College tour + Disneyland - Help me plan?

[Disney Dad ADL]

Thank you so much! That's an excellent perspective. When we go to FL, we usually fly out of Islip, which is a small regional airport that's 10min from our home. Is Burbank similar? Thinking of my daughter flying in and out of LAX gives me palpitations . (Of course I say this at the same time she's attending a class at Parson's in NYC - lol )

Yes, Burbank is pretty small (though not as small as Long Beach airport). If you like smaller airports, you will much prefer Burbank over LAX. Last time I flew from Burbank, they were still boarding the planes from the tarmac (you have to go outside onto the tarmac and take stairs up into the plane) rather than taking a jet bridge directly from the gate into the plane, though it was awhile ago.

 

[GoBears 1980]

I'd fly into Burbank. It makes the drive to Disney a bit longer, but it closer to CalArts when you leave and I would spend at least two nights in Santa Clarita to get a feel for the area.

I'd also skip Universal.

 

[rantnnravin]

I'd fly into Burbank. It makes the drive to Disney a bit longer, but it closer to CalArts when you leave and I would spend at least two nights in Santa Clarita to get a feel for the area.

I'd also skip Universal.

Thanks. Is there anything in Santa Clarita that you would recommend doing/seeing?

 

[bcla]

Thanks. Is there anything in Santa Clarita that you would recommend doing/seeing?

I don't mention this with any kind of dislike for the place, but outside of Magic Mountain, there's really nothing in the area that would appeal to most visitors. It's basically a quiet bedroom community, although it has several big employers. Even their tourism board focuses on Magic Mountain.

http://visitsantaclarita.com

 

[Disney Dad ADL]

I don't mention this with any kind of dislike for the place, but outside of Magic Mountain, there's really nothing in the area that would appeal to most visitors. It's basically a quiet bedroom community, although it has several big employers. Even their tourism board focuses on Magic Mountain.

http://visitsantaclarita.com

Yeah, I've never really heard of any particular tourism draws in Santa Clarita as bcla says outside of Magic Mountain. I'm sure there is SOMETHING there, like everyplace has something, but nothing that is well known. I'm sure some guy from Santa Clarita is reading this like "what do you mean, man?!? Haven't you heard of the Jeff Disney Glue and Synthetic Adhesives Archive?! He was Walt's third cousin and the world's fourth most famous adhesives expert!" So, I apologize if I'm overlooking something .

You are however close enough to LA where you could drive into the city if you get bored, or go to Universal from there. It's quieter there than the city.

 

[rantnnravin]

So if we were trying to get a feel for the area there's no shopping, museums, aquariums or the like? Regular parks? Main Street type things rather than touristy?

 

[bcla]

So if we were trying to get a feel for the area there's no shopping, museums, aquariums or the like? Regular parks? Main Street type things rather than touristy?

There's stuff like that to some degree. I wouldn't think the shopping is terribly remarkable. It's mostly big retailers common to suburbs and one major mall.

It's an area with about 250,000 people. Sure they have local parks and maybe some small museums, but nothing particularly remarkable. I kind of equate it to a place I spent time in (with a similar name) - Santa Clara, California. Lots of well known employers, quiet neighborhoods, a major roller coaster park, a medium sized college, and a few small museums.

http://santaclaritaguide.com/Museums.html

It's only about 8 miles to the city limits of Los Angeles. The Getty Center is about a half hour away by car. If you really want that kind of activity, it's reasonably close.

 

[rantnnravin]

Ok thanks. I just thought a bit of a look at the more mundane aspects might help her get a feel for living in the area. She'll have a look at what's around - and strange as it may seem, knowing the location of the nearest Target might be somewhat reassuring.

And thank you for the link - I'll check it out.

 

[bcla]

Ok thanks. I just thought a bit of a look at the more mundane aspects might help her get a feel for living in the area. She'll have a look at what's around - and strange as it may seem, knowing the location of the nearest Target might be somewhat reassuring.

And thank you for the link - I'll check it out.

Let me just put it this way. You indicate that you live on Long Island. Granted Santa Clarita is a bit different in that it's somewhat isolated due to the geology (a triangular canyon) of the area, but its identity is heavily tied to its proximity to Los Angeles. Other than that it's basically living in a suburb, which to my understanding is pretty much the way of life in most of Long Island. You eventually learn things about where locals go, but most of the interesting things involve driving out of town.

A lot of these little museums are the kind of places where there are prominent signs and relatively few visitors. I noted that I'm familiar with Santa Clara, California. I lived there just a few blocks from the local art museum. I have never been there. On the way back from Disneyland once, we stopped at a store in Santa Clarita and struck up a conversation with another customer who was a local. I said something about the biggest attraction in the area, and she thought about it for a while and had not idea what I was talking about. When I mentioned Magic Mountain she understood, then said she'd never been there.

Mundane shopping is pretty much what you'd expect from a suburb. You mentioned Target, where the closest is maybe 2.5 miles. The closest Walmart is actually closer located in a strip mall with a Chili's, Starbucks, Toys R Us, etc.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Cal...01f5648871cdc!2m2!1d-118.5615697!2d34.4211322
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Cal...31246f36b27c7!2m2!1d-118.5691869!2d34.3834522

There's a lot of hiking in the area. There are a lot of regional open spaces, and Angeles National Forest is pretty close.

Take if for what it's worth, but here's a discussion about someone moving to Valencia for an MFA at CalArts.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/los-angeles/2116244-moving-la-area-calarts-mfa.html

Santa Clarita is a pretty horrible place for anyone who isn't a 55 yr old retired cop, or whatever. It's totally southwest Stepford. The individual neighborhoods don't really matter. They're just basically subdivisions of the same 90s desert stucco architectural style peppered with franchise businesses.

There are also no interesting places near there and it will be a pain in the *** to get to class. So live in SC, because that's where everyone else at calarts is going to be, and suck it up and drive 45+ minutes when you want to go to that 'rad' arts district warehouse party, or that 'gnar' highland park DIY backyard show, or that 'chill' echo park PoMo reading.​

To be fair, CalArts was there long before most of the subdivisions and before there was ever a city government. Magic Mountain opened around the same time (1971).

In short CalArts is a world class art school in a boring suburb. I guess there's nothing wrong with that. I live in a boring suburb and haven't gone crazy yet. Since you're familiar with Parsons, it's certainly a different way of life than Greenwich Village.

 

[GoBears 1980]

Let me just put it this way. You indicate that you live on Long Island. Granted Santa Clarita is a bit different in that it's somewhat isolated due to the geology (a triangular canyon) of the area, but its identity is heavily tied to its proximity to Los Angeles. Other than that it's basically living in a suburb, which to my understanding is pretty much the way of life in most of Long Island. You eventually learn things about where locals go, but most of the interesting things involve driving out of town.

A lot of these little museums are the kind of places where there are prominent signs and relatively few visitors. I noted that I'm familiar with Santa Clara, California. I lived there just a few blocks from the local art museum. I have never been there. On the way back from Disneyland once, we stopped at a store in Santa Clarita and struck up a conversation with another customer who was a local. I said something about the biggest attraction in the area, and she thought about it for a while and had not idea what I was talking about. When I mentioned Magic Mountain she understood, then said she'd never been there.

Mundane shopping is pretty much what you'd expect from a suburb. You mentioned Target, where the closest is maybe 2.5 miles. The closest Walmart is actually closer located in a strip mall with a Chili's, Starbucks, Toys R Us, etc.

There's a lot of hiking in the area. There are a lot of regional open spaces, and Angeles National Forest is pretty close.

Take if for what it's worth, but here's a discussion about someone moving to Valencia for an MFA at CalArts.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/los-angeles/2116244-moving-la-area-calarts-mfa.html

Santa Clarita is a pretty horrible place for anyone who isn't a 55 yr old retired cop, or whatever. It's totally southwest Stepford. The individual neighborhoods don't really matter. They're just basically subdivisions of the same 90s desert stucco architectural style peppered with franchise businesses.

There are also no interesting places near there and it will be a pain in the *** to get to class. So live in SC, because that's where everyone else at calarts is going to be, and suck it up and drive 45+ minutes when you want to go to that 'rad' arts district warehouse party, or that 'gnar' highland park DIY backyard show, or that 'chill' echo park PoMo reading.​

To be fair, CalArts was there long before most of the subdivisions and before there was ever a city government. Magic Mountain opened around the same time (1971).

In short CalArts is a world class art school in a boring suburb. I guess there's nothing wrong with that. I live in a boring suburb and haven't gone crazy yet. Since you're familiar with Parsons, it's certainly a different way of life than Greenwich Village.

Many parts of the post above are borderline insane, but to be fair the most insane portions quote the City-Data forums where insanity and inanity are both requirements.

Santa Clarita is not a horrible place for anyone isn't old or a retired cop (that would be Simi Valley). The SC Valley is full of young families which is why they cannot build schools fast enough to keep up.

Old Newhall is an interesting place and in the surrounding area you have studio lots where many, maybe most, of the old Western movies were made.

http://oldtownnewhall.com/
http://www.melodyranchstudio.com/
http://www.advisor.com/story/where-they-film-santa-clarita-valley-california

For shopping you have the Westfield Town Center that is like any other mall around, be that good or bad.

Santa Clarita also has one of the best city aquatic centers of any city in So Cal and one of the best scooter/skate parks. Those aren't for the 55+ set.

There are things to do in the SCV besides listening to your arteries harden. It does require people to make an effort. The person who wrote in the inane parts in City-Data wasn't making an effort obviously.

 

[rantnnravin]

Thanks bcla and GoBears. I'm really appreciating all the insights.

 

[bcla]

Many parts of the post above are borderline insane, but to be fair the most insane portions quote the City-Data forums where insanity and inanity are both requirements.

Santa Clarita is not a horrible place for anyone isn't old or a retired cop (that would be Simi Valley). The SC Valley is full of young families which is why they cannot build schools fast enough to keep up.

I found it kind of hilarious, which is why I posted it. I knew it was a caricature, but most of the area is wall to wall cookie cutter subdivisions and pretty standard big box strip malls. Not horrible per se, but just boring. It reminds me of much of Southern California with the exception that it's semi-isolated. If the OP's kid is interested in art school, it's certainly not going to be an urban setting like Parsons or other art schools in Manhattan.

CalArts itself is a really small school with less than 1500 total students. They don't have a large faculty. It's not even a medium sized college where there are nearby student hangouts. I guess they have a cafeteria on campus, but nothing like a local pizza joint, watering hole, etc. It's surrounded by a freeway on one side and residential areas on all other sides. I can't imagine going to school there without a car. It's certainly not a typical, walkable college neighborhood like the ones I remember. There's going to be a certain sacrifice of a typical college experience, but that's supposed to be made up with the excellence of the school itself.

I'm pretty sure that CalArts was located where it is because land was cheap.

 

[rantnnravin]

... It's not even a medium sized college where there are nearby student hangouts. I guess they have a cafeteria on campus, but nothing like a local pizza joint, watering hole, etc. It's surrounded by a freeway on one side and residential areas on all other sides. I can't imagine going to school there without a car. It's certainly not a typical, walkable college neighborhood like the ones I remember. There's going to be a certain sacrifice of a typical college experience, but that's supposed to be made up with the excellence of the school itself.

I'm pretty sure that CalArts was located where it is because land was cheap.

good intel - thanks.
- I would hope that if I'm selling my kidney on the black market in order to send my kid to art school - she'd better be concentrating on the school part - so I'm ok with the low-key atmosphere. Of course my perception may be slightly different from hers. But yeah, the school is well-regarded and where she wants to go, so...

 

[bcla]

good intel - thanks.
- I would hope that if I'm selling my kidney on the black market in order to send my kid to art school - she'd better be concentrating on the school part - so I'm ok with the low-key atmosphere. Of course my perception may be slightly different from hers. But yeah, the school is well-regarded and where she wants to go, so...

You can have a look on Google Maps. There is a small local shopping center across the street. I'd just say I grew up near Berkeley and went to school at UC Berkeley. In between classes, I still needed to eat. My idea of a college environment is pizza joints, burgers, bookstores, record stores, etc. Even most commuter schools have some sort of neighborhood. Although CalArts was there first, the impression is that a school was dropped into a sleepy, nondescript suburb. It's not a typical college neighborhood, that's for sure.

 

[Disney Dad ADL]

FWIW, I'm not super familiar with Santa Clarita other than driving thru a lot, but I don't think @bcla is being unfair. Santa Clarita is probably not someplace that a typical 18 y/o will find exciting other than its proximity to LA, but not every 18 y/o will find the "typical" enjoyable.

If you search google images for Santa Clarita, CA you can get an idea of what it looks like.

I went to college in a suburb as well, and I enjoyed my time there, so it's not necessarily a bad thing.

 

[bcla]

FWIW, I'm not super familiar with Santa Clarita other than driving thru a lot, but I don't think @bcla is being unfair. Santa Clarita is probably not someplace that a typical 18 y/o will find exciting other than its proximity to LA, but not every 18 y/o will find the "typical" enjoyable.

Yeah, I don't think I'm trashing the place. I grew up in a suburb and still live in one. That's basically what the place is. Any student's life is going to revolve heavily around the school without a lot of secondary stuff like partying or sports. I guess to some parents that can be a good thing. You can read the reviews.

https://colleges.niche.com/california-institute-of-the-arts/local-area/

"Suburban deadbeat town with no charm" may be extreme, but most acknowledge that it's considered relatively boring. I mean, I've lived/worked in Silicon Valley on and off over the years, and that's basically how I saw the place.

However, for certain jobs, CalArts is the biggest brand name anywhere, especially digital animation. The representation of its graduates at places like Pixar, Walt Disney Animation, Lucasfilm, and other animation/effects makers is very high. The school as it exists now owes a lot to Walt Disney.

 

[bcla]

I take back what I said about this place being boring. It is in fact Awesometown. That's what it says on the billboard.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/sep/23/business/la-fi-0920-awesometown-20100920
http://www.signalscv.com/archives/134606/

 

[S. Lopez]

If you're into classic cars they have the Nethercutt Museum in Sylmar (another small town near Valencia/Santa Clarita).

 

[SMD]

So if we were trying to get a feel for the area there's no shopping, museums, aquariums or the like? Regular parks? Main Street type things rather than touristy?

Have you contacted the school at all? Those are exactly the kinds of things that are addressed on a college tour. I'm sure that the school can tell you which airport to fly into, how to get from the airport to the school, how they recommend students do it, hotel recommendation, where to shop, local attractions, etc.

 

[rantnnravin]

Have you contacted the school at all? Those are exactly the kinds of things that are addressed on a college tour. I'm sure that the school can tell you which airport to fly into, how to get from the airport to the school, how they recommend students do it, hotel recommendation, where to shop, local attractions, etc.

Thanks - while I'm sure they do that - I do appreciate the candor of the responses from folks who live nearby.

For instance: I went to Hofstra because it was well-respected in my major and I lived in the area, so I was able to commute. The campus has basically taken over what was once a small residential stamp in an otherwise commercial area. Hofstra touts itself as "using NYC as a backdrop". Ummm, while one can certainly drive in (about 40mins) or take the train there, without a car, a student who lives on campus would have to take the bus to the train station in Hempstead, which is NOT a "nice" area, then hope the schedules work out in their favor. -- These are things that the locals can tell you that the college admissions reps. would gloss over.

Plus, I wanted some suggestions about how to incorporate a vacation into the visit. For instance, one could look at the tourism site for Long Island and be intrigued by the "railroad museum" in Greenport, whereas a local will tell you it's one room with some old pictures of trains and a few large iron "artifacts."

Again, thanks for your help.