What else would you recommend?
Well, it depends on how old your kids are, how far you want to travel and what kinds of things your family likes to do but I can give you a few ideas.
San Diego - lots of things to do down there including of course the zoo and wild animal park. Also there is the USS Midway aircraft carrier, old town, la jolla, Balboa Park etc.
Long Beach - the Aquarium of the Pacific (not as good as the Monterey Bay Aquarium IMO but closer to DLR), the Queen Mary and there are lots of restaurants around that area.
Pasadena - Lots of shops and restaurants along Colorado Blvd (the street that they have the rose parade on), Huntington Library and Gardens, LA arboretum (not exactly in Pasaden but in that general area), Norton Simon Museum. And the Gamble House which is a great example of an Arts and Crafts style home which is the style the Grand Californian was built in. They have a great tour there.
LA - LA County Museum of Art, La Brea Tar Pits, Griffith Park, the Getty Center, Universal Studios, Studio Tours, television show tapings. I know there are a lot of other things in LA that I'm forgetting.
Palm Springs - It's hot out there but the Aerial Tramway is really interesting and takes you way up into the mountains where it is cooler. They also have lots of restaurants and of course golf.
Catalina Island - you get to take a ferry ride over and then there are shops and restaurants as well as tours (glass bottom boat and submarine tours for example) and I think you can also rent a golf cart to drive around the island. There are other things but I haven't been there in years.
Big Bear Lake and Lake Arrowhead - both are mountain communties with shops and restaurants. Both have lakes but Lake Arrowhead is a private lake so no swimming but you can take a boat tour. I believe Big Bear offers boat tours too.
Oak Glen - Small town in the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains with lots of apple orchards and apple related stuff to buy and taste. They often have entertainment on the weekends, especially in the fall during apple season but also other times of the year. Jullian is also an "apple town" closer to San Diego but I've never been there. There is also Forest Falls close to Oak Glen where you can go hiking in a mountain setting (not as high up as Big Bear but in the same general area).
Dana Point/Laguna Beach - Dana Point has a marina where you can look at the boats and they have shops and restaurants along the water. There's a path you can walk along to look at the water. You can also catch the ferry to Catalina there. Laguna Beach has a beach (obviously) as well as more shops and restaurants. A little further south is San Juan Capistrano which has one of the California Missions.
If you want to go further north there is Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Luis Obispo, Pismo Beach, Solvang (cute little dutch village right here in California!).
I know that was a lot but hopefully it will give you an idea of other things around here to do. And there are a lot more things that I didn't even mention! Whatever you decide to do, have a great time!
