New to Disneyland

[Dulcee]

We are Disney World pros (headed back again this December), but I just found out I'm being sent to Anaheim for a conference in April!

We'll be traveling as a family (2 adults, 3 kids: 11, 7, and 4), and this will be the very first trip to Disneyland for all of us. Staying at the Double Tree Suites & Conference center so relatively easy walking to either the Toy Story Lot or just walking directly to the park.

Tuesday, April 14​

• Fly in from the East Coast, arrive ~12pm local time
• Afternoon: Maybe Downtown Disney (no park tickets for today, but could be convinced otherwise)

Wednesday, April 15 – Disneyland Park

• Rope drop / opening until ~4pm
• Break: I’ll check in at conference + attend keynote session
• Evening: Family dinner (in the park)

Thursday, April 16 – Disney California Adventure

• Morning–afternoon: DH with kids (I’ll pop in/out for conference sessions)
• Evening: Family together from 5pm–close
• Dinner in the park

Friday, April 17 – Rest + Conference

• No park tickets
• Kids + DH: Sleep in, pool time
• Dinner: Downtown Disney

Saturday, April 18 – Both Parks (Park Hoppers)

• Conference ends at 1pm
• Afternoon + evening: All family park time, revisit both parks
• Dinner in park

Sunday, April 19

• No parks
• Early flight home

Questions / Decisions to Make

• Which shows are must-dos for a first Disneyland trip? (Fantasmic, World of Color, Fireworks, etc.)
• Which restaurants to prioritize, including signature dining?
• Skip WDW duplicates → focus on Disneyland-only or unique rides
• Should we plan on Lightning Lanes all/most days since this may be our only Disneyland trip for a long time?

Any other suggestions from Disneyland Pros are greatly appreciated!

 

[LKing]

As a starting point, I'll paste the list @BrianL created comparing WDW and DLR attractions. Note that you will be there during the Food & Wine festival when Soarin will be Soarin over California. Lines for Soarin are long during that time.

DL Exclusive Attractions:
Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye (uses same ride system as DINOSAUR at AK)
Mark Twain Riverboat
Sailing Ship Columbia
Davey Crockett's Explorer Canoes
Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer Island
Snow White's Enchanted Wish
Pinocchio's Daring Journey
Mister Toad's Wild Ride
Casey Jr. Circus Train
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Alice in Wonderland
Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough
Roger Rabbit's Car-Toon Spin
Chip & Dale's Gadget Coaster
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
The Matterhorn (note this uses the same ride system as Space Mountain at MK)
Space Mountain (same theme but completely different ride)

DL Similar but not exactly the same:
Enchanted Tiki Room - longer show
Jungle Cruise - No temple/tunnel, a bit shorter
Pirates of the Caribbean - longer with more show scenes
Haunted Mansion - even without the Nightmare overlay it is slightly different
Tiana's Bayou Adventure - single-file boats, does tend to get riders wetter
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Big Thunder Mountain - some additional effects and scenery
it's a small world - very similar though with Disney characters peppered in - it does have a much nicer exterior.
Autopia - much longer than the Tomorrowland Speedway, but basically the same
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters - removable laser blasters make it a little better

DL Exactly (or basically) the same:
Peter Pan's Flight - technically some minor differences
Dumbo
King Aruthur Carousel
Milennium Falcon: Smugglers Run - all of Galaxy's Edge is practically identical
Rise of the Resistance
Mad Tea Party
Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway - The queue is very different and cool - may be new to you and is worth it if so.
Star Tours
Astro Orbitor - though at ground level

CA Exclusive Attractions:
Monsters Inc. Mike & Sully to the Rescue
Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout - based on Tower of Terror, though the DL version works a little differently
WEB Slingers
Radiator Springs Racers - this is like a massively bigger Test Track
Luigi's Rollicking Roadsters
Incredicoaster
Inside-Out Emotional Whirlwind
Silly Symphony Swings - though this is an off-the shelf "wave swinger" ride
Jumpin' Jellyfish
Golden Zephyr
Goofy's Sky School

CA Similar but not exactly the same:
Mater's Junkyard Jamboree - the same as Alien Swirling Saucers
Grizzly River Run - longer version of Kali River Rapids - definitely a wet ride!

CA Exactly (or basically) the same:
Mickey's Philharmagic! - smaller screen though
Turtle Talk with Crush
Ariel's Undersea Adventure - same as Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid
Jessie's Critter Carousel
Soarin' - During the Food&Wine Festival (March through the 3rd week of April) they run it with the original Sorain' over California, in which case it is a must do!

 

[Dulcee]

As a starting point, I'll paste the list @BrianL created comparing WDW and DLR attractions. Note that you will be there during the Food & Wine festival when Soarin will be Soarin over California. Lines for Soarin are long during that time.

Oh! I didn't realize that about the food & wine festival! That is exciting...now I'm wondering, do we need to save a night to eat around festival offerings!

 

[BrianL]

We are Disney World pros (headed back again this December), but I just found out I'm being sent to Anaheim for a conference in April!

We'll be traveling as a family (2 adults, 3 kids: 11, 7, and 4), and this will be the very first trip to Disneyland for all of us. Staying at the Double Tree Suites & Conference center so relatively easy walking to either the Toy Story Lot or just walking directly to the park.

Tuesday, April 14​

• Fly in from the East Coast, arrive ~12pm local time
• Afternoon: Maybe Downtown Disney (no park tickets for today, but could be convinced otherwise)

Wednesday, April 15 – Disneyland Park

• Rope drop / opening until ~4pm
• Break: I’ll check in at conference + attend keynote session
• Evening: Family dinner (in the park)

Thursday, April 16 – Disney California Adventure

• Morning–afternoon: DH with kids (I’ll pop in/out for conference sessions)
• Evening: Family together from 5pm–close
• Dinner in the park

Friday, April 17 – Rest + Conference

• No park tickets
• Kids + DH: Sleep in, pool time
• Dinner: Downtown Disney

Saturday, April 18 – Both Parks (Park Hoppers)

• Conference ends at 1pm
• Afternoon + evening: All family park time, revisit both parks
• Dinner in park

Sunday, April 19

• No parks
• Early flight home

Questions / Decisions to Make

• Which shows are must-dos for a first Disneyland trip? (Fantasmic, World of Color, Fireworks, etc.)
• Which restaurants to prioritize, including signature dining?
• Skip WDW duplicates → focus on Disneyland-only or unique rides
• Should we plan on Lightning Lanes all/most days since this may be our only Disneyland trip for a long time?

Any other suggestions from Disneyland Pros are greatly appreciated!

@LKing posted my list, so that should cover attractions. For shows, I definitely recommend World of Color as there is nothing like it at WDW. DL Fireworks are usually worth watching, though if you want a different take, you can watch from different locations, like in front of It's a Small World (projections on the IASW facade) or the Rivers of America (projections on the water screens used for Fantasmic!). You can also get a completely different view and music/projections from Galaxy's Edge if you watch Fires of the Rising Moon (the same fireworks but Star Wars themed accompaniment). Fantasmic! is a little different - some say better, though maybe not since they lost the dragon, but seating isn't that good. It is jsut performed on the Rivers of America. If you really love F! it's probably worth watching to see the differences, but it would be lowest priority.

On food, note that counter service food tends to be a bit better than at WDW and there are fewer table-service restaurants overall. Favorites of mine include Cafe Orleans, Tropical Hideaway (Bao Buns), Aunt Cass Cafe (sourdough bread), and Award Wieners. Do make sure to check out the churro carts as they often have different flavors/toppings, and a Matterhorn Macaroon from Jolly Holiday is a classic snack.

 

[LKing]

Oh! I didn't realize that about the food & wine festival! That is exciting...now I'm wondering, do we need to save a night to eat around festival offerings!

If you are doing food, I would plan for just before 11 am. 11 am is when park hopping starts and the lines for food become longer. DCA sells Sip & Savor passes where you advance purchase a certain number of items at a discounted rate. People who visit often purchase the S&S passes to use over several weeks. Since you are going towards the end of the festival, lines may be a bit longer because people want to finish using their S&S passes. Locals tend to visit more after work and over the weekend so those are the times when lines will be longest.

In general, the food at DCA's F&W is not as good as WDW's festival and it is quite a bit more expensive.

Edit to add: One thing DLR festivals do better is that you can order all of your items at any booth register. When you approach a booth to pick up your food item, you show your receipt and they cross off the item you picked up. Lines at the booth registers closest to the front of the park are often very long. If you go to the farther away booths, the lines are often quite a bit shorter.

 

[jwalk03]

I have only been to Disneyland once (planning a second trip for next spring) and have been to Disney World multiple times, but here are my thoughts:

World of Color, Fantasmic, and Fireworks would all be must dos for me. World of Color is extremely unique. I'm a sucker for all nighttime spectaculars, and Fantasmic is just one of my favorites in general. (I actually haven't seen the Disneyland version as it was not up and running again post Covid on my only trip to DL- so its on my own can't miss list for my springtime trip.)

Otherwise you have gotten a very good list of the attraction differences.

I will say I am a huge Tower of Terror fan- like its my favorite ride in all of Disney World so I was very skeptical of the Guardians of the Galaxy version at DCA. I also don't particularly like Marvel- so I thought I would hate it compared to ToT and man was I surprised how much I loved it! It may be the same ride system but its a completely different experience than ToT. Way less terror and way more laughter from this version.

Indredicoaster was my entire family's favorite ride at DCA. We love roller coasters at baseline and we really enjoyed this one. Probably my second favorite Disney roller coaster. (after Hyperspace Mountain at DL Paris)

Radiator Springs Racers I would also say is a must do attraction at DCA. The whole Cars Land is just incredible actually.

 

[hardcorestitch]

We are Disney World pros (headed back again this December), but I just found out I'm being sent to Anaheim for a conference in April!

We'll be traveling as a family (2 adults, 3 kids: 11, 7, and 4), and this will be the very first trip to Disneyland for all of us. Staying at the Double Tree Suites & Conference center so relatively easy walking to either the Toy Story Lot or just walking directly to the park.

Tuesday, April 14​

• Fly in from the East Coast, arrive ~12pm local time
• Afternoon: Maybe Downtown Disney (no park tickets for today, but could be convinced otherwise)

Wednesday, April 15 – Disneyland Park

• Rope drop / opening until ~4pm
• Break: I’ll check in at conference + attend keynote session
• Evening: Family dinner (in the park)

Thursday, April 16 – Disney California Adventure

• Morning–afternoon: DH with kids (I’ll pop in/out for conference sessions)
• Evening: Family together from 5pm–close
• Dinner in the park

Friday, April 17 – Rest + Conference

• No park tickets
• Kids + DH: Sleep in, pool time
• Dinner: Downtown Disney

Saturday, April 18 – Both Parks (Park Hoppers)

• Conference ends at 1pm
• Afternoon + evening: All family park time, revisit both parks
• Dinner in park

Sunday, April 19

• No parks
• Early flight home

Questions / Decisions to Make

• Which shows are must-dos for a first Disneyland trip? (Fantasmic, World of Color, Fireworks, etc.)
• Which restaurants to prioritize, including signature dining?
• Skip WDW duplicates → focus on Disneyland-only or unique rides
• Should we plan on Lightning Lanes all/most days since this may be our only Disneyland trip for a long time?

Any other suggestions from Disneyland Pros are greatly appreciated!

Matterhorn. If Matterhorn doesn’t have refurbs that month, that’s the first thing I’d go on. Same for Incredicoaster over at DCA. Also plenty of restaurants outside of Disney too to check out on your arrival day!

 

[mouschievous]

• Which shows are must-dos for a first Disneyland trip? (Fantasmic, World of Color, Fireworks, etc.)

Like Brian said, WOC is the only one I would say are must do's. The fireworks are great, but I think it's better at WDW. F! is basically the same, and without the dragon now it's sad (for me. Maybe not for others, but that's part of what made it great). But WOC is pretty unique and really beautiful. The closest thing I can compare it to is Harmonious at Epcot, but it's really not the same at all.

• Which restaurants to prioritize, including signature dining?

There are not nearly as many table service restaurants, and they're not even close to the same type. Most of the table service at DL is just basic dining - no big themes, etc. However, I am a sucker for Blue Bayou, not because of the food but because of the atmosphere. It's the restaurant that's one the water of Pirates. The food seems to be really hit or miss. We had good food and great service, but I've heard of others disliking their food immensely, and it's not cheap so it can be a bit of a risk.

My other favorites are character dining. Plaza Inn is great - it's the only character dining in the parks, and when we've gone we've seen 8-10 characters. Food is fine, experience is fantastic.

Storytellers at Grand Californian is probably my absolute favorite. Only 4 characters typically, but the food is fabulous. My favorite character dining experience ever was Topolino's, but this is my second fave.

 

[mouschievous]

Matterhorn. If Matterhorn doesn’t have refurbs that month, that’s the first thing I’d go on. Same for Incredicoaster over at DCA. Also plenty of restaurants outside of Disney too to check out on your arrival day!

Funny, my first would be Indiana Jones and Radiator Springs Racers just shows how different we all are (OP: My husband would definitely choose Incredicoaster. Most of my family would. I just don't do upsidedown rides)