My lovely wife and I were planning to go to San Antonio in a few weeks, however, after some constant "I really miss Disney" conversations, and lengthy talks regarding logistics... we've decided we are taking a trip to Disneyland instead of going to SA - we booked tonight! We've never been to WDW's older brother on the West Coast, and
@raven24 suggested I post here so y'all could help out, so please give us a hand and let me know:
- Ride priority: What do we absolutely HAVE to ride?
Matterhorn is a must. I'd recommend the single rider line, since the lines can be rather long and there is no FastPass);
The Fantasyland dark rides. All of them. Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and Peter Pan have the longest waits, but they aren't too bad;
Roger Rabit's Car-Toon Spin. It's fun, and the queue is pretty neat too;
The Disneyland Railroad. Particularly between Tomorrowland and Main Street stations;
The Mark Twain or Columbia Sailing Ship. Gives nice views of Tom Sawyer Island, and parts of Frontierland; plus you get a great view of the replaced Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland (they left portions of the track in place);
Indiana Jones. This breaks down frequently, so grab a FastPass or get in line when you get to the ride;
Monorail. You can take a round trip on the monorail (unless it's extremely busy, but they will tell you if it only offers one-way trips);
Autopia. I enjoy it, even though it's a car ride. It's a pretty relaxing ride, and it's pretty much covered with trees so it gets you out of the sun;
Space Mountain. This ride is extremely popular, so I'd do it first thing in the morning or at the very least grab a FastPass as soon as you can;
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad;
Cars Land and its attractions;
Tower of Terror is a little different so don't miss it;
California Screamin' is really fun; I like it more than DHS's RNR;
Monster's Inc. dark ride is cute;
The
Aladdin stage show
- Positive differences to note
The soundtrack on Space Mountain makes up for the one small 5 foot drop the ride has;
The differences between the DL and WDW versions of BTMRR make it a not-to-be-missed ride.
DL's layout is more compact, which makes it easier to get around. The proximity between parks and Downtown Disney is ideal if you like to hop around.
- Negative differences to note
Disneyland's compactness can make it seem very crowded; also the park's layout makes for a lot of back-tracking. Also, if you aren't paying attention and make a wrong turn, you might miss Indiana Jones and the Jungle Cruise. And maneuvering through Fantasyland near the Matterhorn and IASW and Main Street during parades is impossible.
- Eats: What do we absolutely HAVE to eat while we are there?
I am from New York, so there is nothing any Disney park can serve that I find to be a "must-eat." I am partial to the Big Thunder Ranch all-you-can-eat BBQ. However the food itself is nothing spectacular. Blue Bayou is nice if only for the ambiance of watching boats from PoC float by.
- Any other thoughts, comments, suggestions, etc.?
Use single-rider lines and FastPass as much as possible, especiall if it's crowded. And if you are there during a weekday, note that it gets more crowded in the afternoon and evening as people arrive from school/work to spend the evening.
