Disneyland and first time in S. California

[photomama]

if we stay on Disney property in Disneyland - how easy is it to get to LA, Hollywood, and San Diego?? we want to see other sites besides Mickey

any advice for a first times in California

 

[michelle1]

DL to LA/Hollywood is about an hour drive I believe and I'm not sure about San Diego but I think about an hour and a half...assuming you are in good traffic. You may want to consider doing DL, Hollywood and LA and then driving to San Diego and getting a hotel there for the things you want to do there. Have a great time...our trip to California was one of the best trips we have ever had!

 

[snickerboo]

Driving is about 45 minutes to Hollywood and 90 minutes to SD. SD is an easy drive b/c you're right of the main freeway (5) at DL. Hop on it and head South and it'll take you straight to SD. We just did this trip in the fall but stayed off-site in Anaheim. We also stayed a few nights in SD. We really enjoyed SD. It's beautiful & the zoo is fabulous.

Sights we saw and enjoyed:
*Aquarium of the Pacific (half day)
*Santa Monica Pier
*Beaches at Huntington, Newport and Balboa
*LaJolla (if you're animal lovers, check out the harbour seals that come onshore at "Children's Pool" in LaJolla)
*Hollywood attractions

The only thing we did that we would advise to skip was the LaBrea Tar Pits, and that's with my dh being a Geological Engineer. It took a half day to do and it wasn't all that exciting.

Not sure where you're from, photomama, but we heard so much about the traffic before we went but traffic we experienced in the LA area was pretty tame compared to the Greater Toronto Area! The only thing to watch for is, if someone is about to hit you, they'll keep going, even if it's their fault and it's up to you to move to avoid being hit! That was a little scary a few times.

 

[photomama]

thanks. I'm not sure where we are staying yet!

Snickerboo - we lived in Pickering and I drove into Toronto for 2 years. Guess we'll be ok ;-) Thanks for the tips.

 

[SAGE]

Thinking of a DCL from Los Angeles... I didn't realize it was an hour to DL from sights in Hollywood. Have no idea how far the port is from either. Perhaps a Passporter guide book for DL is in order.

 

[glendalais]

The thing to remember is that any quoted time in Southern California is completely dependent on traffic.

When I lived out there and first started working for DLR (before moving much closer), my "official" commute time was about an hour door-to-door (~60 km.).

Depending on how traffic was and what time of day I was travelling, my actual driving time went as low as 40 minutes or as high as 3 hours.

Thinking of a DCL from Los Angeles... I didn't realize it was an hour to DL from sights in Hollywood. Have no idea how far the port is from either. Perhaps a Passporter guide book for DL is in order.

The Port of Los Angeles is about 50 km. from both DLR and Hollywood.

 

[drag n' fly]

Definitely plan around rush hour. We love driving down the coast to San Diego and stopping at the beaches. Everything is easily accesible again depending on what time of the day you depart there and back