A mother recently reported how she and her daughter were “assaulted” right outside Disneyland Resort property in a scary incident.
For the most part, both the Disneyland Resort in Southern California and the Walt Disney World Resort in Central Florida are known to be some of the most incredible places in the world for a Disney vacation. With theme parks like the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park, with rides like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Space Mountain, it’s no surprise as to why this is the case.
However, not every incident reported at every Disney Park is necessarily magical; sometimes, untoward incidents can be reported from, or in the case of this story, in and around the Disney Parks.
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Mother Reports Assault by Homeless Individual Outside Disneyland
In a now-deleted post, a mother took to Reddit to share that she and her daughter had been allegedly assaulted by a homeless individual outside Disneyland Resort on October 25.
The guest explained, “Today my daughter and I were walking down Harbor Blvd towards the parks, when a man who I assume is homeless threw a full cup of coffee on us outside the McDonald’s by the Fairfield Inn. Thankfully this is all he did, and walked away while looking back at us.”
The mother also clarified that they had not interacted with the homeless individual at all, and the incident happened completely unprovoked. She also added, “We suffered no physical injuries (thankfully it wasn’t hot) but it was definitely upsetting.”
The mother was also quick to clarify that the incident certainly didn’t reflect on Disney, especially considering it happened right outside Disney property, however, her question remained, “Is the area around the parks typically pretty safe? I’ve never felt uncomfortable before, but I also haven’t been back in several years.”
Fellow guests and fans in the comments were generally sympathetic to the mother. One shared, “I’m sorry that happened to you, sounds shocking and unnerving. That said, I do think that was a random unfortunate thing. The area around the parks is well populated, relatively clean for a city, well lit, and heavily patrolled by police and security.”
The guest concluded that they’d never heard of that area being unsafe, adding, “I stay in hotels around that area a couple times a year when visiting.”
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The sentiment that it was a random event was common throughout the responses, with another guest explaining, “Could have happened anywhere, just bad luck.”
A third guest added their own anecdote of a similar incident they observed with another family, sharing that it was always important to be aware of one’s surroundings, even near the Disney Parks.
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They shared, “There was one incident though when we were walking back to our hotel after fireworks and noticed a man (not homeless looking upon a quick glance but carrying a lot of torn up bags) that was trying to catch up to a mother, grandmother, and young girl.”
The guest shared that her husband kept an eye on the situation until the mother, grandmother, and young girl reached their hotel, at which point the individual followed them into the hotel lobby, and the guest’s husband chased them off. It was clearly terrifying for the guests being followed.
It’s important to note these events are specific guest experiences and are not reflective of a universal guest experience at any Disney theme park, also, as the guest herself pointed out, they are not meant to villainize any one group of individuals or Disney.
However, it is only important to note that being vigilant and aware of your surroundings is always necessary, even during a Disney vacation.