As an experienced DisneyWorld traveler the Disneyland Edition of the rides are MUCH better.

[CampbellzSoup]

Good Morning to my favorite people!

I just wanted to let everyone know I finally got to experience the park that started it all last week. I must say that while it was very charming to know that Walt himself walked around the grounds of this park; to me it was a bit tainted as it was just so JAM PACKED. I couldn't believe on a February how packed it was in Disneyland, and I specifically went a week before Presidents Week too as to avoid crowds. Most crowd calendars showed the parks as empty/ghost town...not the case AT ALL.

I also didn't like that the fireworks were canceled three days in a row due to wind conditions - personally I didn't feel ANY wind, however, it must have been up in the sky for our protection as to not display the fireworks.

Also, I was NOT impressed by the fast past system at all...why again is this better than Fast Pass Plus as you guys here on the forum always say it is? I didn't find it in any way better then the new system...I rope dropped the park, however I didn't pull fast passes and when I did I could only get one at a time...and by the time I made me way to later ones the times were NOT what I chose them to be...again I didn't like the old fast pass system at all compared to the new ones.

What I did notice is ....Small World, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, & Space Mountain (Hyperspace Mountain) were all BETTER than my home castle's counterparts...

Pirate of the Caribbean took me by a TOTAL surprise with the TWO drops - it was longer, and more fleshed out as well.

Small World - had the Disney Characters infused in it which wasn't distracting at all...it was so charming actually to see them in the ride dressed as the Small World Dolls...very charming.

HyperSpace Mountain - the overlay was AWESOME - I now know what its an hour/two hour wait the ride is incredibly cool with the overlay - very well done, and to my surprise much smoother than the Disney World One!

Haunted Mansion - This one was pretty much on par, however the hatghost box was a very cool edition to the ride and was nice to see what was originally planned to be restored.

Overall, while my heart will always be with Disneyworld, Disneyland was a PLESENT surprise instead of a Disney World retread to me. I was impressed how much things are the same, yet different. Paint the Night was probably the best thing I've ever seen in my life in terms of a parade - the lights, music, and dancers/entertainment were all on point.

! Oh Last thing - they say the character interaction is better, and I took it with a grain of salt...but it's TRUE. They spend a fair amount of time with you, and personalize the experience making your time that you stood in line seem valuable ...again believe the hype.

I would do Disneyland again in a heartbeat - I just think it needs a third gate to absorb those MONSTER crowds...

 

[mom2rtk]

Crowds have been really high in DLR for some time. Weren't you there on a Friday/Saturday? Those are going to be crowded no matter when you go.

The fireworks have indeed had a lot of cancellations. That's because of the Santa Ana winds, but sometimes the winds are up high and can't be noticed on the ground. Also keep in mind DL is in an urban area, so they have considerations with fireworks you wouldn't see in Orlando.

And why weren't you pulling fastpasses early in the day? Earlier in the day you get sooner return times, moving up the time at which you can pull another one.

Those of us who prefer legacy FP do so because:

1) We can repeat rides with FP
2) No tiering
3) There's a blank slate every single day. Nothing is booked up before we get there, so we can change our touring plan for the day without the good ones being gone
4) You aren't limited to 3

 

[figment_jii]

I'm glad to hear that it sounds like you had a good trip overall and enjoyed Disneyland Resort!

I also didn't like that the fireworks were canceled three days in a row due to wind conditions - personally I didn't feel ANY wind, however, it must have been up in the sky for our protection as to not display the fireworks.

Most often that's the case...it's winds in the upper elevations that prevent fireworks from being displayed. They (the Anaheim Fire Department has the final say) do not want the ash and other fallout from the fireworks to drift over the residential areas.

Also, I was NOT impressed by the fast past system at all...why again is this better than Fast Pass Plus as you guys here on the forum always say it is? I didn't find it in any way better then the new system.

I have mixed feelings about FP+ in WDW. I like parts of it, but other parts I don't like as much. I like that you can make the reservations on-line (via the app) and choose your time window so that it's easier to fit it around other activities (e.g., dining reservations), but I don't like having to make them 60-days in advance. That's one of the things I like best about the legacy-FP system, everyone is on equal footing in the morning to get a FP for the most popular attractions. I also like that for the legacy-FP system, if you get an evening show FP (e.g., WoC), you can still get other FPs during the day because the show FP is "disconnected" from the rest of the system. I also like that you can get legacy-FPs in both DL and DCA on the same day very easily.

What I did notice is ....Small World, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, & Space Mountain (Hyperspace Mountain) were all BETTER than my home castle's counterparts...

Did you notice that Big Thunder is almost the same attraction in both MK and DL, it's just a mirror imagine? When you normally go right in MK, you go left in DL? I always find it fun, but a little discombobulating!

Haunted Mansion - This one was pretty much on par, however the hatghost box was a very cool edition to the ride and was nice to see what was originally planned to be restored.

I have to say, with the exception of the Hatbox Ghost, this is one of the attractions at MK that I think is better. The rides are very similar once you get to the Endless Hallway, but I really like the footprints on the staircases, library sequence, and the animated ghosts in the mirrors at the end in the MK version, all of which are missing from the DL version. The interactive cemetery in the queue is also pretty interesting and missing from the DL version.

 

[Winnowill]

Legacy FP is vastly better than FP+, not just because of the reasons mentioned above, but also because FP+ means the standby lines are considerably longer. Also, since the two parks are disconnected, you can bounce back and forth collecting FPs in both, rather than being limited to just one park.

Our last trip, we were looking at level 9 crowds, but we rode everything we wanted - multiple times, in most cases - and never waited longer than 20 minutes for anything unless we chose to.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

How? Isn't fastpass limited to three passes?

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

Thank you for the post.

I'm also a WDW veteran. The last time I visited DL was about 12 years ago. This April, I will be visiting with my girls for the first time. Somehow, I am super excited about the trip with all the new stuff there. I'm lucky to have pick a time that I would be enjoying the Diamond Celebration, Food &
Wine and Dapper Day all in one trip. Since I planned this trip as a surprise for my girls, that added the excitement as well. (I told them that we are going to WDW but booked a super long flight to save money--hope I can pull it off LOL)

The planning is like going back the memory lane with the old school WDW. I'm so trained on booking all the ADRs at 180 days, I feel anxious to wait for the 60 days mark. (I know ADR is nothing to sweat about at DL, but the WDW girl in me can't let it go) I had a FP running map at WDW before, so I guess I have to make one for this trip. I also plan to use the PhotoPass as much as possible, since I was also lucky enough to pre-purchased the PP+ before it was gone.

70 more days to go!!! Can't wait!!

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

How? Isn't fastpass limited to three passes?

No. The legacy FP allow you to pull one FP at a time, and pull another one at the start time of the one you are pulling. For example, if you pull a FP for HyperSpace Mountain for 10:15 to 11:15, you can pull another FP at Star Tours at 10:15 before going to ride HyperSpace Mountain. Using this method and the disconnected FP, you can pull many FPs.

At WDW, you can book 3 FP+ prior to your visit. After you finish using all 3, you can go to a kiosk at book a 4th FP+. After you use the 4th, you can book the 5th.

 

[mom2rtk]

How? Isn't fastpass limited to three passes?

There is no limit on the number of fastpasses you can get at DLR. You can pull as many as you like. You just have to wait to pull another one until 1) the window is open on your last one or 2) Two hours have passed since you pulled your last one.

Early in the day the window is usually less than 2 hours out, so you can pull them much more frequently.

Each fastpass tells you exactly when you are eligible to pull another.

 

[mom2rtk]

No. The legacy FP allow you to pull one FP at a time, and pull another one at the start time of the one you are pulling. For example, if you pull a FP for HyperSpace Mountain for 10:15 to 11:15, you can pull another FP at Star Tours at 10:15 before going to ride HyperSpace Mountain. Using this method and the disconnected FP, you can pull many FPs.

At WDW, you can book 3 FP+ prior to your visit. After you finish using all 3, you can go to a kiosk at book a 4th FP+. After you use the 4th, you can book the 5th.

Agreed. I just say WDW is limited to 3 because it's not typical to find FPs remaining for headliners after you use your first 3. You typically find FPs open for things that never even required a FP previously.

 

[bethwc101]

There is no limit on fast passes. We were there christmas week and were able to pull 5-7 fast passes a day. And that's even when it hit capacity. It's all about timing.
We didn't grab space mountain fast passes bevause if we did it was pretty much left us time for only one more, but with indiana jones, soaring, haunted mansion, space mountain, and ToT ww were pulling quite a few a day.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

Well...that explains that.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I like seeing your WDW vet perspective on it all. Nice little report, glad you enjoyed your trip!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I'm glad you enjoyed your visit to Disneyland.

My daughter and I always enjoy the differences at WDW. Personally, I think the WDW version of the Haunted Mansion is better. I also like how the Jungle Cruise is different at both parks.

 

[Angrose]

And, regarding FPs, don't forget that the FPs at two parks are not connected and so close that you can easily grab a FP or two at DL then hop on over to DCA and grab a few more!

 

[Angel Ariel]

How? Isn't fastpass limited to three passes?

At dlr, no, fastpass is not limited to 3. You can pull 1 fastpass at a time, but can pull another either 2 hrs later or whenever the fastpass window opens..whichever comes first. There's no preset limit to the number of fastpasses you can pull in a day at DLR.

 

[Planogirl]

Thanks for your report. I look forward to (hopefully) going next year and pulling lots of fastpasses.

 

[bcrook]

And why weren't you pulling fastpasses early in the day? Earlier in the day you get sooner return times, moving up the time at which you can pull another one.

Those of us who prefer legacy FP do so because:

1) We can repeat rides with FP
2) No tiering
3) There's a blank slate every single day. Nothing is booked up before we get there, so we can change our touring plan for the day without the good ones being gone
4) You aren't limited to 3

Every day is a fresh adventure!
No battling online 30 days in advance.

It's also an equitable way to get access to Fantasmic and World of Color.

 

[OldPyrate]

What I did notice is ....Small World, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, & Space Mountain (Hyperspace Mountain) were all BETTER than my home castle's counterparts...

I think Splash Mountain is closed right now, but I think Splash Mountain at MK is better than the one at DLR, other than that your list is spot on.

 

[bcrook]

Good Morning to my favorite people!



What I did notice is ....Small World, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, & Space Mountain (Hyperspace Mountain) were all BETTER than my home castle's counterparts...

Pirate of the Caribbean took me by a TOTAL surprise with the TWO drops - it was longer, and more fleshed out as well.

Small World - had the Disney Characters infused in it which wasn't distracting at all...it was so charming actually to see them in the ride dressed as the Small World Dolls...very charming.

Pirates is awesome! I rode it continuously. Had to eat at the Blue Bayou. Talked like a Pirate. Sang the song. I did everything except buy a fake sword. Bloody Brilliant!

 

[bcrook]

And, regarding FPs, don't forget that the FPs at two parks are not connected and so close that you can easily grab a FP or two at DL then hop on over to DCA and grab a few more!

It's easy to bounce back and forth.