By the time you add in $15 for parking, in our case in the future a wheel chair rental ($32) and all the food costs your looking at north of $300. This is much more then what you would pay at other local theme parks like Knott's Berry Farm or Six Flags Magic Mountain or even San Diego Zoo.
Last year we did go to Knott's Berry Farm and got out of there with parking and food for around $150 for our family of three. I have not been to Six Flags since being a senior in high school so I can not comment on there very well (I've heard lines are horrible). We have been to the Zoo multiple times in the last few years. You get a very different experience at each park. Very different in respects to things like Parking, Food, Attractions and Entertainment.
So let me talk about the differences I see.
First off the amount of people involved in parking at Disney is just amazing. Things run smoothly and they have a tram to get you from the parking area to the main gates. This is not present in the other parks though the walk is small in most cases.
We had taken our wagon for our daughter in the past with us to Knott's and decided to do the same for her at Disney. She wears a brace and has a rod in her leg due to her Genetic condition (Neurofibromatosis) and thus tires out quicker then the average person. Having a way to move her around the park helps keep her from getting so tired and allows us to have a longer day.
Turns out at Knott's it's OK to have a wagon. It is not allowed at Disneyland since they have much bigger crowds (we were visiting 1 week following the Cars Land Opening) and the safety involved.
Thank goodness due to her condition we were given a complementary stroller to use in place of the wagon. My daughter is getting a bit to big for them and thus we will have to rent a wheel chair in the future for $32. The good thing I can say about Disney is that in as much as they have rules and regulations they are accommodating as much as possible. We had also gotten the pass to go through the back door on most rides at Disneyland. Since the park was built before the Americans with disabilities act was passed in the 90's they can not handle wheel chairs in line unlike California Adventure. This saves a lot of time in line and a lot of time on our feet.
It's these small things that make all the difference.
We expected large crowds and there were a fair number of people at both parks. We did our best to avoid California Adventure due to the fact tons of people were heading over there for Cars Land and all the other changes and improvements that they have been making. You can say it is 1 Billion well spent. We did get our FastPass for the World of Color show and hit the
The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel's Undersea Adventure ride while we were there. The FastPass came in useful later in the day as we split us so I could do Star Tours and have my wife and daughter head over to Pixie Hollow since they were not interested. Allowed us to go and take in about 3 rides and then split up. Having FastPass for the show at night was also helpful. We did not have to sit around and save out space for so much time like you do with Fantasmic. We were not so happy to find that even with the pass the seating was a standing affair. We ended up on a bridge off to the side. Still those with no pass ended up on the far side of the bridge and thus had our heads in the way the whole time.
FastPass in general is a wonderful idea and what you can say sets Disney apart. Having the ability to avoid most of the lines and then go and do something else in the park is a wonderful idea. You can get more done and it really helps for those E-ticket rides that are more popular. And the way the rides are handled is a whole different animal. Lines are always moving quickly and you don't have one person covering two areas like letting the people in, verifying seat belts and starting or activating the ride. The Bumper cars at Knott's took a lot of extra time since everything was being handled by one worker, and this was in the middle of the summer.
The atmosphere is also very different. Themes are taken to new levels at Disneyland. They make you really feel a part of the area. Not as much so with the areas in places like Knott's. Transitions from one area to another work a lot better as well.
I'm reminded of a piece done on the history channel about Disney World. Walt Disney was so worried about have cowboys walking around in the middle of Tomorrow land that they ended up building a network of tunnels under the park to handle employee traffic and transportation of material from one area to another. Disney has a bunch of back area storage facilities and paths for the employees to help keep the atmosphere proper. You can see this a little better when you ride on the Monorail out to downtown.
We used Downtown Disney as a way to get a better deal on a meal. Not so sure that we did get all that much of a better deal but, we took the monorail there and got to be involved in another aspect of the Park.
Another good thing we had been turned on to by friends is the picnic area at the esplanade between parks at the Disney resort. We just rented a big locker and brought our own lunch. This also afforded us a location to stash jackets and be able to grab new cold bottles of waters for after lunch. At $15 dollars for all day it was not that bad. Comparing that to what we could have spent on lunch (we spent about $30 for dinner at the Jazz Kitchen take out counter) we still saved.
Though I do have to say that the Chicken Dinner at Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant is well worth the trip and one of the best ways to fill you up and allow you to still enjoy the park.
Park food is going to be nothing but, basic and over priced no matter what you do. On occasion you will find a special deal like the Blue Bayou restaurant or Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant. Beyond that you are dead in the water with some basic sandwich or a super simple hamburger for at least $5. Even more if you want cheese on it. That makes a double double at In-n-Out Burger a real steal of a deal at under $5.
As for entertainment. You can not top Disney. On our adventure during the day we had pictures taken with Mary Poppins and Bert, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Merida from Brave, Rapunzel from Tangled and Tinker Bell and friends in Pixie Hollow. We also saw Mickey, Minnie, Chip and Dale, Pluto, the Queen from Snow white, and Alice and the Mad Matter around the park but, did not stop due to time constraints.
Also Disney prides themselves on their Parades. The Soundsational parade was very good. Not exactly what we expected since some of the themes like Three Caballeros, and Lion King left a little to be desired. The Mary Poppins, Princess and the Frog and Little Mermaid worked very well. They do very well in presenting all the favorite characters in a parade and this one did not let you down. Tons of princesses, Fairies, Mermaids and Chimney Sweeps.
Now we saw the World of Color for the first time. I have to say it is an engineering marvel. All the images they present on the watery screen and the mixing together of fire and colors was just plain amazing. With the ability to save a space via FastPass it works out a bit better then Fantasmic, though my wife likes Fantasmic better.
Knott's had an ice show but, really the over all atmosphere was much better in the entertainment arena at Disney. The shoot outs at Knott's are hard to beat, and the Zoo really become not much of anything at it turn dark in the evening. Same with Sea World for that matter.
The atmosphere is also very different. Themes are taken to new levels at Disneyland. They make you really feel a part of the area. Not as much so with the areas in places like Knott's. Transitions from one area to another work a lot better as well.
I'm reminded of a piece done on the history channel about Disney World. Walt Disney was so worried about have cowboys walking around in the middle of Tomorrow land that they ended up building a network of tunnels under the park to handle employee traffic and transportation of material from one area to another. Disney has a bunch of back area storage facilities and paths for the employees to help keep the atmosphere proper. You can see this a little better when you ride on the Monorail out to downtown.
We used Downtown Disney as a way to get a better deal on a meal. Not so sure that we did get all that much of a better deal but, we took the monorail there and got to be involved in another aspect of the Park.
Another good thing we had been turned on to by friends is the picnic area at the esplanade between parks at the Disney resort. We just rented a big locker and brought our own lunch. This also afforded us a location to stash jackets and be able to grab new cold bottles of waters for after lunch. At $15 dollars for all day it was not that bad. Comparing that to what we could have spent on lunch (we spent about $30 for dinner at the Jazz Kitchen take out counter) we still saved.
Though I do have to say that the Chicken Dinner at Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant is well worth the trip and one of the best ways to fill you up and allow you to still enjoy the park.
Park food is going to be nothing but, basic and over priced no matter what you do. On occasion you will find a special deal like the Blue Bayou restaurant or Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant. Beyond that you are dead in the water with some basic sandwich or a super simple hamburger for at least $5. Even more if you want cheese on it. That makes a double double at In-n-Out Burger a real steal of a deal at under $5.
As for entertainment. You can not top Disney. On our adventure during the day we had pictures taken with Mary Poppins and Bert, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Merida from Brave, Rapunzel from Tangled and Tinker Bell and friends in Pixie Hollow. We also saw Mickey, Minnie, Chip and Dale, Pluto, the Queen from Snow white, and Alice and the Mad Matter around the park but, did not stop due to time constraints.
Also Disney prides themselves on their Parades. The Soundsational parade was very good. Not exactly what we expected since some of the themes like Three Caballeros, and Lion King left a little to be desired. The Mary Poppins, Princess and the Frog and Little Mermaid worked very well. They do very well in presenting all the favorite characters in a parade and this one did not let you down. Tons of princesses, Fairies, Mermaids and Chimney Sweeps.
Now we saw the World of Color for the first time. I have to say it is an engineering marvel. All the images they present on the watery screen and the mixing together of fire and colors was just plain amazing. With the ability to save a space via FastPass it works out a bit better then Fantasmic, though my wife likes Fantasmic better.
Knott's had an ice show but, really the over all atmosphere was much better in the entertainment arena at Disney. The shoot outs at Knott's are hard to beat, and the Zoo really become not much of anything at it turn dark in the evening. Same with Sea World for that matter.
So as I was mentioning to my daughter, each park has it's special charm. NO one can beat the Pirates of the Caribbean ride with those animatronics. In reality, that is what sets Disney apart. Now it is hard to beat the log ride at Knott's and Animals at the Zoo have their special place. So if you make these the kind of place you go to for special occasions, your surely going to be able to make some lasting family memories.
Please leave your experiences and contrast how the little things make the difference at your favorite Park. Also tips and suggestions for a great time would be great.
It would be nice if they started having special event nights at Disneyland again like they currently do with local baseball. I do remember the "Mormon Night at Disneyland" way back in the past. When you can offer good clean fun it just makes sense to offer special deals to group. Doesn't just have to Mormons. Evangelicals and Catholics should have their night.
Buaidh - NO - Bas
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