mouses. Most of the hidden Mickeys were ones I’ve never noticed before, due to the crowds that you normally get when you’re walking from ride to ride.

As we left Pixar Pier, we did a few more stretches, like high knee walks back and forth, with the perfect sunrise behind the Pixar Pal-A-Round Ferris wheel as our backdrop. It was breathtaking, but unfortunately, you’re not allowed to snap pictures in the park before it opens. You’ll just have to trust me — it was gorgeous and also made the experience so worth it. From there, we went to Cars Land and Avengers Campus, power walking and doing stretches.

When we got to Avengers Campus, it was 7 a.m., which our instructor said is when the park “wakes up” and the music in each land gets louder — and that was true. Like clockwork, the music increased in volume right at 7 a.m. to let you know the day has begun.

I thought I would need a nap after waking up at 6 a.m., but being in the park, hearing the music, and moving my body really energized me. This is the perfect way to start your Disney day if you’re staying at one of the Disneyland hotels. The Power Walking class was pretty easy, but did provide a nice dose of energy, so I recommend it for all levels. I loved my experience so much that I can’t wait to do it again, and maybe next time, I’ll be ready for the boot camp.