Top 5 things that are better at Disneyland than at Walt Disney World

[LeahZ]

Bigger isn't always better and while Walt Disney's original theme park is smaller, it still has the advantage over its East-coast counterpart in a few key areas.

Read more here:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/disneyland/t...r-at-disneyland-than-at-walt-disney-world.htm

 

[kidd_freeper]

The article missed a big one: the weather.

In Florida, it rains almost every day and it is very humid from March to November.

 

[Suvadoo]

Bigger isn't always better and while Walt Disney's original theme park is smaller, it still has the advantage over its East-coast counterpart in a few key areas.

Read more here:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/disneyland/t...r-at-disneyland-than-at-walt-disney-world.htm

Here's what I would add from least important to most important :

Alice in Wonderland
You can walk to Downtown Disney
There are still slow times of the year
The CM's are more enthusiastic and more helpful ( IMO)
No FP+

 

[minnie mum]

Here's what I would add from least important to most important :

Alice in Wonderland
You can walk to Downtown Disney
There are still slow times of the year
The CM's are more enthusiastic and more helpful ( IMO)
No FP+

The bolded item is all I need to know to rate DLR over WDW any day of the week.

 

[kbelle8995]

NO FP+.

I think that WDW has done some not so great things for their parks. WDW needs to take a long hard look at Disneyland and make some changes.
Here's what WDW could do.
1). More Maintance and Custodial CM's please
2). More and better entertainment not less.
3). Finish a construction project and then start a new one.

WDW and Disneyland both have their Pluses and minuses. It seems like Disneyland is on the upswing and WDW on a downswing.

 

[Suvadoo]

The bolded item is all I need to know to rate DLR over WDW any day of the week.

Really, that's my favorite thing about DLR and I hope it never changes. At DLR you can still decide to what to do at the spur of the moment. No planning required!

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Tower of Terror is better at WDW. Haunted Mansion about the same but the edge goes to WDW. (I have never seen the overlay DL does end of the year though, but I think I'd still want the regular old HM back).

At DLR you can still decide to what to do at the spur of the moment. No planning required!

Not all the time. With their new system for handing out wait times unless you are there early you probably won't get to meet Anna and Elsa.

 

[wareagle57]

Tower of Terror is better at WDW. Haunted Mansion about the same but the edge goes to WDW. (I have never seen the overlay DL does end of the year though, but I think I'd still want the regular old HM back).



Not all the time. With their new system for handing out wait times unless you are there early you probably won't get to meet Anna and Elsa.

ToT was the biggest thing I noticed, and not just the ride. The CMs. They weren't in character. They talked in their normal voices and didn't say anything foreboding. It was strange. I only rode it twice so I don't know if it's like that all the time or I just got unlucky.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I don't know about the CMs (some at WDW seem to enjoy "putting on the character" but some don't) but the ride is built with one drop shaft instead of 2. So there is no moving between the shafts like the WDW ride. The cars ascend and descend on the same shaft, rather like an actual elevator would. So there are not the same effects or the same level of anticipation.

 

[Suvadoo]

Tower of Terror is better at WDW. Haunted Mansion about the same but the edge goes to WDW. (I have never seen the overlay DL does end of the year though, but I think I'd still want the regular old HM back).



Not all the time. With their new system for handing out wait times unless you are there early you probably won't get to meet Anna and Elsa.

OK that's one M&G, but I don't think you can even compare that to what is required at WDW! Oh and they will be requiring FP for Fantasmic during the holidays.
Nevertheless the planning is minimal. NO FP+ is fabulous at DLR.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I do WDW all the time without much advance planning, but I go frequently.

 

[Suvadoo]

I do WDW all the time without much advance planning, but I go frequently.

v

I
I do both WDW and DLR and IMO DLR is way better. FP+ is awful IMO.

At least they keep re-investing in the parks at DLR. I don't walk into dirty bathrooms at DLR, I don't deal with Stressed out CM's at DLR, and I always see suits walking around at DLR and checking on things.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Sorry, but I can't agree that WDW is an epidemic of dirty bathrooms, stressed CMs and no suits in the parks, because I've seen clean bathrooms (yes, some dirty ones too), good CMs and plenty of suits.

Disneyland was in the downswing not that long ago, but they've worked on it. And there are still things they need to work on. The deserted track for the former Rocket Rods for one thing. Now it's WDW's turn to be worked on (some new stuff is coming to AK and Epcot and lots of new stuff to DHS, and DHS needs it.) And they also have been letting go of beloved entertainment acts and replacing them with pretty much nothing (Billy Hill and the Hillbillies anybody.)

 

[stephm0188]

POTC is so much more awesome at DLR.

And CA? It's like they took the best stuff from HS/EC/AK, put it into CA and then filled in the area with even more fantastic stuff.

 

[wisblue]

Really, that's my favorite thing about DLR and I hope it never changes. At DLR you can still decide to what to do at the spur of the moment. No planning required!

So, you're telling me that when we visit DLR during the week of New Year's Day, we'll be able to decide on the spur of the moment when we want to experience Radiator Springs Racers, World of Color, Indiana Jones, etc. and that we don't have to do any planning at all to do whatever we want?

For people who can visit DL (or WDW for that matter) at the least busy times of the year, maybe paper FP gives you more flexibility. But, having experienced FP+ over the Christmas holidays last year, I know that I wouldn't mind having 3 FPs lined up in advance every day when we visit Disneyland, including on our arrival day.

Different strokes. Especially for people who live a lot closer to DLR than WDW.

 

[ktlm]

We usually go to DLR in the summer and WDW in the fall or winter and I agree with absolutely everything the article says.

I also agree that no FP+ should be put on the list. We went to DLR this summer after having our first experience with FP+ at WDW, and it felt like total freedom, less stress, and far more enjoyment. Since then we have been back to WDW and had our 2nd FP+ trip, and my feeling hasn't changed. We still love WDW, but boy is the freedom and lack of the annoying pre-planning and pre-structured day wonderful at DLR.

 

[kbelle8995]

Sorry, but I can't agree that WDW is an epidemic of dirty bathrooms, stressed CMs and no suits in the parks, because I've seen clean bathrooms (yes, some dirty ones too), good CMs and plenty of suits.

Disneyland was in the downswing not that long ago, but they've worked on it. And there are still things they need to work on. The deserted track for the former Rocket Rods for one thing. Now it's WDW's turn to be worked on (some new stuff is coming to AK and Epcot and lots of new stuff to DHS, and DHS needs it.) And they also have been letting go of beloved entertainment acts and replacing them with pretty much nothing (Billy Hill and the Hillbillies anybody.)

I went over to TTC to get my car and went into the restroom. DIRTY. Water all over the floor, toilet paper everywhere, toilets stopped up. I also avoid any bathrooms near a character breakfast. Looks like a tornado hit it. Also the bathroom behind Journey into Imagination. It was cleanish but the floor was sticky.

I saw suits but very few custodial CMs. I haven't seen any grumpy CM's either but I don't deny that they are there either. I try to be friendly myself. I see a lot of grumpy guests at WDW don't know about Disneyland.

I also think that if you Compare Disney World to Disneyland, WDW is going to lose every time.

 

[grimley1968]

I would add Fantasmic to the list of things better at DLR than at WDW. At DLR, Fantasmic takes place on the river and you can just watch it from tons of places along walkways, etc. within Disneyland. There's no big patience-trying process like at DHS where you have to wait to get seats or waste a FP+ on it. And I think the show is just as good. I'm not sure they still do Fantasmic at DLR, though, since my experience was about 10 years ago.

Another thing I like about DLR is that they have more "kiddie" rides within Fantasyland and Storybookland that absorb crowds better than the rides at MK's Fantasyland do.

 

[wareagle57]

I would add Fantasmic to the list of things better at DLR than at WDW. At DLR, Fantasmic takes place on the river and you can just watch it from tons of places along walkways, etc. within Disneyland. There's no big patience-trying process like at DHS where you have to wait to get seats or waste a FP+ on it. And I think the show is just as good. I'm not sure they still do Fantasmic at DLR, though, since my experience was about 10 years ago.

Another thing I like about DLR is that they have more "kiddie" rides within Fantasyland and Storybookland that absorb crowds better than the rides at MK's Fantasyland do.

They still do it. I went for the first time in January and I loved it. I would say the show it's self is a little better out there too. There are a few floats and scenes and characters that are not in the DHS version for some reason.

 

[grimley1968]

They still do it. I went for the first time in January and I loved it. I would say the show it's self is a little better out there too. There are a few floats and scenes and characters that are not in the DHS version for some reason.

It's so much more relaxing, IMO, to watch it like a "river parade." We had lots of people between us and the river that, if it had been a regular parade on the streets, would have blocked our view. We could see everything just fine on the river, though. I guess they have more floats because there's more room on that river than in DHS' amphitheater. And there was no logjam of people heading in one direction after the show like at DHS; they just went on to their next attraction within DLR (I was there in June when the parks' hours were late).