Interesting that Anaheim looks like it may actually have more to do in a more compact and easier to get around space.
Couldn't have put it better. It might be fun for you to go to Yahoo! Maps and zoom in on the Anaheim area to see Disneyland from the air. You can zoom down to the small details and get a really good feel for the smaller scale and scope of the Resort that way.
I loved your idea about starting in San Francisco and working south! California is a very large state, and Northern California has a very different vibe from Southern California. San Fran is a wonderfully unique American city, and spending a couple days there to take in all the sights would likely be fun for the whole family. Cable cars, Alcatraz, Fishermans Wharf, Golden Gate Bridge, etc., etc. It's also a typical busy big city that has more of an East Coast feel to it than Los Angeles or San Diego do. Public transit is very good in San Francisco, and with a little bit of planning you shouldn't need a rental car there unless you wanted to head up to the Napa Valley wine country.
Once you've seen San Francisco, you could then get to Southern California via several different ways;
1. Rent a car and drive down the coast. This is a ritual that many West Coasters do with the family every summer.
Don't take the inland Interstate 5, but instead head down California State Route 1 along the coast. You can stop in Monterrey and see the excellent aquarium there.
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/ There's also plenty of natural scenery all along the way that is just stunning.
http://www.tbd.com/image/806.jpg Santa Barabara is on the coast and sort of is the official beginning of Southern California, and it's wonderful.
http://www.santabarbaraca.com/ Have you been on Soarin' Over California at Epcot? You'll be driving along through a lot of that scenery instead of flying over it. It's beautiful.
2. You could take the train from San Fran (actually Oakland across the bay) down to Los Angeles and on to Anaheim a few blocks from Disneyland. You would ride an Amtrak train called
The Coast Starlight that travels right along the ocean for much of the journey, and also heads through hills and valleys inland. It's about a 10 hour train ride, the scenery is beautiful and removed from any highway, and you would be on a big American double-decker train. Trains here go rather slow compared to Europe, but they have fun lounge cars and dining cars to spend time in, in addition to a coach car or a sleeper car.
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/Conte...te_Page&c=am2Route&cid=1081256321841&ssid=135
3. You could fly to SoCal. That's faster, but not quite as fun. There are plenty of flights from San Fran to SoCal of course, but I would recommend getting a flight into John Wayne Airport here in Orange County. Compared to Los Angeles International (LAX), John Wayne is a smaller, nicer, more modern airport about 15 minutes from Disneyland. You could also fly into Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, Long Beach Airport, or Ontario Airport. All of those are easier and nicer than LAX, but John Wayne is the nicest of the bunch and the closest to Disneyland.
http://www.ocair.com/
Would the Anaheim parks compare on a size basis to WDW MGM then?
Yes, that's a good analogy for DCA. Disneyland is noticeably smaller than Magic Kingdom, but it has an additional dozen rides packed into the smaller space. Sometimes rides at Disneyland literally sit on top of each other, like the original Mr. Toads Wild Ride on a lower level, with the original Alice In Wonderland ride stacked on the second floor above it. The Rivers of America in Disneyland have four rides working there instead of the two at Magic Kingdom. At Disneyland's river there is also the Sailing Ship Columbia you can ride on, or you can paddle the Davy Crockett canoes around the river and see it all at duck level
http://z.about.com/d/gocalifornia/1/0/3/7/3/P9300060-a.jpg .
And at night the whole thing transforms into Fantasmic! and the big boats are used in the show. Most people consider the Disneyland version of that show to be superior and on a grander scale than the WDW version.
You can walk from one end of Disneyland to the other in 10 minutes, and from one side of the entire property to the other in 20 minutes. It's all on a very different and much more compact scale than WDW. Oh, and the Disneyland Castle is tiny compared to the WDW version. Lovely, but tiny.
My kids will eat anything but they LOVE the buffets - Sizzlers, Golden Corrall, Perkins is a must etc etc - are they all in and around the areas we looking at and comparible price wise to Orlando - someone told me that California way more expensive?
Hmm. I'm not very knowledgeable on buffets. There are some great restaurants around Disneyland at all price levels. The GardenWalk mall is opening up a dozen additional new restaurants right across the street from Disneyland. Mimi's Cafe is a popular coffee shop across the street from Disneyland with a menu to suit anyone. There is a mall about two miles south from Disneyland that has lots of restaurants, plus lots of shopping. It's called The Block at Orange, and it sounds like your kids would like it.
http://www.simon.com/mall/entertainment.aspx?ID=1236
As for expenses, you will find the cost of living a tad higher in SoCal than in Orlando. But since you will be sticking to the tourist expenses, or family style meals, I really don't think you'll notice that much difference. And with the very generous exchange rate now, you really can't get a better deal for your travel dollar. (I should work for a travel agency or something!)
You could even use Anaheim or Disneyland Resort as a base camp for day trips and excursions around SoCal. Laguna Beach is about 30 minutes south of Disneyland, and it's a wonderful place for the family to spend the afternoon.
http://www.lagunabeachinfo.org/ Or you could head east out towards the desert. Palm Springs is about a 90 minute drive from Disneyland, and it has great shopping, restaurants, sight seeing, and a fun aerial tram up to the top of the mountains.
http://www.pstramway.com/ You go from 110 degree desert heat, to cool mountain air in about a 15 minute tram ride straight up the side of the mountain. The views to the desert floor below are stunning! There's also the typical California surf culture on the beaches 15 minutes from Disneyland. Huntington Beach, AKA "Surf City USA" is fun
http://www.surfcityusa.com/ or the ritzier Newport Beach farther south is also a great place to catch some rays and some waves.
http://www.visitnewportbeach.com/
The only thing I would warn you about getting a rental car here is
The Great Southern California Freeway System. Orlando is a rather sleepy, small city in the South, and the tourists almost outnumber the locals there. Disneyland is smack dab in the middle of one of the most populated cities on the planet, and the traffic can get crazy here, and no one will expect you to get a pass because you are a tourist. Orange County traffic for the most part is not that bad, but the freeway speeds are very high.
No one obeys the speed limits in Southern California. The freeway traffic flows easily around 75 MPH, while the faster drivers are doing around 85 MPH, and the hot doggers are going even faster when the cops aren't looking. It sounds like you have experience driving in America in an American rental car, but just a heads up that while Californians are generally very friendly, the pace of life in general isn't as slow here in SoCal as it is in Orlando. :wave:
It's a rare and wonderful experience!