1st impression of DL after visiting WDW

[2Gma]

Just back from DL on Mon & Tue this week. This was our family’s 1st visit to DL. We’ve visited WDW 5 times since 2011.

Disneyland is definitely worth a trip if you’re a Disney lover! While very similar in layout to WDW we felt DL was more intimate as it had more trees and unique Disney rides (Loved the Storybook canal boats & Sub ride) Yes, the castle is noticeably smaller and even hard to view from down Main St. (for fireworks) We loved how easy it was to get to/from the park with being able to walk 10-15 min. from our property to gates and it was relatively the same leaving after fireworks which was a big bonus at night.

Hyperspace Mtn-definitely better than SM at WDW, so smooth!

Matterhorn, wooza the bumps! all of my family said ‘not again” even though I wanted to do it.

Small World-there is a line for this at DL, who knew? Pretty fun to right at night as the ride starts/ends outdoors under the lights. I couldn’t believe we actually needed FP for this.

PoTC & PP-why is there no FP for these rides?!!!! Try to ride these early in day as the line gets long and there is no FP.

SWGE-overall felt like a “Star Wars planet” with the themeing/costumes but besides the Millennium Falcon, didn’t have any other recognizable Star Wars memorabilia as Hyperspace Mtn and Star Tours does. Docking Bay 7 had good food. Service was a little slow even with mobile order. Hard to find a spot to sit even though the place seems large. Oga’s cantina: neat themed bar but the carbon freeze was unavailable and they herd you in like cattle. Felt rushed and generic. We were given exact directions of where to go, not to go, and only 2 drinks, must leave in 45 min. Didn’t get to ride MFSR as the line was consistently 100+ minutes that day and it was hot for us northerners.

DCA: This park felt more like an amusement park, not as “Disney-esqe”. Still tons of fun! Guardians of Galaxy ride portion was so much better than ToT! Incredicoaster is awesome, probably our favorite Disney ride. Fast, up, down, & around. Definitely not for everyone! RSR:fun but we didn’t get all the rage about it. Cars Land themeing is 'spot on'. Felt this park was a one day only, while DL could have been 2 days worth.

CM-a noticeable difference in terms of excitement level. Seems like alot of CMs are just doing their job and many even looked bored, feet up, slumped over, indifferent to questions. It just seems the CMs at WDW go out of their way to WDW to be happy/excited and create a magical experience.

Tickets: Purchased online through the app, tickets showed up automatically in tickets section of app which I had no problems pulling up at gate for them to take picture of us individually and issue paper tickets (for re-entry/FPs). Check in at gates is slightly slower as they take pictures of everyone.

Maxpass/Photopass: Super easy to use on the app and worth the extra cost. Didn't seem a lot of people were using it as FP lines were fairly short. Not every ride has FP which was good and bad. I had the app stop working once or twice during our 2 days, I just deleted and reloaded app, re-signed in and was good to go!

Downtown Disney fits so well between the parks and is fun to walk through going to and from the parks.

Crowds: on par with what we experience at WDW in Sept.

Overall, we had tons of fun and would go back as part of a CA trip.

 

[Dr.Mickey]

Thanks for posting. We just enjoyed our first DLR trip too. It was certainly worth the trip for us.

 

[Eve & Wall-e]

I enjoyed reading your review and agree with most of your observations. I haven't been inside Oga's yet. Hopefully next visit. We don't ride the Matterhorn anymore. It's just too bumpy for us.

 

[lovethesun12]

Just back from DL on Mon & Tue this week. This was our family’s 1st visit to DL. We’ve visited WDW 5 times since 2011.

Disneyland is definitely worth a trip if you’re a Disney lover! While very similar in layout to WDW we felt DL was more intimate as it had more trees and unique Disney rides (Loved the Storybook canal boats & Sub ride) Yes, the castle is noticeably smaller and even hard to view from down Main St. (for fireworks) We loved how easy it was to get to/from the park with being able to walk 10-15 min. from our property to gates and it was relatively the same leaving after fireworks which was a big bonus at night.

Hyperspace Mtn-definitely better than SM at WDW, so smooth!

Matterhorn, wooza the bumps! all of my family said ‘not again” even though I wanted to do it.

Small World-there is a line for this at DL, who knew? Pretty fun to right at night as the ride starts/ends outdoors under the lights. I couldn’t believe we actually needed FP for this.

PoTC & PP-why is there no FP for these rides?!!!! Try to ride these early in day as the line gets long and there is no FP.

SWGE-overall felt like a “Star Wars planet” with the themeing/costumes but besides the Millennium Falcon, didn’t have any other recognizable Star Wars memorabilia as Hyperspace Mtn and Star Tours does. Docking Bay 7 had good food. Service was a little slow even with mobile order. Hard to find a spot to sit even though the place seems large. Oga’s cantina: neat themed bar but the carbon freeze was unavailable and they herd you in like cattle. Felt rushed and generic. We were given exact directions of where to go, not to go, and only 2 drinks, must leave in 45 min. Didn’t get to ride MFSR as the line was consistently 100+ minutes that day and it was hot for us northerners.

DCA: This park felt more like an amusement park, not as “Disney-esqe”. Still tons of fun! Guardians of Galaxy ride portion was so much better than ToT! Incredicoaster is awesome, probably our favorite Disney ride. Fast, up, down, & around. Definitely not for everyone! RSR:fun but we didn’t get all the rage about it. Cars Land themeing is 'spot on'. Felt this park was a one day only, while DL could have been 2 days worth.

CM-a noticeable difference in terms of excitement level. Seems like alot of CMs are just doing their job and many even looked bored, feet up, slumped over, indifferent to questions. It just seems the CMs at WDW go out of their way to WDW to be happy/excited and create a magical experience.

Tickets: Purchased online through the app, tickets showed up automatically in tickets section of app which I had no problems pulling up at gate for them to take picture of us individually and issue paper tickets (for re-entry/FPs). Check in at gates is slightly slower as they take pictures of everyone.

Maxpass/Photopass: Super easy to use on the app and worth the extra cost. Didn't seem a lot of people were using it as FP lines were fairly short. Not every ride has FP which was good and bad. I had the app stop working once or twice during our 2 days, I just deleted and reloaded app, re-signed in and was good to go!

Downtown Disney fits so well between the parks and is fun to walk through going to and from the parks.

Crowds: on par with what we experience at WDW in Sept.

Overall, we had tons of fun and would go back as part of a CA trip.

Thanks for the review! We are also planning our 1st DL trip after visiting WDW 4 times so this is really useful =)

 

[GatorChris]

I always like to hear opinions on the CMs from WDW vets. When we switched from WDW to DL, that was something major I noticed. CMs went from excited and happy to constantly talking about when they get off work and what they're doing afterwards. Even the characters didn't interact the same way.

Glad you liked the MaxPass/FP system. To me, it's way better than FP+ at WDW. I wish Orlando would make the switch.

 

[jbh275]

Great read. I love DL, everything is so close to VGC.

 

[Chickinvic]

I always like to hear opinions on the CMs from WDW vets. When we switched from WDW to DL, that was something major I noticed. CMs went from excited and happy to constantly talking about when they get off work and what they're doing afterwards. Even the characters didn't interact the same way.

Glad you liked the MaxPass/FP system. To me, it's way better than FP+ at WDW. I wish Orlando would make the switch.

I've never noticed that about cast members, but if there is anything to that it is likely that Disneyland cast members deal with far more "entitled" local annual passholders on a daily basis. Perhaps their patience runs a little thin? Not sure.

 

[mickeymom22]

Thanks for the review. Seems like we have similar views on DL/WDW. I, too felt the CMs acted differently, but I was okay with it. I liked that I saw a CM call out a guest that was jumping the bars to go from stand-by line to the fast pass line. She was chasing him down in a polite way, calling him sir the entire time she was telling him he wasn't allowed to do that.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[midnight star]

The comments about the cast members are always interesting to me. I wonder if they are just more laid back at Disneyland? I personally don’t mind seeing cast members talk amongst themselves as long as their interactions are friendly. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to go to WDW soon and see how their cast members are.

 

[LizzyS]

I have never been put off, so to speak, by a CM at Disneyland, honestly. I have overheard a few lines of personal conversation before, but it wasn't inappropriate and it didn't bother me.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I don't feel like either resort has better or worse cast members, but I find DL's CMs to be far more laid back than WDW's. In California, most people have been to the parks before, don't need as much guidance and probably wouldn't appreciate the more in-your-face "HAVE A MAGICAL DAY" style service you see in Florida. Whereas everyone's on vacation and riding the hype train in Florida, and the CMs respond in kind.

 

[momtohms]

I’m glad you had a good trip! It’s always fun to hear about DL from people who are used to WDW!

I was just listening to a podcast by WDW regulars who took a DL trip and they had the opposite experience as you did in regards to the CMs (they felt the DL CMs were way more helpful and energetic at their jobs than the WDW ones). So maybe it just depends?

 

[tarheelalum]

I've never noticed that about cast members, but if there is anything to that it is likely that Disneyland cast members deal with far more "entitled" local annual passholders on a daily basis. Perhaps their patience runs a little thin? Not sure.

I think Disneyland's low pay and the extreme cost of living in SoCal has a lot to do with it as well.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

I've never noticed that about cast members, but if there is anything to that it is likely that Disneyland cast members deal with far more "entitled" local annual passholders on a daily basis. Perhaps their patience runs a little thin? Not sure.

The stereotype of APs being "entitled" doesn't hold up to what I hear from the CMs I've asked specifically about this. The internet trash talk has been around forever, but we've found that rude people are just plain rude whether they have tickets, passes, or what have you. The CMs we speak to regularly in the parks comment that they really appreciate the local APs because we're the ones who aren't rude to them, we're the ones who treat them nicely (CM say that the local APs are the ones who regularly say "please" and "thank you" -- how sad is that when they don't hear those words from other guests?), and we're the ones who make their job easier. CMs have told us about non-APs who hit them to get their attention (happens daily), yell at them, blame them for things for which they have no control, and believe that all the money they are spending on a vacation entitles them to red carpet treatment. Like I said, rude people are just rude -- it has nothing to do with what kind of entry media they hold.

 

[Karin1984]

There is just a cultural difference, between the two states. And perhaps the Disney bubble might not be as important for the guests as it is for the CMs.
I'm not sure, but I feel that in Florida working for Disney is a dream job for a lot of CMs, while in California it's just a job.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

It's a dream job for many CMs at DLR, too, but there is definitely a culture difference between the two coasts. And different ≠ wrong -- it's just different.

 

[mco65]

Its been a while since we were in DL, but my favorite part was the proximity of the hotel to the parks. no bus rides! YEA!

 

[BrianL]

I pretty much agree with your assessment, though I think CA is just a bit better than your standard amusement park. Glad you enjoyed exploring the other side.

 

[Chickinvic]

There is just a cultural difference, between the two states. And perhaps the Disney bubble might not be as important for the guests as it is for the CMs.
I'm not sure, but I feel that in Florida working for Disney is a dream job for a lot of CMs, while in California it's just a job.

I haven't noticed any real difference between them. There are all sorts on both sites.