Is California Adventure a must?

It is for us too. Yes RSR and Toy Story Mania are amazing but overall the park is just really cool to explore. We love hanging out over by the pier and just wandering.
 
We are at DLR with park hoppers now and 4 out of 5 of us are enjoying DCA more than Disneyland. My mom (65) enjoys Disneyland more, I think for the nostalgia. I'm 45 and using an ECV, I prefer DCA because it is MUCH easier to navigate and the surfaces are a little less bumpy. My son (25) and fiance (45) like the CA outdoor theme better. My daughter (15) likes that the rides are a little bit more exciting and the atmosphere is a little bit more grown-up. When she was 10 she much preferred Disneyland.

I suspect that by the end of our trip we will have spent more time in DCA than Disneyland.
 


Our last visit we loved CA much more than I thought we would and regretted not spending more time there. What I really liked about it was all of the extra little unexpexted experiences like the citizens on Buena Vista St, lots of characters in different costumes, great street entertainment, stuff like that. I know there's things like that in Disneyland but it just seemed like it was more involved and readily available. Maybe like others said because it's more open and less crowded. Rides are good too. Very cool vibe. I'd defnately recommend!
 
It is a must. I always do parkhoppers, and I hop multiple times each day. I love Universal, but I do Universal Orlando. Islands of Adventure is my favorite park but I do both parks there too. You make the trip, if you don't see everything you will regret it and have to figure out when you can go back. I just got back from DLR, I hopped for 3 days and I'm now trying to figure out when I can go back.
 
shakalaka said:
I'm wondering if we should spend one of our days at California Adventures or just do two at Disney instead. Apart from Radiator Springs would we be missing anything awesome? My kids don't like scary rides so we can miss tower of terror, and we can see Fantasmic instead of WOC.
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Simply put yes...go to DCA! Radiator Springs is awesome, but there's so much more there than just that! There are fantastic streetmosphere shows throughout the park (my 3 y/o was entranced by these), some great character interactions (oswald, flik!), the animation building (characters, animation academy, etc), Bug's Land, Toy Story Midway Mania, the REdwood Creek Challenge Trail, Soarin' (if it's open)..plus the parade with Pixar characters and WOC. It is definitely worth the time to visit!

Also, just in case you don't know - Fantasmic is under refurbishment for the next 18 months or so, so that won't be an option for your nighttime entertainment.
 


I would never make the trip to Disneyland without going to CA. I love both parks! With the two so close it's almost as if it's just one big park...and you wouldn't want to miss out on half the park. We always do hoppers and it's so totally worth it!! It's all part of the Disney experience
 
I was just there it is an absolute 100% must do - how could you not? Disneyland is like magic kingdom in Florida - CA is exclusive to California and is a must must do. California screamin is excellent
 
Besides all the great shows and rides.... it is way more open! My friend is at DL today and said it is PACKED (Super Bowl parade and school is out in CA). This was our experience last Feb even without the super bowl parade. So they left and went to DCA and she said it is just so much more relaxed.
 
Asian salad in the bread bowl on pacific wharf is my favorite meal in either park.
 
go to the disneyland website and look at all the attractions at both parks. and look at videos online of the rides. Then have your family make a "must see" list. then decide
i suggest 3 day park-hoppers. but if you only have 2 days, then 2 day park hoppers.
 
I've only taken one trip to DLR, but for me, DCA is a MUST! Carsland, RSR, and the Cozy Cone Motel were probably my very favorite parts of our whole trip. My kids are older and loved Cali Screamin' and TOT, but we also loved TSMM and the river rapids! It is a great park! I think you have to go... even if you just do a half day there and 1.5 days at DL. The Monster's Inc. ride is cute too.
 
DCA is definitely worth visiting now. It has improved sooooo much over the last 11 years. I first went in 2005 and was not impressed at all. After a couple hours I was done with that park and didn't go back that trip. But now I can spend a LOT of time there. There are soo many cool things in DCA aside from the rides. DD 7 loves going to that park as well and she doesn't ride scary rides.
 
I guess I'll be the lone dissenting voice...I don't dislike DCA by any means, but I could easily take a trip to DLR and skip it. At most it's a half day thing for me, especially if I'm with my husband, who doesn't ride any "scary" rides. Really the only rides I actually seek out there are Little Mermaid, Toy Story Midway Mania, and Soarin'. I like RSR okay but I'm not a big Cars fan. I also don't find Carsland a reason to go to the park. Is the themeing great? Yes, it's very well done. However, there's just not much to DO in Carsland, besides take a walk down the street, get in your one or two RSR rides, then move on to somewhere else. Same for Bugsland. I love the themeing, but the kiddie rides leave much to be desired for two adults. I used to like Tower of Terror and Screamin', but I'm not that excited about thrill rides anymore.

I do think that the area near Grizzy River Rapids is very beautiful and relaxing. That is my favorite area of the park, because it reminds me of camping in the Sierra Nevada. But honestly...I'd rather just actually go camping in the Sierra Nevada. So for me, DCA is easily skippable. Now, if this is your first and probably only trip to DLR, then I think you should definitely get park hoppers and experience it! However if you know you'll be back, I would say it's not necessary to go to DCA on every single trip.
 
We're also big DCA fans. Our last trip spanned parts of 6 days. We spent more time in DCA than Disneyland, partly because of crowds, but also because we love it. We actually had the discussion several days into the trip that we had spent a ton of time at DCA and we needed to go spend some time at Disneyland. I've always enjoyed DCA, but after the refurb was complete it really did become great. Turtle Talk with Crush is a fun show. If your kids are younger the Disney Junior show is also great. Everyone seems to love Radiator Springs Racers, but we're big fans of Mater's Junkyard Jamboree. Luigi's new ride should be opening soon too. The only "scary" rides are Tower of Terror and Screamin, well maybe Mickey's Wheel too. LOL! So there is plenty for your family to do.
 
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