1st time wdw, dl vet... Why we wont be going back to wdw for a long time

[mummabear]

How do you think the character meals are a better range? From what I saw at wdw the only two with unique characters were 1900 park fare and ohana... The rest were the fab 5, chip & dale or princesses. We missed the character dining at the GCH with the unique woodsy characters especially!

I really don't mind the calendar not being out so gosh darned early, there is no real need to plan your days so far out at DL. You have two parks that are easily hoppable (or not), I felt way over planned on the wdw trip... And I am a crazy planner! Lol

There is a lot of extra non-park related stuff at wdw... You could go for two weeks, do a ton of stuff and never set foot in the parks. But the parks and rides are what I want to do in disney. The other stuff is icing on the cake I guess...

They also have the Disney Junior breakfast/ lunch at HS whichnis one we would like to specifically see at DLR, I feel DLR's GK, MitP and SU are all about the same character sets.
There is a need to plan on when you are going to come, especially when travelling from the other side of the world, 6 weeks notice is not enough. I think it's crazy I can make dining reservations before I know the park hours\ entertainment schedule.
An example here would be that WDW has already released their MNSSHP dates and tickets are for sale-have been for weeks. DLR we still don't know

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

They also have the Disney Junior breakfast/ lunch at HS whichnis one we would like to specifically see at DLR, I feel DLR's GK, MitP and SU are all about the same character sets. There is a need to plan on when you are going to come, especially when travelling from the other side of the world, 6 weeks notice is not enough. I think it's crazy I can make dining reservations before I know the park hours\ entertainment schedule. An example here would be that WDW has already released their MNSSHP dates and tickets are for sale-have been for weeks. DLR we still don't know

Disney junior characters are the only ones dlr is missing. Gk is a good mix of princesses and other characters, plus goofy. Minnie's has all the pooh characters, hook, Pinocchio and geppeto, fairy godmother, mice... Great place for smaller kids, surfs up is now the only place you can see Mickey, stitch, daisy, Pluto... Each place has totally different characters with very little overlap.

Disneyland's hours are pretty similar year to year, in all our trips I plan using last year's hours and have very little changes wheat the hours come out, and because there isn't a crush to get this or that adr, it's easy to change them as needed.

We're already planning our next visit to dlr

 

[lawboy2001]

I grew up going to Disneyland, but now live on the eastern side of the continent, so WDW is closer and easier to travel to. After going to DLR several times over my life, I've started going to WDW a few years ago.

This May I experienced both WDW and DLR.

One perspective no one has mentioned - the crowds at WDW. It is PACKED. ALL THE TIME. I went during a low crowd period and I would not want to go at a moderate or busy time! And what is with all the parades? In MK they run a mini parade of about 10 floats down Main Street about every 45 minutes. Fun, but guess what -- there are too many people in the park so when Main Street is taken up with the parade and everyone is squeezed onto the sidewalks and you cannot move freely.

At WDW all you see are people everywhere.

At DLR/DCA, while there are a lot of people, the crowds are manageable and not oppressive like at WDW.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I grew up going to Disneyland, but now live on the eastern side of the continent, so WDW is closer and easier to travel to. After going to DLR several times over my life, I've started going to WDW a few years ago. This May I experienced both WDW and DLR. One perspective no one has mentioned - the crowds at WDW. It is PACKED. ALL THE TIME. I went during a low crowd period and I would not want to go at a moderate or busy time! And what is with all the parades? In MK they run a mini parade of about 10 floats down Main Street about every 45 minutes. Fun, but guess what -- there are too many people in the park so when Main Street is taken up with the parade and everyone is squeezed onto the sidewalks and you cannot move freely. At WDW all you see are people everywhere. At DLR/DCA, while there are a lot of people, the crowds are manageable and not oppressive like at WDW.

I totally agree... Especially in MK... We felt MK was just hot and crowded. Didn't even get over to watch the new fantasy parade because it was a bother to fight through the heat and people to find a spot to watch from. Epcot was much better and more easily absorbed all the people, it might have helped that there seemed to be a pretty good breeze near the giant golfball most of the time. I can't imaging going in summer when we found early May so oppressive and crowded. By the crowd calendars most of our days were 2-4s... H.S. on Mother's Day was a good call... It was a 2 and probably our best day, even though we were late getting to beaches and cream, and they dropped our ressie and we had to wait 30 minutes to get seated. It was still our best day for ease of rides and lack of crowds. I am already dreaming of our next DL trip... But also find myself thinking about making the trek back to Florida for Universal and maybe wdw's waterparks... But the rest... Meh.

 

[basketballmom]

I am so glad to read this! We have been to WDW twice, and much prefer DL for all the reasons you listed, OP.
However..... my sister really, really wants to see Harry Potter at Universal Orlando. And wants to take her kids on a Disney trip. So, I have agreed to go with them next summer.
And then, my husband's brother and his family want to go too...
14 people. WDW. Universal. (I've never been there...)
I'm already feeling planning stress, and it's 12 months away!

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I am so glad to read this! We have been to WDW twice, and much prefer DL for all the reasons you listed, OP.
However..... my sister really, really wants to see Harry Potter at Universal Orlando. And wants to take her kids on a Disney trip. So, I have agreed to go with them next summer.
And then, my husband's brother and his family want to go too...
14 people. WDW. Universal. (I've never been there...)
I'm already feeling planning stress, and it's 12 months away!

Universal was fantastic! We all really loved it. I didn't feel like it was as clean as disney, and a lot of the employees seemed less than magical... Not cranky perse, just not awesome. I did learn that it is more humid at universal. I commented to an employee that the humidity really hit that morning (the windows in hogsmeade were sweating) and she said it had been that way all week. I said we had been at wdw all week, and she explained it got more breezes off the water and stayed less humid, but universal was inland and therefore more humid. Anyhow... We would for sure go back to universal! It was super fun and express pass was amazing! You will have a blast!

 

[petals]

I've been to WDW 5 times and absolutely love it especially Magic Kingdom.
I went to Disneyland Paris three times and that would be a nice place if it wasn't for the rudeness of the people there!
Going to Disneyland in November for the first time and can't wait to experience the park Walt actually walked in!

On the point of the sizes of resorts... DLR sounds very much like DLP size wise and having experience WDW already I don't think the size matters much it just means a shorter vacation time is needed in order to see everything.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I've been to WDW 5 times and absolutely love it especially Magic Kingdom. I went to Disneyland Paris three times and that would be a nice place if it wasn't for the rudeness of the people there! Going to Disneyland in November for the first time and can't wait to experience the park Walt actually walked in! On the point of the sizes of resorts... DLR sounds very much like DLP size wise and having experience WDW already I don't think the size matters much it just means a shorter vacation time is needed in order to see everything.

You will love it! I am really toying with a quickie trip in October... I miss dlr that much! But if I save up instead I can wait and do a longer trip maybe the next October... Halloween time is my fave!

 

[petals]

You will love it! I am really toying with a quickie trip in October... I miss dlr that much! But if I save up instead I can wait and do a longer trip maybe the next October... Halloween time is my fave!

We did "Halloween" in September in WDW one year it was great. But then the last trip to WDW and the trip to DLP were both in November and those castles all lit up there's just nothing like it

 

[basketballmom]

Universal was fantastic! We all really loved it. I didn't feel like it was as clean as disney, and a lot of the employees seemed less than magical... Not cranky perse, just not awesome. I did learn that it is more humid at universal. I commented to an employee that the humidity really hit that morning (the windows in hogsmeade were sweating) and she said it had been that way all week. I said we had been at wdw all week, and she explained it got more breezes off the water and stayed less humid, but universal was inland and therefore more humid. Anyhow... We would for sure go back to universal! It was super fun and express pass was amazing! You will have a blast!

Thank you for sharing this! It has put my mind at ease!

 

[Poohbug]

As a WDW vet and a DL newbie, I would have to agree with pretty much all of what the OP posted.

My son and I just visited DL in May. The weather reports were freaking me out because it was going to be close to 100 degrees during our visit. Well I just have to say that 100 degrees in CA is nothing compared to 90 degrees in FL. We had no problem with the heat and had a blast. Carsland is incredible. The restaurants are great. I despise having to reserve WDW restaurants 6 months in advance, I just don't do it. Rides are just better. (POC was down, I was disappointed to miss that and someday I hope to ride IASW, that is always down when I visit) I cannot stress how much I love being able to walk from park to park and even to our hotel.

The bus rides at WDW I consider to be an adventure. Sometimes it takes forever, much of the time you are standing and trying to keep the kids standing, sometimes the A/C doesn't work(you want to talk about smelly) and one time I was just grateful to get to the park because the bus barely made up any incline we encountered. And forget about going to Downtown Disney, it will take an hour to get there at least.

The only thing I wish DL had is more moderately priced onsite hotels. I was priced out of onsite but stayed at BWPPI, which I was happy with. I also like the special events that they have at WDW(Star Wars Weekends, Flower and Garden Festival, Food and Wine).

I hope it visit DL again in a few years, no plans to visit WDW. If we decide to vacation in FL, we will check out all the new things at Universal.

 

[dbramer]

I've never posted on a DL board before, but I will have to say, for us East Coasters, getting to WDW is a LOT easier than getting to DL. That is the biggest drawback for us, the travel. I am a public servant with two kids...I can't afford to fly us there and back. Someday we dream about getting out there to see the Pacific, but it will be awhile before we can swing it.

I would love to check out DL....someday.

Scratch that. Just priced flights from Baltimore to LAX. They cost more than my entire trip to WDW including the deluxe dining plan.....we may never get out there, unless we can find the extra week just to drive....ugghhh...

SW was a little better, but over 2k to get all four of us out there and back. Then the resort hotels are incredibly expensive. For a four day trip it would be almost triple what I would spend for eight at WDW.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I've never posted on a DL board before, but I will have to say, for us East Coasters, getting to WDW is a LOT easier than getting to DL. That is the biggest drawback for us, the travel. I am a public servant with two kids...I can't afford to fly us there and back. Someday we dream about getting out there to see the Pacific, but it will be awhile before we can swing it. I would love to check out DL....someday. Scratch that. Just priced flights from Baltimore to LAX. They cost more than my entire trip to WDW including the deluxe dining plan.....we may never get out there, unless we can find the extra week just to drive....ugghhh...

We live on the west coast and usually fly to DL $200 or less pp... Surprisingly all the way to Florida was $330 pp... Not a ton more and a lot farther... Not sure what your airline choices are but sw and jetblue and frontier seem to be less expensive options... Also, we would never fly into lax (terrible airport and often more expensive), instead check both sna and lgb... Both are very close to dlr. Then many people visiting dlr don't stay onsite (we do, but it's a splurge).... If you search there is a great map showing all the offsite hotels within walking distance... A disboard fave is hojo Anaheim. Our onsite stays for 5 nights/six days were pretty equivalent in cost to splitting a 7 night stay (4 nights moderate, 3 nights deluxe) with 5 day + waterpark park tickets. We got a couple more nights, but really needed them since it was so far to fly too. Keep checking! Maybe your dlr dreams will come true!

FYI... I picked random Tuesdays in September and ran a search on kayak... Tix were $329 pp from Baltimore to LGB on delta... That doesn't sound horrible! And means sw may be cheaper... Just means you need to look at avoiding weekend flying and prime time vacation time

 

[barbaraann]

I live in Chicago, so the airfare to LAX is about the same as the airfare to Orlando. If I choose to go to the smaller John Wayne airport, I pay a little bit more, but it is more convenient since I don't drive. The shuttles out of Orange County to Disneyland are only $10. Although I do treat myself to a $35 cab ride going back.

My first themepark was Magic Kingdom, back in 1997. I returned in 2003, 04, and 05. Then Disneyland threw their big 50th birthday party, and a friend of mine invited me along on her trip with her three kids. One visit to Disneyland, and I was hooked for life.

I'd rather go to California than Florida. Lots of reasons. Disneyland first and foremost. The weather definitely. The convenience. The atmosphere. I have made lots of California friends in my almost 10 years traveling there.

I have been back to WDW too. I just returned from a May/June trip to Disneyland, and in August, I have a 5 day parkhopper for WDW. I am having fun planning. Trying to get the most bang for my buck, but also hoping to not wear myself out too much. Being 66, and touring the themeparks, is not as easy as when I was 50 something.

I love them both, but Disneyland has my heart. Some say, the first one you visit will steal your heart, but in my case, the opposite is true.

 

[kbelle8995]

I've never posted on a DL board before, but I will have to say, for us East Coasters, getting to WDW is a LOT easier than getting to DL. That is the biggest drawback for us, the travel. I am a public servant with two kids...I can't afford to fly us there and back. Someday we dream about getting out there to see the Pacific, but it will be awhile before we can swing it.

I would love to check out DL....someday.

Scratch that. Just priced flights from Baltimore to LAX. They cost more than my entire trip to WDW including the deluxe dining plan.....we may never get out there, unless we can find the extra week just to drive....ugghhh...

SW was a little better, but over 2k to get all four of us out there and back. Then the resort hotels are incredibly expensive. For a four day trip it would be almost triple what I would spend for eight at WDW.

I am pretty much in the same boat. WDW location is cheaper for me to get to. I am a little different I can drive there and there is no airfare involved. Getting to DL for me is an expensive proposition.

 

[SPOERLX3]

I am excited to see this thread.
We just got back from WDW last Wednesday and just before we left for our trip, I won a 4 day/3 night trip to DL that we will be taking November 20-23.
It will be exciting to be able to compare the 2 trips/rides/dining, etc so close together.

The one thing that I have been most surprised about is the cost difference.

• Our trip for 4 ppl for 8 day to WDW was $3804.
  This included our airfare, park hopper tickets for 8 days and 4 tickets to MNSSHP. We did have the free dining plan so all our food was paid for. We took an extra $500 cash and came back with $160.
• When I got the information back for tax purposes for the trip I won.
  4 days/3 nights at the Disneyland Hotel, 4-4 day 1 park tickets (no park hopper) with airfare the total cost itemized was $3835 and when I priced out the trip the total cost was $3961. They did give me a $100 Disney GC but I am sure the food for 4 people for 4 days will be about $100 per day so we are planning on taking $500 just to cover everything.

We have never been to DL but have been to WDW 10-12 times since 1991.
It is just hard to justify spending the same amount on a trip for 4 days vs a trip for 8 days but maybe once I get back I will understand it a little better

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I am excited to see this thread. We just got back from WDW last Wednesday and just before we left for our trip, I won a 4 day/3 night trip to DL that we will be taking November 20-23. It will be exciting to be able to compare the 2 trips/rides/dining, etc so close together. The one thing that I have been most surprised about is the cost difference. [*]Our trip for 4 ppl for 8 day to WDW was $3804. This included our airfare, park hopper tickets for 8 days and 4 tickets to MNSSHP. We did have the free dining plan so all our food was paid for. We took an extra $500 cash and came back with $160. [*]When I got the information back for tax purposes for the trip I won. 4 days/3 nights at the Disneyland Hotel, 4-4 day 1 park tickets (no park hopper) with airfare the total cost itemized was $3835 and when I priced out the trip the total cost was $3961. They did give me a $100 Disney GC but I am sure the food for 4 people for 4 days will be about $100 per day so we are planning on taking $500 just to cover everything. We have never been to DL but have been to WDW 10-12 times since 1991. It is just hard to justify spending the same amount on a trip for 4 days vs a trip for 8 days but maybe once I get back I will understand it a little better

It'll be great to hear your thoughts. Park hoppers get so much less expensive when you buy so many more days, that is part of the reason for the cost seeming so much cheaper at wdw. But even though a lot of us could spend 7 or 8 days at DL, it isn't as necessary. The smaller footprint makes a huge difference in touring. To simplify it, let's say both wdw and DL have 100 attractions each. Wdw's are spread out over 4 parks that are a considerable distance from each other, so like 25 attractions per park. DLs are in two parks, right next to each other, with very little space that isn't dedicated to an attraction. So is almost like all 100 attractions are in the same park-space/walking wise. So you can get just as much done, in like a quarter of the time. That said, we usually do a 4 or 5 day trip to DL because we like to space out the nightly shows (not try and do 2 in one night), and like repeating rides

 

[SPOERLX3]

It'll be great to hear your thoughts. Park hoppers get so much less expensive when you buy so many more days, that is part of the reason for the cost seeming so much cheaper at wdw. But even though a lot of us could spend 7 or 8 days at DL, it isn't as necessary. The smaller footprint makes a huge difference in touring. To simplify it, let's say both wdw and DL have 100 attractions each. Wdw's are spread out over 4 parks that are a considerable distance from each other, so like 25 attractions per park. DLs are in two parks, right next to each other, with very little space that isn't dedicated to an attraction. So is almost like all 100 attractions are in the same park-space/walking wise. So you can get just as much done, in like a quarter of the time. That said, we usually do a 4 or 5 day trip to DL because we like to space out the nightly shows (not try and do 2 in one night), and like repeating rides

Great insight!
We are soooo excited!
I will definitely come back and give my thoughts

 

[Tattylou]

Thanks for posting this info. We are going to DL in April 2015 for the first time (well, I was there once in the 90s and hardly remember it, but hubby and the kids have never been). I'm so excited to compare the differences/similarities as I am a WDW vet.