Just back from WDW...my thoughts

Well, hello again! I am back from a really wonderful, special, 7 night stay at the Polynesian Resort with my family. I feel like I can give it a much better review after having done it with my family as opposed to a couple days at a work conference.

The absolute highlight of my trip? The Poly. Just amazing and so perfect for my family. We had a theme park view room, club level and it just didn’t compare to any kind of experience at DL. It truly did feel like a destination all by itself. We watched the fireworks from the beach and our balcony and the view was just remarkable.

Other highlights: Return to Sleepy Hallow event at Fort Wilderness, magic band convenience, FOP, Mine Train, HEA fireworks.

Things that didn’t impress: the Halloween decorations. We normally attend the MHP at DL. Both parks in CA are dripping with decorations. And overlays. And pumpkins everywhere!! I could barely tell it was Halloweentime at WDW parks. Also, some of the rides...Pirates...I already knew was unanimously better at DL. Test Track vs Cars (Cars for the definite win!). And the distance between rides. This is probably the thing that got me the most. All our rides are so close together at DL so you can experience so much! It seemed like rides were sparse it some parks.

Still don’t like the FP system. I’d take MaxPass any day.

The weather was also really rough on us. We’re coastal kids and the heat and humidity made for exhausting days.

One part of me loves the massiveness of WDW and the monorail and ferry boat traveling, but the other part of me longed for the simplicity of exiting the GCH and being mere feet from literally everything.

They are two totally different experiences. I had so much fun on my WDW trip. It was a truly great vacation. Like I mentioned, a lot of that had to do with where we stayed. I feel like that really made the trip for us.

Will we go back? Maybe. It was very expensive for us. It’s a hard call to make when you live 4 hours from Disneyland.

Oh...and Slinky Dog! LOVED it. Kids loved it. It’s a great ride.

We also used a VIP guide from an outside company (My VIP Tour) on a MK day and a AK day. Her knowledge and experience with those parks was hands down worth every penny!! Our days without her we’re much more stressful.

I’m glad we didn’t cancel. I would’ve regretted it. I think every disney loving family should do it. But I think my heart still belongs to Disneyland.
 
Even at a monorail resort, you still have to take transportation to other parks. We hopped on monorails, ferry boats, Uber’s, and buses. Sometimes you have to drive 20 mins. I can’t understand how anyone thinks they stay in a Disney bubble there. You’re constantly getting on freeways and whatnot.
The WDW bubble is a result of it being spread out. You can travel extensively within it, between 4 theme parks, two water parks, Disney Springs and many more resorts, and not get more than a hint that a real world exists outside. That's why this one is Walt Disney World. It really does feel like another world.
 
I had the exact same impression/experience as you, back in 2002 (right down to the business trip with mom, too!). WDW just made me homesick for Disneyland. I had the same experience when I visited Tokyo Disneyland in 1998.
 
Well, hello again! I am back from a really wonderful, special, 7 night stay at the Polynesian Resort with my family. I feel like I can give it a much better review after having done it with my family as opposed to a couple days at a work conference.

The absolute highlight of my trip? The Poly. Just amazing and so perfect for my family. We had a theme park view room, club level and it just didn’t compare to any kind of experience at DL. It truly did feel like a destination all by itself. We watched the fireworks from the beach and our balcony and the view was just remarkable.

Other highlights: Return to Sleepy Hallow event at Fort Wilderness, magic band convenience, FOP, Mine Train, HEA fireworks.

Things that didn’t impress: the Halloween decorations. We normally attend the MHP at DL. Both parks in CA are dripping with decorations. And overlays. And pumpkins everywhere!! I could barely tell it was Halloweentime at WDW parks. Also, some of the rides...Pirates...I already knew was unanimously better at DL. Test Track vs Cars (Cars for the definite win!). And the distance between rides. This is probably the thing that got me the most. All our rides are so close together at DL so you can experience so much! It seemed like rides were sparse it some parks.

Still don’t like the FP system. I’d take MaxPass any day.

The weather was also really rough on us. We’re coastal kids and the heat and humidity made for exhausting days.

One part of me loves the massiveness of WDW and the monorail and ferry boat traveling, but the other part of me longed for the simplicity of exiting the GCH and being mere feet from literally everything.

They are two totally different experiences. I had so much fun on my WDW trip. It was a truly great vacation. Like I mentioned, a lot of that had to do with where we stayed. I feel like that really made the trip for us.

Will we go back? Maybe. It was very expensive for us. It’s a hard call to make when you live 4 hours from Disneyland.

Oh...and Slinky Dog! LOVED it. Kids loved it. It’s a great ride.

We also used a VIP guide from an outside company (My VIP Tour) on a MK day and a AK day. Her knowledge and experience with those parks was hands down worth every penny!! Our days without her we’re much more stressful.

I’m glad we didn’t cancel. I would’ve regretted it. I think every disney loving family should do it. But I think my heart still belongs to Disneyland.
Thanks for your review! I love the Poly also, have upcoming trip there, love it! We have only been to DL once in summer of 2009, really had a blast, stayed at the Grand Californian Resort, Villas opened yet. We loved the Grand, would love to go back and experience all that had changed in 9 years! Did love staying at the Grand and having the Park so close, go out the gate and right there! :cheer2:
 


I am on the East Coast and have gone to WDW almost annually for several years now. I have been to DL only once, and my family and I are out-of-our minds excited about correcting this. Please do not get me wrong.... I absolutely love WDW. I will continue to still plan on spending 7-8 day vacations there (especially with all of the new attractions arriving soon). I am knee deep in the planning process for DL. We are spending waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much and doing a 6-day CL room at the Grand California. We are going in early June of next Summer. I am both hoping for and against Star Wars opening. I wouldn't mind it not opening while we were there (I am not sure the effect on crowds if it were not open, but I would hope for a smaller crowd than if it were open).
I am old-school Disney. I watched the Mickey Mouse Club and Zorro. I was that little guy who had to have a Davy Crocket Coonskin Cap and wore it to bed (I snuck it under my pillow so Mom wouldn't know). Texas John Slaughter, Swamp Fox (LOL starring of all people Leslie Nielson!). My family was not well off so we could not afford to ever go to DL, but boy did I dream about it. Growing up, we watched all the iterations of the Wonderful World of Disney, which ofton showed glimpses of DL so I feel like DL is part of my DNA.
Having said all of that, it is not a competition for me (which is the better vacation) between WDw & DL. Thank the Good Lord for both!
LOL I read the comparison threads and understand the sentiments expressed, but I think a lot of people do not understand how to best appreciate the "other" park to the fullest.
For me, because of recency bias, the other park is DL. I am soooo looking forward to walking to both parks and hopping between parks. I was an old fast pass whiz at WDW so the fast pass system with Max Pass sounds like a dream. Even though I am planning out an itinerary, I feel like we can take our time a little more and really enjoy DL.
It won't bother me that Aurora's castle is not as big as Cinderella's.

I will do a full trip report for my WDW brethern, but I already know that I will totally love our DL trip.

For you good folks calling the other park WDW, here are a couple of things that I would definitely do. First and foremost, staying off property at WDW is not quite the same at WDW as it is at DL. In my opinion, it really pays to stay on site. One of my most enjoyable experiences is landing at the airport in Orlando, and simply going to the Disney desk and getting in line for the Disney bus to my resort. Not having to worry about luggage is huge for me. (Also not having to pay for transportation to the park is nice also!).

I have always embraced the EMH offered each day and have always scheduled 1 day / 1 park unless it is to take advantage of a new ride FastPass. I would not try to park hop too much at WDW -- if you do that too much, you will spend your time traveling.

Another thing that I would never leave off on a trip to WDW is the Hoop De Doo Revue. I have literally seen this show about 20 times now, and it never gets old to me. I love the all-you-can-eat chicken and ribs and cornbread and mashed potatoes, corn and strawberry shortcake and free wine and beer. It is my favorite experience at Disney.
My daughter 13, just quipped that her favorite things are the sorcerors of the magic kingdom and the Phineas and Ferb quests at MK and EPCOT.

I am going to post this now. Every once in a while my computer does not like the DISBOARD and starts to play games with me. I hate typing a large amount only to see it lost.
 
Things don’t get cancelled because of wind. A big plus!

So why didn’t I love it? Well, staying onsite doesn’t mean close proximity. Even at a monorail resort, you still have to take transportation to other parks. We hopped on monorails, ferry boats, Uber’s, and buses. Sometimes you have to drive 20 mins. I can’t understand how anyone thinks they stay in a Disney bubble there. You’re constantly getting on freeways and whatnot. I am much more immersed in a bubble when I stay onsite in Disneyland.

Yes, the wind! Curse you Santa Ana!!!! Something I didn't know could even happen after 7 trips in 10 years to WDW was that fireworks could be cancelled. Enter DL....and man, they cancel fireworks a lot! Something I still get fired up about, for sure.

As for transportation at WDW, it's part of the Magic AND part of the drawback. You just LOVE seeing that bus marked "Epcot" or wherever you need to go coming around the corner. Then....you wait as an ECV and their family of 11 loads on and takes up half the space. Like I said: magical and frustrating. The flipside to the 15 minute ride to the park is that when you get to WDW park, there isn't a 20-30 minute security line waiting for you like at DL. It's usually less than 5. So pros and cons.

Still don’t like the FP system. I’d take MaxPass any day.

The weather was also really rough on us. We’re coastal kids and the heat and humidity made for exhausting days.

Yes. Legacy/MaxPass is so much better that FP+. And for weather, even in the summer, DL is better than an October day of heat and humidity.

And you mentioned this elsewhere, but being a $100 roundtrip car ride to DL makes it much more appealing than $2000 just to get to WDW. That's why we haven't been back to FL since all of our kids came into being.

The WDW bubble is a result of it being spread out. You can travel extensively within it, between 4 theme parks, two water parks, Disney Springs and many more resorts, and not get more than a hint that a real world exists outside. That's why this one is Walt Disney World. It really does feel like another world.

I'm with you! At DL, you can hear I-5 and you know hotels, businesses and reality are just on the other side of those walls. But at WDW, it truly is another world. I miss that feeling over the last 6 years.
 

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