One of the highly coveted items at Disneyland during Holiday Time is the most limited and hardest to get, but it is worth the effort. On select mornings of the holiday season, the candy makers make fresh, hand-pulled candy canes. The makers alternate between Disneyland and Disney California Adventure. The large and delicious canes are first-come, first-served, limited to one per person and sell out immediately. Here are the Disney candy cane dates, and we'll walk you through how you can get a Disneyland candy cane.
FAQs
- When does Disneyland make candy canes? The candy makers make candy canes on select dates, listed below. Candy makers start the process in the wee hours of the morning, and the first canes are available by park opening.
- Which shops make the Disneyland candy canes? Trolley Treats at Disney California Adventure and Candy Palace at Disneyland take turns making candy canes.
- Do I need a park ticket to buy a candy cane? Yes, you need a park ticket and a park reservation for the park that is making the candy canes that day. You can save on Disneyland tickets through Undercover Tourist.
- How are candy canes distributed? In 2025, it is a wristband.
- How many candy canes do they make? They make a limited amount, usually under 150 candy canes per day.
About the Hand-Pulled Candy Canes at Disneyland
One of the most talked-about, exclusive Disneyland and Disney California Adventure holiday food items is the handmade candy cane. Every year since 1968, the Disneyland faithful line up for the hopportunity to purchase a hand-pulled candy cane. The 18-inch canes are made fresh with pure peppermint oil and are only offered at Candy Palace at Disneyland and Trolley Treats at Disney California Adventure on select dates. You must get a wristband to purchase them due to the limited quantity. You may not mobile order candy canes. These candy canes are like the must-see concert of the Christmas candy season.
What is the cane like? It's a big, beautiful white, red and green cane that's an inch thick and over a foot tall! It tastes like a candy cane with a flakier texture. We love the anticipation and getting to bond with other nice Disney fans from places near and far while we wait to get ours. Sometimes, cast members bring out large candy cane photo-ops. It makes for a festive and fun morning, and the process of getting the cane is toadally part of the experience!
It's a lot of work for the candy makers to make a candy cane by hand. The process takes about two hours. The making of a candy cane involves heating the sugar to exactly 313 degrees Fahrenheit, cooling it, hand-pulling, rolling, balling, coloring and twisting the ingredients. Then measuring, cutting, shaping and bagging the canes.
The first year we got one, we just kept it to gaze upon because we were too awestruck by it to eat it. The second time we got one, we vowed to enjoy it while it was fresh. We ate it all, and we have no regrets! Some people gift them to others or find ways to preserve them. You can decide what to do with yours if you get one, but we toadally recommend enjoying it. It's a nice and delicious candy cane. Be sure to snap pictures of it so you can always enjoy looking at it even after it's devoured.
2025 Candy Cane Dates at Disneyland Resort
Here are the 2025 candy cane dates at Disneyland Resort.
The 2025 candy cane dates at Candy Palace & Candy Kitchen in Disneyland:
- Nov. 28 and 30
- Dec. 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 22 and 24
2025 Candy Cane dates at Trolley Treats in Disney California Adventure:
- Nov. 29
- Dec. 1, 3, 8, 10, 15, 17, 23 and 25
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How to Get a Disneyland Candy Cane
Here's how to get a Disneyland candy cane.
- First of all, you need to visit on one of the dates when the candy canes are made.
- Next, you need a park reservation for the park that is distributing them that day. If park hopping, you need to choose the hosting park as your starting park.
- And third, you need to arrive really early and move quickly to get in line to get a wristband.
In 2025, they are handing out wristbands. Some years, they use a virtual line. You have to be present to collect a wristband. They are limited to one per person, but the buyer can be any age. (Yes, even your infant can be a buyer.) If your family of four wants four candy canes, then all four of you should be in line together to collect wristbands and return together to purchase.
We frogs have gotten candy canes a couple of times. Here is what worked for us at Disneyland.
We hopped by on the first day of candy cane sales at Disneyland Park in past years for our attempt. Spoiler alert: We got one!
We are early frogs because we like to catch the flies, so we arrived excessively early, but we got a candy cane, so we don't argue with the results. We arrived at the Harbor Blvd. security checkpoint at 6 a.m. Believe it or not, we were not the first ones at the gate. At about 6:30 a.m., they moved us to the K-9 security screening and held us there.
Between 7 and 7:15 a.m., we entered the Esplanade and waited outside the Disneyland gates. Harbor Blvd. security opens when the first bus from the Toy Story lot arrives between 7 and 7:15 a.m. each day. You could get to Toy Story or the parking structures early (before the lots open at 7 a.m.) and catch the first bus to Disneyland and possibly still make it. But we feel like the people entering security around the parks or from Disney's Grand Californian Hotel have the advantage over people who park at the official Disney lots. If you are arriving by car, consider alternate parking options such as GardenWalk (also cheaper than standard parking) or The Anaheim Hotel (usually the same price as Disneyland lots). Our Disneyland parking post has the details.
At 7:30 a.m. (actual time can vary), the gates opened to start letting people into the park. We were among the first people in the park. People move very quickly — even though there is technically no running allowed — to the Candy Palace. (At Disney California Adventure, the line will form outside Trolley Treats.) A line forms out front in the direction of the castle and wraps around by Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe.
The year we tried it, there was a mobile waitlist that opened at 8 a.m., when the park officially opened. By 8:20 a.m., we got our text and purchased our cane.
In 2025, the parks are using wristbands. Each member of your party who wants to purchase needs to be present to collect a wristband. If the mobile waitlist is activated, you'll add your name and phone number at the location. You'll get a text when it's time to return to the location to purchase a candy cane.
When a mobile waitlist is used, you will input your party size (so only one party member needs to scan the code) for the number of candy canes your group is purchasing, and all purchasing party members need to be present at pick-up. An infant counts as much as a person as an adult. There is a strict one candy cane per person, per day rule. You input your name and cell phone number. You'll get a text when it's your turn to come back. People at the front of the line may get their candy canes right away. Others will have to return.
When it's your time to return, you may need to check in outside the candy shop, get a ticket and then take it to the register to pay. There are no discounts or refunds. The canes cost $21.99 plus tax (that's the 2024 price and is subject to change). They come bubble-wrapped and double-bagged. They are fragile, so store them in a safe place.
Extra Candy Canes
What hoppens if you miss the wristband window? In 2024, we parked in the Disneyland Toy Story lot, got into Disney California Adventure at 7:45 a.m. and found out that we had missed the initial distribution (even though we were in the park 15 minutes before it opened). But later that morning, we hopped into Trolley Treats. They had some extras and let us buy one! So if you miss out, always check back later, as you might get lucky! Some people might not pick up their candy canes or maybe a few extras get made. It never hurts to ask if they have extras or when they might distribute those extras.
A cast member told us that Candy Palace does not usually have extras and that Trolley Treats is more likely to have extras. We tried to get an extra in 2025, but no luck that time. It doesn't hurt to ask, though. We did get a small sample from a broken candy cane, so that was toadally nice!
Whether you get a candy cane or not, it’s fun to watch them making the candy canes through the shop windows. They start out fat and get rolled thin. Each cane is measured and weighed, then sealed in plastic and wrapped in bubble wrap with a gift label, in case you want to give it away.
The broken candy canes may be used for chocolate peppermint bark. So even if you do not get a cane, you might get tiny pieces of a cane!
Disneyland Candy Cane Tips
Here are a few tips if you are looking to get a candy cane at Disneyland this season:
- Consult the calendar.
- Be sure to get a park reservation for the park that is making them.
- Arrive at security early.
- If driving, consider off-site parking so you can beat the buses and parking trams to the park entrance.
- Enter from the main park entrances as they are closest to the shops.
- Speed-walk to the candy shop.
- Decide how many candy canes you want and have the number of buyers for those canes with you.
- If you don't get one, check back at the candy shop later. There might be extras!
- If you get one, store it in a locker or other safe place after you take photos, so you don't break it while in the park.
- Enjoy one of the many other delicious Disneyland holiday treats!
You'll need a park ticket and a reservation to get a candy cane. While you do not get any discounts on candy canes, you can pay with a Disney gift card, and Undercover Tourist can help you get a discount on that. Every Undercover Tourist Disneyland ticket comes with FREE $20 Dining Dollars promo codes. You can apply those to the purchase of a Disney gift card at 15% off! It's one way to save on all your holiday dining and shopping at Disneyland this holiday season.
Related: All the Holiday Sweet Treats & Foods at Disneyland Theme Parks
Related: All the Holiday Dining Experiences at Disneyland Hotels & Downtown Disney
Hoppy planning!
