First Disneyland trip, need help

[lilofigment1]

I'm planning my first trip to Disneyland for sometime this fall. My family are frequent visitors to Walt Disney World and want to have a great experience in California as well. We need all the help we can get, like when is the best time to go to not experience crowds? Is DCA worth it? What's a good place to eat? Also, we're DVC members so we have to stay in a Disney resort. Which one is the best? Any and all help would be appreciated!!

[Hakuna Makarla]

I'm planning my first trip to Disneyland for sometime this fall. My family are frequent visitors to Walt Disney World and want to have a great experience in California as well. We need all the help we can get, like when is the best time to go to not experience crowds? Is DCA worth it? What's a good place to eat? Also, we're DVC members so we have to stay in a Disney resort. Which one is the best? Any and all help would be appreciated!!

Relax, your coming to a park way way easier, then what WDW is. you acually are in the park so to speak when you stay on site. the nicest hotel is the grand californian, its big and pretty. and its between both parks so you can walk to one park, or go right into another. Disneyland is small , sooooooo small compared to WDW so you will have a great time .
the one thing I learned is there is no low crowd levels. the parks are pretty buisy , but managable.
you will be shocked at how close everything is, down town disney is on site, and everything is with in walking distance.
make your reservations when you can, there are not as many resturants as in WDW.
Have a great time !! ( and then come back and tell us about your trip with pictures !!! )

[penguinsoda]

Mid to late September is a pretty good time to come crowd wise. Kids are back in school, so mid week the park is almost empty. It can still be warm, but the days are usually pretty temperate, rarely any rain, and the evenings and nights are brisk but not cold. The operating hours of the park are shorter, but with fewer people this isn't a problems since you will have lots of time to ride everything with little or no lines.

October is fun because of all of the Halloween decorations that they have been doing the last couple of years. Mid week will still be moderate crowd wise, but the weekends pick up quite a bit because of the Halloween stuff, and Mickey's Halloween Treat that they do in DCA. Mickey's Halloween Treat however, is a separate ticket from the general admission to the park.

Early November isn't to bad, but avoid Veteran's Day weekend like the plague. Its a very heavy weekend crowd wise. Between there and Thanksgiving is not bad, but after Thanksgiving the crowds slowly start to pick up for the holiday season.

You didn't say how long your trip will be? If you will be here several days, I'd say go ahead and do DCA. Its not a full day park by itself, but it does have some interesting things. If its warm I like Grizzly River, Soarin' over California is interesting... Bugs Life is fun, the pier area is pretty at night... and if you have small kids, there are some things over there for them to do in a Bugs Land.

Like Karla said, the Grand Californian is the best, but it is also the most expensive, but if you can afford it, its nice to stay there at least once. The lobby itself is awesome. I've stayed at the Disneyland hotel once, and its very nice, but in my opinion the rooms are pretty standard. I've never stayed at the Paradise Pier so I have nothing to give you on that.

[RooBear]

You'll find that Disneyland and Disney World are truly worlds-apart, but the essence of theming is strong in both.

Disneyland doesn't have the size and space that Florida does, so you'll constantly be saying "it's smaller!" But in all honesty? There are more attractions at the Disneyland park--for they are spread out over three locations in Florida.

You'll find you are comparing everything you go on to your previous experiences at WDW. Don't spoil your trip this way, I have found in years of touring both parks, see them for what they are at each location. Some have a better this; some have a better that. And that's the cool part!

Disneyland has the stamp of Walt's Dream a bit more then Florida. In that way, there is a 'museum-feel' that this is something very, very specific on the planet. We actually prefer going to Disneyland. It's smaller, you can see more and you leave at the end of the day without the tiredness and exhaustion of going to the Florida parks.

DCA added another day onto the park, that was pretty much the intent. For those of us from out of town, it's a nice getaway, especially those of us with no real amusement park in their home state! Those in California, for very good reason, tend to berate the park.

But it's RIGHT THERE. One hundred yards from the D-land entrance. No busses, no trains, no monorails to get to DCA. Just a jump across the esplad, er, esplan....the space between. Go see it and make up your own minds.

And then let us know what you think!

Peace out!
Roo