Convention Center Area: Can My Husband Entertain Kids without Parks

[camdensmom]

I'm traveling to Anaheim for a conference in July. I "think" I am going to have my family come along. We'll be flying in from Boston so it's a distance to travel and the time change will definitely mess them up a bit (kids will be 11,7 and 7). My thinking is that we'll fly in the day before the conference. I'll go to that for 3 days and then as a family we will spend a few days in Disneyland.

My questions are:
-Will my husband be able to entertain the kids for 3 days in the Convention Center area on his own without going to the park?
-What kinds of things can he do within walking distance?
-Does the area feel safe?

Thanks so much!

 

[cruisehopeful]

Will my husband be able to entertain the kids for 3 days in the Convention Center area on his own without going to the park? There's not a lot to do there, especially in walking distance. If he can take an Uber/Lyft and leave the area, they might find things to do.
-What kinds of things can he do within walking distance? Restaurants. There is some shopping in Downtown Disney and Anaheim Garden Walk. I don't see how anyone could stay busy with that for 3 days, though. If you have a nice pool at your hotel, maybe that will keep them busy.
-Does the area feel safe? The area feels very safe these days.

If he can take an Uber/Lyft they may enjoy vising Knott's Berry Farm. There is both a theme park and water park there. Also, maybe they can watch a baseball game at Angel's stadium.

 

[StormyCA]

Where will you be staying? If the hotel has a pool, then that's probably where they'll end up.

TBH I don't think there's much to do within 'walking distance' (which I define as approx 1/2 mile radius) other than DTD. But if your 7 yr olds don't need car seats, then couldn't your DH use Uber/Lyft to range a bit further afield? You can also get some pretty nice deals on car rentals if you book in advance, he could take them to the beach for a day with a 24 hour rental, and I think you can include car seats for an additional fee.

Personally, I'd probably add a day to the hoppers and tell my DH to take them to DL. It'd kill me not to be there, but that's what they'd really want to do.

Day one; recuperate from flight/pool day
Day two; rent car and go to the beach (or) DTD day
Day three; Extra Disney Day

 

[Westcoastwild]

Just have him rent a car and do some stuff in LA, like one day at the tar pits, one day at the beach/SAnta Monica boardwalk, one day at Griffith park.


Anaheim is pretty boring other than Disney. The only thing I could think of is if you shell out for a place like great wolf lodge and they spend all day at the pool.

 

[mom2rtk]

Unless they want to rent a car and do other things in the area, I'd just swap them from a 3 day to a 5 day park ticket and let them spend the time in the parks. Or maybe you as a family could spend a little time in the parks together in the evenings on those days.

Or have them come in a couple days after you. Sitting around doing not much with the parks right there would just frustrate me.

 

[RedRosie]

The price difference between a 3 day ticket and a 4 or 5 day is not much. I would get 5 day tickets and have DH and kids go in the day (maybe only partial days) and then go a bit in the evening with you. Hotel pools are always a big hit with my kids, especially at night. So if you are not up to going to the parks in the evening after convention, sit by the pool and watch the kids have fun.

 

[Jedi Mouse]

I agree with those saying to upgrade to a five day ticket, the price is minimal, especially considering it doesn't increase your hotel and dining costs for the trip. If not I would rent a car so they can do other things in the LA area, there are lots of great museums, beaches and parks that are close by. Check out the Dis Unplugged Disneyland Edition's suggestions for "Day 6" ideas.

Other than the parks, the only things to do within walking distance of the Convention Center is shopping and eating.

You could eat up a day at the pool and maybe a movie at DTD, but three days might be pushing it, especially knowing the parks are right there.

The area is extremely safe, so no worries there.

 

[Elima2015]

I would rent a car and have them go hit up the beach for one of the days. There are plenty of beautiful beaches within ~30 minutes. We found a great one in Laguna Beach. Newport beach is also fun - they can rent bikes there. Go to a water park. LA also has lots to do. We found a fun adventure park/play area in Irvine. Downtown Disney is within walking distance and that would be fun to do for a partial day. My kids also love hotel pools and would easily spend an afternoon playing there.

If renting a car is out, then I agree your best bet is to get 5 day park hoppers and let them go without you (it would kill me! ha!). Another option could be to stay at the Great Wolf Lodge for those first days so they can play at the waterpark there. That plus taking an Uber to Downtown Disney for one afternoon/evening would probably take care of three days.

 

[VandVsmama]

I'm traveling to Anaheim for a conference in July. I "think" I am going to have my family come along. We'll be flying in from Boston so it's a distance to travel and the time change will definitely mess them up a bit (kids will be 11,7 and 7). My thinking is that we'll fly in the day before the conference. I'll go to that for 3 days and then as a family we will spend a few days in Disneyland.

My questions are:
-Will my husband be able to entertain the kids for 3 days in the Convention Center area on his own without going to the park?
-What kinds of things can he do within walking distance?
-Does the area feel safe?

Thanks so much!

You can probably go with pool & watching TV in the hotel room for a day. That will knock out 1 of the 3 convention days. Your DH could rent a car and take the kids to the beach 1 day. Or you could get 5-day park hoppers for husband & kids and have them spend the mornings at Disneyland and afternoons at the pool at your hotel. Then you meet up for dinner when your convention day is done.

 

[3TinksAndAnEeyore]

Exploring Downtown Disney, watching a movie at the Downtown Disney theater, and maybe doing a character meal at one of the Disney hotels could take up a good chunk of one day. Then for day 2, there are several car rental locations located near the convention center if they just want to rent a car for a day trip. They could Uber over to Knott's Berry Farm for day 3.

 

[goooof1]

Driving by DLR on the freeway without stopping is difficult!! I can't imagine staying in the area for 3 days without going to the parks!! I would be constantly looking over at the parks and thinking about the rides that you can see, etc....!!! YES, 5 day hoppers for the family and maybe a day of beach or touring in LA would probably be best. AND, agree....go with them to the parks in the evenings while your convention is going on.

 

[Rabb it]

I'm thinking Downtown Disney will be your best bet. From the convention center it might bit like a 20-30 minute walk into the heart of Downtown Disney. Apart from that there's nothing around there, the convention area sucks if there's not a cool convention going on.

 

[bumbershoot]

Personally, I'd probably add a day to the hoppers and tell my DH to take them to DL.

Yep!

 

[pharmama]

I'll throw out another suggestion-have them stay at Great Wolf Lodge for the first day or two then move over with you.

I agree that there isn't much in walking distance other than the parks. If they're baseball fans you might be able to eat up part of a day at a game if the Angels are in town. Downtown Disney is probably good for an afternoon, maybe more if you see a movie. There are bus trips to San Diego and/or Universal/Hollywood but renting a car might be a better option for some of that, as others have mentioned.

 

[Abbey1]

I think by the third day, everyone would be going stir-crazy. They could probably pull off two days staying local before being bored out of their minds- one day for hanging out at the pool, watching tv, playing board games etc in your hotel room and one day spent at dtd, catching a movie, visiting the shops, maybe doing build a bear or something like that. Could they maybe spend the third day at Universal or the beach?

 

[jlmarr]

You can take a bus/Uber/ART to the Anaheim train station and head into LA to visit Universal Studios. The Metro Red Line (subway) connects at LA Union Station, with the Universal Studios stop on the other end. Along the way you could check out Hollywood at the Hollywood & Highland station. (Sleazy IMO but if you're really curious...). The Metro subway fares are included in the price of the Metrolink commuter rail round-trip fare, or you can use Amtrak and pay extra for the subway. The commuter trains run during commute hours of course, so check the schedules.