planning summer trip.. is this doable?

[dwdeb]

Hi there, we are wdw pros, but never been to dl as a family. I was last there in 71...
Planning to fly into SF, rent a car, tour 8 days in Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, and drive to Dl stay 6 nights at the Grand Californian concierge, and fly out of Lax back to Boston.
Is this doable ,or are the distances too great to make it work?
We will be staying in hotels right in the national parks so the driving will be within the parks... We will be going 7/28-8/11.
Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.. We are a family of 3, DH, DD,who will be 9, and myself.
Thanks! Deb

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

<font color=navy>Hi there,

Very doable. I go to Yosemite & Sequoia all the time (so feel free to ask me about them, too ).

Yosemite is about 7 hours from LA (where are you staying there?), three hours from Sequoia, and Sequoia is 5.5 hours from Los Angeles. Of course, this all depends on traffic. Just plan on taking the first day in LA easy. (and don't get too depressed seeing the smog after all the blue skies in the Sierras).

 

[dwdeb]

Mary Jo, thanks so much for your reply. As of right now we are spending 3 nights at the Yosemite Lodge in a deluxe room, and 4 nights in the Wustachi (sp) village in Sequoia. I would really like to try the Awhanee in Yosemite though..Since we are flying into SF, I figure we will take 2 days to get to Yosemite. Work our way out from SF..
Guess it's a long drive from Sequoia to Anaheim... we don't need to stop overnite do we?
Thanks again, Deb

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

<font color=navy>I drove from San Francisco to Yosemite when family came out to visit (I live in LA, and we went up the coast, went to SF, then cut across to Yosemite), and it took us about 5 hours, if I remember correctly -- you must be planning on visiting the 'gold country.'

Yosemite Lodge is in a nice location - you can see Yosemite Falls from there - since you'll probably be coming in on 120 (or 140), be sure to go to Glacier Point, along the 41. You also might want to visit Mariposa Grove on your way out to go go Sequoia.

When you get to Sequoia, you'll actually be at Kings Canyon, and will drive along the Kings Hwy (I think that's what it's called) to get to Wuksachi -- that's a brand new lodge, btw. Be sure to visit Giant Forest, Crescent Meadow & Moro Rock. If you have time, go to Hume Lake (about 45 minutes back towards Kings Canyon), and you can go swimming or rent kayaks, canoes -- it's always a must when we visit.

Sequoia to Los Angeles - we always just drive straight through. (5-1/2 hours is nothing to me ) You probably won't hit traffic until you near or pass Magic Mountain, and then you'll hit it - it's at it's worst early in the morning or late afternoon till about 7pm (just warning you).

Just stay on the 5 fwy till you hit Disneyland. Oh, and we usually get books on tape - they really make the time pass quickly.

 

[dwdeb]

Mary Jo, thanks for all your info. Haven't visited California since 71, so I don't remember distances...
Are you familiar with any of the lodges , did we make good choices? I am confident about our DL choice. We have stayed many times at most of the WDW deluxes and the Grand Caifornian sounds like a wonderful combination of the WL and GF in WDW.
Thanks, Deb

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

<font color=navy>Anytime you can get in Yosemite Valley is a good thing, and Yosemite Lodge has a dining place right there. There are free shuttles that ferry you around the valley, and recommend that you park your car and take those shuttles. Also, we have rented bikes there, and that was a lot of fun riding around. Even if you can't stay at the Awhanee (I think it's something like $400/night), you can still have a meal there. It's a beautiful hotel. Also, go to Curry Village & have a pizza on their deck - it's really nice - I feel like it's college town when I'm there.

The Wuksachi is only about maybe 3 years old, and I've only driven past, so I'm interested in your experience there - we always tent camp when we go.

The Grand Californian is like the Wilderness Lodge with a touch of Grand Floridian, but on a smaller scale. I really like it there, but try not to compare it to the WDW resorts. You will love the easy access to DCA, and the short walk to Disneyland -- I'm sure you won't recognize any of it when you come in, so it will almost feel like a new experience for you.

 

[sierranevada]

What a wonderful combination of destinations!! While I have never been to WDW, I have stayed at Conceirge at Grand Californian (by the way, it is called "Craftsman Service" now) and loved it. When we walked into the hotel, my first thought was that I had walked into... the Awanhee!! So if you don't change your reservations from Yosemite Lodge to Awanhee, you will still get a little taste of it at GC. BTW, Yosemite Lodge is very nice and a great option for the valley.

 

[dwdeb]

Hi Sierranevada,
Thanks for your reply. Looks like it is your first post...welcome!!
Actually, we had to change our dates by a couple of days , and the only availability is The Awhanee! Oh well , might as well go for broke, I guess.
As it stands, we have 5 nights at the Ahwanee, 3 nights at the Wuksachi. and 7 nights at the GF, Craftsmen service.
We are very excited about this trip.
Deb

 

[dwdeb]

whoops, I meant GC not GF! ( WDW on the brain)
Deb

 

[maci]

We were actually thinking of doing a similar trip on a smaller scale, next summer.
Which park would you say to go to yosemite or sequoia? We wont have time to do both. We were thinking maybe 3 days at a park and 3 days at DL. We are running short on vacaction time since we just got back from a week and a half in WDW, or we would love to stay longer.

Also..we have young kids will be 5 and 3...will they enjoy the national park? Of course I know me and DH will.

Thanks for you input! I have enjoyed this thread!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

<font color=navy>Well, Yosemite .... nothing compares to Yosemite. However, I've been to Sequoia the past few years, also, and we really enjoy it there, too.

Here are some links to trip reports I did to Sequoia & Yosemite in 2000 and 2002.

Sequoia Trip 2000

Yosemite Trip 2000

This is our 2002 trip, w/links to the days, including Yosemite, to the left.

Sequoia & Yosemite 2002

And, in answer to your question about the little ones enjoying the trip ... I've taken mine since they were 3 & 4, and they've enjoyed each trip we've taken. They're now 14 & 15, and still enjoy it.

 

[Cheryl N. WI]

We actually did something similar to this this past summer and we had a great trip! We flew into San Diego and drove up to DL and stayed at he Disneyland Hotel for 4 nights, then we drove to Yosemite and stayed right outside the park for 2 nights, then on to San Francisco for 3 nights and then back down to San Diego (via 1 more night in Anaheim at Homewood Suites and an evening back in Disneyland and California Adventure!) for 4 nights before flying home. It was alot of driving but well worth it. This was our first trip to CA. It was myself, DH and our DD who is 9 and we all loved California and hope to get back there in the not too distant future. Yosemite was awesome, even DD kept remarking about how beautiful it was. Make sure you check out the links that Mary Jo posted. Her information was very helpful in planning our trip!!!!

Have a great time!

Cheryl

 

[maci]

Those Links are great!!! The Pictures are beautiful!!!
Thanks for the info!!