new blog: Help! A Walt Disney World Vet’s First Time at Disneyland - Part 1

Hi Leah,

My husband and I were in the exact same position in October. We had a wonderful time at DL. We tried to focus on the rides that were unavailable at WDW, like Mr. Toad and the submarine.

However, we were also really impressed that the DL version of Haunted Mansion, Pirates and IASW were, in our opinion a little superior to their Florida versions.

As for other parts of So. Cal, I LOVE the brunch at San Diego's Hotel Del Coronado... there's a military base a few miles away, so you can see the planes flying from the beach, which your kids might love. And if you get a chance to see a show at La Jolla, it's well worth it.

In LA, if you can find a way into the Magic Castle, it's wonderful.
 
Looking forward to following your progress Leah. Val & I are big WDW vets (as you know) but we did 3 different trips last year to DLR and loved it. We found that Hydroguy has a great thread over on the DL board here on the DIS that does a really good job of explaining the differences. All I can add is to be sure you figure in some extra time to do DCA's CarsLand. The level of detail there is amazing.

Oh, and try not to snicker when you see the castle. ;)
 
Looking forward to following your progress Leah. Val & I are big WDW vets (as you know) but we did 3 different trips last year to DLR and loved it. We found that Hydroguy has a great thread over on the DL board here on the DIS that does a really good job of explaining the differences. All I can add is to be sure you figure in some extra time to do DCA's CarsLand. The level of detail there is amazing.

Oh, and try not to snicker when you see the castle. ;)

We can't wait to go to Cars Land! That's actually one of the reasons that we decided to bite the bullet and go now. Our boys are at the perfect age for it (and Jonah is finally 40 inches!!). Ever since they heard the news of it being built, they have been playing Cars Land and building their own versions here at home! I can't wait to go there with them!
 

Hi Leah,

My husband and I were in the exact same position in October. We had a wonderful time at DL. We tried to focus on the rides that were unavailable at WDW, like Mr. Toad and the submarine.

However, we were also really impressed that the DL version of Haunted Mansion, Pirates and IASW were, in our opinion a little superior to their Florida versions.

As for other parts of So. Cal, I LOVE the brunch at San Diego's Hotel Del Coronado... there's a military base a few miles away, so you can see the planes flying from the beach, which your kids might love. And if you get a chance to see a show at La Jolla, it's well worth it.

In LA, if you can find a way into the Magic Castle, it's wonderful.

Thanks for the input! I'm excited to see the CA version of some of our favorite rides and attractions!
 
great idea for a blog series! DL is quickly rising on my vacation list for multiple reasons and I think I would probably want to do more than just DL if I'm going to spend the money to go. I'll be reading with great interest!
 
Wanted to also put in a "Do not miss under any circumstances" suggestion. Three words.
World
of
Color

Picture liquid crayons set to music.
 
Just listening to the West Coast DIS Unplugged episode where you discussed the planning of your vacation. Right now they are discussing the tours of stars homes.

Val & I were on the ABD Back Stage Magic tour last summer and one of the first official things we did was the open air van tour of the homes and the spot to look at the Hollywood sign. I must say we were underwhelmed. All we saw of stars homes were pretty much walls and gates behind which some star lives (or frequently where they used to live). The overlook was fun enough but don't do a tour just for that.

Our hotel for that part of the tour was the Lowe's (Formerly a Renaissance) at Hollywood & Hiland. We spent part of our time just wandering around Hollywood Blvd area (very crowded) and going to Madame Tussaud's wax museum. The wax museum is great for movie fans. I'm not sure what children will think of it.
 












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