After much indecisiveness, I'm going back to the US.

[WanderlustNZ]

Ok, a few answers from me. Universal Studios VIP tour. We did this in May with our kids 10 and 12. It was fantastic. The tour guide was great, really informative. We got to get out of the bus during the tour, but we did not get out at Wisteria Lane. We did get to go onto the set of Parenthood, got out to walk around the War of the Worlds set, got out at the Back to the Future building and went inside the sets warehouse. The luch was beautiful. We did all of the rides and shows once during the tour, then had a Front of line pass to go back again after the tour. They provided afternoon tea after the tour where we could go back to a little area with lounge chairs etc and have cookies and juice etc, for a break from the parks. We went on a Saturday. It was busy but we didn't notice it. All I can say about this tour is, if I did it again, I'd visit the parks on another day as well. I felt we didn't get to actually wander around and look at the buildings, visit the characters etc as much as I would have liked. Carlsbad. On our first trip in 2011, the boys were just 8 and 10. We stayed in Carlsbad for 5 nights and really regret it. We stayed across the road from Legoland, with the intention of being able to visit every day. We went for one whole day and visited the Aquarium, which took about 15 minutes. Then we did another maybe half day, and visited the waterpark. We were there for maybe an hour or so. The weather was perfect, there's just not much to do there. It's very small. We tried to visit the beach one day, but literally couldn't get a carpark. We drove up and down that road for ages, and absolutely no carparks. So, we didn't see a beach in San Diego. We drove to Old Town, which was quite nice, and visited the seals at La Jolla. There were about 2!! If I were to go there again, I'd definitely stay at a beach hotel and drive to Legoland on each of the one or 2 days I went. There's absolutely nothing else around in Carlsbad, except the outlets. They were ok, but nothing special when you compare them to Citadel etc. We have never stayed in Hollywood area, but just being there during the day freaks me out! We do go and visit, but I usually hold tight to the kids and can't wait to leave! Hope this helps.

Great advice Aussie Shaz. Thanks for that. Note to self: Get a beach hotel.

Your last sentence echoes a few of my own concerns. I've only ever visited hollywood on a tour and even during the day there were quite a few undesirables hanging around. I'm wondering if there are better places to stay with a family?
My husband really liked the Hollywood area, and I know he'd be keen to stay there. And to be honest, if it was just the 3 of us, I'd probably be okay with it too. But my mother in law is holidaying with us, and my gut is telling me that she will hate the area. She's not a fan of America; preferring instead to visit places steeped in history or with unique ethnic cultures. However, she decided she wanted to come along because she saw how much fun we had on our last holiday (immersed in our safe, happy Disney bubble) and I think that she, like myself, is looking for something similar with this trip. Just a chance to shut out all stress and worries, and have fun with her family. If we are going to be nervous leaving the hotel at night, we won't be fulfilling our wishes for this trip.

Hhmm, food for thought...

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Do you know where you are staying in Carlsbad yet? This trip we did one night at the LEGOLAND Hotel and loved it. I wouldn't want to spend more that a couple of nights, but the theming is very cool. We then moved on and stayed at San Diego for 3 nights.

Thanks Caroline. No decisions made yet, but after Aussie Shaz's comment, I think we'll look at beach front places. It'll be our base for 3-4 nights and it'll be quite nice to go for a walk along the beach in the evenings after dinner. The alternative is to stay in San Diego.

 

[zanzibar138]

We did a day trip to Universal Studios from Anaheim, and probably will again on our next trip. We just bought from one of the tour websites (Viator or somewhere) that included transportation.

We went on a Wednesday. The bus picked us up from the hotel early in the morning (I think 8-ish, but was a couple of years ago now). We went around to other hotels and when the bus was full we were dropped off at the depot. We hung around for 15-20 minutes until the bus to Universal was ready, then all climbed on that one. The bus ride there was quite entertaining, because we had a great bus driver who kind of doubled as a tour guide, pointing out interesting things along the way and telling us a bit about the area as we went.

DH and I hadn't had breakfast and were starving, so when we first arrived we went to find something to eat at CityWalk. We entered the park not long after opening - there was no line to get in, but there were still characters in the front area and lots of people hanging around taking photos etc. We headed straight for the studio tour. There was already a line forming and we probably waited around 20 minutes for the next English tram.

After the studio tour, we hit The Simpsons ride with about a 15 minute wait, then went downstairs and rode Jurassic Park and The Mummy, which were both practically walk ons. In fact, we rode The Mummy twice in a row since we still had more time on the baggage locker after the first ride. After that we had a bit of a wander, and had lunch at CityWalk.

After lunch, we wandered a bit more, saw the Shrek movie and went on Jurassic Park again. We were a bit bored by this time, not really interested in any of the shows, and neither of us were keen on doing thrill rides after a big lunch. We eventually decided that we would catch the last showing of Waterworld, but after so much umming and aahing, plus going from the downstairs part of the park to just about near the front, we were late and missed getting in. We lined up to get in at half time, and were seated in the 'splash zone', which meant we were basically sitting in a big puddle. Obviously we had missed the big splash, because we didn't get wet after that (only our bums ).

The show took us through til park closing, and the bus was right there waiting for us close by the exit. We had to wait about half an hour after closing (I think they allowed time for people to shop etc), then made our way back to Anaheim. The driver didn't do any commentary on the way back. It HAD been a long day, and we were all exhausted. A lot of people slept on the way back.

Luckily we did not have to go back to the bus depot, just got dropped off directly to our hotels.

 

[aussie shaz]

We chose a Saturday on purpose seeing we were doing the VIP tour. Saturday had longer hours, so we could fit in more afte the tour, and it didn't matter the crowds because we had front of line passes.
We loved the shows, and my son starred in the Animal Actors show. The VIP tour also allowed us to stay behind and meet the animals and ask any questions we had.
For the water world show, we got priority seating, but the kids chose to sit in the wet area. They loved it. The show is hilarious.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Thanks PIO, this is exactly the kind of advice I'm after. Interesting to know about the lack of specials as it's current price is a bit hefty. The 40% off sale is still on, but unfortunately is only for stays up to April. They also had a 30% off sale a few days ago for stays 3 nights or longer. It didn't extend until Sep/Oct next year, but I thought maybe they would offer it again.

How did you find the size of the double beds? I read a review that said they were quite small.

I booked the 2 Queen Bed standard room. The queen beds were fine.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Great advice Aussie Shaz. Thanks for that. Note to self: Get a beach hotel.

Your last sentence echoes a few of my own concerns. I've only ever visited hollywood on a tour and even during the day there were quite a few undesirables hanging around. I'm wondering if there are better places to stay with a family?
My husband really liked the Hollywood area, and I know he'd be keen to stay there. And to be honest, if it was just the 3 of us, I'd probably be okay with it too. But my mother in law is holidaying with us, and my gut is telling me that she will hate the area. She's not a fan of America; preferring instead to visit places steeped in history or with unique ethnic cultures. However, she decided she wanted to come along because she saw how much fun we had on our last holiday (immersed in our safe, happy Disney bubble) and I think that she, like myself, is looking for something similar with this trip. Just a chance to shut out all stress and worries, and have fun with her family. If we are going to be nervous leaving the hotel at night, we won't be fulfilling our wishes for this trip.

Hhmm, food for thought...

I would find somewhere else to stay. It was fine for one night (which is what I did) but if you're looking at a number of nights, then I'd recommend somewhere else.

I won't be heading back here in a hurry and I only stayed here because DS has never seen anything of LA proper. It was very convenient to Graumans and to see the Walk of Fame. And we could see the Hollywood sign from the shopping mall (which wasn't very big and didn't have anything that I wanted at all). If you have 3 nights to cover, I would look somewhere else.

(And this is a personal opinion. I know that there are probably a number of Aussies out there that have stayed in this area and loved it.)

 

[aussie shaz]

This last trip we stayed in Anaheim the whole time. We made trips into Universal, Hollywood twice, Citadel outlets etc. we didn't find it a problem or a long way. I guess we live about 30-40 mins from Melbourne, so it's just like us going into the city for the day.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

We did a day trip to Universal Studios from Anaheim, and probably will again on our next trip. We just bought from one of the tour websites (Viator or somewhere) that included transportation. We went on a Wednesday. The bus picked us up from the hotel early in the morning (I think 8-ish, but was a couple of years ago now). We went around to other hotels and when the bus was full we were dropped off at the depot. We hung around for 15-20 minutes until the bus to Universal was ready, then all climbed on that one. The bus ride there was quite entertaining, because we had a great bus driver who kind of doubled as a tour guide, pointing out interesting things along the way and telling us a bit about the area as we went. DH and I hadn't had breakfast and were starving, so when we first arrived we went to find something to eat at CityWalk. We entered the park not long after opening - there was no line to get in, but there were still characters in the front area and lots of people hanging around taking photos etc. We headed straight for the studio tour. There was already a line forming and we probably waited around 20 minutes for the next English tram. After the studio tour, we hit The Simpsons ride with about a 15 minute wait, then went downstairs and rode Jurassic Park and The Mummy, which were both practically walk ons. In fact, we rode The Mummy twice in a row since we still had more time on the baggage locker after the first ride. After that we had a bit of a wander, and had lunch at CityWalk. After lunch, we wandered a bit more, saw the Shrek movie and went on Jurassic Park again. We were a bit bored by this time, not really interested in any of the shows, and neither of us were keen on doing thrill rides after a big lunch. We eventually decided that we would catch the last showing of Waterworld, but after so much umming and aahing, plus going from the downstairs part of the park to just about near the front, we were late and missed getting in. We lined up to get in at half time, and were seated in the 'splash zone', which meant we were basically sitting in a big puddle. Obviously we had missed the big splash, because we didn't get wet after that (only our bums ). The show took us through til park closing, and the bus was right there waiting for us close by the exit. We had to wait about half an hour after closing (I think they allowed time for people to shop etc), then made our way back to Anaheim. The driver didn't do any commentary on the way back. It HAD been a long day, and we were all exhausted. A lot of people slept on the way back. Luckily we did not have to go back to the bus depot, just got dropped off directly to our hotels.

Thanks for the feedback. After some discussion with my husband last night, I think we will be doing a similar day trip to you.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I would find somewhere else to stay. It was fine for one night (which is what I did) but if you're looking at a number of nights, then I'd recommend somewhere else. I won't be heading back here in a hurry and I only stayed here because DS has never seen anything of LA proper. It was very convenient to Graumans and to see the Walk of Fame. And we could see the Hollywood sign from the shopping mall (which wasn't very big and didn't have anything that I wanted at all). If you have 3 nights to cover, I would look somewhere else. (And this is a personal opinion. I know that there are probably a number of Aussies out there that have stayed in this area and loved it.)

I think you're right. I think that because our trip is so short, we will have to maximise each day and stay in places we know we'll feel comfortable.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

This last trip we stayed in Anaheim the whole time. We made trips into Universal, Hollywood twice, Citadel outlets etc. we didn't find it a problem or a long way. I guess we live about 30-40 mins from Melbourne, so it's just like us going into the city for the day.

Can I ask whether you did these as tours or drove yourself? I am toying with the idea of hiring a car for a day or two longer so we can drive to Universal and/or Citadel. My husband is happy to drive, but I'm not sure if inner city LA traffic is more hassle than it's worth?

When we last spent some time in LA, we based ourselves in Santa Monica and did tours to Disneyland and San Diego Zoo. It wasn't the distance that annoyed me, it was all the time beforehand and at the end spent picking people up and dropping them off. Also, at the end of the zoo tour, they dropped us in this depot in the middle of nowhere where a shuttle driver was supposed to have been waiting to pick us up and take us to our hotel. Except he had forgotten about us and we had no cellphone (this was almost 10 years ago) to call him. Within about 30 minutes we were the only people left in the lot and the industrial area around us was also desolate and quite scary. It didn't help that it was almost dark. After what felt like close to another hour of me crying and saying "What are we going to do?" the shuttle driver comes flying into the car park all apologetic for forgetting us. It was awful and didn't leave me with a particular pleasing impression of the way some of these tours are organised. I guess I should just put it down to a one-off bad luck experience.

 

[aussie shaz]

We had a car the whole time. I wouldn't do it any other way. I would just hate the feeling of being stuck somewhere, relying on others to hopefully pick me up or get me somewhere on time. But also that I might be missing out on something because its too hard to get there on public transport. (Like cheap shopping!!)

My husband drove most of the time. We took our GPS, which has USA maps on it, and it was fine. No problem at all. I even drove to Walmart and back!

Cars are very reasonable prices. We used Carhire3000 (or Traveljigsaw in Aussie dollars). We got Dollar car rental and it was fine.

Let me know if you need my info on the car hire.

 

[zanzibar138]

If your husband is happy to drive, I would totally recommend hiring a car for Universal. The bus tour was easier for us since neither of us were keen on driving in LA, but it was a long day being shunted around in the morning, having to go to all the different hotels, then being held up at the bus depot. And it would have been nice to have the flexibility to come and go as we pleased (we would have left earlier if we had our own transport). Traffic wasn't *extremely* bad (by LA standards I mean), and it was pretty much all freeway driving to get there.

 

[viaggiamo]

How exciting! I would totally recommend a car too. It's so eay to drive there and we bought a GPS at Target which was awesome as we take it with us whenever we go and ir can download heaps of maps from other countries too.

I would maybe stay in Anaheim, we don't like the Hollywood area of LA much. It's pretty grotty.

That said, we are spending a week in LA this trip as we always seem to whiz through it going somewhere else. But we have booked an apartment in Santa Monica, and I am looking forward to exploring LA in itself a bit.

I can't comment on universal (went last time about 15 years ago...) but those passes sound amazing. When our children are older we will take them but they are too little for many of the rides yet.

I would just buy the passes, as you may never do it again and it seems to maximise your experience.

 

[Caroline NZ]

We also hire a car the whole time, and wouldn't do it any other way. It is great to have the flexibility to go anywhere you want at any time.

 

[kylieh]

+1 on car hire. We're here now, DH is driving, I'm helping Navman where needed! DH thinks it's easy.

 

[LizfromOz]

I completely agree on hiring a car. We've hired through Traveljigsaw on both our US trips and have been very happy with them.

Oh, and don't forget, your VIP passes to Universal include valet parking

 

[aussie shaz]

We got our VIP passes from Viator. They were $260 each on special. Good deal for 7 of us.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

We got our VIP passes from Viator. They were $260 each on special. Good deal for 7 of us.

Good to know that specials are sometimes offered. At this price I might just be able to convince my husband that they're worth it. At this stage, he's said that he'd rather use the $500 we'd save by dropping to front of line passes, on shopping.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

We had a car the whole time. I wouldn't do it any other way. I would just hate the feeling of being stuck somewhere, relying on others to hopefully pick me up or get me somewhere on time. But also that I might be missing out on something because its too hard to get there on public transport. (Like cheap shopping!!) My husband drove most of the time. We took our GPS, which has USA maps on it, and it was fine. No problem at all. I even drove to Walmart and back! Cars are very reasonable prices. We used Carhire3000 (or Traveljigsaw in Aussie dollars). We got Dollar car rental and it was fine. Let me know if you need my info on the car hire.

Thanks for sharing. I'm starting to do a bit of research into doing the same and hiring a car the whole time also. We can save a little bit of money by moving a few miles from Disneyland which would more than cover the extra cost of parking. Plus, as you say, it might be nice to have the freedom of a car to visit places like Walmart.

I will check out Traveljigsaw.

One thing I'd love to know about the car hire is what insurances you added on to the rental. One of my biggest worries about hiring a car in the States is the need to be really really well covered. I worry that the normal travel insurance that I get with my Visa might not cut it.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

If your husband is happy to drive, I would totally recommend hiring a car for Universal. The bus tour was easier for us since neither of us were keen on driving in LA, but it was a long day being shunted around in the morning, having to go to all the different hotels, then being held up at the bus depot. And it would have been nice to have the flexibility to come and go as we pleased (we would have left earlier if we had our own transport). Traffic wasn't *extremely* bad (by LA standards I mean), and it was pretty much all freeway driving to get there.

Thanks for your helpful feedback.

Husband is more than happy to drive, it's my own anxieties that I need to get past. Lol.