Recent Visit - My Thoughts

Eeek. I am renting a car at SNA on my upcoming trip. I guess I will deal, only keeping it one night. Hertz had a great deal and I figured it was easier than Uber’ing all over LA. Returning it before the Disneyland portion of our trip.

And thanks for the reminder to bring silicon straws in my purse!

If you are flying in on Southwest you will come in on Terminal 3 and Hertz is next to Dollar across from Terminal 1. We found out coming back that you don't need to stay outside the whole way and that all of the terminals connect so I recommend staying inside since the counters are on the inside anyway unless you are a Hertz Gold member. Hertz is still closer than dollar since you have to walk through the Hertz cars to get to the other side of the garage for Dollar. Honestly it wouldn't keep me from renting a car if I need it but I will go with Alamo if I can since its closer.
 
Re. paper straws: I’ve never used them myself - I’m not really a big straw user. However, a few people I know hate them enough that they bring their own metal straws. Seems like a pain to have to carry it around all day but I guess it’s worth it for them.
It's not really a pain. I carry a metal bent straw and a boba (milk tea) straw with me in my purse. Granted, I get my weight-lifting exercise every day by hauling my purse around....
 
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It's not really a pain. I carry a metal vent straw and a boba (milk tea) straw with me in my purse. Granted, I get my weight-lifting exercise every day by hauling my purse around....
We have silicon straws that come in a little travel case, complete with little cleaning brush. The case is quite small and fits very nicely in my Mary Poppins carpet bag/purse. If you ever need a floor lamp at the parks, you now know who to look for...
 
Straws - You will never convince me that you can get a reusable straw clean and yes, the reason paper straws were replaced long ago is because they were miserable to use. A couple of options; you can get regular disposable straws at any dollar store ($1 for 100 bendy straws). The other option is McDonalds. There's one across the street from the esplanade where the original car entrance was. Do make sure to dispose of them in a trash can. I do a lot of beach clean-ups and straws are one of the main things I find - but they are not coming from the trash.

SNA is a good airport but you will always make it your second option after you've flown into LGB. Rental cars are right across the street, closer than short-term parking.
 
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PSA: For anyone needing to give their reusable straws a deep cleaning, Amazon.com (and probably other places, too) sells sets of brushes in various sizes for cleaning lab equipment (e.g. small to tiny test tubes) which work great for cleaning straws of all sizes. Some detergent, baking soda, and hot water, a vigorous scrubbing with a firm brush, and your straw will be clean!
 
Is the straw thing a Disney issue or a California issue? We leave for Legoland in two weeks. I know this isn’t a Legoland board, but hypothetically speaking, would a person traveling generally in California want to pack some straws? 😉

It’s a California issue, at least southern California. I live in San Diego - straws and single-use snack packaging are the main things we find on the beach when we go. Each member of our family picks up 10 pieces of trash when we arrive at the beach, and 10 before we leave. Usually takes about 30 seconds to find all 10 pieces. The straws and single-use snack packaging are issues because they are light and fly away easily - especially from the automated trash trucks that flip the garbage cans over the top that are used for trash collection here. Most restaurants don’t give straws out at all or use paper straws. And no styrofoam here, either.
 
More and more places have paper straws, and some are better than others. I just ordered reusable straws for my daughter, because she refuses to use a paper straw. :) The ones I ordered came in a pack of 10, and came with 4 cases with a hook, and have portable cleaners as well.

Amy, would you mind sharing which ones you bought? I brought along disposable plastics straws on the last trip because none of the metal or reusable plastic ones I've tried have been easy to clean on the go.
 


PSA: For anyone needing to give their reusable straws a deep cleaning, Amazon.com (and probably other places, too) sells sets of brushes in various sizes for cleaning lab equipment (e.g. small to tiny test tubes) which work great for cleaning straws of all sizes. Some detergent, baking soda, and hot water, a vigorous scrubbing with a firm brush, and your straw will be clean!

Yes and they're not expensive. I bought a pack of assorted stainless steel straws a while back and a set of the brushes. Put a little dish detergent on the brush and work it through the inside of the straw several times and that baby is clean! It's kind of satisfying, also, for some reason.
 
Amy, would you mind sharing which ones you bought? I brought along disposable plastics straws on the last trip because none of the metal or reusable plastic ones I've tried have been easy to clean on the go.
I know this wasn’t directed at me, but these are sitting in my amazon cart: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07T83QTPH/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_1?smid=A3JVWX8QN0MFLY&psc=1

For our family of three, we can have a new straw every day of our trip, rinse well, and clean/sanitize thoroughly when we get home.
 
If anyone has a collapsible straw they like, would you mind sharing a link? I love my stainless steel ones, but would be interested in the collapsible ones for DLR use.
 
It’s a California issue, at least southern California. I live in San Diego - straws and single-use snack packaging are the main things we find on the beach when we go. Each member of our family picks up 10 pieces of trash when we arrive at the beach, and 10 before we leave. Usually takes about 30 seconds to find all 10 pieces. The straws and single-use snack packaging are issues because they are light and fly away easily - especially from the automated trash trucks that flip the garbage cans over the top that are used for trash collection here. Most restaurants don’t give straws out at all or use paper straws. And no styrofoam here, either.
This is a sad post, but thank you for cleaning up. We live in the square states out in the middle, far away from oceans and beaches, so I guess I’m not confronted with plastic waste in the same way. I’m suddenly inspired to eliminate my own family’s use of single use plastics though!
 
Straws - You will never convince me that you can get a reusable straw clean and yes, the reason paper straws were replaced long ago is because they were miserable to use.......

You can get the straws clean but then it becomes a question of do I want to carry around straws, tiny brushes, and dish soap in my park bag.......no, no I do not. A 500 pack of wrapped plastic ones is $7 on Amazon.
 
You can get the straws clean but then it becomes a question of do I want to carry around straws, tiny brushes, and dish soap in my park bag.......no, no I do not. A 500 pack of wrapped plastic ones is $7 on Amazon.

No need to carry all that with you. Just rinse them with plain water after every use. Stainless steel is very easy to keep clean with just water. When you get home after your trip, throw them into the utensil basket of your dishwasher. We use metal straws at home just for water. I wash them like once a month in the dishwasher. We still use plastic straws at home for smoothies and milk. The metal ones are not good for frozen drinks...they get too cold.
 
No need to carry all that with you. Just rinse them with plain water after every use...
Exactly! If you've had something a little sticky, like soda, ask for a cup of hot water and use that to rinse the straws, just to be extra sure that the sticky stuff is gone. Then do a more thorough cleaning back at the hotel room or at home. Easy. And for those worried about carrying around bulky items, look at the link posted above (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07T83QTPH/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_1?smid=A3JVWX8QN0MFLY&psc=1): the carrying case is only a few inches long -- very small and easy to carry with you. This option may not work for everyone, but it certainly isn't the burden that some are making it out to be.
 
Straws - You will never convince me that you can get a reusable straw clean and yes, the reason paper straws were replaced long ago is because they were miserable to use. A couple of options; you can get regular disposable straws at any dollar store ($1 for 100 bendy straws). The other option is McDonalds. There's one across the street from the esplanade where the original car entrance was. Do make sure to dispose of them in a trash can. I do a lot of beach clean-ups and straws are one of the main things I find - but they are not coming from the trash.

If you are a person who does beach clean up (good for you!), maybe you should look into the effect plastic straws have on the ocean and the creatures therein. It might inspire you to reconsider whether you should suggest people go to the dollar store to avoid one small measure of ecological responsibility.
 
We were there Thursday and Friday (9/12 & 9/13). We felt the crowds were amazingly light on Thursday. We spent most of the day at California adventure and then hopped to Disneyland after the world of color.

Friday was a different story. We ended up spending all day at Disneyland and it felt like it was packed. Ride wait times weren't terrible but the whole place was a lot more crowded. Fireworks were slammed. Of course, it was a Friday and the first night for Halloween fireworks and Fantasmic and MSEP were both happening.

We had a great time!
 

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