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[JKB]

Can someone help me relate the size of DL and DCA to the parks at WDW?

[HeatherD]

Much more intimate! (Hee! It's like saying a house is a "lovely cottage" which really means "small")

It's hard to describe it, since DL is laid out the same. It's mostly that the pathways are just a little smaller, so they get crowded a bit easier. But, it's also a little less walking. Not so much that you don't get tired, but still...

DCA is akin to DHS in size (IMO - however looking at the numbers below, that may be a misnomer). It has little offshoots, rather than spoke/wheel, and since it's theme is CA a lot of it is like the movie theme of DHS. Size-wise, again, it's more intimate.

According to Wikipedia:
DL - approx. 85 acres
DCA - 55 acres (can you imagine - it was built on DL's parking lot!)
MK - approx 107 acres (wiki didn't list, another source listed this)
DHS - 135 acres

[DopeyGirl]

The entire DL Resort property is built on about 220 acres of space . . . while the entire WDW property takes up about 43 square MILES (roughly 27,400 acres)

Compared to the WDW parks, the DL parks are pretty small . . . er . . . cozy.

[chezp]

I think the descriptions so far are good ones. I didn't really notice how small the parks themselves were - I noticed how small everything is outside the parks. It's all within walking distance, which is very different to Disney!

[Meggera]

Originally Posted by chezp

I noticed how small everything is outside the parks. It's all within walking distance, which is very different to Disney!

Agreed. And, I rather liked it. It was nice being able to stay off-site and walk to the parks.

[tigersprinkles]

so how many rides does dl have and how many does wdw have

[HeatherD]

Are you trying to compare the whole resort WDW to DL or do you mean comparing Magic Kingdom to DL? They are quite comparable in terms of rides (both what rides they have and number of rides). But you can't compare WDW to DLR, because WDW has 4 parks, 2 water parks and a larger DTD. DLR is 2 parks and an intimate DTD.

It's a bit too much to list, but if you go to Disney.com, click on travel, you can visit both WDW and DLR. From there, you can see the lists of rides. I'm also sure Wiki has info or you could find it by Googling something like "# of rides at Disneyland"

[Two4Disney]

WDW is all about the whole 47 square mile property experience with more theme parks, more resorts, more activities including golf courses, lakes, water parks, mini-golf courses, etc. It IS a whole "world."

But Disneyland Park, itself, while having narrower pathways, really has more to offer than the MK at WDW.

Good advice about going to an online site for a direct comparison. Or check out my article about Disneyland vs. WDW on my blog (link in my sig line). Go to "articles."

[LauraBelle V. Hime]

Explore this overview map and maybe it will help to give you a better idea.

Disneyland Resort | Maps

[Dave Marx]

Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom has 44 attractions, based on the way we count them here at PassPorter. Epcot has 34 (but that doesn't the many small attractions/exhibits inside larger pavilions). Disney's Hollywood Studios has 19 at the moment (20 when the new American Idol attraction opens). Disney's Animal Kingdom has 18.

Disneyland park has 54 attractions by our count. Disney's California Adventure has 31 attractions.

Some of this count-by-numbers isn't really fair, because you have to consider things like the length of the attractions. Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Studios (especially) have many attractions that last 20-40 minutes, while the Magic Kingdom parks on both coasts and DCA have far fewer attractions of that length.

I haven't included the parades, fireworks, Fantasmic!, IllumiNations, character meet locations, and the other live entertainment that happens out in the park's open spaces (like the shows in front of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty castles). This is, in part, because some of them are not on a constant schedule, and also because one of our criteria is that attractions generally require a queue.

[JKB]

Thanks to everyone for the info! This will be our first trip to DL and our time will be limited. I know how much time I need to cover the MK at WDW and was trying to find out if I could cover DL in the same amount of time. Thanks again for the good advise!

[Caldercup]

Originally Posted by DopeyGirl

The entire DL Resort property is built on about 220 acres of space . . . while the entire WDW property takes up about 43 square MILES (roughly 27,400 acres)

Compared to the WDW parks, the DL parks are pretty small . . . er . . . cozy.

Excellent response, Sarah!

It's a matter of scale -- with Disneyland being more intimate and Disney World being able to "stretch out its arms" and add more space between attractions, have bigger buildings, more eye candy, wider walkways, additional shops, street performers, cast members, restaurants, etc.

There's an interesting article by Lou Mongello HERE that explains the following:

"Actually, most people don't realize how much land WDW actually encompasses. In fact, it's about about 80 times the size of the entire nation of Monaco, twice the size of Manhattan, and the same size as San Francisco, California! So when you say WDW is huge, you ain't kidding!

The Walt Disney World Resort is made up of 47 square miles of land.... or about 30,000 acres. Only about 1100 acres of that land is devoted to the 4 theme parks. In fact, with only 7,100 acres developed, there's quite a lot of room for expansion!"

Another interesting place to wander around is HERE for a good breakdown of what is different between the two Resorts.

I believe Walt said it best when introducing Disney World -- unlike Disneyland, the acreage they purchased gave them the luxury of size.
Eileen

PS - Disney doesn't generally provide numbers like these, so looking at Disney's websites probably won't give you a good idea. Rather, I'd suggest reading both the PassPorter Guides for WDW and DLR for a much better understanding of the two Resorts.

[tigersprinkles]

Originally Posted by Caldercup

Excellent response, Sarah!

It's a matter of scale -- with Disneyland being more intimate and Disney World being able to "stretch out its arms" and add more space between attractions, have bigger buildings, more eye candy, wider walkways, additional shops, street performers, cast members, restaurants, etc.


There's an interesting article by Lou Mongello HERE that explains the following:

"Actually, most people don't realize how much land WDW actually encompasses. In fact, it's about about 80 times the size of the entire nation of Monaco, twice the size of Manhattan, and the same size as San Francisco, California! So when you say WDW is huge, you ain't kidding!

The Walt Disney World Resort is made up of 47 square miles of land.... or about 30,000 acres. Only about 1100 acres of that land is devoted to the 4 theme parks. In fact, with only 7,100 acres developed, there's quite a lot of room for expansion!"

Another interesting place to wander around is HERE for a good breakdown of what is different between the two Resorts.

I believe Walt said it best when introducing Disney World -- unlike Disneyland, the acreage they purchased gave them the luxury of size.
Eileen

PS - Disney doesn't generally provide numbers like these, so looking at Disney's websites probably won't give you a good idea. Rather, I'd suggest reading both the PassPorter Guides for WDW and DLR for a much better understanding of the two Resorts.

thats why i asked