Downtown Disney is a dining, shopping, and entertainment complex that connects the Disney themeparks and the Disney Hotels. You do not have to go into a themepark or being staying at the resort to experience Downtown Disney. It has its own parking area (the old Pinocchio Lot). There is also Valet parking available. For self parking the first 3 hours are free, and if you eat at Downtown Disney you get an additional 2 hours free. After that you have to pay.

Shopping: Shopping at Downtown Disney will be an experience in itself. Whether it is looking through the largest Disney Store on the West Coast, or playing in the Lego Imagination Center.

Dining: Dining will be one of the main reasons you want to visit Downtown Disney. Since Disneyland has a very limited selection of sit-down dining options you will want to experience Downtown Disney for a good lunch or dinner.

Entertainment: For those of you wanting a different experience at night, or locals looking for something to do. Downtown Disney will offer a variety of night time entertainment ranging from the latest movies to musical performances at the House of Blues.

After walking Downtown Disney and experiencing it I give it two thumbs up. The environment Disney has created is really well done. There are a minimum of external distractions when walking down the avenue, and the landscaping and detail are incredible. You really get a sense that Downtown Disney is larger than it is, in terms of scope and size, but at the same time you do not realize how far you have actually traveled. For those of you who have visited Disneyland before, the Disneyland hotel and monorail stop have not moved, but yet they seem much closer to Disneyland now. Before it seemed like a fairly long hike or tram ride over to the hotel, and now it seems much more managable.

We were also quite impressed by the number of cast members and Disney security present as we walked around. They are really trying to make it a clean, safe environmnet.

Comparisons: For those of you who have visited the Downtown Disney in WDW this will be a much smaller scale, but similar concept place, think the West Side plus a World of Disney store but add in a lot more landscaping and fountains. It is more closely aligned with the scale of Universal's Citywalk (the Los Angeles version), but once again add in a lot more landscaping and fountains. I have heard descriptions of this being a "yuppified Citywalk". This could work. It does have that older(more costly) feel to it and there appeared to be a lot less teenagers than other Orange County night spots (the Spectrum & the Block at Orange).

• Opened January 12, 2001