First visit to Disneyland.

[MarylandPirate]

I just recently moved to Northern California from back east. I have been to Disneyworld over 30 times from 1975 on. I went to Disneyland and had a great time. Wasn't sure what to expect after visiting WDW for years and watching it grow into the large park that it is.

Was glad to ride Mr Toad's ride again. Enjoyed the differences in Splash Mountain. Indiana Jones was fun, reminded of the Dinosaur attraction at WDW etc. Smaller can be fun.....look forward to coming back many times.

 

[SplashMo]

Congrats! Very Cool!

 

[catgirl]

Glad to hear you enjoyed! We are planning our 1st trip to Disneyland next June. I want to go to see where it all started & mark it off my bucket list, but keep thinking I won't enjoy it as much as I do Disney world.

Definately will be a different trip for us! We typically spend 10 days at the world, but only looking to spend 3 days at the land, will that be enough?

Doesn't look like we can afford to stay at a Disneyland hotel, very expensive! We've stayed at the value resorts in the world & love being immersed in everything Disney, but no value resort offered.

In the world we always get the dining package, which is so nice to have all paid for upfront & eat whatever we like on the menu without having to worry about costs. We usually pick at least 2 restuarants that offer crab legs, yum!

Also traveling with very picking eater, doesn't look like we will be eating all our meals in the park like we normally do. Can't afford & not alot of options.

Hoping we have a great experience with the original park!

 

[ClosetDisneyJunkie]

Glad to hear you enjoyed! We are planning our 1st trip to Disneyland next June. I want to go to see where it all started & mark it off my bucket list, but keep thinking I won't enjoy it as much as I do Disney world.

Definately will be a different trip for us! We typically spend 10 days at the world, but only looking to spend 3 days at the land, will that be enough?

Doesn't look like we can afford to stay at a Disneyland hotel, very expensive! We've stayed at the value resorts in the world & love being immersed in everything Disney, but no value resort offered.

In the world we always get the dining package, which is so nice to have all paid for upfront & eat whatever we like on the menu without having to worry about costs. We usually pick at least 2 restuarants that offer crab legs, yum!

Also traveling with very picking eater, doesn't look like we will be eating all our meals in the park like we normally do. Can't afford & not alot of options.

Hoping we have a great experience with the original park!

While it's really useful to understand the differences (and there's a great thread in here from Hydroguy about Disney World vets going to Disneyland), I think that, while comparisons are inevitable, going in with that mindset isn't always ideal. They are two different experiences. Disneyland is smaller, more intimate. Both experiences, to me, are awesome in their own way.

I'm not sure what you're in to, but one of the things I really appreciate about Disneyland is the history of the park. There are a ton of cool videos on youtube about the park's history, hidden "easter eggs" (not just Mickeys), etc. Might be worth checking something like that out if you're interested.

The dining packages for Disneyland simply aren't worth it, in my opinion, but there are lots of great places to eat both inside and outside of the parks (including the hotels).

I agree with you regarding the lack of a true value hotel option, it's really unfortunate. I wish that PPH was more reasonably priced. The experience at Disneyland is not as 24/7 immersive as it is at Disney World if you don't stay at DLH, GCH or PPH, but that's countered to some degree by the sheer number of available non-Disney hotel options, as well as the number of other things to see and do in SoCal that Florida simply can't match. I tend to think of a trip to Disney World as a trip to Disney World. A trip to Disneyland is a trip to Southern California, which is pretty fantastic in many ways, and Disneyland is a part of that.

I think a lot of people in here would say don't do less than four days on your first trip, and they might be right, but I think you can probably get away with 3 (1 day in DLP, 1 day in CA, 1 day hopping). If it's really crowded, though, you probably wont ride everything, and it wont be too leisurely. I typically don't do more than 3 days but I've been a bunch of times so if I miss something it's not the end of the world.

EDIT: Here's the link to Hydroguy's excellent thread for WDW vets going to Disneyland that I mentioned above: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599