Alright, do not freak out. Take it from a WDW east coast veteran... there is NOTHING to freak out about over Disneyland. Actually, as a matter of fact, I find it the COMPLETE opposite. Disneyland is more quaint, laidback, and much more enjoyable with a "take it day by day" attitude. I've stayed off property there and on property and I much prefer the Disneyland hotels versus the GNHs. There is nothing wrong with them but I just prefer to be immersed in the "Disney magic" and the resorts at Disneyland really are beautiful.
In my experience, this will be my 4th trip there the end of this month, the best days REALLY are Monday-Thursday. We've always gone in June and the first trip I made the mistake of going on weekend days... big mistake. TOTALLY PACKED. Ever since we started going during the weekdays it's been great.
One of the biggest differences you should take advantage of is the mornings. On nearly EVERY trip we would feel like the park was pretty empty for about the first 2 hours of opening. We'd go on Indy, Buzz, Matterhorn, Space Mountain with hardly ANY waits at all. Around 10:30 am the people started pouring in but by that time we'd feel a little less anxious "to do everything."
The only things I would "plan" when going to Disneyland is if you have your heart set on a restaurant or a special experience (Like Fantasmic VIP) then call and make those... that's it. Seriously, everything else can be worked around with ease.
It's SO much more laidback than WDW.
