Are 6 days enough?

[viaggiamo]

Hi we are coming from Australia for a 4 week USA trip and I originally had booked 8 nights in Anaheim for DL.

Our children will be 3 (just) and 5 yo.

We wanted to relax and enjoy the experience rather than cramming stuff into every day.

BUT I have booked the GCH on the Gay Days rate and could only get 6 nights for this period rather than 8 nights originally booked at Park Vue.

I don't want to go to a motel for 2 nights after staying at the GCH which is when it would have to be.

So will it be enough time?

Where else in the beautiful OC/LA area would you go?

We are off to Santa Barbara after that and driving to SF, taking 6 nights, then 8 nights in SF and 5 nights in Vegas and 1 night in Beverly Hills.

So if I cannot get into GCH for an extra two nights for a reasonable rate, where would you suggest?

Thanks

C

 

[vickalamode]

Hollywood or San Diego might work! San Diego might be better because your kids are younger.

 

[nikkislaght]

Maybe heading down to San Diego for Seaworld and or Lego land or the Zoo.

Seaworld you can do in a day, as with Lego land..
but the Zoo is very large and spread out so you may need two days for that.

LA its self is interesting for typical tourist land marks.

I wouldnt do Universal studios, that's more for older kids..

There is Knotts Berry Farm, just down the road from Disneyland.. they have a wonderful area for smaller kids... even my 7yr old son had a blast there... and if you go midweek it is much quieter than DLR..

Couple of beaches that you can relax at round the area..

Hope you have fun

 

[IBLarsen]

To answer your question about 6 days...yes 6 days is enough at DLR. We have young children and go for 4 days and we do everything there is to do, and several things more than once. We watch parades and fireworks and Fantasmic, take meal breaks and we often take afternoon breaks. We do get to the parks at rope drop, as you can get so much done those first couple hours, and then we relax and slow down a bit. 5 days for us would be a nice bonus day. 6 would be more than enough... So please don't feel like you will be missing out on anything, you won't Now Disney World in Florida is a different animal and 8 days is a good amount of time there, but DLR is much smaller and easier to navigate and get through.

Hope that helps give you some perspective

So if you are going to have a couple extra days to spare, I would likely go down to San Diego as others said and rent a hotel there for a couple nights to do stuff in that area. (It's not too far of a drive).
Sea World is a huge hit with young children! Also some great beaches in the San Diego area.

 

[viaggiamo]

Thankyou!

It's been so many years since I have been to DL, like 13 years ago!!!!, and pre-children, so I was a bit worried.

Thanks for letting me know that 6 days will be enough. We are coming back to the USA in March/April 2013 as well for 5 weeks so we can go back again anyway then.

We were looking at Legoland, but will give Seaworld a miss as we have one here not too far away, I know it wont be the same, but close enough to give it a miss I think.

We may head to the beach, do you think Dana Point, Santa Monica or San Diego? Or somewhere else? would be good for two nights to relax after DL.

Will it be warm enough in the 2nd week of October to swim? for the children, I like it hot hot hot for me.

I suppose one last Q:

Do you think it's worth it to stay 6 days in the GCH with EE or stay 8 days Park vue Inn without it?

Thanks again, I have learned so much from these boards.

C

 

[skiingfast]

We were looking at Legoland, but will give Seaworld a miss as we have one here not too far away, I know it wont be the same, but close enough to give it a miss I think.

We may head to the beach, do you think Dana Point, Santa Monica or San Diego? Or somewhere else? would be good for two nights to relax after DL.

Will it be warm enough in the 2nd week of October to swim? for the children, I like it hot hot hot for me.



Do you think it's worth it to stay 6 days in the GCH with EE or stay 8 days Park vue Inn without it?

Legoland is great for 3 to 7 year olds. I would definitely go.

San Diego has a lot of nice beaches, If you go there for an extra day. The weather will determine if it's swimming weather. Could be hot, could be cold.

Since you are going during a semi slow time with a lot of days I wouldn't put a lot of importance on staying onsite. However the GCH is a very nice hotel, the Park Vue is decent but not in the same league.

 

[madmaxx]

We find 6 days isn't quite enough, but we're crazy Disney fans, and we love to shop, take in the artwork, and catch all the shows. 8 days is ideal for us, an 10 would be heaven. Many of the people we know find 5 days enough. Everyone is different!

 

[hootey]

We go for six to ten days at a time, sometimes twice a year. We enjoy the rides of course but, the shows as well. Several of the shows are diffrent every time you see them. For example CRUSH; never the same show, the jeanie in Aladin usually has new ad-lib lines for each show. StarTours is now a little diffrent every time you ride it. The character breakfasts and suppers are great. Getting photos of the family with the disney characters are the fun part for me, the wife likes the shows, and of course our boys enjoy the rides and the pool at the DLH. Remember to relax and have FUN...

 

[Escape2Disney]

I tend to take naps mid-day and go through the parks at a leisurely pace. 6 days is perfect for our family! We're able to do the things we want, often more than once. There is time to watch shows, shop, and just take in the atmosphere!

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[Feej]

Thankyou!

It's been so many years since I have been to DL, like 13 years ago!!!!, and pre-children, so I was a bit worried.

Thanks for letting me know that 6 days will be enough. We are coming back to the USA in March/April 2013 as well for 5 weeks so we can go back again anyway then.

We were looking at Legoland, but will give Seaworld a miss as we have one here not too far away, I know it wont be the same, but close enough to give it a miss I think.

We may head to the beach, do you think Dana Point, Santa Monica or San Diego? Or somewhere else? would be good for two nights to relax after DL.

Will it be warm enough in the 2nd week of October to swim? for the children, I like it hot hot hot for me.

I suppose one last Q:

Do you think it's worth it to stay 6 days in the GCH with EE or stay 8 days Park vue Inn without it?

Thanks again, I have learned so much from these boards.

C

Seaworld in San Diego is quite different to Seaworld in Surfers. It's much bigger and the attractions are so much better. We did Seaworld and San Diego zoo in 2009 and loved it. There's lots of other stuff to do in San Diego as well.

 

[Aussie Princess]

Seaworld in San Diego is quite different to Seaworld in Surfers. It's much bigger and the attractions are so much better. We did Seaworld and San Diego zoo in 2009 and loved it. There's lots of other stuff to do in San Diego as well.

I actually disagree with this I prefer Sea world at Surfers to San Diego I found the San Diego version to be quite distressing as the animal enclosures are a lot smaller than Surfers

I would do San Diego zoo on its own but of course that's just my opinion you can do whatever you want

 

[jmkmum]

I actually disagree with this I prefer Sea world at Surfers to San Diego I found the San Diego version to be quite distressing as the animal enclosures are a lot smaller than Surfers

I would do San Diego zoo on its own but of course that's just my opinion you can do whatever you want

I'm with you, we r from Sydney and took a day away from dl to go to sea world and was incredibly disappointed. Everything was shut cause it was a Monday. The whales were great, but we left the dolphin show early when our 4 yr old referred to it as torture! She loved the Atlantis coaster, but that was pretty much it. It was a long bus trip for nothing in our experience. We had 7 days in LA, stayed in PP, one day at KBF and a day at sea world. We did not get comfortably around everything at DL, an that was before cars land. We had a 6mth old, a 2yr old, and the 4yr old, so we did enjoy the occasional nap that they had (as the two older ones didn't want to miss anything by resting).
I hope this helps a little! We r headed back soon and are looking at 10 days, we have annual passes from 3 weeks at DW last year. We also didn't fit everything in there in the 3 weeks comfortably (though did get about 10 rides on the tower of terror). I don't believe that even if I had pushed my family to the limit that we could have done it in the 8 days that was mentioned above in the posts, great effort to doing that! Maybe with a bit more training my lot will be up for that challenge!! Lol. I hope you and your family have a great time!! DL was by far the happiest place on earth for my family! : )

 

[viaggiamo]

Thanks guys,

we will be giving Seaworld a miss and also the zoo.

After 7 days at DL we will all need some R&R and will be doing natural activities like going to the beach, swimming, walking, exploring an area with no structure to our days.

I think we will need to recharge before we ste off on the next part of the trip.

It's also part of the reason we were staying 8 nights originally, so that if we needed a day at the beach or in the pool relaxing we could take it and not feel that we were missing out on anything.

Lots to think about. I am waiting for Disney to email me back regarding rates for the extended two nights, but we may just go and chill somewhere I think.

C

 

[IBLarsen]

Thanks guys,

we will be giving Seaworld a miss and also the zoo.

After 7 days at DL we will all need some R&R and will be doing natural activities like going to the beach, swimming, walking, exploring an area with no structure to our days.

I think we will need to recharge before we ste off on the next part of the trip.

It's also part of the reason we were staying 8 nights originally, so that if we needed a day at the beach or in the pool relaxing we could take it and not feel that we were missing out on anything.

Lots to think about. I am waiting for Disney to email me back regarding rates for the extended two nights, but we may just go and chill somewhere I think.

C

Beach and Pool Time is a great way to relax! I wasn't sure previously if you wanted to fit in more planned activities or not. Just an FYI, we love going to the beach and the weather is warm enough to hang out at, but keep in mind the Ocean will be cold! It always is there My kids will get in to about their knees and play and splash around and build sandcastles, but as far as submerging...it's cold! The pools are generally heated enough that swimming will perfect! Enjoy your stay!

 

[jacs1234]

I do hope you get the extra two nights. We spend about 10 days at Disneyland and do not get bored with it but we get to do our favorites over and over. With kids that age I'd suggest legoland for something a little different and a bit slower paced. Legoland is a t Carlsbad which is a coastal town and would be nice to stay at and explore. They also have a great outlet mall.
On our first trip our boys , then 8 and 6, they we're more excited about legoland than Disneyland, because Lego is what we know and they weren't brought up with the thought of Disneyland in their heads like we were lol.

 

[viaggiamo]

So sad.

Disney bookings contacted me and they wont allow two extra nights at the same rate, it jumps $250 more a night.

So we are moving and 6 days at DL will have to be enough.

If the children truly love it we are coming to the USA in March/April 2013 so will revisit then.

Thanks for all your responses, now I have to decide where to go!

C

 

[rramstad]

Six days is plenty if you do a bit of planning each day, so you can make sure you see the parades and shows. If you tend to not plan as much, you might wish you had the extra days.

That said, GCH is really awesome accomodations and you would absolutely be losing a LOT by doing Park Vue instead. The pool is rather luxurious at GCH as is the lobby...