BillE271

2 adults & 2 boys (18 & 14 yrs) have 1 day in Anaheim. We'll be going in early August.
Leaving SD in the morning & returning that nite. Can we do both parks? Should we go mid week? PS. We have been to Disney World 2x & loved it. I'm used to traffic on Long Island , so 2 hrs in the car is normal. Thanks for your replies. Bill

rjw_lgb_ca

The parks are adjacent. I suppose you could do both in a day. I think it makes sense to start with CA Adventure, since it will be the "new" experience for you. Disneyland should be seen, of course, but if you've already been to WDW, the original park will probably seem familiar and somewhat quaint. Locals find CA Adventure fine for one visit, but no one seems to be compelled to return. I thought it was fine for what it was, but I'm not a theme park person.

Of course, I love Disneyland. But the first time I went, I was stoned. And had a wonderful time. Subsequent times, I've been sober and with great groups of friends and family, so it's been quite enjoyable.

Froggy

I like both parks but California Adventure is somewhat more adult but there are thrill rides for your boys to enjoy.If you have already been to the Disney World I would suggest California Adventure for something different. I really don't think 2 parks in one day would give you enought time to enjoy them. I also would suggest you go later on in the week, such as a Wednesday or a Thursday since people tend to arrive on Fridays and leave on Tuesdays for a long weekend. The park does give a pass for both parks ,at least they did last month, not sure if they still do. It would take you about 1 and a half to 2 hours depending on traffic . The 5 freeway tends to bottleneck around Mission Viejo,California.

ellen_griswold

I agree with the others. We also had been to WDW & Disneyland so just did CA Adventure the year it opened. And we all loved it! So much in fact, that its part of our wildwest adventure next month. For the age of your boys, it would probably be best if you can only choose one.

That said, DisneyLAND is still very special, IMHO. While theres much less compared to the Magic Kingdom at WDW, it still has all the magic. But then we're big fans of wallyworld!!

You'll have a GREAT time either way!

Chele60

For the age of the boys involved, I would say do CA Adventures. I personally prefer D-land, but if you've done the WDW thing, it's going to be very similar. And CA Adventures has more rides that will appeal to teens.

I doubt you could do both parks the same, unless you pay for separate tickets. I might have that confused, but I believe you would have to pay for two days to get the park hopper ticket - or stay at a Disney property.

If you don't mind a late night drive back, you might stay and check out the parade. It probably has more appeal to younger audiences, but the fireworks at the end are really good.

Mid week is best, though summer is busy anyway. Tuesday - Thursday would probably be the best days to go.

Alice

I think you can do both actually. I'm sure Disney has some sort of two park ticket. It really depends on what your boys like to do though. (I think CA adventure might disappoint if they are expecting tons of rides - really there aren't that many). When I was a teenager we always liked Disneyland the best at night. It makes all of the rides more fun somehow. And when we did CA adventure a few months ago we went on all of the rides and saw a few of the exhibits and were done, no problem by 2 or 3. I know Disney has late hours during summer so I'd go for it.

Dreamer2

Hi there!
Does anybody know if an unused day from a "World Passport" ticket from DisneyWorld, Florida can be used for admission to Calif Adventure?
Thanks for any leads!

Patrick

We did California Adventure arriving about opening time. By just after lunch we had done about everything we wanted to do, but were planning to stay for the electrical parade that night, so actually just started re-doing attractions to kill time, just as Alice suggests. We could easily have done both parks. Of course, you wouldn't get to do everything in Magic Kingdom, but I don't think the boys would want to.

Can't answer about your Disney World tickets, but I'd be surprised if they'd accept them at Disneyland. But I do know they offered a two park pass for the day.

carbogilligan

We just returned from a two day visit to DL and CA Adventure. We used a 2 day pass for CA residents which allowed us to visit one park one day, the second park the next day. It was not a park hopper that allowed you to go back and forth. We loved CA Adventure. I think your sons will love it too. So many new things to do! I would go to Disboards.com and click on Disneyland for discussions on CA adventure. Its awesome! DL is good but many of the action rides are currently closed. I would spend an entire day at CA adventure. The boardwalk is awesome!