DisneyLand & WDW rides: the same

[BadDad]

We've been to WDW several times, have an opportunity to attend an event in Anaheim next year.
How different is WDW rides to DisneyLand? Haunted Mansion? Pirates? etc?

 

[Lucille1963]

Pirates in Disneyland is far superior, Haunted Mansion is comparable (unless you're going during Haunted Mansion Holiday), Tower of Terror is a bit different, Space Mountain is way smoother, Jungle Cruise is shorter at DL.

Not to mention a ton of other rides that WDW doesn't have, Mr. Toad, Storybook Canal Boats, Indiana Jones, Cars Land, California Screamin', Matterhorn, Monsters Inc., Roger Rabbit, etc....

I'm sure someone will be around with a complete list soon.
DISNEYLAND IS AMAZING!

 

[skier_pete]

We recently did our first visit to DLR...it's really not about the rides that both parks have, it's about all the rides that are unique to California. Particularly off the top of my head, Indiana Jones, The Nemo Subs, Matterhorn, Mr. Toad, Grizzly River Run, Radiator Springs Racers, California Screamin' and of course the World of Color show. There are probably a dozen other rides that I didn't list.

Of the duplicate rides, of which there are a LOT, there are probably only two that would be considered by most superior in their DL incarnations. One is Pirates of the Carribean, which is about twice as long in DL. I myself didn't think it was THAT much better, as a lot of the added stuff is rather minor. More drops being the big thing, I guess. However, I would concur it is the better version.

The one that was clearly (to me) superior was Space Mountain. Don't get me wrong, I love WDW's Space Mountain, but holy crow is the one in DLR is fantastic! It is a true roller coaster as opposed to a wild mouse. While there are no real dips to speak of, it feels much faster, much smoother, and the use of in-ride speakers makes you really feel like you are flying through space.

SP

 

[AdventureIsOutThere]

I concur with previous posters. As a regular to both parks I love the unique elements of each park but can say without a doubt that Pirates is better at DL! A few others that are more or less a wash (to me) include Splash Mountain and It's a Small World, if you like those rides you will still like them but probably not be amazed by the differences.

The Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin has a different controller (I think, but now I can't remember )

The Animation Academy at DCA is way better! They post a board outside listing which characters will be drawn at each time so if there is someone you are really excited about (Oswald for us) you know how to plan your times. Plus the space is WAY bigger so you can just pop in on a whim unlike DHS where you need to really wait for a space.

Ariel's Undersea Adventure is the same ride in DCA and new Fantasyland. If you haven't been to the new ride in WDW you will not be dissapointed but the queue at WDW is WAY, WAY, WAY better!

The loading area for Peter Pan is a little different but still the same great whimsical ride. Whinnie the Pooh is slightly different but equally enjoyable (or terrifying depending on who you ask) in both parks.

I hope you have a great trip! Many get a little dissapointed by Sleeping Beauty Castle compared to Cinderella Castle but I LOVE it! I love everything about Disneyland! The characters are so much more relaxed and casual/much easier to meet, the park itself is much smaller but that just means less walking. One visit we went on over a dozen rides between 12 and 1 am ... They are so much closer together so it is much easier to get from ride to ride... not to mention how close DL is to DCA! Park hopping is super convenient - no busses, just walk across the "street" and there you are!

Now I want to get back to Disneyland ASAP! Good thing I have a trip planed for January

 

[EagleFlyer]

I enjoyed IASW better at DL for some reason. It felt like it was longer there, and that's not a bad thing for me. And POTC was much better at DL. It just seemed too dark at the beginning at MK. And I like the train ride around the park better at DL.

I thought Pooh was better at MK though. I didn't remember the "bouce with Tigger" part of the ride being part of the ride at DL, although it's been a few years so maybe I forgot about it there. The TSMM queue is better at DHS in my opinion too.

 

[skier_pete]

The Animation Academy at DCA is way better! They post a board outside listing which characters will be drawn at each time so if there is someone you are really excited about (Oswald for us) you know how to plan your times. Plus the space is WAY bigger so you can just pop in on a whim unlike DHS where you need to really wait for a space.

Hah, that's funny, not that its a highlight, but we thought the one at DHS was WAY better. Yes, I like hat they post the characters you draw, but inside the one at DCA, you get crappy little lap desks. At DHS you get a desk with a light fixture underneath, that really allows you to pencil sketch lightly and avoid messing up your sketches. Those desk make DHS a winner hands down

I enjoyed IASW better at DL for some reason. It felt like it was longer there, and that's not a bad thing for me. And POTC was much better at DL. It just seemed too dark at the beginning at MK. And I like the train ride around the park better at DL.

I thought Pooh was better at MK though. I didn't remember the "bouce with Tigger" part of the ride being part of the ride at DL, although it's been a few years so maybe I forgot about it there. The TSMM queue is better at DHS in my opinion too.

The "Bounce with Tigger" part is NOT at DL. They are pretty close to the same ride, though.

One thing I didn't mention before is Big Thunder Mountain is a "mirror" image of the one in Florida. It's interesting how different that can make it feel.

 

[figment_jii]

The Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin has a different controller (I think, but now I can't remember )

The controllers are fixed to the ride car's dash board in WDW, whereas in DL they are tethered (via a cable) so it's easier to move around and shot at things in odd places. You can also send your ride photo for free from DL via email.

As others have said Pirates (while some elements are similar, especially in the middle), the ride at DL is longer (and I agree, better). Also, be aware, the drops a little more pronounced at DL than at WDW.

Unlike some of the PPs, I think HM is better at WDW (I like the staircase and library scenes which are not in DL). Still depending on when you're going, you might see HM Holiday, which is a very different ride. If you like Nightmare Before Christmas, then you'll probably like HMH.

Along with the rides mentioned by skier_pete, the Monster's Inc (DCA), Roger Rabbit Car-Toon Spin (DL), Sleeping Beauty Castle Walk Through (DL), rides over at the Boardwalk area of DCA, and Bug's Life area are also "unique" to DLR. While also at both parks, I would consider Fantasmic different enough to count as different and worth seeing.

There are lots of rides that are similar, but have some minor differences. For example, Small World is pretty similar inside, but I like Disneyland's exterior better.

The Disneyland board's thread, A DLR Guide for WDW Vets, is full of helpful information:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

 

[melancholywings]

Toon Town is different and more interactive, Splash is shorter (I like DW better), IASW facade is beautiful....actually nothing really is the same, except for the Soarin' video.

 

[Angel Ariel]

The Disneyland board's thread, A DLR Guide for WDW Vets, is full of helpful information:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599

I second this! This is a must read for any WDW vet going to DLR for the first time! I also highly recommend checking out Hydroguy's other posts (I think they're stickied in his signature? If not, they're in a sticky at the top of the DLR board I think)

 

[johde]

Toon Town is different and more interactive, Splash is shorter (I like DW better), IASW facade is beautiful....actually nothing really is the same, except for the Soarin' video.

And the Muppet Vision 3d movie.

I took my first trip to DL last year after several WDW vacations and had a blast. I'm planning on making a trip out there again sometime.

 

[CaliKT]

IASW and Pirates are far superior at DL. Pirates is much longer and more elaborate. IASW does a special holiday version in November/December which is great. If you're going at another time, it's still superior to WDW's. They've incorporated various Disney characters done in a Mary Blair style into the appropriate part of the ride -- e.g. Aladdin and Jasmine flying over the Middle East. A lot of people were unhappy about this when they announced they were doing it, but it's very cute and very well done.

 

[ktlm]

We think DL's Fantasmic is far superior to WDW's, but then we are big Peter Pan fans so our favorite part is watching the ship come out and Peter Pan and Hook climbing around fighting on it which only happens in DL's version.

We are WDW vets, but we absolutely love Disneyland too! The Indiana Jones ride is near or at the top of my absolute favorite Disney rides. In addition to all the things listed above, the Aladdin show at DCA is terrific. It is the best show I have seen on Disney property.

 

[DebbieB]

Aladdin at DCA is awesome, probably the best Stage Show between the 2 parks. California Screamin is my favorite roller coaster anywhere.

 

[hgeisler]

Pirates in Disneyland is far superior, Haunted Mansion is comparable (unless you're going during Haunted Mansion Holiday), Tower of Terror is a bit different, Space Mountain is way smoother, Jungle Cruise is shorter at DL.

Not to mention a ton of other rides that WDW doesn't have, Mr. Toad, Storybook Canal Boats, Indiana Jones, Cars Land, California Screamin', Matterhorn, Monsters Inc., Roger Rabbit, etc....

I'm sure someone will be around with a complete list soon.
DISNEYLAND IS AMAZING!

Completely agree!

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

Pirates in Disneyland is far superior, Haunted Mansion is comparable (unless you're going during Haunted Mansion Holiday), Tower of Terror is a bit different, Space Mountain is way smoother, Jungle Cruise is shorter at DL.

Not to mention a ton of other rides that WDW doesn't have, Mr. Toad, Storybook Canal Boats, Indiana Jones, Cars Land, California Screamin', Matterhorn, Monsters Inc., Roger Rabbit, etc....

I'm sure someone will be around with a complete list soon.
DISNEYLAND IS AMAZING!

~This is why I am *not* thrilled with Carsland @ DHS! I just have a bad feeling that all we'll hear is how DCA's is better like everything else. I'll try to be optimistic. We'll see!

 

[krb2g]

We have been to WDW multiple times, but went to DL for the first time in Feb/Mar (before the DCA additions) and were blown away by the quality/experience in DL--there are similar rides that are longer (Pirates), or feel better maintained (all the fantasyland dark rides--though some people complain about the addition of Disney characters to Small World), and there are lots of different/new rides (Matterhorn, Indiana Jones, California Screamin', Grizzly Rapids, now Radiator Springs Racers, etc) and rides/areas that once were in MK but no longer (Mr. Toad! Toontown! Snow White!). I was a little surprised by the sad rabbit in the middle of Splash Mountain, and riding Soarin' in CA made me feel a little silly (I could be seeing all these natural wonders--and I will say we did poke around outside of Anaheim--but here I am in a theme park!?!), but the only ride that I felt was clearly, hands-down better in WDW was Tower of Terror. DCA clearly cheaped out on their version. Loved riding Star Tours in the heart of Tomorrowland. DCA has GREAT shows: Aladdin (so funny + topical jokes, as in something that had happened that week!), and World of Color. Loved the way the parks were so close to each other, loved the experience in general.

We went during the low season, so we missed fireworks, fantasmic, monorail, grizzly river rapids, & matterhorn + all the new cars land/buena vista street stuff. While I wanted to do all of that, the trip was still everything I had hoped it would be and more. Definitely itching to get back. Plus tons to do in CA besides Disney (we were there a week, all told, did 3 days Disney, Getty Villa, Reagan Presidential Library, and one day to see the Pacific)--lots more to do in CA as well!

All of which is to say, there are lots of good things in Orlando (and it's probably still our #1 Disney destination b/c it's easier to get to Florida than California from our East Coast location), but don't write off Disneyland b/c "there's a lot that's the same" or "it's smaller" (actually the number of attractions is similar--Disneyland's attractions are much more densely packed than MK's).

 

[WILDERNESS FAN 55]

We've been to WDW several times, have an opportunity to attend an event in Anaheim next year.
How different is WDW rides to DisneyLand? Haunted Mansion? Pirates? etc?

One thing you will notice is how tiny Disneyland is compared to MK. You can go from Spash Mtn to Space Mtn in about 5 minutes. Lots of great rides at both parks and contrary to other reports I think nothing is superior when comparing same attractions. Have fun ! Wish it was me.

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

We just did Disneyland after numerous trips to DW and concur with what has been said. We saw Haunter Mansion just before Halloween and it was so great, not to be believed.

A word of advice...plan your trip to be during the weeKdays rather than weekend. Our plans put us there on a Sunday and the crowds were simply unbelievable. Think that since they are in such a huge population center there are many, many more annual pass holders who come on the weekends. Never seen so many people...but still with good fast pass use and doing rope drop so riding the big attractions first you can get alot in.

 

[BadDad]

Wow! Thanks for the info.
At WDW my top three rides are:
Haunted Mansion
Rock and Roll Roller Coaster
Pirates (which I consider one of the longer rides @ WDW)

Since the parks are smaller: 1 day for each park or can I combine both in 1?

 

[Hootch]

one day this past summer running around DL and DCA. Besides the rides, there is a different feel to DL compared to the MK or any of the other WDW resorts. It is a smaller park that is packed with attractions.

It seemed that we ran into characters more frequently at DL. That started with Alice and the Mad Hatter marching out with the band as we entered the gates. (We started at DCA for the Cars fastpasses.) Saw Rapunzel and Flynn Rider strolling casually through Fantasyland apparently heading for a break just a little later. We saw several characters and none seemed to be swamped.

I was amazed at how the fireworks were handled. Main Street and almost the entire hub was packed with people. (There was also a large number of people in the center are between the parks.) There were narrow lanes that you had to use to get through the crowds.