California Trip from the UK in July

MixedUpRichard

Earning My Ears
Joined
Feb 9, 2005
Hello,

My family and I are planning a trip to California from the UK in July. (Two kids aged 6 and 3 plus wife).

We have only ever visited WDW and Disneyland Paris and would like to get the best from our 'once in a lifetime' trip. We have to stick to UK school holidays so can travel between 1st July and beginning of August. We are planning a 2-week trip (possibly 15/16 days or so depending how things plan out)

1. Obviously, it will be a busy time of year but we are wondering if it would be better to fly out at the start of July or wait until after Independence Day? Would crowds get better or worse as we head through July? What dates would you recommend?

2. We are flying into LAX but are thinking of going to San Diego first in the hope it'll be a little less hectic and we can take a day or 2 there to get over jet jag. Other than flying or hiring a car (trying to keep driving to a minimum, if at all), what's the best way of getting from LAX to San Diego?

3. My wife would like to spend a couple of days at the beach and get a surfing lesson (!). Where would be the best place to go to do this in either San Diego or LA bearing in mind the time of year and our 2 small people.

4. Finally, and probably toughest of all, these are the attractions we are thinking of visiting. Are there any on the list you would recommend to do or avoid and how many days do you think for first time visitors for places such as Disney and Universal? (Please keep in mind ages of small people [6 and 3] and time of year).

San Diego Wild Animal Park or San Diego Zoo - which one or both?
Sea World
La Jolla
Legoland
Disneyland (maybe staying at Howard J.) - 4 days? 5 days?
Universal (Can we do this while staying at HoJo or best staying closer) - 2 days?

Anywhere else?

We aren't to fussed in Hollywood/Walk of Fame as I think the kids would be bored rigid.

Any thoughts, comments or suggestions welcome.

Thank you in advance

Richard
 
Definitely start your trip in San Diego! Given everything in the San Diego area that you'd like to see, you could easily spend 5 days there. For example:

Day 1 - arrival day. Plan on not going to any touristy places this day. Except maybe the beach if your hotel is walking distance to the beach. Otherwise, plop the kids by the pool.
Day 2 - San Diego Zoo
Day 3 - La Jolla, spend an afternoon at the beach & your wife can get a surfing lesson. I have no idea where's a good spot in So Cal to take surfing lessons. Sorry!
Day 4 - Legoland
Day 5 - Sea World
Day 6 - check out of San Diego hotel. Drive to Anaheim & check in at Hojo's. Spend afternoon/evening at DL or let your kids rest & have them play in the awesome splash pad kids' play area at the Hojo.
Day 7 - Universal. Given your kids' ages, 1 day at Universal is sufficient in my opinion.
Day 8 - rest day. Maybe Santa Monica or Newport Beach. If you don't want to keep the rental car, turn rental car in somewhere in Anaheim. If you return the rental car on this day, stock up on snacks & food at a local grocery store first.
Day 9 - Day 1 at Disneyland
Day 10 - Day 2 at Disneyland
Day 11 - rest day. Sleep in, maybe take the kids to the Discovery Cube museum that's a couple of freeway exits south on I-5 of Disneyland. It's great for kids your children's ages. Or if you want to NOT have to drive at all when you get to Anaheim, you could have the kids swim in the hotel pool & walk to Downtown Disney and take them to a movie at the AMC movie theater in the afternoon. Sometimes young kids can get really overstimulated with a lot of theme park stuff, so I've found it helpful to plan on some down time periodically during our trips.
Day 12 - Day 3 at Disneyland
Day 13 - Day 4 at Disneyland
Day 14 - a 'do whatever' day or departure day. For transportation to the airport if you're not keeping the rental car, you could go with something like Lansky. I haven't ever used them, but lots people on the DIS here have and highly recommend them.

LAX to San Diego without rush hour traffic would take you about 2 hours to drive. Driving on So Cal freeways isn't nearly as scary as many people say it is. Given everywhere you want to go in San Diego, a car is pretty essential otherwise you'll be spending a lot of $$ on taxis or Uber rides. Also, be sure to bring your children's car seats, if you have them, because taxis and Uber usually don't have car seats. But car seats for young children are required in all passenger vehicles in California.
 
Another good option for a day trip that doesn't require a rental car would be to take the Amtrak train from Anaheim to San Juan Capistrano and visit the mission. Mary Jo from the DIS Unplugged did a "Day 6 Adventure" podcast about it some time last year, I think, and it sounds like a lot of fun. However, round trip fare on Amtrak will cost you about $90.

Airport transfers on Lansky costs ~$100 one way. Also, in San Diego, everything is pretty spread out. For example, the San Diego safari park is in Escondido and it will take ~30-45 min (depending on traffic) to drive on the freeway from, let's say, Hotel Circle (which is near the I-8/I-15 freeway interchange) to Escondido. Public transportation exists, but it's nothing like public transportation in the UK. Our public transport. system in the US is really lacking. The fastest, most economical, and easiest way to get around So Cal is by car.
 
Are you flying nonstop to LAX? If your flight has a stop, you might as well fly directly to San Diego. San Diego leading up to or on the 4th will be better than going during Comic Con, which is July 19th-23rd this year.

You'll need safety seats for a 3 and 6 year old for all transportation except buses and trains. You'll be limited in transfers between stations, hotels and attractions unless you haul the seats around. Price a 2 week rental, it may be relatively cheap for the long rental period, and then you can install the seats once, and even if you don't use the car while at DLR (look for a hotel with free parking) it will be more convenient when you do travel to have the car ready to go.

Another thing you could do with 2 weeks is start in San Francisco and take a cheap flight to So Cal. San Diego, SNA for DL or BUR for Universal and bypass LAX if you're not doing anything in LA except Universal.
 


We really enjoyed the Paul Ghetti museeem. We also flew LAX to Vegas for 3 nights it was a blast. See the grand caynon. The lights of Vegas. Flights we got with South West airlines. Cheap hotels in Vegas like The Mirage great location , nice rooms good price.
 
July is peak travel season in Souther California whenever you go. Avoiding Disneyland around Independence Day and San Diego around Comic-Con are probably the big spikes, but everywhere will be busy.

I think spending part of your holiday in San Diego and part in Orange County would be wonderful with your children's ages. If there is something in particular at Universal you must see it would probably be worth the drive and cost, but your children are too short for many of the attractions -- lots of child swapping.

I'd do a hotel in San Diego for a week -- Legoland, zoo/safari park, Sea World with beach or park days in between. Check out Balboa Park too as a possibility. You'll definitely want a car for this portion.

Then maybe move to Anaheim for another week and decide whether you want to keep the car based on what besides Disneyland you might want to do. Maybe 2 days DL, rest/pool/play day, 2 days DL, then get a car the last couple days of your trip to see other attractions (beach? Long Beach Aquarium? harbor tour?) and return you to the airport.

Or reverse the whole lot.

I think trying to throw in San Francisco or Las Vegas would only be worth it if those had particular appeal. Thats a lot of extra travel and moving hotels with children.

PHXscuba
 
I agree with spending a few days in SD first and having a car is a must, as mentioned places are rather far apart. I have never found driving in either SD or LA to be a problem other than some slow downs here and there. Tho you're used to driving on the other side of he road.

With kids your ages I would skip Universal and go to Knotts or spend the day at Long Beach Aquarium. Much more relaxing and I think there's stuff to do on the pier, maybe an hour on the beaches.
 


I agree w/Phxscuba & endy. Maybe adjust the San Diego week so that you don't have anything big planned for the first 2 days after you arrive in the US. Why? So your kids can adjust to the time difference. Having flown back to the US from London before myself, the first 2 days back in the US after being on UK time can be rough.
 
We have flown SAN - LHR on British Airways, which worked out great. If you could, that would make the start of your trip easier with a direct LHR - SAN flight.
If you stay in downtown San Diego, you could avoid having a car for the beginning of your trip.
Your kids would likely enjoy time at the beach.
There are lots of great spots.
On the way back, LAX - LHR would work great.
With young kids you will want to have some space in your room, and have a nice free breakfast.
At Disneyland, staying where you can walk to the Parks, like HOJO, Fairfield Inn, etc. is a good plan.
Enjoy your trip!
 

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