Some not so quick thoughts from our too quick a trip

[NJlauren]

I haven't decided if I am going to do a full trip report or not yet, but I do have some thoughts I wanted to get out so I thought I would post them here. Overall an amazing trip but it has me wanting to go back now, and we are probably a year plus from another trip to DL or WDW

First and foremost thank you to everyone on the Disneyland forum for amazing advice tips, and answering endless questions, it was so helpful and I couldn't have planned this trip with out all of you!

The amazing:
- Disneyland hotel, I am so happy we chose to stay here, the pool was amazing, the room was amazing as well, such nice details in everything, really loved it here
- Disneyland hotel service, we left two small items in the hotel, the staff called to see if we wanted them to mail them to us, they were a Tutu I had for the 5k, and a iPhone charger, this is amazing! I have left stuff in other hotels and they can never seem to find it! Great service on this front, (Also see the not so good)
- I didn't get on a bus, monorail (expect as a ride/experience), or taxi for our whole stay it was amazing!
- atmosphere, I just felt like everyone was so happy to be there (not my toddler at times) but overall all the guests were friendly and happy and it was just great.
- the locals! I loved them! We chatted with a few in line and at the Lego store I really love chatting with locals everywhere I go, so this was a huge plus for me.
- theming in Cars Land and Bugs Land, was out of this world, I just felt so immersed, it was amazing I wish I had more time to spend in just these two lands. I can only hope the stuff coming to the parks in the next few years is as good!
- cleanliness, parks were so clean as we're all the bathrooms
- early entry, some conversation about this lately, but at DCA it was amazing 2 rides on Toy Story before 920 and it took us a while to get back there with a toddler! Less success at DL but I was expecting that, still worth it for us
- the characters, my daughter was really into meeting characters this trip, we found the interactions to be great, and plentiful, shout out to Anna & Elsa, Minnie in DCA, Doc Mcstuffins (giving check ups, Mickey has stinkyits), Chip at the goofy breakfast, she was still a little timid as this was our first full day, and first characters of the trip, he played peek a boo behind a half wall with her off and on our whole meal, by the end of the trip (we saw him again and he was great then too) he was one of her favs!
- wait times, with the exception of a ride or 3 no real waits for us, and sometimes they would let us reride! (Ariel ride, Winnie the Pooh and Heimlich)

The good:
- food was good, we liked blue bayou, but nothing stood out as spectacular to me, we didn't get to try some things I wanted to so maybe that was part of the problem
- I loved the toddler meal options for the under 3 crowed, my DD wouldn't eat them but I loved the option and think it's a great addition (do they have this at WDW too now?)
- Downtown Disney, I liked walking through here but hated that I passed the Lego store 4 times a day (with mid day breaks) because DD had to stop and play Legos for way to long.
- baby care center is so close to the park entrance (Disneyland)I couldn't make use of it, but happy it's there
- photopass, loved that I could buy it after I saw some pics, and I did buy it. But was annoyed that the photopass with character meets was inconsistent (most had it, not all, and a few times I was told they are coming you'll miss them, like can I wait?), DCA has way more photopass photographers then DL
- the app, great for FastPass return times, and character locations. (See also the not so good)

The not so good
- overall I had no CM issues, however this is the only issue I have with DL over WDW. As a whole the CMs didn't seem to love their jobs as much. I made a comment to DH about it and he thought I was crazy and trying to find a negative (this was about 30 min after arrival). By the next day he agreed. Some CM were fabulous but the overall impression was that they were just going trough the motions.
- riding as a single...one afternoon I went solo for a bit, and every time I went on a ride in Fantasyland they didn't fill the vehicle. Example Pinocchio there is a group of 2 behind me we each went in separate cars, instead of me in one row and them in another of the same car.... Maybe because it wasn't crowded? But I found this so odd? Also single on pirates I didn't share my row?
- ice cream snacks.... I LOVE Mickey bars, but every one I got was frozen solid like I had to wait 10 minutes before I could even eat it... My husband said his Mickey sandwich was the same way....odd, or so I thought
- the app, oh the app. Horrible to use as a map, maybe we just couldn't figure it out but, ugh...
- bathrooms I hate that there are no bathrooms in the (possible just the quick service) restaurants, in the parks and downtown Disney what is that?!?!?

Thank you again to everyone for helping me plan!

ETA: I also missed my magic band, I liked having my room key and park ticket on my wrist and missed that.

 

[DLgal]

Glad you had a great time overall.

Ii just need to ask what do you mean by your last comment about bathrooms? I have been to several bathrooms in restaurants at both parks and downtown Disney.

 

[alvernon90]

- bathrooms I hate that there are no bathrooms in the restaurants, in the parks and downtown Disney what is that?!?!?

Uh, what? I think something is lost in translation here. The DTD restaurants do have restrooms.

 

[NJlauren]

Glad you had a great time overall.

Ii just need to ask what do you mean by your last comment about bathrooms? I have been to several bathrooms in restaurants at both parks and downtown Disney.

Uh, what? I think something is lost in translation here. The DTD restaurants do have restrooms.

Ok so maybe it was just where we ate, because we mostly did QS but every time I asked for a bathroom example earl of sandwhich I was told it was passed the Lego store....

 

[BriannaRuth]

Glad you had a great trip!

You're right; they rarely fill the cars in FL. A couple of times my kids wanted to ride by themselves in a four person car (Alice) ... they just said "2" at the entrance, then we said "2" right behind them and we were never put in the same car. The same is true at Pooh even though you can fit like 6 in those cars. I think we may have had someone with us once or twice on Pooh in all the times we've been to DL. I've definitely seen single riders on Pooh with a car all to themselves. I can't really think of any attraction where there are 4 or less to a car and they put you with others on a regular basis. Maybe it's so family oriented they just don't do that.

 

[STLstone]

....

The not so good
- overall I had no CM issues, however this is the only issue I have with DL over WDW. As a whole the CMs didn't seem to love their jobs as much. I made a comment to DH about it and he thought I was crazy and trying to find a negative (this was about 30 min after arrival). By the next day he agreed. Some CM were fabulous but the overall impression was that they were just going trough the motions.
- riding as a single...one afternoon I went solo for a bit, and every time I went on a ride in Fantasyland they didn't fill the vehicle. Example Pinocchio there is a group of 2 behind me we each went in separate cars, instead of me in one row and them in another of the same car.... Maybe because it wasn't crowded? But I found this so odd? Also single on pirates I didn't share my row?
- ice cream snacks.... I LOVE Mickey bars, but every one I got was frozen solid like I had to wait 10 minutes before I could even eat it... My husband said his Mickey sandwich was the same way....odd, or so I thought
- the app, oh the app. Horrible to use as a map, maybe we just couldn't figure it out but, ugh...
- bathrooms I hate that there are no bathrooms in the (possible just the quick service) restaurants, in the parks and downtown Disney what is that?!?!?

Thank you again to everyone for helping me plan!

I noticed this exact thing on my trip to DL a couple of years ago. They were still good employees in DL - good as any other well-run businees - but at WDW they act like they're as happy to be there as you are.

When I take a step back, it's probably not a realistic expectation for anywhere else on the planet to be as good (on this one topic) as WDW, though.

 

[NJlauren]

I noticed this exact thing on my trip to DL a couple of years ago. They were still good employees in DL - good as any other well-run businees - but at WDW they act like they're as happy to be there as you are.

When I take a step back, it's probably not a realistic expectation for anywhere else on the planet to be as good (on this one topic) as WDW, though.

Exactly not bad, just not loving it. We think it is probably due to most people go to WDW to work while DL are a lot of locals, less people moving there to work, or working on a college program etc.

 

[chickapin parterre]

...what is really odd about Pinocchio, is that if you ride early in the morning, you don't even have to leave the transport vehicle if you want to ride over and over and over and over to catch all the details. As a single rider, I have never had company on Pinocchio or snow white, why shucks, never had even anyone screaming down my neck neither now that you bring up oddity.

 

[chickapin parterre]

great observations about the bathrooms.....they were one of the last attractions added to Disneyland. They are all along the edges with the exception of the Adventureland bathrooms and they are indeed well hidden. Fantsyland has two, but once again hidden away, one on no path to any immediate attraction and the other built to accommodate folks before or after the skyway, which now that I think about it, is why tomorrowland bathroom is in its strange location, though there is the long train ride

 

[jevs]

Thanks for your thoughts

We are heading back to DL later this year after doing WDW last year. I do agree with the bathrooms, they were all super clean (also clean at WDW). I think we ran into one grumpy CM and one that looked beyond bored at DL which is pretty good given we were there for 10 days - and who would know what had happened just prior to make them grumpy/bored.

Glad you had a great trip!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

Exactly not bad, just not loving it. We think it is probably due to most people go to WDW to work while DL are a lot of locals, less people moving there to work, or working on a college program etc.

While there is no excuse for unprofessional behavior, I think right now a lot of CMs look like they are going thorugh the motions because they are still learning their jobs. Schools have recently started up out here, so there has been seasonal turnover with CMs leaving for school and new CMs moving here for school and getting jobs. We find that CMs out here have deeper roots and more guest connections because they aren't on an internship. CMs know, or at least recogize, us because they stick around long term. Definitely contact Guest Services if you felt that the lack of enthusiasm was a noticeable problem.

There are public restrooms in DtD -- one between the Lego Store and the new Starbucks, one between Wetzel's Pretzels and Haagen Dazs. Sometimes a TS restaurant will let you use their restroom. In the parks, CS places are usually located near/relatively near a restroom. In DL there are restrooms by Plaza Inn (by ST or the Baby Care Center for a toddler), Jolly Holiday (entrance to AL or the Baby Care Center for a toddler), Village Haus, Galactic Grill (by Autopia or Alice), Pizza Port (by the SM exit), NOS CS places (by the train station), Hungry Bear has its own restrooms, etc. In DCA there are restrooms by Award Weiners (just past CCR), Smoke Jumpers Grill (across from Soarin'), Flo's (right next door), Pacific Wharf (by Lucky Fortune Cookery), the Wine Terrace (by the podium for WCT), Paradise Gardens (next to PGG), etc.

Agree about the Mickey ice cream bars. Love the idea, but not chipping our teeth!

 

[NJlauren]

Thanks for your thoughts

We are heading back to DL later this year after doing WDW last year. I do agree with the bathrooms, they were all super clean (also clean at WDW). I think we ran into one grumpy CM and one that looked beyond bored at DL which is pretty good given we were there for 10 days - and who would know what had happened just prior to make them grumpy/bored.

Glad you had a great trip!

Agreed clean at both WDW and DL, I was not trying not to compare for the most part as I don't think they are really comparable. I don't think I had any grumpy CMs just not as many very friendly CMs, on an average WDW
trip we get at least 1/2 Mickey stickers a day.... We got one all trip at the airport in San Diego from a Disney cruise line CM, though one CM did give us a button. The CMs weren't bad, they just didn't seem to love there jobs as much as at WDW.

While there is no excuse for unprofessional behavior, I think right now a lot of CMs look like they are going thorugh the motions because they are still learning their jobs. Schools have recently started up out here, so there has been seasonal turnover with CMs leaving for school and new CMs moving here for school and getting jobs. We find that CMs out here have deeper roots and more guest connections because they aren't on an internship. CMs know, or at least recogize, us because they stick around long term. Definitely contact Guest Services if you felt that the lack of enthusiasm was a noticeable problem.

There are public restrooms in DtD -- one between the Lego Store and the new Starbucks, one between Wetzel's Pretzels and Haagen Dazs. Sometimes a TS restaurant will let you use their restroom. In the parks, CS places are usually located near/relatively near a restroom. In DL there are restrooms by Plaza Inn (by ST or the Baby Care Center for a toddler), Jolly Holiday (entrance to AL or the Baby Care Center for a toddler), Village Haus, Galactic Grill (by Autopia or Alice), Pizza Port (by the SM exit), NOS CS places (by the train station), Hungry Bear has its own restrooms, etc. In DCA there are restrooms by Award Weiners (just past CCR), Smoke Jumpers Grill (across from Soarin'), Flo's (right next door), Pacific Wharf (by Lucky Fortune Cookery), the Wine Terrace (by the podium for WCT), Paradise Gardens (next to PGG), etc.

Agree about the Mickey ice cream bars. Love the idea, but not chipping our teeth!

Most of the bathrooms you mentioned are outside of the actual restaurant.... Public Is fine but if I'm eating at earl of sandwhich why do I need to go to a public restroom? Really a small issue over all for me.

As for the CMs I hear what your saying and none were rude or grumpy they were fine, and I have no overall complaints, but since most of my trips are to WDW I think my expectations were different. I would never complain about a CM unless they were flat out rude or inappropriate. I strongly believe (for all jobs) this is thier livelihood and I'm not jeopardizing that because they weren't giving my kid stickers, or acting like servicing me an apple juice was the greatest thing ever.

They should set the freezers to something above negative 50

 

[theluckyrabbit]

The only CS place in DtD that has its own restroom (to my knowledge) is the larger Starbucks. Most of the restrooms are outside CS places because it makes the most of one restroom location (access from more than one restaurant). Rather than build restrooms inside each and every CS location, Disney has decided to have relatively centrally located restrooms which can be used by guests at more than one restaurant. It may be more convenient in theory to have a restroom in each CS place, but if the DtD Starbucks is anything to go by, the line there is almost always very long. There may only be 2 or 3 people waiting, but it can take over 20 minutes to get to the restroom; whereas I can go into one of the outside restrooms and be done in only a few minutes. I guess, ideally, Disney needs to have more restrooms and fewer guests using them! (In my dreams...)

 

[Angel Ariel]

I noticed this exact thing on my trip to DL a couple of years ago. They were still good employees in DL - good as any other well-run businees - but at WDW they act like they're as happy to be there as you are.

When I take a step back, it's probably not a realistic expectation for anywhere else on the planet to be as good (on this one topic) as WDW, though.

I find this interesting, because in our experience we've always felt the opposite. Maybe we've just been lucky in who we have run into at DL, but we've always had fantastic interactions at DLR with CMs. Guest services, front line CMs, characters, photopass. There was one particular CM who took photopass shots at the Partners statue when we were going to DLR between 2009-2011 (we lived in the Pac NW at the time, so we made it there once/year then)...without fail he remembered us every year and we always had a nice conversation with him when we saw him. I feel a more personal touch at DLR than at WDW where I just feel like another random face in the crowd to every CM. Not that they aren't nice (we've never had rude CMs on either coast), but that it's just a job whereas DLR it has always felt like there's more investment in the magic (from what we've seen an experienced personally).

It's always interesting to see how everyone's experience is different!

 

[thumperjr9]

We just got back from our very first DL trip (8/23-8/30). As WDW veterans we couldn't help but compare the two. I have to agree with you on many points.

Cleanliness - I couldn't believe how clean and well maintained everything is....I would say more so than WDW.

Characters - All I can say is wow!! Way more characters and fairly short lines. Definitely more opportunities for character interaction than WDW. However I was traveling with my DS17 so we didn't do character meet and greets with the exception of Oswald which we were so excited to see!!

Cars Land - Couldn't agree with you more. Both my DS and I loved the theming and neither of us are even big Cars (movie) fans. I was blown away with how it looked at night. We NEED a Cars land in WDW!!

Restrooms- Didn't really pay much attention to them. Actually didn't use them that much. It was pretty warm and we were probably slighty dehydrated much of the time.

Food - We ate mostly CS. Everything was ok. My DS really liked the corn dogs at the cart at the end of Main St. near the hub. Earl of Sandwich is one of our favorites and such a good value. We often eat there at WDW too.

Cast Members - Our experience was a little different. We were just in WDW in July and while we didn't have any bad experiences with CM's there, we felt the CM's in DL/DCA were more enthusiastic and helpful. I guess that is such an individual thing and by chance which CM's you encounter throughout your day. Maybe we were very lucky.

So it sounds like your family had a good DL trip. My DS and I really enjoyed our first visit to DL.....maybe too much!! My DS said he would rather go back to DL than WDW and since we live in the northeast it will cost me more.

 

[NJlauren]

We just got back from our very first DL trip (8/23-8/30). As WDW veterans we couldn't help but compare the two. I have to agree with you on many points.

Cleanliness - I couldn't believe how clean and well maintained everything is....I would say more so than WDW.

Characters - All I can say is wow!! Way more characters and fairly short lines. Definitely more opportunities for character interaction than WDW. However I was traveling with my DS17 so we didn't do character meet and greets with the exception of Oswald which we were so excited to see!!

Cars Land - Couldn't agree with you more. Both my DS and I loved the theming and neither of us are even big Cars (movie) fans. I was blown away with how it looked at night. We NEED a Cars land in WDW!!

Restrooms- Didn't really pay much attention to them. Actually didn't use them that much. It was pretty warm and we were probably slighty dehydrated much of the time.

Food - We ate mostly CS. Everything was ok. My DS really liked the corn dogs at the cart at the end of Main St. near the hub. Earl of Sandwich is one of our favorites and such a good value. We often eat there at WDW too.

Cast Members - Our experience was a little different. We were just in WDW in July and while we didn't have any bad experiences with CM's there, we felt the CM's in DL/DCA were more enthusiastic and helpful. I guess that is such an individual thing and by chance which CM's you encounter throughout your day. Maybe we were very lucky.

So it sounds like your family had a good DL trip. My DS and I really enjoyed our first visit to DL.....maybe too much!! My DS said he would rather go back to DL than WDW and since we live in the northeast it will cost me more.

I do agree CM impressions can be a lot of who you meet and when. Overall seems like we both have fabulous trips!