Part 2 of my Letter to my Niece and Nephew Who Don't Want to Go toDisneyland

One of the things I enjoyed doing at Disneyland was taking the Walk in Walt's Footsteps Tour. The tour took us all over the Magic Kingdom and covered the historical background of the park (and let us see the inside of Club 33 and Walt's apartment!) It really brought home the fact that while Disney World was completed by Roy Disney, Disneyland was WALT's park. I even had my photo taken like a dork in the exact same spot that Walt had his taken under the castle to commemorate my visit. I would encourage you to take one of the Disneyland tours that are offered, but most importantly, to be appreciative of the place Disneyland holds in Disney history. It's where it all started, y'all.

Taking a walk in Walt's footsteps

Storybook Land Canal Boats

On my first visit to the park, I wanted to experience everything that Disneyland had that was DIFFERENT from Disney World. I circled all of the unfamiliar attractions on my map (I really did. I actually brought a Sharpie with me for just that purpose) and made a plan to get around to all of them, taking a photo of each. I started in Fantasyland, rode the boats at Story Book Land, considered the Matterhorn Bob Sleds (but ruled them out when a new acquaintance told me they "wrenched her neck"), was the only single adult in line for Alice in Wonderland and Pinocchio, and then headed to Tomorrowland where I rode the monorail around the park and chatted with the monorail conductor, who let me sit in the front. I asked her what was different about the monorail in each park, and she said that at Disneyland, it was an attraction, while at Disney World, it was considered transportation. She also pointed out that you can't sit in the front cab of the monorail at Disney World any more!

As I walked around and visited each of the lands, I learned that there are two extra lands (New Orleans Square and Critter Country) at Disneyland, and that some of the attractions that were also at Disney World are in different lands at Disneyland. Walt Disney must have loved New Orleans, because it's a huge section of Disneyland and it's where his apartment and Club 33 are located. It's where Haunted Mansion is located! In fact, we found out on the tour that the Haunted Mansion is located in a different land in every single Disney park (there are many fun factoids like this to be learned in abundance on those tours). I could go on and on about the unique Disneyland attractions, but suffice it to say that there is plenty to see and do that is different from Disney World, including an Indiana Jones ride that is probably one of my favorite rides ever anywhere.

My mission on my next trip to Disneyland, of course, was to compare the things that were the same at both parks. The biggest similarity is that there is a castle in the middle of both Magic Kingdoms. The biggest difference between the two parks is also the castles. You will have yourself a good laugh when you first see Sleeping Beauty Castle, and you might even find yourself saying things like, "Where IS the castle, I can't see it," and "WHAT castle?" It's that small. But after a very short while, it will seem as magical to you as Cinderella Castle. The characters and the parades are all the same. You can still go up to Minnie and kiss her and she will cover her face in embarrassment. And there are fireworks at the end of the day that are very similar to the Wishes fireworks with a little additional bit of magic that is so magical your mom will cry big elephant tears when she sees it, and I'm getting a little choked up just thinking about it. Have camera ready. And do not google "Difference between WDW and DL fireworks." Spoilers abound. Be surprised. At least let your mom be surprised.

Haunted Mansion

One thing I found out about the attractions that were the same in both parks is that they are NOT the same! Haunted Mansion was probably the most similar inside to its WDW counterpart, but the outside was a southern mansion. Pirates was a longer ride with more details up front, Small World was also longer and had a way-cool clock that came to life with the little dolls on the hour, and Winnie-the-Pooh's ride was actually located in a real-life woods, not a concrete jungle. Even the teacups had a completely different venue (outside under a canopy of vines and twinkly lights). The great thing about this was that they were similar enough to feel familiar and traditional, but just different enough to feel like a new experience!

Mad Tea Party

It's a Small World