Disneyland, CA Versus Walt Disney World in Florida

Many people wonder which theme park area is better, Disneyland in California or Walt Disney World in Florida. Having been to both parks recently, I have come to the conclusion that the answer is not an easy one. Both areas are so unique that at times it feels like one is trying to compare apples to oranges.

Here are some things that both areas seem to have in common:

• Both Disneyland and Walt Disney World are full of that "Disney Magic". The overall feeling as my family walked through the gates of each one of the theme parks was that of excitement and awe. We quickly left our everyday cares behind and let the Disney enchantment just sweep us away.

• All of the theme parks on each coast are very clean. Disney prides itself in creating a near spotless environment.

• Overall, the Cast Members (employees) are very friendly.

• Both areas have lots of characters around the theme parks who are ready to sign autographs and pose for pictures. The lines can be very long at either area depending on the time of year.

• Both areas have some attractions in common such as: Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Enchanted Tiki Room, Peter Pan's Flight, Tower of Terror, Soarin', Toy Story Mania, Haunted Mansion, Innoventions, Buzz Light Year Auto Blasters, Autopia (although not the same name), Space Mountain, Tom Sawyer's Island, Riverboats, Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Teacups, a Carousel, a Tree House, Disney Animations, Turtle Talk with Crush, as well as a few others.

Here are some of the differences between Disneyland and Walt Disney World:

• The Size - Disneyland Resort in California is much smaller and completely land locked, with the city of Anaheim totally surrounding it. Walt Disney World in Florida is huge, and a large part of the total acreage that Disney World owns is still undeveloped.

• The number of theme parks: Disneyland Resort in California consists of 2 theme parks and the Downtown Disney area. Walt Disney World in Florida consists of 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, a Downtown Disney area and much more.

• The Distance between the theme parks: The two theme parks in the Disneyland Resort are right across a plaza from each other. You can easily walk from one park to the other, and also to Downtown Disney, in minutes. Walt Disney World's theme parks and other offerings are very spread out. You can only get to them by car or other transportation. Walt Disney World does have an excellent, free bus, monorail or boat transportation system between the theme parks, hotels, water parks, Downtown Disney and their other offerings.

• The Climate: Walt Disney World is generally a little warmer year-round than Disneyland in California. Both areas can get very hot during the summer months, but Disneyland's heat might be easier to take due to the lower humidity. Walt Disney World generally gets more rain in the summer, while Disneyland generally gets more rain in the winter.

• Lodging: Disneyland has only three resort hotels on its property while Walt Disney World has around 18 resort hotels plus a campground on its property.

I've only mentioned a few of the common things and just some of the differences between the Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World. There may be many more things in each of the categories above that one might add.

Here are some of my favorite things about each area:

Disneyland:

• Disneyland is the original Disney theme park. This theme park was Walt Disney's brainchild and prototype for all of the Disney theme parks that have followed.

• The theme parks in the Disneyland Resort are easier to get around and generally require less walking to get to the different attractions than in the theme parks at Walt Disney World. The Disneyland theme parks are also much easier to "park hop" to as they are right next door to each other.

• Disneyland has the show, "Billy Hill and the Hillbillies". This is an incredibly funny show that takes place at the Golden Horseshoe Saloon many times a day on three to four days a week.

• Disneyland has New Orleans Square as one of its lands. The Blue Bayou Restaurant is located here and they serve their famous "Monte Cristo" sandwich. They're located in the same building as the attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean and its' fun to watch the boats go by while you're dining or to view the restaurant from the boat if you're on the attraction.

Walt Disney World:

• Cinderella's Table - This is a wonderful restaurant that is actually located inside of Cinderella's Castle at Magic Kingdom. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and diners get to meet 5 princesses. Cinderella greets everyone after they come into the castle. Once you are seated at your table upstairs, you have the opportunity to meet 4 other princesses. When we were there, the princesses were Belle, Ariel, Sleeping Beauty and Jasmine. If you're not into the characters, it is still a special treat to be inside of the castle, and the meals are generally very good.

• The Shows: If you like shows, Walt Disney World has a lot of them. They have "Finding Nemo, the Musical" and "Festival of the Lion King" at Disney's Animal Kingdom. At Hollywood Studios, they have "Beauty and the Beast" and "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" as well as two amazing stunt shows.

• The Water Parks: There are two incredible water parks on the property. If you're fortunate enough to be at Walt Disney World for more than a few days, these water parks provide a wonderful, relaxing break from "pounding the pavement" at the theme parks.

• Dine with an Imagineer - this is an amazing opportunity to eat either lunch or dinner with one of Disney's "behind the scenes" creators and artists. The Imagineer shares lots of fascinating stories, plans and experiences over the course of about 2 to 3 hours. You have a great opportunity to ask all of those questions about Disney that you've always wanted to know.

These are just a few of the things that I love about Disneyland and Walt Disney World. If I had to choose one area over the other, I would probably have to choose Disneyland as my favorite. This is because it was the first Disney Park that I went to as a child and also the first one that my children went to. So, Disneyland has a lot of sentimental value to our family.

If you're lucky enough to experience both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, the secret might be to just appreciate each area for both their similarities and their uniqueness. Whether you're in the Disney theme parks in California or the ones in Florida, you're sure to experience that wonderful Disney magic!

Even the Big Kids Can Have Fun at Disneyland in Florida

Image : http://www.flickr.com

I flew to Orlando Florida from Edinburgh in the summer of 1996 to visit Disneyland, and I was not disappointed. I stayed in Kissimmee in Orlando which is not far from all the big parks. I stayed in a lovely hotel with a swimming pool and outside bar. Being America, I wasn't short of things to do. Disneyland itself was absolutely fantastic. The Americans really know how to do things. If you have children or you are still a child at heart then this is the place for you. The rides are amazing, as is the general landscape of the parks. Your every visual need is catered for in large doses! Of course the fantastic weather makes it all the better; not having to plan your day around the rain and having appropriate clothing,as we do in this country, is a huge bonus. However, when I was there in August there were the most amazing lightning storms. Which were great, if you were indoors, but not so great if you were caught out in it. The torrential rain is one thing, but the huge forks of lightning are another.

You really need to spend all day, maybe even two, in each park to do them justice. Be warned that the queues for the rides can be extremely long. However, the park has set up lots of things to keep you entertained while you are waiting. The wait may still be a bit too long for very young children though.

The biggest rides are truly amazing. With each demonstrating a host of technologies all utilised to make you feel like you have actually been transported to a different place. One moment you can be up Space Mountain, while the next you can go all the way Back to the Future. Bush gardens was a real favourite of mine. While it of course has a huge variety of wild animals, the rides are also truly amazing. My favourite being the Tanganyika Tidal wave: get ready to get very wet! There are also a huge variety of places to eat within the park. You should have no problem finding food to suit every diet but be warned: this is America and the portions are absolutely enormous.

Night life is also extremely varied. You can experience anything from a quiet meal to live entertainment all available within a very short distance. Most Americans still take taxis, even over short distances, so you may as well do the same. Obviously there are some less safe areas that you may want to avoid, like downtown Orlando. The parks themselves though, don't close at night. They just come alive again so you can choose to experience New Year's Eve every night of the week if you want to. The American people are extremely friendly and always willing to help you have a great time, especially at Disneyland. They may seem a little over the top at breakfast when you need some peace and quiet to recover from the night before though.

Florida Tourism - Birth & Growth

Discovered in 1513 by Spanish Conquistador Juan Ponce de León, Florida has fast become the worlds favourite tourist destination pulling in about 60 million visitors to the state every year. Its warm climate, friendly locals and massive variety of activities all contribute to its number one vacation status.

Before the tourists began flooding in Florida was mostly an agricultural state and this continues to be its second largest industry today. As well as a booming cattle farming industry Florida produces the majority of citrus fruit in the US. Indeed, Florida is famous, even now, not only for its theme parks but for its large quantity of oranges, orange juice being the states official beverage. As well as citrus fruit the state is also well known for producing sugar cane, today its third biggest industry. These days it is surprising to most that, before the arrival of tourism, Florida consisted of mostly cattle fields and swamplands.

The warm climate, sandy beaches and various activities such as fishing and water sports began to bring in the visitors and lay the foundation for what was to become the states greatest industry and main economy source. In the early days of this growth (early to mid 1800s) it was still only the rich and famous who could afford a vacation to Florida. That was until American tycoon Henry S. Flagler visited that state in 1878 and recognized the massive potential Florida could hold to attract visitors from outside the state. He built the Ponce de Leon Hotel in St Augustine in 1885 and then began to construct what is now known as the Florida East Coast Railway making travel into Florida much easier and more convenient for people from as far away as New York. Flagler went on to build more hotels subsequently improving the states accommodation and allowing for more visitors. In the early 1900s visitors to the Sunshine State increased considerably due to this growth in hotels and railways and then in the 1930s airlines opened up travel schedules to Florida and airports were built in the major cities, again allowing for a boost in tourists.

People came to soak in the sun and the laid back Florida attitude bringing about the growth of beach towns up and down the coasts. By now many of Florida's residents had long figured out that tourism had become a fundamental source of bread and butter for them and so they set about earning whatever livings they could from it. Even as the beach towns prospered from all the sun seekers people began to pull visitors further inland with various roadside attractions. However it was in 1963-64 when a certain man took a plane journey over the state that the rise of Florida tourism as we know it today really began.

In 1963 Walt Disney was looking for somewhere to build his dream, a bigger and better version of his Disneyland attraction in California. Disneyland didn't fulfil Walt's dream the way he intended, only buying enough land to build the actual park it quickly became surrounded by urban life as Los Angeles grew around it, so this time he knew he needed land and lots of it. At the time central Florida had undeveloped swampland in abundance and when Mr. Disney took that plane flight overhead he knew that was the place.

Today Walt Disney World is still considered the greatest theme park on earth and its development was followed by a succession of more world class theme parks such as Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Sea World and Busch Gardens. It is now these attractions that Florida is best known for and between them they gather hundreds of thousands of visitors every day and it was the growth in these attractions that rocketed the once sleepy southern state of Florida into the position of the worlds number one tourist destination. Despite this, there is still an enormous range of activities offered to todays Florida tourist including (but certainly not limited to) fishing, golf, water sports, space shuttle launches, wildlife, shopping, dining and world class beaches.