Disneyland Resort State of the Union (from an outsider perspective...sort of)

[TexasErin]

I think getting rid of the SoCal AP would be huge.

I know our family goes for more than a five day visit. If they have a ticket that is for longer than that, or you can add days for a small fee like you used to, then I would be for raising AP prices. We were forced to start buying AP's when they went to only five day tickets and not able to tack on those extra days.

Same here. This is my one issue with Disneyland. We are not the norm, evidently, and spend 10 days at DLR. I really wish they offered a 10-day ticket.

 

[GatorChris]

I agree with your State of the Parks. In fact, I said the same thing a few years back after doing DL after 7 great trips to WDW.

1) Yip, it always feels crowded at DL. That doesn't really translate to attraction lines, but it does get cramped.
2) From my first trip to my last at DL, I miss the WDW CMs. Especially the retirees that work there. They seemed happy to be there, whereas at DL, there's a lot of kids who are just a bunch of whiners. I've hit them on every trip and en mass. That's been a big disappointment.
3) I don't think so on this one. It's just that WDW is so much grander and bigger, it makes the little things show up at DL
4) I always did like the family based crowds at WDW vs the LA local at DL. But I certainly don't miss the Brazilian tour groups. And I REALLY don't miss the ECVs screwing up the bus loading EVERY SINGLE TRIP TO A PARK. So that's a bit of toss up for me.
5) COMPLETELY agree on this. I can't afford Disney hotels at DLR, so we stay on Harbor. And though HoJo is nice and has a park view, getting there seems pretty gross. Yes. I complained about this exact thing after our first big DL trip in 2013...and got harpooned on it. But when you walk out and people are sleeping on bus stop benches...Magic GONE. I really miss the WDW bubble for sure

The only thing I figures a WDW vet would add, and I will right now, is the fact that nightly entertainment doesn't exist at DL during anything but summer and school breaks. I miss going to WDW in Jan/Feb/early Dec and having Illuminations, Wishes, and F! playing every night. I wish DL would at least do F! each night. With minimal fireworks and less noise from the air launchers, this should be going each night rather than using the excuse of city noise. I know WOC plays each night, but DL park really needs something nightly.

 

[Indiana Scott]

Been going at least yearly for week long trips since 2000 and I have experienced exactly 1 rude CM.
I have to wonder if this rudeness is more a matter of perception.
I wont purposely put a CM in a difficult position but some will - for sport.

 

[morganms22]

I would assume a lot of people will prefer the park they grew up going to for nostalgia reasons. There are exceptions, but for the most part people remember fondly what they have connected with in the past.
I have had rude and nice experiences at both parks. The people are different with more locals visiting DL and more vacationers going to WDW.

I thought all of the show upgrades and changes for the Diamond celebration at Disney Land were nicely done.
I am hoping they will do something really nice for WDW's 50th in five years!

Overall, I love both resorts for different reasons! They both offer unique experiences.

 

[GatorChris]

Been going at least yearly for week long trips since 2000 and I have experienced exactly 1 rude CM.
I have to wonder if this rudeness is more a matter of perception.

I don't consider them rude. I've not seen that but maybe twice, and those occasions weren't even that bad - more like un-Disney.

But I often hear them complaining (sometimes in their spot and even once loudly in Tomorrowland) about a shift, a co-worker, quitting time, and even a bad back that she had filed a work comp claim on. It just takes me out of the bubble really fast.

And to speak to above post, I grew up with DL, not WDW.

 

[morganms22]

I don't consider them rude. I've not seen that but maybe twice, and those occasions weren't even that bad - more like un-Disney.

But I often hear them complaining (sometimes in their spot and even once loudly in Tomorrowland) about a shift, a co-worker, quitting time, and even a bad back that she had filed a work comp claim on. It just takes me out of the bubble really fast.

And to speak to above post, I grew up with DL, not WDW.

I would agree. I have heard cast members saying these things as well, but at both resorts. I notice it a lot more as an adult then I did as a kid. For me, I'm sure that is part of it, too.

 

[bcwife76]

I just wanted to reply to your comment about parking at Epcot. It is so incredibly easy to park at any of the parks. There are cast members lined up directing you exactly where to go, right down to the exact parking space. I think you will be pleasantly surprised

Oh well that makes me happy then! Thanks! And apparently it's free to park at the parks if you are staying onsite?

 

[kirstie101]

Please stop. Bugs land is a joke. I am from a completely different stock. I still yearn for Horizons and Maelstrom over Bugsland and a glorified carnival called the Pier. I don't believe it is debatable that viewing the initial California Adventure, that was the all-time worst Disney park created. It still is rather terrible in the Pier, much improved in other areas.

I couldn't disagree more here. Bugs Land is made for very young children and mine have both loved it, my 5 year old still does. I think the theme was very well done. Its great that theres a place in the park geared towards the younger end of the disney guest age range, where they're tall enough to ride every attraction. For the record, I also love the pier area. But I'm a California native who grew up going to piers and boardwalks during the summer, every summer. Its part of the California experience. Remember, the park is called California Adventure.

 

[Baklava]

Yes, because WDW is all full of sweetness and light and no jerks. There are never huge hordes of badly behaved South American tour groups in WDW or anything...

 

[999DoomBuggies]

I couldn't disagree more here. Bugs Land is made for very young children and mine have both loved it, my 5 year old still does. I think the theme was very well done. Its great that theres a place in the park geared towards the younger end of the disney guest age range, where they're tall enough to ride every attraction. For the record, I also love the pier area. But I'm a California native who grew up going to piers and boardwalks during the summer, every summer. Its part of the California experience. Remember, the park is called California Adventure.

We are talking Disney, the ceiling is much higher than what is the current state of Bugs Land and the Pier.

The imagineering department took the year off when California Adventure was decided as the park theme. It's as if imagineering went with the lowest hanging fruit and developed a park based on what was already in the region. At this point, the name California Adventure is becoming less fitting with the fairly recent Cars Land expansion, soon the Marvel takeover of the backlot, and then the Tower of Terror re-themed. The pier is next up. No way does the pier make it another five years. This will be rethemed very quickly, especially after DLR faithful see the new Toy Story Land and Avatar Land in WDW, especially Toy Story Land.

Yes, because WDW is all full of sweetness and light and no jerks. There are never huge hordes of badly behaved South American tour groups in WDW or anything...

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The tour groups are the WORST. Totally agree. WDW and DLR are full of sweetness and light but with quite a few jerks.

 

[999DoomBuggies]

The only thing I figures a WDW vet would add, and I will right now, is the fact that nightly entertainment doesn't exist at DL during anything but summer and school breaks. I miss going to WDW in Jan/Feb/early Dec and having Illuminations, Wishes, and F! playing every night. I wish DL would at least do F! each night. With minimal fireworks and less noise from the air launchers, this should be going each night rather than using the excuse of city noise. I know WOC plays each night, but DL park really needs something nightly.

Agreed with everything you posted especially this, I hate that there are zero shows during non-peak periods. DLR is subject to the city of Anaheim whereas WDW doesn't have these issues, hence why WDW receives more love than DLR.

I thought all of the show upgrades and changes for the Diamond celebration at Disney Land were nicely done.
I am hoping they will do something really nice for WDW's 50th in five years!
Overall, I love both resorts for different reasons! They both offer unique experiences.

Same. I loved the Diamond celebration.

Oh well that makes me happy then! Thanks! And apparently it's free to park at the parks if you are staying onsite?

The only park that is difficult to maneuver is the Magic Kingdom. Give yourself 15-20 mins to get to the gates after you park. You will have a tram ride to the monorail or boat (your choice how you arrive). Both set the mood very well.

If you're staying onsite you don't pay for parking. I actually found it can be more quick to drive to everything but the magic kingdom. If you're park hopping then don't drive. Take Disney transportation. We often start a few of our days at Animal Kingdom and then end in Epcot or MK. Hollywood Studios only gets a half day from us maybe once on the trip. This will change with the major upgrades and we will consider HS a full day park.

 

[arcadiandj]

Oh man, such a bummer. To each his own! Enjoy WDW!

GREAT response! The internet now has its new PERFECT modernized definition for laconic!

 

[cmph]

I saw this when you first posted and figured you would get ripped to shreds. I lurked but only joined the boards earlier this year (finally wanted to ask my own questions about Aulani!), but yeesh, park loyalty is strong.

My perspective is that no one should bother trying to compare DLR to WDW. They are different parks/resorts, making for different vacations, and everyone needs to approach them differently. My family likes both for what they are, and none of us can say which "park" we prefer b/c there are pros/cons to MK vs DL, but we have opinions on which "vacation" we prefer.

I grew up going to WDW, but we recently moved out west, so at some point my DLR visits will become more numerous than WDW. I think everyone who lives physically closer to DLR and cares about Disney parks is somewhat vested in the state of DLR, and to that point, we should be, b/c OP makes some valid observations about overcrowding, specifically for DL park. Our recent April trip was insanity. Our only previous trip was in the summer, the year Carsland opened, when we happened to be in CA for a wedding and couldn't pass up the opportunity to go to Disneyland. The summer crowds (June) made zero impression on me. Fast forward a few years to April, not even during spring break, and holy cow - insanity. Yes, there was clumping getting into Tomorrowland that cleared up, but the Adventureland clumping never cleared up... and getting around the carousel was just awful. My family of 4 did the single-file hand-holding thing to get anywhere and not lose each other. As the family fastpass runner, it was exhausting, and by day 3 DH and I were taking turns with that job. The kids begged to go to Pinocchio's Workshop, just worn out from the crowds; when asked what his favorite part of Disneyland was after we returned, DS7 said "California Adventure". My personal goal for this trip was to hit every ride that isn't in WDW, and we didn't even manage to do that. For anyone who thinks waits for some of the dark rides in Fantasyland are always short - nope, not then. We utilized the heck out of fastpasses, but that only goes so far when they're nearly gone by the early afternoon. Say what you will about FP+, but we could utilize the early morning in WDW, have 3 planned fastpasses for the afternoon, and be there an entire day without standing in any crazy lines rather than giving up by mid-afternoon. I know DLR regulars hate the idea of FP+, but it does increase the value of park tickets from that perspective for other yearly guests... just not how APs do things, I realize.

Things have changed in the last few years, and closing down attractions for new construction, while necessary, is only wisely done if park capacity is reduced. Maybe it gets better once construction is completed and flow is returned, but that will be a while! It's clear management put zero thought into this issue.

Regarding the rest of it, I have only had lovely interactions with all Disney CMs in all the parks and Aulani, although I'm sure one day that will change. We think Bug's Land is adorable, especially if you've seen the movie recently and pick up on all the details. The Pier, well, yeah, it's ok, with you on that. At least it's not crowded...

 

[grnflash]

At WDW visitors appear to be living a dream come true vacation, whereas, at DL it is more like, we are hanging out at DL and it's just another day.

And this is something I love about DL. The DL vibe is soooooooooo much more relaxed, not a competition to get it all in.

 

[miamimi]

I think annual pass sales at DLR should be re-vamped so that AP holders are limited to a set number of admissions throughout the year.