We are a Disney World family. But on this Southern California Disneyland trip, we finally admitted there’s another couple of parks across the country, one of which is the O.G.
We went to Southern California the last week of July for our son’s wedding — Disneyland and the coast were what we built around it. After 25+ years of Disney World trips, this was our first time at Disneyland, and the differences surprised us more than we expected. We stayed in a DVC studio at the Villas at Disneyland Hotel (there’s a charge nobody warns you about). And somewhere between wedding prep, we squeezed in two days along the coast and in Los Angeles proper that had no business working as well as they did.
Southern California Disneyland trip reports
Disneyland vs. Disney World — 12 Huge Differences After decades as a Disney World family, our first Disneyland trip meant relearning the rides, the layout, and the whole rhythm of the parks. Here’s everything that surprised us, ranked. → Read the Comparison
The Villas at Disneyland Hotel — A DVC Studio Review A full walkthrough of our Deluxe Studio, the walk to the parks compared to Grand Californian and Pixar Place, and the Downtown Disney spending recap that got a little out of hand. → Read the Review
2 Great Days on the LA Coast — La Brea Tar Pits, Pier & Donuts Huntington Beach Pier, the World Famous Shrimp Tray at San Pedro Fish Market, a “closed” museum that’s still worth visiting, and the best doughnut of Jay’s life at the Original Farmers Market. → Read the Full Day
The Backstory
We’ve been a Disney World family for decades — DVC ownership, annual trips, more park visits than we can reasonably count. Disneyland and Disney California Adventure were the U.S. parks we hadn’t gotten to. When Scott and Veronica set their wedding in Southern California, that finally changed.
Then there’s the non-Disney bits of Southern California. Jay had only ever been to Los Angeles / Pasadena on business and Rona hadn’t visited since she was a teenager. With Rachel able to get the time off, the idea surfaced for us to see more of the Golden State — at least this part of it.
What’s Next
Don’t forget to subscribe to be notified when new trip reports go live — we’ve got Virgin Voyages, a return to Hilton Head, and more cruising ahead.