What would you do with an extra day?

[TikiTikiFan]

I originally planned to make the leap to try WDW with my son next year but after we returned from our annual Disneyland trip I chickened out and changed it to another Disneyland one for next summer. Apparently I’m in a serious relationship with our park.

So I suppose I want to mix it up a bit for our next trip. We’re going to stay eight days instead of seven and I splurged a bit more on the hotel (I picked Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance) so that’s covered. And we’re going to do the usual five day park hoppers. But now with two extra days, I’m trying to decide what to do with them. One day we will definitely just have a rest day at the hotel and enjoy the pool area. But I’m scratching my head for the other day because I’d like to do something different. We already will head to Downtown Disney on our arrival day and usually once is enough so that’s already in the plan. In the past we’ve done the following things:

Beach Bus Tour with whale watching- Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach

Universal Studios Hollywood (once in December and on our most recent visit last week)

Balboa Pier

My son is obsessed with Legos and always asks about Legoland. But he also loves thrill rides (he rode the Incredicoaster by himself when he was 7 and didn’t even bat an eye!) so I feel like the rides there are too tame for him. He’ll be 10 next summer- is that too old for Legoland? He is Lego obsessed though so that is something to consider. His Lego collection is out of this world.

Another thought I had was doing some type of Hollywood/beach tour combo. Would a 10 year old enjoy the Hollywood parts though like the Chinese Theater and Farmers Market?

Or we could throw in a sixth day at Disneyland and do a tour? We’ve never done any of those and my son is really into learning history of Disney lately. But man, adding that one day park ticket is costly! I was shocked to see they’re nearly $200 per person during peak travel times. Since our trips are usually in August we always go during peak times. Add that in with a tour cost and that’s a lot of money..

Our experience with Universal was horrible last week because it was so unbearingly crowded (we were there 8/11) and we didn’t have the Express Pass. It was to the point I left saying I’ll never step foot in there again! It was so miserable and every line was over an hour long. The HP ride was at two hours while Jurassic World was at four by lunch! Maybe we just had bad luck? Should we try again and this time just splurge for Express? My son really loves Universal and really we missed almost everything last week because of the wait times. We only got to ride three rides... he was pretty bummed. Of course, he shouldn’t complain since his begging face talked me into waiting three hours for the Jurassic World ride... I’m still waiting for my mom of the year award for that sacrifice.

So DIS folks, what would you do? Not that Disney isn’t enough to make me happy (it is!!) but what else could we do with an extra day to mix things up a bit? One more Disney day but make it more special despite the cost? Something new like Legoland or Hollywood tours? Splurge at Universal? Any cool tour recommendations? Since I’m a single mom traveling alone with my son I love the convenience of tours even if they’re cheesy.

 

[dieumeye]

My 6 year old loves Legoland. A lot is geared toward very young kids, but there are a bunch of rides people of any age can enjoy, and with Lego models, non-ride attractions (building cars, Technic stuff, etc), and the water park, there should be plenty for a 10 year old Lego fan to enjoy for a day. I'd pick that over a Hollywood Tour.

 

[pharmama]

I’ve heard good things about the Warner Bros Studio tour if you think that might be of interest. I haven’t been but DD14 went with friends last summer and enjoyed it.

I’ll be honest that I do think Legoland might be a bit young for your kiddo, even though he loves Lego. My DD8 is Lego crazy but she’s kinda over Legoland.

What about Knotts? I haven’t been since I was a kid but it’s pretty close to Disney, does have some bigger coasters and is pretty cheap!

Don’t forget the Void in DTD now that he will be 10.

 

[mamapenguin]

I originally planned to make the leap to try WDW with my son next year but after we returned from our annual Disneyland trip I chickened out and changed it to another Disneyland one for next summer. Apparently I’m in a serious relationship with our park.

So I suppose I want to mix it up a bit for our next trip. We’re going to stay eight days instead of seven and I splurged a bit more on the hotel (I picked Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance) so that’s covered. And we’re going to do the usual five day park hoppers. But now with two extra days, I’m trying to decide what to do with them. One day we will definitely just have a rest day at the hotel and enjoy the pool area. But I’m scratching my head for the other day because I’d like to do something different. We already will head to Downtown Disney on our arrival day and usually once is enough so that’s already in the plan. In the past we’ve done the following things:

Beach Bus Tour with whale watching- Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach

Universal Studios Hollywood (once in December and on our most recent visit last week)

Balboa Pier

My son is obsessed with Legos and always asks about Legoland. But he also loves thrill rides (he rode the Incredicoaster by himself when he was 7 and didn’t even bat an eye!) so I feel like the rides there are too tame for him. He’ll be 10 next summer- is that too old for Legoland? He is Lego obsessed though so that is something to consider. His Lego collection is out of this world.

Another thought I had was doing some type of Hollywood/beach tour combo. Would a 10 year old enjoy the Hollywood parts though like the Chinese Theater and Farmers Market?

Or we could throw in a sixth day at Disneyland and do a tour? We’ve never done any of those and my son is really into learning history of Disney lately. But man, adding that one day park ticket is costly! I was shocked to see they’re nearly $200 per person during peak travel times. Since our trips are usually in August we always go during peak times. Add that in with a tour cost and that’s a lot of money..

Our experience with Universal was horrible last week because it was so unbearingly crowded (we were there 8/11) and we didn’t have the Express Pass. It was to the point I left saying I’ll never step foot in there again! It was so miserable and every line was over an hour long. The HP ride was at two hours while Jurassic World was at four by lunch! Maybe we just had bad luck? Should we try again and this time just splurge for Express? My son really loves Universal and really we missed almost everything last week because of the wait times. We only got to ride three rides... he was pretty bummed. Of course, he shouldn’t complain since his begging face talked me into waiting three hours for the Jurassic World ride... I’m still waiting for my mom of the year award for that sacrifice.

So DIS folks, what would you do? Not that Disney isn’t enough to make me happy (it is!!) but what else could we do with an extra day to mix things up a bit? One more Disney day but make it more special despite the cost? Something new like Legoland or Hollywood tours? Splurge at Universal? Any cool tour recommendations? Since I’m a single mom traveling alone with my son I love the convenience of tours even if they’re cheesy.

I love Universal, but in Orlando. I looked at Universal Hollywood,and after having been to Universal Orlando I know that it would be a complete let down. Express is great. If you think you will make it to Orlando some day then I would skip it in Cali. Have you thought of APs for DL? Then you could go all the days.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

Friends of mine with 10 year olds have annual passes to Knott’s Berry Farm. I haven’t been in a LONG time but they love it! Worth considering I think!

I also vote for another down day with pool, maybe go see a movie, relax!

 

[Mamabun]

I'd vote for Legoland, although, of course, it depends on the kid. I went with an 11 year old a couple years ago - he'd never been, he loves BIG coasters, and he loves Lego. He rode the coasters at Legoland and appreciated the Lego creations in/on them, but they certainly weren't his favorite things. His favorites were Knight's Tournament (robot arm that twists you around, you pick the intensity, he picked 5, the highest ), the Ninjago ride (you throw things virtually, a little like Toy Story Midway Mania, but more attacking the bad guys), the video game play room (you can try out all the Lego games) and Miniland - a whole area with crazy Lego builds that you can walk around in. He really enjoyed it - he's not dying to go back (maybe at that age once is enough), but does say it was his favorite thing we did on that trip. It wasn't a super thrill day, but it was a lot of fun.

 

[kikismom]

Another vote for Knott's. Especially since he likes thrill rides.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Have you thought of APs for DL? Then you could go all the days.

I think about this all the time actually! But since we always go at peak times (summer and Christmas- I’m a college teacher so I have no choice) it seems like the more affordable ones we’d be blocked out for anyways and might not be cost effective in the long run?

Knotts is a great idea! I kind of forgot about it! He probably would love that... but I’m not sure if I’m tough enough. Of course he’s such a fearless kid he’d ride anything alone that I’m not into. He’s so much cooler than I was at that age about things.

Tbh, spending another day in the pool or on a beach also sounds good..

 

[Karin1984]

Go to legoland, your son is giving you input on what he wants to do on vacation. That is not something to overlook.

 

[Tahlzy]

I would do Universal - The studio lot tour is awesome. Some of my fave attractions too are at Universal. My 10yo LOVES it.

 

[indoshakespeare]

Legoland is more than just kiddie rides. Miniland itself is worth visiting if you're a Lego fan

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

If your son truly loves Legos and wants to go to Legoland and would enjoy the experience of enjoying all things Lego, then take him. My oldest son adored Legos from an early age and collected and built many, many sets. We visited Legoland four or five times when he was young; the last time was when he was eleven or twelve. Yes, ten is getting to be a little old to enjoy everything Legoland has to offer, but your son is only getting older, so go now when he still wants to do it.

If you decide not to do Legoland, you have gotten a number of other good suggestions here. I enjoy Knotts even though I don't like thrill rides. The more laid back atmosphere is a nice change of pace, the shows are fun, and there are a few non-thrill rides that everyone can do together. If your son loves thrill rides and you and he are fine with him going alone, there are several really good ones that the guys in my family always enjoy. DH, younger DS, and I have also done the Warner Brothers studio tour. I thought it was very well done and a really great experience, and I'm glad we finally did it. I do think though that your son might get a bit more out of that experience when he's a bit older. We took younger DS at age 17; I think about age 13 or 14 is when he started asking to go and I don't think he would have really appreciated the experience fully before the teen years.

 

[cruisehopeful]

Based on your post, I'd go to Legoland. There are a few rides that aren't too babyish. There's lots of cool Lego stuff to look at and to create. I'm not even a Lego fan, but I can easily spend a few hours there just walking around looking at stuff.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Thanks everyone for the tips! I think Legoland does sound like the winner- he really, really loves Legos.

 

[azdisneylover]

Another vote for Knott's. Especially since he likes thrill rides.

Another vote for Knotts! Lots of thrill rides and Cordelia's chicken dinner too! Plus, it is close to DL.

 

[DLgal]

Go to Legoland. Get the ticket that gives you water park and Sea Life access. Be there 30 minutes before opening (you can browse the huge Lego gift shop before the park opens). Plan to stay until closing (usually 8pm in the summer). Your son will love it, even though many rides aren't super thrilling. They are all fun to ride just to see the Lego models within them. My sons are 13 and 15 and we just went 2 weeks ago. We go every summer. The younger one is a HUGE Lego fan and he just loves seeing all the details in Miniland. Next summer, a whole new section will be opening themed to the Lego Movie and will have 2 new attractions (one like Soarin where you ride on the triple decker couch). Looks like it will be fun!

 

[bwvBound]

Have you evaluated the cost/benefit differences between your multi-day hoppers vs a Flex AP?

 

[DLgal]

Have you evaluated the cost/benefit differences between your multi-day hoppers vs a Flex AP?

Flex AP would be a huge gamble for a long trip like that. No one knows what next summer will look like and if a lot of people buy that AP between now and then, a multi day trip may be impossible with the Flex AP. It was not designed for people on long vacations at all.