Which to visit: DL or WDW

[legler2250]

I would somewhat simply break it down as such: If you have or want something less than 4 full days and/or want some additional non-Disney, non-theme park time, Disneyland is the place for you. If you have 5+ days and only want Disney stuff, Disney World is the place for you.

Getting more "in the weeds" with the question, Disneyland is the better place if you are into the theme park experience only. Meaning all you want to do is attend the theme parks and do little else. It's just so much easier to get between parks and get to multiple attractions with minimal hassle. Average attractions are the same or better at Disneyland with a few exceptions and much more packed into the parks.

If you want the full bubble experience with good restaurants at the Disney resorts plus other activities around the property (golf, pools, mini-golf, Disney Springs, etc.) and have the time to get from point A to point B to point C, Disney World is probably your place.

I rarely have the time or choose to spend a week in Disney World (as much as I enjoy it) and find Disneyland just more fun and a better use of less days to pack more fun in. Just my 2 cents and YMMV.

You explained that much better than I could have and totally agree with you!

 

[VandVsmama]

We’ve only ever been to Disney World (last time 6 years ago) and are planning a trip for December. Now my sister wants us to go to Disneyland and put off the trip a year to wait for Super Nintendo World at Universal. Which is better - DL or WDW?
I've heard good things about Disneyland, but of course it is smaller and does not have Animal Kingdom or Epcot. So what do people who have been to both think of them?

Asking whether DL or WDW is better is kind of like asking which flavor of ice cream at Baskin & Robbins is best.

Some of my favorites about WDW:

• there's some really great stuff to do outside of the parks - horseback riding, renting a boat or canoe
• options for TS restaurants are much better - there's a lot more of them
• feels like you can truly escape the outside world and 'get away from it all'
• lots of great on site resorts to choose from & some really fun pools, too
• 4 unique parks to choose from + 2 water parks
• there's something awesome about taking the monoral INTO the CR. And having a cocktail at Geyser Point at WL.

Some of my favorites about DL:

• there's as many attractions at DL & DCA as there are in the 4 parks at WDW, but everything's closer together
• VERY EASY to park hop. Just walk across the esplanade!
• better QS meal options compared to WDW, so if you want to pay less for food overall (i.e., by avoiding TS), it's easy to do that at DL
• better weather! You won't have to sweat your behind off all day.
• Carsland is really great.
• POTC is twice as long.
• Space Mtn is a better ride at DL.
• Indiana Jones is better than Dinosaur at AK.
• You can stay 'off site' at a cheaper hotel on Harbor Blvd and WALK to the parks for a shorter distance than if you stayed at the CR and walked to MK.

What will NOT work is if you go to DL with an attitude of "But I don't like this because it's not exactly like WDW!" that's exactly the point. It's NOT WDW. It's different. But it's still amazing and you'll have a wonderful time.

Go for a 4 day park hopper. 3 days is enough to get a good taste. 4 or 5 days are better.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Disneyland is totally doable in 2 days, especially if you are already familiar with the rides. As everyone has said, it's smaller, more intimate, and easier to navigate. If you are looking for a quick getaway or want to tack 2 days of Disney onto a longer trip (beach, etc) then it is perfect, particularly in the summer when FL weather can be...unpleasant. Carsland is AWESOME, Small World is better, and the Grand California hotel is incredibly beautiful. I don't know if I would say that every other overlap ride is better at Disneyland and there are definitely rides that are unique to both Cali and Florida.

Advantages for Disney World - even with a week you won't be able to do everything you want to do, so if you have time and you want to be "on vacation" it's the place to go. There's something magical about wandering around the lands in Epcot at night. I have probably done it 100 times and it never gets old. There's also more variety and in many ways it's just easier than Disneyland (everything from getting from the airport to having MagicBands to pay for stuff, plus My Disney Experience on the app is WAAAY easier for FL than it is for Cali).

Depending on what else you have planned, Disneyland California is well worth going to, but it is worth saving for part of a longer SoCal trip. Otherwise, a lot has changed in Florida in the past 6 years so it isn't like going back to Disney World is going to feel old/stale at this point.

 

[Malcon10t]

What will NOT work is if you go to DL with an attitude of "But I don't like this because it's not exactly like WDW!" that's exactly the point. It's NOT WDW. It's different. But it's still amazing and you'll have a wonderful time.

Go for a 4 day park hopper. 3 days is enough to get a good taste. 4 or 5 days are better.

The reverse is also true. After 60 years of only Disneyland, we went to WDW. We enjoyed it. But we also went in with they are different parks and had different goals. I always have a trip planned for Disneyland. (Currently planning 6 different trips!). However, when I came home from WDW, and people asked if I was going back, I said yes, but give me a couple years. FOR ME, Disneyland is like having a relaxing staycation 6 hours from home. We frequently refer to it as coming home. WDW took a lot more out of me. But I will go back.

ETA - I would love to go back to just spend a short week at Animal Kingdom. That was my favorite park.

 

[DLmama]

DL is home. WDW is a vacation. I love them both, but they are different.

Living in Northern CA, I'm a quick hour flight away from DL and can enjoy a weekend. WDW takes planning and almost a full travel day. But once there, I'm in the bubble and can mostly ignore the outside world.

I went on my first "once in a lifetime" trip to WDW in 2017. We've been back twice since with another trip planned at the end of the year. We also just upgraded to a Magic Key, so we'll get a few more weekends at DL this year.

 

[Tarheel girl 1975]

I would somewhat simply break it down as such: If you have or want something less than 4 full days and/or want some additional non-Disney, non-theme park time, Disneyland is the place for you. If you have 5+ days and only want Disney stuff, Disney World is the place for you.

Getting more "in the weeds" with the question, Disneyland is the better place if you are into the theme park experience only. Meaning all you want to do is attend the theme parks and do little else. It's just so much easier to get between parks and get to multiple attractions with minimal hassle. Average attractions are the same or better at Disneyland with a few exceptions and much more packed into the parks.

If you want the full bubble experience with good restaurants at the Disney resorts plus other activities around the property (golf, pools, mini-golf, Disney Springs, etc.) and have the time to get from point A to point B to point C, Disney World is probably your place.

I rarely have the time or choose to spend a week in Disney World (as much as I enjoy it) and find Disneyland just more fun and a better use of less days to pack more fun in. Just my 2 cents and YMMV.

Agree.

WDW is a better resort vacation. There really isn't anything at DL that compares to what all the WDW resorts, waterparks, and Disney Spring have to offer.

Disneyland is a better park experience. With a few exceptions, the rides and entertainment are both better at Disneyland and DCA.

 

[JohnR5101]

Disneyland is totally doable in 2 days, especially if you are already familiar with the rides.

Maybe doable at a fast pace and not experiencing all the details. As mentioned there are as many attractions as in all of WDW. So, if all of WDW attractions were in a single park, would you feel like you could do it all in 2 days? Its sort of like that.

Personally, I love the details, and even all the rides. Enjoying the food adds to the experience. I prefer that rather than just grabbing quick bites all the time. So for me I will always get the 5 day park hopper.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Maybe doable at a fast pace and not experiencing all the details. As mentioned there are as many attractions as in all of WDW. So, if all of WDW attractions were in a single park, would you feel like you could do it all in 2 days? Its sort of like that.

Personally, I love the details, and even all the rides. Enjoying the food adds to the experience. I prefer that rather than just grabbing quick bites all the time. So for me I will always get the 5 day park hopper.

I'll have a 5 day park hopper next month as well, though to be fair I'll be working a lot of that time.

There aren't nearly as many attractions in DL as there are across all 4 parks at WDW. And not every attraction will work for every family. So as long as parks aren't insanely crowded you can totally do most of the rides in 1 park in a day, or your favorites across 2 parks in a day if you are smart about your time. If you do 3 sit-down meals, long shows/parades, or have a child who is only interested in meeting princesses that takes longer.

The last 2 times we went to DL we only spent 2 days in the parks and never felt like we missed out on anything, but after 9 days at WDW we always feel like there was more we could have done if we had had more time. Before VIP we used to go on family reunions, again with 2 day park hopper tickets and 1-2 meals/day, and it was fine.

 

[mouschievous]

According to this, the two coasts have nearly the same number of rides (not attractions), which I find interesting. That jives with our feeling that there was less to do in each individual park at WDW than in each individual park at DL.

 

[PirateBoatDropRide]

Love this thread even though it's been discussed many times in many different threads. The DL vs WDW is the classic discussion. How two parks can be so similar and so different at the same time is very interesting to me.

If I could have only one with the current state of things, give me DL as it works better for what Disney corporate seems to be trying to do. That said, there is certainly something magical about the Disney bubble that WDW excels in providing. Unfortunately, DL seems to provide a better bang for your buck (and time) right now. My only wish is that DL had Epcot, then it would be the near perfect place.

 

[mouschievous]

My only wish is that DL had Epcot, then it would be the near perfect place.

If DL had World Showcase and Flight of Passage, my life would be complete!

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

ETA - I would love to go back to just spend a short week at Animal Kingdom. That was my favorite park.

I love that you said this. I have only been to WDW once and only went to MK and AK. I always hear people say they don’t like AK or even recommend a visit but I loved that park! And my visit was before the Avatar stuff was completed. I can’t wait to see that some day!

 

[Tigger's ally]

If DL had World Showcase and Flight of Passage, my life would be complete!

Yeah, those two are my faves. Favorite night time place to be and favorite ride of any amusement parks I have been.

 

[mdmost]

California Adventure was supposed to be the West Coast version of Epcot, entitled WestCOT. Soaring land prices and Disneyland Paris being a failure helped kill it.

https://www.yesterland.com/westcot1.html

 

[PirateBoatDropRide]

Yeah, those two are my faves. Favorite night time place to be and favorite ride of any amusement parks I have been.

Quintessential DW is being in World Showcase at night. The only thing I think of the same or more for nighttime Disney Parks is being in Disneyland Park/Magic Kingdom at night.

California Adventure was supposed to be the West Coast version of Epcot, entitled WestCOT. Soaring land prices and Disneyland Paris being a failure helped kill it.

https://www.yesterland.com/westcot1.html

Could you imagine if this happened? Long Beach would look and feel so different.

 

[kikismom]

We went on our first trip to DW the week before last, we've been to DL approximately 25 times. We last went to DL in October.

I love Disneyland, my parents saved for years to take my brother and I when we were kids.

All of that being said, we had a better time in DW than we did on our last DL trip. For me the atmosphere was better, the staff friendlier, and the crowds much easier to manage. I really don't want to get flamed for this so I want to make sure everyone knows Disneyland is my first love. I think we had an off trip back in October. The heat and crowds just did me in.

I loved Animal Kingdom and Epcot. Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom reminded me of California Adventure and Disneyland so those were great but I preferred the other parks.

We liked Pirates better at Disneyland, but Peter Pan, Haunted Mansion, and Jungle Cruise better at Disney World. We really missed the Fantasyland rides at DW. It was kind of sad not being able to go on Alice, Snow White, Mr. Toad, and Pinocchio. There were other rides that got our interest though.

I preferred the food choices at DW because it felt like there were so many more. Except the lack of beignets and churros, DW needs to get their act together on those. Also the fruit carts, we never found one at DW.

We loved DW but I love DL more and always will. It's a short plane ride and I can bounce back and forth from park to park during the day. Everything is so close at DL. I was very surprised how long it takes to get anywhere in DW. Plus Florida is a long plane ride for us so that was super not fun.

One other thing is we had 6 days in the parks at DW and we could have used a couple more. We didn't get hoppers though and don't see how we could have even made that work. We always get hoppers at DL and that is a plus for me.

So after that very long, probably rambly answer, if it was me I'd make a list. I love lists and spreadsheets though. It would come down to how much time I had in the parks. Six plus days would get me to DW, less and it would be DL. How long the flight is. If it was a trip where there would be time for sit down dining at various hotels and parks would be DW. Flight cost, hotel cost, transportation cost, ticket cost. All of that.

 

[Tigger's ally]

Quintessential DW is being in World Showcase at night. The only thing I think of the same or more for nighttime Disney Parks is being in Disneyland Park/Magic Kingdom at night.

I think Disney Springs was headed that way with the drone's over the water before the covid crap. I mean there are plenty of restaurants overlooking that water and second story places like the bar at Planet Hollywood and also Wine Bar George. Would be a great atmosphere and would probably make SSR a more popular place to sta y.

 

[Matrixleos]

To me, this is like asking a parent, which one of your kids do you love more? I love both parks equally and they both are different enough that I love each park's unique differences and experiences.

DLR
I love that this is the park that Walt built. You can walk up main street and imagine Walt took those same steps.

I love how close both parks are and how easily you can park hop from one to the other.

Avengers Campus and Cars Land are two of the best themed lands in ANY Disney park. So much details that you can spend hours just looking around. (SWGE is my favorite, which both parks have)

There are no wasted spaces, so many rides and attractions jam packed in both parks.

Rides that are similar in both parks, Disneyland has better versions of like Space Mountain, BTMRR, Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World and several others.

WDW
I love the Disney Bubble!

Disney Springs is an amazing shopping and entertainment district.

I absolutely love Animal Kingdom! (I don't care what anyone says, it's my favorite park) LOL

I really enjoy hotel/resort hopping on an non-park day and enjoy visiting and trying out different restaurants at many of the different Disney hotels on property.

I have blast in the non-park attractions at WDW, like the Disney Boardwalk, walking around the lake at Port Orleans, enjoy the Disney beaches at several resorts, ride the Disney Monorail, Skyliner or boats. Plus options to go to Disney themed miniature golfing or water parks.

World Showcase is amazing experience at EPCOT.

So in the end, I just can't pick just one! Only advice I can give, is if your family wanted a more rides\attractions based vacation, go to Disneyland. If they wanted to be encased in the Disney Bubble, go with Walt Disney World. Both are great and you can't make a wrong decision either way!

 

[Rich M]

Full disclosure I am a Nor Cal person and has been in DL over 100 times.

For me DL is a weekend park and DW is a vacation destination. I find DW offers more to do over a longer period of days due to the entertainment offerings and the food offerings. I like to go and enjoy my sit down meals and staying at a Disney Resort and experience the things not offered at DL. For me DL is far better than MK and I spend far less time there then I do at any other parks. I love Epcot and HS and I do not compare those to DCA in any way at all. I think of AK as a zoo with some awesome rides. I do not enjoy many sit down meals at DL but love the ones at DW.

With that said I would highly recommend coming to DL and enjoy a different park. If you think you will only come once then I highly recommend coming during Halloween time. I find that Halloween time at DL is far better than DW. Seeing the Haunted Mansion during the Nightmare Before Christmas time is great and if they do it Space Mountain as Ghosts Galaxy is so cool but overall I believe DL Space Mountain is far better. I think the plan to incorporate Universal Studios for Nintendo Land is a great idea as Universal is a half day park for at least my family with just not a lot to do but I love the studio tour. Hope you decide to come to CA and enjoy DL and see Walt's vision in action. You will have a great time.

 

[PirateBoatDropRide]

I think Disney Springs was headed that way with the drone's over the water before the covid crap. I mean there are plenty of restaurants overlooking that water and second story places like the bar at Planet Hollywood and also Wine Bar George. Would be a great atmosphere and would probably make SSR a more popular place to sta y.

Disney Springs is a fun place to be at night. Great collection or restaurants and good energy. Wish it was a little less crowded, but it's the one comparable area in WDW that puts Downtown Disney at DL to shame.