The Disneyland Campus consists of three separate parts: 1) Disneyland ( born 1955 ), 2) Disneyland California Adventure and 3) Downtown Disney ( born 2001 ). There is no entrance fee for Downtown Disney - it's exclusively an outdoor Disney themed mall. There is a separate fee for Disney California Adventure, and in order to "Park Hop" you have to pay a higher price to visit both parks -- but...hey, it was my birthday! So we splurged and park-hopped!
The second park, California Adventure has a checkered past. It was not immediately successful, and there's been several renovations, with new rides and campuses added to generate more interest. Last Friday they opened a brand new section in DCA - "the Avengers Campus" based on the Marvel movies which Disney owns.
We were excited to visit the new campus, but so was everyone else! There was a 2 - 3 hour wait to just ENTER the area where the campus was located. Robert and I are not line waiters, so we skipped that this time!
The one other post pandemic issue was a surprise to us! Disneyland has gone completely digital. The only time that you don't need to be on your phone...is when you are on a ride! You have to get in virtual queues for rides, you have read menus, and mobile order for all food, you need to check wait times so you don't end up in a line that is hours long...I don't know. I didn't really enjoy that too much. We even had to buy a new battery for my phone because it ran out of juice!
I think things will improve after pandemic restrictions ease. But right now, lines were long (rides were only at 1/4th capacity) and food choices were very limited. But Mickey and Minnie were there, and It's a Small World was just as delightful as it was the very first time.
For me, Disneyland will always be magical.