Los Angeles/Anaheim Trip minus Disney

[gratefulmother]

Hi.  We are planning a trip at the end of this month to Anaheim because of a conference which my husband is teaching in there.  Our thoughts are that we would not do Disney, just because I don't think it is really our thing for the expense.  We are leaning more towards the activities I have listed below.  I am totally unfamiliar with the area, so any advice of "do this" or "don't do that" is appreciated.  Just know that we are more outdoorsy/museum type people, not entertainment industry or Disney people.  Especially if you have visited these places with your family, I would love to hear about it.  The trip is mainly geared around my husband and I and our 10 and 12 year olds.  The two year old will be along for the ride!

 

Here is the list so far: 

 

 

Mission San Juan Capistrano

La Brea Tar Pits

Knott’s Berry Farm and Mrs. Knott’s Chicken Dinner Restaurant

Museum (which one?)

Lake Arrowhead/Big Bear Lake

Venice Beach/El Matador Beach

Drive the Sunset strip/Rodeo Drive

 

Thanks so much!

 

 

[gratefulmother]

Also, I forgot to add ... I am also considering driving toward the mountains and visiting Lake Arrowhead or Big Bear Lake if it is good for hiking/scenic driving.

 

Thanks,
Amy

[Maus]

Do you happen to have membership at an ASTC museum?  We usually make sure we buy a membership from one of our three local member museums before we go down to that area because my kids love The Cube, or Discovery Science Center, in Santa Ana.  (The La Habra Children's Museum is also a member.  It had a younger children feel, but was okay.)

 

My train loving son thought the train at Knott's Berry Farm was way better than the one at Disney, because it's a real, full-size, steam locomotive, and they both liked the stage coach ride, but generally preferred Disney to Knott's Berry.

 

My train lover also likes the Travel Town Train Museum on Zoo Drive (near the Los Angeles Zoo.)

 

If you are heading towards the mountains, you could consider Barstow, where there is another Railroad Museum (yes, okay, our vacations do get a little train oriented) and a connected Route 66 museum.  Both are very small, but if you are also doing the ghost town, it's not a bad day trip.   The Calico Ghost town just out of town there is super touristy, but the kids think it's great.  (The truck stop/McDonald's off the Main Street exit there is in an old railroad station and the McDonald's customer seating is in old train cars.)  It's about two hours away on I-15, but if you are heading toward Lake Arrowhead anyway...  (We get to So. Cal from I-15 since we come from Utah, and ALWAYS have lunch in Barstow, coming and going.)

 

I'm sure there are tons more things to do, but our trips down there are usually centered around Disney.  We just usually have a more leisurely, "what else is there to do" approach to Disney than our friends, spreading our trip out to last a couple of weeks.

[Guest]

We love Big Bear... if you have the time, it would be a lot of fun, especially if you stayed and rented a cabin.

[DawnM]

We are headed to LA ourselves in a few weeks.  So far I have my list:

 

Disneyland (I know you don't, but this is on my list!)

Santa Monica Pier, Venice Beach

Holocaust/ Simon Wiesenthal Museum

Griffith Park Observatory and some hiking up there

Queen Mary if we have time  (I LOVE the Queen Mary, not sure about my boys at these ages)

If we head to Long Beach we may do the Aquarium too

 

We will spend a day driving around to our old haunts as we moved from Pasadena to NC.  They want to see our old house and where I used to work in LA, etc.....

 

[Miss Peregrine]

Love the Long Beach aquarium.

 

Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana is great!

 

I'm in the Arrowhead area. Lots of fun hiking places. Big Bear is great for kayaking, swimming, etc,

[Um_2_4]

Hi, I have lived in the area for quite a while. I will come back to comment later, but 1 question, how long will you be there??

That is quite a bit of driving.

I would definitely plan on the Tar pits (that would be a whole day from Anaheim).

Do you enjoy theme parks? If not I would skip Knott's. Right now it is over run and not the safest place to visit iykwim. I lived where I can see it from my backyard and I wouldn't go there at all. No where as well taken care of as Disney.

If you will be in Anaheim, google the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana. Huge and full day of fun. My kids favorite always. And not too young for your kiddos. (ok, just read and saw someone linked to it LOL).

 

 

[gratefulmother]

Those are all great suggestions and places that I was not familiar with.  Um_2_4, thanks for the insider info about Knott's Berry.  Our kids enjoy the rides, but not the character stuff of Disney, so Knott's Berry was what we settled on.  We will take a second look now though.  We are going to be there basically Sunday afternoon through Thursday morning, so only 3 full days.  

 

I did not know about the Discovery Science Center, and it is good to know it is not too young for my kids.  I was wondering about that.  

 

As far as hiking, closer to Anaheim I have found the Oak Canyon Nature Center and DawnM suggested the Griffith Observatory.  If we do a long drive to Lake Arrowhead or Big Bear Lake, it would probably be without my husband since he will have responsibilities during the morning hours.  Trying to decide if maybe we should stay closer in.  I know some of the local parks may seem ho-hum to Californians, but I expect the terrain to be quite a bit different than what my children are used to and therefore pretty interesting.  

 

Now, I am looking into the Queen Mary as well and thinking we might really enjoy that.   I wonder which tours would be good for kids.  If we don't do Knott's Berry we would have extra $$ to do that.  

 

So many things to look at and hard to decide from the other side of the country!! Thanks for all the tips and keep them coming!

 

[Miss Peregrine]

Oh, I love Oak Canyon! Great place.

 

My favorite park growing up was Eisenhower Park off the 55 fwy in Orange. Not sure how it has changed over the years but it was the best!

[Um_2_4]

With 3 days I would not wander as far as Big Bear. How about some of the beaches? There is oneo in Dana point that has a cool learning center, let me google the website for you.

And I wpuld do the Queen mary with the aquarium on 1 day, discovery sci center on 1 day and maybe the la natural hist museum or beaches or oak canyon on the 3rd.

[kitten18]

I'm on my phone so I can't see how old your kids are.

For museums, I would go to the Getty Villa and you could go to the beach right there and Santa Monica pier, etc.

 

I would definitely skip the L.A. Zoo and if you've been to a really good aquarium, I would skip the Aquarium of the Pacific, it's very overpriced and not that great.

[kitten18]

If you go to the tar pits (I would), I would go over to the L.A. Farmer's Market for lunch.

[OhanaBee]

Big Bear and Arrowhead are pretty far to go for hiking.  There are some great trails in Griffith Park, plus you also have the observatory, the zoo, Travel Town [my nephew's favorite place in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD!!], and the Autry Western Heritage Museum.

[gratefulmother]

Oh my goodness! You guys are an amazing resource. I will try to set out a final itinerary tonight and let you know what we have planned.  Thanks so much for the tips!  So many things I wasn't aware of, despite reading the travel books and tripadvisor.  Thank you!

[Running the race]

If you like amusement park rides, Knott's Berry Farm is a good place for that. We have annual passes. Just go first thing in the morning. The lines DO get long, though. Also, right across from Knott's is Soak City, a water park. Look online for discount tickets to both places.

 

I wouldn't go to the La Brea Tar Pits. The traffic will be horrible. I'd only go on a weekend. If your kids are into cars, the Petersen Automotive Museum is walking distance from the tar pits.

 

I haven't been to Discovery Science Center in years, but I hear it is expanded. It is close by to Anaheim, so I would definitely hit that. Look into that Museum Exchange thing someone mentioned upthread. We used that when we traveled to Chicago.

 

Legoland is great if your kids are into legos. That would be a full-day trip for you. It's probably actually close than the tar pits in traffic, though!

 

Feel free to PM me with any questions. I live local to Anaheim.

[Running the race]

I wanted to add: I wouldn't drive to Big Bear without your husband. It is a very curvy road. It is tiring to drive, takes longer than you think, and you'll probably end up sitting in traffic at least one way to get there.

[Khselee]

Oooh, the California Science Center! It's free, and it's awesome. Ds LOVES it! You can sign up online to get tickets to see the space shuttle Endeavour, and there's an aquarium on site. There is SO much there. We were there all day, and we still didn't get through everything (we were slow, though.) It's a good portion of the day thing, if you take your time. The Natural History Museum is right next door, too. 

The Discovery Cube museum has a really cool Lego exhibit going on right now, too, and I know there are coupons online for entry. 

[Guest]

I don't have much to add that hasn't already been said. One thing to remember is how bad the traffic is there. Things that don't seem far away can take a long time to get to. I also would not attempt driving up to Big Bear or Arrowhead by myself or for just a day.  :)

 

Are you from a beach area? If not, I'd do the beach with the kids. We used to go to Huntington, off of Magnolia or Brookhurst. They had bathrooms there, lol. I personally did like the Long Beach Aquarium, although I noticed others mentioned they didn't. I like Knott's Berry Farm, but I haven't been there in years.

 

We love the Petersen museum in LA that someone mentioned, but we are total car junkie people.

[Running the race]

I love the California Science Center, especially since it is free, BUT it is much further from Anaheim. You will end up in traffic. There are carpool lanes on some of the freeways if you go there and pick the right route. Also, the neighborhood around the CA Science Center is sketchy. You won't want to get lost driving in that area.

If you like the beach, I'd take a trip there. Just be aware that it can be 90 degrees in Anaheim and still be cloudy and cool at the beach. Sorry to sound like such a downer! Hopefully it will warm up by the end of the month.

[Jilly]

I would not go to Lake Arrowhead/Big Bear if I were you. I'd make a trip to Bower's museum which is only a few minutes from Anaheim.

 

http://www.bowers.org/

 

Also spend a day down at Crystal Cove State Park. There are trails to hike and a wonderful beach to relax on.

 

http://www.crystalcovestatepark.com/

[gratefulmother]

So far I have planned:

First afternoon-Drive the Pacific Coast Hwy stopping at the Santa Monica and Venice Piers

First day- Farmer's Market and Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits

Second day- Mission San Juan Capistrano and then beaches at Crystal Cove State Park or Huntingdon Beach

Third day - Discovery Science Center and Griffith Park Observatory at Sunset

 

This means we can't fit in the Queen Mary.  No one has said anything about visiting the mission.   I am inclined to go since it is a part of our country's history that we don't have access to back east, but I think, no I know, the kids would enjoy the Queen Mary more.  Any thoughts about the final plan?? 

 

Thank you all so much!  I think I am about ready to wrap up the planning and be there!

 

[Um_2_4]

I see traffic issues with the 3rd day. Santa Ana to Downtown LA? depending on time of day that could be 45mins-2+ hours. Also, the area around griffith is not a place you want to get lost after dark.

And unless your kids just hate sci, the center can be an all day thing.

 

If you think your kids would enjoy the queen mary, I would do that. Then you could take pacific coast highway down to huntington beach.

 

I am not sure your kiddos would like the mission, kinda less interactive, kwim?

[fraidycat]

Knott's Berry Farm is one of our favorite places!! We've been 3 times in the last year and have not once, not ever, felt unsafe or "unclean" there. At all.

[Um_2_4]

Knott's Berry Farm is one of our favorite places!! We've been 3 times in the last year and have not once, not ever, felt unsafe or "unclean" there. At all.

 

3 times in a year? 

Well, I lived less than a mile from it for 7 years and there is a reason the Buena Park Police are always there. I don't feel safe going there. Maybe they cleaned the park up a bit, but it has been the start point of several gang fights around here. Friends who got passes without asking around when they moved here, regretted it as several things were stolen and she felt unsafe going alone with her 3 kids (which was her point a place to go during summer break, it's in walking distance). Others I know who use to go with passes even 5 years ago stopped for the same reasons. They make passes cheap for locals, and it attracts a very different crowd than Disney.  Disney passes are very expensive, even for locals.

[Jaz]

If you have time for lunch on your tour of piers, we like eating at Rubis over the water!http://www.beachcalifornia.com/beach/rubys-balboa-pier.html

Last time we were there, we saw sea lions and dolphins!

 

If you are staying near this park, you can take a ride up in a tethered helium balloon: http://www.ocgp.org/visit/balloon/ It's a fun thing to do on an evening.

 

ETA: The La Brea Tar Pits are a favorite in our family! Don't miss the museum too.

[JFSinIL]

The Tar Pits and Page Museum with stuff taken out of the pits are a must!  Then you could drive over to do the Getty that afternoon...or do the pier/Venice area then.  Drive up to LA to the Tar PIts in the morning - mid day when done there drive to Getty or Santa Monica.  We have done that in one day.  The Getty has two sites - I prefer the  Malibu site that looks like an old Roman Villa. Check on-line - you need a (free) parking reservation!!! or you can't get in.

 

I agree Knotts is iffy. I grew up in S. Calif and last visit we did Knotts and it was so disappointing and a waste of money.  If you wouldn't do Disney, why would you do Knotts?  If the kids want an amusement park - do Disney's California Adventure instead of Disneyland (they are opposite each other in the Resort). 

 

I'd skip the mission - the drive from there to anywhere else can be long. 

 

I did go up to Big Bear a month ago and the drive is long and winding....but I knew that (Dad used to take us up there for a week back when we were kids).  I think since you only have a few days I'd skip it.  Spend more time at a beach instead.  If you do Newport Beach you can also get a boat tour ride of the harbor. 

[JennW in SoCal]

I know you have a tentative 3 days planned, but I got excited reading this thread!

 

Griffith Observatory is so very cool!  There is a small and interesting science museum there, and lots of nice hikes in the area. Getting there in the afternoon seems dicey because parking is so limited, but my experience is limited as I've only been there once.   I do agree that heading there in the afternoon after being at the Discovery Science Museum means you could get stuck in some nasty traffic.

 

We LOVE the big Getty -- not the villa but the newer museum.  The Villa is fine, don't get me wrong, but we love the architecture and grounds at the newer museum.  The exhibits are always interesting with lots of activities for kids.

 

I don't think the Mission is that boring -- I did it with young children and if you are from another part of the country it is absolutely worth checking out just to get a feel for part of the area's history.  And, this might be since San Juan Capistrano is the on the way from my house to Disney, but it isn't that far from Anaheim, and it is on the way to Dana Point.  Laguna Beach, just north of Dana Point, is lovely.  

 

The Queen Mary is pretty cool, as is the aquarium right by there.  Both can fit into a day.  And if you are feeling adventurous, you can drive over the port of Long Beach and see all the huge container ships being unloaded.  I did that once by accident, but it was one of the most fascinating drives I've had.

 

And I agree with everyone else -- Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead are too far away.  Enjoy the beach and look for some of the nice parks and open spaces instead.  

 

 

[Running the race]

So far I have planned:

First afternoon-Drive the Pacific Coast Hwy stopping at the Santa Monica and Venice Piers

First day- Farmer's Market and Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits

Second day- Mission San Juan Capistrano and then beaches at Crystal Cove State Park or Huntingdon Beach

Third day - Discovery Science Center and Griffith Park Observatory at Sunset

 

This means we can't fit in the Queen Mary.  No one has said anything about visiting the mission.   I am inclined to go since it is a part of our country's history that we don't have access to back east, but I think, no I know, the kids would enjoy the Queen Mary more.  Any thoughts about the final plan?? 

 

Thank you all so much!  I think I am about ready to wrap up the planning and be there!

 

As someone else mentioned, the new Getty is amazing. I don't know the age of your kids, but mine liked it. If you decide to go there, I seem to remember you need to reserve the free parking ahead of time.

 

I'd pick the Queen Mary over the mission at SJC.

 

Your third day plan is a little adventurous. Traffic from the DSC to Griffith Park will be horrendous. The Getty and Griffith park are fairly close together. They could be combined.

 

I don't know how much you enjoy driving or your tolerance for traffic, but your plan involves a lot of it.

[OhanaBee]

 

 

Your third day plan is a little adventurous. Traffic from the DSC to Griffith Park will be horrendous. The Getty and Griffith park are fairly close together. They could be combined.

 

I don't know how much you enjoy driving or your tolerance for traffic, but your plan involves a lot of it.

 

This worries me a bit, too.  You will spend a lot of time on Day Three sitting in traffic and creeping along at a whopping 10 miles an hour.  If you're prepared for that then you'll do fine.  But it always takes me a few days to get back in the "swing" of all-day rush hour traffic when I go home. 

 

Day Two looked nice.  Even if your kids aren't that impressed with the mission or you opt out of that part of the day, you may need a relaxing day at the beach recovering from L.A. traffic on Day One and preparing for more L.A. traffic on Day Three.

 

[LibraryLover]

If you go to the tar pits (I would), I would go over to the L.A. Farmer's Market for lunch.

 

I was going to suggest the same. :)  Do the Page museum at the tar pits, really interesting, and yes, head over to The Grove/ LA Farmer's Market, but also has shops and casual eateries.  Good people-watching. :)

 

ETA:  I see these are on your list. :)

[planner]

If your dd would enjoy it, I'd stop by the American Girl store at the Grove.  The second floor has very nice displays of the historical dolls.  The Farmers Market right next to the Grove is a fun place as well.

[LibraryLover]

If interested, you would also have time on the tar pit day to go let the kids stick their hands and feet in Will Smith's giant prints at Grauman's Chinese Theater. Super- touristy. ;)  

[Um_2_4]

Ohh, one of the boat tours from newport beach would be awesome. And there are often groupon deals for it.

I totally forgot that one.

[gratefulmother]

So, it looks like on the third day we should either go into the city and do the Getty Museum and Griffith Observatory in the morning OR go the other direction and do the Discovery Science Museum, but not try to do both in the same day. Thank you!  That is the kind of feedback I need.  

 

Speaking of driving into LA.  What time should we leave in the am?  I have early risers, so we could leave early and grab breakfast on the go.  What time would that need to be?  And when is rush hour over in the am.  I am thinking LA should have an earlier rush hour since the rest of the country is ahead of them a time zone or two or three.  :)

 

[JennW in SoCal]

 

Speaking of driving into LA.  What time should we leave in the am?  I have early risers, so we could leave early and grab breakfast on the go.  What time would that need to be?  And when is rush hour over in the am.  I am thinking LA should have an earlier rush hour since the rest of the country is ahead of them a time zone or two or three.  :)

 

We time any drive to or through LA for later in the morning, say between 9 and noon.  

[Um_2_4]

What jennw said. Unless by early you mean about 4:30-5:00 am. DH used to sometimes head to LA for meetings from our place in Anaheim that started at 7:30, if he didn't hit the 5 freeway by 5:30am he might not make it. If he hit the 5 by 5am, he would get there early and grab a bite before the meeting.

Go to maps.google.com and input your hottel address and destination at the time of day you would like to go (be sure to adjust for time zones) and it will tell you how long in traffic RIGHT NOW. That is an estimate, but in our experience not too far off (maybe 15-20 mins).

also the website www.abc7.com has a mobile version that will give you live speeds on all the freeways in OC and LA?

[gratefulmother]

haha! No, I don't mean 4:30-5!  Thanks.  That gives me a great idea.  You all have been so helpful.  My husband is especially grateful for you giving me a realistic idea of what we can get done.  Thank you so much!

 

[gratefulmother]

We had a fantastic trip, so I wanted to let you all know what we ended up doing.  First of all the Disney Grand Californian hotel really blew me away.  I don't really enjoy all of the Disney hoopla, so I guess my expectations weren't that high, but "wow" they really do a nice job.  It was much nicer than we could have ever afforded on our own if we hadn't been there for my husband's conference.  We had access to a lounge which provided our breakfast and lunch every day and desserts (and wine!) at bedtime.  Amazing!

 

On Sunday when we arrived we drove from LAX up to the Santa Monica pier and had a great time people-watching, especially since my daughter is a gymnast and they had all of the neat gymnastics equipment for the public to use. Then we drove up a little further and stopped to window shop in Beverly Hills at Rodeo Drive.  Really fun!

 

Monday we had planned to do La Brea Tar pits and Farmer's Market, but my husband decided he really wanted us to drive down to San Diego to the zoo.  The zoo was fantastic.  Many animals that we hadn't seen very much of before, if at all.  

 

Tuesday we went to Newport Beach and ate at Rudy's.  Very cool!  I wish we had gone over to Balboa Island and watched boats and surfers and done a little shopping, but everyone was getting a little tired.  I always have to remind myself to slow down the pace for my husband since this is a work trip for him.  He works all morning and then plays with us in the afternoons/evenings, but it is exhausting for him.  

 

Wednesday we ended up doing Disney California Adventureland since the conference ended up giving us 2 adult tickets leaving us only 2 kids' tickets to purchase since the baby is under 2 (barely).   I am glad we did.  It would have been hard not to, in retrospect, with it being right there beside us all week.  

 

It was a great trip for all of us!  Thank you for all the help planning.  

[Khselee]

I'm glad you had a good time!

[MarinesWife]

We love Knott's Berry Farm.  Our kids have never been to Disney.  :)   I love Knott's because there are a bunch of "little" kid rides that are altogether and it's easy to go from one to the next.  We spend some time there... then we go do big kid rides for a bit while the littles eat or drink something .. then we go back to the little kid rides again.  Or we split up.  For a "break" from the lines we go through the little town that is in there and look at trinkets and other fun old time things.  Ride the train a few times ... 

 

We do usually go in November ... when there is hardly anyone there.  So I'm sure the lines will be a lot crazier in the summer.  I'd go early before the heat of the day!