Trip Report From Cali to Orlando in 3.5 weeks!!!

I was planning on starting a trip report for 2013 on my families annual trip to Orlando this year (September 24- October 8). Fortunately I had business in the LA area and thought that a per orlando Disney trip should get me primed for next week. So here it goes. Inevitably there will be lots of comparisons between the two sites and hopefully I am not too biased toward WDW.

So right off the bat I have to say that Radiator Springs is the most immersive Disney experience that I have come across at any park. I am beyond impressed and hope that we get some type of clone or version of this. It might be the same tech as test track but the ride itself is way better. And the theming...well saying it is better that test track is an understatement.

 

[JCtheparrothead]

So I was able to stroll through RS for about an hour. The single rider line for RSR is an awesome feature. The wait was 60 minutes when the park opened and I waited 5 minutes in that line. Awesome experience across the board here.

 

[JCtheparrothead]

Well I am back from Anaheim and my first trip to Disneyland. I was trying to put the beginning of this trip report out via iPhone while in a super long line for Space Mountain but that was proving to be very frustrating. The trip was great with the whole work part not getting in the way too much. I spent 1.5 days at Disneyland and CA and i got to ride almost everything that i wanted to. 1 day was a Wednesday which was very easy to maneuver and lines were very short. The other day was the first night of Halloween and it was unbelievably busy based on overhearing some locals talk. I did not try to hit every ride or experience every show. I really wanted to see the difference in my favorites and take in things that are not in Orlando. Needless to say for those who have been there, Disneyland is very different from WDW.

The first word that comes to mind is packed, as in packed on top of each other. The streets seemed not as wide, attractions were not as spread out, and the lands seemed less grand. This is not a bad thing. It made the park seem more cozy and there was literally something lurking around the next corner.

So the attractions. My favorites were Carsland (if you couldn't guess form the first 2 pictures) and Pirates of the Caribbean. I have already talked at length about Mater and the boys so i will jump on POC. First off it was much longer (about 2 times longer) and told a way better story that the WDW version. To me the ride was much more relaxed and gradually built up to the pirates burning down the town. Great rides and i rode them both multiple times. I was also fortunate to be able to ride the Halloween version of the Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain. HM was great and the changes to the theming were fantastic. I can only hope that WDW does this to the HM in the near future. I was less impressed with SM and its changes. Besides waiting for almost an hour to get on it just seemed like forced theming. Maybe i was just thrown off because the Queue was outside and i baked in the sun most of the time.

From there everything attraction wise seemed to be a variation of something that exists in WDW. Not better, not worse just difference. Disneyland has its share of Imagination like massacres as well. I am pretty sure that the Monsters Inc ride would give Imagination a run for its money on a crappy ride survey. I wanted to get of 1 minute in. Also i remember loving the 20K Leagues ride and maybe i grew but the seats seemed a little small. But hey its a sub and i am 40. All in all a good time but i prefer WDW over Disneyland in almost every way.

I did cut out a little section for the resorts and dining at Disneyland. I made a point to check out each resort and several restaurants while i was there. The resorts were no where near the scale and immersiveness that you get from a moderate resort up at WDW. They were nice and well kept but nothing that blew me away like Beach Club. The Disneyland hotel had my favorite drink and lunch spot though...Trader Sams. Is it expensive...um yes. Do they make awesome Tiki Drinks...um Yes. Did it remind me of a little adventurers club...for sure. This place was great and all the little acts (volcanoes erupting and boats sinking) made it feel very Disney. I can only hope that they put one of these at the Poly. I also ate at Ralph Brennans Jazz Kitchen (7 out of 10), ESPN Zone (8 of 10 only because of the lazy boys and the Tigers were on the big screen) and the bar Catal (5 out of 10). I did hit the Cozy Cones for a little lunch snack and i have to say they were pretty good. The Chicken Verde Cone i had was pretty tasty.

Well only 7 days until i step foot in Florida and hopefully i will be able to keep this all fresh in my mind. Time for some picture from my adventure to Disneyland. Thanks for tuning in!