The Land of The Walls: My DL Trip Report!

[DisneyDreamer08]

I believe after that, we left DCA and went back over to DL. I had mentioned that I wouldn't mind doing Splash and BTMRR one more time so my parents suggested I do that first. I can't remember what they did but I think they ended up getting some Dole Whips at some point.
I took this at the top of Splash.

We then all went into the Treehouse which was the one thing we missed the day before. I actually really liked that DL's is rethemed to Tarzan. I thought it was a great way to incorporate a newer movie with an older attraction. Some pictures of the Treehouse and the view from the top.

Thunder Mountain

Haunted Mansion and a dry Rivers of America

Mrs. Potts and Chip!

I honestly can't remember if we did anything else and my next picture is my mom and I posing with Goofy near the entrance. Goofy is my mom's fav!

My mom and I then decided to go hit up World of Disney in the Downtown area. My dad opted to go back to the Wharf and have another beer.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

We didn't go in any other stores downtown. Unlike in WDW, where the downtown has many unique Disney themed stores, in DL the majority of the stores are ones you can find in your local mall.

We then went back over to DCA to meet up with my dad and also see the Pixar Play Parade. We still had some time to kill so my parents (who were slightly pooped out) volunteered to find a spot for the parade and sit and chill. I went over to Tower of Terror to ride one last time.
Another view from the top.

The Pixar Parade was great! I loved the costumes that the dancers wore and how nicely they fit in to the movie they were representing. I guess the parade hasn't been updated in a while though because there were no characters from Ratatouille, Wall-E or Up. It was still a lot of fun though.
Lots of pictures...

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

A few more parade pics

After the parade, I believe it was only about 4 or 5 o'clock. I desperately wanted to stick around and do some more rides. But my parents were exhausted and still had to pack to go home the next day, blah blah blah. So they made me leave. I actually would have loved to have stayed to see the DL fireworks again. I almost convinced my parents to leave me and come back and get me later but because it was a 20 or 25 minute drive, they said no. Sad.

So that was it. That was my brief 3 day trip to the Land. Overall I had a fantastic time and I'm so glad I finally got to see Disneyland for myself.

Disneyland ranks right up there with the Magic Kingdom for me. One thing I really liked about DL, which I mentioned earlier, was the incredible landscaping. Each land was so perfectly themed with lots of lush, beautiful trees, plants and flowers. I had a picture of Sleeping Beauty Castle as my desktop background for a while and recently, a friend of mine was in WDW. I was looking at her pictures and came across one of Cinderella's Castle and it looked naked!

DCA was not a big hit with me and is definitely my least favorite of the 6 Disney parks I have been to. I think the California theme is lame and a lot of the rides are duplicates from other parks. I also hate the whole Paradise Pier section. The best parts of the park are Toy Story Mania, the Monsters Inc ride, A Bugs Land, and the Pixar Play Parade. In my opinion, DCA would have been amazing if it were themed solely to Pixar movies. That would have been great. It's a small park to begin with so space is limited. It would have been the perfect amount of space. I know there is nothing they can do about it now, but if those Disney guys had a Delorean to go back in time, that would be my suggestion.

As a whole, I actually think that in a lot of ways, DL would be a better first Disney experience for little kids than WDW would be. Because of the size of WDW, it is pretty much impossible to do everything in a week. Especially if you have little kids who need to nap for a few hours each day. The two parks at DL is much more manageable. You could easily do it in 4 or 5 five days with little kids. I also love that the DL hotels, as well as many other area hotels, are within walking distance to the parks. I have never gone to WDW with little kids but I can imagine that busing it back and forth several times throughout the day to accommodate naps can get annoying. But walking 5 minutes to your hotel room for a quick nap- easy! The only thing that stinks for us is that California is a 6 hour plane ride and Florida is only 2 1/2.

Again, sorry for the extreme delay in the completion of this report. If you read it all, I really appreciate it!!!

 

[Wilt Dasney]

I just found your TR today (so I didn't have to wait between chapters). :lol:

I had a lot of fun reading your thoughts and looking at your photos this afternoon. I made my first DL trip last year and absolutely fell in love with the place (the DL park, anyway...like you, I was underwhelmed by DCA but charmed by some parts of it). I always enjoy hearing about first time trips there from people who only know WDW, since that was my perspective too.

Congratulations on your future princess! That's a plenty worthwhile reason for delaying a TR in my book.

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

Great to see that you came back and finished the report; I had lost hope you would come back to it. It was fun to read. :wave:

But with a new princess on the way, the delay between sections is completely understandable! Congratulations! :sohappy:

 

[maggiegrace1]

great report and congrats..Girls are the best..

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thank you for reading Wilt, hpyhnt, and maggiegrace! Our little princess will be here in December, we can't wait

 

[TP2000]

The Pixar Parade was great! I loved the costumes that the dancers wore and how nicely they fit in to the movie they were representing. I guess the parade hasn't been updated in a while though because there were no characters from Ratatouille, Wall-E or Up. It was still a lot of fun though.
Lots of pictures...

Pixar Play Parade at DCA opened in Spring, 2008. It replaced Block Party Bash that ran in DCA from '05 to '07 before it was sent out to WDW. There is a Ratatouille unit led by stilt-walking chefs with Ratatouille characters on bungee pasta strings on the float, but it was in rehab this past spring when you visited. It rejoined the parade for the summer.

Pixar Play Parade ends later this year, while the DCA parade route shuts down for construction work in Paradise Pier and the Buena Vista Street project at the main entrance. No word yet what parade replaces it when the DCA parade route reopens in 2012. Soundsational Parade at Disneyland opens Winter, 2011.

If previous parades are any indication, there's a good chance the Pixar Play Parade will be sent out to WDW. Another rumor has it going to Paris however.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

TP- thank you for the info on Pixar Play Parade and the nice Ratatouille pictures! I didn't realize that section was in rehab.

 

[puntagordabob]

List of Disneyland features over WDW

1. Toontown
2. Roger Rabbit
3. Indiana Jones
4. Matterhorn bobsleds
5. Alice in Wonderland
6. Mr Toad
7. PotC and Blue Bayou

How could you forget the Disneyland Tiki Room show being far better than the UNM show at WDW! lol