Every Disney Park in the world has something different to offer and it is the dream of all Disney fans to visit all 5 parks (Paris, Los Angeles, Orlando, Tokyo and Sydney). We had the privilege of visiting both the Disneyland in Paris and that of California, and we have gathered in this post the major differences between the two.
Here are the 10 main differences we found …
The castles
As you drive along Main Street USA, the castle that ends the road will attract you to the enchantment that is part of the Disneyland experience. Obviously the castle differs in each of the 5 parks scattered around the world. The Disneyland California castle is the original Sleeping Beauty Castle, while Disneyland Paris offers us only a reproduction of the original Californian one.
The age
Compared to the original Disneyland California, Disneyland Paris is a child! Disneyland Paris opened April 12, 1992, a full 37 years after the original. Although there is this age difference, when you walk through the park in front of Grand Legacy At The Park, the maintenance of both is so excellent that it is as if they were of the same age.
Frequency
Most Disney Parks have a growing frequency every year – more and more people are traveling to the happiest place on earth. When we were in Paris in 2015, the park was not crowded. The longest wait was 30 minutes and we were able to enjoy every corner of the park. Disneyland Paris is the most visited attraction in all of France and Europe with millions of admirers going every year. In fact, in 2017, 15.6 million people have crossed its doors. By comparing both parks, Disneyland California has welcomed 16.2 million visitors. Ticket prices increase every year, but this does not prevent people from continuing to dream.
Ground
Disneyland Paris measures 126 acres compared to the 85 acres of Disneyland California. At Disneyland Paris, the park structure is so open that we could sense the difference in space as we traversed every attraction. They have extra space to create more atmosphere.
The house of ghosts
The attraction we experienced in both parks was the ghost house, Phantom Manor at Disneyland Paris and Haunted Mansion at Disneyland California. The structure of both is similar to a real handling: there are doors that cross, a fountain in a courtyard and various scattered skulls. Also inside, the game is absolutely identical in both parks.
The attractions
Naturally the attractions vary from Park to Park. Indiana Jones in Disneyland California consists of an indoor car ride, while the one at Disneyland Paris is an outdoor roller coaster. Most of the other rides were similar, from Peter Pan to it’s to Small World. Both parks have had new additions: Disneyland California has had Cars Land in California Adventure and Disneyland Paris has just added Ratatouille: The Adventure, where riders become mice running through the kitchen trying to avoid capture.
The Disney characters
The characters available were the same classic characters you would expect; however, at Disneyland California there were not many classic characters accessible for photos. Among the few we met there were Winnie The Pooh and Belle: at Disneyland Paris she wore a light blue apron and a basket, while in Disneyland California she wore the yellow dress of the scene with the Beast.
The employees
When you arrive at a Disney Park, you can take a look at employee tags and see them coming from all over the world! Most of the employees live here locally, but some travel from different countries to work in the Parks. At Disneyland Paris there are a multitude of different ethnic groups, while at Disneyland California 90% are all Californians.
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Projects
The goal of any company is to make the customer experience better through improvements and constructions. During the periods of renovation of the attractions, normally in Disneyland California are placed walls that block every view. Sure, you may have to walk around the huge area, but you cannot yet see or say exactly what’s going on inside. However, this is not the case with Disneyland Paris: part of the pirate ship of Pirates of the Caribbean had been rebuilt and the scaffolding was in plain sight. Also, many lights were off and instead of changing them without warning, there were black plastic bags around the street lamps.
Magic
There is a difference in the magic you hear in each of these parks. We’ve been to Disneyland Paris several times and we still hear the magic that makes Disneyland the happiest place on Earth. It was our first time in Disneyland California and we felt the joy and wonder that comes from the Disney experience, but there was something different. Perhaps because it is the same Walt Disney who helped create the original Californian Disneyland. While Disneyland Paris was built without the direct supervision of Walt Disney.
