Is DisneyLAND as Magical as DisneyWORLD

[civileng68]

Is DisneyLAND as magical DisneyWorld? I have never been to DisneyLAND and would love to for the simple fact that is' Walt's original creation and he saw the full completion and sucess of it. I would love to stand in the park knowing Walt built it so to speak.

However, i have a co-worker from California who goes to both parks and told me that even though the disneyland is the original she says that it isnt nearly as Magical as Disneyworld. She said DisneyWorld is alot bigger (property wise) and that it has a better Magical Atmosphere.

Any others that would like to chime in on this?

 

[MichRX7]

Yes and No. :lol:

I think DL the park is more magical than MK. But overall, WDW is more magical than DLR.

I just think that many of the *small things* that make a difference were left out of MK when it was built. Especially the facades in FantasyLand.

 

[civileng68]

rides

well I not having been to DL can say that I would agree with you from what I know. DW is much more of a resort. However, I do know that at DL many rides are longer than at DW, example POTC is missing something like 2 scenes from the one in DL.

 

[iubigman]

Not more magical, but different

There is just something about DisneyLand. I grew up in CA and have been at least 15 times in my life. It is really apples and oranges to WDW. Some things are better, some not as good.

Indiana Jones is simply the best ride I have ever been on. Period.
I wish that the MK had the Alice in Wonderland dark ride, it is cool, Pinocchio too, and now of course Mr. Toad.
Spleeping Beauty's castle is obviously not nearly as impressive as Cindy, but what can you do?

The magic is still there, but unlike in FL, when you leave the gates, it is over and you are stuck in ugly Anaheim

Scott

 

[KevinPage]

My wife and I both enjoyed DL & DCA on our first ever visit last year.

If you compare both Magic Kingdoms against each other, DL the queues and outside of the attractions are more lavishly detailed, but with the exception of Pirates, the WDW ride portions were better. I think also the fact that DL did not have to cover the queues due to no rain (like Florida) it allowed it to be more visually appealing.

DL is packed with rides compared to MK, It's a Small World is a huge area with outside portion, big clock, etc. WDW version seems like an afterthought.

Also, DL New Orelans Square is VERY impressive looking.

Fantasyland, which was remodeled in 1984-85 feels like a real Fantasyland. Train ride, boat ride, Alice dark ride & Pinnochio dark ride (plus what WDW has). None of them are mind blowing, but all nice attractions, that combined really give the area alot of "life". It kills me to see the lagoon in WDW empty.

But then go to Tomorrowland, and WDW is superior, in layout, looks and rides.

Main Street is narrower as well and Sleeping Beauty Castle almost looks funny, since the Mattehorn dwarfs it by comparision. Unlike WDW where you can see the castle from anywhere in the park, you can never see it in DL, just the Matterhorn

 

[EvilMortimer]

Disneyland Park is the "Happiest Place on Earth." The Magic Kingdom is the "Most Magical Place on Earth." And no, you can't say vice versa. The two slogans are part of Disney history. There's only one Happiest Place on Earth, and that's Disneyland.

So, WDW is great. But you can't compare WDW with Disneyland. But between Disneyland Park and the Magic Kindgom, Disneyland Park beats out the Magic Kingdom.

And NO, Disneyland Park is NOT the Magic Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom only refers to the park in Florida. True, it has been used as a adjective for Disneyland Park in CA as "Walt Disney's magic kingdom," but the park was never named that. Just some Disney Trivia for ya. And if you want to really get confused, there are actually two Disneyland Parks... one in CA and one in Paris.

 

[dliddi]

i didn't think there was as much magic, i liked DW much better, there wer things i liked better at DL, but overall i think DW has the edge up.

 

[Blake]

Though DL may have more rides than the MK, they also have a 16 year head start. In 2019, you can compare the MK to DL of today.

 

[jrriddle]

If you are talking about parks, I think WDW is far superior. As many have stated there is more to do, it's a "world" unto itself.
As far as MK vs. DL. I like to pick and choose. DL has a great Fantasyland. MK has a better Tommorowland.
As far as sheer beauty goes DLParis has them both beat (IMO).

 

[jcraycraft]

Having visited both this year (DL in June/WDW in July) I would have to the WDW is more Magical of a place then Disneyland Resort. Once you get to WDW you are totally immersed in the ‘MAGIC”. We never felt that way while staying at Disneyland Resort. Don’t get me wrong we had a great time but still felt that we needed a trip to WDW to satisfy our Mickey desires.

Once inside Disneyland Park you start to get the feeling of the Magic, but you leave and it is gone…. BTW we stayed on Disneyland property (Disney’s Grand Cal Hotel) so it was it that! Also, a few of the Disneyland attractions are done better then at the MK/WDW…like POTC, Small World and the Fantasmic show.

We would go back to Disneyland again but for now if I had to choose a trip to Disneyland or WDW… no question that WDW would win that discussion!!!!!

 

[MichRX7]

Originally posted by Blake
Though DL may have more rides than the MK, they also have a 16 year head start. In 2019, you can compare the MK to DL of today.

Ok, than I really think DL is ahead. If you compare MK of today and DL 16 years ago, than DL's Tomorrowland isn't as screwed up as it is now.

 

[Blake]

huh? So are you saying our tomorrowland's gonna be like Disneyland's in 16 years \\:lol:

 

[Merlin]

Originally posted by Blake
Though DL may have more rides than the MK, they also have a 16 year head start. In 2019, you can compare the MK to DL of today.

OMG!!! Let's pray you're wrong!! The "DL of today" hopefully won't be this way much longer (now that Cynthia Harriss is finally out of the picture).

Every now and then, a thread like this one pops up and I read the usual comparisons between the parks. Not only do I personally feel that MK is vastly more magical than DL, but I always laugh at the reasons that are invariably given to support the opposite. So I'll just address all of those now (these are the reasons you're guaranteed to read on this thread as to why people think DL is more magical):

1. "DL is more magical because Walt personally built it" - Wrong! The problem with this statement is that Walt's personal touches are mostly gone. If you were to compare DL of today to DL of the day Walt died, Main Street would pretty much be the only recognizable section.

2. "DL is more magical because it has more attractions" - Wrong! Following that logic, Six Flags would be more magical than both of them because it has more attractions. More attractions doesn't make a park more magical. Cleaner, better attractions does (oh, and it helps if those attractions are actually runnning and they don't kill people).

3. "DL is more magical because it is the original" - Wrong! How does being the original make something more magical?

4. "DL is more magical because the rides are better" - Wrong! I'll admit that SOME of the rides are better such as Space Mountain (which is still closed for at least another year), Pirates, and Haunted Mansion. But aside from those three, I think the rides at MK are much superior to the ones at DL. In particular, Splash Mountain at DL doesn't hold a candle to the one at MK. At the one in DL, if you look up you are distracted by the fact that you are obviously inside a building (you can see all the spotlights and stuff). At the MK version, they disguise all that.

5. (This is my favorite one) "This is an unfair question. You can't compare the two because it's like comparing apples and oranges" - Wrong! For starters, who ever said you CAN'T compare apples and oranges anyway? Surely you like one more than other. Likewise, if we want to compare DL to WDW, or DL to MK, or DLR to WDW....guess what folks, SURE WE CAN!! You can compare anything you want. Saying you can't is just a cop out in my opinion.

 

[bugsbunny]

I've been to WDW about a dozen times now and this summer/fall, happen to make it to DL twice and California Adventure once.

I took my wife to DL the 2nd time. She just kept saying how different everything was and that was BEFORE we even made it into DL. We stayed at the Coast Anaheim on the 12th floor which meant we were literally across the street from DL and could look down into everything. THAT is one BIG difference of how you are not at a RESORT but at an amusment area. So she just looked out over the park the night before our entry the next day.

But once inside those magic gates and onto Main Street, the same feelings of "WE'RE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and smiles from ear to ear quickly show up.

While there are glaring differences between DL and "our park", as veteren WDW goers refer to it, it is still kicks ______. The only real problem is that since it is so much smaller, it is way cramped when it comes time for Fantasmic at the end.

One cool thing that DL has that MK lacks is Toon Town. Toon Town at DL is an actual LAND and not a tiny section such as at the MK.

And I also have to agree that the French Quarter being superb. The Haunted Mansion and Pirates are different and I might even say, better than the MK versions. And eating at a sit down restaraunt INSIDE Pirates at DL is just so cool. WHile the food was a bit pricey, it was pretty good and huge portions.

I remember one bus driver at WDW telling me that the entire DL complex could fit into the parking lot at the MK. That really puts things into perspective.

Downtown Disney at DL is more like a looooong strip mall then the market atmosphere at WDW. But Disney had to do with what they had and they didn't do a bad job. (/Michael Eisner rolls eyes while reading this and mumbles "Thanks! Think you could do better?")

California Adventure has a long way to go. I can only describe it as an MGM wannabe. It has some really cool attractions such as Soarin and the Studio/Animator show was so cool that Disney is copying/moving it to MGM at WDW. The addition of the Tower of Terror should really help CA out, too. The California Screamin uses the same linear induction magent launch that Rockin Roller Coaster uses at MGM, though Screamin is WAY faster and longer.

Overall, it was a pretty cool experience to stay at DL for 3 days. If any vetern WDW's haven't been there, it is certainly worth going.

After all, it is still Disney you know!!!

 

[Blake]

No, no! I think you took it the wrong way...

What i'm saying is that theme parks are built in stages, right? For example, DCA will have more rides when more phases open and Animal Kingdom is only 1/3 done. So DL has had 16 extra years to add rides. And, Disney can't not add rides to America's most visited theme park so eventually, we'll get the same number of attractions. Of course, saying that, by that time, they'll still be sixteen years ahead and we'll have to wait untill 2039! :lol:

I'm not talking about in 16 years out Tomorrowland is going to be horrible and our rides are going to be accident-prone...!

 

[KevinPage]

YES, the animation building in DCA was amazing. I don't think we are getting a copy of that here in Florida though.

If we are, then, danbg, I'm a happy camper. But I thought it was just a new movie and different pacing to the old tour.

 

[Djali999]

I personally perfer DL to the MK, but WDW to the DL Resort. DL is small and unhurried, shaded, and lived in. while, yes, their Tomorrowland is horrid, I think New Orleans Square blows anything at the MK out of the water.

WDW, however, has a superior Splash Mountain. their Thunder Mountain is neat, and may be a bit more thrilling as well.

I've never perfered the DL Haunted Mansion to the WDW Haunted Mansion, but DL is in better shape and has some neat effects we don't.

That said... Pirates... oh... wow. it's hard for me to go on the WDW Pirates now.

I think it boils down to personal taste. WDW is a more cohesive and open park, with luxuriously sloping lawns and quiet corners. DL has a lot crammed into it, with the Jungle Cruise passing within feet of the Indy quere and other things...

I loved it. I can't wait to go back. I mean, come on, their Emporium has cool 'window scenes' on the second level!

 

[MichRX7]

Yes, my point was not that the MK tomorrowland will be awful in 16 years, but that 16 years ago the DL tomorrowland was in much better shape than it is now.

If I had to choose between resorts I would go to WDW hands down. My original comments were that I just thought more *magical* touches were put into DL over MK especially when it comes to FantasyLand.

I do agree though that you could almost feel claustrophobic at DL. When we were there during last year's holidays I took my stepson (13 then) back to the park at night and you almost couldn't move. They had full walkways blocked off because the ride queues for Pirates and HM covered the streets.

And there is no comparison that the HM NBC makeover is one of the best things Disney has done to an attraction in a long time. We were blown away by it, talk about having a "spare no expense" attitude. It was classic Disney at it's finest.

 

[Djali999]

yeah, in terms of crowd control, DL is a mess.... but my general impression is that more thought went into it than did WDW. it's just kinda bursting at the seams right now....

 

[netenyahoo]

I had been to DL many many times before I finally went to WDW this year. While WDW is big and has more I think I enjoy DL more. Both places are magical. It all depends on you personally and your attitude. DL, the park, is much better than MK IMO. I hated POTC at MK as it is so weak compared to DL's. New Orleans Square at DL is such a great land. The only ride at MK that I enjoyed more than at DL is Splash Mountain. MK really needs to get a better Fantasyland. Tomorrowland at MK is better overall than DL's, but DL is getting Buzz now and it will soon be good. DL has Indiana Jones in Adventureland - awesome ride!!!

Neither park is more magical really unless you think it is. We all have our preferences. It is neat that you can see the light in Walt's apartment window above the firehouse at DL and can go to the Disney Gallery which was another one of his apartments. You can see the petrified tree Walt gave Lillian for their anniversary which she in turn gave to the park. There are little touches like this at DL that help to make it special. MK has special things too.