Planning a Disneyland trip: 2015 edition

Hello all! It's that time again where Disneyland has been on my mind. I'm not sure if i'm ever going to get enough of a fix that I wouldn't want to try and go at least once a year, but we will see what next year holds!

For now, we decided that this year we would make our way to Disneyland in September. I purposefully picked a time when I knew the decorations would already be up, as my husband hasn't been during any holiday season before, and I haven't seen it during Halloween time (my favorite season and holiday) While we now have to wait 6 months until the trip, it will be worth it!

Since I have been booking these trips on my own, I have always booked through Disneyland's website. I find it the easiest to get the full trip booked through them and not have to worry that I might have missed something. Another added benefit to booking through Disneyland directly is that you only need to put down a deposit at the time of booking and then you are allowed to continue making payments up until 30 days before your travel date! You also receive a pin, lanyard, and luggage tag for each person in your party (last time we went, we got cars themed merch as Cars land had just opened.) as well as some coupons and discount cards, such as a discount card for the parks, voucher for one free 5x7 memory photo (which can be a ride photo if you wish!) and an ESPN Zone game card.

We thought about staying in one of the three Disney hotels again, but I decided if I could find a good hotel very close to Disney that we would save our money and stay elsewhere. I decided to stay at Best Western Park Plus Inn. It was well over 1,000 cheaper and with breakfast and free wifi, I couldn't pass up the deal. It is an extremely short walk to the park as it is THE hotel that is LITERALLY right across from the gates. The room doesn't matter to me so much, as I'm there for the time in the parks!

This time our trip is going to special, however, as we have family coming with us! I'm very excited to get the chance to share this special place with my husband's family. We booked our package, however, and an hour later his mother decided she wanted to join and share a room with us! That presented a little problem, as she couldn't book through Disney as she would then have to pay for a separate room! So, with a little sleuthing, I found out how you can add another member to your party, and this is how we did so. (My husband's sister and her partner will be booking their own room, so they will still be able to book their own package on the Disneyland website.)

First, have them book the same flight through the flight provider's website or a third party website if you prefer. Of course this step only applies if they are travelling from the same place or want to travel at the same time. Next, you can order Disneyland Express tickets online at graylineanaheim.com as they are the ones that provide the service to disney and good neighbor hotels! It is $48.00 for a round trip for one person, which is reasonable. Of course, you will only need this step if you weren't planning on renting a car.

And finally, up to that person's discretion, they can order Disneyland tickets online or purchase them from the hotel once they arrive. Most good neighbor hotels sell park tickets at their front desk. I only recommend ordering directly from DISNEYLAND'S website or from a good neighbor hotel in person. Never trust places like ebay or craigslist or someone on the street in Anaheim. You never know if those tickets will actually be valid or previously used.

Once their flight is confirmed, you can either contact Disney or the hotel itself to let them know that you're adding one person to your room. Some additional fees might apply, but I believe that will be up to the hotel to say. Our room already included enough sleeping space for up to 4 people, so it didn't need to be upgraded or changed.

This year is also going to be different because beginning in May is the 60th anniversary celebration of Disneyland Park! I was there for the 50th and I have to say it was very special. They had signage all over the parks saying '50' and I imagine it will be similar for the 60th. I don't recommend visiting before may, because currently the closed ride and experience list is quite long while they prepare for the 60th celebration. There will also be three new shows during this time.

Decor: The Carthay Circle Restaurant and Sleeping beauty castle will 'glisten and gleam' with it's own diamond medallion featuring the letter D." The entire resort will sparkle with Diamond celebration decor and banners in blue.

1. World of Color will re-open with a special new show for the Diamond Celebration. (I will probably cry, as world of color made me cry last time too) Called World Of Color- Celebrate! The Wonderful World of Walt Disney.

2. In Disneyland park, there will be a new parade called "Paint the Night" A state of the art parade featuring over 1.5 million LED lights! The photos featured Tink, Sulley, and Mack from Cars.

3. At Disneyland park, there will also be a speical fireworks show for the occasion coined 'Disneyland Forever' (hello, Disneyland and fireworks go together, there is no way they would miss the chance to make a crazy cool fireworks show to celebrate!) It will feature pyrotechnics, projections, and 'other effects'. But they do say it will be using the largest projection mapping technology. The photo features concept art of projections on main street buildings, so I imagine the best place to view will be from somewhere on main st.!

The Disney Parks Blog also promises that there will plenty of specialty foods and merchandise during this celebration. I would say if you are debating when to take a trip to Disneyland, it should be between now and this time next year!

Disneyland vs. Walt Disney World

Hello all, taking a break from my updates on travel to Walt Disney World to bring you an ultimate comparison list between Disneyland and Walt Disney World! I hope this list will not be biased as to my opinion, and I also hope this list helps you choose which park is best for your next visit.

Without further ado, we will start with some general points about each resort:

when using Disney Resort shuttle:
1. WDW includes the fee of the resort shuttle in your package, at Disneyland, you have to pay for this service (it is worth it either way, as I could never hope to navigate California on my own)

2. Travel time from Orlando International airport is significantly shorter than travel from Los Angeles International (LAX is the cheapest to fly into if you are from Canada, in my experience)  That said, I recommend trying to arrive in LA when rush hour traffic is not present.

general resort pros and cons:
3. WDW has tons of on site park hotels set for each and every budget, while Disneyland only offers three, and all are on the high end (at least 200 dollars a night) But there are also many good neighbor hotels very close to Disneyland resort and you are still able to walk to Disney from many of these options.

4. The weather at Disneyland is much more mild than in Florida. Disneyland is much more comfortable during the summer months, as they do not have daily rain as WDW will.

5. There is more travel time involved in a WDW trip. There are almost no hotels within walking distance of a park, and they will not be within walking distance of each park. We never went back to the room or freshen up to have a nap because it felt too tedious to wait and take another 15 minute bus ride. With Disneyland, we could take a five minute walk back to our hotel.

6.WDW offers an amazing, all encompassing Dining Plan. Disneyland now only offers pre bought vouchers for Character meals. If you're not a big eater, however, I wouldn't say you even need the dining plan. each meal includes entree, drink, and dessert, and my husband and I struggled to eat that much food three times a day, and we really felt like we were wasting money when we turned down dessert at more than half of our meals or weren't able to finish our food.

7.FAST PASSES!!! Disneyland allows you to have one fastpass at a time, and to get said fast pass, you have to physically go to the ride and get your fastpass, to return an hour or so from that point. In Walt Disney World, however, there is a new thing called magic bands! Magic bands are amazing and Disneyland should really look at implementing it's technology as well. Magic bands allow you to use their app or website to pre book THREE fast passes for your day, and keep track of them on the app as well. Not only that, but they hold your park entry, dining reservations, dining credits, and you can even make charges to your room/credit card with the band! This makes your day so much easier as all you really need is a device that can use wifi and your magic band and you are set for the day, no need to worry about forgetting to get fast passes or your park tickets.



Park differences:
1. Disneyland is more compact, with more rides and attractions in a smaller space. This makes it a little easier to get around and you don't have to go to four different parks just to get to all your favorite rides.

2. That said, places such as Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom did not have much for exciting rides. On average, they have about 2-3 rides that you won't want to miss.

3.The themes of each WDW park are very well done and it feels like you are in a whole new place each time. Especially Animal Kingdom, where you can see tons of wonderful animals as well as different areas reflecting places such as asia, africa, and the like.

4. The castles: Disneyland's castle is the Sleeping Beauty castle. It is pink and the centerpiece for the entire park. It is significantly shorter than the Matterhorn, which is slightly to the right and behind it. WDW's castle is Cinderella castle. This castle is white and is significantly larger than Sleeping Beauty's. It is a wonderful thing to behold, and there isn't really anything in the skyline that is bigger than it.

5. Toon Town and Cars Land: These are two major areas of the the Disneyland parks that are great for kids. If your kids love cars, they are sure to love it. The recreation is amazing and walking down route 66 feels like you just stepped into Cars the movie. As for Toon Town, it is an amazing place to find the main characters of Disney if you don't book any character meals. This is a very unique place in Disneyland and I love it for it's quirkiness, and of course Daisy's Diner pizza.



Ride differences:

If you've only been to one of the parks, you might not know that each of the park's rides are slightly different. Some are the same, such as Peter Pans' Flight, Snow White, and all the main Fantasyland rides.  But now i'm going to tell you my opinion on which park has the better ride of each one that I noticed a difference in:

1. Pirates of the Caribbean
This one is hands down the most important to me. It is my favorite ride and I could never get tired of it. Disneyland wins this battle hands down. Not only does the Blue Bayou restaurant overlook the start of the ride, which is really cool, but this version has way more drops than WDW's counterpart, which really only has one compared to Disneyland's 3!

2. The Haunted Mansion
This is my second favorite ride. In this instance, WDW's version of the Haunted Mansion wins. The queue for the WDW haunted mansion is immerse, with many activities to do while you wait for your turn on the ride. Once inside, the elevator ride is much the same, though I hear in Disneyland you actually descend, whereas in Disney World the ceiling goes up and you stay in place. There are quite a few more rooms in the Haunted Mansion in WDW, including the library, the staircase room, and the attic. I loved each of these rooms so much and I hope that one day they make their way into Disneyland.

3. Jungle Cruise
ah, Jungle Cruise. Nothing like lame dad jokes to really make you laugh. I always enjoy when you get a cast memeber with a few jokes of their own- it really refreshes the trip. Much of each jungle cruise is the same- except for the fact that Disney World does not have the 'piranhas' like Disneyland, and Disney World also boasts and impressive ruins cave, complete with spiders, tigers, and treasures abouding. Disney World also happens to win this one for me, due to the addition of the ruins. However, I find smaller children might not appreciate this addition.

4. Finding Nemo
The WDW version of this ride is found in Epcot, named a little confusingly so I was not sure if it was actually there or not. It is connected to the aquarium, and once you make your way through the ride you end up in the aquarium itself. Most of the ride details are the same, but Disneyland takes the prize on this one. In Disneyland, you get into an actual submarine in a little lagoon and make your way around, viewing the events through your own little porthole. This is much more fun in my opinion.

5. Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters vs. Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin:
I found it much more enjoyable in Disneyland. The gun was easier to fire and the way it was designed seemed to be much easier on the eyes than it's WDW counterpart. Though it has a different name, this ride is basically the same in each park.

6. Twilight Zone Tower of Terror:
Once again, very similar. The difference is in WDW you are moved forward in a hallway before you drop. That and they are programmed to drop a different number of times and from different heights each time, therefore your experience in WDW should never be the same twice. I have to say Disneyland wins this one for me because I didn't really like the feeling that we moved through a corridor before plummeting to our doom. It's a marvel how it works, but it makes me nervous!


7. Last but not least, the Train!
I'm talking about the train that takes you around the parks. WDW's is literally just about getting from point A to point B, and in Disneyland there's something to see in between every stop on the way! The best part: Dinosaurs! They have a HUGE dinosaur scene between Tomorrowland and Main ST. and it is well worth riding the train at least once. Disneyland wins this one, hands down.

I didn't notice a significant difference between Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Ariel's Undersea Adventure, or Autopia, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.



Rides at One park that aren't at the other:

Disneyland exclusives:
1. Cars Land- all rides here are present in California Adventure.
2. Matterhorn Bobsleds
3. Monsters Inc. in California Adventure.
4. Alice In Wonderland
5. California Screamin' in California Adventure
6. Casey JR. Circus Train
7. Flik's Flyers in California Adventure
8. Gadget's Go Coaster in Toontown, also something you can't find in WDW
9. Golden Zypher in California Adventure
10. Goofy's Sky School in California Adventure
11. Heimlich's Chew Chew Train in California Adventure
12. Indiana Jones Adventure- arguably one of the best rides for adults.
13. Jumpin' Jellyfish in California Adventure
14. Mickey's Fun Wheel in California Adventure
15. Mr Toad's Wild Ride
16.Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin
17.Storybook Land Canal Boats: another amazing ride

Walt Disney World exclusives:
1.Advanced Training Lab- Epcot
2.The Barnstormer- Magic Kingdom
3.DINOSAUR- Animal Kingdom
4.Expidition Everest- Animal Kingdom
5.Gran Fiesta Tour- Epcot
6.The Great Movie Ride- Hollywood Studios
7.Kilimanjaro Safaris- Animal Kingdom
8.The Magic Carpets of Aladdin- Magic Kingdom
9.Mission: Space
10.Primeval Whirl- Animal Kingdom
11.Rock 'n' Rollercoaster- Hollywood Studios
12.Seven Dwarfs Mine Train- Magic Kingdom
13.Spaceship Earth- Epcot
14.Test Track- Epcot
15.PeopleMover- Magic Kingdom
16.Triceratop Spin- Animal Kingdom
17, If you're looking for Malestrom, it's gone. It's to be replaced with a Frozen themed ride!

I actually didn't expect these lists to turn out so close! But here we have them, with the aide of each park's website. I didn't include rides that are basically the same with different names. This isn't a total list of everything different, but I will certainly write a part two for people who want! So suck all this information in and really think about which park is best for you and your family/travel companions. While I loved both, Disneyland will always be #1 for me.

-Sarah

Going to Disney World - Part 2!

So, on our second full day at the parks, we decided to make our way to Animal Kingdom! I got fast passes for Expidition Everest, Dinosaur, and Killimanjaro Safari! We started our day off by making our way to the safari, because I hear that this is the busiest attraction.

A lot of people seemed to have the same idea as a few dozen people were ahead of us and also headed for the safari! Thankfully we didn't have to wait long as we got there right around park opening. The great thing about the buses is that I firmly believe there isn't a bad seat on it. This experience was far beyond the level of going to a zoo to see animals. Here, you could see the animals had tons of space to roam freely, and it was exhilarating to take a trip trough their home instead of staring at them in cages. The best thing about the safari is that there are so many animals you have a chance to see something new every time you go.

From there, we decided we would take in the sights around the park before having some lunch in Dinoland U.S.A. The themeing at Animal Kingdom is quite unique and itr really did feel like we were in another place.  We had lunch at restaurantosaurus as my husband is a HUGE fan of dinosaurs. We both got the mac and cheese hot dog. It was prerty good, but I felt it could use a bit more flavor.

                                                              Mac and Cheese Hot dog.

                                                    Restaurant interior.


Then we rode dinosaur, which was scary but fun! (I don't recommend this for the little ones that sxare easily) as most of the dinosaurs are harmless, but one dinosaur in particular is quite large and 'chases' after you, even blowing air in your face!  However, despite its age, dinosaur lovers will feel transported in time and abosultely love this  ride.

                  Dinosaur's line up was quite long after lunch- this one is worth getting a fast pass for!


We had a few more hours before expidition everest (which I was sure I would back out of, as roller coasters of that level terrify me) so we took the train to the Rafiki area. It was neat as there are some scientests actually working there on different thinga, and through glass windows they can see you and comminucate what they are working on and answer your questions. This is when the rain really began to pour. Ideally, we should have hid out at the rafiki building, but we did not expect it to rain ao long. We made our way back to the train starion, getting soaked in the process.  The train is in open air but is thankfully covered, so we remained relatively dry on our way back. Thunder and light ning was starting and our expedition everest fastpass was approaching. We ducked into a store which was aboslutely packed.

                                     Needles to say, my husband got a little soaked in the rain!

That's the one problem with animal kingdom: there is almost nowhere to hide from the inevitable rain.  Every single store was packed, so we made our way from store to store until the rain passed. We headed for expedition Everest, but it was still not in service due to lightning being close. I really appreciate their concerns for patrons safety on the outdoor rides, and we decided to wait in the fast pass line for them to start up again. An hour later, we were able to ride. I was extremely nervous. I would say I had fun, despite screaming my face off the entire time. Though I don't think I could ride it again, I'm proud to say I did and didn't chicken out.

After this, we decided to see the last showing of festival of the lion king, which had to be my favorite show in the entirety of Walt Disney World. There's circus acts, amazing singing, and Simba, Timon, and Pumbaa all make an appearance! This show is truly phenomenal and I cannot recommend it enough if you're making a visit to animal kingdom.

                                          Hands down one of the best shows in Disney World!

We finished out day off with dinner at the rainforest cafe. It was our first time eating there, and I was afraid it would be overrated, sacrificing good food for theming. I was pleasantly surprised to say I really enjoyed my meal and the staff despite feeling quite ill that evening!

Without further ado, here are some recommendations for Animal Kingdom:

1. Pack a good raincoat and don't wear runners (summer)
2. Make your way to killimanjaro safari right away
3. Check the festival of the Lion King showtimes and make sure you see one!
4. Ride expedition everest, even if you're a little scared.
5. Get a great adult drink in Dinoland U.S.A if your day has been hectic!
6. Take the time to walk the trails around the safari. There are some great animals you can see there, including gorillas!

Going to Walt Disney World

Hello all! This is a long overdue post on my trip to Walt Disney World.

I first noticed the great prices for Walt Disney World sometime around this time last year. They do a great deal of 30% off hotel during the summer months, as it is not their busy season. It goes without saying that Florida is warm year round, and the summer exceptionally so.

Being the person I am, I always love to save money, especially on a trip. So I booked for the Caribbean beach resort for the month of July! It was surprisingly affordable and included a meal plan for a great price. I planned for 6 full days spent in the parks with one travel day on each side of that.

If you're going in the summer, I highly recommend getting some comfortable sandals. Don't take the cheap old navy ones, because by the first day I could tell they weren't cutting it for me. I actually purchased some in the park (Roxy brand) and I loved those flip flops. extremely comfortable, and when it rains you don't find yourself wearing wet sneakers for hours.

I'm going to say right off the bat that if you have a weak stomach or body that is affected by weather changes, I don't recommend going in the summer. The weather is highly unpredictable (which we knew, what we didn't know is that dealing with that would leave me feeling ill at least half the time we spent there.) It rains AT LEAST once a day. There was not a single day we were there that it didn't rain. So make sure you bring raincoats that will keep you somewhat dry once the sky opens up and begins to pour, as it will.

So, when we arrived to the airport, we were escorted to a bus that would take us to our resort. They try to put people on a bus who are going to resorts somewhat close to one another. We were one of the first stops and it was a very short drive. Despite travelling all day, we were still very excited at it was both our first time at Disney World. We checked in at the front desk, and then were told it was best to wait for a bus to get to our room.

Disney's Caribbean beach resort is one of the biggest hotels on Walt Disney World property. It has several clusters of buildings all named after places in the Caribbean. We ended up in the Aruba section, which was located right across the lake from the food court and main pool. It was actually close enough to walk to and from the front desk in my opinion, but others might prefer a bus. However, someone spotted us waiting and said we had just missed a bus, so one of the maintenance van drivers kindly took us directly to the Aruba area. This unexpected hospitality definitely lifted our spirits after a long day of travel.

I love that the rooms in Caribbean beach open right up into a walkway. It was nice to not have to take an elevator or navigate hotel hallways and walk straight into our door. Shortly after we arrived, someone delivered the package I had picked out for my Husband's anniversary gift. They had him sign for it, since I had included some Bailey's for the coffee and hot chocolate he would surely be having during mornings spent there.

Here's a photo of what his gift contained- pictured on the lovely Finding Nemo bedspread!

Once we got that all sorted, we headed for the parks right away. Even though I had not slept in quite some time, I was much to excited to spend the rest of the night in the hotel room. It started to get very stormy once we arrived, but we still took some photos and were too excited to be concerned. It did drizzle a little that evening, but no heavy rain and no lightning!

                  This is me attempting to look awake after not sleeping for 23 hours!
                           (I was too excited to sleep the night before our flight!)
This night was by far the latest we stayed at the park on our entire trip, and I have to say the best part of the night was watching the fireworks while riding Big Thunder Mountain! Seriously guys, it's one of the best views for the fireworks!

Cinderella castle as viewed from somewhere around Tomorrowland- by far the most peaceful place to view the castle. I'm sorry- my iPhone photos definitely don't do the castle justice!

We then returned to our hotel and had a little rest on a hammock on the beach at our resort- which was a beyond perfect way to end the day! Then I had a wonderful sleep- we didn't worry about what time we had to be up as we were returning to the magic kingdom- going there the night before helped us have our bearings and I wasn't concerned about missing out on time spent there!

I had done some sluething and found a way to make lunch reservations at Be Our Guest Restaurant, which I had heard was pretty busy most days! It was magical and I really loved the re-creation of Beasts castle and being able to eat there was nothing short of amazing. I hear that soon they are opening up fast pass reservations for lunch and they will be much easier to get, so keep your eyes peeled for that when booking your own trip.

While the main ballroom was beautiful, it was very crowded and noisy, so we took a look at the other rooms. The study was by far my favorite, but there was nowhere to sit, so we came to the music box room. This room was the emptiest and the quiestest, but oh so beautiful!

They slowly rotate to a quiet music box song!

There were cute little canvases all around the room depicting Belle and Beast's adventures, it was a really lovely touch. 

What happens next is truly amazing. You keep a rose token on your table, and your food finds you! Someone brought the food we had ordered on a cart, while there is soft drink machines in each room so you can get drinks at your leisure. My husband had the pot roast- which was positively divine. I'm not a vegetarian, but I had the vegetarian quiche. It wasn't my favorite, but I really loved my desserT, A strawberry cream cheese cupcake! Not too sweet, it was perfect for me.

cute little photo of my perfect cupcake!

I have to say, that while I love Disneyland more, Walt Disney World really has perfected their fastpass system. Booking three fast passes for the day really made getting onto the busier rides much smoother and much more enjoyable! It was a very hot day, and of course it did rain that day, but it wasn't for long and didn't invade on our fast passes. This by far was probably our best day in the parks.

Dole Whip floats are required on hot days!

We once again finished our day with a swim in our 'island's' private pool and a lay in a hammock complete with yummy adult drink. Having a pool in each area of the hotel was great for us- we were able to take a swim no matter what time of night it was, and the pool was never full of kids like the main pool was! So if you like to swim but don't enjoy crowded swimming pools, this hotel is for you.

This post is getting quite long, so keep an eye out for the post on the remainder of our days in the parks!