I have a secret to share here at Doctor Disney: I haven’t been to Disneyland.
Some people are shocked when I reveal this heartbreaking statement, but don’t worry, a trip to California is actually next on my vacation bucket list. I have read multiple Disneyland guidebooks, watched dozens of YouTube videos, and even played that virtual Disneyland game for the Xbox. But, there are still some things that I don’t understand about this original Disney theme park destination.
Here are ten assumptions that I have about the Disneyland Resort that need a bit of clarification:
- Peter Pan parkours off queue line rails and character attendants don’t exist – Because of this YouTube video, I have always assumed that the characters at DL have a lot more freedom than those at WDW.
No nasty queue lines and no awkward assembly line photo-ops. And the characters even cross movie boundaries to interact with each other. The Mad Hatter is totally BFF’s with Tink, right?
- The Cast Members are even nicer than those at WDW – I picture exclusively all jolly old men and women with Legacy nametags handing out magical moments left and right and bowing to my every whim as I enter the various lands of fantasy.
- The Resort is beautiful, yet surrounded by tacky hotels – There’s some hype around the idea of Disney’s Good Neighbor Hotels. They obviously want me to first and foremost book a package at one of the big three Disney-brand hotels, but then they’ve got the Sheraton and Holiday Inn and Jolly Roger with that continental breakfast. So tempting…
- The Guests are mostly locals and celebrities, but mostly celebrities – My Californian native Aunt Patti always used to say Disneyland was the locals’ hangout. I picture a laidback, chic locale that is less about running from attraction to attraction, and more about relaxing and sunbathing on the steps to the Matterhorn. Running into Brangelina would be a high possibility.
- Disneyland is more magical than Magic Kingdom – I have always assumed that when I enter Disneyland for the first time, I will cry tears of joy and feel the spirit of Walt pulsing through my veins in some creepy, nerdy Disney way. After all, the park experience began here. I picture the upkeep is exceptional and the attention to detail even more pronounced.
- 6. DCA’s Tower of Terror is weird – Supposedly there’s no fifth dimension horizontal transit with the elevator cars? What? So you just… drop?
- FastPass isn’t a big deal – I keep hearing DLR is making the transition into FastPass+. But I have always assumed that really the only attraction you’d need a FP for would be Radiator Springs Racers, because it’s so new. I always picture a perfect world where Guests aren’t so cutthroat about return times and just happily wait in line without complaint.
- Their Pirates of the Caribbean is, like, twice as long – They’ve got the Blue Bayou. And two drops. Oh. My. Goodness.
- You can walk to everything – Apparently if you stay at a closer hotel, you can just …walk to the front gate of the parks? As a professional Walt Disney World Transportation Rider (I just created this title for myself), this is baffling to me. And the Monorail is listed as an attraction on their website. Crazy!
- Their Haunted Mansion has actual ghosts – This YouTube video explains it all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSax1GUugJM
The Haunted Mansion is actually haunted. And they also do this crazy mash-up with Jack Skellington around holiday time? And people love it? What’s this?
So there you have it. My ten assumptions about the beautiful and mysterious place they call The Disneyland Resort. Someday, I shall visit. Oh yes. It will be mine.
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Callie,
Some observations and thoughts from someone who has been to Disneyland about a dozen times and WDW three times.
1. I have rarely seen characters in my visits to any of the parks but, as I tend to be obsessed with the rides, I probably overlook the ones that are there. The video makes we want to pay more attention during future visits – especially to human characters that can interact with the guests!
2. Cast members in my experiences at both locations have generally been neither exceptionally nice or unpleasant. Although I do remember one CM at Peter Pan in Disneyland who was so cheerful it was a little… unsettling.
3. The tacky hotels used to be much more of a thing back in the 70s. Unfortunately the Space Age Inn and some other gems are gone. Now they mostly seem like a collection of chain hotels that you would find off most freeway exits. I think the most jarring re-entry to the “real world” is if you leave after the park closes and walk directly to the east across Harbor Blvd. (with city traffic whizzing by) and grab a late bite at IHOP. – And yes I would say the Disneyland Park itself is beautiful. From the ornate touches in New Orleans Square to the quirky music and latterns of Alice’s Tea Party to the Submarine lagoon, every part of the park feels special.
4. Can’t say that I’ve ever seen a celebrity except near Hollywood. There are definitely a lot of locals that frequent the parks especially in the evenings (my Aunt and Uncle being two of them). The most striking difference to me is in the difference between the demographics that visit the two resorts. My feeling is that WDW guests generally travel from quite a distance and have a decent amount of disposable income to drop on all sorts of purchases. Disneyland guests tend to be, if not from California, at least from the major cities in the west and it has a very urban leaning demographic. Certainly not as many very young kids and strollers. I would say Disneyland has more visitors who are single or childless couples. Disneyland also draws a significant number of visitors from Asia and Mexico. While it seems WDWs international visitors are more from Europe or Brazil. I’d have to give the edge in chic to Florida.
5. I’ve never entered Disneyland through the left tunnel so I can’t say if that is a magical experience or not, but every time I’ve been through the right tunnel my heart skips a beat as I emerge. I never felt Walt’s genius or creativity in WDW in the same way I feel it still exists in many parts of Disneyland. And not just Walt’s legacy, but also those of all the initial Imagineers who pulled it all together.
6. Funny, I think the Tower of Terror in Florida is weird because the elevator leaves one shaft and goes to another. 🙂
7. There are days when I have been VERY thankful there are fast passes at Disneyland for Space Mountain, Indy, Splash and Soarin.
8. I went on Pirates in Florida once and decided it wasn’t worth ever doing again because it feels like such a let down compared to the original in California. And it is great to have Fantasmic set at the end of Tom Sawyers Island. But Splash Mountain and Pooh are much better in Florida and you still have the Country Bear Jamboree, Peoplemover and the Carousel of Progress.
9. Taking the monorail or ferry to WDW is such a great build up (and de-compression at the end of a long day) versus just walking to the ticket booths from a hotel across the street or from the parking garage. At least the experience at Disneyland has improved with the addition of California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the new hotels. It used to just be a big sea of parking full of high voltage power lines and one forlorn and lonely Disney hotel set off to the side.
10. Do they not do the Nightmare before Xmas overlay in Florida? Well at least Mickey’s Very Scary Halloween Party that I went to one year there was fun.
Finally, enjoy your visit and don’t get too shocked about how small and cramped everything seems. To me that is one of the features that makes Disneyland charming, human and a bit less corporate. And the chances you will get drenched in a thunderstorm are as small as the atommobiles in the old Adventures through Inner Space.