Surprise! We're going to Disneyland...with Cass, Rob & Kira

[jenseib]

I am just catching back up! Boy I am really aching to get back there. Once we officially book something...still hoping to go to DL, maybe June now...I am going to reread everything again to take notes on what I want to do and what I think Claire will like. I really like the Frozen salon before opening....I think that would be a lot of fun. I keep pricing out DL hotel and Grand C. I want both! LOL! I now want to ride in the front of the monorail too.

 

[southbound]

I just caught up and I really like the picture of you and Turks in the sunset! The other one of you guys is good too.

I was laughing listening to Rob laugh on BTM! One day that kid will ride all the good rides... she's a product of ride junkies. Miles didn't like a lot of rides when he was younger, that he would have totally done as an older teen.

 

[cptmemo]

This TR has me so excited for our trip! (we leave tonight, but won't be at DL until Sunday). Love seeing all the pictures

 

[Timon]

Nice sunset behind the Disneyland Hotel..

And here is where dinner was that night

We love the RFC! I know it's touristy and some people hate it but we just love it! Rob and I started going to the RFC at Animal Kingdom for breakfast back in 2002. They had awesome food and we always had great service. We happily returned every trip but in 2009 they changed the menu and food wasn't as good so we skipped it on our next trip in 2013 in favour of T-Rex.

RFC is also near and dear to our hearts because when Kira was very young (like 1 maybe?) her Grandma bought her RFC plates with all of the RFC characters on them and she has been eating off those plates now for 7 years! She also has matching cups and several RFC t-shirts

Our very special friends, Nancy & Chuck had sent us a lovely gift card for RFC as a housewarming gift when we built our house last year and so we were kind of destined to go

I had originally made reservations for 8pm, figuring we would want as much park time as possible but after Sunday's late dinner, I knew I needed to change it so on Monday I had stopped by and switched it to 6pm, no problem!

We checked in and then perused the shops for a bit.

Love the bar at RFC's!

The store is MASSIVE just like the ones at WDW and by some miracle, we managed to escape without buying a single thing other than a pressed penny!

Once they called our names, we were led to a very nice table with a great view

See that kids souvenir cup? Yeah, don't buy it!!! We brought it home and I washed it by hand and got water inside that frog head and because it doesn't come all the way apart, the water just wouldn't drain! I left it sitting on the counter hoping it would drain or dry out but 5 days later, there was still water in it

Rob and Kira shared this smoothie..

We had a really fantastic server, I can't recall his name right now unfortunately but he was super good!

The food was really good, I especially loved my burger!

We left in a bit of a hurry because we had RSR FP's burning a hole in our pockets

We made it just in time and Rob agreed with me that it felt like a totally different ride at night!

Rob and Kira left to go ride Mater's while I hung around taking some photos of Carsland in the dark.

Hard to spot because my photo is so bad but Buzz Lightyear is peeking out from under one of those cones on the shelf Look closely near the center of the pic at the end of the rounded counter

Met back up with the family and took more pics

I can't say enough good things about Carsland!! They did an AMAZING job with it, turning DCA from a so-so park to a must-see (along with WofC, in my opinion ).

It was time to head out but we took our time and enjoyed the evening atmosphere. We cut through the Grand Californian to get back, I will use any excuse to walk through that hotel

Thankfully no unwanted Fantasmic soundtrack performance that night

 

[Timon]

This was our last park day

Since EE at DCA was at 7am this morning, we decided to skip it in favour of sleeping in a bit and having breakfast with some critters

We walked through the Grand Californian again (oh darn ) and made our way to Storyteller's Café. This just might be my favourite restaurant on land (hard to beat the gorgeous dining rooms on DCL). The theming here is just ridiculous!!!

I'm still upset that they took my chicken sandwich off of the lunch menu but I just had to have a meal here to enjoy this restaurant so I chose the breakfast with Chip & Dale.

Just as we sat down, Kenai joined us (okay, so that is an ewok, not a bear but I can't find a bear smiley here, even though I swear there used to be one! )

Chip followed right behind Kenai

and finally a break so Rob and Kira went up to get food.

Creepy food is watching you

Just as they returned, Meeko showed up!

Then I ran up and got my food...

Once again no toast!!!

Brer Fox made an appearance...

And then I returned to the other side of the buffet hoping the eggs would be better but they weren't

And the croissant was just as meh as the bagel. Didn't eat either of them

I also didn't like the eggs benedict but I got it just for the ham since there was no ham to be found on the buffet


We still had two more characters to go but they took a long time to show...

Koda was the last. I had made a page just for him and Kenai but sadly Koda did not sign because of his little clawed paws! Did not know that!

He made up for it by spending a lot of my with Kira

Just as we were about to head out, they started some games. First they played follow-the-leader around the restaurant and then the hokey pokey over near the entrance.

I forgot to mention that at every character meal, we received buttons. That was a nice little touch!

So all in all, it was a good experience. The food seemed a little lackluster with the buffet being on the smaller side. Still bigger than the one at Breakfast with Minnie & Friends but it would have been nice to have some ham and toast. But the characters were totally awesome and like I mentioned, this restaurants just plain ROCKS!!!




It was nice because the entrance for DCA is right there and that is where we were headed

 

[Timon]

Since it was right there, we entered the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail and let Kira run around and have some kid fun

It really is beautiful in here and there was tons of shade for me!

I'm totally with Kevin

After about 20-30 minutes in there, we made our way to Paradise Pier. I asked my family if they wanted to do Goofy's Sky School again...they said no

It was REALLY hot that day

Kira and I did the Jumpin' Jellyfish ride while Rob took a business call and then she wanted to do the Silly Symphony Swings but there was no shade at all for me so I let them ride while I hung out underneath it.

It's actually a really great place to hang out, lots of shade, some benches, it was very quiet and a little breezy! Perfect

They had drained more water since last night because you could now see the mechanical parts for World of Color

Once they were finished riding the swings, I asked Kira if we could go on Mickey's Wheel of Fun. Specifically, I asked her if we could go on the ones that swing and she said yes! We hurried over and got in line for them before she could change her mind

It was all good for several minutes while people were being loaded...

Once we started swinging though, she got a little nervous

She carried on like a trooper though! There wasn't that much swinging actually, a few good ones and then that's it, we began unloading.

We started walking towards Toy Story and all of a sudden I wasn't feeling so well. I get these vertigo episodes where my eyesight starts going wonky and then the room starts spinning and I get super dizzy and start falling over. My docs think it is because of my severe anemia but I have had 5 iron infusions in the past 12 weeks and I am still getting them.

I think the heat made it worse because I was having trouble just opening my eyes.

I asked Rob to stop for a minute because I had to close my eyes. I grabbed him by the arm and started walking but I was getting worse and I knew I had to stop for a bit.

We had been promising Kira that Cone Lemonade all week and it was hot and she was asking for it. I knew I needed a break so I told them to go on without me. Told them to grab the lemonade and go watch Aladdin and I would meet them afterwards.

I sat in the shade near the water by the rollercoaster take-off area for a good 20 minutes before I could shake it off.

I started walking very slowly, stopping in every store along the way to grab some shade and air conditioning. By the time I made it to Buena Vista Street, I had collected quite a lot of pressed pennies for my kid

By then I was in need of a drink, it was super hot out and the heat makes me feel so much worse. I remembered that I had a gift card to Starbucks that my awesome boss, Michelle had send me for Christmas

I was actually in Fiddler, Fifer, & Practical Café (Starbucks) when I made this revelation so I decided that it was high time that I bought something at Starbucks. I don't drink coffee or any type of hot drink so while we have tons of Starbucks at home, I have never actually been to one!

I decided on a strawberry smoothie and it was an awesome choice!

Notice the background

I then took the Trolley to the Animation Building and perused the awesome stuff in Off The Page while waiting for my family.

Oh look what I found

These were my two faves...

I met up with Rob and Kira who did this...

and then this...

I showered Kira with all of the pressed pennies I got for her, she was one happy girl and I got lots of these

I still wasn't feeling so good but I powered through it and we went back to Disneyland because Rob wanted some fried chicken

We stopped in the Emporium to look around and that is when I decided that it would be smart for me to go back to the room and rest for a bit.

I didn't want to, there was still so much I wanted to do but I knew that if I didn't, I might get a lot worse

I gave Rob the list of things that I had planned for the rest of the day and they went on without me.

I would finish shopping, check out the Opera House and then head back to the hotel. That was my plan

 

[jenseib]

I am just loving this report! There are so may things I want o do that are the same things you did. I know it will be such a different experience with Claire...and Skip. I sure he doesn't balk when I tell him we need a week! LOL! He's all about short vacations.

 

[Timon]

I actually headed over to the Disneyana Store, which holds all the good stuff! By good, I mean expensive

I was drooling over all of the art in The Disney Gallery


I found more of those neat little cubes that I love and I imagined myself to be a millionaire, walking by everything and going "I want this and that and oh my, I must have three of these!"

Next door is the Opera House, which houses Great Moments with Lincoln, which I saw last year so I just checked out all of the old photos and exhibits in the hall.

I especially enjoyed this photo after having visited Walt's apartment last year, it was great to see this pic of him enjoying that place with his family!

Then as I was walking by, I noticed a video was playing on the wall so I started watching it. It was FANTASTIC!!!

I believe this was the video created for Disneyland's 50th Anniversary and because of my recent research into Disneyland Park history, this was of particular interest to me. It was hosted by Steve Martin and Donald Duck and it contains footage I have never seen so I was lapping up every second of it!

I had meant to go back later and watch it from the very beginning but my health didn't improve any and I never made it back.

I recorded just a few seconds of it but now I wish I had recorded all of it. I guess I am going to have to Google that and see if I can find it to buy or watch online!

Spotted one last gem as I walked out...

What a great thing to have and showcase in the park!

I then went back into the Emporium and found a hoodie that I thought Rob would like. That man lives in hoodies and we had only found him one this trip and I know he was yearning for one more

I texted him to see where he was...he hadn't gone far as they had ran into The Mad Hatter and Alice at the Coca-Cola Refreshment Corner (Casey's for you WDW folk )

When I got there, Kira was playing musical chairs

Rob had taken some video. It's a little lengthy but so cute

I think that is when I showed him the hoodie, which he liked and then he took with Kira to get some chicken. I continued shopping and then headed up to the Plaza Inn just as he got his chicken.

I pretty much stole his diet-coke (Hey, I was parched!) and before I knew what he was doing he came back with his glass full.

I said "Ummm, did you just refill that?"

He replied "Yes, why???" looking at me like I have two heads.

Me: "It's not free refills here!"

Rob: "Really? It should be!"



I can see why he would think that it was free refills. First off, we ate here at breakfast when it was free refills so in his mind, it was free refills! Secondly, the way the restaurant is set-up, if you don't know better, it does seem like it's a counter service with free refills. Plus there's no sign to tell you otherwise. I wonder if others make the same mistake?

I don't even remember why I joined up with them again at The Plaza Inn

Obviously I was just there to steal his diet-coke because as soon as he illegally refilled his DC, I left

Oh wait! I remember now!

I went to tell Kira that I found the mother lode of pressed penny machines at The Opera House Her book was almost full but she needed a few more so I figured that was a good place to do it

On the way back to the hotel, I grabbed a sandwich from Earl of Sammich!

I had a free coupon so why the heck not??? Plus I also needed a brownie. Okay, well technically I didn't need one but it had been like, ohhh... 4 years since I've had one of those babies so need and want were all kind of the same thing at that point


I had ' half of da sannwich ' (still one of my most quoted movie lines ) and half of the brownie and I iced my joints while I rested in the very chilly room for a few hours

 

[Timon]

Before I forget to mention it...

Why the heck do bathrooms at Disneyland have doors????????

I came across several of them and I thought that was just the dumbest thing!!! Each time, I ended up helping several moms with strollers get in and out of them and it caused huge gridlock and people were getting hit by the doors!!!


After a few hours of rest, I wrapped up some little gifties that I sent some friends and sent them out via UPS at Bell Services. Shipping to USA is much less expensive doing from USA than from Canada plus I could skip Customs, so much quicker too!

I was feeling somewhat better by then and it was cool out so need to worry about the heat. Honestly, I just wanted to stay in bed and rest more but this was the only time we would get to see fireworks in the park so I walked back to the parks against my own free will

By this time, after walking so much for 7 days, I had really wished we were staying at the Grand Californian

I made one stop before joining back up with Rob and Kira for fireworks

I must say, without the distractions and complaining, the nachos tasted way better this time


I met up with Rob and Kira near the hub and we waited for fireworks. Rob was hungry so he went to grab a corn dog to share with our kid. She was sad that this would be her last corn dog! Life is tough without daily Disneyland corn dogs

I had to laugh when I saw that they pull all the benches from sidewalks onto the street for the show

And I couldn't decide whether this was funny or gross but this guy made himself comfy while waiting..

Fireworks were pretty awesome, even if they were the old ones

We then walked back to our resort and crashed hard! Kira fell asleep sideways

Here's what my family did while I was recuperating...


First up was filling up her book at The Opera House!

" Be prepared to be amazed!"

Then they braved the lines for a treat at Gibson Girl. Kira said they had to get a treat there because Gibson is her momma's maiden name! Or maybe Rob said that? Excuses, excuses

They went on Star Tours, watched Mickey and The Magical Map, (really sad I missed this one!) finally met Mickey (sad I missed that too!) toured Toon Town a bit (not sad about missing that ) did some shopping to spend the rest of her Mickey savings, ate more ice cream, rode Pirates again and got Big Thunder FP's (never got to use them as the ride was down when they returned).

Rob said it was very busy and they were kind of parked out

I think they were just a little spoiled after being in the parks all week during a slower time

Yes, it was much busier that night but it was also Friday night and the locals were there! I knew that it could get MUCH busier than that

Here's some pics of their adventures...

.

Funny enough, this next photo is #626 in this trip report (doesn't include the presidential suite photos) which I laughed about while editing

And the other side!

Note the little girl in the winter-ish jacket!! It was almost 90º that day!

 

[Timon]

The next morning was a sad one because it was time to go home. I normally love going home when we go to WDW but we also usually spend 2 weeks there (parks and a cruise) and by then I am ready to come home. I was like..okay, ready for the cruise now! What? No cruise? We're going home? What idiot planned this trip??

I got up early to shower and make breakfast for my family. We packed up, left our last Mousekeeping tip envelope and headed downstairs. We walked over to where the Disneyland Express bus picks up passengers and we waited and waited...we were 15 minutes early and the bus was 15 minutes late so we were waiting for a bit.

Kira asked to sit alone again

She watched Wreck It Ralph on the bus TV to pass the time.

We checked-in at Westjet in Terminal 2 and then dropped off our bags for scanning. We got in line for security and were ushered into the pre-screening line, which was TOTALLY WICKED!!!!

At LAX, there is a regular line and then the TSA Pre-screened line. We totally lucked out because we didn't have to remove shoes or laptops or any electronics.

It was the easiest and fastest experience we have ever had with airport security.

I kind of laughed though because I did that job for almost two years and I got pretty darn good at finding things on the x-ray images and there is a reason they tell you to take your electronics out of your bag...you can't see anything behind them on the screen because things like battery packs and certain parts come out dark blue or black and if there is something behind that, it is extremely difficult to spot. I kind of laugh about the whole airport security thing, mainly because there really isn't anything secure about it.

I did get selected for additional screening but with a terrible, quick wand, I was done

The entire terminal is under construction, which was kind of a pain because there was very limited seating at the gate and almost no options for food. I did find a place to get some water for the plane but there was a huge line-up.

Finally it was time to board

Let me just say how much we LOVE Westjet. We only have two airlines in Canada (but we can also choose to fly the USA owned airlines for most USA destinations (AA, United, Delta & Alaska)) and one sucks the big one and the other is awesome

I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER fly Air Canada again!!! For many, many reasons! Enough said.

Meanwhile...on Westjet...

Westjet recently (ish) redid the first 3 rows of their planes. They made them comfier, roomier and added some nice perks to them. A mini-first class, if you will. Since they are quite a lot more $$$ than the other seats, they rarely sell out in advance and during the online check-in, they sometimes offer them for pretty cheap if you are early and lucky enough. We opted to get the "Plus" seating, as they call it, both ways and it was soooo worth it!

Check out my leg room, peeps! Normally my knees are touching the seat in front of me

We had to wait a bit on the tarmac to be refueled...

I love that we fly out over the ocean first (that's the end of the runway there!)

And only two cargo ships left!

You get a free sandwich/snack when you are in Plus...

Less than three hours later, we hit the wonderfully familiar Rocky Mountains

We passed over Calgary's ski hill with fake snow...kind of obvious when there's no snow on the groud

As I looked out, I could see our old house, the one we lived in when Kira was born

Then we flew really close to Cross Iron Mills, a massive outlet mall on the northern outskirts of the city, where we bought Kira's new Crocs and Skechers she wore on this trip.

And finally landing at our home airport

A long walk to Canadian Customs, a quick visit with the agent and then we grabbed our luggage.

Rob was going to take our luggage and Kira with him on the Park2Go shuttle, grab our van and pick me up as I was headed to Tim Horton's to grab him a coffee. LOL, priorities, right?

Although there was a huge line-up at Timmy's, I managed to grab a coffee, some timbits, a bagel and make the shuttle! Everyone on the shuttle was like "OH THANKS!" when they saw the Timmy's stuff

All of our cars were waiting for us at the front, started and warmed up, even though it was 10 ºC out LOL!
It was our first time using Park2Go and we were very happy with them!

Thirty minutes drive home to the doggie love of my life, Lilo

and that was it!

The End

Coming Up: Final Thoughts

 

[jedijill]

I got way behind but I binge read this afternoon (instead of packing up my house like I'm supposed to be doing!). What a fun trip! So sad you had to go home!

Jill in CO

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Good TR!!

 

[CJK]

Cass!! Sorry to have been MIA. Although, I must admit that binge reading is fabulous too so I can grab a drink, relax and enjoy a great read. The thing I love about your trip reports is that you are real! You tell it like it is - both the good and the bad. I have yet to go to Disneyland, but it is on our bucket list!! Your report makes me want to go NOW! Looking forward to your final thoughts!

 

[jenseib]

NOOOO! You can't be done!
I see a familiar looking package waiting to be sent out!
I am so glad you made it through the whole week without getting too sick. Bummer about the last day but you pushed on!
I remember last year how we sat in the hot tub our last night wishing we didn't have to go home, and wishing our families could just meet up with us to spend another week with us.
Yay for a 2nd chance at the nachos. They look good.
I love all the treats Rob and Kira had. You left them eating chicken and then they contiuned to eat their way around the land. hahaha.
It looks like it was a fabulous trip! Now we need to find something educational the 2 of us can do together in the next year or so!!!

 

[toony]

Rain Forest Cafe is one of our favourites,too. Love the design, the giant fish tanks and the beautiful bar. I haven't seen the simple frog figurines for years in RFC in Paris. I'm wondering, if they still have those in Anaheim.
Amazing and hilarious interaction with the mad hatter. I could watch him all day...
Sorry that you weren't feeling well and missed half of the day.

Great report and pics. Especially carsland at night!

 

[bcwife76]

Just read your TR from beginning to end Oh and hello from Vancouver BC *waves* Looks like a fantastic trip!!! I love that you surprised your daughter the morning you left!! I have such a big mouth and can't keep a secret to save my life, I always tell my kids as soon as I book a trip where we are going and then hear all about it for months to come
I'm sorry you had such a crap experience at Minnie and Friends, we loved their breakfast when we did it with our girls in 2013 and I was going to do it again for our upcoming October trip....however, Storytellers looked like a much better experience so perhaps we shall try that instead ;-) Your photos are gorgeous!!

 

[Gina421]

I have absolutely loved this post! We haven't been to DL in 3 years and are going back next week, and your post has me SO excited! You have a beautiful family and I loved going along on the ride with you!

 

[Timon]

Lol we took pics of Millieys limo driving in the back way the night of her bday. I didn't hate it but wow it sure was loud that night.

Well good for you for having such a great attitude about it all! I would have been more than grumpy

Loving it!!

So glad you are enjoying it

I loved the monorail video!!

Thanks, it was pretty fun to ride the front

I am just catching back up! Boy I am really aching to get back there. Once we officially book something...still hoping to go to DL, maybe June now...I am going to reread everything again to take notes on what I want to do and what I think Claire will like. I really like the Frozen salon before opening....I think that would be a lot of fun. I keep pricing out DL hotel and Grand C. I want both! LOL! I now want to ride in the front of the monorail too.

I hope you make it back soon, Jen! It really was pretty awesome with the family

I just caught up and I really like the picture of you and Turks in the sunset! The other one of you guys is good too.

I was laughing listening to Rob laugh on BTM! One day that kid will ride all the good rides... she's a product of ride junkies. Miles didn't like a lot of rides when he was younger, that he would have totally done as an older teen.

Yeah, he is pretty funny on the rides, he loves it all

I hope she likes them as she gets older, although by then, I might not be able to ride them

This TR has me so excited for our trip! (we leave tonight, but won't be at DL until Sunday). Love seeing all the pictures

How was it????

I am just loving this report! There are so may things I want o do that are the same things you did. I know it will be such a different experience with Claire...and Skip. I sure he doesn't balk when I tell him we need a week! LOL! He's all about short vacations.

Maybe he will like this one because everything is walking distance

I got way behind but I binge read this afternoon (instead of packing up my house like I'm supposed to be doing!). What a fun trip! So sad you had to go home!

Jill in CO

LOL, I have spent many weekends binge reading trippies instead of doing something productive I'm glad I could take you away from your responsibilities

Good TR!!

Thanks

Cass!! Sorry to have been MIA. Although, I must admit that binge reading is fabulous too so I can grab a drink, relax and enjoy a great read. The thing I love about your trip reports is that you are real! You tell it like it is - both the good and the bad. I have yet to go to Disneyland, but it is on our bucket list!! Your report makes me want to go NOW! Looking forward to your final thoughts!

That's okay, glad you came back

Yes, I don't sugar coat it. I love Disney, I will come back every time but it's not always perfect and like any other company, there's always room for improvements

But also, what I write is just my opinion. Many others will disagree with me on certain things, heck, I think I started a big debate about corn dogs on the DL food porn thread

But I always tell the truth, my truth

NOOOO! You can't be done!
I see a familiar looking package waiting to be sent out!
I am so glad you made it through the whole week without getting too sick. Bummer about the last day but you pushed on!
I remember last year how we sat in the hot tub our last night wishing we didn't have to go home, and wishing our families could just meet up with us to spend another week with us.
Yay for a 2nd chance at the nachos. They look good.
I love all the treats Rob and Kira had. You left them eating chicken and then they contiuned to eat their way around the land. hahaha.
It looks like it was a fabulous trip! Now we need to find something educational the 2 of us can do together in the next year or so!!!

I know, right? It went by so fast!

I remember that night in the hot tub, thinking how awesome it would be if our families had met us down there for another week! This time I was kinda wishing you were meeting me down there for a week just us at the Grand

Yeah, if Rob and Kira were alone, they would just shop and eat ice cream all the time

Yes, methinks we need a yearly training session at DL, just me and you

Rain Forest Cafe is one of our favourites,too. Love the design, the giant fish tanks and the beautiful bar. I haven't seen the simple frog figurines for years in RFC in Paris. I'm wondering, if they still have those in Anaheim.
Amazing and hilarious interaction with the mad hatter. I could watch him all day...
Sorry that you weren't feeling well and missed half of the day.

Great report and pics. Especially carsland at night!

Yes, I love the fish tanks too, so gorgeous!!! I've never seen the frog figurines though! Thanks for reading along

Just read your TR from beginning to end Oh and hello from Vancouver BC *waves* Looks like a fantastic trip!!! I love that you surprised your daughter the morning you left!! I have such a big mouth and can't keep a secret to save my life, I always tell my kids as soon as I book a trip where we are going and then hear all about it for months to come
I'm sorry you had such a crap experience at Minnie and Friends, we loved their breakfast when we did it with our girls in 2013 and I was going to do it again for our upcoming October trip....however, Storytellers looked like a much better experience so perhaps we shall try that instead ;-) Your photos are gorgeous!!

Hello from Calgary

I'd rather be in Vancouver

It was really hard keeping it from her but I think it was worth it

If I had to choose one of those meals, I would definitely choose Storytellers

 

[Timon]

I have absolutely loved this post! We haven't been to DL in 3 years and are going back next week, and your post has me SO excited! You have a beautiful family and I loved going along on the ride with you!

Thanks for reading Gina421 and going on the ride with us!

Have fun down there! I am ready to go back already

 

[Timon]

I have been delaying this post just because it will be the very end of the trip report and I don't want it to be over whaaaaaaaa




Final Thoughts

General

All in all, it was a great trip! I think we picked the perfect week for crowds and the weather, well, I would have enjoyed it more if it was cooler out but no one can predict the weather I will say that it was nice to do some Disney parks and not feel like I have sweated through my clothes by 1pm, like I do at Walt Disney World

I really don't understand how people say that Disneyland Resort is a week-end trip Not only are the week-ends super busy but we spent 5 full days there and we still didn't get to see it all! On top of that, there were some major things closed while we visited, so if they had been open, I would have needed another day or two!

I think my biggest complaint would be that they don't offer a ticket option that is more than 5-days. I would have loved to added two days to our hoppers so that we could at least see the fireworks or did a ride or two on Saturday and Sunday nights. Our only option was to buy an annual pass but it wasn't worth it to us as we're not sure when we will get back.


Disneyland Hotel

I love this hotel! Overall, it is one of my favourites, ever! The only downfall is that it is not closer to the parks. I know that sounds ridiculous (especially for you WDW geeks where some hotels are miles away from the parks) but I think that proximity is the one major advantage that the Grand Californian Hotel has over the Disneyland Hotel. Personally, I prefer the Grand, mostly because of the style of the hotel (and the proximity) but there isn't anything that I don't like about the DL hotel. It has a magical, more Disney feel to it than the Grand and it has better slides for the kiddos. I am glad that I chose the DL hotel for Kira's first trip but the style/proximity/nachos of The Grand will win me over for our next trip



Parks

I know that most people who have been to both DL and WDW often compare them every time they visit. Personally, I don't really think that it's fair to compare them because while they are Disney parks, they are different kinds of Disney parks. While Disneyland was Walt's park, the original, where all the magic started, it doesn't have the advantage of size that WDW has. While I enjoyed the intimacy of the DL resort, size is what sets the WDW resort apart. It is exactly, that, a resort and you feel it everywhere you go. You could escape there for weeks on end and still only see a small portion of what there is to offer. You can transport yourself to Key West, the Caribbean, south Pacific, Africa, New Orleans or the Pacific Northwest (and many other locales!), just by changing resorts!

If you are a Disney fan, I highly suggest visiting both WDW and DL because they both are amazing, in their own ways. Don't compare them, just enjoy each one for what they are! As a huge Disney fan, I love that some of the featured attractions are a little different from each other. It doesn't matter that Pirates has two drops in DL, compared to WDW's one. The important thing is that there are TWO different versions of one amazing ride and lucky us, we get to experience them both

I will say that, in some cases, Disneyland lacks some of the magic that WDW provides, mainly due to size and what that size allows them to do. For instance, Magic Kingdom is built on the second level. The first level is actually made up of "utilidors", an underground-like highway for people and behind the scenes stuff that Walt didn't want his guests to see. He engineered it that way to keep the "Story" of his park believable. He didn't want his guests to see a Cast Member dressed up like they were from the future walking down Man Street. It spoiled the illusion and that was a big no-no for Walt! At the Magic Kingdom, you won't see CM's walking to and from work. You only see them while "on stage" and part of the story. In fact, unless you are really looking, you won't even see a CM enter or leave the park from a backstage door or area because they are mostly hidden or hard to spot. They just "magically" appear!

In Disneyland, however, if you ever walk near the front of the Grand Californian or even near the Paradise Pier and Disneyland Hotels, you will see a steady stream of CM's walking to and from the parking lot. It's not something horrible but if you're used to being at WDW, it will stand out to you when you see it at Disneyland. This is also apparent in most areas of both parks. You can see parts of DCA while you are in DL and vice-versa and even parts of Harbor Blvd. Again, nothing bad about that but if you've only ever been to Walt Disney World, you will notice these things. You probably won't even realize why they bug you, they just will. And they bugged Walt, more than most people know. And back then, there wasn't as much commercial growth in and around DL as there is today! In fact, if it wasn't for his foresight and his tremendous influence with the zoning committee, there would be high rises surrounding the park instead of 3 or 4 story hotels.

The other place you might notice this is on actual rides, the older rides, that is. Again, nothing wrong with it, just very different. Take all the dark rides in Fantasyland, for instance. Not only do you board each ride vehicle at the front where the Cast Member is, you actually see them operating it! They are so close to you, you can reach out and touch them

I thought that was weird

My one big complaint is that the CM's in Disneyland (in general) don't add to the "magic" like they do in WDW. While you will get a grumpy CM at WDW from time to time, I have noticed that most CM's go out of their way to make your park experience more magical. They will ask you how your day is going, how long you've been there, where you're from, etc. Whereas, in Disneyland, the only thing they ever asked us was "Do you have an Annual Pass?"

And when you come across two or more of them working together, they are often talking about their plans for the weekend or what they did last night, when they are going for break, all the while ignoring the guests completely!

The absolute worst example of this was at the Disneyland Hotel pool during every single visit. In the main part of the pool, there is often 3 or more lifeguards working at the same time and every time we swam, they were constantly chatting about their lives, making plans, playing word games or other tremendously annoying things!

I'm sorry but I'm not paying a small fortune to stay at a Disney Resort to listen to the trials and tribulations of the daily lives of the lifeguards! I am there on VACATION, trying to relax and enjoy the atmosphere, not listen to how they just spent the weekend partying in Vegas!!! And I really don't want my 8-year old listening to that crap either, thank you very much!

Besides, how well can they be doing their jobs when they are too busy trying to think up movie titles in alphabetical order????




Food

I saved the best for last

We are not "foodies" by any means so you won't find us making reservations at Napa Rose or Carthay Circle but we did try lots of different dining venues this trip and for the most part, we were not disappointed!

My husband likes variety so I try to do as many buffets as we can because we never do them at home and I know it's a treat for him. For me, I don't care for buffets as I am really picky and don't find a lot that I like and never feel like it's a good value. My daughter enjoys the characters that most buffets include so while on vacation, I try to accommodate my family but I think after this trip, there will be a large decline in buffet visits on all future trips!

Having said that, I am glad that we tried 4 out of the 5 character meals that DL offers just to say that we tried them. I have no desire to walk over to Paradise Pier to try the Surf's Up Breakfast with Mickey either. The only one I would try again is Goofy's Kitchen but I would not make the same mistake again by eating so late. I would make an early dinner reservation and eat all the scalloped potatoes I can without exploding

I also won't be making any more autograph books for Kira so not feeling like we have to get them during the meals with alleviate some stress for me should we do more character meals.

I would probably be happy eating corn dogs and chicken strips the entire week but I don't think I would go now without a visit to Blue Bayou for dinner It was, hands down, the best meal we had the entire week and Rob and I still talk about how much we would love to just hop on a plane and go eat there for dinner That is the one meal there that I would eat regardless of the expense and if you know me at all, I don't like to spend money, so that is saying a lot!!

I feel that way about Akershus Princess Breakfast at Norway, in Epcot in WDW. The food is so good there, I will continue to eat there every trip

I will also go back to Carnation Café in a heartbeat! I would get that soup again and try a different entrée this time and I would make a second visit just to try their breakfast

I don't think I would return to Steakhouse 55 unless they wise up and put those au gratin potatoes back on the menu

Also, I am still heartbroken that they took my chicken sandwich off of the Storyteller's Café lunch menu but I would return to try a new entrée but I won't be back for breakfast.

And of course, I look forward to many return trips to White Water Snacks to eat my nachos!!!

There are many snacks that I still want to try but haven't yet and I would love to eat at Hungry Bear, even just for the ambiance! I would gladly return to Rainforest Café and I would love to try a few new places at Downtown Disney too!

So much Disney food, so little time!!! Obviously, we will be back, hopefully sooner than later!



Thanks again for reading along and joining us on our adventure! A special thank you to all of you who posted comments, I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know that you are out there reading, enjoying the report.