I'm going to DisneyLand

After a few years of visiting DLP and WDW it's now time for me to fly across the Atlantic to visit DL.

As much as I love WDW I've always wanted to see Las Vegas. My sister and her husband were planning on going to Vegas followed by LA in May 2009 so we (my wife and I) thought we would tag along.

I know that in the back of my mind I will be thinking "this isn't WDW" and "Where's Epcot?" but at the same time I'm really looking forward to seeing some of the classic DL attractions.

So, before we book I have a few questions.

We will be staying offsite for cost reasons although the hotel is very close by (The Sheraton I think?!?). Is it easy to get to the parks without a car? (we will have one but I would like to use it as little as possible).

As far as dining goes, I've never had to make ADR's at DLP. Do you need to make some reservations for Disney Land? If so then any recommendations?

We are planning to get a 3day park hopper. Will this be enough / too little? Remember that it will probably only be my wife and I in Disney and we could happily spend hours going round the TTA at WDW.

Any interesting tips / facts?

Thanks

Phil

I can't help with tips etc, but my DH and I have just decided to do exactly the same! We're going with my parents when my mum turns 50 (not for a few years yet though) and we are going to do California, San Fran and Las Vegas, with a stay at Disney thrown in to sweeten the deal for me!

Philo said:

After a few years of visiting DLP and WDW it's now time for me to fly across the Atlantic to visit DL.

As much as I love WDW I've always wanted to see Las Vegas. My sister and her husband were planning on going to Vegas followed by LA in May 2009 so we (my wife and I) thought we would tag along.

I know that in the back of my mind I will be thinking "this isn't WDW" and "Where's Epcot?" but at the same time I'm really looking forward to seeing some of the classic DL attractions.

So, before we book I have a few questions.

We will be staying offsite for cost reasons although the hotel is very close by (The Sheraton I think?!?). Is it easy to get to the parks without a car? (we will have one but I would like to use it as little as possible).

As far as dining goes, I've never had to make ADR's at DLP. Do you need to make some reservations for Disney Land? If so then any recommendations?

We are planning to get a 3day park hopper. Will this be enough / too little? Remember that it will probably only be my wife and I in Disney and we could happily spend hours going round the TTA at WDW.

Any interesting tips / facts?

Thanks

Phil

Click to expand...

Three day park hopper should be good to give you a nice DL experience. This will vary a little depending on if those days are weekday or weekend.

There are some other threads you may want to peruse to give you some ideas:
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showpost.php?p=2886932&postcount=1
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=13

But generally speaking, the parks are in easy walking distance from a lot of hotels off property. You will quickly see that everything is much more compact and negotiable. With Park Hopper, you can get over to a nearly empty DCA. There are some nice things to experience there...walk on to Soarin', California Screamin' is like an outdoor RNRC, ToT and the unique experience of the Alladin show (don't miss that!). Wine Country Trattoria or The Vinyard Room are the only real sit down restaurants....also the character meal at Ariel's.
....Then just cross the plaza and into DL
(just a minor warning....it is just called Disneyland....Magic Kingdom is only in Fla. most of us travelling from the east make that mistake more than once.)

You will find much fewer sit down restaurant options.....
There are some in DTD (located in walkway between the parks), some in the hotels (Napa Rose and Storytellers in Grand Californian, Steakhouse 55 or Goofy's Kitchen [character] in DL Hotel, or Yamabuki at Paradise Pier). In DL, the Dining experience you should schedule is Blue Bayou. Most others are casual.

As I have said in other discussions, for those familiar with MK at WDW, entering DL is a kind of twilight zone experience....everything is familiar...just not quite the same. You will immediately know the general layout, but not specific attraction locations. Studying the map before hand and having one handy will smooth the transition. There are many unique DL experiences that you need to experience, some classics that are no longer at MK, and some that are similar, but different in various ways.

From a planning perspective, also know that Fireworks and Fantasmic are not held on every night, so you need to check park calendars to plan for that if they are offered during your visit.

I think you will find it a great experience!

I've only visited DL once, but I had a 5-day hopper and we stayed at the Disneyland Hotel for 8 nights. It was probably the best stay I've ever had at Disney resort.
For the majority of people, 3 days is enough to see most everything. At this moment, Disneyland is FAR better than DCA. We spent 4 days at DL and 1 at DCA. In my mind, you can spend a day at DCA and see most of it if not all of it, but you can spend countless days at DL. If I was going back, I would probably want to spend 4 days, but 3 would suffice.
As for table-service restaurants, there are far fewer than in WDW, and there is no Dining Plan (as far as I know). I would highly recommend the Blue Bayou Restaurant in New Orleans Square for lunch (they're Monte Cristos are my favorite sandwiches in the world!). We ate at Granville's Steakhouse, which is now Steakhouse 55, twice (breakfast and dinner) and loved it both times, so if you have a day off from the parks I would recommend visiting the DLH and possibly eating there. The Carnation Cafe (on Main Street) is quite nice, though I wouldn't say it's a "can't miss".
I you have any other questions I would be happy to give you some tips!

Thanks for the replies - I didn't realise that the fireworks and fantasmic weren't on everynight so a big thanks for that tip! I'll go read as many threads as I can now to get up to speed - less than 1 year of planning time left now!