Newbie alert (lots of questions)

[BrisWesty]

Hi folks,

In the process of organising a 2 week trip from Australia to LA with wife, 3 kids (ages 11, 9, 1) (and potentially father in law) in tow.

Will be flying into LAX.
Trying, if possible, to find accommodation with a kitchen, near to Disneyland.
If F-I-L comes along, we'll need 2 bedroom accommodation, if not, only 1 bedroom will be required.

Contemplating several days at Disneyland with side trips to San Diego, Legoland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc.

Any accommodation recommendations would be much appreciated.

Any ideas on costs to get from airport to Anaheim? Anaheim to Universal Studios etc

Would people recommend using the shuttles or hiring a van for the duration of the trip (or hiring a vehicle for a week to cover the trips to Universal Studios, San Diego etc)?

Are there any unexpected charges we should be aware of? eg parking at Disney and at hotels etc.

Thanks in advance

 

[Metro West]

 

[Piglet843]

Hi! Welcome to Disboards!
I've never been to Disney Land - so I can't help you with your questions.
But you may want to spend some time in the Disney Land section of Disboards.
http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=5
Good luck with your questions - and happy Planning!!

 

[lovetoscrap]

I am going to move this to our Disneyland boards. They should be able to help you out over there.

 

[goldies 5]

When are you planning on coming out?

 

[nsiordia]

Hi folks,

Trying, if possible, to find accommodation with a kitchen, near to Disneyland.
If F-I-L comes along, we'll need 2 bedroom accommodation, if not, only 1 bedroom will be required.

Any accommodation recommendations would be much appreciated.

Are there any unexpected charges we should be aware of? eg parking at Disney and at hotels etc.

Thanks in advance

If you would like a kitchen, I recommend staying at a Marriott Residence Inn. There is one close to Disneyland resort and you can take a shuttle to Disneyland or there is one which is kind of closer to Knott's. I've always liked the Residence inn.

Disney does charge to park in their lots.

 

[Todd Lee]

I would think about doing a 2 destination trip. Staying near Disneyland and doing all of the LA/anaheim stuff, then migrating down to San Diego and getting a room down there to do Legoland and San Diego stuff.

 

[HydroGuy]

Here is some info on transportation costs: "Airport Proximity to DLR and Ground Transportation Information" by 3TinksAndAnEeyore www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2318297

If you want to go to SD and LL then a car or van will be very helpful. You can do it with a train or bus if you would prefer.

I would think about doing a 2 destination trip. Staying near Disneyland and doing all of the LA/anaheim stuff, then migrating down to San Diego and getting a room down there to do Legoland and San Diego stuff.

I agree. Do not commute to SD. Traffic can be really bad - even on Saturdays and Sundays as we were reminded of again about 10 days ago.

You should plan at least three days for DLR and four days will be better.

As for hotel recommendations, we have never done a place with a kitchen so I cannot recommend anything personally. Here are some links:

Helpful Hotel Links

"How Far Is It?" (shows actual distances in feet from hotels to DLR entrance plaza) www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=mm060329as

"Walking Distance Accommodations" (shows hotels within walking distance) http://www.mouseplanet.com/dtp/maps/...g_distance_map

"Accomodations Near Disney" - http://www.accommodationsneardisney....nd/default.asp

Anaheim Resort Map - http://www.disboards.com/showpost.ph...84&postcount=1

Interactive Map of DLR - http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=33.809...2&z=19&l=0&m=b

 

[mkarizona]

My absolute favorite place to stay is Hilton's Homewood Suites on Harbor, about a mile south of Disney. They have full kitchens and separate living rooms. They will sleep six if you use the pull out sofa bed (which I am told is quite comfortable). The bedroom has two queen size beds. They have a free breakfast buffet that includes eggs, sausage or bacon or ham (rotates), potatoes, etc. There is also a free evening "reception" that includes light meal items, beverages, beer, and wine Monday thru Thursday which we never tried. They even do complimentary grocery shopping! You will either need to rent a vehicle or take the shuttle; it is not close enough to walk.

 

[Michaella]

You sound a bit like us..
We have two children aged 7 and 10.. we are flying in to LAX then getting a shuttle to SD. Staying in SD 6 nights doing legloand, zoo seaworld etc.. (hiring a car for this bit) and then taking another shuttle to Anaheim....staying in Anaheim at Embassy Suites South for 9 nights. We did consider doing a few nights in LA at the end of our stay for universal WB tour etc.. but did not want to up and move again.

 

[CrazyDuck]

What we did in 2008 was Fly into San Diego airport (SAN) then stay at a hotel there and do Sea World, the Zoo and other stuff in San Diego. On our last day in San Diego check ut of the hotel, drive to Legoland which is halfway to Anaheim, then after Legoland drive to Anaheim and check in to the hotel. Then after doing Disneyland we checked out and flew out of LAX.

It may cost more to fly in and out of different airports. Also therental car agencies will charge you a fee to return the car at a different location, but it is so worth it to not have to drive the 2 hours back to LAX or SAN.

 

[Cali_Sparrow]

Contemplating several days at Disneyland with side trips to San Diego, Legoland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc.

How many days do you have to spend?
Sea World can take up a whole or half-day, depending on whether or not you like shows. I recommend seeing the night-time ones if your family likes music and fireworks. They're very very cool!

San Diego Zoo takes up a full day, or the Wild Animal Park takes up a full day for sure. There's a lot of walking at the WAP, but I kind of prefer it to the zoo if you're in the adventurous mood.
Feed the lorikeets at the WAP if you get a chance, it's so much fun!

Not sure what else you might want to do in San Diego.
You could go to the San Diego Zoo for half a day and then go to the museums in Balboa Park (right next to the zoo). They have a ton of different museums, and it's a beautiful place to visit, they have a wonderful carousel too.

I've never been to Legoland so I can't be of much assistance there.

Knott's Berry Farm is probably not the best choice considering your kids' ages. They have a kid's area called Camp Snoopy with kid friendly rides, but the quality of the park is far below par compared with Disney, and the prices are pretty much the same. They have a lot of thrill type rides, and fun little shops. They also have stagecoach rides and a train ride that gets attacked by bandits (which might be a little scary for the kids).
It's probably only a half-day's worth though, especially if you aren't going to be riding the big roller-coasters which make up a good portion of the park.


Universal Studios is also better suited to older kids. Under 13, I was too scared to go on most of the rides there. Plus it's a little far away from Disneyland, I personally don't like the commute, especially on weekdays.

Disneyland should take about 2 full days and California Adventure can probably take up a half-day due to construction, and lack of small-child friendly rides.

I think starting out in San Diego for a few days would be a great option. And then you can go to Legoland on the way to Disneyland and spend your last few days there.
You just have to decide what parks you want to visit the most.

Are there any unexpected charges we should be aware of? eg parking at Disney and at hotels etc.

Disneyland parking is now at $15 per vehicle, so if you stay off-sight but are still close enough to walk and don't have any difficulty doing so after a long day, I highly recommend it. It's usually more convenient, because getting on the tram and then going to the structure if you need to get a jacket from the car or take someone for a nap can often take a lot longer than just walking back to the hotel.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL time no matter what you choose to do!

 

[BrisWesty]

Thanks everyone for the welcome, comments and advice.

Coming over effectively first 2 weeks of September. Got v cheap flights on Air New Zealand in and out of LA.

F-I-L can't make it now so only the 5 of us.

Homewood seems to be our preferred choice for accommodation in Anaheim.

I've got little desire to go to Tijuana, but perhaps 3-4 days accommodation in San Diego may be the go. Any similar suggestions for SD much appreciated, seems to be less options there than Anaheim not surprisingly.

I'm tempted to just hire a car from LAX, return it to the airport when we get back to Anaheim (after unloading family and bags etc at Homewood) and catch a shuttle back to Anaheim otherwise (unless there is an alternate drop off in the Anaheim area).

 

[nunzia]

How many days do you have to spend?
Sea World can take up a whole or half-day, depending on whether or not you like shows. I recommend seeing the night-time ones if your family likes music and fireworks. They're very very cool!

San Diego Zoo takes up a full day, or the Wild Animal Park takes up a full day for sure. There's a lot of walking at the WAP, but I kind of prefer it to the zoo if you're in the adventurous mood.
Feed the lorikeets at the WAP if you get a chance, it's so much fun!

Not sure what else you might want to do in San Diego.
You could go to the San Diego Zoo for half a day and then go to the museums in Balboa Park (right next to the zoo). They have a ton of different museums, and it's a beautiful place to visit, they have a wonderful carousel too.

I've never been to Legoland so I can't be of much assistance there.

Knott's Berry Farm is probably not the best choice considering your kids' ages. They have a kid's area called Camp Snoopy with kid friendly rides, but the quality of the park is far below par compared with Disney, and the prices are pretty much the same. They have a lot of thrill type rides, and fun little shops. They also have stagecoach rides and a train ride that gets attacked by bandits (which might be a little scary for the kids).
It's probably only a half-day's worth though, especially if you aren't going to be riding the big roller-coasters which make up a good portion of the park.


Universal Studios is also better suited to older kids. Under 13, I was too scared to go on most of the rides there. Plus it's a little far away from Disneyland, I personally don't like the commute, especially on weekdays.

Disneyland should take about 2 full days and California Adventure can probably take up a half-day due to construction, and lack of small-child friendly rides.

I think starting out in San Diego for a few days would be a great option. And then you can go to Legoland on the way to Disneyland and spend your last few days there.
You just have to decide what parks you want to visit the most.



Disneyland parking is now at $15 per vehicle, so if you stay off-sight but are still close enough to walk and don't have any difficulty doing so after a long day, I highly recommend it. It's usually more convenient, because getting on the tram and then going to the structure if you need to get a jacket from the car or take someone for a nap can often take a lot longer than just walking back to the hotel.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL time no matter what you choose to do!

Great advice but I just disagree a bit on the timing. We spent 2 full days in Sea World and still missed some rides. We did special excursion things and felt they were worth it, so that took some time and there were some shows we wished we could have seen again. You might want to find time for some beach time or a trip to Coronado. We hated Legoland, so can't give you advice there. As far as going into Mexico, I would hesitate to advise that at this time. The drug wars can erupt at any time..I live close to Juarez, which is the worst by far, but still, any border city I see as iffy. You could book a day tour to see Hollywood area, so you wouldn't have to drive. Also, I would say you need a full 4 days in DLR, maybe even 5 since this sounds like a trip that won't be duplicated for some time.
No matter what you choose you'll have a great time!

 

[S. S. Columbia]

Contemplating several days at Disneyland with side trips to San Diego, Legoland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc.

Knott's Berry Farm is mostly about coasters.