Disney World's 50th Anniversary Or Disneyland: Help Me Choose!
While many Disney fans will be flocking to Walt Disney World to be present for the 50th Anniversary Celebration, starting on October 1, 2021, we just returned from Disneyland, and encourage you to consider Disneyland instead. Now, don’t get it twisted, we love Disney World too, and it was the last big vacation we had before the p a n d e m I c alongside our Disney Fantasy cruise! However, if you are wanting to experience Disney this year, but you are concerned about crowds, long lines, the overall pace, and even the price, we think Disneyland is a great option! Quite honestly, one won’t go wrong with a Disney vacation! Nevertheless, here are some reasons that we find Disneyland to be the Happiest Place on Earth while Disney fans flock to the World’s Most Magical Celebration!
LESS CROWDED PARKS WITH SHORTER WAIT TIMES
Both Disney World and Disneyland require guests to register their tickets for the days that they will visit, so that is good to know in this age of social distancing due to a global p a n d e m i c. From what I understand, Disney World and Disneyland had pretty comparable crowds in the pre- p a n d e m i c world, which basically means that the busiest seasons at Disney World were also the busiest seasons at Disneyland, i.e. summer and holidays. However, in general, I encourage folks to travel in late August/early September when school is in session in many U.S. cities – but for us here in New York, many schools do not yet resume, so we take advantage of lower airfare and hotel prices. That timeframe tends to have good pricing on airfare and hotels, AND there are less crowds, which is exactly what we experienced at Disneyland this year.
During our 4-day August 22nd to 25th visits to Disneyland this year, there were no wait times for many rides, and for those with lines, the wait times were usually around 10-20 minutes long. The longest waits we had were around 45 minutes long, and that was for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and Splash Mountain, although that one seemed shorter than the posted 45-minute wait time. With this all said, I’m publishing this article in September 2021, so you may or may not have time to run to Disneyland right away, and that’s fine because the Disney World 50th Anniversary celebration starts in October 2021 and continues for 18 months thereafter, so you can look into planning a Disneyland trip for next year, during the same August timeframe we recommend. Additionally, planning a trip to Disneyland during the Disney World 50th Anniversary, even this Fall/Winter, will likely still be a better option if seeking less crowds and shorter waits for rides and attractions.
My thought is that, in general, Disney fans will be flocking to Disney World for 50th Anniversary festivities very soon and throughout the upcoming Fall/Winter season. While I understand that Disneyland’s Oogie Boogie Bash and Merriest Nights may lead to Disneyland crowds being more than I experienced in August, I also understand that Disney World’s Boo Bash, Food & Wine Festival, and Very Merriest events will also be taking place this year alongside the beginning 50th Anniversary festivities, so I think Disney World crowds will be larger than those at Disneyland this Fall/Winter season.
LAID BACK CALIFORNIA VIBE
Maybe it’s because Disneyland has 2 parks as opposed to Disney World’s 4 parks, but as a Disneyland guest who flew in from out of town, I did not feel as frazzled or stressed to try to do everything during a visit… the way that I can sometimes feel at Disney World. I am a huge planner, so that usually alleviates the anxiety and stress for me at Disney World anyway, but it can get there, especially if the visit is less than 5 days. That said, I can attest to the fact that getting in everything I wanted to at Disneyland was doable within 4 days. When I tell you the unmistakable “take your time” vibe was present throughout our entire visit, it was!
Although rides and attractions were planned out in advance of our trip, we experienced a “go with the flow” sort of day each day at Disneyland. I was ok with foregoing certain items I initially jotted down on our list in order to re-experience some rides over and over again, like Soarin’, which our family enjoyed 4 different times during our 2 days at Disney’s California Adventure and Space Mountain for which we had about a 5- to 10-minute wait each day at Disneyland Park.
BUDGETING
While Disney World and Disneyland ticket prices are comparable, and Disney World offers a wider range of on-property hotels and hotel prices, there are many amazingly affordable hotel options on South Harbor Boulevard right across from Disneyland or easily within walking distance. We easily walked from our Good Neighbor hotel to Disneyland each day. However, when planning our Disney World vacations, we always stay on property for the easiest, most reliable transportation between hotels and the parks. Although some Disney World Good Neighbor hotels offer shuttles to the park, in our opinion, those hotel options for Disney Worldwould require a rental car for us to have even close to the level of flexibility we had at Disneyland to go and come between the park and our hotel.
Therefore, going to Disney World, we usually feel like we either have to rent a car or stay on property at Disney World – which is honestly not a big deal for us, because I prefer to stay on property at Disney Worldand be immersed in the wonder of Disney – but it does have a significant impact on the overall vacation price. Our Disneyland vacation was our most affordable Disney vacation yet. Many Disneyland Good Neighbor hotels, including the one we stayed at, are amazingly convenient to the park – no car or shuttle necessary!
Although I highly recommend the snacks and food throughout Disneyland Resort, for those who prefer to spend less on food, you can also easily walk to and from IHOP, Denny’s, Panera Bread, and McDonald’s when at Disneyland or before and after your day at the parks. At Disney World, again, that access to other food options requires a drive.
LIMITED-TIME PHOTO-PASS+
A Great Deal We Enjoyed During Our August 2021 Disneyland Visit
One of the best deals in our entire Disneyland 2021 trip was the limited edition One-Day PhotoPass+ at $19.99. Yes, I purchased it each of the 4 days we were at Disneyland, and for us, it was absolutely worth it! As photo-lovers, we happily hopped in front of cameras pretty much each time we saw them during our 4 days at the Happiest Place on Earth! The deal includes ride photos too, as well as Disney Magic Shots and Animated Magic Shots! This $19.99 PhotoPass+ is a limited time offer, so if you or someone you know is going to Disneyland soon, I highly recommend hopping on the PhotoPass+ train! We definitely got our money’s worth and now have lots of Disneyland photo memories, which for us, is a win! At the time of this writing, a One-Day purchase of Disney World’s Memory Maker is $69, and it’s the equivalent service to Disneyland’s special $19.99 Photo Pass+.
With all this said, remember, any Disney vacation promises to be wonderfully magical! Weigh your options, make the best decision for you and your family, and have a fantastic time!
Leave a comment if this has been helpful to you or if you have questions regarding a Disneyland or Disney World vacation.