DL, etc. in Feb. 2004?

[pocohontas2004]

We're trying to decide on a week-long trip to Southern CA in Feb. 2004. We have 3 sons 8 years old and under who wish to see DL and Legoland. We were thinking of flying in and out of San Diego as it is simpler. Are there any weeks/dates to avoid in February? With a family of 5, a suite is always a plus so everyone has room. Places to stay recommendations? What about FEB in Southern CA? Would the kids like Capistrano? Aquarium of the Pacific? some ghost town stuff in Barstow? We're considering the Wild Animal Park, but not the San Diego Zoo (been there before). Maybe Sea World. Ideas?

(By the way, since the search feature on these boards is hit and miss, it is hard to find old info on probably the same topic.)

 

[jordanyosh]

Disneyland itself is a 2-3 day adventure. Legoland will be a one day experience. However, during the off season, Legoland has limited hours. I believe it may only be open on weekends. You should check. If you are not doing the SD Zoo, I would do Sea World since it is right in San Diego. Both Legoland and Wild Animal Park are about 30 minutes north of downtown San Diego.
So if you we to do DL, LL and SW that would cover 4-5 days. Barstow to me is too long of a drive( 2 hours from SD or Anaheim) and that's w/o traffic. Capistrano Mission is okay but shouldn't take longer than an hour or two to do. It may not be that much fun for the kids. FYI, it is on the way from SD to Anaheim. Aquarium of the Pacific is okay as well, just not as big as the Monterey Aquarium.

My advice would be to fly into SD. Spend a few days there. Drive up to Anaheim and spend 5 days there, 3 days at DL and the other 2 doing whatever else you decide. I just wouldn't want to do that much driving in LA/Orange County as the freeways can be bad at any given time of day.

Try and avoid President's Day weekend. Early Feb might be better as in late February schools start having Winter/Spring Breaks. Jan/Feb/March are the rainy months in So. Cal, but it is usually one day on, 2 days off, 2 days on, 3 days off.......Be prepared.

As far as where to stay, I live 5 minutes from DL so I wouldn't know exactly where to stay...sorry.

Hope this helps. If you have more ???? let us know

 

[daannzzz]

Suite motels next to Disneyland include
The Portofino Inn and Suites
The Desert Inn and Suites
The Desrt Palm Inn and Suites
The Park Place Inn (has rooms with two queens and a pullout sofa)
Most of the motels directly across from the parks offer connecting rooms at sometimes decent prices.
A little farther away requiring a shuttle are Embessey Suites and Marriot Suites.
Here are a couple of links to see where things are.

http://www.geocities.com/ashpsyche/DisneylandLinkMap.html

http://www.beachcalifornia.com/dlmp.html