DL compared to WDW

[Maddysdaddy]

Yeah-but .... there isn't much of a queue inside. Practically the entire line is ouside. MK has a far better PotC queue ... but DL has the better ride.

Every time I ride Pirates at WDW, I find myself turning to my wife and daughter and asking "where's the other half?"

 

[lorie13]

For an extra treat, come to DL at Halloween Time and enjoy Ghost Galaxy (Space Mountain with flare) and Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion (this last until the first week of January).

Plus there is Car's Land, California Screaming, Mickey's Fun Wheel (and a few others at Paradise Pier), and World of Color at California Adventure.

At Disneyland you will find Indian Jones (a ride, not a show), Matterhorn, Roger Rabbit Cartoon Spin, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage which are not at WDW

 

[murphy7573]

Was at DLR in Oct 2013, WDW Nov 2013 and just got back from DLR last week for my DD's 5th birthday from 6-9 Jan 2014. We live in Cali and love both. This is always an interesting debate/discussion. Just like someone mentioned earlier, both with pluses and minus'. Weird my daughter hates Test Track but loves Radiator Springs Racers (Prob cuz of the dark). When we ride Small World at WDW my daughter asks me where is Woody, Lilo and Stitch and the other characters that are not added like DL's Small World. My wife always comments that the drops and length of the ride isn't the same at MK than DL. We do love EPCOT though. My fav park. Yes, Fantasyland at DL does have some waits (Yep Peter Pan's Flight just like MK always does and yes U cannot Fast Pass it like MK). 5 minute waits though for Snow White and Pinocchio. Space Mountain in my opinion is better at DL the way they pump the music from behind you and you sit two across. Haunted Mansion from October through early January kills MK's mansion, but DL from weird reason does not have MVMCP which is awesome at MK. My daughter loves Voyage of the Little Mermaid and when we've gone to ride it at DCA 5 min wait maximum. The queue at the New Fantasyland is Awesome but scary that the line could actually be that long. Expedition Everest hands down no contest better than the Matterhorn (of course the Matterhorn was the first roller coaster to use round metal tracks, so it is kinda' old). It is nice not taking a bus and walking from VGC right into DCA but we also do love being able to go to 4 parks instead of just 2. To us DTD at DLR is a joke compared to DTD at WDW. It is nice to also walk out of the Grand Californian and right into DTD, but Anaheim's DTD just has sooooooo much less than WDW. Dining options, I think EPCOT has more table service restaurants than DL and DCA combined. It's really hard for us to find different dining options at DLR than WDW. We love eating at so many places at WDW and I drive than Anaheim. But if you are sports fans too, Angels Stadium and The Honda Center are really close to DLR too. I love Fantasmic a lot better at DL than DHS. Instead of the Pocahontas battle way out in the middle of the "stage", the "fight" between Peter Pan and Captain Hook is better and comes up right in front of you and they use the huge Mark Twain at the end with the characters as opposed to the "fishing boat" at DHS. Like I said at the beginning, we do like both and i've made points for both. Sorry this was long winded.

 

[dsneygirl]

We love DLR as well. We've been 5x, twice with our kids and itching to get back. It's a totally different experience, different crowd make up, dining etc. Lots of old favourites with a twist.

The only downside twice we've experienced "June Gloom" and it was really quite gloomy

 

[amym2]

We love DLR as well. We've been 5x, twice with our kids and itching to get back. It's a totally different experience, different crowd make up, dining etc. Lots of old favourites with a twist.

The only downside twice we've experienced "June Gloom" and it was really quite gloomy

Agreed! We were there in July 2010 and the "June Gloom" continued well into July. I'd only packed one sweatshirt for each of us, and we wore them every day, all day long. When we go again, it won't be in June or early July! Totally not the Southern CA weather I was expecting!

But it still beats WDW in the summer!

 

[bwvBound]

Agreed! We were there in July 2010 and the "June Gloom" continued well into July. I'd only packed one sweatshirt for each of us, and we wore them every day, all day long. When we go again, it won't be in June or early July! Totally not the Southern CA weather I was expecting!

But it still beats WDW in the summer!

And here we are in mid-80's in January. Eeek, not the SoCal weather we are used to here, either! Praying for RAIN!

 

[dsneygirl]

Agreed! We were there in July 2010 and the "June Gloom" continued well into July. I'd only packed one sweatshirt for each of us, and we wore them every day, all day long. When we go again, it won't be in June or early July! Totally not the Southern CA weather I was expecting!

But it still beats WDW in the summer!

yes! We had one pair of jeans and one sweatshirt each wore them all week.

 

[Micca]

Anyone who truly loves Disney--and by that I mean not just "rides" but the history, the legacy of Walt, and all that goes with it, should visit DLR. WDW is our "home" park, but your Disney experience is not complete until you've seen Disneyland.

 

[alice99]

Because of how compact the parks are, you can spend less time getting everything done than you would at WDW, and can spend the extra time enjoying everything Southern California (which is just awesome) has to offer.

Even though we own at Animal Kingdom, 100 times out of 100, I would rather go to DL than WDW.

Plus... you don't need to decide where and what you want to eat six months in advance, and what parks and rides you want to go on, two months before your trip.
Don't get me wrong - any Disney park is a good Disney park, and WDW is... perfectly fine. We just prefer what So Cal/LA/San Diego/Coronado Island offers as a supplement to our Disney vacation.

Same for my family and me too!