Florida vs California

[OrlandoMagic]

Hi all

We are hoping to have another holiday late next year. Originally we were thinking Florida and doing Orlando again, combining it with a cruise on the Fantasy.

Then we got talking about California. Doing Disney Land, Universal and maybe Seaworld, also combined with a cruise.

I like the idea of California but I love Florida so much I would hate to come back wishing I had gone there again instead!

So... I'm hoping you guys could help me decide? If you have been to both before, how would you compare them? Is there anything one has over the other? If you have never done Califonia before, is there a reason why?

Thanks for any advise you can give!

 

[Kath2003]

I haven't been to CA, but have considered it. We found it to be MUCH more expensive than Orlando (almost twice the price), hence we haven't bothered.

 

[wickesy]

We did California a few years ago and had a great time. Disneyland is a lot more compact than Florida - the entrances to Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure and Downtown Disney are literally next door to each other - so you probably only. There are a few attractions that Disneyland has that WDW doesn't - Mr Toad's Wild Ride, Nemo etc. so they are nice to see.

If you are interested there is a link to my trip report for Disneyland, Universal and Hollywood in my signature. We tacked it onto the end of a trip to San Francisco so the Anaheim part is a few days in.

 

[cliveywolves]

it has always looked so much more expensive to me then Florida ???

 

[irisheyes123]

Im doing this for the first time in 2 weeks fly into vegas first for 4 nights then onto California Im so looking forward to trying disneyland for the first time our flight worked out cheaper than flying to orlando we also got really cheap flights from las vegas to Tampa. I can let you know what I think of it if you want in a few weeks

 

[wayneg]

Been over that way twice. cost wise we found similar to Florida, flights around £400pp, HoJo right outside Disney(10 min walk) £35/nt, car rental same, food similar.
Seaworld is a bit of a trek, upto a couple of hours drive depending on traffic, Universal we had no problem getting to but coming back to Anaheim in rush hour was mental. they have major traffic around LA. Its not like Florida where everything is close.
Every disney fan should do a trip to the original park IMO but its a totally different experience, depends how long you are thinking of, I suggest combining with Vegas then drive over to Anaheim or San Fransisco and down. A week is enough for us around DL area(1 week & 1 week cruise would be ideal for 2 week trip) its not like florida where we can go 25 nights and still not want to come home.

 

[General Panic]

Done LA once just to finally see Disneyland and where it all started. We had 3 nights in Long Beach on the Queen Mary which was different and did 1 day Disney one day Universal.

The reason we will never go back is the sheer size of LA and how long it takes to get from one place to another. Orlando really does spoil you for this. If you think the 30 mins it can take to get from The World in Orlando to either Universal or Sea World is bad be prepared for a lot of road time in LA.

It was an experience in LA and we had a great time doing what we did but for us once was enough. We didn't make it down to San Diego but i've heard SeaWorld there is really good.

 

[wayneg]

We didn't make it down to San Diego but i've heard SeaWorld there is really good.

No better than Orlando IMO, main problem we found with San Diego SW was the seating areas are all open, even in Oct when we went it was very hot to sit thru the shows, even the pet show is outside, Orlando SW had more covered seating. SD SW must be unbearable in the summer months.

 

[hannahr]

I've been to California a couple of times now and am going again next April. If you are a Disney fan it is well worth one trip to see the original park. Disneyland park and the fireworks there are amazing.

If you are a shopping fan (like myself!) then a trip to Las Vegas is definitely worth it. As others have said, getting around LA is a bit of a pain whereas the shopping and outlets in Vegas is easy to get to.

Next year we are going to Vegas for a few nights, driving down to Disneyland and then on a Disney Wonder cruise to Mexico. The flights to the west coast are as cheap as the east coast now and the cruise prices on the west coast cannot be beaten. I booked onboard last year and the week cruise is only costing £450 each!

 

[Chilly]

I've done West Coast twice including earlier this year (TR in my sig). I do prefer Orlando but the West Coast is a different sort of holiday and I loved it and would go again, DH prefers West Coast. It does take more planning but i've done it for the same cost as Orlando, we did Oct 2010 in Orlando then March 2011 on the West Coast and for hotels/flights/car hire they pretty much came out exactly the same.

 

[wickesy]

For a day at Universal or Hollywood I would suggest getting the train. We found it really easy, comfortable and no need to worry about traffic.

 

[Cyrano]

Really pleased this question has been asked as we had a discussion before deciding on Florida as we knew better what to plan and expect.

I agree that Walt's original park should be on everyone's to do list

 

[ben1993]

Haven't been to California (yet) but it's definitely on the cards within the next few years. It's always good to experience somewhere new and different, but still have the comfort of going to Disney!

 

[OldKeyWelsh]

We went to CA & Las Vegas in 2009 and had a fantastic time. The last two years we did WDW (OKW, free dining etc) and, with all the offers on, were going to book the same for next year, but when we spoke to our girls, they said they would rather go back to California. We didn't do Disneyland last time so maybe that will be on the agenda, along with a trip to San Diego.

 

[Lizzybear]

I loved California and as a total package I would definitely say I prefer it to Florida. I don't think i'd go with Disneyland as the main focus though as IMO there is so much more to it than as a theme park holiday. I'd love to return one day

 

[scottishgirl1]

We went to LA and San Diego in October 2008 and had a fab time. Would love to go back sometime but when we went Aer Lingus flew direct from Dublin to LA which made the journey much easier and we found it a bit more difficult to get reasonably priced accommodation for 5 there than in Orlando.

The weather was perfect and San Diego was beautiful. We spent a few days at the zoo and wild animal park and with Legoland and Sea World we had plenty to do. The best thing about Disney at LA was being walking distance to the parks, very convenient and just seeing all the little differences between Disneyland and Disney World.

The only place we drove to in LA was Universal on a Sunday so traffic wasnt too bad. In San Diego everything was within very close driving distance but we constantly got lost. Think the layout was quite confusing and would definitely recommend sat nat for any driving there.

 

[OrlandoMagic]

Sorry I haven't replied back yet, been so busy!

Thanks everyone for your views, much appreciated and has given us a lot to think about.