I came, I saw, it kicked my...

[Sk8Leigh]

I just got back from Disneyland for three days, and I was so exhausted I got sick! I was trying to see everything, but I didn't make it, and got myself so run down in the process that I now have a cold. It's a smaller park than WDW, but somehow I still couldn't do all of DL in 3 days, never mind that I hardly did anything at DCA. (Only Aladdin, ToT, and Soarin') But to my credit, I did take the WiWF tour, which took up several hours of one day.

But luckily I didn't really start to feel bad until the very end of my trip, so I still enjoyed it. It was so weird, since I've done WDW quite a bit and this was my first DL trip, how it was so different yet so familiar at the same time. Things I thought were better at DL:

Fantasyland - More rides and waaay better looking facades.
Toontown - Way more detailed that at WDW
Space Mountain - I don't know what it was like before the rehab, but now it's definitely better than at WDW. They're probably the exact same ride, but the music and lighting make DL's better.

Things I thought were better at WDW:
Haunted Mansion - Not a ton better, but it did seem slightly better at WDW. And one thing that DL needs to fix is that, in the ballroom scene, you can see a reflection of an Exit sign in front of you, kind of giving away the fact that there's glass there!
Splash Mountain - Again, not a ton better, but for some reason DL's didn't quite seem to measure up.

PotC seemed like it was probably better at DL (the drops did seem better), but I guess I'm just not a huge Pirates fan, because neither is a favorite for me.

I really liked the Matterhorn. It was a fun "new" ride.

And iasw. That has to go in the category of "better at DL", although I haven't ridden it at WDW in over 15 years to compare. But just because of the facade alone. That's so awesome! Really a masterpiece.

I'll try to post some more later.

 

[tinknsnow]

I appreciate the trip report (especially when you're sick). Hope you feel better!

 

[iceskatejen]

DL's Space Mountain is very different than WDW's. My friends and I refer to WDW's as the Matterhorn in the dark--if it's not the exact same track layout(s), it's pretty close. DL's is sooooo much smoother and is a completely different layout.

 

[JanetRose]

I'm going for the first time for 4-1/2 days. It will probably be my last trip there so I want to do everything! I can't believe there is a chance that I may not!

 

[vascubaguy]

I was in CA for about a week last year for a wedding (my first trip to CA). So, I was only able to make it up to DL for 2 days. In that time we were able to do pretty much everything. (Note: we didn't do anything at DTD though)
We rode all the rides we wanted (some several times), and we even rode some we didn't want to ride. Saw all the shows we wanted. Was a great trip.

Now in just a few weeks we are going back for a quick (4 day) birthday trip to DL so we should be able to slow down a bit while we are there and do more stuff, as well as the new stuff (like the Halloween Treat). Also, since the parks close rather early during the week this time of year, we'll be spending a bit of time over in DTD.

Hope you feel better!!!

 

[happytraveller]

Hi, thankyou so much for posting your comparisons.I have taken my kids 12,8 and 6 to Florida 6 times and next year i would like to go to california, but it's very hard to find someone that can give me a load down on what they think of the two.I hope you get better soon

 

[PrincessSitka]

Pix dust. Nobody gets sick in Disneyland because they have pix dust to stop you from getting sick. That is why you got sick now. Thank for your report and I hope that you feel better

 

[Sk8Leigh]

Thanks for all the well wishes. I'm getting over my cold now, and feel much better than I did last week. I've slept a lot over the past few days.

Another thing that was way better at DL over WDW was Tinker Bell! At WDW she just flies out of the castle to start off the fireworks and that's it. But at DL she flies to the castle...and then around the top of it...a lot...then there's a lot of fireworks...and then she comes back out at the end and flies around some more...and then flies off as they end! Way more Tinker Bell! I had no idea! I'm still not really sure how they do it. And she's lighted better at DL. It's like she glows, whereas at WDW it's like lights are attached to her. DL's Tink was much more impressive. And at DL she's on the first float in the parade, whereas you don't see her anywhere at WDW except for her flight. I was surprised I had never heard that before.

Main Street Vehicles - I went to WDW twice last year and I'm pretty sure I never saw a vehicle on Main Street. I could be wrong, but it didn't seem like they were running a lot. But at Disneyland they were running all the time. The horse-drawn carriage, a double-decker bus (which I rode, on the top, of course ), the fire engine. Very easy to find if you wanted to take them. I really liked that because those are very Disney to me.

I enjoyed the WiWF tour. Shannon was our tour guide, and did a very good job. We got to go into the lobby at Club 33. Very cool! I got my picture taken inside the lift. There's a bust in there that was a prop in Mary Poppins, which I got a picture of. We ate on the patio at the Disney Gallery. I had chili in corn bread, which was good, and I'm not really a chili fan. We also got strawberry cheesecake for dessert. Yum!

I did the Fantasmic Dessert Buffet that evening (Sunday), and since I'm not a big eater anyway, I was already pretty full. But the desserts really weren't all that great. This was the Premium seating, not the Balcony. I think those would have been much better. We got chocolate covered strawberries (the best dessert), Mickey face rice krispie treats, biscotti with icing (I think), a cookie with icing, and macaroons (I think). I think that was it. Then there was also coffee, hot chocolate, soft drinks, and water. So the dessert part I wasn't very impressed with. As far as the seating goes...it ended up being good, although I was worried for a while. It said on my receipt or ticket to get there one hour prior to the 9pm show. I didn't want to waste a lot of time on it because I had so much other stuff to see, so that's why I did the buffet in the first place. People were camping out for good spots starting that afternoon. So I ride rides and shop, and at 8pm I walt up to the podium where you're supposed to go. They're calling out numbers and are on something like 14! Oh no, what's happening?! Where is my seat going to be?! (I'm short and knew there was more that one row of seats and they were on the same level, so I really needed to be in the front row.) So after a lot of questioning of the girl at the podium, I finally discovered that people were there at 7:30pm to line up, they gave them all numbers, and then they came back at 5 minutes to 8pm to start checking in. Ok, how is this fair, when it says to start checking in at 8pm??? It wouldn't have really bothered me if they would have made those people just stand there and wait in line from 7:30pm on. If they want to waste their time to try to get a better seat, fine. But to let them get a number and then go walk around for another half hour when they had said not to be there until 8pm, and then have them get a better seat than I did, who followed the rules?! I was really getting mad. Now it all turned out ok, because I got a seat in the front row (on the end) where I could see ok, because I was a single...even though I was one of the last ones seated. But it might have been a disaster otherwise. How great is that? I pay way too much money for crummy desserts and a seat where I can't see to see a free show. But it did work out ok...well, except that they almost couldn't get the show to start! It took about three tries. There was some kind of technical problem, I guess. One of the CMs did come over and tell us that we would get a refund if they couldn't do the show. But finally after about 20 minutes the show started. It was pretty comparable to the WDW show, except for the Peter Pan scene, and the bigger boat at the end. Those scenes were spectacular.

I made a reservation for the Blue Bayou for Monday lunch when I was there on Sunday, at the window. I was seated on the river (over in a corner by the servers' area, but that didn't bother me). I was surprised I got a river seat, being only a single. I loved that place! Everything about it! I got the Monte Cristo sandwich, and it was great! I'm a very picky eater who doesn't like ham (but who does like cheese and fried stuff ), and I loved the sandwich! I got a Mint Julep as well. A little like drinking toothpaste, but worth a try. The atmosphere was really great! I didn't really know what to expect, but it was better than I was imagining. I got turned around when I was trying to leave and had to ask how to get out, and it turned out I was standing right near the door. But everything was so dark inside I couldn't figure it out!

I'm into pin trading and bought a lot of the Magical Milestones pins. They're so nice! And the plush! I'm addicted to plush toys, even though, really, what can you do with plush toys, and they take up a lot of room! But they have the Fab 5 in the five original land outfits, and I had to buy those! And a Retro Mickey...and a Jedi Mickey to fight my Darth Mickey! I need an extra house!

Buzz Lightyear. That ride is just too fun, and I think it is better at DL because the guns come out so you can aim better. It seems like they could change those at WDW. I rode it three times and e-mailed the picture codes to myself at home, but I think I must have deleted one of them in a spam-deleting frenzy. And that was my best score, too! Over 90,000! (Ok, so I'm not great at it. )

Soarin' - I haven't ridden it at WDW yet. It was ok, but not as good as I had hoped. But part of it might have been because I was afraid the whole time that my backpack would fall out of the pouch underneath the seat and my camera would break. Next time I'll leave it on the ground like the guy next to me did.

Parade of Dreams - I like the snowglobe parade at WDW better. Not sure why...maybe the music? Or the snowglobes? It just didn't really click with me, although I did meet a nice family from Saskatchewan which waiting for it to start. It was their first time out of Canada, and they were having a lot of fun. Speaking of, there were a lot of British and Australian people there. It was almost like everyone there was either local (SoCal), British, or Australian. That's one thing that was really different from WDW, the local factor. At WDW it seems like everyone's a tourist, from all over, but at DL, it seemed like a lot of locals, esp. on Sunday.

Hmmm...I can't think of anything else right now, so I guess I'll end there!

Oh, a P.S....I got my picture taken with Mickey, because I don't think I ever have before.