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To Disneyland and Beyond!
- Thread starter PSU_Princess
- Start date
DisneyBunny
Active Member
Here is my attempt at Goofy
Wow! That's 1000 times better than anything I could draw!!
Sounds like you had a blast! Thanks for the great pics! :wave:
Disneyfalcon
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the trip report!
If anyone is on the fence about whether they'll like DL after loving DW, get off the fence, you will! I was in that crowd until we moved to So CA last year. We LOVE DL. It has it's own wonderful charm. Like PSU Princess said, walking from one park to the other in less then a minute is a huge plus. California Adventure is great fun too, don't believe the negative hype!
If anyone is on the fence about whether they'll like DL after loving DW, get off the fence, you will! I was in that crowd until we moved to So CA last year. We LOVE DL. It has it's own wonderful charm. Like PSU Princess said, walking from one park to the other in less then a minute is a huge plus. California Adventure is great fun too, don't believe the negative hype!
Sounds like you had fun! I'm glad you enjoyed DCA!! It's a great park if you really give it a chance, which you did.
I don't blame you about not wanting to ride the Sun Wheel....that thing scares the crap out of me! :dazzle:
The pins are great. The CMs and other guests are great about pointing them out and making conversation about them.
I don't blame you about wanting to take pictures. My friends get annoyed with me because I'm always stopping to taking pictures.
Nice trip report!
Thanks! The pins were great! The CM at guest relations also gave me a princess pin and DH a pirate pin. I couldn't believe how many people stopped to talk to us and ask us how we were enjoying our first trip and what we liked the best. I was loving all the friendly people....there aren't to many of them around us:lookaroun
Yep, she's a little bit crazy! That used to be part of her morning routine. She would carry a toy around the apartment and then bring up onto the bed and hide it...do a lap around the apatment and come back and attack the bed :lol: She also plays fetch:lookaroun
I thought they were so cute! I wanted to get a Pluto one. I have a plain purple pillow that is made the same way and the crazy kitty thinks it is her personal pillow...she sleeps on it all day. I passed on Pluto because I thought it would just become another bed for her.
I was worried before we left too. I kept saying "You know we could just go to Florida instead" but DH didn't go for that. I was also a little worried on our way from the airport to the hotel. You can see the Matterhorn and ToT from the freeway. I was worried that you would be able to notice the outside world from the inside, but luckily I was wrong. As soon as we stepped onto property everything was amazing.
On the first day I was a little shocked when I saw costumed CMs walking through the wrong lands; I forgot that there is no Utilidor system there. You still get the same great Disney atmosphere!
Thanks Betty!
Thanks Bunny! I would have gone back to take all of the animation classes. Jay seemed to enjoy them too. He didn't seem excited when I mentioned going back the second time, so I decided that I could live with 2.
Thanks for the trip report!
If anyone is on the fence about whether they'll like DL after loving DW, get off the fence, you will! I was in that crowd until we moved to So CA last year. We LOVE DL. It has it's own wonderful charm. Like PSU Princess said, walking from one park to the other in less then a minute is a huge plus. California Adventure is great fun too, don't believe the negative hype!
It was definetly a lot of fun!
Disneyfalcon
Well-Known Member
I felt the same way the first time I saw it. You can actually see the back of the toontown walls - VERY unmagical. I guess I was worried I wouldn't feel as immersed in the magic.
But nope! The magic finds you very quickly!
Nicole220
Well-Known Member
I used to know some people from Flordia who refused to go to DL because it was surrounded by chain link fences (this was before the resort got big and pretty). I always feel like I'm in a different world at DL!
The whole reason DCA was put in was so that DL could loose the whole "i'm stuck in the middle of a big city" look.
Rufus T Firefly
Well-Known Member
Mr. Toad's is great, isn't it?!
Love the report so far!
Where else in Disney can you ride through Hell?
Ok, well maybe IASW too.
Great Trip Report!
That was one of the most enjoyable trip reports I've ever had the pleasure of reading! :sohappy: I guess because I'm a native Californian, who is absolutely in love with my state and have lived here my entire life, it is always cool to hear aspects of it described from an outside visitor's perspective. I really enjoyed how you described the WHOLE trip, and not just your visit to DLR (though I enjoyed those parts immensely as well). A few comments/questions:
I'm glad you had a great trip!
That was one of the most enjoyable trip reports I've ever had the pleasure of reading! :sohappy: I guess because I'm a native Californian, who is absolutely in love with my state and have lived here my entire life, it is always cool to hear aspects of it described from an outside visitor's perspective. I really enjoyed how you described the WHOLE trip, and not just your visit to DLR (though I enjoyed those parts immensely as well). A few comments/questions:
- To address the confusion over the name (Disneyland or Magic Kingdom), the park itself is actually called Disneyland (or technically, Disneyland Park). Magic Kingdom has always been it's "nickname" if you will. In brochures and what not, you'll notice it's usually referred to in context as "Walt Disney's 'magic kingdom', Disneyland." When they built the Florida resort, they wanted the name "Disney World" (later "WALT Disney World" of course) to refer to the entire property, so they gave the theme park the official name of "Magic Kingdom". OUR resort is of course called, "Disneyland Resort". They actually started calling it that several years before California Adventure was even planned (Originally, we were going to get our own version of Epcot before they decided to do California Adventure instead). So for a while, it was called "Disneyland Resort" when all that existed was the one theme park, and two hotels. That tended to give locals a bit of a chuckle (Now no one is laughing of course!).
- I'm glad you enjoyed Napa. Isn't it beautiful? If you come back, you'll have to try and pay a visit to Silverado Vineyards. It is owned and operated by Walt's daughter, Diane and her husband Ron Miller (who used to be the CEO of Walt Disney Company just prior to Michael Eisner).
- The church you saw in San Francisco is the Grace Cathedral. It's a beautiful church, and one pretty cool feature inside is a big labyrinth on the floor that you can walk. It is supposed to be a very spiritual experience.
- I'm glad you enjoyed our version of Space Mountain. It is the absolute best attraction in DL in my opinion and I think it completely blows away the WDW version. I don't think the two are even in the same league. One thing I was curious about is whether it was the "normal" version or if it was the "Rockin'" version. I had heard they were still doing the "Rockin'" version and I also heard that it was terrible. I really hope it was the normal "outer space" experience for you. If not, then you HAVE to come back and do it again.
- I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the Matterhorn. That is also one of the best attractions in DL in my opinion. Of course, you're probably aware that this is the classic attraction that was a partial inspiration for Expedition Everest at DAK. Most people tend to think I'm crazy when I say this, but I think the Matterhorn is far superior an experience to Everest.
- What did you think of Big Thunder compared to the WDW version? I've always liked the WDW version a little better. The track on the WDW version is actually just an exact mirror image of the DL one, but the trains are longer on the WDW one and I think that actually makes for a slightly different experience. One thing the DL version has that's better is the queue, though, I think. Just curious what you thought about it?
- I'm also glad that you enjoyed the Aladdin stage show. In my opinion, that show and California Screamin' are really the only two things that make DCA worthwhile, especially for someone who has been to WDW lots of times. I'm afraid I'm among the many critics of DCA. It just had so much potential, but unfortunately it was created during the Paul Pressler era and he was more of a retail guy than a theme park guy.
- What did you think when you saw the Castle for the first time? It's funny, but I grew up going to DL all the time, and didn't get to go to WDW until I was in my mid-20's. Since then, I've probably been to WDW about 5 times for every 1 time I've been to DL...I just love it so much. So now whenever I go to DL and I see the Castle, I always feel like it's just slightly larger than the ones you see at the miniature golf courses. :lol:
- I can't remember if you mentioned in your report whether you had a chance to ride Splash Mountain. If so, how did you think it compared to the WDW version? I personally loved Splash Mountain when it first opened, and I still love it, but I think the WDW version is SOOOOO much better. Just curious what you thought?
- Did you get a chance to explore the Grand Californian? I actually think that's a very pretty hotel, although I think the WDW resorts tend to be a little more impressive overall. It's innovative, though, how the hotel is adjacent to the theme park and has it's own entrance to the park, don't you think? Of the three Disney-owned hotels at DLR, it is actually the only one that was conceived and built by Disney from the ground up, and I think you can really tell. It has a lot of that unique Disney ambience that I think the other two hotels lack.
I'm glad you had a great trip!
mouselvrmom
Well-Known Member
Just a quick question, PSU princess that may be kind of a dumb one. How did you get from the airport to your hotel? Last time we went to DL they didn't have a way to prebook your trip to the hotel so we thought that we would just wing it. Well, winging it was not the way to go. We tried to find a shuttle or aircab to take and we had to wait 40 minutes for one, then when one finally came for us, we ended up circling the airport three more times waiting to pick up more people. We were feeling quite cranky by the time we made it to our hotel. I wish they had a disney shuttle or something.
That was one of the most enjoyable trip reports I've ever had the pleasure of reading! :sohappy: I guess because I'm a native Californian, who is absolutely in love with my state and have lived here my entire life, it is always cool to hear aspects of it described from an outside visitor's perspective. I really enjoyed how you described the WHOLE trip, and not just your visit to DLR (though I enjoyed those parts immensely as well). A few comments/questions:
There are 2 other vineyards that our friends also recommended and the names are escaping me right now. I think they said that one sits on top of the mountains and you have to take a gondola to get there. Our friends had some really nice posters and post cards from Napa that they framed, we were hoping to make it to at least one other vineyard so that we could pick some up, but we never made it back. The next time we head to California we will definetly have to plan on more time to explore!
- To address the confusion over the name (Disneyland or Magic Kingdom), the park itself is actually called Disneyland (or technically, Disneyland Park). Magic Kingdom has always been it's "nickname" if you will. In brochures and what not, you'll notice it's usually referred to in context as "Walt Disney's 'magic kingdom', Disneyland." When they built the Florida resort, they wanted the name "Disney World" (later "WALT Disney World" of course) to refer to the entire property, so they gave the theme park the official name of "Magic Kingdom". OUR resort is of course called, "Disneyland Resort". They actually started calling it that several years before California Adventure was even planned (Originally, we were going to get our own version of Epcot before they decided to do California Adventure instead). So for a while, it was called "Disneyland Resort" when all that existed was the one theme park, and two hotels. That tended to give locals a bit of a chuckle (Now no one is laughing of course!).
- I'm glad you enjoyed Napa. Isn't it beautiful? If you come back, you'll have to try and pay a visit to Silverado Vineyards. It is owned and operated by Walt's daughter, Diane and her husband Ron Miller (who used to be the CEO of Walt Disney Company just prior to Michael Eisner).
I wish we would have gone in. The labyrinth sounds pretty cool.
- The church you saw in San Francisco is the Grace Cathedral. It's a beautiful church, and one pretty cool feature inside is a big labyrinth on the floor that you can walk. It is supposed to be a very spiritual experience.
It was the Rockin version, but I really like the song that they played and it was timed to the track perfectly. I agree that it is so much better than WDW. The track is so smooth and just an overall great ride! Is the layout pretty similar to the pre-rehab layout?
- I'm glad you enjoyed our version of Space Mountain. It is the absolute best attraction in DL in my opinion and I think it completely blows away the WDW version. I don't think the two are even in the same league. One thing I was curious about is whether it was the "normal" version or if it was the "Rockin'" version. I had heard they were still doing the "Rockin'" version and I also heard that it was terrible. I really hope it was the normal "outer space" experience for you. If not, then you HAVE to come back and do it again.
If I just could have figured out how to sit comfortably in the seat I would have been fine. I did love how quickly they could load the ride. The line always looked so long, but when both sides were loading it went by really quickly.
- I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the Matterhorn. That is also one of the best attractions in DL in my opinion. Of course, you're probably aware that this is the classic attraction that was a partial inspiration for Expedition Everest at DAK. Most people tend to think I'm crazy when I say this, but I think the Matterhorn is far superior an experience to Everest.
Now that I think about it the queue was better. As far as the ride itself I thought it was a little longer than the WDW version...I guess I was wrong
- What did you think of Big Thunder compared to the WDW version? I've always liked the WDW version a little better. The track on the WDW version is actually just an exact mirror image of the DL one, but the trains are longer on the WDW one and I think that actually makes for a slightly different experience. One thing the DL version has that's better is the queue, though, I think. Just curious what you thought about it?
You know the little padding type pillows that you put around a newborns head when they are in there carseat? I said that I needed one of those for when we were on Screamin'. I definetly would have enjoyed the ride even more if my head wasn't bouncing around all over the place!
- I'm also glad that you enjoyed the Aladdin stage show. In my opinion, that show and California Screamin' are really the only two things that make DCA worthwhile, especially for someone who has been to WDW lots of times. I'm afraid I'm among the many critics of DCA. It just had so much potential, but unfortunately it was created during the Paul Pressler era and he was more of a retail guy than a theme park guy.
When we walked down Main Street for the first time that was one of my first comments. I couldn't believe how small the castle looked.
- What did you think when you saw the Castle for the first time? It's funny, but I grew up going to DL all the time, and didn't get to go to WDW until I was in my mid-20's. Since then, I've probably been to WDW about 5 times for every 1 time I've been to DL...I just love it so much. So now whenever I go to DL and I see the Castle, I always feel like it's just slightly larger than the ones you see at the miniature golf courses. :lol:
Splash was still down for rehab. DH was very upset about that because it is one of his favorite rides.
- I can't remember if you mentioned in your report whether you had a chance to ride Splash Mountain. If so, how did you think it compared to the WDW version? I personally loved Splash Mountain when it first opened, and I still love it, but I think the WDW version is SOOOOO much better. Just curious what you thought?
On our first day we did explore all three hotels. I did enjoy the lobby of the Grand Californinan. I would have been perfectly happy to sit for several hours in a rocking chair in front of the fireplace and listen to the pianist play. The other two hotels were pretty bland. We did enjoy all of the pictures and old memorabilia in the Disneyland hotel...but we were driven out by a horrible fish oder. I'm not quite sure where it was coming from, but the smell was truely awful!
- Did you get a chance to explore the Grand Californian? I actually think that's a very pretty hotel, although I think the WDW resorts tend to be a little more impressive overall. It's innovative, though, how the hotel is adjacent to the theme park and has it's own entrance to the park, don't you think? Of the three Disney-owned hotels at DLR, it is actually the only one that was conceived and built by Disney from the ground up, and I think you can really tell. It has a lot of that unique Disney ambience that I think the other two hotels lack.
Anyway, sorry for having such a lengthy post (Some people are probably reading this thinking, "Geez Mickster! Your post is longer than her trip report itself! :lol: ). But I was just very impressed by your trip report, and wanted to comment...as well as ask those few questions.
I'm glad you had a great trip!
Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!
Thanks to the help of some of our wonderful board members I looked into a couple of options before we left....The Disneyland Resort Express and Super Shuttle. We flew into SNA so this is how things worked there....I'm not sure about the other airports.
If you print out a coupon on line the prices of the two are pretty much the same...I think $1 difference between the two. I read on Mousesavers that if you have more than 4 people you should take a taxi because it would be cheaper than any of the shuttle services.
The DL express is a large bus (think DME). They pick up from SNA and LAX. The bus is scheduled to arrive every half hour or every hour depending on the time of day. You can pre register but you don't have to. Once you exit the airport there is a kiosk for the bus, but there is not anyone there to give you information. The bus pulls up and the driver gets hotel info from everyone and loads all of the bags. Your first stop is outside of the DL Hotel where someone will come on the bus to collect your vouchers or payment. Once everyone has paid the driver starts to make the rounds to the various hotels. Our hotel stop was near the hotel, but not directly in front the hotel. The day before our departure we called to get a pick up time. The driver picked up everyone at our stop and several other stops then it was off to DL hotel where we split into buses for SNA and LAX.
Super Shuttle has several options to chose from.....private car or shared van. You book ahead of time and enter all of your flight info...they have a van waiting for you when you arrive and provide you with a pick up time at your hotel.
Both were about $20 per person round trip.
If I had to do it again I would try Super Shuttle. They have door to door service and no need to make excessive stops.
Hope that helped!:wave:
mouselvrmom
Well-Known Member
Thank you, PSU Princess, that does help!
MerHearted
Well-Known Member
Here is one for Vince
Oooh! I'm quite familiar with that Ariel! :lol:
Great report! I'm glad you liked Disneyland! :sohappy: :sohappy: :sohappy:
I hope we get to go back sometime, but I'm sure it won't be anytime in the near future.
Ummm...that doesn't sound very family friendly :lookaroun