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Disneyland California and West Coast Trip Planning Disneyland California and West Coast Holiday Planning Questions, Suggestions and Tips.

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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:41 PM  
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#11
landandword17
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Just watch google maps. They are out by 20-30% depending on traffic, speed limits etc... I have never managed to get close to the estimated times they show when you just search the route. If you wait and search live at the times you intend to travel in PST (a right faff!) it will be more reliable and you'll see for example driving time from LA- Las Vegas on Friday night here/Friday afternoon there is actually 7+hours rather than the 4 hours you get if you just search generally. It can take 2 hours to get from PCH to Burbank if you hit it at the wrong time so I would add time to any estimates you see. Monterey to Burbank on Big Sur/PCH (very slow road) coming into LA in the afternoon is going to be 7 hours min. leave 8 to be on the safe side and that's without stops.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:47 PM  
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#12
Megara84
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Originally Posted by 400ixl View Post
Agree with others that there are lots of compromises here as you are doing a minimum of a 21 day tour in 16 days.

Day 2 - Death Valley takes a full day to cross if you want to stop and see all of the sights. Highly recommend spending some time in Darwin which most people miss out.

Day 3 is similar, half a day in Sequola is not a lot

Day 6-7 is ok, you could do most of the main sights in SF in a couple of full on days. 3 days would be better so you could see more at a relaxed pace.

Day 8 if you get up early and crack on to be in Monterey by mid to late morning you could do some of the things to do around there in the afternoon / evening, but you won't cover it all.

Day 9 is going to be a very long day, think 14 hours at least. I would really break that up if you want to see the sights.

Day 12 is a bit of a waste unless the intention is to use this as a down day. You could drive from Universal to a hotel in Anaheim after you leave the park (and eat).

Day 16 is also a bit of a waste. You may as well spend it in Disney or perhaps have a beach stay for a couple of nights at somewhere like Redondo Beach.

Please don't take it as people trying to rip apart your agenda. The distances in California between locations are massive and there are so many things to see on the way.

For 16 days I would be looking at what are your priorities and do you plan to go back in the future.

For example, as much as I would hate to miss Death Valley, if you plan a future trip to Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Joshua Tree etc then you could save it for then.

It is really hard as there is so much to do and even after multiple trips of 21+ days we have not done all we want to see.
Day 12 - we would drive to Anaheim first thing and spend the day in the parks. We'd like to spend the night after Universal in LA and go for dinner, then head to Disney the following day.

Day 16 - same applies. We love cities and so would like to have our last day and night in or around LA, before heading home.

I don't at all take this as people ripping apart our agenda! It's so helpful to have it stress tested and to get tips on good places to go!
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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:47 PM  
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#13
pinkandfluffy
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Like others have said your plan involves a lot of time on the road. I would skip Sequoia (though it is amazing) and if you want to see the huge sequoia trees you could do this in Mariposa Grove, Yosemite. The drive from Monterey to LA is really long so you will need to factor in an overnight stop somewhere. We stayed at Pismo Beach which was lovely. You will want to stop off and take in the views along the way and there quite a lot of road works and hold ups when we were there so it took far longer than expected. California is amazing but don't underestimate the distance between places and remember that 2 nights somewhere is only one full day there. I really think Yosemite should have 3 nights to itself. Good luck with the planning, you will have a great time.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:48 PM  
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landandword17
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Originally Posted by Megara84 View Post
Thanks so much for the tip about Carmel - I've googled it and it looks so pretty! It's just the two of us so definitely keen to go there now. Tbh Monterey was just because of Big Little Lies!

We're going to consider cutting out Sequoia as well. I do take your point about arrival times and how dark it will be. I think I'd just feel bad driving through and not going there...
You wouldn't drive through or near Sequoia if you drive Vegas - Yosemite for example. It's actually a bit out of the way on the route from Vegas-Yosemite. I totally understand wanting to get it all in on your first trip but you can't imagine the vastness of the landscape until you get there. It's huuuge and everything is further than it seems looking at maps. It's hard crossing things off the itinerary but when you get there and get a few days in you appreciate it. I remember the first time driving from Vegas up to Yosemite thru DV and you'd turn at a dinky crossroads in the middle if nowhere and the GPS would say ''continue straight for 127 miles'' and there would be total nothingness as far as the eye can see... I don't think I've seen a trip report where someone wished they have moved at a faster pace!
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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:49 PM  
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#15
400ixl
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Ah, just seen your response with Death Valley being a must. Its my favourite part.

How about a SOCAL / Nevada agenda?

Do Grand Canyon South Rim first
Then head to San Diego via Joshua Tree (overnight on the way)
Few days in San Diego
Head to Anaheim for Disney for a couple of days
Do LA and Universal, Warner Bros, and maybe even Six Flags Magic Mountain
Then do Death Valley, taking the time to stop overnight at somewhere like Panamint springs overnight.
Fly back out of Las Vegas with maybe a day or two there to get out and enjoy Valley of Fire etc.

Keep San Fran, Yosemite and PCH for another trip.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 04:58 PM  
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#16
Pumpkin Pie
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Originally Posted by landandword17 View Post
You wouldn't drive through or near Sequoia if you drive Vegas - Yosemite for example. It's actually a bit out of the way on the route from Vegas-Yosemite. I totally understand wanting to get it all in on your first trip but you can't imagine the vastness of the landscape until you get there. It's huuuge and everything is further than it seems looking at maps. It's hard crossing things off the itinerary but when you get there and get a few days in you appreciate it. I remember the first time driving from Vegas up to Yosemite thru DV and you'd turn at a dinky crossroads in the middle if nowhere and the GPS would say ''continue straight for 127 miles'' and there would be total nothingness as far as the eye can see... I don't think I've seen a trip report where someone wished they have moved at a faster pace!
I remember the first time we drove from Vegas to Yosemite and feeling relief that we had arrived at Yosemite via the Tioga Pass not realising just how huge it was and our accommodation was way over on the other side. In defence this was before the internet!
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Old 3 Sep 20, 05:11 PM  
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#17
jdouds
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Originally Posted by Megara84 View Post
Day 12 - we would drive to Anaheim first thing and spend the day in the parks. We'd like to spend the night after Universal in LA and go for dinner, then head to Disney the following day.

Day 16 - same applies. We love cities and so would like to have our last day and night in or around LA, before heading home.

I don't at all take this as people ripping apart our agenda! It's so helpful to have it stress tested and to get tips on good places to go!
Hi again we love cities as well but US cities aren’t like like London Paris etc. LA is 100 miles across with 4/5 lane motorway across the middle. Others will give you advice on nice area to have a meal.
Your getting some great advice across the board, as others have said it’s a massive area and around every corner another photo opportunity, it just takes time to enjoy what you see.
As an example after having already been to Yosemite and stayed 3 n when we go again we will stay 3 or 4

Edited at 05:18 PM.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 05:52 PM  
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landandword17
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jdouds is right. If you stay in Burbank you probably won't feel so much like you are in a city. It's a nice middle class suburban type of place. If you stay in West Hollywood (hip, city vibe, nightlife) you would need obviously to drive to Universal but if you like cities I probably would get a hotel in West Hollywood and enjoy your sightseeing day in the Beverly Hills/West Hollywood/Hollywood area and have a nice meal and enjoy the Sunset Strip. Then you can end the holiday in Disney freeing up that extra day for the drive down to LA. You could drive into LA and after the last day at Disney (so 2 nights in Anaheim) and do one last night and your last day back in the city...but those of us who have been and experienced LA traffic probably wouldn't recommend the hassle.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 07:42 PM  
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miked1e
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Originally Posted by Megara84 View Post
This is all very helpful, thanks!

We're going to consider adding another night to to Day 9. Google maps says it's around a 5 hr 30 min drive from Monterey to LA, which we'd be okay with to be honest as it's just us to worry about and our only plan for when we arrive in Burbank is to potter out and get some dinner. It might be nice to see another town along the way though!
Once you stop in various places along the way (a lot to see), plus traffic as you get into LA then I would easily add another 2-3 hours on top of that. If this makes sense...

From Monterey we did 17 mile drive, spent some time at Pebble Beach, had breakfast and some time in Carmel, drove the big sur with a few stops including ‘big sur grill’ (I think), elephant seals etc. I think we only scratched the surface of this drive and unfortunately due to fires didn’t have the coastal views to admire.

We left Monterey first thing and arrived in SLO about 4 ish. LA is another 1.5-2 hours on I think.
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Old 3 Sep 20, 07:48 PM  
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#20
miked1e
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Death Valley is fantastic. Great drive but got very hot... especially in those areas were it was recommended to turn off your air con.

Yosemite is amazing. Spend as much time here as possible.

As there are only the 2 of you (I think I read this right) then I am sure the driving isn’t a problem and I would go as far to say is as much of the holiday as visiting the places.

I loved the driving and to say that I drove through some amazing places in the US including Route 66, Death Valley, over the Golden Gate Bridge, down the most crooked street in the world, down the big sur / pch... was amazing!

I am sure you have looked through trip reports but here is a link to mine with similar itinerary and time frame. Was just the 2 of us at that time.

https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sho...d.php?t=975056

We did:

Santa Monica, LA, Vegas, Lone Pine,
Yosemite, San Fran, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Anaheim!

Hope this helps and let me know if I can help any further! Enjoy the planning..

Edited at 07:51 PM.
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