karylrocks
I know it's only rock 'n roll but I like it.....
- Joined
- May 15, 2001
Our family consists of DH and I, DS25, DD23, and DS13. My mind is not together enough to post a full trip report but I thought I would post a few random observations:
Saturday, Seaworld It was very humid. It seems that the shows are not as good or as long as they used to be. Shipwreck Rapids was OK and the lines to feed the dolphins and ride Journey to Atlantis were too long. We had a pretty good time but now that we have been there a few times we will probably not go back.
Sunday, San Diego Zoo Another humid day. We only had a few hours here since we had to leave early. We took the bus tour that gave us an overview of the park, and then we took the express bus that makes several stops around the park. The kids fed the giraffes and we saw the pandas, koalas, the cats and a few other things. We left at 2:00 to get DD to the Dave Matthews concert in Carson (most important part of the trip for her) which took almost 3 hours; there was a ton of traffic. After dropping her off we went to Downtown Disney to redeem our CityPass vouchers for park-hoppers and upgrade mine to AP for my discount at DLH. This was Bat Day and we saw lots of gothic dress. When we got to check-in there was no one else there and I was told that up until 20 minutes ago the line was out the door all day. They didnt even ask for my AP. We had a standard room and I had requested a NS daybed room with a separate vanity area in the Marina tower and got everything I asked for. The bathroom had a shower and sink with a separate door to the toilet, and just outside the bathroom was a large counter with a hairdryer and big mirror, just perfect. We had a great view of the fireworks, I could even lay in bed and watch them. Loved our room and DLH!
Monday, Universal Studios First we had breakfast at Goofys Kitchen; we saw Goofy, Pluto, Dale, Rafiki, Alice and the Mad Hatter. We took the 57 and the 210 to avoid traffic on I-5, and it took about 90 minutes to get there. Universal was great! DD volunteered at the special effects stage and they showed how they could put her into a couple of movies. Van Helsing was scary and fun; there are actual people that jump out to scare you so I was screaming and laughing the whole time. The crowds were very manageable; there was a kid who had ridden the Mummy 35 times in a row. The website had indicated a 9:00 closing time, but the park closed at 7:00. We were lucky and managed to get in almost everything we wanted to do even though we didn't know it was closing. I can see that there would not be much for younger kids (under 10) there, but for us it was just right.
Tuesday, Magic Mountain/Knotts/Angels DH took the older kids to MM because they love roller coasters. They left at 8:15 and arrived around 10:45. They were trying to get there at 10:00 opening to ride X, but it was closed when they got there. They rode some other coasters and were able to ride X later; they got a great picture! As we expected, the rides were inefficiently run and the park was rather dirty, but they got to ride most of the coasters and seemed to have a good time. DS and I (who are not thrill ride fans) watched TV, swam in the Neverland Pool, went to ESPN Zone and then took a bus to Knotts. We had never been there and since the tickets were included with the CityPass, we decided to check it out. We had the chicken dinner and rode a few rides. I know a lot of people love it, but we thought it seemed odd with the bright steel coasters mixed in with the old west theme, and I dont think my kids would have like the Camp Snoopy section when they were younger. At least I can now say that I have been there. We took a taxi to the Angels game ($30!) and that was pretty fun; DSs first big league baseball game (he is mostly a basketball fan). Eleven innings and Oakland won, just as DS had hoped.
Wednesday/Thursday, Disneyland Not too hot or humid (cooled down considerably at night) and the crowds were very manageable early in the day. Wednesday was our best day, Thursday we had more people (DSs GF and her parents and 3-year-old daughter) join our group and everything took twice as long. We collected Fastpasses throughout the day and used them in the afternoon/evening. We noticed that if the line for Indiana Jones is 20 minutes or less, it is not worth using FP because the FP line is almost that long. The FP line for Autopia was ridiculous (over 30 minutes). All the other FP lines were 5 minutes or less, even if the regular line was almost an hour. We got to Riverbelle Terrace at 7:00 for dinner and got a table right by the walkway. It was 8:00 by the time we got our food and finished eating, and the kids rode a couple of rides while we waited for Fantasmic. The kids got back about 10 minutes before the show and we had a great view. This worked out perfectly. I strongly suggest getting to where you want to be before 9:00 and plan to stay there until well after Fantasmic/Fireworks are over it is very difficult to get anywhere during this time. Space Mountain is awesome! Some people have said that it is not that different but I thought it was way better!
Friday, California Adventure We didnt have much time here so just did a few things; Soarin was great, GRR is the best raft ride we have ever experienced, my 2 roller coaster fans who loved X were scared on Sun Wheel (go figure). DD and I hated the steam over by Soarin, it was already a humid day and our hair was frizzed by the middle of the morning. Aladdin was OK but not as good as I expected from the reviews; DS was disappointed that it did not follow the original story. We left to spend some time at ESPN Zone (the boys) and shop (the girls) and then had dinner at Hooks Point before heading to the airport. I was still wet from riding GRR three times and getting soaked (it was worth it).
Saturday Did laundry and laid on the couch all day because my legs were so sore I could barely move.
My favorite souvenirs all the golden vehicle pins, Darth Tater and a box of Potato Head parts, pictures of the kids on the rides.
My reward for spending most of the last year planning this trip for my family and running around getting fastpasses going back in December while DH is at a conference and spending lots of time in the parks by myself.
Thanks to everyone who answered my questions and helped me with so many decisions.
Saturday, Seaworld It was very humid. It seems that the shows are not as good or as long as they used to be. Shipwreck Rapids was OK and the lines to feed the dolphins and ride Journey to Atlantis were too long. We had a pretty good time but now that we have been there a few times we will probably not go back.
Sunday, San Diego Zoo Another humid day. We only had a few hours here since we had to leave early. We took the bus tour that gave us an overview of the park, and then we took the express bus that makes several stops around the park. The kids fed the giraffes and we saw the pandas, koalas, the cats and a few other things. We left at 2:00 to get DD to the Dave Matthews concert in Carson (most important part of the trip for her) which took almost 3 hours; there was a ton of traffic. After dropping her off we went to Downtown Disney to redeem our CityPass vouchers for park-hoppers and upgrade mine to AP for my discount at DLH. This was Bat Day and we saw lots of gothic dress. When we got to check-in there was no one else there and I was told that up until 20 minutes ago the line was out the door all day. They didnt even ask for my AP. We had a standard room and I had requested a NS daybed room with a separate vanity area in the Marina tower and got everything I asked for. The bathroom had a shower and sink with a separate door to the toilet, and just outside the bathroom was a large counter with a hairdryer and big mirror, just perfect. We had a great view of the fireworks, I could even lay in bed and watch them. Loved our room and DLH!
Monday, Universal Studios First we had breakfast at Goofys Kitchen; we saw Goofy, Pluto, Dale, Rafiki, Alice and the Mad Hatter. We took the 57 and the 210 to avoid traffic on I-5, and it took about 90 minutes to get there. Universal was great! DD volunteered at the special effects stage and they showed how they could put her into a couple of movies. Van Helsing was scary and fun; there are actual people that jump out to scare you so I was screaming and laughing the whole time. The crowds were very manageable; there was a kid who had ridden the Mummy 35 times in a row. The website had indicated a 9:00 closing time, but the park closed at 7:00. We were lucky and managed to get in almost everything we wanted to do even though we didn't know it was closing. I can see that there would not be much for younger kids (under 10) there, but for us it was just right.
Tuesday, Magic Mountain/Knotts/Angels DH took the older kids to MM because they love roller coasters. They left at 8:15 and arrived around 10:45. They were trying to get there at 10:00 opening to ride X, but it was closed when they got there. They rode some other coasters and were able to ride X later; they got a great picture! As we expected, the rides were inefficiently run and the park was rather dirty, but they got to ride most of the coasters and seemed to have a good time. DS and I (who are not thrill ride fans) watched TV, swam in the Neverland Pool, went to ESPN Zone and then took a bus to Knotts. We had never been there and since the tickets were included with the CityPass, we decided to check it out. We had the chicken dinner and rode a few rides. I know a lot of people love it, but we thought it seemed odd with the bright steel coasters mixed in with the old west theme, and I dont think my kids would have like the Camp Snoopy section when they were younger. At least I can now say that I have been there. We took a taxi to the Angels game ($30!) and that was pretty fun; DSs first big league baseball game (he is mostly a basketball fan). Eleven innings and Oakland won, just as DS had hoped.
Wednesday/Thursday, Disneyland Not too hot or humid (cooled down considerably at night) and the crowds were very manageable early in the day. Wednesday was our best day, Thursday we had more people (DSs GF and her parents and 3-year-old daughter) join our group and everything took twice as long. We collected Fastpasses throughout the day and used them in the afternoon/evening. We noticed that if the line for Indiana Jones is 20 minutes or less, it is not worth using FP because the FP line is almost that long. The FP line for Autopia was ridiculous (over 30 minutes). All the other FP lines were 5 minutes or less, even if the regular line was almost an hour. We got to Riverbelle Terrace at 7:00 for dinner and got a table right by the walkway. It was 8:00 by the time we got our food and finished eating, and the kids rode a couple of rides while we waited for Fantasmic. The kids got back about 10 minutes before the show and we had a great view. This worked out perfectly. I strongly suggest getting to where you want to be before 9:00 and plan to stay there until well after Fantasmic/Fireworks are over it is very difficult to get anywhere during this time. Space Mountain is awesome! Some people have said that it is not that different but I thought it was way better!
Friday, California Adventure We didnt have much time here so just did a few things; Soarin was great, GRR is the best raft ride we have ever experienced, my 2 roller coaster fans who loved X were scared on Sun Wheel (go figure). DD and I hated the steam over by Soarin, it was already a humid day and our hair was frizzed by the middle of the morning. Aladdin was OK but not as good as I expected from the reviews; DS was disappointed that it did not follow the original story. We left to spend some time at ESPN Zone (the boys) and shop (the girls) and then had dinner at Hooks Point before heading to the airport. I was still wet from riding GRR three times and getting soaked (it was worth it).
Saturday Did laundry and laid on the couch all day because my legs were so sore I could barely move.
My favorite souvenirs all the golden vehicle pins, Darth Tater and a box of Potato Head parts, pictures of the kids on the rides.
My reward for spending most of the last year planning this trip for my family and running around getting fastpasses going back in December while DH is at a conference and spending lots of time in the parks by myself.
Thanks to everyone who answered my questions and helped me with so many decisions.
