Is it time to go yet? Our FIRST trip to DL!

[sandy6879]

Ah so I've been reading all the trip reports on this site and decided to give one a shot. Let's start this off right:

Cast of characters
Me (Sandy) 29

DH 31

DD11

Little background, we are WDW vets. We've been 4 times (going to be 5) in the past 5 years. We're from the northeast, so we don't go as often as I'd like. DD is getting to the age where she's almost done with the Disney thing (til she gets older and decides it's pretty cool after all) so I wanted to get in another trip before she decides she's too old to go to Disney.

I'm a planaholic so I've spent a considerable amount of time reading and rereading tips - I'm hoping that it works out as well as I've planned!

Details of the trip:
Leave July 16th from Hartford EARLY. 7:30AM our time, arrive at 12noon CA time. We're flying into Burbank because I had free flights and that's what they had available for the dates we wanted. We took it. We'll rent a car from the airport and drive. We're staying at Hojo's based on the good reviews here and on TripAdvisor.com.

We have 5 day park hoppers, so I'm planning on 3 full days in the park and 2 partials. The day we arrive will be one of the partials. Once we get to the hotel, check in, freshen up, it's off to the parks!

We're staying til July 23rd, so we'll have 6.5 days in the area. In that time, we're planning on hitting Universal, Knotts, and doing an LA tour. DH went to DL when he was a kid but it was so long ago he doesn't remember much. He wasn't impressed by it so I've been convincing him that it has changed a lot in the past 20 or 25 years. The one thing he WANTED to do was go to Knotts since he didn't go there when he was young.

So far, the only dining reservation I have is for Blue Bayou on the 16th for dinner. I know it's pricy but it'll be our first day and I'm sure we'll be tired and want to sit down and relax somewhere for dinner. Need to work on which days we'll be actually in the park vs which days we want to go to Universal, Knotts, and the tour. I'm leaning towards doing the tour on either Saturday or Sunday to avoid the weekend crowds at the parks for at least one day.

Stay tuned. . . I'll update as decisions get made!

PS - if anyone has tips for resizing pics, I'd love to hear them!! This is the first time for posting them. Thanks!

 

[sandy6879]

Preliminary Schedule for our trip -

Wed July 16 - arrive at BUR at 12 Noon. Head over to get the rental car, drive down to Anaheim, check in to the hotel, drop our bags and off to DL! PS at Blue Bayou for dinner and if we're not too exhausted, I'd like to stay as close to closing as possible.

Thurs July 17 and Friday July 18 - DL and CA for the day, hopping as needed and back to the hotel for a rest if we feel we need it. I'm also planning on trying to avoid going to DLR on a weekend.

Saturday July 19 - Universal Studios Hollywood. I'll be driving through the area and I'm not sure I'm up to dealing with LA traffic just yet on a weekday. I was thinking to go back to Disneyland after we're done there for another partial but we might do some local sightseeing on our own.

Sunday July 20 - tour of LA. We need to finalize this still. I think we'll be going on a tour of LA through one of the touring companies but I do want to look over a few other possibilities.

Monday July 21 - Knott's Berry Farm, I don't think it will take all day so we'll probably end up back at DLR for our 2nd partial day.

Tues July 22 - Last full day in CA. We'll go through DL and CA and finish up anything we didn't ride yet and go on anything we'd like to repeat.

Wed July 23 - Our flight leaves close to 2PM so we'll hang around the hotel in the morning, let DD go into the pool for a bit, and then head on back to the airport around 11 or so.

I'd love feedback on the touring plan, especially if people think that we should do something else on certain days based on how busy those locations will be. Getting excited, we're just over a week away!

 

[LVdisneyChick]

sounds like fun...hope you enjoy!!!

 

[chickyann]

sounds like lots of fun

 

[MA pigletfan]

sounds like fun! i will be sure to read up on your adventures..my fiance' and i will be going to DL for the first time ourselves in Oct....

 

[mommaU4]

Hi there!

Everything sounds great. I hope your DH likes DL and leaves with new fun memories of the place. I grew up in SoCal and used to live in Burbank. We had APs to Universal and DL and loved it. Can't wait to hear all about your trip.
Are you planning to go to the Disney Soda Fountain while in L.A.?

We were there last month and it was fun. I have some pics in my TR here on this board. Oh, and speaking of pics, you were asking about resizing.... If you have them in a photobucket account, just click on the pic you want to resize and there will be an option at the top to edit and resize it.

 

[ydrj]

Preliminary Schedule for our trip -

Wed July 16 - arrive at BUR at 12 Noon. Head over to get the rental car, drive down to Anaheim, check in to the hotel, drop our bags and off to DL! PS at Blue Bayou for dinner and if we're not too exhausted, I'd like to stay as close to closing as possible.

Thurs July 17 and Friday July 18 - DL and CA for the day, hopping as needed and back to the hotel for a rest if we feel we need it. I'm also planning on trying to avoid going to DLR on a weekend.

Saturday July 19 - Universal Studios Hollywood. I'll be driving through the area and I'm not sure I'm up to dealing with LA traffic just yet on a weekday. I was thinking to go back to Disneyland after we're done there for another partial but we might do some local sightseeing on our own.

Sunday July 20 - tour of LA. We need to finalize this still. I think we'll be going on a tour of LA through one of the touring companies but I do want to look over a few other possibilities.

Monday July 21 - Knott's Berry Farm, I don't think it will take all day so we'll probably end up back at DLR for our 2nd partial day.

Tues July 22 - Last full day in CA. We'll go through DL and CA and finish up anything we didn't ride yet and go on anything we'd like to repeat.

Wed July 23 - Our flight leaves close to 2PM so we'll hang around the hotel in the morning, let DD go into the pool for a bit, and then head on back to the airport around 11 or so.

I'd love feedback on the touring plan, especially if people think that we should do something else on certain days based on how busy those locations will be. Getting excited, we're just over a week away!

Just as a FYI, during the week, Knott's Berry Farm is the home to a lot of summer camps going there as day trips. So they can thicken lines very fast and kids can get roudy at times. Maybe you'll be lucky and Monday are off days for summer camps!

 

[sandy6879]

Our park tickets FINALLY got here yesterday. I was a little concerned with how close they cut things. So, a week in advance and we have a nice packet of coupons and discounts to use in the area. We also got an ART pass, which I thought I had declined. Since we'll have a rental car, is the ART something we'd make use of, having never been to the area? I looked online but didn't see much in terms of the buses going anywhere except the various hotels, but I could be wrong.

In any case, it makes things that much more exciting to have the package in hand. I called and confirmed our reservations at Howard Johnson as well. I put in a request for the room, asking for pretty much anywhere except overlooking the freeway. Less than a week away now!

 

[tofubeast]

Knott's is a pretty big park. I would not consider it a half day park. Make sure you spend some good time in the Ghost Town section of the park. Lots of fun stuff to see. And be sure to have dinner at the famous chicken place. Boysenberry pie is a must!

Have a great time. CAn't wait to read all about it when you get back!