Okay, after finishing it I can safely say...
-train travel was just as boring as boat travel, but it at least lost treasure salvage nonsense
-dungeons/puzzles were a HUGE improvement over PH
-double tap rolling >>>>>>>>> circle draw rolling
-more challenging bosses than PH
-better side missions/content than PH
...overall it's a much better game than PH, but still not the best DS could deliver imo and worse generally than the rest of the series due to the gimped overworld. I really, really want a DS Zelda with a full, lush overworld to explore ON FOOT.