Our family are pretty big Disneyland fans! We have been getting the Disney Annual passes for about 6+ years now. We have five kids, it’s a great place to get away to when entertaining children is a priority. It’s nice, because when we go to Anaheim, we usually will stop off at a beach, maybe do a Pirates or Knights dinner and at times, visit other theme parks in the area. I had gone about three times as a child, but as an adult, I can’t even count the amount of times that my family and I have gone.

I have one of those love hate relationships with Disneyland!!!! I miss it when I’m gone and want to plan my next trip the moment we’re on our way home from the mini vacation, but while we’re there, Ryan and I are like, “what were we thinking….it’s hot, packed, and people can be really rude!” Ryan and I have been returning customers for a very long time, to where we can say we have noticed huge changes within the parks over the years. STILL HUGE FANS, BUT…….. Disneyland is a money making business! They pack their parks to the limits of where it’s hard to get around while inside, the door greeters are not always the happiest, nor the friendliest, and the prices just keep sky rocketing, simply because they can.

But what do you do about this? I mean, of course a place of business is going to raise their prices, knowing that people are going to pay-it’s all a part of the business world! With that said, it’s wrong, they’re are many children who can’t and probably will never be able to experience this because they can’t afford it. On the other hand, if the prices weren’t as high as they are, can you imagine how much more of an impact it’d have on the crowds of people to get on rides or even into the park for that matter. It’s just one of those things, I guess….. As long as people continue to pay, they’re going to raise their prices; I am guilty of this, well until we are one of those families who can no longer afford it, that is. Then you have the greeters… I understand that they have long days and see thousands of people on a daily basis, some are kind customers, while others are rude and disrespectful, this can be daunting for the greeters. At the same time, it’s all apart of the job description. I can’t count how many times that we have gone to give them our cards to enter, and they treated us as if we were trying to sneak in and steal from them. Sadly, I get the whole point check area now, it’s for the safety of everyone, so sad that it has got to this point; but after waiting in that line and then getting into another line, just to have someone rudely escort us into the park, can be a little annoying. Disneyland is the most happiest place on Earth, right? The greeters should see themselves as the face of the park, I mean they are the first people that we see as we enter; they pretty much set the mood for the rest of the day. A smile can truly make your day, well, it can for me at least!

With all of my ranting out of the way, I truly am a fan of the parks still. I didn’t mean to come off as someone that discredits Disney for any reason, I wanted to share my experience and thoughts though, no place is flawless and I would be lying if I said I had zero complaints.

Disneyland and California Adventure has been a place for our family to escape to for many years now, and hopefully years to come. Although I mentioned how the prices jump up every year, it’s a place far enough to get away to on a mini vacation, but close enough for all of us to go as often as we do and still afford at this time. It’s not all about the parks, it’s the overall experience. The snacking, the restaurants, the goodies that we eat along the way, the nice Summer nights, the swimming and laying out in the Hotel’s pool….. The whole ambiance of the entire trip! I just love it all!!

So, Ryan and I have five kids, two teenagers a seven year old and two babies. It is nice for us now, because our two older ones can take their cell phones and explore a couple rides at a time, without leaving the park, and have fun without worrying about the rest of us keeping up with them. My seven year old is pretty much the one at this time that we have to cater to when it comes to riding the rides and he’s not very fond of the bigger rides yet, so the rides we get on, we can usually take the babies on as well. With all of that said, Ryan and I are pretty much free to walk around and enjoy the scenery, the parades, the characters with the little ones, and the little shops. I honestly love just hanging out in the parks, AND Downtown Disney, it simply just makes me happy.

Downtown Disney is always set up so beautifully and gives off this magical feeling. I swear, it’s almost as if they set off happy, invisible smoke into the air to make you feel this way. They have nice music playing, the greenery is always so perfectly trimmed, and the stores are so inviting. Sometimes they’ll have a band playing live music and allow people to dance and sing along. They recently added a couple new eateries and remodeled some of the existing ones, so if you have not visited in a few years, it’d be worth taking a trip to check it all out.

Disneyland has GROWN SOOOOO MUCH since I was a child. It’s insane how they are able to keep it all up and blows my mind on how they continue to expand the park with amount of land they’re working with. This last year, they had added the Star Wars area, which by the way, my family and I are huge fans, and it’s amazing! When I first entered this new addition to the park, I couldn’t believe how big it was, I was also so fascinated by how real it all looked; I felt like I was behind the scenes on one of the sets. They have a lot of neat things to do and see in the Star Wars section, but keep in mind that the lines tend to grow fast and quite a few of the restaurants need reservations.

California Adventure is my favorite park out of the two. I still adore Disneyland, they have all of the Classic movies and characters that I love and enjoy as to how California Adventure is more of the Pixar and newer films by Disney. Not that I am a huge drinker or anything, butttt, California Adventure serves alcohol that you can purchase and drink while you walk around and enjoy the park. Ryan and I tend to spend more time here; it’s nice because, depending on the mood or time, we’ll either grab a Starbucks coffee or a wine/beer and walk around while the kids will get on a ride or stop off and sneak a picture with one of the characters.

Although, I literally just covered a glimpse of the three areas within Disney: Disneyland, California Adventure, and Downtown Disney, I hope it was enough to give you an insight of what to expect. With the love and desire that my family and I have for Disney, I will have blogs and blogs more on details, suggestions, advice and experiences in the future; stay tuned!!!!