I suspect better is subjective, but I think you are right - with the exception of the castle, which looks rather wimpy in comparison. Disneyland has more stuff in a smaller space. Its more charming (IMHO). The paths are more confusing, but I’m a long time MK guest. They still have the OLD tiki birds.
The best part of Disneyland for the normal MK guest (and I suspect it works the same way in reverse) is its so much alike and yet so different - “hey what are the Tiki birds doing on that side of the road?” “If I turn here I will get to…whoa - what is that” - its like stepping through the looking glass.
As to WDW parks - it really is a “to each his own” thing. We like Epcot best as well, and I think Epcot (and Animal Kingdom) appeal most to “learners” - people who like to soak in information and details (even if they are some fantasy of what Germany looks like in miniature). DHS and MK appeal more to “enjoyers” - people who want to be entertained and not think about the details. To me MK really hits the sentimentalists. Sometime I can indulge in for a morning or so, but I’m not one to wallow.
What I would do is start getting everyone’s priorities for what they want to do. That will mean everyone who is old enough to have an opinion will need to do a little research. The can use a guidebook, spend a day in a library, use Disney’s web site, or any one of a dozen other web sites.
You aren’t going to get everything done. And you don’t want to discover by watching TV in your room on your third day that you can swim with sharks at Typhoon Lagoon, think that’s the coolest thing ever, but miss out because you haven’t gotten to the MK yet. (By the way, I don’t like the ‘put off the MK until last’ plan - if you end up with a downpour, or its really crowded, or someone gets sick, you’ll miss out on the thing you brought the kids for. Get it done first - and if you have hoppers, if you discover the other parks are not to your taste, you can go back. When our kids were little we spent several mornings in MK each trip (three or so), and afternoons in Epcot or DHS - with one morning in AK. We like Epcot, and with the kids in strollers, we’d just wander through, letting the kids take it easy.
The other thing is that a lot of people will arrive with no idea what they want to do. So they work the park, following the crowds, and end up spending at lot of time doing attractions that they would have put on a “maybe” list because its there. They end up running out of time and have a hour long wait for Dumbo. You have to do two things - manage the amount of time you wait in line by understanding the lines and fastpass system (Len has made his career here, but with little kids, there is one sentence to remember - get there when gates open, Dumbo first, then Peter Pan, then Pooh - then you can do whatever you want.), and don’t spend time doing things that aren’t priorities for your group until you’ve decided “we are done with all the have tos…you know, Hall of Presidents has always been sort of vaguely interesting to me.”
The only feature ride that Disneyland has that the Magic Kingdom doesn’t is Indiana Jones Adventure. As far as Disneyland being “better”, I think we can agree that this is a subject for another thread.
I didn’t know they’d put another park by Disneyland, though.
For the record, Epcot is also my favorite park, other than DisneyQuest, but only because of the unbeatable entertainment that is Drinking Around The World* during the International Food and Wine Festival**.
*this is not an official event, but it’s the only reason locals go to Epcot. You’re going to throw up if you go there anyway, thanks to Mission: Space, so you might as well be drunk.
**this
, and falls in October, which is the best time to be at Disney.
ETA: Dangerosa makes an excellent point: you can do almost anything you want to between 8 am and about 10:30 am. After that, the crowds show up, and your 10 minute waits become an hour. I can’t stress enough how much more pleasant it is to be in the parks in the morning (not least because it isn’t as hot), even if you’re (like me) not a morning person.