Dana Bisbee
I was fortunate enough to work at both Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California.
In the spring of 2015, I did my first Disney College Program selling glow toys at Magic Kingdom in Disney World. By the fall of 2016, I decided to do another program at Disneyland, where I worked at the Emporium and Candy Palace on Main Street.
I still try to visit both parks as often as I can, but they're so different.
Dana Bisbee
I think the biggest difference between Disney World and Disneyland is the size of the parks.
Disney World is massive, covering over 40 square miles of land with four theme parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom. It's really like a city of its own
Disneyland, on the other hand, is just over 500 acres (less than one square mile) and has two parks: Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure.
To put the size difference into perspective, if you want to park-hop at Disney World, you're going to need some mode of transportation (Disney buses, the monorail, cars, etc.). But at Disneyland, you just need to walk out the front gate and head straight into the other park.
Dana Bisbee
Disneyland only has three resorts: Disneyland Hotel, Grand Californian, and Paradise Pier. All three are in the "deluxe" category with an average rate of $450 a night.
But Disney World has over 25 resorts broken down into five price tiers: deluxe villas, deluxe resort hotels, moderate resort hotels, value resort hotels, and campsites.
The "deluxe villas," like Polynesian Villas & Bungalows and Animal Kingdom Villas at Kidani Village, go for about $500 to $1,000 a night.
Rooms at the eight "deluxe resort hotels," including Contemporary Resort, Grand Floridian, and Yacht Club, usually cost around $600 a night.
The five "moderate resort hotels," including Port Orleans, Caribbean Beach Resort, and Coronado Springs, fall in the middle, with an average room rate of $350 a night.
Then there are the five "value resort hotels," which are the most budget-friendly option. Rooms at properties like the All-Star Resorts, Art of Animation, and Pop Century cost about $185 a night.
The final tier includes the campsites at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort, which typically cost $100 a night.
The two Disney-owned water parks are at Disney World.
Blizzard Beach is built around the tale that a one-time ski resort melted and turned into a water park. Summit Plummet, a 12-story vertical body slide, is a highlight there.
The second water park, Typhoon Lagoon, is themed around the idea that a massive storm hit the area, creating a tropical oasis.
It's home to the largest wave pool in North America and a one-of-a-kind water coaster called Crush 'N' Gusher.
Dana Bisbee
If you're a runner, runDisney races are so much fun.
Once upon a time, they were offered at both Disney World and Disneyland, but they've been discontinued in California due to construction projects at the resort.
Disney World hosts four themed events every year: Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, Princess Half Marathon Weekend, Springtime Surprise, and Wine & Dine Half Marathon Weekend. There are various races over the course of the weekends, including 5Ks, 10Ks, half-marathons, and marathons.
These events start early in the morning, and you get to run through the Florida parks and see some fun characters along the way.
Dana Bisbee
The Disney College Program is an internship program that lets college students and recent grads live and work at Disney for up to a year.
If you see an employee with a school instead of a hometown on their name tag, they're likely working with the Disney College Program.
Before the coronavirus pandemic, the program was offered at both Disney World and Disneyland. But there were always significantly more spots at the Florida property.
The program returned to Disney World in 2021, but it has yet to return to Disneyland.
Before Disney acquired Marvel in 2009, Universal Orlando purchased the theme-park rights for certain Avengers characters. Because of this, Disney can't feature those characters, including Spider-Man and Captain America, in any parks east of the Mississippi River.
But the characters are fair game on the West Coast at Disneyland, so in 2021, Avengers Campus opened at Disney's California Adventure.
The land has two rides, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout, which took the place of Tower of Terror in 2017, and Web Slingers: A Spider-Man Adventure, a new interactive game-like attraction.
Avengers Campus also has some unusual-sized treats at Pym's Test Kitchen and characters roaming the land.
Dana Bisbee
If you're an avid Disneyland goer, you know churros are a delicacy — there's a cart in every land. Plus, in addition to the regular variety, there are seasonal flavors offered throughout the park.
At Disney World, the churros do not compare. They aren't as widely available, and taste-wise they're just not the same.
Dana Bisbee
Walt Disney died in 1966, five years before Magic Kingdom opened at Disney World. But he spent a great deal of his time, especially his later years, at Disneyland.
When you're at Disneyland, you can certainly feel all the personal touches, especially throughout Main Street, which was modeled after Walt's childhood hometown of Marceline, Missouri.
Walt even had his own private apartment built at Disneyland above the firehouse on Main Street.
There's a lamp in the window, and anytime it was lit, the employees and guests knew Walt was around. The lamp usually stays lit today in his honor.
