Looking for input on choosing between DL and WDW

[bladiator]

I have been to both (mostly to WDW but more recently have taken a trip to DL) and enjoy both for different reasons. I have a trip coming up in May, and I'm waffling back and forth between the two. There are good reasons for both, but I was wondering what other criteria that I am missing.

Here is what I have so far on my chart:
Weather
Price of flights
Price of hotel stay
Price of park tickets
The parks themselves (like, EPCOT vs DCA)
The different rides (love Indy! love Rock'n Roller Coaster!)
Restuarants
Other Activities in the area that aren't Disney
Dole Whip (ok, it's at both, but I decided to put it on the list)

What else?

 

[nono]

I love them both. It's like trying to choose between children! But, I would also add to your list "Which am I missing more?"

 

[Reddog1134]

The Disneyland 60th anniversary celebration starts in late May. That might be a reason to go (or not, depending on crowds).

 

[siskaren]

I would definitely want to go to DL for the 60th.

 

[nono]

You guys are so right about the 60th! I just got back from DL last month, so it's not on my radar. YES...60th!

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

I have been to both (mostly to WDW but more recently have taken a trip to DL) and enjoy both for different reasons. I have a trip coming up in May, and I'm waffling back and forth between the two. There are good reasons for both, but I was wondering what other criteria that I am missing.

Here is what I have so far on my chart:
Weather
Price of flights
Price of hotel stay
Price of park tickets
The parks themselves (like, EPCOT vs DCA)
The different rides (love Indy! love Rock'n Roller Coaster!)
Restuarants
Other Activities in the area that aren't Disney
Dole Whip (ok, it's at both, but I decided to put it on the list)

What else?

As far as your criteria go:

- weather: we greatly prefer the weather in Florida to California. I dislike the California smog, it's never warm enough for us,...

- price of hotel stay: I'd guess if you stay on site at either place, you'll find lower prices at WDW than DL (since there are many times more on-site hotels). Obviously, there are a lot of 'good neighbor' hotels very close to DL. I can't say we're fans of Anaheim, or many of the good neighbor hotels; I hate the kitschy feel of the area just outside the DL parks;

- parks themselves: we haven't been to DCA since Cars Land opened, but I really, REALLY dislike the paradise pier area. Future world isn't my favorite, but we LOVE world showcase. We're also big fans of Animal Kingdom. Lots of construction going on at WDW, though;

- rides: The teacups and IASW are more aesthetically pleasing at DL than MK. POTC is better, and longer, at DL, than at MK (but we still enjoy the MK version). We prefer the MK Haunted Mansion. Tower of Terror is my hands down favorite ride ever, and the Hollywood Studios version (with the elevator car that actually moved vertically, and has randomized drops) is vastly superior than the DCA version. Indy is better than Dinosaur, but both are fun. Rockin Roller Coaster is worlds better than California Screamin. We usually avoid the Matterhorn Bobsleds since we value our backs and the ability to move around after riding;

- restaurants: Idk the exact numbers, but I think there are something around 75 places to get food at DLR (including everything from churro carts to sit-down restaurants), and over 240 at WDW. I've heard people say the food at DLR is better than at WDW; but I've also read that more so applied to quick service places than sit-down restaurants, and isn't really the case anymore, anyway;

- area activities: If you have a car, you could make the drive to the San Diego Zoo or other California attractions. Of course, that takes up quite a bit of time; and obviously LA traffic is a nightmare. (We once did a San Diego-Vegas-LA trip, but took about 3 weeks to do it.) Universal Studios Hollywood doesn't yet have a Harry Potter land (and when it does, it will probably be smaller than at USO), so that might be a consideration;

- grad nights: Grad 'Nights' at DLR are scheduled for several days in May. I've heard the crowds and mostly unsupervised teens don't necessarily break a trip, but it's probably best to avoid these days if possible;

- flower & garden: The F&G Festival at EPCOT will be going on through the beginning half of May;

- Star Wars Weekends: Star Wars Weekends at Hollywood Studios are also scheduled for various dates in May. This could be a positive if you're a SW fan, or a negative if you want to avoid the crowds.

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

The Disneyland 60th anniversary celebration starts in late May. That might be a reason to go (or not, depending on crowds).

We were at DLR in late May of 2005 for the 50th anniversary (Happiest Homecoming on Earth). I don't know why we weren't previously aware of the anniversary, but we just weren't. The crowds were pretty bad even in May (the celebration had just started May 5). Honestly, aside from the castle overlay and 50th signs up, there wasn't anything that we truly noticed as far as the celebration went. (The parades were 'new' to us anyway, since we hadn't been to DLR in a while.)

We somehow also ended up at the MK on October 1, 2011 (the actual 40th anniversary of WDW). The crowds were the worst I've EVER seen. They had stuff going on at the castle, but we couldn't see through the mass of people. I'd personally avoid the parks on major anniversaries after that experience, especially with kids in tow.

 

[HydroGuy]

The Disneyland 60th anniversary celebration starts in late May. That might be a reason to go (or not, depending on crowds).

It starts May 22. For more info see the link on the DL 60th in my signature line.

 

[Reddog1134]

We somehow also ended up at the MK on October 1, 2011 (the actual 40th anniversary of WDW). The crowds were the worst I've EVER seen. They had stuff going on at the castle, but we couldn't see through the mass of people. I'd personally avoid the parks on major anniversaries after that experience, especially with kids in tow.

We were there, too. I have to say, once we got past the Hub, it was really nice. We rode a bunch of stuff with little wait. I guess everyone else stayed up front for the festivities.

 

[ttintagel]

Getting around, both outside and inside the parks. It's a totally different experience.

 

[minnie mum]

Perhaps another thing to add to your chart is the length of your trip. I don't know about you, but when I go to WDW I can find plenty to do every day for a full week and never leave property. But at DL I'm done and looking elsewhere after 3 days, tops. Which is fine - there's plenty to see and do in SoCal without even considering other theme parks. Also, transport. At WDW you can let someone else do the driving all week. In LA, you'll be driving everywhere yourself.

 

[nono]

Perhaps another thing to add to your chart is the length of your trip. I don't know about you, but when I go to WDW I can find plenty to do every day for a full week and never leave property. But at DL I'm done and looking elsewhere after 3 days, tops. Which is fine - there's plenty to see and do in SoCal without even considering other theme parks. Also, transport. At WDW you can let someone else do the driving all week. In LA, you'll be driving everywhere yourself.

mini mum, isn't it funny that our reactions to the two sites are almost exactly different? I see DL as a park the car and walk vacation, whereas I see WDW as a drive everywhere vacation. Not saying you a wrong at all, just interesting how we approach the two places!!

OP, you've got to decide how you fit into all this!

 

[siskaren]

mini mum, isn't it funny that our reactions to the two sites are almost exactly different? I see DL as a park the car and walk vacation, whereas I see WDW as a drive everywhere vacation. Not saying you a wrong at all, just interesting how we approach the two places!!

OP, you've got to decide how you fit into all this!

It's funny, because I feel the same way. I've been to DL 3 times, and I didn't rent a car for any of them, I just chose a good neighbor hotel that was an easy walking distance. And I took advantage of the fact that there are only 2 parks to spend several days at each, and I really liked the fact that I can walk between the two parks and can walk from either park to DTD. On each trip I did do a side trip to Knott's Berry Farm, but there's a shuttle service that didn't cost too much.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I have been to both (mostly to WDW but more recently have taken a trip to DL) and enjoy both for different reasons. I have a trip coming up in May, and I'm waffling back and forth between the two. There are good reasons for both, but I was wondering what other criteria that I am missing.

Here is what I have so far on my chart:
Weather
Price of flights
Price of hotel stay
Price of park tickets
The parks themselves (like, EPCOT vs DCA)
The different rides (love Indy! love Rock'n Roller Coaster!)
Restuarants
Other Activities in the area that aren't Disney
Dole Whip (ok, it's at both, but I decided to put it on the list)

What else?

For a trip in May, I would consider WDW a little bit more than DLR because of Star Wars weekends. DH is a huge star wars fan (I love it too, but not quite as much as he does ), and it's one event we would really like to get to WDW for someday.

We have been to DLR in early May, and we had a great time. The only thing I would keep in mind is that DLR cuts back on nighttime shows when it isn't peak season. We found this to be true during our May trip there. WDW seems to be a bit more stable on nighttime offerings.

 

[Angel Ariel]

The Disneyland 60th anniversary celebration starts in late May. That might be a reason to go (or not, depending on crowds).

ooh this is a good point. If you're going to be there once the 60th anniversary stuff has started, I would absolutely 100% choose that over WDW!

 

[disneycat321]

As far as your criteria go:

- weather: we greatly prefer the weather in Florida to California. I dislike the California smog, it's never warm enough for us,...

Having lived in southern CA for 15 years (recently moved), this is possibly the most confusing thing I've read on here. It's not smoggy in Orange County. That's LA or the inland empire. And it's 80+ degrees 8 months out of the year (at least)....maybe you just like humidity better?

Anyway, to the OP - your criteria is good, but I would add what overall experience you want. When we are at WDW, we feel like we are in a Disney Bubble for a week or even more. DLR does not have that feel. It's not as separated from the outside world by any means. I also agree with a PP that it's harder to sustain a longer trip JUST on Disney property. We adore DLR - it's our home, and WDW is our vacation destination - but we would never be able to spend 10 days there like we easily did at WDW on our last trip. But since you added other area attractions, maybe that's not as big of a deal.

The rest is going to come down to each individual's opinion.

 

[HydroGuy]

- weather: we greatly prefer the weather in Florida to California. I dislike the California smog, it's never warm enough for us,...

Having lived in southern CA for 15 years (recently moved), this is possibly the most confusing thing I've read on here. It's not smoggy in Orange County. That's LA or the inland empire. And it's 80+ degrees 8 months out of the year (at least)....maybe you just like humidity better?

I totally agree and had the same reaction. OC does not have any appreciable smog. That is an inland thing.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

If we literally had the option to choose either, I would choose the 60th celebration. I imagine things will be spiffed up while many parks at WDW and DTD will still have construction going on.

And based on reports I have read for others comparing and contrasting, food seems to get higher remarks on the west coast. It has me curious to try it out when it is not so cost prohibitive for our family to get out west.

 

[siskaren]

Having lived in southern CA for 15 years (recently moved), this is possibly the most confusing thing I've read on here. It's not smoggy in Orange County. That's LA or the inland empire. And it's 80+ degrees 8 months out of the year (at least)....maybe you just like humidity better?

Yeah, I was confused too. I've been to DL three times, two in September, and the weather is much more comfortable than September in Florida.

 

[fbb]

And based on reports I have read for others comparing and contrasting, food seems to get higher remarks on the west coast. It has me curious to try it out when it is not so cost prohibitive for our family to get out west.

I have read this too, but I find the food much better at WDW than DL.

I agree with a prior poster's evaluation of the rides. Would also like to chime in that WDW has the better Splash Mountain and DL the better Space Mountain.