The Disneyland Resort ![[^]](http://static.explorra.com/img/link.png "External link to: http://www.disneyland.com/"){kind=small}
is located in Anaheim, California . It is home to the original Disneyland which opened in 1955, a favorite among visitors to Southern California from all over the world for well over half a century. It has since been joined by a sister park, Disney's California Adventure in 2001, which is a stylized recreation and celebration of California's rich history and culture.
| Never completed |
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Walt Disney himself once said, "Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world." True to Walt's vision, the Disneyland of today is very different from the way it was half a century ago. To revisit the Disneyland of the past, visit Yesterland |
The Disneyland Resort is divided into two separate theme parks and a shopping and entertainment district. The first park is the original Disney theme park Disneyland, which opened in July 1955. Its sister park Disney's California Adventure, which opened in February 2001, is located across the entry plaza on the former site of Disneyland's parking lot. Both parks are divided into "lands", or themes. At the western end of the entry plaza is Downtown Disney, a shopping and entertainment district. Hotels are located at the end of Downtown Disney.
Disneyland's rides are generally considered classic well-themed dark rides (e.g. Pirates of the Caribbean) with the occasional thrill ride (e.g. Space Mountain), while California Adventure's rides are more thrill-oriented (e.g. California Screamin') with some some family-style rides (e.g. Soarin' Over California). The CMs (Disney calls their employees "Cast Members") in all sections of the park are widely known to be very friendly and helpful. The attention to detail throughout the parks is extraordinary, however most cast members will not know the history behind the details.
The two biggest problems with the Disneyland Resort as a whole are crowds and price. However with careful planning, both can be avoided.
Disneyland is one of the most visited theme parks in the world (with 14.7 million visits, second only to the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World), so the parks can be pretty crowded, especially during the weekends, summer, and winter holidays, which leads to long lines for the most popular attractions. However, if you visit in the late winter or early spring, off-season lines can be short, especially during the weekdays. Disney's California Adventure has fewer attractions but still has long lines, although not as long as Disneyland's attractions.
Eating outside the parks is quite possible due to the close vicinity of several restaurants to the park and the benefit of hand-stamp and re-entry. Stick to just snacks and maybe one meal in the park, and you can save some cash.
Disneyland
1313 South Harbor Boulevard
Anaheim, CA 92802
Disney's California Adventure
1600 South Disneyland Drive
Anaheim, CA 92802
Disneyland is within driving distance of a number of Southern California airports. Regardless of which airport you land at, it is always a good idea to consider available alternative forms of transportation before deciding to rent a car. Airport shuttles and public transit are an ideal option, especially if you are unfamiliar with the area. While LAX is the obvious choice and the most popular, there are a few other options which are calmer and sometimes even make for an easier arrival.
John Wayne Orange County Airport (IATA : SNA) is the closest airport to Anaheim. The Disneyland Resort Express , operated by Gray Line, provides direct bus service to the Disneyland Resort from here.
Long Beach Airport (IATA : LGB) . The 2nd closest airport, which is also one of the smallest (e.g. easiest to deal with) in the Los Angeles area. Depending on where you are flying from it's one of the easiest ways to get to Disneyland. Although there is no direct bus service from the airport to the resort, depending on the number of people in your party it may be less expensive to rent a car in any case. Interestingly, if you take the main exit from the airport, which is East Wardlaw Road, eventually it becomes Ball Road, which runs directly across the north edge of Disneyland itself. JetBlue serves 14 nonstop destinations from Long Beach: Boston, New York, Washington D.C., Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, Austin, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Sacramento, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Portland, and Seattle.
Los Angeles International Airport (IATA : LAX) is the largest airport in the area. The Disneyland Resort Express is also available here as well. Most visitors, especially those from overseas, arriving for a visit to Disneyland or to the greater Los Angeles area tend to arrive here.
LA/Ontario International Airport (IATA : ONT) in San Bernardino County is within close distance of Disneyland; take I-10 (San Bernardino Freeway) west and exit into California State Route 57 (Orange Freeway) south which leads directly into Anaheim. Take either the Ball Road or Katella Avenue exit (3 and 2 respectively) and travel west. Alternatively, you can also take the Metrolink San Bernardino Line from Rancho Cucamonga or Upland to Los Angeles Union Station, where you can transfer to either the Orange County Line or the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner.
Bob Hope Airport (IATA : BUR) in Burbank is the only Los Angeles-area airport that is directly served by Amtrak and Metrolink. Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner directly connects the airport to Anaheim, with departures at 8:58AM, 11:26AM, 4:25PM, 7:05PM, and 9:12PM. Outside of those times, Metrolink's Ventura County Line links the airport with Los Angeles Union Station, with 10 daily departures. Transfers to the Orange County Line or the Pacific Surfliner can be made at Union Station.
As with much of California , by car is probably the easiest way to get to the Disneyland Resort from the surrounding area (or even San Diego , Las Vegas , and San Francisco ). The Disneyland Resort offers ample parking both for day visitors to the park as well as hotel guests. All of the surrounding hotels offer parking, however, some clearly do not have sufficient parking for the number of overnight guests.
Driving to the Disneyland Resort also means braving the Southern California traffic, which at times can be overwhelming. The Disneyland website offers driving directions , as do most online map sites. Traveling from the Long Beach Airport to the Disneyland Resort can be done using surface streets instead of freeways, which can be very crowded during commute hours.
The Disneyland Resort is bounded by Katella Avenue to the south, Ball Road to the north, Walnut Street to the west, Harbor Boulevard to the east, and the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) on the northeast corner. The Anaheim Convention Center is located south of the resort across Katella Avenue.
Parking at the theme parks is $12 for Car/Motorcycle, $17 for RV/Oversized Vehicle, and $22 for Bus/Tractor Trailer. Parking at Downtown Disney is free for the first three hours and $6 for each additional hour afterwards, charged in increments of $2 every 20 minutes. Valet parking is available at Downtown Disney for $6 from 5:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.
If you are arriving in Anaheim by train, a taxi is a reasonable option to get to the resort from the station. A one-way taxi ride from the station to Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel costs $10.40 (as of July 5, 2006).
One of the great advantages at the Disneyland Resort is that Disneyland Park, Disney's California Adventure Park, Downtown Disney, and many "off property" hotels are all within walking distance. Unlike Walt Disney World in Florida, guests can walk between Disneyland Park, Disney's California Adventure Park, and Downtown Disney in just a minute or two. There are approximately 12 "off property" hotels that are within a 10 minute walk. Some experienced visitors to the Disneyland Resort stay at the walking-distance hotels and find it more convenient to not have a car. It only takes five to 10 minutes to walk to the Disneyland entrance from a walking-distance hotel, and taking breaks in the middle of the day is much more convenient.
Local trains and buses are the cheapest ways to get to the park. Amtrak and Metrolink's Anaheim station is located on the north edge of the parking lot of Angel Stadium, about two miles east of Disneyland on Katella Avenue. Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner (Paso Robles to San Diego, via San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Los Angeles) and Metrolink's Orange County Line (LA to Oceanside) service the station.
From 6:30AM-8:45AM a free Orange County Transit Authority bus (Route 430) will take you directly into Disneyland from the station. That same bus will take you back to the station for free from 3:30PM-6PM. There is no service on weekends. Other than these times Route 50, which runs from Cal State University Long Beach to The Village at Orange, services the station and Disneyland every 20 minutes. Other OCTA routes that service the park but not the station are: Route 43 (Harbor Blvd.), which runs from La Habra to Downtown Newport Beach every 15 minutes (although you will need to walk ten minutes to get to the park for this route); Route 46 (Ball Rd.), which runs between Los Alamitos and The Village at Orange; and Route 83 (Santa Ana Freeway) which goes from the Laguna Hills Mall to the Disneyland Resort, by way of Santa Ana. The latter four routes cost $1.25 per boarding.
Los Angeles County MTA Route 460 links Disneyland with Fullerton, Buena Park (with a stop at Knott's Berry Farm), Norwalk, and downtown LA.
If you are staying at the Knott's Berry Farm Resort Hotel in nearby Buena Park, you can take advantage of the free Disneyland shuttle.
Greyhound offers service to the park and the City of Anaheim runs a tourist bus service .
Once in the park, everything is reachable by foot. Disneyland also has pretty good access for wheelchairs and other mobility-assistance vehicles. Outside of the park, a car is again the best way to get around, though many hotels and restaurants are just across the street.
To help make getting around a breeze, the Disneyland Monorail links Disneyland's Tomorrowland with Downtown Disney.
| First of a kind |
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The original Mimi's Cafe, which opened in 1978, is located on Harbor Boulevard across from Disneyland's eastern boundary and is still in business. If you're on a tight budget, and if you have the time, this might be very well worth your effort. |
When dining if you want to dine at the more upscale or "sit down" restaurants there is a good chance you will not be able to get seating without a reservation in advance. Some locations, especially the Blue Bayou Restaurant and Goofy's Kitchen - inside the Disneyland Hotel, require a reservation weeks in advance. Reservations are made through Disney Dining at (714) 781-DINE.
Downtown Disney has a wide array of choices for dining; the complete list may be found on the official website . Those that shouldn't be missed are:
The original Disney hotel. The mid-level hotel of Disneyland's three hotels. 990 rooms and suites in three high-rise towers. three stars. Swimming pool, hot tub, air conditioning, television, fitness center, beach, dining, game room and indoor pool. $280. The higher end of Disneyland's three hotels.Convienent location with an entrance into Disney's California Adventure (Golden State [Grizzly Peak Recreation Area]). 745 rooms and suites. Four stars. Air conditioning, fitness center, hot tub, spa, massage, swimming pool and dining. $340. The lower end of the three Disneyland hotels. 489 rooms and suites. Three stars. Air conditioning, theater, rooftop pool and spa, fitness center, dining, hot tub, kitchen, and beach. $340.There are 37 designated Good Neighbor Hotels which are either within walking distance or provide transportation to and from the Disneyland Resort. Many other hotels and motels of varying cost and quality may be found in the local area. Start with Anaheim.
There are many gift shops throughout Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure. They are so abundant, it is close to impossible to throw a stone and not hit a store. Some attractions even have gift shops located right at their exits. The complete list of shops in both parks may be found on the official website, via the links below.
There is only one dedicated book and media store inside the main parks -- it's located in in Disneyland on the east side of Main Street USA.
Downtown Disney's anchor store is the World of Disney, the second largest of its kind, after the one at Walt Disney World. Essentially, this is a Disney Store on steroids. Downtown Disney also showcases a wide range of well-known retail chains. These are just a select few; see the official website for the complete list.
| Warning: Purchasing tickets online |
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Many tickets sold online through auction websites such as eBay or Craig's List are partially used multi-day park-hopper tickets. While this is a very common activity, it is prohibited by Disney: the tickets are non-transferable. There is also an inherent risk to you as a buyer, because you don't know for certain how many days remain on the ticket. If you are purchasing tickets online, only purchase from authorized brokers; resold tickets are subject to rejection at the gate. |
Visiting Disneyland is an expensive affair. Tickets are sold at several levels: the base ticket is the Single-Day Theme Park Ticket which enables admission to only one of the two parks for a full day. By contrast, the 1-Day Park Hopper allows you to see both parks on the same day, and to move back and forth between the parks. Park Hopper tickets are also sold in increments of 2, 3, 4, and 5 days; while the ticket price increases with each day, the price per day actually decreases with each day. The days on which the ticket is used do not have to be consecutive. The value of the Park Hopper ticket options should not be underestimated.
The prices below were accurate as of August 2009:
| Days | ages 3-9 | ages 10+ | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Per Day | Total | Per Day | ||
| Single-Day Theme Park Ticket | $62 | $62.00 | $72 | $72.00 | |
| 1-Day Park Hopper | $87 | $87.00 | $97 | $97.00 | |
| 2-Day Park Hopper | $131 | $65.50 | $151 | $75.50 | |
| 3-Day Park Hopper | $174 | $58.00 | $204 | $68.00 | |
| 4-Day Park Hopper | $199 | $49.75 | $229 | $57.25 | |
| 5-Day Park Hopper | $219 | $43.80 | $249 | $49.80 | |
| 6-Day Park Hopper | $224 | $37.70 | $254 | $42.83 | |
Discounts are hard to find, but California residents (bring a driver's license or utility bill to prove residency) will receive a small discount, and booking tickets online through disneyland.com may also save some cash. AAA occasionally offers its members discounts, and seasonal discounts such as the "buy a day, get a seasonal pass" offer occur during non-peak seasons.
| Suggestion for CityPass users |
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If your schedule allows you only one day in San Diego, and you will be returning to Anaheim that same day, choose to visit the San Diego Zoo. It is just 5 miles southeast of SeaWorld; that way you can enjoy both attractions in as little time possible. |
If you're planning a multi-day vacation to Southern California with visits to multiple attractions including Disneyland, you can save significantly by using the Southern California CityPass . For only $259 ($219 for ages 3-9), you'll receive a 3-day Park Hopper ticket, and 1 day each at Universal Studios Hollywood, SeaWorld San Diego, and your choice of either the San Diego Zoo or the San Diego Wild Animal Park (once used in one of these, the pass may not be used in the other). This makes for a wonderful week long vacation and a very attractive price with about $90 off standard prices.
| FastPass |
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Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure offer their visitors a time-saving tool called FastPass. You can get a FastPass ticket at the most popular attractions by inserting your Passport (admission ticket) into a machine. The FastPass ticket allows you to come back at a pre-determined time (printed on the ticket) and go to a shorter line, called the FastPass Return line, to enter the attraction. This works well for very crowded rides, or especially busy times of the day. Although there is a specific time printed on the ticket (ex. Noon to 1 P.M.) the CMs at the FastPass Return line will accept your FastPass ticket any time after noon, for the remainder of that day. Also, make sure that you notice the return time before taking your FastPass ticket, since you cannot get a new FastPass until A) the printed time is reached, or B) two hours later, whichever time is shorter. |
Disneyland is the original Disney theme park which opened in July 1955. While the park has changed dramatically over the years, there are still many favorite classic attractions, such as the Disneyland Railroad. Today, Disneyland boasts 57 attractions, the most number of attractions for a Disney theme park. Despite competition from other Disney parks, it is still the favorite among both adults and kids.
Disneyland's themed lands are Main Street, USA. (modeled after 20th Century Marceline, Missouri, Walt Disney's childhood town), New Orleans Square (modeled after 18th Century New Orleans ), Fantasyland (modeled after a Bavarian village), Mickey's Toontown (modeled after the cartoon town of Toontown in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?), Adventureland (modeled after the jungles of Asia, Africa and the South Pacific), Frontierland (modeled after the old west), Critter Country (modeled after North American forests) and Tomorrowland (modeled after science fiction authors' visions of yesterday's future).
Fantasmic is an evening live action show that takes place on the Rivers of America. It is a wonderful show with many of the Disney characters, animation on a screen made of jets of water, and fireworks. It can be too intense for very young children, but for all others it is a very enjoyable. Daily, there are two parades along the route between Main Street, U.S.A. and "it's a small world." At 9:25PM nightly, Disneyland puts on its famous fireworks show. There are many other shows at Disneyland as well.
| Expansion at last! |
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It was officially announced on October 17, 2007 that Disney's California Adventure is finally headed for expansion! Future plans call for a new theme land based on the film Cars, a new entry plaza, and more. |
Disney's California Adventure is Disneyland's sister theme park which opened in February 2001. The park has nearly doubled its attendance numbers since opening and is now ranked in the top ten most visited U.S. theme parks. Disney's California Adventure boasts 34 attactions and has added attractions every year since its opening. This park is probably the most favorite Disney park among teens and adventurous adults and kids. The park is also family friendly.
Disney's California Adventure is divided into 5 themed lands: Sunshine Plaza (modeled after a California postcard), Golden State (which is divided into 5 districts; Condor Flats is modeled after the aviation days of 20th Century Mojave Desert, Grizzly Peak Recreation Area is modeled after the Northeastern California wilderness, The Bay Area is modeled after 20th Century San Francisco, Golden Vine Winery is modeled after California's Wine Country, and Pacific Wharf is modeled after California's 20th Century wharfs), Paradise Pier (modeled after California's 20th Century boardwalks), Hollywood Pictures Backlot (modeled after Hollywood 's studio backlots) and "a bug's land" (modeled after the movie "A Bug's Life") is the only non-Californian themed land in the park.
There are no attractions in Sunshine Plaza.
Where one can enjoy the different tastes of wine from around the world. Can not be younger than 21 years of age to drink.
Disney's California Adventure has many shows and parades for visitors. The High School Musical Pep Rally begins daily at Sunshine Plaza and continues to Paradise Pier every morning at 11:30AM, 1PM and 3:15PM. The park is also home of the new Pixar Play Parade, where floats are based on the Disney Pixar movies, The Incredibles, Toy Story, Ratatouille, A Bug's Life, Finding Nemo, and Monsters, Inc. as well as water and bubble effects. The parade begins daily at 5:15PM at Sunshine Plaza and 5:35PM in Golden State (The Bay Area). Also, the park hosts the classic Disney's Electrical Parade, when the parade's route lights up with thousands of sparkling lights and begins nightly at 8:45PM beginning from Paradise Pier to Sunshine Plaza.
Disneyland is within close distance of a number of other Southern California tourist attractions. Not suprisingly, some of these attractions have the word "Anaheim" in their names.
Located directly south of the Disneyland Resort, across Katella Avenue., 321 West Katella Avenue, 714-635-7400. A new outdoor shopping oasis, located just a stone's throw east of the Disneyland Resort., 300 West Lincoln Avenue, 714-535-7465. About 1 mile north of the Disneyland Resort. Has two Olympic-size ice surfaces. The practice and training venue of the Anaheim Ducks, where you can also learn the sport yourself. There are also figure skating and public ice sessions., 2200 East Katella Avenue, 714-712-2700. A concert venue located on the northwest corner of Angel Stadium's parking lot, adjacent to the Amtrak/Metrolink train station. Located on Beach Boulevard south of the Ball Road intersection, about 4 miles west of the Disneyland Resort. Take LACMTA Route 460. Or if you have your own car, travel west on Katella Avenue or Ball Road, then north on Beach Boulevard. Take the Pacific Surfliner or the Orange County Line south to Oceanside. Take the Pacific Surfliner all the way to its southern end. Take the Pacific Surfliner or the Orange County Line to Los Angeles Union Station, then transfer to the LACMTA Red Line and disembark at the Universal City station. Plays in Honda Center, just north of Angel Stadium. Plays in Angel Stadium.No reviews yet! Be the first to add a review:
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