Disneyland Vs. Disney World

[Princess Disney Mom]

My only problem w DL is I live too far. I love DL. However I fell in love with it the second visit. I was rushed the first visit.

I wont say one park is better than the other. I very much enjoy WDW as well as DL. Both have the magic for me.

 

[Pakey]

I grew up going to DLR, my children grew up going to DLR, but I much prefer WDW. Even though we live 3 hours from DLR, we travel to WDW twice a year. We went back to Disneyland earlier this year to have dinner at Club 33 and I remembered why we go to WDW instead.

I can see the appeal that Disneyland Park has over MK for families with young children but for an all adult group, WDW provides a much nicer vacation.

 

[DisneyMim]

We've been going to WDW forever, but I always wanted to go to DL and we did several years ago. We loved It!! Both places are wonderful. I would like to go back someday. As for the people in the park, we actually found them more like us than at WDW. Nobody seemed to be rushing around and pushing to get to rides, characters, etc. Much more laid back attitude, which is my family. We are not the typical WDW commando type people. For me it was a long awaited trip as I remember Walt talking about DL. I felt his presence more there. I think both parks are different...and alike in ways. Some rides we liked much better At DL. Everyone will have their own opinions and that is how is should be.

Enjoy The Magic!!

 

[MelissathePooh]

Very different for us. We did DLR for the first time in April and I found the CM's to be very 'un-Disneylike'. I speculated that it is because 90% of the nametags I saw were local. So for these young adults it was like working at your local amusment park vs. at WDW where many travel across the country or across the world just for the opportunity to work there.

We waiting in long food/snack lines and the CM's were not very well able to handle them. Also they did not offer a lot of assistance when we asked questions.

It was one of the things I disliked most about DLR. Although I really did love the parks and the closeness of everything and loved the fireworks.

We stayed at HOJO and definitely would do so again.

Sorry to hear about your CM experience. I think we've had so much more negative lately at WDW from CM's we were so pleasantly surprised by DLR CM's. I think WDW has become so coporate its lost some its charm - and although my rational brain knows DLR is the same corporate giant, it didn't feel like it - which made for a very pleasant trip. Going in such an off season time didn't hurt anything either!

 

[grits98]

The only thing that Disneyland/CA has over WDW is the amount of walking that's required to tour the parks. That it, period. As a WDW enthusiast, we were completely disappointed in our trip to Disneyland this summer. It all started with the stroll down Main Street on our first day there. The facades of the buildings (seemed to be about 5 to 6 feet shorter than the ones at WDW. Whether true or not, I don't know.) It's a mind set from the very beginning. We're walking through doll land from the get go and that Barbie doll castle was the coup de gras. 2 or 3 steps here, you’re in one land, 2 or 3 steps there, you’re in another. When you're at WDW, you're in Fantasyland. At Disneyland, it's hard to get into Fantasyland when you’re walking through Barbieland, especially when you’re shoulder to shoulder, chest to back walking down extremely narrow, packed walkways. There's no place like home. There's no place like home at WDW.

I couldn't agree more with your assessment!

.

 

[focusondisney]

I am surprized by the comments about Dl being more "laid back". We have been to WDW about 14 times and DL 3 times. While WDW required more advanced planning, we actually feel more relaxed while there. We do go in lower seasons so less crowded. But the times we went to DL, we felt the parks were more crowded & we were more stressed trying to get around & do the attractions.

Maybe we need to find the ideal time to go to DL? Any suggestions? We have been in August & early Dec. Even in Dec, everything seemed so crowded. We are now used to WDW of course & spend lots of down time around our resort, so that does explain some of the "relaxing " feel. We go to WDW in Sept or early Dec. We like the really slow times.

But we love DL as Walt's original park & can't wait to go back. Planning for 2012 probably. Maybe we just need to find the ideal time. Like I said ,we prefer off season; slow times. We did love the holiday Haunted Mansion & Small World. Any suggestions on the best time for us to visit?

 

[bumbershoot]

I just want to know about this Annual Pass that gives you entry to DW and DL? Never heard of that one before or did I misread that from the PP?

The Premiere AP. Gives all the benefits and discounts of the premium APs at each park. Hard plastic card (which is fun for WDW AP holders who wish they had the plastic card that DLR AP holders get). No tax on the DLR portion, tax on the WDW portion, I believe I read that the total (with the tax) is something like 722.50, but the sites say just 700. Can't buy it online yet. Just came out last March!

The water park was closed for renovations (but not advertised on the website..they did apologize, but this didn't help us) and the pool was closed because of something with the filtering system.


Yup...you got it right-- IHOP! The most expensive pancakes ever!

I just did DCA on a twilight ticket, but hit the MK all day with my kids after I finished my 8:30 am presentation.

How strange, to have both hit at once!

The DLR forum should have a huge, blinking sticky note "don't go to IHOP or Captain Kidd's, EVER!" (the former b/c of the $$$, the second b/c of the "food").

How'd you like DCA? It's pretty much the fave of our family vs Disneyland itself.

 

[Sleeping Becca]

The best advice I got regarding DL was to avoid the weekends. Any given weekend DL will be slammed, the weekdays are sooooo much better.

We toured Sun-Thurs and the difference between Sun and Mon-Thurs was night and day.

 

[JoeyInWonderland]

Now that's a question! I guess it's really a question of scale and vulnerability. Both actresses could at one moment terrify you, and at another, break your heart. They both played at fooling audiences into believing that they wouldnt shatter. Off the screen, they could both talk a good game about never letting their guard down or giving in to other people's ideas of who they should have been. But we know that despite their long an unparalleled careers in Hollywood, they were both very human and very delicate underneath it all.
So then let's go to idiosyncrasies. Who was a corporation and who was just a small-town girl? Who showed her vulnerability faster than the other? Who welcomed innovation and who preferred to live away from the fracas?

Davis is Disneyland. Hepburn is WDW.

Best. Post. EVER.

Hepburn was a complete and utter fabrication. She, like Crawford, completely created her public and private personae. Davis was salt of the earth, "what you see is what you get."

Wonderful.

 

[Rhonna]

The best advice I got regarding DL was to avoid the weekends. Any given weekend DL will be slammed, the weekdays are sooooo much better.

We toured Sun-Thurs and the difference between Sun and Mon-Thurs was night and day.

Very true.

 

[Sassagoula Billy]

Best. Post. EVER.

Hepburn was a complete and utter fabrication. She, like Crawford, completely created her public and private personae. Davis was salt of the earth, "what you see is what you get."

Wonderful.

Um. Marry me?

I know some around here hold a bias toward newbies with low post counts (or newbies with high post counts for that matter), but you sir have won my support.

The name's Sassy. Sassy Billy.

 

[JoeyInWonderland]

Um. Marry me?

I know some around here hold a bias toward newbies with low post counts (or newbies with high post counts for that matter), but you sir have won my support.

The name's Sassy. Sassy Billy.

Have we met? Once upon a dream, perhaps?

 

[clareita]

Avoiding the weekends is the key to having a good DL trip. My sister lives 15 minutes from DL. I was there for one night last year and I hadn't been in a while, so we went for the evening. From the time we left her house until we were walking down Main Street was no more than 25 minutes. You just can't do that at WDW. This means that many more locals spend time at DL. I had a wedding to go in So. Cal. a few years ago, so we added a trip to DL. We went to the parks Tues, Wed, and Thurs. It was great.

I think the difference in visiting WDW and DL is about the nature of the trip. WDW is so self contained, you never really need to go anywhere else. It is the trip. DL is a great place to spend a few days, but anyone planning a trip needs to think about it more as a California trip and less just a Disney trip. I know this may sound sacrilegious, but as great as Disney is, this is a big world with many sights to see. Go to San Diego, the Getty museum, Santa Monica, etc.

 

[Sassagoula Billy]

Have we met? Once upon a dream, perhaps?

But back to Disneyland and Disney World...

 

[d1gitman]

We love both, but for different reasons. WDW is our vacation destination. DL was our 'locals' park while we lived in SoCal (we hope to move back in the near future). I can see where DLCA would be a let down compared to WDW IF your expectations were that it would be similar in experience as a vaca destination that WDW is.