Why do you choose WDW over DLR?

[BudgieMama]

Distance. It's a 9 hour flight to Orlando from the UK and that's quite far enough!

 

[Viva Las Disney]

For me it's all about time.

If I only have a couple days I prefer Disneyland and DCA because I think they are better amusement parks but if I have a week or more I prefer WDW because it's a better overall vacation experience.

I have an AP for DL and love that I can go whenever I want but I look forward to my "vacation" in WDW all year.

 

[Julylady]

After trips to WDW in August 2011, June 2012, and June 2013, we decided to go to Anaheim in June 2014 due to the excessive HEAT in Florida. The heat, rain, and humidity, particularly last summer, just wore us out. At the end of that trip we swore we would never do WDW in the summer again. We are taking my nieces to Disneyland for 5 days and then joining my DB/DSIL in San Diego ((He will be there for work earlier) for a few days. I can't wait for Carsland and World of Color!

 

[JimmyV]

...we stay for an extended period of time (3+ weeks usually) We like to add a Disney Cruise...

Marry me! And if that doesn't work...adopt me.

 

[BWVPam]

I grew up going to DL and didn't take my first trip toWDW until I was in my early 30's. I can drive to DL in one day versus having to fly to WDW. None of that matters, we all still prefer WDW. WDW is more of a vacation to us than DL. We can do DL in a weekend versus having the full vacation value going to WDW.

Not to say I don't like DL, there just isn't as many things to do and I love staying on-site. Most of the hotels around DL are a little run-down for my tastes. I too feel the CM's are much more frindly at WDW.

DL has CarsLand and that is a major plus in my opinion. But, we did MK/DCA in a day last August and now my main vacation is a week at WDW and a week on the Cruise coming up in 7 weeks

 

[Gumbo4x4]

In order of significance:

Animal Kingdom
1,000 mile drive vs 2,000 mile drive
Blizzard Beach
Epcot
Typhoon Lagoon

California Adventure does look interesting though

 

[mom2rtk]

We are about mid-way between the 2 resorts. We love them both for different reasons. But until this FP+ mess settles down, we're choosing to go west.

If you take FP+ out of the equation, we generally choose WDW. It's about the more immersive feeling many have mentioned. And you can stay longer for the same money.

DLR does not have on-site value hotels. If you want lower cost accommodations, they are close, but you do have to step out of the bubble. And without as many on-site rooms to fill, the deals aren't as great.

To me the most frustrating thing about DLR is that you cannot buy more than a 5 day ticket. Above that you have to take a big jump to an AP. And for the occasional or once a year visitor, it's hard to make that pay.

 

[mslhb]

We choose WDW for location. It is a cheap direct 2 hour flight from Ohio and in the same time zone which makes it nice.

 

[CarlaLovesDisney]

There's just a lot more to do in WDW. I mean, it's got twice the amount of parks. But DL is way more laid back imo, and also the original Disney park.

 

[khaleesi]

Location, location, location


2.5 hour direct flight from Buffalo to Orlando vs... I have no idea! LOL. I hate to travel. I would LOVE to go to DL, but until someone invents teleportation it's not very likely to happen. That's not even factoring in the cost. It's based purely on the amount of time I would be trapped in an airplane.

 

[jrjankowski8]

I go to WDW because it's closer now.. but I lived 10 miles from DL for 4 years and went there over 200 times. I would be hard pressed to choose, but I think I would chose DL. Some of the rides at DL are better: Space Mountain Pirates Splash Peter Pan The Monorail is more of a ride than transportation. DL has rides WDW MK doesn't: Mr. Toad! Snow White! Alice Matterhorn!!! Roger Rabbit Carsland RSR beats Test Track for me Storybook Land Canal Boats (At night it's really cool!) Indy Grizzly River Run better than Kali River Rapids As someone mentioned previously, DL, DCA, and DTD are all doable in one day BY WALKING. World of Color is AMAZING! Fantasmic is better at DL Star Tours is in DL, not a separate park. However, staying onsite at DL is more expensive than WDW (if you count Values, which DL doesn't have), but cheaper with the offsite hotels than values. Crowded days at DLR feel WAY more crowded than WDW because of the compact size of the park. WDW has Rocking Roller Coaster and Everest - but they are in separate parks. WDW has more food choices and when you're in WDW, you are really in your own world. I would still choose DLR.

You forgot Indian jones ride! My favorite.

 

[NYDisneyKid]

We are trying to decide between WDW and DLR for our Spring Break 2015 vacation. What makes you like WDW over DLR? We are from Colorado, so flights are a little cheaper to California than Florida. However, we have been to both and like both. Is there a reason to tip you one over the other?

4 parks vs 2?

 

[Disney_Princess83]

Marry me! And if that doesn't work...adopt me.

Aww! I'll adopt you

 

[mom2rtk]

4 parks vs 2?

It's not that simple. There's not twice as many rides at WDW. Not even close. DLR packs much more into those 2 parks than you would think. I'm not sure if the source I used is the most current but it showed 97 total WDW attractions and 87 in DLR. And at DLR you don't have to spend so much time traveling to get from park to park to experience those attractions. In fact, the entrances to the 2 DLR parks are only about 100 yards apart.

There are still lots of reasons to prefer WDW over DLR. But don't make up your mind on sheer numbers of attractions or parks.

 

[andyman8]

One other factor I'll bring up is time. How far exactly do you need to travel to get to each? Is there any difference between travel time (even if that's the difference between and 2 and 5 hour flight), as when you've got a limited amount of time, those kind of things can make a difference, particularly if there's a time zone change involved.

In terms of time at each resort, if you're planning to vacation longer than 5 days (and assuming you're looking for a Disney exclusive vacation), WDW will probably be your best bet. In four days or less, you can see the majority of DL, while a week is probably overkill for just DL.

 

[rajahfan7]

I hate flying and live on the east coast. I can deal with a 2 hr nonstop flight. 4 hours if I don't get layovers is doable but Florida is also cheaper.

 

[Ametista]

My parents are both from So Cal and I grew up knowing Disneyland was the greatest thing ever invented. Then I grew up, and we visited So Cal and the traffic and crowded beaches made me miserable. We took a vacation to San Diego and it took us an hour and a half to drive 20 miles to Legoland. Keep in mind we have a boy and girl 9 years apart, so we need 2 or 3 bedrooms for everyone to be happy. Then I priced out an Orlando vacation, and we decided to try it.

In Orlando we found huge 3 and 4 bedroom homes, with a private pool, for the cost of a hotel room in LA. Our biggest surprise was how uncrowded Florida feels. Even on hot days the beaches are nowhere near as crowded as Manhattan or Redondo beaches in the summer. You maybe be LOLing because the DW theme parks are so busy/crowded but in So Cal the entire visit feels that way.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

We are trying to decide between WDW and DLR for our Spring Break 2015 vacation. What makes you like WDW over DLR? We are from Colorado, so flights are a little cheaper to California than Florida. However, we have been to both and like both. Is there a reason to tip you one over the other?

I've only been to DLR once, but it was a long flight! Coming from New York, Florida is much easier. Plus, WDW has many more resorts and double the parks. Not a hard choice, although DLR is a fun place, too.

 

[DisGirl819]

We're military and move a lot. We choose based on flight prices and overall price. Because we're closer to Florida right now, flights are way cheaper to go to WDW so we go there. We haven't been to DL in four years and are now itching to back but with $500-600 flights per person we can't afford it.

 

[North of Mouse]

We are trying to decide between WDW and DLR for our Spring Break 2015 vacation. What makes you like WDW over DLR? We are from Colorado, so flights are a little cheaper to California than Florida. However, we have been to both and like both. Is there a reason to tip you one over the other?

Went to Disneyland once several years ago, but we are closer to WDW (630mi) and we drive, plus it's much larger and we stay longer because there's more to see/do. We just like it better.