Disneyland Vacation - But Want to Include LegoLand and Sea World

[scanne]

Hi!
My family and I are BIG WDW fans! We've gone every year since 2000, sometimes 2x a year. My DH and I went to DL in April 2001 and we're thinking of a trip this summer with our kids who are 5 and 7. Aside from the LONG flight from Philly to Southern California, I think they would LOVE DL, Legoland and Sea World.

Would love some advice on planning a trip like this. I usually book my WDW vacations on my own and would like to do the same for DL. But I also don't want to pay rack rate if I can find some deals! I am a AAA member and I have the Entertainment book.

Also, if we were to stay at the DL Hotel, would we be able to get from Anaheim to San Diego to visit the attractions there in a reasonable amount of time OR would you recommend flying into San Diego, spending a few nights/days there then driving to Anaheim and staying 5 or so nights at DL?

When DH and I went to DL in 2001, we did 3 nights in Las Vegas and then flew to Anaheim and did 4 nights (maybe 5) at the DL hotel. It was so magical at the DL hotel that I DEFINITELY want to stay there again.

Now this is not 100% locked in as we are booked for a WDW vacation in July 2010, but I'm thinking of DL as an alternative because, frankly, I'm slightly WDW'd out....LOL!

Also, one other question - how is Universal Studios Hollywood? The last time I was there, I think I was 22 - so it's been 12+ years. THANKS!!!

 

[ukstitch]

There are a number of tour companies who offer bus rides and tickets as a package that will pick you up and drop you back at your anaheim hotel.

they'er not neccessarily the cheapest option if you're a large group, but they do work very well.

Universal Hollywood - I enjoyed it when I went, but I'm not suer I'd rush back because I like rides and there's only really the 3 rides there, although the shows they do were good and the backlot tour was extremely interesting

 

[lcasa]

Car rentals are much cheaper if you fly into/out of the same airport - so I would pick either San Diego or Santa Ana/Long Beach but not 1 of each ( I've researched this before - the drop off charges in CA are outrageous, unlike some other places I've been). I've had good luck with Hotwire for car rentals.

Legoland is only about an hour south if the traffic is light. Sea World is a bit further - another 30 min or so. So the 3 are very doable together, especially with a car.

I can't help much with booking advice since I'm a local. The Disney Visa card sometimes gives discounts - and AAA may sometimes as well. Costco has a 4 day park hopper for about $160 right now as well.

Universal here is nothing compared to FL - very small, easy to do in a day. 1 really good ride - the Simpsons - and a few mediocre ones. You can find lots of info around the boards. I'd spend another day at DL instead of going to Universal. It's a good hour north too.

 

[CrazyDuck]

We did this in 08... We flew into SAN, did 4 days there (zoo, sea world) then caught legoland on the way up to Anaheim. then did 7 days in Disneyland. Flew home via LAX. You pay a premium to flu in and out of different airports as well as a fee to return the car to a different airport. If you want to save a few $ fly into LAX get your car then drive down to San Diego... do your stuff there then drive back to Anaheim then fly home through LAX. BTW make sure you Disneyland after San Diego... Save the best for last!

Also look into the "Southern California City Pass" it offers admission to some of the San Diego attractions as well as Universal! Save some $ there too...

 

[phishy25]

We did this in May. We bought the So Cal passes from Costco which include the 3 day hopper to DL, Universal, Sea World and the San Diego Zoo. We had an awesome trip!

Due to the price of flights, we flew in and out of LAX. We flew to LAX, rented a car, and drove down to San Diego. We spent 3 nights at the Best Western Island Palms which is a great hotel in a beautiful, quiet location. While there we went to Sea World and the zoo. We checked out of the hotel, drove to Lego Land and got there at opening. We spent the day at Lego Land and then drove to Anaheim and checked into our hotel at the HOJO. We spent 4 or 5 nights at the HOJO. We did DL for 3 days. We also spent a day doing Ikea, the Discovery Cube, and a few other things to break up the non-stop theme parkaction. We checked out of the Hojo in the early morning and drove to Universal to get there at opening. Spent the day at Universal and then drove to the airport and checked in at the Hilton. We opted to stay at the airport the last night because we had an early flight and didn't want to drive all the way from the Hojo in the wee hours on the morn. It worked out great because we got extra sleep. We turned in our car the night before (at the Hilton! they had an Alamo drop off) and caught the shuttle to the airport in the morning. That also saved time and we didn't have to pay for parking.

All in all, it was a great trip and we did everything we wanted to. Please let me know if you have any planning questions.

eta: We bought our plane tickets through priceline.com. They had a package deal where we got our car rental for practically free. It popped up while I was searching for flights. I also went through ebates.com and got 2% cash back. I think it ended up being around $45 I got back for four tickets. I always try to use ebates when booking online.