DL Pales in comparison to WDW

[ArchOwl]

To be perfectly honest, when I first started coming here from the WDW boards I felt the same way about Disneylanders. You guys scared the beejesus outta me back then. I had always felt the WDWers were more welcoming to new posters, but that was just one perspective and that was many moons ago. Now I think even I'd be scared to go to the WDW boards. Even I'd be an "outsider" there now.

To be fair, I think Disney Cruisers are the most critical of other's opinions. They seem the least tolerant of repeated questions, etc, but again that may just be perception and not really true. I see the rivalry like my children vying for attention and affection when they were toddlers. Each one showing off their latest drawing or story they came up with trying to top the other one. It wasn't ok for my kids to be like that because I love them both the same but differently, just like the two Disney parks. (I'm sure the other parks would be the same, but I've not visited them yet.)

I, personally, believe and feel these boards are for EVERYONE who loves Disney whether it be Disneyland, WDW, DCL, Disney movies, or just the Mouse himself. There shouldn't be rivalry since we all love something Disney or we wouldn't be here. I just wish everyone else felt the same way sometimes. I think others see it more as Disneyland is their child and WDW is someone else's and they want their kid to be better than the other guy's kid.

I guess we are good at just scaring each other, . And I will probably never, ever post on the Disney Cruise board after witnessing some poor newbie get torn up over there. And that is too bad, because a Disney cruise is definitely in my future.

And I don't think of it as comparing children, but fans having discussions about the best of each park. I know that DL doesn't have the best of everything and neither does WDW, etc. What is fun as a fan is debating which park has the best version of a ride or perhaps the best restaurant or maybe the best hotel. That is the fun of being a fan, knowing these things like very few people do and discussing them with other fans, or nerds, or whatever we want to call ourselves. I mean, my DH can only take so much!

And yes, some people will take it too far, because let's face it, we are all human and tend to do things like that. But without the passion, we aren't true fans at all!

 

[GhostlyHitchhiker]

I have gotten comfortable with the differences. I am annoyed by WDW's need for buses but enjoy the greater space and feeling of immersiveness. You can't have one without the other.

I do not want the resorts to be copies of each other. What I really want is the resorts to all offer a common thread of Disney magic. IMO they all do in spades - with the exception of DLR Paris's second gate Walt Disney Studios. It is a very poor second gate and by far the worst of all Disney theme parks. Horrible layout - horrible entry experience - non-magical feeling. All the bad things about DCA (now being fixed) times 10.


In the end I think my visits to the other resorts from my DLR home resort has made me love DLR more. Not because I think it is the best but because it helps me see DLR differently and better appreciate it's grandeur and history and quirky limitations.

Abolutely agree on every single point!

The first time I went to Disneyland DCA was being built. We stayed at the Carousel Inn and my oldest DD was two at the time. I just had emergency surgery three days prior to our trip, but we had been planning it for months and our best friends were flying out from the East Coast (as we had just moved to CA about 6 months earlier and hadn't seen them since the move). There was NO way I wasn't going. I spent the 4 days or whatever it was (I was medicated) in the wheelchair. My favorite character experience ever happened that trip, but so did my second worst dining experience.

As I said once before, most of my best dining, character, etc experiences have been at WDW which says something considering I've spent about 20 times the time at DLR over the last decade. I've been to WDW 4 times, been on 2 Disney cruises and been to DLR over 20 times.

This thread got me wondering something. I have this theory that the first time someone sees a Cirque du Soleil performance, that becomes their favorite (I've only met one person that this wasn't true for and that happens to be my husband).

I had always assumed "home park" meant the one closest to you, but does it instead mean your first Disney park? Maybe not your first time is your favorite of all of your trips, but would that park be your favorite?

 

[PatMcDuck]

Just back from a DL trip, and noticed some wonderful CMs, and many of them were the senior citizen aged men! So sweet, so cute, and seemed so happy with their jobs. Wish I remembered the names. A ticket turnstile CM at Cal Adv Grand Cal entrance, a dancing grounds sweeper at Cal adv, etc. Also a fantastic server (young man) at the Fantasmic Desert seating on Aug 15.

We came away from this trip saying that the DL CMs are SO much better than the WDW CMs! So, it just depends. Both can be good or bad, of course. We had almost all good ones this trip.

 

[tinkermomma]

To be perfectly honest, when I first started coming here from the WDW boards I felt the same way about Disneylanders. You guys scared the beejesus outta me back then. I had always felt the WDWers were more welcoming to new posters, but that was just one perspective and that was many moons ago. Now I think even I'd be scared to go to the WDW boards. Even I'd be an "outsider" there now.

To be fair, I think Disney Cruisers are the most critical of other's opinions. They seem the least tolerant of repeated questions, etc, but again that may just be perception and not really true. I see the rivalry like my children vying for attention and affection when they were toddlers. Each one showing off their latest drawing or story they came up with trying to top the other one. It wasn't ok for my kids to be like that because I love them both the same but differently, just like the two Disney parks. (I'm sure the other parks would be the same, but I've not visited them yet.)

I, personally, believe and feel these boards are for EVERYONE who loves Disney whether it be Disneyland, WDW, DCL, Disney movies, or just the Mouse himself. There shouldn't be rivalry since we all love something Disney or we wouldn't be here. I just wish everyone else felt the same way sometimes. I think others see it more as Disneyland is their child and WDW is someone else's and they want their kid to be better than the other guy's kid.

I have a little story to share on the "rude" CMs thing... When I was 11 I ran into Scrooge and asked for his autograph. I told him "how sad I was for him that it was such a hot day" and "was he going to get a break soon", he acted very depressed and I kept going on about it My mom told me it was very compassionate of me to think like that but it probably was kind of torturous for him to have a kid reminding. It was VERY hot. I remember feeling bad that I had been rude to him. Also that morning Captain Hook and Smeed stole all our muffins for breakfast (It was not a lot of food to begin with) and actually KEPT them . THAT was rude, but hey at least they were in character right?

Jon, I hope your daughter got over it pretty much instantaneously. Kids are super smart but they also don't tend to focus on stuff like that as much as we do. You sound like a good concerned Dad and I'm sorry it happened and all but I can bet your kid wouldn't want someone losing their job over that.

 

[Hoku]

I had always assumed "home park" meant the one closest to you, but does it instead mean your first Disney park? Maybe not your first time is your favorite of all of your trips, but would that park be your favorite?

I think it's like "home" vs. "house". The "house park" might be the one closest to you, but the "home park" is the one that's in your heart. It's the one that makes you feel like you've come home after a long trip, like maybe after your first year at school out of state.

 

[rosiep]

I guess we are good at just scaring each other, . And I will probably never, ever post on the Disney Cruise board after witnessing some poor newbie get torn up over there. And that is too bad, because a Disney cruise is definitely in my future.

I've only taken one cruise so far and have the second one coming up shortly...but feel free to PM me to ask questions...I'm nice and I don't bite (unless you ask)

 

[GhostlyHitchhiker]

I guess we are good at just scaring each other, . And I will probably never, ever post on the Disney Cruise board after witnessing some poor newbie get torn up over there. And that is too bad, because a Disney cruise is definitely in my future.

And yes, some people will take it too far, because let's face it, we are all human and tend to do things like that. But without the passion, we aren't true fans at all!

Even the DCLers aren't so bad most of the time. I tend to think it's all about exposure on the forums. The longer you spend on each one the more comfortable you are. You find out who the snarky ones or the jerks are (there aren't many, but there are some who I ignore pretty much every post from because what they say and how they say it rub me the wrong way and I disagree with pretty much EVERYTHING they say).

You also learn what topics can be taboo and which will cause a fight every time. Go post asking if you can wear shorts to dinner on the DCL forums. You'll have a flamewar in record time.

For the most part, if you are respectful you will be respected in turn everywhere on the DIS boards (there may be those who will be rude/mean, but there are often many that will jump to your defense when that happens too). That is why I'm here instead of some other Disney forums out there...

 

[rosiep]

Even the DCLers aren't so bad most of the time. I tend to think it's all about exposure on the forums. The longer you spend on each one the more comfortable you are. You find out who the snarky ones or the jerks are (there aren't many, but there are some who I ignore pretty much every post from because what they say and how they say it rub me the wrong way and I disagree with pretty much EVERYTHING they say).

You also learn what topics can be taboo and which will cause a fight every time. Go post asking if you can wear shorts to dinner on the DCL forums. You'll have a flamewar in record time.

For the most part, if you are respectful you will be respected in turn everywhere on the DIS boards (there may be those who will be rude/mean, but there are often many that will jump to your defense when that happens too). That is why I'm here instead of some other Disney forums out there...

The transportation board scares me the most! Hands down...

 

[M&M-Mommy]

I have to agree..why do we need to compare the two parks?? Each has their their own magic.
I love DL for being the ORIGINAL PARK that Walt created. I love that it is smaller. I love POTC and BB and Club 33 and so much more!! I can take a quick weekend trip and cover pretty much everything!

Then there is WDW. I love how big it is and all the different things it has to offer. You need at least a week to enjoy it. I love that they have a water park too!!

I have also been to Disneyland Tokyo and DisneySea. Both are just are magical and offer somethings new.

What I don't like..is that all the parks are run differently. They should have the same set up. Example..WDW has a awesome set up for Dining Plans. DL not so much. They are working on it..but its still not there. Why is that?? If they are all the same..then once you have been to one park..you know how to do things. Which would save alot of time and money.

I also don't like the idea of the Electrical Light Parade going "on tour" It needs to stay at DL. (sorry WDW and other parks.) That is what makes traveling to all the different parks fun! You get to see something different at every park!!

I have always had wonderful memories of all the parks that I have been to. Sure..there are some days where the CM's aren't as "fun" as others..but we all have our "off" days. Give them a break!! Just rememeber..we make our trip as magical as WE want it. If you let one thing spoil your trip...that is on you. The CM's actions are just the extra Pixie Dust!! Think of it this way...at least you can go! There are alot of people that can't afford it.
Okay..I am going to get off my soap box now. HAVE A MAGICAL DAY!!!

 

[GhostlyHitchhiker]

The transportation board scares me the most! Hands down...

I haven't been there. I think the Scrapbookers scare me the most. Scrapbookers are already fanatics and scare me. Add in Disney fanatic AND Scrapbooker fanatic?!

 

[tinkermomma]

The transportation board scares me the most! Hands down...

Really?! I'm intrigued. What's up over there?

 

[ArchOwl]

I've only taken one cruise so far and have the second one coming up shortly...but feel free to PM me to ask questions...I'm nice and I don't bite (unless you ask)

Awww, see how nice it is over here! Thanks, I am really wanting to take a Mediterranean cruise, but it doesn't look like Disney is doing that next year. So we will have to wait I guess. But I will definitely be asking some questions when Europe is back on!

Even the DCLers aren't so bad most of the time. I tend to think it's all about exposure on the forums. The longer you spend on each one the more comfortable you are. You find out who the snarky ones or the jerks are (there aren't many, but there are some who I ignore pretty much every post from because what they say and how they say it rub me the wrong way and I disagree with pretty much EVERYTHING they say).

You also learn what topics can be taboo and which will cause a fight every time. Go post asking if you can wear shorts to dinner on the DCL forums. You'll have a flamewar in record time.

For the most part, if you are respectful you will be respected in turn everywhere on the DIS boards (there may be those who will be rude/mean, but there are often many that will jump to your defense when that happens too). That is why I'm here instead of some other Disney forums out there...

True! It just seems a little rude to come in here, drop a big turd in the punchbowl and leave, ya know? I think that is probably our "shorts to the formal dinner" topic around here, when someone says "WDW is better than DL because of some crazy reason that I won't articulate".

And I have seem some of those threads on what to wear to dinner, hilarious.

The transportation board scares me the most! Hands down...

OMG, I didn't even know there was a transportation board! One more thing to stress about, lol. I am going to be longing for the days when I can make a priority seating the day before we want to eat, aren't I?

 

[rosiep]

Really?! I'm intrigued. What's up over there?

OMG, I didn't even know there was a transportation board! One more thing to stress about, lol. I am going to be longing for the days when I can make a priority seating the day before we want to eat, aren't I?

The Transportation board is over on the WDW side. There are many frequent posters who advocate for the airline industry. They are very knowledgeable, but are too political for my tastes. What that means is, a vacationing flyer will post a complaint about an airline cancelling a flight, or charging a fee for something or raising a price. Rather than offering an ear and sympathy..they try to "educate" the poster about how the airlines are losing money...

 

[tinkermomma]

The Transportation board is over on the WDW side. There are many frequent posters who advocate for the airline industry. They are very knowledgeable, but are too political for my tastes. What that means is, a vacationing flyer will post a complaint about an airline cancelling a flight, or charging a fee for something or raising a price. Rather than offering an ear and sympathy..they try to "educate" the poster about how the airlines are losing money...

Ah. That would be annoying,

 

[jetskigrl]

I guess we are good at just scaring each other, . And I will probably never, ever post on the Disney Cruise board after witnessing some poor newbie get torn up over there. And that is too bad, because a Disney cruise is definitely in my future.

Oh man, I'm sorry to hear that they (we) scared you away. I admit that I post on the cruise boards more than here usually. But I started really getting active on the site last year when I was planning our first WDW vacation. I got a ton of information on those boards before our trip (DH was in awe that I knew so much about a place we had never been, LOL).

I have seen the bad and the good all over the boards and would be hard pressed to say that one area (DL, WDW or DCL) is any better or worse than the other. I've encountered mostly great people, but also a few not-so-great on all of them. Mostly great though. I love the Dis'ers

 

[rosiep]

I love the Dis'ers

I do too. I have made lasting friendships through this board. Several years ago I met half a dozen online friends at the park and now we talk everyday via Facebook and have met in person several times.

Funny how a love of Disney brought us together!

 

[ArchOwl]

Oh man, I'm sorry to hear that they (we) scared you away. I admit that I post on the cruise boards more than here usually. But I started really getting active on the site last year when I was planning our first WDW vacation. I got a ton of information on those boards before our trip (DH was in awe that I knew so much about a place we had never been, LOL).

I have seen the bad and the good all over the boards and would be hard pressed to say that one area (DL, WDW or DCL) is any better or worse than the other. I've encountered mostly great people, but also a few not-so-great on all of them. Mostly great though. I love the Dis'ers

Awww...ok. See, I just have to find the not so scary ones. I think it was I didn't really know anyone over there, but now I know two people! The "other" side of the boards probably just seems more scary than it is.

 

[GhostlyHitchhiker]

Awww...ok. See, I just have to find the not so scary ones. I think it was I didn't really know anyone over there, but now I know two people! The "other" side of the boards probably just seems more scary than it is.

I post on the DCL boards too, so that's 3.

 

[MyYearWithTheMouse]

I heard someone put it this way: You go to Disneyland on your vacation. You go to Disney World FOR your vacation. I find that very true.

The two resorts definitely should not be run the same way though. The WDW dining plan works because there are so many different options to choose from and so few options outside of the resort to eat. At WDW you need to make your table service reservations months in advance. At DLR that's simply not necessary with only a few exceptions (BB and character meals). Disney makes money on the dining plan at WDW because people under-spend for the meals (for example, eating $30 worth of food a day instead of your pre-paid $40 or whatever). DLR just doesn't have that many opportunities to do that.

There are some things that the two resorts should be sharing with each other. Biometrics is a big one, I think. But you really cannot run both resorts as if they were the same type of place.

 

[A Small World]

The two resorts definitely should not be run the same way though. The WDW dining plan works because there are so many different options to choose from and so few options outside of the resort to eat. At WDW you need to make your table service reservations months in advance. At DLR that's simply not necessary with only a few exceptions (BB and character meals). Disney makes money on the dining plan at WDW because people under-spend for the meals (for example, eating $30 worth of food a day instead of your pre-paid $40 or whatever). DLR just doesn't have that many opportunities to do that.

Im afraid I have to disagree with this. I think its the opposite - there are so many places off site to eat especially if you have a car that WDW introduced the dining plan to keep people in the parks to eat and spend money. I did 4 trips to WDW (staying 2 onsite and 2 off site) and ate off site most of the time as we had a car to get about