It’s June 5, 2025. The second showing of Paint the Night just ended. People are starting to leave the park, while I stand there, silent. I take in the scene before me. The lights on Main Street, the people walking past me, the sound of the music, the distinct Disneyland smell. I take it all in, take a deep breath, then walk out of the park.

June 5, 2025 was my last day at Disneyland before I moved back to the Philippines. I had been living in LA for four years, was a magic keyholder all four years, and spent exactly 85 days at Disneyland in those four years. Disneyland became my home, and when I realized that the move back to the Philippines would become inevitable, I started to dread what my last day at Disneyland would be like. And I had reason to dread it. I was leaving my happy place. And this had happened before.

In the Fall of 2017 I became a Disneyland Paris Annual Passholder while I was studying abroad in France. I went to the parks over there so frequently that they became my second home away from home. I remember seeing Disney Illuminations for the last time and just bawling my eyes out. I was inconsolable as I was leaving Disneyland Paris for the last time. And that was just after living in Paris for 5 months. What more leaving Disneyland after spending four years in Los Angeles? 

However, what surprised me was that, during my final moments in Disneyland, I wasn’t ugly crying. Sure, I still shed a tear or two, but I also had the largest grin on my face. I stared at the castle one final time, and I was filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude. Gratitude that I even got to move to LA in the first place. Gratitude that I spent so many countless hours at this magical place. Gratitude that I had a place that made saying goodbye so difficult. 

You see, Disneyland is its own kind of special. Quite frankly, there’s no other place on Earth quite like it. Now I know what you’re thinking, there are Disney Parks in Orlando, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and soon to be in Abu Dhabi. Shouldn’t they all be the same as Disneyland? Well, yes and no. In concept, yes, they are the same, but there’s something different about Disneyland. Something that makes it, dare I say, the greatest Disney theme park in the world.

Now I want to preface my explanation of that statement by saying that I’ve been to every Disney Park in the world. Yup, all 12 of them. And in my ranking of every Disney Park in the world, Tokyo DisneySea comes out on top. I still defend that yes, Tokyo DisneySea is the BEST Disney Park in the world. But there’s a difference, in my mind, between what is the best and what is the greatest. 

Now I’m not just going to sit here and prattle on about Disneyland being the greatest Disney Park and not give you an explanation or reasons behind why I think so. So I’m going to try and give you reasons as to why I think Disneyland is the greatest Disney Park of all time. 

First off: the attractions. Attractions are the lifeblood of theme parks, and Disneyland has got them in spades. Disneyland has the highest ride count among any Disney theme park in the world. Fantasyland alone has more rides than Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. Add in all the amazing entertainment too and you have a strong case for Disneyland having the best attraction lineup of any Disney Park. 

Attractions like Haunted Mansion, Rise of the Resistance, Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana Jones Adventure, It’s a Small World, Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Star Tours, The Matterhorn, Peter Pan’s Flight, the Jungle Cruise, and more have all not only become household names among Disney fans but have permeated pop culture. Their influence goes beyond the gates of Disneyland, and while you could argue that the other rides found in other Disney Parks are as great, if not better, than some of the rides at Disneyland, you can’t deny that Disneyland has the best collection of attractions among any Disney Park.

Secondly, it’s this impact beyond its gates that also makes Disneyland the greatest Disney Park of all time. Its basic concept has been recreated in 5 (soon to be 6) other cities worldwide, with Disney Parks being the most attended theme parks on the planet. Disneyland also gave rise to the modern theme park, and competitors like Universal Studios, Sea World, and Legoland all owe their success to Disneyland. Disneyland attractions have also been adapted into other media, such as the Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise. Disneyland’s influence on the world is unmatched in scale, and its legacy will forever be timeless.

Disneyland also benefits from being the park that comes closest to Walt’s original vision. Walt wanted Disneyland to be a living playground. A place where he could dream up new stories to tell and new ways to tell those stories. It was where he innovated, and those innovations have shaped and will continue to shape the theme park industry for the better for years to come. Many of those innovative Disneyland lands, rides, and attractions that he envisioned and oversaw are still around today, another testament to the timelessness of Disneyland. 

The final reason I think it’s the greatest Disney Park on earth is because it’s the original. It’s the only park Walt ever walked in, and that alone makes it the greatest Disney Park. I know, it’s probably not fair to the other parks to say this, but at the end of the day Disneyland has the legacy, the history, and the permanence because of its status as the original Magic Kingdom. Nothing can take that away from this place, and for that reason and more, Disneyland is the greatest Disney Park. 

Also, more than being just a theme park, Disneyland is a memory bank, with each corner of the park filled with all the fun and joy that millions of people have had over the decades. As I was contemplating my last visit to the park, I realized something. All the memories I’ve made, all the fun I’ve had, all the milestones I’ve celebrated, everything I’ve experienced in this place will always be with me.

I could give up my Magic Key and move halfway around the world, but nobody could ever take those memories away for me. And whenever I miss Disneyland, all I have to do is close my eyes and all the memories will come flooding back. It doesn’t beat being there, but it’ll do for now. That thought gave me a lot of comfort on my last night there, and it had me leaving the park with a smile on my face. 

I don’t know when my next visit to Disneyland will be. It’ll be a while until visit 86 comes around. But until then, I have all the memories with me, and I can’t wait to add more. 

Happy 70th Birthday, Disneyland! May you continue to bring happiness to millions the way you brought happiness to me.

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