Disney Land(Cali) or Disney World?

[DisneyRulz07]

I've been to WDW several time do to the fact that I live on the East Coast.

My DW and I were discussing returning in Nov. 08 for the XMAS Decor.(with my 2 DD 4&5) but interesting topic came up at Thanksgiving dinner. Disney Land vs WDW. Now my entire family is trying to plan the trip with us (Im the oldest of 6/Big Family).

The question I have is it worth spending the extra $$$ and going to Disneyland? The two look to be very similar in rides, attractions, etc...

 

[mickeystoontown]

About three years ago, we decided to check out a trip to Disneyland. We had been to WDW nine times and thought we might like a change. So, I called Disneyland to talk to a representative. After telling the castmember that we would be staying ten days and that we had been to WDW nine times, she told me that we would probably be a bit disappointed in a Disneyland trip.

Of course, I asked why. She said that our family could probably see and do everything Disneyland had to offer in 3 to 4 days. What would we do with the rest of our time? In all honesty, nothing else surrounding Disneyland really appealed to us so we decided to stick with WDW. We can always find lots of stuff to do without ever leaving WDW grounds.

 

[GalDisney]

Since you have already visited WDW, i think you should try Disneyland if at all possible. Disneyland is THE first Magic Kingdom and it is marvelous! Besides Disneyland itself, there is DTD and Calif. Adventure. Also if you have never visited Calif. before you need to visit, it is a marvelous state(I am from Anaheim). You could take a day trip to san Diego, take a visit to hollywood/beverly hills, visit the mountains, many things to do besides disneyland.

 

[cnj]

We live in California and have annual passes to Disneyland. We love Disneyland. We go there at least once a month. Last year, we took our first trip to Disney World. We were not expecting much, but it took our breath away. It is SO much better than Disneyland. Everything is so convenient and close. We have stayed at Disneyland Hotel twice and The Grand Californian once. The Grand Californian was way overrated and we did not like it at all. The Disneyland Hotel is nice, but in no way did either compare to our stay at the Poly at Disney World. My husband did not even want to go to Disney World, and now he cannot wait to go back for our trip in October. That is just my opinion, but I would pick Disney World, especially if it is less expensive than Disneyland.

 

[galnar]

My wife and I are WDW vets but took our first trip to Disneyland this spring. We had a great time, but it wasn't WDW. It's fun to do once, but I doubt if we'll make a special trip to go back. If we're in the area again I would probably take a couple of days to re-visit our favorites from this past trip.

 

[LWcalif]

Stick with WDW. Unless, as OP mentioned, you plan on seeing the other wonderful sites Calif. has to offer. Then it would be worth a trip to our beautiful state.

We live in N. Calif. so it is a 6-7 hr. drive (or 1 1/2 hr. flight) for us to DL. We have family there, so we visit DL at least once a year. It has really changed (for the better) over the years, and with the addition of Calif. Adventure and DTD there is more to see and do than before.

We went to WDW in 97 for the first time. Splurged and stayed at GF, as it was going to be our only trip there. Well, you can see from my sig. it was just the first of many trips. We fell in love and can't stay away. We typically stay 8 nights per trip and have never once come back without planning when we think we can go again. There is just so much more for all ages to see and do there without leaving the property.

 

[MsStinkerBelle]

I vote for sticking with WDW.

I was in Disneyland last month just for a day while visiting friends in LA. While Disneyland was 'first' and it does have it's charm and allowed me to ride Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, I wasn't really impressed. Sleeping Beauty's castle looked nice but my first impression was, "Is the castle supposed to be that short?" The Christmas decorations were very nice (the lights on Sleeping Beauty's castle had some difficulties) but it just didn't feel right to me. It was different enough to be interesting for awhile yet familiar enough to be annoying in the long run.

I now know why Walt turned to Florida to build his 'World'.

 

[daannzzz]

It depends on how much time you are taking.
Since you have not been to DL before you can spend quite a bit of time getting to know the place. It is similar but different and is awesome fun to see the differences. I have lived in Northern California all my lfe and didn't get to WDW until I was 40 in 1996. I love WDW too and I still go to both resorts.
If you are going to be going for a week you would be able to take youir time in both parks and not feel rushed and have time to spend at the hotel and, if so inclined see other things in the area.
If you are going to be longer than a week you can expand your travel area and see more of southern California or just stick with WDW.

 

[TLSnell1981]

Disneyland is a nice trip for the avid Disney fan. I think 3 days is sufficient to see DL, but there are many other fun things to do in So Cal. I love going to Cal and do Disney when we go. It is nothing like WDW, other than MK.

If you are going only for Disney....go to WDW....especially if the cost is less.

 

[daannzzz]

Also while I find Disney's California Adventur a disappointing park there are some nice spots in it and to see everything without rushing you will need at least a whole day there.

 

[SGMCO]

We went to DL a couple of years ago and found
the MK part to look outdated just like it was still in the 1950s.
The streets were so narrow compared to MK WDW and we
were all jam packed in there, it was not fun.
Very disappointed with Fantasmic there (was comparing it to MGM version-no comparision) because you had to cram altogether standing (we were there in the summer-sweaty-yuck and ofcours my DS had to go to the bathroom
soon after it was over and it was almost impossible to get through the Crowds).
My DH said Never Again, now WDW all the way and have never
had any complaints. I'm thrilled with the varity of Disney Resort choices
for every budget. I also love that WDW has 4 parks for more things to do,
so when we stay for 9 days, each day can be different.

 

[rosiep]

I think every Disney fan should visit Disneyland at least once. I love WDW and it's the park I prefer to vacation at. Having moved to the West Coast 15 years ago last year I decided it was time to try DL. It was charming. The rides were much more detailed and I thought Fantasmic was awesome (granted I paid for balcony seating). I stayed at the Paradise Pier Hotel and easily walked to the park. I enjoyed the trip very much and seeing as how my DD is moving to Los Angeles I imagine I'll be visiting again very soon....BUT

Disneyland did have some very blatent drawbacks. While it was wonderful to be able to walk into the parks without using any other mode of transportation other than my feet...the parks are smack dab in the middle of Anaheim and you can feel it. It is very much a "day park" with lots of teenagers and locals. This somehow makes it feel less special. Less of a world unto itself the way WDW feels. It's also very crowded. I went last December 10th and on Friday afternoon it was wall-to-wall people. The walkways are narrower making it difficult to move. On that night we waited over an hour (no exaggeration) for a counter service meal.

I disagree that there is nothing else to do or see in CA:
You can visit Universal Studios ( I didn't care for it but my daughter liked it) or they even have buses that go to San Diego for the Zoo and/or Sea World.

Whatever you choose...I hope you have a great time!

 

[Mrsjvb]

CA has a few things that the WDW parks don't have( and they had Soarin' First).. but in all honesty, if you are used to the vastness of WDW, DL/DTD/CA will seem puny to you.

BUT LA is right there, and San Diego is just a couple hours away for Sea World and Balboa Park/Zoo. Plus the Wild Animal Park.

our usual plan was a day each at CA and DL, and then a third day to hop between the two.. literally a few hundred yards from each other.

 

[EnnEss]

I have to disagree with the majority here. Disneyland is probably the single best park Disney has in America. It is not a day theme park. I usually do 5 days between GCA and Disneyland, obviously you can spend more time at WDW because there are more parks, but as someone who's been to both more than a couple times, MK is always a let down to me because it feels like a shell of Disneyland. There are things it does better and I love WDW, but Disneyland packs so much in, I love it.

To name them,
Indiana Jones (I never understood how WDW didn't grab this),
The nemo subs ( I haven't ridden them but oh man I want to),
Matterhorn (for me, 2nd only to EE),
Roger Rabbit (Cool Dark Ride),
Toad's Wild Ride (You're probably familiar with it).
Pirates, both SMs, Buzz Lightyear, Thundermountain and probably some others are different. The edge, imo, goes to buzz and pirates at DLR fairly distinctly, Space Mountain I like a lot more at DLR, Thunder and Splash at MK though.

GCA is really a day park, there are enough attractions that you can't honestly do them in a half day or anything. If you go, catch the live show, and do things there during the busy times at Disneyland. Between the two you hardly ever wait and line and they are literally 2 minutes apart from each other. When I'm at WDW I always wish the parks were that close because park hopping can be a task. California Screamin' is great, and the River Rapids ride is so good, makes Kali look just awful.

This may not be a consideration for you but, at Disneyland you can stay offsite and still walk to the parks, so you can save a lot of money that way, at WDW this usually entails renting a car and paying for parking or relying on infrequent shuttles, which means scheduling your time around them. Basically, staying offsite costs a lot in time or money at WDW, not the case in California.

As for attractions around Disney, nothing interests me outside of either parks except for Nasa, so it doesn't really factor in for me. Having said that, I love the west coast of Florida and in California, San Diego is beautiful as are the attractions there. These are more like full day trips that require some hours of travel though, which I don't mind, but isn't for everyone.

I'm not saying DLR is better than WDW or vice versa, I am just of the belief that they are both great and it's an absolute shame if you're a Disney fan and don't go to DLR, it's at least as good of a time, but yes you will probably only spend 4 - 5 days there (I could spend 7 easily and be happy but I could also spend a disportionate amount of time in WDW ). You could whirlwind everything in 3 days I'm sure, but I don't think if you're on these boards thats your intention.

 

[EnnEss]

Miceage actually just did yet another comparison of the two parks as well this week. Outlines some good and bad, also points out how much is in DL compared to MK. Check it out for a good read .

 

[ROBIN4NY]

It all depends. If you are comparing WDW to Disneyland I think WDW wins hands down. I was surprised how much more I liked WDW. I had never been to California before so we decided to combine Disneyland with the fun of Southern California--Long Beach/Hollywood/BeverlyHills. And believe it or not it was not more expensive than going to WDW!!!! It was a great trip and I am glad I tried it but it if I had to choose I would say WDW all the way.

 

[DisneyRulz07]

wow thanks for all the info.

Im looking at a 10 day stay. It appears Disneyland does not have that many resorts or am I wrong?

Im primarily going for Disney what else is around other then the theme parks?


Thanks again you all are great

 

[jlmarr]

EnnEss makes some good points, particularly about being able to stay off-site (literally across the street) to save money. Don't let the high cost of the DL hotels skew your budget thinking. (The air fares from the east coast might be another matter.)

And this extensive thread is a must-read for anyone used to WDW considering a trip to DL:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

An earlier post says essentially that someone thinking of DL as a 10-day resort might be disappointed, and I'll agree with that. I'd say 3 or 4 days tops, but it will be a great 3 or 4 days. Go visit the DL forum for more input: http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=26

 

[EnnEss]

OP, 10 days is probably pushing it at DLR. They have two theme parks to WDW's four. The fact that DL itself, the one park, has more attractions than any park in WDW doesn't make up the difference. I'd still reccommend doing DLR maybe another time or doing not a purely Disney vacation. 5 days there, 5 days somewhere else, and there are lots of other places relatively close that are beautiful.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[TLSnell1981]

I love Universal in Cali...so much better than Florida. You have the San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park and Sea World less than 100 miles south of DL. You also have the beach nearby.