Things to do around disneyland

[darlenesmommy]

We are leaving a week from today for Disneyland. We live around 5 hours away and plan to leave at 4 am. We want to get 2-3 hours of driving done while the kids sleep. That gets us there around 10-11 since we will need to stop, chage diapers/potty break and eat breakfast. I need some ideas to keep us busy until we can check in. We will habe our 4 year old and 11 month old. I also would prefer not to spend a lot. Im up for anything around disney or in la.

 

[skiingfast]

It's a little messy and the weather may not agree but you could go to the beach. Play in the sand a while.

There are of course parks all over, if the kids want to go on swings and slides for a while.

Since you will be driving by it, you might want to go to the LA Zoo. Sure it's not free, but entertaining for 4yo and the grown ups to stroll around.

You can always walk around DTD but DD may want you to buy stuff the whole time or get bored.

I'm almost positive you could go strait to the hotel and check in. The worst that could happen is you need to wait for your room to be ready.

 

[darlenesmommy]

The zoo might be an idea. I think I may go to the hotel and try to check in first. Depending on if we have to wait and how long maybe the park and lunch might be enough if not then the zoo would most likely be a better choice. Dh was thinking of the San diego zoo just not sure I want to go down that far.

 

[skiingfast]

SD zoo is a better zoo, but out of the way. It's a good 90 minutes away in the middle of the day. Also it costs about twice as much as the LA zoo.

If 4yo likes it, riding the Metro train to Oceanside and back could be fun. It's not too expensive, it leave from a station near the Angels Stadium off of Katella. For almost half of the ride you are along the coast. The Oceanside stop is a couple blocks of the beach there, and about 6 blocks to a pier you can walk over the water on. Metro is cheap and kids are free with a paying adult.

 

[darlenesmommy]

The metro idea sounds really good as well. She loves Bart that's near here. Thank you for the ideas. Going to talk to dh about them tonight and get our plans ready.

 

[Tinkdaz]

How about see a movie at the theater in DTD? Not to pricey and closer than driving some where else.

 

[pixiewings71]

We are 6 hours away, we tend to leave at 3-4 am as well. But we just go to the parks and start having Disney fun right away. You could go to the character warehouse to do a little pre-Disney shopping, you could go to the zoo (as skiingfast suggested), you could go to the hotel and try to check in early, if your room isn't ready most hotels let you use the pool area while you wait. You could go to DTD and wander the shops there or even the GW and wander there. Altho I'd rather wander DTD over the GW.

 

[BackIn33]

As far as "cost effective" and "nearby" go, you can kill some time at the Santa Ana Zoo. It's only about 15 min away (10 miles), and it's much cheaper ($8 adults, $5 kids). It's a small zoo, but it's quite "kid friendly" from what I hear.

There's also the Science Center down the 5 fwy that has a Star Wars exhibit right now! this place is very kid-oriented, and looks like fun! Details are online at www dot discoverycube dot org / star-wars /


Otherwise, I would be leery about driving any more than 30 min away from DLR. Traffic gets ugly around 3pm (sometimes earlier), and the stress of commuting back might not be worth it. I'd recommend the pool (check if it's heated?), or checking out Trader Sam's Bar at the Disneyland Hotel (before 8pm kids are allowed in). It's a pretty cool set up with mini-shows inside that the kids might find neat. There's also a bowling alley at the Gardenwalk (called 300) that has cheaper rates during the day (versus nighttime).

Hope you have a great trip!