Hooray for Hollywood (and Disneyland)!

[3inthefamily]

Hi!

I am attempting my first trip report. I am a long time lurker on the boards and have always meant to do my own....but its so much easier just reading everyone else's!

I need to figure out the picture portion of things, until then I will have to just use my best describing words!

So, my first trip to DW was in 2006 when my son was 3 and a half. Since then we have gone back too many times to count. We are HOOKED! We bought DVC a couple of years ago and are now trying out something new...

THE WEST COAST!


Ever since I was a little girl I have wanted to go to Hollywood. The big white sign, the stars on the sidewalks, the movie studios and the cemented footprints were like fairy tales to me. I was a movie buff...and I say was because becoming a parent has put a hold on that...and a voracious reader of anything Hollywood related. Biographies, sordid tales of the dark side of Hollywood, the glamourous side, you name it.

As a teenager it was all Pretty Woman (and wanting to stay at the Regent Beverly Wilshire), and 90210.

Here I am, pushing 40 and I have not been to see any of these places. So, when my husband asked where we should vacation this year I chose Southern California.

I have a list a mile long of what to see and do, but Im having a hell of a time putting it all together. That's where YOU come in! Any ideas, suggestions, tips are appreciated!

Small bio: Me, Randi 39. I am in the process of changing jobs and am supposedly going to be the Special Needs Coordinator at the local YMCA in the Fall. As of now I am doing this at the day camp. OMG, I am TIRED! Camp is fun..but I'm feeling my age as the oldest one there! DH is 43 and fortunately as into Disney as I am. He went often as a child and we still go with his brother every year. Just a big kid. DS is 9, our last year to be considered a child at Disney!! Adult prices for him start next year!

Here is the plan so far...

We fly out on a Friday from JFK on Virgin America. I chose this airline because it looked cool. It sounds silly, right? I was impressed with the outlets at each seat! Between the 3 of us we have an iPad, 2 iPhones, and a Nintendo DS. We will surely need the outlets. They also have tv's at each seat and supposedly you can order food from these tv's?? COOL!

We arrive at LAX and pick up a car. I had enough credit card points for a $200 Avis gift card so we will have to use that. Still haven't booked but the cheapest rate I saw there was about $369 for the 10 days we are there.

From LAX we will drive to Anaheim, I guess. I don't know if I want to scout around LA yet with all of our luggage. Probably a bad idea, right?

What is the weather like in the second half of August? I saw temps in upper 80's but I am confused about humidity. Do they have that there? It's pretty gross here in CT, and I was hoping to get away from that in California. I would also like to have to not pack bottles and bottles of Frizz-Ease products.

Ok, my battery life is at a 9% now...I could sure use one of those outlets right about now. Back to add more soon!

 

[3inthefamily]

Back again...no DL/LA advice yet? Ok, I'll keep talking.

So, we will drive to Anaheim when we arrive at LAX. No idea if we will be able to check in, but we are staying at the Grand Californian Villas. I am assuming they are like most other DVC studios. There is a small refrigerator, microwave and toaster. We will need to get some food for the room...we are used to doing the meal plans at Disney World and will be winging it here in DL. I want to hit a Target or some other market to get some breakfast food, snacks, water, etc so we can save a bit of $ and not buy every bit of food in a park or restaurant. Any suggestions for the best place to do this?

We supposedly have free parking with our DVC membership, so that's cool. We will probably just explore the hotel, or Downtown Disney our first night. I think we are going to try to go to Trader Sam's in the Disneyland Hotel. It looks SO cool and kids can go in before 8. The prices are really reasonable, and the menu looks good to all 3 of us!

http://allears.net/dlr/din/menu/men_tsam.htm

So this will be our arrival day, and our next day is a Saturday. Are the parks nuts on the weekend? I was thinking that we would wait until Monday (If I can stand it) and just go up to Hollywood.

From what I understand the Hollywood & Highland area has good parking, a view of the Hollywood sign, close to Graumann's, Walk of Fame, El Capitan and the little Disney Ice Cream Shop. Cinderella will be playing at the El Capitan and I would like to go...it sounds like a unique experience to see a movie there.

No idea how long this will take. I want to go to Griffith Observatory, and to fulfill my morbid curiosity...the cemetery where Marilyn Monroe is buried. On the list is also the Farmer's Market, and the Tar Pits. Can we do this all in a day? No idea!

 

[DisneytheKid]

No advice yet, just enjoying the PTR

 

[kmedina]

I'm in. I'd be happy to offer advice or answer questions along the way. I love Pretty Woman too. It is my all time favorite movie. I never even thought about seeing the Regent Beverly Wilshire before. We've driven by it, but now thanks to your suggestion, I will have to go inside of it someday.

So this will be our arrival day, and our next day is a Saturday. Are the parks nuts on the weekend? I was thinking that we would wait until Monday (If I can stand it) and just go up to Hollywood.

From what I understand the Hollywood & Highland area has good parking, a view of the Hollywood sign, close to Graumann's, Walk of Fame, El Capitan and the little Disney Ice Cream Shop. Cinderella will be playing at the El Capitan and I would like to go...it sounds like a unique experience to see a movie there.

No idea how long this will take. I want to go to Griffith Observatory, and to fulfill my morbid curiosity...the cemetery where Marilyn Monroe is buried. On the list is also the Farmer's Market, and the Tar Pits. Can we do this all in a day? No idea!

The parks are very busy on the weekends in the summer time. As a Disney nut, I would still suggest you go in. You could make those your Hollywood days as we love going there as well.

Hollywood and Highland is a great place to park. If you buy something at the mall or watch Cinderella at El Capitan, you can get your parking validated. We saw Brave there opening weekend and missed getting back by our alotted free validation time by a few minutes. It still only cost us $3 to park there rather than the $15 places who rip off tourists who are not aware. Definitely watch Cinderella at the El Capitan if you get a chance. We have watched at Graumans too, but I prefer El Capitan. Sometimes they have events set up scross the street or have a live stage show before the movie included with the ticket price. The Soda Fountain next to El Capitan is all right. The food has actually improved there over the past few years.

I have never been to the Griffith Observatory, so I have no advice there. You may need more than a day to do everything. Then again, I could and have spent hours at the Farmer's Market/Grove alone. Please get donuts from Bob's or eat at the French Crepe Company if you go to the Farmer's Market. If you do not make it to the market, Hollywood and Highland has a French Crepe Company as well that is almost as good.

 

[nancy drew]

Yay! You started it!!

I'm not help on Hollywood, but I can answer any DLR questions you may have.

 

[mickimousemama]

I'm excited to follow your TR My DD7 has been BEGGING to go to Hollywood, so we are planning a surprise trip in February for her 8th birthday We are driving from Minnesota, so I know it will be a LONG trip but I can't wait!!

 

[disneyismyheart247]

Hello! First I wanted to say that Pretty Woman is my favorite movie too! I can quote it very well. "Oh no, I've got a runner in my pantyhose..."

I am from and live in the City of Angels, aka Los Angeles so I'm here to help. Hollywood and Highland is the tourist spot. Like you've already said, you'll find the real Graumann's Theatre, the famous El Capitan Theatre, the Walk of Fame and a whole bunch of other things too. Just a little warning, there are a lot of weird people in Hollywood, but you'll be fine. The Disney Soda Fountain is good and their ice cream is excellent, so you can't miss that! Since you're a big movie buff/Hollywood lover, I would suggest visiting the Hollywood Museum. It's a got some VERY cool things in there, like props and the jail cell from the Silence of the Lambs. I think an LA your would be cool for you too because they take you to the beach, Beverly Hills, celebrity homes and other places.

One could easily spend hours at Farmers Market and the Grove, as I like to, and I would save that for an entire day. Farmers Market is the best and the Grove is great. You can see a movie there, there are plenty of shops and eateries. You'll love it and you might even see a celebrity. If you go there, I would suggest going across the street and trying Andre's Italian. DELICIOUS. And pretty cheap too.

How about some movie tours? Universal Studios' backlot tour is amazing and Warner Bros has a great tour too. Paramount Studios has a great tour too. Let me know if you have anymore questions! Oh, one more thing! Since you love the Hollywood image, I suggest you try In N Out Burger, Pink's, and Original Tommy's. Those three fast food establishments are California originals, and the food of the stars and the celebrities.

 

[kmedina]

"Oh no, I've got a run in my pantyhose..."

*runner







I agree with you on everything, especially the fast food restaurants. They have copies in Vegas but all of the ones in Cali are better.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[disneyismyheart247]

*runner







I agree with you on everything, especially the fast food restaurants. They have copies in Vegas but all of the ones in Cali are better.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

Ah, you're right! I gotta fix that, thank you! One of my favorite scenes/lines is when Vivian walks into the store, looking sharp and she asks the lady "You work on commision? Big mistake! Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now."

I actually have never tried the restaurants in any other states but I've heard they're good, just not as good as the California ones. I can definitely believe that because I hear a lot of hoopla about Five Guys and really, it's not all that to me. I bet if I go to the East coast and eat Five Guys there, it would taste a lot better.

 

[3inthefamily]

How about some movie tours? Universal Studios' backlot tour is amazing and Warner Bros has a great tour too. Paramount Studios has a great tour too. Let me know if you have anymore questions! Oh, one more thing! Since you love the Hollywood image, I suggest you try In N Out Burger, Pink's, and Original Tommy's. Those three fast food establishments are California originals, and the food of the stars and the celebrities.[/QUOTE]

Totally planning to hit In N Out. Pink's is a possibility....and I have to go to Randy's Donuts. Not because I like donuts (If you need to know they just repeat on me all day long. Ugh!) but because of the HUGE donut that say's RANDY'S on it. Not exactly the same spelling as my name but close enough! I also remember it from the opening sequence of 90201 or Melrose or one of those shows I was obsessed with back in the day! It was also in Iron Man 2 so my son will like that!

As for the Pretty Woman quotes...Big mistake, big, HUGE has always been a favorite. So many to count. At one point I could probably quote the whole movie!

So all I have now is our hotels, our flights, and our unexpected but appreciated free front of the line tickets to Universal! I was thinking of getting a 3 day Disneyland hopper pass. That should be enough, right? I also need to get a rental car. I traded in some credit card points for an Avis gift card so I will have to go through them to get it. My dreams of a convertible were dashed when I saw the cost around $800 for the 10 days. Yikes. I'd rather spend it on other things.

Here is my latest question....

Our first night we are going to take it easy and go to Trader Sam's for dinner. Maybe walk around Downtown Disney. Can any fireworks or shows be seen from the Grand Californian or anywhere else? I am not sure what time we should go to bed...no idea how the time difference will feel to us.

That's it for now! Oh...one more question about pictures! Does it HAVE to be Photobucket? Is there something else I can try?

Randi

 

[nancy drew]

Speaking of Pretty Woman, I saw 2 parts of it being filmed when I was in high school. We were staying at the Westwood somethingoranother hotel, and I was sitting out by the pool. I noticed some women in a cabana behind me, and lights/cameras, and figured they were doing a photo shoot (it was a gorgeous pool area). My mom came down and saw it too, and said later that she thought the women looked like prostitutes. We didn't think to ask what was being filmed, and of course this was before everyone had a cell phone with a camera so we didn't take photos of it, either. A few months later, we went to see the movie together, and during the scene where Julia Roberts' friend comes to visit her at the hotel and they go sit outside for lunch, I nearly jumped out of my seat and grabbed my mom, loud-whispering something along the lines of "That's at the hotel we were staying in! Those are the women who were out there that day at the pool!!"

The other part, well, we didn't see anyone but the crew, but a family friend was driving us through the hills and we came upon a house that had a movie crew outside. The friend, who lives in the area and has the sense to ask these kinds of questions, pulled over and asked what was being filmed and who was in it, and they said it was a movie with Richard Gere.

So there you go!

 

[3inthefamily]

Speaking of Pretty Woman, I saw 2 parts of it being filmed when I was in high school. We were staying at the Westwood somethingoranother hotel, and I was sitting out by the pool. I noticed some women in a cabana behind me, and lights/cameras, and figured they were doing a photo shoot (it was a gorgeous pool area). My mom came down and saw it too, and said later that she thought the women looked like prostitutes. We didn't think to ask what was being filmed, and of course this was before everyone had a cell phone with a camera so we didn't take photos of it, either. A few months later, we went to see the movie together, and during the scene where Julia Roberts' friend comes to visit her at the hotel and they go sit outside for lunch, I nearly jumped out of my seat and grabbed my mom, loud-whispering something along the lines of "That's at the hotel we were staying in! Those are the women who were out there that day at the pool!!"

The other part, well, we didn't see anyone but the crew, but a family friend was driving us through the hills and we came upon a house that had a movie crew outside. The friend, who lives in the area and has the sense to ask these kinds of questions, pulled over and asked what was being filmed and who was in it, and they said it was a movie with Richard Gere.

So there you go!

That's a great story! Can you imagine a time without cell phone cameras?
I was in my senior year of high school when the movie came out...I can even remember where I was when I saw it (visiting my grandmother in FL) and what I was wearing (white denim shorts from the Gap and a black t shirt). Of course I have NO idea what I did 5 minutes ago, but I can remember ridiculous details from over 20 years ago!

 

[3inthefamily]

Well, while planning for this trip that we are taking in a few short weeks, an opportunity arose that we could not pass up.

My parents live in South Florida, about 3 hours from Disney World. We go visit them every Thanksgiving and this year we will be staying for a week and I will be turning f-f-f-forty! I'm not terribly excited about that part of the trip.

Anyway, my baby cousin is down at Disney World doing the College Program for 6 months. He is stuck working in Dinoland at Animal Kingdom, our least favorite Disney place! But...he is able to get a nice discount on a room, and take the day off and bring us into the park on his pass. SO! We got a Royal Room at Port Orleans for a night and free entry to Magic Kingdom! How could I pass this up??? I am SO excited to see the new expansion and it should be open by then. I am waiting to make a reservation at the Be Our Guest restaurant for the night we are there.

When it comes to WDW I am super organized. DL...guess because it is all unknown its harder for me. Plus the LA/San Diego stuff is all new too. I'm getting there!