First DL Trip and we LOVED it!

[Mr.Bubbles]

I can't do a full trip report right now, but let me just say that after many, many WDW trips our first DL trip exceeded our expectations.

Here are a few observations/highlights:

DLH was exceptional. Beautiful hotel and it was so nice to just walk to the parks versus waiting in line for a bus ride to and from the parks.

DL itself was so magical. It has an intimate feeling that WDW doesn't have. It felt strange to exit a ride like Haunted Mansion and have Splash Mountain entrance right there, but it was nice that you didn't have to walk as far. Yes, the castle is tiny compared to WDW and it is dwarfed by the Matterhorn mountain, but it was still beautiful.

Even in the summer (mid June) the crowds were not bad and the heat did not compare to Orlando's!

Several rides were MUCH better than WDW. We absolutely loved Space Mountain. It was my favorite. Smooth and the soundtrack was awesome! Pirates was better too. Alice and Pinocchio were very cute as was the Storybookland boats. Matterhorn was a blast, racing other cars through the mountain.

Food was good, but less dining options thatn WDW. Virtually no counter service breakfast options before parks open. We had to buy things for the room the night before (bananas, cereal, yogurt).

We did not enjoy California Adventure very much. Stark, open park with virtually no shade. Didn't have a "Disney" feel to it at all. Enjoyed Soarin', Toy Story Mania, Tower of Terror and Aladdin.

Kids loved Indiana Jones attraction. It was working without any problems and we rode it twice.

The new monorail was not operating yet. The older one had no a/c!! It was hot and stuffy in there, even with the windows open. WDW monorails are much better. Of course, at WDW they are used as transportation and not as an attraction as at DL.

We left feeling that we would definitely go back again. We would stay in DLH again too.

 

[tofubeast]

Welcome back. Glad to hear you and your family had such a wonderful time. BE sure to post a full trip review with pics some time! I wanna see em!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Glad you had such a good experience at DL. I always appreciate the differences in the two parks.

 

[EmmersIsTheMommy]

Awesome!

I've only been to DL so I love hearing those who are used to WDW's trip reports

 

[RudemanRB]

I
We did not enjoy California Adventure very much. .... Didn't have a "Disney" feel to it at all.

Yeah Disney Actually missed the bullseye with DCA, but good news is on the horizon, They are re-theme'ing a lot of the park for 2009 and beyond.

the Toy Story Mania is just the begining. They realized there wasn't a Disney Feel to it, and it's to hard to cram the entire state of CA into a theme park wasn't a good idea. why try and show the state of CA to the Local Californians? especially since they make up the majority of DLR guest? People just want more Disney.

I actually think what would have been nice is if they had a DCA in FL and some sort of FL type theme park in CA. this way you get the feel and a little taste of what the other state has to offer, possibly making you want to go and visit WDW or DLR. just like they have a Soarin' in WDW. they should have a Sorin' over FL.

just random thoughts.


Rudy

 

[wazowskiLOVER:)]

We did not enjoy California Adventure very much. Stark, open park with virtually no shade. Didn't have a "Disney" feel to it at all. Enjoyed Soarin', Toy Story Mania, Tower of Terror and Aladdin.

I felt the same way the first time I went to DCA, but when you try to look at
the parts of it that you do like and try to enjoy the park for what they have,
it makes the place more enjoyable. I think the trouble with it being right
across from DL, is that people compare the nostalgia of the original park with
this new park across the way. After a couple of visits though, I look forward
to going to DCA. It gives you a little taste of what we have here in CA. Of
course its nothing near to what its really like, but completely entertaining
overall. Hope you guys come back and learn to like it

 

[KCmike]

Disneyland is our favorite park now. Magic Kingdom at WDW doesn't hold a candle to DL. I love how close everything is and the details are unbelievable.

What did you think of Fantasmic? Remember Dreams come true? Or Mainstreet Electical Parade? The best of Disney is at DL!

 

[Mr.Bubbles]

What did you think of Fantasmic? Remember Dreams come true? Or Mainstreet Electical Parade? The best of Disney is at DL!

We thought the fireworks were incredible. In fact, I went into the music store on Main Street to see if they sold the soundtrack from the firework show. They had a Disneyland CD with ALL of the attractions on it. I have listened to the Dreams Come True fireworks show and Space Mountain soundtrack SO many times already. The Main Street Electrical Parade ran at WDW when I was a little kid in Florida so it was neat to see that it is still going at DCA. We did not catch Fantasmic.

I forgot to say that some of the most magical things were when we were taking a rest or stopping to smell the roses. We got Dole Whips in Adventureland and found a bench on the central hub at the end of Main Street. As we were sitting there watching the old cars go by Peter Pan jumped out of nowhere and squeezed in on the bench between my kids. He said, "Whatcha eatin?" My DD said, "ice cream." He said, "Where'd you get it?" She pointed to the stand in Adventureland. He shot up, clapped his hands and said "Alright!" and jumped through the crowd toward Adventureland. My girls talked about it for days!

They were also pleasantly surprised by the old films in the cinema and the penny arcade. We had to make a special trip back to the penny arcade the next day so they could check out the machines in there again.

We also enjoyed the film with Steve Martin and Donald Duck celebrating the 50th anniversary of DL. We just happened upon it and were glad we did. Very funny film.

 

[chickyann]

Sounds like you had a great time

 

[RudemanRB]

We thought the fireworks were incredible. In fact, I went into the music store on Main Street to see if they sold the soundtrack from the firework show. They had a Disneyland CD with ALL of the attractions on it.

If you(or anyone) need any Disney tunes PM me, I have about 5Gigs of Disney tracks, even ones that are no longer around Like 20,000 leagues under the sea.


Rudy

 

[ydrj]

I remember the first time I went to DL, after we exited Disneyland I asked a CM how do I get to DCA, and he just pointed in the opposite direction and when I looked I saw the entrance, how embarrassing but shocking to see the parks across from each other! Years of waiting and riding on buses at WDW made that my fav part of DL!

 

[Mr.Bubbles]

Years of waiting and riding on buses at WDW made that my fav part of DL!

I'm with you. We kept commenting on how great it was to just walk right back to the hotel at the end of the day. At WDW you have to wait in a line for the bus and then you have a good 20 min or more on the bus depending where your hotel is. It is incredible how much land WDW has that is still undeveloped, while DL is sitting in the middle of a congested city and highways. I still felt like I had completely escaped the real world though at DL. I never caught a glimpse of anything outside of the park while I was in there.

I wish they had a few different stores at Downtown Disney. There were too many upscale or specialty shops like the sunglass store, Anne Geddes, jewelry, etc. that we just don't have a reason to go into. Orlando seems to have more practical stores like the toy store, Christmas shop and pet store.

 

[Angie_Ohio]

The list of families who loved DL after vacationing exclusively at WDW in the past. We visited in mid June and enjoyed the cozy feel and the variety of rides and attractions in one space. I loved the whole feel of the place. We love both places! We usually avoid the Magic Kingdom when we go to WDW but enjoyed our California trip. Maybe we'll get back there one day.

 

[tksbaskets]

Just back from a June 19-22 trip to DL and a DCL vacation. We loved staying at DGC and being able to walk back to the room in the afternoon, walk to DTD for dinner or to the DLH. DCA had an entrance right from our hotel. There was a nice variety of rides.

I did miss having more opportunities for dining at DL or DCA. I agree with a PP that there was no way to have breakfast before extra magic hours. We actually ponied up for room service muffins which is much better than a cranky family.

I'm happy to hear DCA will get a bit of a re-vamp Disney Style. It was a bit too carnival-like for me. DL was charming!

 

[JenM]

I remember the first time I went to DL, after we exited Disneyland I asked a CM how do I get to DCA, and he just pointed in the opposite direction and when I looked I saw the entrance, how embarrassing but shocking to see the parks across from each other! Years of waiting and riding on buses at WDW made that my fav part of DL!

LOL, I went to DL for the first time in May, and the first thing I saw when we went past the bag check were the California letters. So I kept looking further straight ahead to see where the DL entrance was, until I looked left for a second and there it was! I nearly jumped out of my shoes, I couldn't it was right there the whole time and I didn't see it.

The only bus I waited for on my entire trip was the Disneyland Express bus from LAX--which was eventful because there was a drunk on the bus--and I loved not having to take any buses at DL! It's so nice just being able to walk to the parks.

Another thing I loved about DL was how nice it was that a lot of the rides don't empty out into gift shops. You do see it on some of the newer rides, but the classic rides don't and that adds to a lot of the charm of the place.

I love WDW and I'd go back in a heartbeat, but DL is wonderful and I'll be going back there soon for sure. I'd go back just for Space Mountain and Indiana Jones alone!

 

[KCmike]

We are now DL fans too!

 

[Cali_Sparrow]

I wish they had a few different stores at Downtown Disney. There were too many upscale or specialty shops like the sunglass store, Anne Geddes, jewelry, etc. that we just don't have a reason to go into. Orlando seems to have more practical stores like the toy store, Christmas shop and pet store.

I agree. World of Disney and Rainforest Cafe are the main reasons I go to Downtown Disney. The rest is stuff I either can't afford or have no interest in. I think it would be fun if they put in more generic mall-type vendors, that would be more family friendly. They do have Build-A-Bear and the Lego store and that's all pretty cute, but they should put more in. I think they need a big pin trading outpost there too, I'd go for that!

I remember the shops at the Orlando one being a bit better, although I was melting like a candle the whole miserable time (July heat wave) and didn't pay much attention to anything else.

 

[JenM]

I agree with that too. I loved the World of Disney store, but the rest seemed more like an upscale mall and not as Disney as the WDW version of DTD. I did pick up a Build-A-Bear for my nephew (it was wearing mouse ears and DL t-shirt), so that was fun. And I liked having a Jamba Juice to stop at on my way into the park. But I missed the Christmas shop and the some of the other Disney-themed stores in Florida.

We were also shocked to find a lot of the restaurants in DTD closing at the same time as the parks. We left DL one night after the fireworks hoping to grab something to eat and the restaurants were all closing too! We ended up getting pretzel dogs at Wetzels.

 

[Mr.Bubbles]

The only bus I waited for on my entire trip was the Disneyland Express bus from LAX--which was eventful because there was a drunk on the bus--and I loved not having to take any buses at DL! It's so nice just being able to walk to the parks.


I love WDW and I'd go back in a heartbeat, but DL is wonderful and I'll be going back there soon for sure. I'd go back just for Space Mountain and Indiana Jones alone!

We took the Disneyland Express from LAX too and had an interesting trip. As the driver had just finished picking up people from each concourse and was exiting the airport he got a call on his cell phone. It appeared to be a personal call as he was talking to someone about a house he had for rent and was working out the details with the person on the other end. He talked for awhile and then finally pulled the bus over, stopped, opened the door and got out and walked around talking on his phone for 15 minutes. After he was done he boarded the bus, looked at everyone and said, "Thank you" and started driving again. How bizarre.

We loved Indy ride and Space Mountain the most too!! I would go back for those two attractions alone.

 

[JenM]

My DL Express ride was bizarre! I got in late, so there were only 6 other people on the bus. Just as we were about to pull away from LAX, a cop stops the bus, and asks to speak to the driver.

We overheard him explaning that he had someone who needed to get to the DL Hotel, that he'd been drinking, but that he could totally vouch that the man was harmless and wouldn't cause a problem. The driver agreed to take him.

I hear the cop loudly explaining to the guy that this bus was going to take him to his hotel, and that he would have to be quiet and not bother anyone, since this was the Disneyland bus, so there would be a lot of kids on board (actually there weren't any kids on board).

The cop leads him to one of the empty seats in the back, the guy is muttering "I'm a loooong way from Costa Rica!" We finally leave, and fortunately the guy was quiet.

But we stopped at Knotts Berry Farm first, and the guy got on his cell phone to tell whoever was meeting him that he was at Disneyland. He started looking for landmarks to tell his friend where he was--and had NO idea we weren't at Disneyland. We're all trying to explain to him that Disneyland was the next stop.

We get to the DL Hotel, finally...and he still has no idea where we are. But it's his stop, the driver just wanted to be done with him at this point (so did the rest of us), and dropped him off, muttering some more about South America as he left.

For all I know, he's still wandering around the DL parking lot looking for the DL Hotel...