Should we go to Disneyland?

[CJK]

Hi all! I've never been to this board so I'd like to first say hello!! Dh and I have been going to WDW since we were both young children. We've been many, many times. In fact, we just got back last week. While we had a wonderful time, we found ourselves feeling like it was time to go somewhere else. This leads me to my question.

We've both never been to California, let alone Disneyland. We're considering taking a trip there in the next couple of years. Is Disneyland much different than WDW (other than it being the original and smaller)? Considering our "tiredness" of WDW, should we spend the money and go to Disneyland or do you recommend we go elsewhere?

I guess this is sort of a subjective question, but any thoughts would be very much appreciated!

 

[Rajah]

I would. IMHO, Disneyland as a single park is better than any single park at WDW. And DCA is fun, though some people really don't like it. DH and I really enjoyed ourselves in DCA, so that's really a personal choice.

Other than Splash Mountain, I can't really think of anything they have at both DL and WDW that is better at WDW -- everything is done better at Disneyland with the exception of Splash. At least IMHO.

I consider a trip to DL *very* much worth the time, especially if you can stay at one of the official Disney hotels and have time to relax and enjoy the atmosphere. You can see most of Disneyland in 1 day, and pretty much all of DCA in 1 more day, but you really have to rush to do so. DH and I just returned from a 5 day trip, and that was just about right.

 

[jimmiej]

DW & I are in the same situation. Been to WDW several times-now ready to try DL. As for your "tiredness" of WDW, we've tried to go every other year to keep things fresh & new. Also, we try to do several new things each time. A new resort, a different character meal, Cirque, Illumination Cruise, etc. We're looking forward to DL as a new but still familiar destination.

 

[lbmom5]

We also just returned from our first trip to DLR after having been to WDW twice. We went for five days and really enjoyed our trip. I think DLR is more relaxing than WDW, no big trips between parks, hotels, or transportation. We really liked it better than WDW, many of the rides were much better and longer. I would especially recommend DLR for a first time Disney park visitor, so easy to enjoy. Don't get me wrong, we loved WDW, but...

 

[robinb]

I have been to 9 out of the 10 Disney parks (all except Disney Seas in Japan since they were still building it when we were at DL-Tokyo) and Disneyland in California is my favorite park of all! It is, first and foremost, the park that Walt built. That alone is worth the trip for any Disney fan .

 

[CJK]

Thanks so much for responding everyone. You've gotten me excited over the idea of going to Disneyland. I'm going to have to do more researching! Thanks a bunch. Now, if only flights to Cali were as cheap as to Florida for us Canadians!

 

[AKASnowWhite]

Originally posted by Rajah
Other than Splash Mountain, I can't really think of anything they have at both DL and WDW that is better at WDW -- everything is done better at Disneyland with the exception of Splash. At least IMHO.

Oh so very true! We just returned from our first-ever DL trip and what a BLAST we had! Comparing attractions was so much fun for us. Splash and Cinderella's Castle (as opposed to Sleeping Beauty's at DL) are the only things my family voted as "Better at WDW"!

 

[AKASnowWhite]

Ok, I did forget ONE thing that my DS voted "Better at WDW".....THE BATHROOMS!!!! That was because we found the bathrooms at DL to be less conveniently located than at WDW. For those of us with small bladder capacity, that's very important to know!