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Park Pros and Cons

The other night, Fallon and I were talking about the pros and cons of each coast’s parks. Personally, I don’t typically make pro & con lists because I’m not a character on a network sitcom. But today that changes. Because I wanted to write something and was lacking a better idea. So here goes – the Pros and Cons of each set of American parks:

Disneyland Pros:

  1. The Original Park
  2. More rides per capita
  3. Better rides per capita (Yeah, I said it.)
  4. Better in-park food options
  5. Easier to get reservations
  6. Park hopping is super easy
  7. Maxpass > FP+
  8. In General – California > Florida
  9. Lodgings are closer and more affordable
  10. Character meet & greets are less structured, random and more plentiful
  11. More annual passholders = smarter park patrons
  12. Can cover both parks in 2-3 days
  13. Way less planning needed beforehand

 

Disneyland Cons:

  1. Population of So-Cal means things get slammed very often
  2. Parks themselves can seem more cramped because there’s less overall acreage
  3. Theming can be more inconsistent because of lack of space
  4. Surrounded by cheap hotels – so a + and a –
  5. No Magical Express from LAX/SNA
  6. Disney Hotels are very pricey
  7. Downtown Disney Construction
  8. Disneyland currently in political squabble with City of Anaheim
  9. Ana-CRIME amiright?
  10. Annual passholders are AKA Passholes
  11. Maxpass costs $10US/day

 

Walt Disney World Pros:

  1. Moar parks
  2. The WDW Bubble is great
  3. Less rides equals better theming overall 
  4. Better restaurants per capita when you include the 20something resorts
  5. Tables In Wonderland 20% off card for APs, DVC and FL Residents
  6. Easier transportation if you stay on property
  7. Mickey’s Magical Express gets you from MCO
  8.  FP+ is free and can be booked 60 days out if you stay on property/30  days if not
  9. Florida is more naturally entertaining
  10. Magic Bands can be used to pay for food, souvenirs, are your room key, get PhotoPass pics, are super handy
  11. Character meet & greets are better organized. Like, I swear there could have been 4 rooms to meet Anna and Elsa it was so efficient
  12. On property guests don’t have to carry their souvenirs and can have them shipped to their hotel 
  13. More space = better queues
  14. Tader Sam’s Grog Grotto > Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar
  15. Impossible to do it all in 1 trip
  16. Disney Springs is way better than Downtown Disney
  17. Earl of Sandwich

Walt Disney World Cons:

  1. More of a destination experience so it ends up costing way more
  2. 180 days beforehand for restaurant reservations? 60 Days out for FastPasses? WDW is A LOT of work.
  3. Fewer rides per park and often the DL versions are just better executed overall 
  4. Also surrounded by cheap hotels a la The Florida Project
  5. Park hopping can be very time consuming or costly if you Uber/Lyft (but Minnie Vans are sweet)
  6. Cheerleaders/Brazilian Tour Groups – because unsupervised teenagers
  7. Florida  Highway Construction/Toll Highways
  8. WDW is often viewed as a Once In A Lifetime trip and everyone is stressed about getting the appropriate bang for their buck
  9. Because it’s so much work beforehand many park patrons are clueless
  10. Quick serves can be pretty mediocre
  11. Re$ort parking
  12. Impossible to do it all in 1 trip
  13. No slow season anymore

I feel like we’ll need to continually add to this but for now I think it’s a solid start. Ultimately either is an awesome time and I’d take them both in a heartbeat.