Disneyland California vs Walt Disney World
Size, rides, tickets, crowds and weather. Which Disney trip is right for a UK family.
British families mostly go to Florida, and most have never considered California. Having done both, here is an honest comparison for anyone deciding.
Size and scale
Walt Disney World is four theme parks, two water parks and twenty-five hotels across an area the size of a city. Disneyland Resort is two parks facing each other across a plaza, three hotels and a shopping street. You can walk the whole of Disneyland in a day; you cannot walk from one Florida park to another.
The parks
Disneyland Park is the original, and it shows in the best way: tighter, more charming, denser with attractions. It has rides Florida does not: Indiana Jones Adventure, Matterhorn, Mr Toad, the Alice dark ride, and its own Galaxy's Edge. Disney California Adventure has Cars Land, which is the best themed land Disney has built anywhere, plus Avengers Campus, Pixar Pier and the Incredicoaster. Florida has more of everything, including EPCOT and Animal Kingdom, which have no California equivalent.
Tickets
Florida's UK-exclusive 14-day ticket is unmatched value. California tickets are sold per day, dated, priced by season, and there is no UK-only deal. A three-day Park Hopper for California costs roughly what seven days cost in Florida. For a Disney-focused fortnight, Florida wins on price. For a two or three-day Disney stop within a wider trip, California is the right size.
Crowds and weather
Disneyland has far more local annual passholders, so weekends are busy year-round. Weekdays in term time are quieter than Florida ever is. The weather is drier, cooler and kinder; there are no daily summer thunderstorms and no humidity.
The trip around it
Florida is Orlando: Universal, SeaWorld, Kennedy, the Gulf beaches. California is Los Angeles, Universal Hollywood, San Diego, the Pacific coast, and if you are ambitious, San Francisco. That is a different kind of holiday.
Our verdict
First Disney trip with children: Florida, for the tickets and the sheer amount to do. Second or third trip, or adults who like Disney history and want a road trip: California, and you will find yourself preferring the original park.
