Why do you go to Disneyland instead of WDW

[LavenderPeach]

Okay, I just had to add about our WDW bus experience. I remember there was one time that we were at the bus stop at our hotel (Dixie Landing) and every time a bus would come it would already be full. I think we had one of the last stops before the bus headed to the parks so sometimes that was good because it meant less stops on the way there but then we had this problem of not being able to board a bus!

But, overall we didn't have a problem with the bus system. I don't remember it being hard to figure out or having any other problems except that one time. Of course it was 8 years ago so i might not be remembering it that clearly.

 

[MunkyMe13]

For me its not just geographical or financial... both come into play but where there is a will there is a way for that... For me I prefer Disneyland because it was Walt's baby... He had a direct hand in its creation and to me that makes it even more magical. I get teary eyed listening to his opening day speech... I just absolutely love the history of Disneyland.

 

[JaneJetson]

Oh man! All this talk of using the bus system at WDW is making my head spin! Just another confirmation of why I should just go to Disneyland! *

I have never been to WDW. In 11 days we will be heading to DL for our 8th annual trip. We love it there so much that I just cannot imagine that WDW could be any better! And really, I am just not willing to take the chance that we would be disappointed. (Ya know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!)

Here are some of the things we love about the park:

• being able to pick a hotel and walk to the park everyday.
• being close enough to take a break back at our hotel everyday.
• California weather.
• the intimate feel that you get when you walk into Walt's quaint little park that makes you feel like you are back home.
• knowing where everything is in the park.
• the food, the atmosphere and all the little details.
• staying for long trips and being able to ride our favorites over and over again because everything is so conveniently close.
• all the shows.
• cleanliness of the park.
• the fact that it is the original.

I am sure there are plenty more reasons but the main thing is that we all get to relax and have fun while we are there.

*I somehow doubt we would be nearly as relaxed if we had to keep track of bus schedules and depend on them to get us where we wanted to go.

Just so you know...there aren't bus schedules. There are just bus stops. You don't have to be there at any specific time. You just wait for the bus that you want. It'll say where it's heading on the front of it. You just get on the bus you need.

 

[PHXscuba]

We used both bus and car when we were there last month. We decided to take the bus to morning EMH at MK, mainly because we would have had to park the car and monorail/boat anyways. That worked great. I will say the buses back to our resort (Caribbean Beach) after the fireworks were very full! I expected that.

The nest day we waited a long time in the morning for the bus to EPCOT. I think we just missed one. It seemed like (after driving it ourselves later) that the bus must take a different route, because it feels like it takes forever.

We drove to Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. We got turned around a couple times because all of the signs are for destinations, not street signs like in a city. Most of them have arrows and names of parks or resorts. So don't try to navigate with a map like me -- it won't help. There are places it looks like on a map should be simple left, turn, but it's actually a parkway you can't get on.

I suppose when we take the kids in a couple years that we will rent a car to be able to grocery shop offsite and to drive to parks we went to go to. We will still probably use the buses some of the time when it makes sense.

PHXscuba

 

[fairycat]

Hyrdoguy I agree with you on everything but this;

6. Bus/boat/Monorail system takes a similar amount of time as driving -
if you are not taking connectors. This is data from the UOG book people.

I think it depends on where you are going to and which hotel you are at. Obviously with the system the way it is if you are using the Poly or GF monorail to MK its going to be faster. With no stops, no traffic and no street lights has to be going to be faster. I can't say for the Cont. if it would be faster or not since all I saw of the hotel was all the busstops we made there.

Now Epcot, might be the same because of distance and the angle it makes.

Honestly my biggest issue with the buses was not the waiting for the bus or getting on the buses it was the drive in the buses. Since WDW does not have designated bus lanes or anything set up with the buses you are dealing with a big ackward bus in sometimes heavy traffic on small roads with lots of lights. Sometimes just getting a spot they could pull into to get on the road could take forever.

The worst thing for us was leaving DTD, they would switch drivers AFTER they picked up a bus load of people at PI. Why not switch at DTD? No one ever got on or off the bus at PI before 5pm. One of the switches took over 45 minutes (if you want a chuckle and the whole story let me know ) I think that some small changes on WDW's part could make the buses much more practical.

DH and I debated renting scooters or a motorcycle to skip all the issues and most likely to get to park closer hahah!

 

[HydroGuy]

Hyrdoguy I agree with you on everything but this;



I think it depends on where you are going to and which hotel you are at. Obviously with the system the way it is if you are using the Poly or GF monorail to MK its going to be faster. With no stops, no traffic and no street lights has to be going to be faster. I can't say for the Cont. if it would be faster or not since all I saw of the hotel was all the busstops we made there.

Now Epcot, might be the same because of distance and the angle it makes.

Honestly my biggest issue with the buses was not the waiting for the bus or getting on the buses it was the drive in the buses. Since WDW does not have designated bus lanes or anything set up with the buses you are dealing with a big ackward bus in sometimes heavy traffic on small roads with lots of lights. Sometimes just getting a spot they could pull into to get on the road could take forever.

The worst thing for us was leaving DTD, they would switch drivers AFTER they picked up a bus load of people at PI. Why not switch at DTD? No one ever got on or off the bus at PI before 5pm. One of the switches took over 45 minutes (if you want a chuckle and the whole story let me know ) I think that some small changes on WDW's part could make the buses much more practical.

DH and I debated renting scooters or a motorcycle to skip all the issues and most likely to get to park closer hahah!

One of the things I love about DLR is that I can stay within walking distance and none of this is an issue. I also am tempted to stay in the Epcot area at WDW next time so we can walk to two of the parks.

In general when we were going to and from AKL the bus system worked great. Our biggest problems were trying to get somewhere when we were not at AKL - from DTD to almost anywhere, trying to get to the Boardwalk area, etc. We had a really bad experience one night trying to get to the Boardwalk from BB. We saw 6 buses go by to AKL before the Boardwalk bus came.

I talked to the bus drivers about this and they said WDW does not dedicate buses to certain loops, but there is a dynamic scheduling program and they are re-routed constantly and sometimes the whole thing bogs down.

In any case I think I am in the same boat (or bus ) as you. The WDW buses are usually fine but can be frustrating. Judicious use of taxis is still cheaper than renting a car and the nice thing about taxis is there is no parking hassle and they can usually take you pretty close to your destination.

 

[FanaticadeDisney]

Where in the midwest are you? I'm in Nebraska.

I'm in Illinois.

 

[KCmike]

My wife told me tonight that she is missing WDW. After reading all of these last few posts I remember all the time we wasted waiting and taking busses all around WDW. I really don't miss that at all!

 

[platypus67]

For our family it is definately the size of DLR that we prefer. We like that everything is so close and a trip back to the hotel for a break is much easier.
We also like the atmosphere at DLR as we feel there is more of Walt there than at WDW.
Another plus was the lower crowds that we have experienced at DLR. Early Dec at DLR has always been less busy than what we experienced last Dec at WDW.
For us here in oz the big cost is just the getting to the US. We found that the cost of staying on Property at WDW to be cheaper than staying off property at DLR.
Coming from Queensland we definately preferred the Florida weather.
Both places are fantastic. You will have a great time whichever you chose.

 

[fairykin]

We love Disneyland..it's more laidback.

WDW seems more pushey shovey ..which we don't like.

However.. we do like the Grand Floridian Hotel.

Move that to California and You've got Perfection.

 

[Judy from Boise]

I do have to put in a plug for our great sponsor the Swan and Dolphin. After staying at many different Disney properties, for our last 5 trips we have only stayed at the dolphin or Swan.........the location can't be beat ! Plus Starbucks coffee in the room, and bath and Body works toiletries are heaven.

 

[hurleysweety]

WDW means paying for airfare, which is, at best about $800 roundtrip for both DH and I.

DLR on the other hand is a 6 hour drive from house to hotel...and involves so much less planning, which means less stress

Although I love WDW because of all that there is to do there-- DLR can be done in a couple days, I could be in WDW for 10 days. Oh, and almost once a month DH and I joke that we're moving to Florida just to be closer to WDW.

The other think I like is all the actual "Disney" hotels that are at WDW which offer many different options for all types of budgets. I feel like DLR has such limited options, and the walking-distance hotels seem expensive for their quality IMO.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

For us it's closer and cheaper because we can drive in less than a day. That and we love DL and DW seems SO overwhelming to me. I tried planning a WDW vacation and it seemed like we would need to spend about 2 weeks to be able to see everything and not be completely exhausted.

 

[Showpony]

Like other's have stated, for us it's mostly distance and cost. I can be in the park within 8 hours of leaving my driveway. I hate to fly nowadays, and flights are just not cheap and reasonable to fly from coast to coast anymore.

Besides, I too, feel like Walt is in DL walking around with everyone and it's always magical.

We have been to WDW twice, once in 1989 when MGM opened and the other time in 2006. It took me one full year to plan that trip, and we still didn't see everything! Between planning hotel, meals (we did the original dining plan), and park adventures I ended up with a 5" 3-ring binder full of info. When I go to DL, it's find a hotel online, pack our stuff, drive down, and head to the park. There are a lot of restaurants around the park and we've even found a local place or two just by driving around.

We are talking about doing WDW again in the near future,and I'm sure I'll have fun planning, but Disneyland will always be my first choice when doing a Disney park! I just feel it's more 'intimate' and there is alot of history through out the park.

 

[disneyL0VE]

what a great question.

Even though I live much closer to WDW, being on the East Coast, I rather go to DL because of the memories. I'm a CA girl at heart & I grew up with DL. I know the park like its the back of my hand. I can never get bored!

I would love to go to WDW, but I always feel like if I go, I'm cheating on DL =P

 

[Hofmanns4]

I would love to go to WDW, but I always feel like if I go, I'm cheating on DL =P

That is exactly how I feel! I even feel that way when I am in DCA. My DH is not big on crowds (We have only went in the off-season, he has no idea what a real crowd is ) He loves to spend time in DCA and I always am just itching to get back into DL. I feel like I am missing something by not being there.

Anyhow...I too am completely overwhelmed to plan a WDW trip. I think it will wait until the kids are older.

I grew up in Garden Grove (just down the street from DL) and it holds so many fun memories from my teenage '80's years. I was just saying last week to DH that it is really odd to walk around DL with my kids and remembering the days that I ran around there.

 

[littleprincessmom]

After 17 trips to WDW (and counting...), we just returned from our first ever DL trip!

It was a cross country plane trip to DL v. a 5 hour drive from our house to Orlando...

Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Both DL and WDW are unique and special in their own way. We loved comparing the similarities and differences between the two. WDW is HUGE and is truly a resort where you can spend a week (or two, or more) and still never do "everything."

We may never make it back to DL due to the distance but we are so glad we went. We loved the sense of history and being in "Walt's" park. Some of the rides are just better at DL. And we loved trying the different rides, restaurants, etc. The weather (with no humidity and cloudless skies) was to die for!

My recommendation? Go to both in different years!!!

 

[mmmears]

We go to DLR more often because it's a 5 hour drive instead of a 5 hour plane flight. And it's a great place to go for a few days of fun! This is the park that Walt built, leveraging his company to do so. And it shows in all the little details and touches.

Also, DL is just really special. It is smaller, but it has TONS of rides all packed into that smaller piece of land. WDW has more overall, but some of our favorites are either only at DL (like Indiana Jones) or are much better at DL (Pirates of the Caribbean).

We like them both, WDW for Animal Kingdom, Epcot, & the water parks.

Bottom line: It takes much less time, money, and planning (no ADR issues at DL) for us to go to DL and we love it there!

 

[mystic_path]

WDW has just as much magic as DL, but something about the original park gets me every time. I like going on the original rides that Walt himself put his hands on, and over looked. I feel history and power when I go there, as no matter how old any Disney park gets, DL will always be the original and the oldest. You can even tell how old this park is just by the old musty smells of the buildings. If it werent for Walt Disney making his historic mark with his characters and building DL, we wouldnt have WDW, WDP, DCL, etc. All those built off DL.

I just love the quaintness, and the compactness of DL. I like being able to walk everywhere and not be so bombarded by "OH HOW AM I GONNA FIT EVERYTHING INTO MY TRIP". I like being able to see everything in a few days and go at a relaxing pace while doing so, and yet have extra time to go see other attractions and do other day tours such as Universal or the Zoo, and not feel so rushed.

WDW is great if you need a change and want to see things DL doesnt have, but yet experience the same magical feel. But it will never even come close for me in regards to history and the meaning behind the park.

These are just my opinions, but I think geographics will come to play a huge factor for people. It depends on how close you are to each park. If you grew up close to WDW then your heart will probably be there as thats what you know best and will most likely always know best. Same goes for DL.

 

[kc10family]

I have never been to WDW, DL is only a 7 hour drive.