5 year anniversary trip to Anaheim -- Knott's and DL! Lots of pics! (completed!)

[BenA81]

DW and I made a couples only trip to Southern California for our 5 year anniversary back in May. My wonderful in-laws watched our kids for 5 days :woohoo: We did one day at Knotts and a day at Disneyland. Then the rest of our trip was spent relaxing at the beach.

Here we are:

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Day 1 - Knott's (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33583717&postcount=2)
Day 1 - Dinner at Napa Rose (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33583958&postcount=3)
Day 2 - Disneyland! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33587669&postcount=4)
Day 3 - Downtown Disney (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33587905&postcount=5)

[BenA81]

We checked in really late the night before to Knott's hotel. It was a really nice hotel, we booked a romantic package that included theme park tickets and champagne...

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Had about a half a glass then just crashed (I was three hours off here, being from the east coast!)

We started day 1 early at Knott's, we could not have asked for better weather.

As we were leaving, we met up with Snoopy!

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Here I am waiting to get in, lemme in!!!

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After we got in we headed straight to the lockers (exciting, right?) then over to Ghostrider...

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This ride kicked our butts. I showed my age when I limped off this one... :eek:

We did some more rides and explored the themed areas.

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I was a little sad to walk by the kiddie rides and not have our DD3 to take on them, but I'll be able to soon enough (see signature :thumbsup2). For a break we ate at the Knott's hotel restaurant which was included in our package. Otherwise we would have eaten at Mrs. Knott's Chicken.

some more pics...

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here's a tip: when buying Knott's jelly, don't store it in your carry-on. We absentmindedly stored it in our carryon baggage on the way home and had the toss it at airport security :idea:

Knott's was great, but the best was yet to come...After Knott's we left for our next hotel, , then headed to Napa Rose at the Grand Californian.

[BenA81]

After checking into our next hotel (for some reason I can't remember the name!?) we hopped a bus to DL, bought park tickets, then headed to GCH for dinner at the Napa Rose! :flower3:

I was really impressed with DTD at night, that place was hoppin! Metallica being played on a Hammered Dulcimer? Hey, it worked and sounded pretty cool!

Well on to dinner...

forgive me, I forget the names of our dishes.
soup:
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now here's who ate what...
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My dessert:
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DW's dessert:
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Absolutely fabulous dinner I must say. I look forward to eating there again!

After dinner we hopped back onto the bus to our hotel for a good night's sleep before MK.

[BenA81]

Now I remember, the hotel we stayed in was the Orange County Hyatt. It is about 1.2 miles from DLR.

My excitement grew by being able to see the Matterhorn from our hotel room window...

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(Did I mention this was our first time to disneyland?) We've been to disney world, so I was looking forward to seeing the original :cool2:

We were ready to catch our bus at 7 to make it in plenty of time for rope drop. Then at the bus stop we found out the park doesn't open till 9, so no bus until 8 (oops!). Luckily there was a starbucks right there. We then just decided to walk to DLR which I'm glad we did. There was hardly anybody there yet and we were able to do this:

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I should put that in my signature, I still like it very much. Kudos to DW! :lovestruc

On our way in...
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After getting in we got some pastries on Main St...

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...then once the rope dropped we headed straight for Tomorrowland to get FP's at Space Mountain but it was down :mad: so instead we got in line for Nemo's submarine voyage. The 25 minute line was perfect for consuming my pastry and coffee.

MINE! MINE! MINE!

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We were then able to get FP's for SM, we then headed over to do some bobsledding.

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Hands down my favorite ride of the day, I look forward to doing it again!

We then rode SM and then headed for our lunch at the Blue Bayou...

We didn't take a lot of pics here because of how dark it was. We requested and got waterfront seats, only got heckled a few times :rolleyes:

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under advice from a fellow DIS'r, I did not hesitate to order the cookie boat...

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After this we did a few more rides, DW took some pictures, and we saw the parade.

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Cruella was having a miserable day...
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14 hours later... we still look ready to go!
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[BenA81]

Saturday morning we checked out of our hotel then headed to DTD to do some shopping and paid a visit to Marceline's Confectionary for cupcakes.

Some fountain outside of our hotel:

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And a cooler fountain at Downtown Disney...

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It was kind of sad walking by the gates for the parks and not going in, but I managed.

And the cupcakes...

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And a chocolate covered strawberry for DW...

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We had a fabulous time in Southern California and look forward to taking our DD when she turns 5 next October. I don't think I could do another trip to a disney theme park without her, I missed her too much! :goodvibes

We're planning a more comprehensive tour of SoCal next year where we'll hit Universal, Sea World, MK, and DCA. Until next time...

Thanks for viewing!

[Sherry E]

I recall that quite a while back you were asking about a good place to eat a special (near the ocean), and I suggested a few things, including Gladstones or Shutters on the Beach, even Catalina Island. Where did you end up going? Next time, try to make a day trip over to Catalina during your more comprehensive trip to SoCal. I think you guys would love it!

Those strawberries are huge. I wish they had them covered in white chocolate and I would get one in a heartbet!

[BenA81]

I recall that quite a while back you were asking about a good place to eat a special (near the ocean), and I suggested a few things, including Gladstones or Shutters on the Beach, even Catalina Island. Where did you end up going? Next time, try to make a day trip over to Catalina during your more comprehensive trip to SoCal. I think you guys would love it!

We ended up eating at The Warehouse (http://www.mdrwarehouse.com/) which overlooks Marina Del Ray. My best friend growing up lives out in LA, so he met us there with his Mom. It wasn't the romantic dinner I was looking for, but we still had a blast. :cool1:

I made another trip to LA in July with my brother-in-law and we played golf at Los Verdes Golf Course. One of the holes has a great view of Catalina Island (my breath was taken away). So I'll definitely add it to the list as a must do for next time! :woohoo:

Those strawberries are huge. I wish they had them covered in white chocolate and I would get one in a heartbet!

They were delicious, thats all I have to say :goodvibes

[Sherry E]

We ended up eating at The Warehouse (http://www.mdrwarehouse.com/) which overlooks Marina Del Ray. My best friend growing up lives out in LA, so he met us there with his Mom. It wasn't the romantic dinner I was looking for, but we still had a blast. :cool1:

I made another trip to LA in July with my brother-in-law and we played golf at Los Verdes Golf Course. One of the holes has a great view of Catalina Island (my breath was taken away). So I'll definitely add it to the list as a must do for next time! :woohoo:

They were delicious, thats all I have to say :goodvibes

Oh, yes, the Warehouse! I love Marina del Rey. I never even thought of that.

In my Trip Report (link below in signature), if you go to the very first page where I have an index, you will see links to a couple of pages with some of my Catalina photos. Scroll all the way down the pages as I added photos in multiple posts. I definitely think you should order the free Catalina Visitors Guide (like a booklet/magazine) from the Catalina Chamber of Commerce of the Visitors Bureau and plan a great day trip there next year. You will love it. It is my other favorite SoCal place besides DLR.

I am so glad you guys had a great time at DLR, Knott's, etc.

[BenA81]

Oh, yes, the Warehouse! I love Marina del Rey. I never even thought of that.

In my Trip Report (link below in signature), if you go to the very first page where I have an index, you will see links to a couple of pages with some of my Catalina photos. Scroll all the way down the pages as I added photos in multiple posts. I definitely think you should order the free Catalina Visitors Guide (like a booklet/magazine) from the Catalina Chamber of Commerce of the Visitors Bureau and plan a great day trip there next year. You will love it. It is my other favorite SoCal place besides DLR.

I am so glad you guys had a great time at DLR, Knott's, etc.

I look forward to reading your epic TR. Thank you for all the suggestions! :thumbsup2

[theatermouse]

Great pictures, great stories, great trip! I couldn't imagine doing a trip without my son, but I bet it was refreshing (in some ways) to have "couple-time."

On to WDW!!:woohoo: