How would we even do this?

[WDWAurora]

We have never been to the west coast. LA area is one of our vacation possibilities. We would probably do 2 days of Disneyland (I’m trying to negotiate a 3rd). Baseball game. Tour of sofi stadium. My husband and sons would want to see outdoor things probably? Aren’t there hiking trails? And beaches. We live in a coastal state, so don’t need a full beach vacation or anything. I just don’t know where to start. Must dos. I look at lists and a lot of things aren’t for us. Maybe some kind of sightseeing tour one day to get an overview? Is that a thing? Would we stay in one place or need to move?

 

[China Expat]

Wow. A lot of questions. Can you narrow this a bit? How many days for non-Disney things? WHat have you taken off your list?

 

[lorimt]

We did a similar vacation a few years ago. I would recommend getting a hotel around Disneyland for those days and then something closer to LA for the rest of the stay. The traffic there is almost always awful and driving back and forth will take a lot of time. Griffith Observatory is a good place to hike. The views are great and you can see the Hollywood sign from there. The only beach I have been to in the area is Zuma but it is a bit of a drive from LA.

 

[WDWAurora]

Wow. A lot of questions. Can you narrow this a bit? How many days for non-Disney things? WHat have you taken off your list?

LOL I’m not sure I even know anyone who has gone to LA recently so I’m overwhelmed.

We will probably do a total of 9 days. Saturday until the next Sunday ish. I assume Disney would need to be in the middle bc I think it’s less crowded on weekdays. My husband is not overly interested in city things, like museums, or celebrity themed things. Those seem to be what I have been finding.

 

[sjmac42]

OK, 8 nights is a good amount of time for LA and Disneyland and there is plenty to do.
You have many possibilities but the main thing you need to do is when visiting Disneyland, stay near Disneyland. When visiting LA, stay in LA. You do not want to be commuting between LA and Disneyland multiple times. Also look at airports besides LAX to fly in and out of. SNA (Santa Ana John Wayve airport) is close to Disneyland. LGB (Long Beach) and BUR (Burbank) are in the LA area. I’m assuming you’ll be arriving from some other location in the USA which means these airports should be easy enough for you to use.
So I would keep pushing for 3 days at Disneyland. There are close to 100 attractions between the 2 parks as well as Knotts Berry Farm nearby. There are also great beachside towns near Anaheim, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. You could land at SNA and visit one or 2 of these areas on your arrival day, they are about 20-30 mins from SNA and 15-40 mins from the Disneyland Resort Area (DLR) depending on traffic. Great shopping at the Outlets at Orange as well 10-15 mins from the DLR if that interests you.
For accommodation in Anameim, there are literally dozens of hotels and motels within 5-20 mins walk of the parks. The ones along S Harbor from S Manchester down to W Katella are the best located with plenty of dining options and easy access to the parks.
4n in Anaheim and 4n in LA would be a good mix.
As for LA, you could spend days hiking just in Griffith Park but there’s plenty of other places to do so. There are plenty of trails in the Santa Monica Mountains and Topanga State Park inland from Malibu and the Pacific Palisades. You can rent bikes along the coast and ride the bike paths around Santa Monica, Venice Beach or Manhattan Beach. You can walk from Lake Hollywood Park up to the Hollywood sign and there are trails and lookouts all around the Hollywood Hills, Laurel Canyon and Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook.
you may not like Museums but how about seeing a real Space Shuttle at the California Science Centre? Or the La Brea Tarpits, geological activity right in the middle of the city. Or The Getty Centre with incredible views across the city? Or the Petersen Automotive Museum with cars from the movies, famous race cars and vintage cars. You also have the Original Farmers Market, Grand Central Market, Olvera Street, Santa Monica (including the Pier), Koreatown, LA Live area, Universal Studios and plenty of shopping.
As for where to stay in LA, depends on your Budget but Beverly Hills, Beverly Grove, Hollywood, West Hollywood and Santa Monica are all good options.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I live in So Cal so 9 days seems like a long time to me - but there are a ton of things to do. I will add to @sjmac42;
Since you want to see the beach but don't necessarily want to spend a lot of time at the beach, how about a side trip to San Diego? You can take the train from Anaheim to San Diego. It goes right along the coast and is an absolutely gorgeous ride. NOTE: Train is part bus ride on weekdays due to some track damage in San Clemente - so go on the weekend. The train station in San Diego is at the US Midway museum. We just went for the first time a couple of weeks ago and absolutely loved it. It's run by veterans, many of whom were stationed on the ship itself. My favorite part was chatting with a veteran in the situation room about Operation Desert Storm. He was able to point to the very chair he sat in during the invasion. If you decide to drive down there the Wild Animal Park and San Diego Zoo are phenomenal. IMHO, the best wild animals are in La Jolla - there are a ton of sea lions on the beach there. Could make a stop at LegoLand and Sea World too. DO NOT go to the pier in Santa Monica - go ride the roller coaster at Mission Beach instead. It is a far better experience.
The other really cool museums in So Cal are the Regan and Nixon libraries. The Regan library has Air Force 1 and, having lived through his administration, I found it to be very interesting and frankly pretty moving.
We also just went to a Ducks game - so happy to report how amazing, and affordable that still is! We got (good) upper level seats for $30 and no Ticketmaster fees. If you can catch a game while you are here I highly recommend it.

 

[Douglas Dubh]

There’s the US Iowa in the Port of Los Angeles, a medieval times in Buena Park, and studio tours.

 

[bcla]

For hiking, there is Angeles National Forest or San Bernardino National Forest. That’s some heavy duty hiking where it’s important to be prepared, even in the summer. Julian Sands (at this point likely just his body) still hasn't been found after hiking near Mt Baldy.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/angeles
https://www.fs.usda.gov/sbnf

 

[China Expat]

We loved the Warner Bros and Paramount Studios tours. Exploring the burial sites of numerous long gone celebrities is fun at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, and similar at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale. Pasadena is a fabulous town/place for strolling and eating.

 

[Chili327]

SoFi is amazing.!! (but not sure how worth it if there isnt a game of some kind going on)
Id say make a list of the types of things you want to see/do and put them in order of priority, then post that list here and get suggestions in which is best or better per location, etc.

 

[bcla]

SoFi is amazing.!! (but not sure how worth it if there isnt a game of some kind going on)

They have stadium tours that include experiences that just aren't possible on game days. Frankly seems kind of fun for some of the higher level tours. Being able to go on the field and doing a tunnel run seems interesting.

https://am.ticketmaster.com/lased/tours

 

[chezcurrie]

With 9 days and not interested in museums or celebrity things I would definitely plan to head down to San Diego - I live here so not biased at all . Lumpy1106 had some great recommendations. Definitely recommend renting a car.

If this were me I would structure the trip as such:

2-3 nights in LA: tour Sofi, baseball game, 1 day hiking and see Griffith observatory at night. Then meander down to OC, stopping at the Tar Pits or another interest on the way.

3 days in Disneyland (2 is NOT enough, add the extra day)

3 days in San Diego: do the zoo &/or safari park (they need a day each so either pick one or plan on 2 days), La Jolla Cove really should not be missed (if you really want to do more adventure stuff do a kayak tour and paraglide off of Torrey Pines - its amazing!) Lots of great hiking trails as well! Petco Park was named #1 MLB stadium so you could catch a padres game as well. If you do, get tacos from Puesto. There is something so fun about eating amazing tacos (they are soooo good) at a ballgame.

(IMO you can skip Legoland completely unless you have a super lego fan in the family. Aside from the city recreations it falls severely short for me. Especially after Disneyland. Very expensive day for not much to do.)

EDIT: added some details

 

[Chili327]

2-3 nights in LA: tour Sofi, baseball game, 1 day hiking and see Griffith observatory at night. Then meander down to OC, stopping at the Tar Pits or another interest on the way.

The game should be in Anaheim (Angels Stadium is 3min from Disneyland)... no one should go to a Dodgers game.

 

[LKing]

My husband is not overly interested in city things, like museums, or celebrity themed things.

We did the SoFi tour and really enjoyed it. We did not opt for the $15 hot dog or photo and didn't miss them. The area around SoFi is still developing and isn't the safest. You may want to head out to the beach to eat afterwards. Each beach has a different personality/feel. If you've never been, Santa Monica and Venice are something that you should see. Personally, I feel Manhattan Beach is nicer but it depends on what you are looking for. If you have time, Palos Verdes has some beautiful coastal hikes.

Southern California has so much to offer but traffic is a bear. If you aren't interested in city/Hollywood/celebrity type stuff then you probably don't want to trek out to Griffith Park or hike to the Hollywood sign. How about Joshua Tree? That might be different for someone from a coastal area.

I'm not all that knowledgeable about military or ships and I thought the Midway in SD was well done. On the way down, the sea lions along the coast of La Jolla were pretty amazing. We spent longer there than expected. I also agree that Angel stadium is nicer and easier than Dodger Stadium, especially if you don't want to see the city.

Edit: What month/season will you be here? And how old are your kids?

 

[WDWAurora]

Ok I’m back finally. Trying to nail down a slightly organized itinerary. We would be traveling in July or early August. Probably July. Here’s what I have started:

Day 1: fly in
Day 2: Warner bros studio tour, Griffith park and observatory
Day 3: parks (westridge canyonback/topanga), Peterson automotive museum, so fi tour
Day 4: beaches
Day 5-7: Disneyland
Day 8: angels game
Day 9: fly home

I have some days too stacked and some under stacked. I’m going to have to see how many more days my husband can take off. I’d like to do a bus tour or something that just drives us around and talks maybe?

Kind of thinking fly into Burbank and out of John Wayne?

Kids are 13 and 10, both boys.

 

[Chili327]

Day 2 & 3: Personally, i'd put "westridge canyonback/topanga" on day 2 (Valley) & do Hollywood driving bus tour on Day 3 along with Peterson Museum & SoFi... although two hikes in one day may not be ideal either. lol (or just hike around Griffith Park instead of Topanga)

Day 4: Santa Monica/Venice, or Manhattan/Hermosa... unless you want to get down to Orange County then go to the beach then id Say Huntington, maybe Long Beach on the way down? (Not much for beaches, except down by Seal Beach is nice) You could do Belmont Shore (Long Beach), Seal Beach, & Huntington.

Day 5-7: 3-Day Hopper?

Day 8: Mid July, Astros or Yankees are in Town

Fly into Burbank, & Out of John Wayne or Long Beach, whichever has the right flight.

 

[WDWAurora]

Day 2 & 3: Personally, i'd put "westridge canyonback/topanga" on day 2 (Valley) & do Hollywood driving bus tour on Day 3 along with Peterson Museum & SoFi... although two hikes in one day may not be ideal either. lol (or just hike around Griffith Park instead of Topanga)

Day 4: Santa Monica/Venice, or Manhattan/Hermosa... unless you want to get down to Orange County then go to the beach then id Say Huntington, maybe Long Beach on the way down? (Not much for beaches, except down by Seal Beach is nice) You could do Belmont Shore (Long Beach), Seal Beach, & Huntington.

Day 5-7: 3-Day Hopper?

Day 8: Mid July, Astros or Yankees are in Town

Fly into Burbank, & Out of John Wayne or Long Beach, whichever has the right flight.

Helpful, thanks! Don’t know that we would hike in multiple spots.

 

[sjmac42]

Into BUR and out of SNA makes sense. If you do the WB tour then go to Griffith Park, you could easily do a hike there. Griffith Park has dozens of walks for you to do, Fern Dell is probably the prettiest. Leaves day 3 free for Petersen, Farmers Market, La Brea Tarpits (all close together) and some of the other things mentioned in post #16 or an LA city tour. If you want to do a tour, I’d do a morning one on day 2, they usually start near the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood and take 2-3 hours. That should still give you time for WB and Griffith Park with the Fern Dell walk.

 

[WDWAurora]

Into BUR and out of SNA makes sense. If you do the WB tour then go to Griffith Park, you could easily do a hike there. Griffith Park has dozens of walks for you to do, Fern Dell is probably the prettiest. Leaves day 3 free for Petersen, Farmers Market, La Brea Tarpits (all close together) and some of the other things mentioned in post #16 or an LA city tour. If you want to do a tour, I’d do a morning one on day 2, they usually start near the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood and take 2-3 hours. That should still give you time for WB and Griffith Park with the Fern Dell walk.

Helpful, thanks! Realized I left off la brea and I want to do that!

 

[WDWAurora]

Ok, revised plan.

Day 1: fly in (Malibu? Hiking? Beverly Hills? Time dependent)
Day 2: Bus tour of some kind, Warner bros tour, Griffith park/observatory
Day 3: Peterson auto museum, so fi tour, la brea, farmers market (just a normal one?)
Day 4: beaches, maybe USS Iowa? Probably Santa Monica/Venice
Day 5-8: Anaheim for 3 days of DL and a baseball game
Day 9: fly home