Disneyland and 1 week in Southern California - early August

[Canadian Girl 77]

We're spending a week at Disneyland starting July 29 because DH is speaking at a conference. We are staying at the Grand Californian thanks to the amazing hotel rates for conferences.

I'm at a loss for what to do the next week! Please help. I think we'll rent a car. I doubt we'll be back in California in the near future. My thoughts are that we'll spend 1 or 2 days in LA, 1 or 2 days in Santa Monica and a few days in San Diego. I've been reading all sorts of stuff but now my brain is fried. Where should we go and where should we stay?

DD is 7. We aren't lay on the beach people but we do want to go to the beach at least once. We like to stay busy which is why we enjoy Disney World so much. Thanks for your help and opinions.

 

[DSNY4ever]

Grand Californian, lucky you! You could easily stay up near Disneyland and do a day trip out to Huntington Beach or Newport Beach, there is a great thread on Newport Beach on here with good info. I don't know much about LA or Santa Monica (went there once and it was expensive shopping and a couple carnival rides). San Diego has a LOT to offer. The zoo, wild animal park, sea world, lots of beaches and shopping. You could go to Pacific/Mission Beach and walk the whole bike path along there and go to the beach. It is a funny place to people watch, it definitely gives off that funky california vibe! Coronado is gorgeous and a nice place to rent bikes and have a good lunch and walk the beach and wander up and explore the Hotel Del.

 

[allyswan]

Yes, San Diego is a must! If you're into museums, Balboa Park has a lot of them, as well as lots of fun street performers. It's also within walking distance of the San Diego Zoo. You should also definitely check out the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana, if you like nerdy science-y stuff, and it's only about 10 minutes away from DL.

 

[ncc1701]

You could go to San Diego visit the Zoo, Sea World& go over to Coronado. That would cover a couple of days on your trip. Huntington Beach is a great town as is Carlsbad. Legoland is near Carlsbad so that may be something to check out
My one suggestion is not to change location/hotels more than once in the period after Disneyland. Get a base or two so you can explore the area.