Planning for DLR is making us miss WDW

[eyeheartgoofy]

I was VERY overwhelmed with our first Disneyland trip (well, our only one so far ... but I know we will be back!). Trying to decide where to fly into, getting the rental car, deciding about off-site vs. onsite (I really couldn't wrap my brain around HOW CLOSE some of those off-site properties really are ... until I saw them with my own eyes), etc. Another big worry was World of Color - I was so worked up about getting a good spot that I almost decided to skip it b/c it seemed so complicated - but once I actually got there and could see the lay of the land for myself, it was much easier.

But, wow, I loved DLR (and CA in general - we had never been). It felt like an alternate universe ... it was Disney, yet not the Disney I knew ... KWIM? I loved how close everything was ... there may be "only" two parks, but they pack a lot into those two parks. And having Downtown Disney right there was pretty darn cool. Our whole family just couldn't get over how quick & easy it was to get from one place to the other - no need to figure an hour into travel time to be safe like we do at WDW.

About ADR's ... I didn't make any until about 2 weeks out - and we only had two (Ariel's Grotto & Minnie & Friends Breakfast). The only seating at a decent time for Ariel's Grotto was outdoors ... I was so hesitant to book outdoor seating b/c I kept thinking CA in July was going to be Orlando in July. But the CM on the phone and some nice Dis'ers assured me that dining outdoors was actually pleasant in CA. And they were right!

Anyway, your trip will be great! I am really hoping we can make it back in 2014. I would probably pick DLR over WDW every time if it weren't for transportation costs.

 

[luv2sleep]

I'm beginning to understand the WDW frenzy. It's BECAUSE everything is so spread out, huh? At DL if we can't eat in one park because that venue is crowded we can just go to the other park or DTD or even quickly walk off site to eat. If the FP return time isn't for many hours we can move on in that same park, go to the other park, go back to our room and come back later because everything is so close. That must be it!

 

[PatMcDuck]

Thanks to everyone for the encouraging replies! I had no idea that SM had side by side seats, my DS will like that as well. So you think 60 days out is too soon for my ADRS? You know I'll be calling!

I rarely get ADRs at DL. They have fewer places to eat where you need one, or where I want to eat. We do eat at DD though, I LOVE that it is right there. Do more walk up meals there, but that's just us.

And for Vinylmation types, it is wonderful how D street is right there, I pass it on the way walking back to my hotel, just about. Getting over to the West side at DD in WDW is a major pain.

And in general, the lines are much shorter at DL. They do not have 90-120 minute waits for Soarin' or Midway Mania, they just do not.

 

[MomToOne]

We've done about 5 trips each to WDW and DLR. We love both. They are different in some respects, but different isn't bad. And the Disney magic lives at both.

With DLR you just need to let go of the "plan, plan, plan, plan" aspect. Really, it's OK - it's quite enjoyable actually! Go over to the DLR board here and after reading for awhile you'll eventually get the hang of what few plans you do need to make. It's not a complete "no planning" trip (cough, cough...World of Color gameplan...cough, cough) but there is certainly less planning.

And realize that staying offsite at DLR is not nearly the evil concept that it is at WDW. The ART shuttle - equivalent to the WDW bus system - runs to all of the area hotels and is a great way to get around. We always stay offsite at DLR.

 

[Carina]

We've Done DLR twice and WDW once. Liked all the 'other' things better in Florida ( Universal, Swamp tour, Kennedy Space center, Tampa football game, Waterparks, Disney Quest ect)

But if you are comparing JUST the parks, DLR is hands down the first choice of all 5 of my family members.

Plus, even though Magic Kingdom has a bigger castle, it's missing the Matterhorn!

And getting from one park to another in about 2 1/2 minutes can't be beat!

 

[Pooh2]

I felt the same way a couple of years ago when we went to DLR. WDW is all encompassing and DLR is just is not. However, once we got there, we kind of liked that fact that it wasn't ALL encompassing! I guess we'd say just encompassing enough! We enjoyed going other places in the area too.

We stayed "across the street" and it was lovely to run "home" to grab a jacket, take a swim or a bite to eat and then just go back - right there.

Could you share the name of the hotel and if you would stay at the same place again?

 

[queenbetsey]

Wow clue,
I'm the exact opposite. I'm sick of wdw. It's old to us. food is mediocre and unfortunately my kids are too old to enjoy the new fantasy land. We reluctantly went on spring break only because we had ap's we had to use and I had points that were going to expire.

I actually have a free trip thanks to some job activites in September and I'm thinking of having my technician go instead of me.

We are planning for a DL trip next year, we just can't do wdw another time.

well if your technician can't go for ya we will

 

[queenbetsey]

We are DLR ap holders and really miss WDW. We think the food is better for the most part and that you have way more options. we have been 5 times and cannot wait to get back there. The same room that costs at least 300.00 out here is about 170 out there. To stay on property. We did let our AP go for a few years so we could save to take those WDW when we became empty nesters we renewed. The prices of tickets and annual passes out here are huge and we are just not sure if we want to shell out well over 800 bucks to renew this year or not. (who am I kidding we will) we save all year and I work any extra duty I can get my grubby paws on to get those puppies anyway

 

[Dizneydaz]

It's so easy to get sucked in though. I'm already reading about the 20 min wait in the FP line for RSR, that's got me a lil scared. And reading about getting WOC reserved area passes then still going to stand in line 1 hour before the show. Maybe I'm reading too much on the boards, it freaked me out at first with WDW. But then you just go, and feel a lil' more prepared then everyone else I guess.

Your trip is in mid September so things won't be as bad as you read about during peak times.

Re: WOC--- I Finally saw it in June. The day our AP expired. I kept putting it off, hearing about the wait, etc. However, it wasn't as bad as it's been reported in the past. We got our WOC FP for the 10:15 show. But we also wanted to see the DL fireworks at 9:30. Could we do it? Yes we could!

We were there on Monday, June 10th. Summer crowds were here. We stood in the middle of Main Street about 1/2 way between the hub and Town Square. That way we could make a quick exit after the fireworks (and not get caught in the huge crowd) and get into DCA to see WOC. My plan worked out perfectly! We had one of my favorite spots on MS to watch FW. A few minutes before they start they put ropes across MS for a walkway and we stood right at the rope so no one could stand in front of us and no one could have their kid on their shoulder blocking out my 4'-11" DD's view.

We had a great view of the FW. Before the booms from the grand finale were finished echoing off the buildings we were on our way out of DL. We crossed over to DCA and went to the viewing are of WOC. We arrived there about 10-10:05. We went right into the blue viewing area and we had a great viewing location. Not right upfront but we saw everything unobstructed and we were pretty close to the exit so once the show was over we were able to make a quick exit without battling the crowd. (My DM has a problem with crowds ) I did this with my DM73 and DD13 in tow.

So we were able to see the FW and then WOC which started only 45 minutes apart, and that was in the summer.

Going in Sept. there will be less people there. You should be able to do everything you want with the benefit of not dealing with all the people. You will not have to stand in line for an hour for WOC.

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

I just got back from DLR. the best thing is to not look for WDW as it is different. You will enjoy it for itself. I liked the better weather. I loved that I could book goofs kitchen with one days notice. There are rides and attractions not at WDW. The parks are small and you do not get as tired. You can hop easily and get to DTD easy. Off site resorts are so close.

Enjoy DLR for itself and you will have a great time.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Carina]

Could you share the name of the hotel and if you would stay at the same place again?

I am not the person you asked but the HOJO is about 1/2 a block from the entrance not 'right' across the street, but it has the nicest grounds plus a pool AND a waterpark. It's not only my first choice but the only place my friends and other family members stay at!

It was an 8 min walk from the room to the turnstyle 4 of those minutes were from the entrance of the property to the turnstyles....lol

and you can see the fireworks from the hot tub!

 

[rnorwo1]

I've been planning a DLR trip too, for next mardi gras break, which is the first week in march for 2014. We usually drive to WDW, and it looks like flying out there will be between $2000-2500 for the 5 of us (the schedule hasn't been released yet). That's usually what we spend on the entire WDW trip (we have DVC so room is already covered), so I keep worrying if its going to be different enough to justify the extra expense? We want to go primarily for carsland, I guess. I also keep reading about huge lines and crowds bc of local visitors, so I will be devastated if we don't get to do everything bc of crowds.... I think the spring break crowds will not have started yet, but my anxiety is up just not knowing what to expect. We love WDW, but we're not obsessed... We wouldn't want to go multiple times a year, so is it crazy for us to drop this much extra money? I just worry that we're going leave there thinking we could have had the same experience at WDW for half the price.

 

[CluelessDisFan]

@rnorwo1- Keep an eye on your flights. I did, and finally one day they were down ours were $240ea from Detroit to San Diego non-stop round trip. Typically the same flights does cost well over $400ea. And I was struggling with justifying the cost of transportation as well. Also think about using different air ports.

Thanks for all the great replies, we are getting increasingly more excited for our trip. We even booked MHP for 1 night.

 

[rnorwo1]

@rnorwo1- Keep an eye on your flights. I did, and finally one day they were down ours were $240ea from Detroit to San Diego non-stop round trip. Typically the same flights does cost well over $400ea. And I was struggling with justifying the cost of transportation as well. Also think about using different air ports.

Thanks for all the great replies, we are getting increasingly more excited for our trip. We even booked MHP for 1 night.

Wow, that's a big drop! Crossing my fingers that it'll do the same for us, thanks!!

 

[ktlm]

I'm a total WDW vet. Grew up going to WDW- went to DL once as a child and none of us liked it because it wasn't WDW so we never went back- went to WDW for part of my Honeymoon etc. Being a Disney Nut, I went to DL/CA for one day while on a business trip back in 2008. Loved it.

They were planning to close the incredible Aladdin show in 2010 (later changed their minds and it is still there), so we decided to take DD (then 4), to DL that summer instead of WDW because we had seen it on the business trip and did not want her to miss that show. Loved it.

Started alternating DL and WDW trips because we absolutely love both places. Went in June and saw Carsland for the first time. Wasn't expecting to really care, because we don't particularly like Cars. We were blown away by the attention to detail (right down to the power and light poles down the street), and by RSR (which is so NOT such DLR's version of Test Track- it is incredibly superior to Test Track). Now, I'm planning a WDW trip, and guess what, it is really making me miss DLR, and I'm wishing I was planning a trip there! Between worrying about FP+ and whether it will roll out and how badly it will affect our trip, messing with adjusting ADR times, etc., it would be so much less of a hassle to just go to DLR! Plus, there are things that DLR has that WDW doesn't. Character meals where you see more characters than any of the meals at WDW, and also it is a surprise at who you might get; being able to walk anywhere in a short period of time; park hopping that takes 5 minutes; the Indiana Jones ride, Monsters Inc. ride; Alice ride, Better POTC ride, better Fantasmic; WOC (I highly recommend the dining package and doing the wet zone at the rail (the view is worth getting wet for!)); Carsland; the Aladdin show; the Mickey's Magical Map show; the new Rapunzel show; characters still roaming the parks that pop up in places (we had an unbirthday party with Alice and the Mad Hatter in Fantasyland last month); surprises of what characters you see at the front of the park (I went running like a 3 year old to Cruella last year!) and more. Don't get me wrong, I still absolutely love WDW, but DL definitely has its own magic! I know when we get to WDW, I won't miss DLR a bit (well unless FP+ kicks in and causes trouble), but right now I find myself missing it.

Have a great trip! I hope you grow to love it as much as we have!

 

[southlakejr]

DLR holds a huge place in my heart. I've never been to WDW, and planning our first trip sometimes makes me question if it's worth flying all the way across the country to go. Disneyland is just... magic. We stay offsite because of the cost, but walking over to the park is amazing as you start to hear the music. We love standing in the middle of the two parks and just feeling like you're surrounded by Disney before you even enter the parks!

As a WDW outsider, here are the things that I love about DLR trips:

1. Everything is so close! I cannot wrap my mind around how I am supposed to park hop by taking a bus! We go back and forth from park to park several times a day based on crowd levels, rides we want to do, what we want to eat, etc.
2. Compact parks. I have to admit, I look at the maps for WDW parks and think "that's it?" There are so few rides compared to what I'm used to.
3. No need for extensive planning. With DLR, I feel like I just show up and let the magic take us where we want to do. No ADRs, no touring plans, just enjoying our time pretty stress free. Sure, we may put about ten minutes of thought into our daily plan, but that's about it.
4. Great weather. I am a wuss. I am not friends with humidity. I have been to DLR over twenty times and only experienced rain once. (One day out of a four day trip in December


Don't let the boards scare you off with crowd levels, etc. It really isn't that bad because there is so much to do right at your fingertips. You're going at our favorite time of year- crowds aren't bad, weather is fantastic, and we love the fall decor. WOC takes a little bit of waiting around, but it is so worth it. If you're that concerned about that part of it, book the meal with Ariel's Grotto. Carsland is amazing- and we don't even care that much about the movie. Both parks are just so wonderfully detailed, take the time to stop and let it sink in. You will love it, honest.