Driving down from SF Bay area

[pixiewings71]

I live in Suisun City (off 12, halfway between Sac & SF, sister to Fairfield for those who drive 80), we go 12 to 5 and take 5 all the way to Harbor. Easy Peasy.

We like to stop in Santa Nella (Anderson's Pea Soup, but we stop at the Denny's there) if we leave early enough, we like the Denny's there. We also like to Stop in Lost Hills, the Love's there is a great place to stop for snacks and gas, the bathrooms are clean and there are lots of gas pumps and the prices are comparable to what we pay here. It's also just about halfway so it's a good time to stop. If we are hungry there are plenty of places to grab a bite to go, Taco Bell, McD's, Arby's, etc etc. After we get back in the car after LH we don't want to stop because we are almost there. It's an easy enough drive.

 

[Mama Who]

I take the 5 to the 210E and take that for about 35 min. till I get to the 57S (san dimas exit)...that fwy takes you all the way in to anaheim and bypasses the 5 traffic altogether...I usually take the ball rd exit and turn right then down to Harbor and make a left and your good to go...and both fwys have carpool lane so I never have issues...

In theory this route is faster. For those who are at all nervous on the LA freeways or prone to wrong turns, sticking on 5 can be quicker. The shorter route is only shorter if you can navigate it without a problem and some of us are... erm... impaired.

I take I 5 the whole way. Actually, since I live 4 blocks from an I 5 exit in my home town the route is literally, "Turn left, turn right, take 5, get off, U turn, pull into hotel." Even *I* can't botch that!

 

[QueenBeeMB]

We live a little north of santa rosa and we leave at around 3 am each time. This allows us to stop at Kettleman City (like someone else mentioned) and the Rest stop at the grape vine ( like someone else mentioned) We tend to also stop at a Dennys, its right before the grape vine, if one of us needs 'real' food.

We pack food and drinks in the car along with blankets and pillows. Because we are to adults who live on bartenders schedules this time frames works for us.

I like getting to Anaheim around 10 or 11, checking if the hotel has a room ready for us (normally not, we stay off site and check ins are usually at 3), changing into new clothes and heading straight over to the park. We head back to the hotel around 3 or 4 for a nap and shower, then back to the park at night.

When we come home it is different, we leave at normal check out time, 11 am or so, and drive during the day getting home around dinner time. (this is the drive I do not like)

Safe driving !

 

[disneegrl4eva]

I ran this route through google maps to see if I might change my route. This adds 15 miles to the trip which would probably buy you time during regular hours where one might experience traffic. I am going to be hitting LA at around 10:30PM so hopefully I will have missed most traffic!

wow...it might say that it adds 15 miles to the trip, however, I have never gotten to DL any later than I would if I took the 5 all the way down with minimal traffic...if anything, its shaved off about 10 min or so on my driving...if it did take longer you can bet I would have deleted that way a lonnnnnng time ago

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

When I drive down from the bay area this is what we do:

Leave early, between 5 and 6 (with a full tank of gas and snacks)
Stop at starbucks (usually in town)
hop on 5
stop off once we hit lost hills for gas (they usually have the cheapest prices on the whole drive, loves usually and they have clean bathrooms.)
then we usually wait until we get to the resort area to eat lunch..however if we do stop off for food we typically go to the Tejon Ranch center, just before the grapevine they have the best selection. Panda express (with drive through), Chipotle, in n out, yogurtland.
once we get to anaheim we check in to our hotel and go have FUN.

 

[motherhoodandmickey]

Thank you all for your suggestions!

It sounds like we'll be sticking to the 5 all the way to Harbor - even though we have gps, we still manage to take wrong exits all the time... I will, however, keep the alternate route suggested with me, in case traffic on the 5 is really bad (accidents and all).

I really hope to leave early in the morning - hopefully DD (nearly 3) will sleep a little longer in the car. She's potty trained, so I'm sure we'll be making a few restroom stops along the way, so advice about those is much appreciated!

Just one week left until we are at DLR and the DLH! So excited to be staying there for the first time

 

[Goofy_Mom]

Sounds like you'll need a couple stops alone the way. Santa Nella is a good one, options for bathrooms/gas/snacks. Kettleman city, lost hills, and that rest area before the grapvine. If you make good time, you won't have to stop for traffic on the other side of the Vine.

 

[momstable]

I'm just south of you, in Gilroy. We had an annual pass a year ago, my DS and I, and made the trip down several times over the year. As has been suggested, just stay on Hwy. 5 all the way down. You might want to check the LA radio station KNX 1070 AM as it has good traffic reports once you get close to the Grapevine. For gas, another vote for the Lost Hlls - Love's stop. We also liked the Iron Skillet on Lavan Rd West. We don't buy gasoline at that stop, but we eat there or at the very least use it as a potty break.

Good luck, have a great trip down and back, and a FANTASTIC time at Disneyland.

 

[MickeyFan18]

I think we all pretty much agree that the easiest route is 5 all the way... My family is from Pacifica and we always leave around 5 am, meet up with the cousins in Gilroy around 6 am, and are at DLand before 12!

A piece of advice from a girl who travels with a large family with a lot of kids... Bring some small toys or at the very least a ball. This will help get the kids out of the car and running around for a few minutes at the rest stops. We noticed when we didn't have something to entice them out of the car they would have a tendency to say they just didn't have to go and then refuse to get out creating some restlessness further down the road.