lisah0711
♥ her Disney office
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2005
Just back from five fun days in San Diego. We had a great time and here are a few highlights from our visit.
Arrived Fri 3/28 in San Diego. We stayed at the Hyatt Mission Bay
where we were greeted by striking hotel workers! Their motto was "no contract, no peace!" which meant they walked around the hotel making lots of noise. Luckily they stopped at 5:00 p.m. and didn't picket on the week-ends. After the first encounter we didn't see or hear from them again. We really appreciated how nice DVC is compared to other suites.
Saturday was Legoland. We arrived at opening. DS is 8 and a certified
Lego freak so he enjoyed the park even though it seems like it was geared
more to younger kids. He did both MindStorms activities which involved two 45 minute sessions of playing with robots. That was the highlight of the
day for him. It did get more crowded as the day went on but was
manageable.
Sunday was the Maritime Museum -- five ships -- then on to the USS
Midway. We only got to see three decks of the Midway. I suggest going on the Island (upper deck) tour first because you have to wait in line and they only take about 20 people at a time to the command areas of the ship. DS got to sit in the Air Boss' chair.
Monday was the San Diego Zoo. Like good Disney folks we hot footed it at
opening to the Panda Exhibit to see the baby panda. We didn't have to wait
in line and could take our time and enjoy. The panda was very cute! We
took the bus ride that covers a good part of the zoo. It was included in our ticket price but well worth the $3 if you had to pay separately. The
koalas were also a big hit. Again as the day wore on the crowds increased.
Tuesday we went to Sea World. DH and DS rode Journey to Atlantis
right off the bat. They were glad to have the Sea World $5 ponchos because it was cold and they got wet. Later we took the Animal Spotlight Tour. This was a great tour -- we got to feed and pat the dolphins, feed moray eels and sea turtles. We probably would not have enjoyed the day as much if we had not done the tour. We finished with Believe which is a great show if you have not seen it.
Wednesday we went to Wild Animal Park. Driving to Escondido was the
first time that we could really see where the fires were last year. We saw
the butterfly exhibit and took the Safari tour as we only had a few hours.
This was another great tour -- only 10 people are on the tour and they take
you right back by the animals. We even got to see the vets darting an
antelope to vaccinate it -- which was a lot more interesting than it sounds. We had to leave at noon to catch the plane home.
I wasn't sure how I would feel being so close to Disneyland and not
going there but we had so much fun I didn't miss it as much as I thought I
would -- having another Disney trip in the works helped no doubt. As DH
said, you can really appreciate the Disney magic when you go someplace else.
My best suggestion is to study the maps online of the parks and make a plan of what you want to do. It really helps if you are unfamiliar with the parks to avoid needless zigzagging and missing something that you really want to see.
Also, for those of you going in the next few weeks there are lots of, er, "spring activities" going on in the parks -- DS knows about the birds and the bees but I heard lots of parents who were trying to distract their kids and hemmng and hawing so have whatever your answer is about such activities at the ready.
I will post a few pics and be happy to answer any questions if anyone
has any.
Arrived Fri 3/28 in San Diego. We stayed at the Hyatt Mission Bay
where we were greeted by striking hotel workers! Their motto was "no contract, no peace!" which meant they walked around the hotel making lots of noise. Luckily they stopped at 5:00 p.m. and didn't picket on the week-ends. After the first encounter we didn't see or hear from them again. We really appreciated how nice DVC is compared to other suites.
Saturday was Legoland. We arrived at opening. DS is 8 and a certified
Lego freak so he enjoyed the park even though it seems like it was geared
more to younger kids. He did both MindStorms activities which involved two 45 minute sessions of playing with robots. That was the highlight of the
day for him. It did get more crowded as the day went on but was
manageable.
Sunday was the Maritime Museum -- five ships -- then on to the USS
Midway. We only got to see three decks of the Midway. I suggest going on the Island (upper deck) tour first because you have to wait in line and they only take about 20 people at a time to the command areas of the ship. DS got to sit in the Air Boss' chair.
Monday was the San Diego Zoo. Like good Disney folks we hot footed it at
opening to the Panda Exhibit to see the baby panda. We didn't have to wait
in line and could take our time and enjoy. The panda was very cute! We
took the bus ride that covers a good part of the zoo. It was included in our ticket price but well worth the $3 if you had to pay separately. The
koalas were also a big hit. Again as the day wore on the crowds increased.
Tuesday we went to Sea World. DH and DS rode Journey to Atlantis
right off the bat. They were glad to have the Sea World $5 ponchos because it was cold and they got wet. Later we took the Animal Spotlight Tour. This was a great tour -- we got to feed and pat the dolphins, feed moray eels and sea turtles. We probably would not have enjoyed the day as much if we had not done the tour. We finished with Believe which is a great show if you have not seen it.
Wednesday we went to Wild Animal Park. Driving to Escondido was the
first time that we could really see where the fires were last year. We saw
the butterfly exhibit and took the Safari tour as we only had a few hours.
This was another great tour -- only 10 people are on the tour and they take
you right back by the animals. We even got to see the vets darting an
antelope to vaccinate it -- which was a lot more interesting than it sounds. We had to leave at noon to catch the plane home.
I wasn't sure how I would feel being so close to Disneyland and not
going there but we had so much fun I didn't miss it as much as I thought I
would -- having another Disney trip in the works helped no doubt. As DH
said, you can really appreciate the Disney magic when you go someplace else.
My best suggestion is to study the maps online of the parks and make a plan of what you want to do. It really helps if you are unfamiliar with the parks to avoid needless zigzagging and missing something that you really want to see.
Also, for those of you going in the next few weeks there are lots of, er, "spring activities" going on in the parks -- DS knows about the birds and the bees but I heard lots of parents who were trying to distract their kids and hemmng and hawing so have whatever your answer is about such activities at the ready.
I will post a few pics and be happy to answer any questions if anyone
has any.
