Help... CA trip cancelled, need help planning a new one...

[disney fan 13]

Hey guys, well my family was planning on seeing Extended family in California in December and while we were there I had managed to squeeze in two days at DLR... Well that trip is cancelled ( don't ask why) and I am trying to figure out a way to get out there next December or summer with the family,and was wondering if anyone knew good places to go outside of Disneyland that would make a CA trip worth it to Non Disney lovers.

Notes
-has to be within 150 miles of Disneyland
- Can not be too expensive
- It has to be good enough to take a vacation there.
Thanks!

 

[Cosmic Commando]

I'm taking a trip to Disneyland LA soon, too. In the first post of my thread, I laid out pretty much all of the places I plan on going this November. If you have a science museum membership or zoo membership, you may get free or reduced admission to similar places in LA. It's definitely worth checking out. One place that's not particularly cheap, but I'd still recommend looking into is the Reagan Library. It's around $20 per adult, but you get to see a big chunk of the Berlin Wall and you can walk inside of the real Air Force One used from Carter to the second Bush. I love history, so that stuff speaks to me! You can go dolphin/whale watching for $30-$50 per person, and you can sail on a tall ship for about the same price.

For cheap things to see:
- Do a desert day, especially if you've never been to a desert. The Pines to Palms Scenic Byway is supposed to be cool: real winding road that takes you through the mountains(pines) and down to the desert valley floor(palms). Once you do that, it's a short drive to Joshua Tree National Park ($15 per vehicle for seven day pass). Depending on your budget, the Palm Springs Aerial Tram is well-liked. Winter is the right time to do the desert... it will probably be much nicer than a summer day in FL! 90 miles from Disneyland.
-California Science Center is free ($8ish for parking) and gets good reviews. They're supposed to be receiving one of the space shuttles sometime this year, so it will almost definitely be there next December.
-The Getty and Getty Villa are both awesome art museums. The Getty Villa is focused on antiquities, while the Getty is broad-based. Free to enter, ~$20 to park at each (they're not really near each other).
-The Griffith Observatory is free; you pay to see the planetarium shows. It has a great view overlooking the city.
-The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is free. Small, but free and gets good reviews.

I haven't been to any of these places, but I'm going to all of them in November, so I'm selling you on anything I won't be doing! Good luck!

 

[disney fan 13]

Thank for the quick response! I'm sort of in preliminary research mode right now so no itinary as of yet, I would love to visit the museums ( I am also a history buff) but maybe I should explain the cast...

9yo boy
12 year old girl
16 year old boy
39 year old woman
46 year old man

So the audience isnt geared too much to the museums but the desert day sounds cool, and the observatory and the aquarium Would most go in a LA day.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Reagan Presidential Library has an awesome Airforce One museum and exhibit.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I would recommend a city tour of LA/Hollywood. Yo could go to The Grove and Farmer's Market and do some shopping and eating. You could go to some museums. Which exact parts of CA were you thinking of going to?

 

[disney fan 13]

^ pretty much SoCal. Though I may take a day to head north and see Redwood or Yosemite

 

[Californian Elitist]

^ pretty much SoCal. Though I may take a day to head north and see Redwood or Yosemite

Okay, well in that case you could go to some beaches. Venice/Santa Monica Beach are some of the most popular, especially with the pier. Laguna and Huntington Beach are also nice. You could go to Hollywood and see a Disney movie at the El Capitan Theatre, and afterwards get some ice cream at the Disney Soda Fountain next door. If you don't know, the El Capitan is a famous old theater that Disney bought years ago. It's really classic and beautiful and it only shows Disney films, new and old ones. Cinderella is playing right now, I believe, but it will be showing Frankenweenie next October, for example.

San Diego is gorgeous. You could always visit there or Santa Barbara. You could go to Long Beach and take a tour of The Queen Mary, which is supposedly haunted. I haven't even done that yet but I'd like to. Let me know if you need more suggestions.

 

[disney fan 13]

Thanks for the tips, I'm starting a preliminary itinerary now so all the suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

^ pretty much SoCal. Though I may take a day to head north and see Redwood or Yosemite

Just keep in mind that those places are up in the mountains, so December is really the dead of winter. Roads might not be very easy to drive on and hiking would be much more difficult. I really wanted to see some giant trees!!! but the distance (about 5-6 hours away from LA) and the winter weather pushed me to consider the desert (about 2 hours away) instead. Winter is the wrong time to head into the mountains and the right time to go to the desert.

Edit: I went back to your original post and I see you said "next December or summer". So either avoid the desert or the mountains depending on which season you travel.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

I'm pretty sure it was someone on here who told me about it, but I don't remember who... Anyway, check out the Go Los Angeles Card. You buy a card that is good for a certain number of days. They have a list of attractions, and you can go to as many things on their list as you want during the days your card is valid. It's a good deal if there's enough on your list to interest you. It works sort of like a CityPass.

 

[disney fan 13]

Alright, Update time, I've extended the trip time from 7 days to 9 days so we don't feel rushed and i'm 85% sure the trip will take place in early August. Other then that i'm still researching.