ABOUT DISNEYLAND RESORT
The Disneyland Resort consists of 2 theme parks (Disneyland and California Adventure) and a shopping district (Downtown Disney).
Disneyland opened on 17th July 1955 in a grand celebration that was televised on TV. Walt Disney himself was there to see his dream come true. Disneyland boasts being the original park and the only park that Walt himself has visited...he would even stay here overnight and had an apartment above the fire station.
California Adventure opened in 2001 and was based on California, it has since gone through an overhaul and the opening land is now based on Hollywood at the time Walt would have moved there.
Unlike Walt Disney World which has an assortment of hotels, Disneyland only consists of 3. This makes the choice of what Disney hotel to stay at relatively easier as less options, but it can still be a hard choice. However, you do not need to stay at a Disney Hotel as there are plenty of options near by (although Allie is of the firm belief that her money is Disney's money LOL).
Restaurants at Disneyland, similar to Walt Disney World, consist of both table service and quick service. However, the table services at Disney are not as cutthroat to get and can only be booked up to 60 days in advance.
ABOUT WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT
Walt Disney World Resort consists of 4 theme parks (Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom), 2 water parks (Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon), and a downtown shopping district (Disney Springs). The resort also has a variety of Disney owned hotels you may choose to stay at that come with a slew of perks and table service restaurants.
There are 2 types of restaurant services at Walt Disney World:
Table service which is a sit-down meal that requires a reservation (or in Disney speak an Advanced Dining Reservation aka ADR). These can be booked 180 days in advance and the popular restaurants do hit capacity so be sure to book ASAP. At table service restaurants you check in at a podium and then wait til your name is called. You are then shown to your table and a the waiter/waitress will come over to you and bring you your meal when ready (don't forget to tip as is custom in the USA),and
Quick service (no bookings necessary although it can be quite crowded) where you line up and order at a kiosk. You will then wait for your food that will come on a tray, think McDonalds and KFC (no tipping necessary).
Quick service (no bookings necessary although it can be quite crowded) where you line up and order at a kiosk. You will then wait for your food that will come on a tray, think McDonalds and KFC (no tipping necessary).
What is Fastpass?
Fastpass is a free service offered throughout Disneyland resort and Walt Disney World resort. It is available on select attractions and basically allows you to skip the majority of an attraction queue. The fastpass allows a 1 hour window to return and use. The system works differently on both coasts.
For Disneyland resort, you insert your ticket into a machine located next to the ride queue and it will return your ticket along with a slip that says your allocated time to use. You are not able to obtain another fastpass until the time on your slip advises. Disneyland resort also offers a Maxpass which is at an additional cost (about $13usd per day/per ticket) and is used with your smart phone device, by logging into your Disneyland account and selecting a fastpass. This is a faster way of getting fastpasses as you do not have to physically walk to the ride to receive a fastpass, as well as being able to book your next fastpass while still in the short line for the fastpass you just used.
Fastpass is a free service offered throughout Disneyland resort and Walt Disney World resort. It is available on select attractions and basically allows you to skip the majority of an attraction queue. The fastpass allows a 1 hour window to return and use. The system works differently on both coasts.
For Disneyland resort, you insert your ticket into a machine located next to the ride queue and it will return your ticket along with a slip that says your allocated time to use. You are not able to obtain another fastpass until the time on your slip advises. Disneyland resort also offers a Maxpass which is at an additional cost (about $13usd per day/per ticket) and is used with your smart phone device, by logging into your Disneyland account and selecting a fastpass. This is a faster way of getting fastpasses as you do not have to physically walk to the ride to receive a fastpass, as well as being able to book your next fastpass while still in the short line for the fastpass you just used.
At Walt Disney World they utiilise a system called Fastpass Plus. This requires more planning on behalf of the guest (Disney speak for a visitor/customer) as you need to know in advance what park you will be at on a certain day. You are required to log in online prior to your vacation (up to 30 days prior, or 60 days if staying at a Walt Disney World resort hotel) and are able to select up to 3 fastpasses for a particular day, but they must all be at the same park. You must have your tickets linked to your account in order to do this. On the actual day, you are able to swap and change fastpasses if you so desire. You may add more fastpasses after the first 3 have been used.
