Newbee to SoCal ,first draft at itinerary

[rp811]

Hi all ,
having been to Florida a few times we have decided to enjoy a 3 week trip to California in late June/Early July. I have drafted up an itinerary but I am struggling to decide how much time to dedicate to each theme park . There will be four of us , me , DW & 2 sons ( 18 & 14 ) . DW loves everything Disney so may opt for 5 day hopper , the 3 kids in the family are coaster fans so maybe 5 or 7 day Go LA card for Six Flags , Universal , Knotts Berry & day passes for Seaworld & Zoo . We are basing ourselves in a condo in Anaheim as we don't fancy packing & unpacking. Any advice from more knowledgeable travellers would be most appreciated.

1. Fri 22nd June Travel from Edinburgh to Anaheim
2. Sat 23rd June Universal Studios
3. Sun 24th June Day off- Drive up to Valencia
4. Mon 25th June Six Flags Magic Mountain
5. Tue 26th June Six Flags Magic Mountain
6. Wed 27th June Day Off-Shopping
7. Thu 28th June Knotts Berry Farm
8. Fri 29th June Universal Studios
9. Sat 30th June Huntington Beach
10. Sun 1st July Downtown Disney
11. Mon 2nd July Disneyland
12. Tue 3rd July California Adventure
13. Wed 4th July Day Off- Drive down to San Diego
14. Thu 5th July Seaworld
15. Fri 6th July San Diego Zoo-Drive back
16. Sat 7th July Beach
17. Sun 8th July Day Off- Shopping
18. Mon 9th July Disneyland
19. Tue 10th July California Adventure
20. Wed 11th July Day at leisure
21. Thu 12th July Day at leisure
22. Fri 13th July Travel Home to not so sunny Scotland

 

[rpbert1]

We go back this year as yet have not done any parks, so much more to see and do.
planning maybe Universal for a day, but doing Vegas again, planning camping at Grand canyon and San Francisco for a few days, and going to prob 2 dodgers games as never went the last time.
thats quite a bit of driving to be done, and remember to count in the LA traffic which can be horrendous

 

[rp811]

thats quite a bit of driving to be done, and remember to count in the LA traffic which can be horrendous

we are used to driving to the theme parks in Florida as we usually stay in Davenport but realise that LA traffic is so much busier so our condo is only 5 min drive from Disney ( or a walk if we feel like it). Hopefully be up early with jetlag on first day to avoid traffic to Universal .As for Valencia & San Diego will take a slow drive to both & stay overnight

 

[rpbert1]

hope you have a good time, we are theme parked out with orlando over the last 7 years.
was in Vegas & LA in 2010 after Orlando, and not really fussed on the parks esp Disney, which is why we are only doing the one either Universal or Magic Mountain.
the rest of our stay will take in Vegas twice, grand Canyon, San Fran, Long Beach where we will travel to and from the Dodgers games, hopefully a concert , and stay in Yucca valley in the desert the rest of the time, which is absolutley georgeous and temps are ideal

 

[rpbert1]

we are used to driving to the theme parks in Florida as we usually stay in Davenport but realise that LA traffic is so much busier so our condo is only 5 min drive from Disney ( or a walk if we feel like it). Hopefully be up early with jetlag on first day to avoid traffic to Universal .As for Valencia & San Diego will take a slow drive to both & stay overnight

Just to say, Orlando is nothing like driving in LA, so do not expect it to be similar , it is a nightmare at times [quite a lot of the time].
we left Santa Monica when we where there at 4.30 heading to Huntington beach for Weezer concert at the surfing championships, We never made it, the traffic was that bad, took us nearly 3 hours to get to long Beach

 

[rp811]

Can certainly appreciate the feeling of being all parked out & can only hope that the traffic doesn't curtail our enjoyment. If we enjoy west coast this year , then looking to do Las Vegas & San Francisco next year

 

[rpbert1]

What about hollywood Blvd, not that i was that impressed with it, but shame not to go for about an hour or so, and maybe a baseball game when there, you might enjoy that. I find there is quite a lot more diverse things to see and do other than parks.
We spent 5 nights camping in Sequoia national Park the last time, DWs first time camping ,and was not looking forward to it, but absolutly loved it, had a bear go past our first morning when having breakfast, and she had a great time, so much that we are hiring or planning to hire a RV for a few days at the start of our holiday in July

 

[grumpyvet]

I see that your kids are coaster fans, and Magic Mountain has those aplenty. My DD loves them so we go, I can only ride a few before my quease-o-meter is tapped out, but then she rides alone.

I just wanted to give you a heads up that in the summer, MM is Hot hot. To me, a weather whimp, not compatible with life, hot. Last time I was there in June it topped out at 107 degrees in the afternoon. Two days in a row of that would be too much for me.

I live in San Diego and am used to an ocean breeze, I guess.


Have a wonderful trip. Our traffic can really be daunting, so good luck.

 

[Goseethemouse]

We are also taking an extended trip to Southern California this year but I used to live in LA so know the area rather well. A couple of thoughts:

Visiting LA will be very different from being at WDW. For the most part it is not a tourist zone (other than right in Anaheim etc.) but a huge city so don't expect it to be as clean, organized, etc. as the Orlando area. As others have said, traffic can be bad.

I would recommend that you take some time to see sights other than amusement parks. There are some really nice museums - many of them I haven't been to yet but we are definitely planning on visits there as they seem lots of fun. California Science Center, La Brea Tar Pits, Getty Museum, and the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach are some that we are thinking of. Maybe take a look at youtube to see whether they might interest you.

I would also take some time to see LA "neighborhoods" eg. Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Santa Monica. Also, I think you are there long enough to spend some "nature time". Visiting different beaches or the mountains might be fun and shouldn't take too much time.

Of course I don't know which of the above might interest you but I think Southern California has a lot more to offer than amusement parks (which of course are great too) and it would be a pity to not enjoy some of the other attractions there.

 

[Huff]

Universal and Magic Mountain are both north of Disneyland/Anaheim. Magic Mountain is about 20 miles further to the north than Universal.

Your current plan has you arriving in Anaheim, driving north to Universal, south back to Anaheim, then the next day drive north again to Magic Mountain. May make more sense to stay near Universal or Magic Mountain for both parks to avoid so much driving.

 

[rp811]

Hi guys , thanks for the input. It has definately given me things to think about. We are staying up in Valencia for a couple of days whilst visiting Six Flags to save us some travelling. I have had a look at the Science Centre and it looks great , both boys really like science, oldest lad has just started a 5 year course in structural engineering at university which also includes architectural design & history so it would be great to take in some of the buildings in the area (Edinburgh University also might have an exchange program with Berkley)

 

[Huff]

While staying in Valencia visit Universal and Six Flags. They aren't that far apart and would lessen your driving from Anaheim/Disneyland area.

For your beach day you might wish to stay an extra day in San Diego. Some of the best beaches are there such as Coronado, Pacific and Mission. Otherwise Newport beach or Huntington beach are good and not from from Disneyland.

Six Flags Magic Mountain is a huge park so plan on lots of walking. In the summer months it can get quite hot there some days so be prepared and drink tons of water! Universal, Disneyland and Knotts are much cooler. Sea World being on the coast is rarely very hot.

For Disneyland, buy a multi-day park hopper pass. Because Disneyland, California Adventure and Downtown Disney are right next to each other it only takes a few minutes to walk from one to the other. You won't need a full day at Downtown Disney so spend some time there as well as in one of the two parks the same day.