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Best Family Vacation Spots In Southern California – I admit I love the west coast. From Washington to California, it’s full of fun. One of my favorite things about Disneyland is that it is close to so many other activities. When you go to Southern California for vacation, you can do more than just theme parks! Here are my ideas on how to make the perfect week for Southern California, including a trip to Disneyland!
Plan the perfect vacation with these tips for a week-long Southern California itinerary © Stuffed Suitcase
Best Family Vacation Spots In Southern California
Thank you to Visit California for hosting me on a recent press trip to the Southern California area. All views and opinions are my own. (affiliate links included)
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Planning to fly in and out of different airports is one of the best ways to maximize your vacation to Southern California. One-way airline tickets are often the same as round trips.
The only problem with this is that it requires a one-way rental car. This type of car rental can add some big drop-off fees or one-way charges. Be sure to check out various booking sites and look for car rental coupons that will help you avoid these fees.
For my sample one week Southern California trip we plan to fly into the LAX area and depart from San Diego. In my best Disneyland tips post, I share about the airports near Disneyland. SNA (John Wayne) is my favorite, but LAX has great prices and rental car deals.
If you want to explore Southern California I highly recommend renting a car and planning for parking fees while at Disneyland. If you are just traveling to Disneyland I would recommend avoiding a car, but this is a Southern California vacation plan, so a car is ideal.
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Get to Southern California (LAX or SNA) – If you want to use your travel day for attractions, fly in early. If you want to make it easier when you arrive, please arrive at your hotel around check-in time. It’s always nice to be able to go straight to your room and freshen up before you start your vacation.
Hollywood [OPTION 1]: Fly to LAX as early as possible. Explore some of the top attractions in Los Angeles. My thoughts are to either spend the day at Universal StudiosHollywood (and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hollywood) or visit a couple of places like the Chinese Theatre, Madame Tussauds Hollywood, or the Hop-On Hop-Off Decker Bus. Consider the GO City Card for Los Angeles and these fun things to do in downtown LA.
After a full day exploring Hollywood, head to Anaheim. I recommend doing the drive at night after your busy day to avoid hitting rush hour traffic in the morning and give you an early and full day at Disneyland.
The Disneyland Hotel has fun light headboards in their rooms – can you spot the hidden Mickey? | © Stuffed Suitcase
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Anaheim [OPTION 2]: If you’re not interested in the Hollywood scene and would rather take it easy on your first day, head directly to your hotel next to Disneyland. I definitely recommend staying within walking distance, even better if you can stay on site at one of the Disneyland hotels.
Use your arrival day to have fun at your hotel, take a swim in the pool. This is also a good time to deal with ticket purchases or problems you may have with visiting the ticket booths. The cabin lines are usually very empty in the evening versus at night. I also recommend stopping into a local Target or Walmart to buy snacks for park days.
The Pirate’s Diner in Buena Park, CA is a fun place for families! | © Stuffed Suitcase
For dinner, I highly recommend driving to Buena Park and attending Pirate’s Adventure Dinner. It’s a fun show for kids, with some adult humor and love stories for the adults. Or you can walk through Downtown Disney and grab a bite to eat there.
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If you are staying at a Disney hotel, you will have the option of entering one of the parks an hour before the general public. Be sure to check online to see which park is offering early entry for that day. Plan to start heading to the park entrance about 30 minutes to an hour before opening time to maximize your time. This allows you to get through security and the turnstiles early, giving you a full hour in the parks before the general public.
TIP: you can order a coffee with the Starbucks app at one of the Downtown Disney locations and pick it up on your way to the parks!
Enjoy the parks, and be sure to read my top fastpass tips so you can maximize your park time if you like many of the popular rides. If you are not an enthusiastic family, I highly recommend planning on quick service meals and saving your time for tours and shows.
Another option: Adventure lovers may want to skip an extra day at Disneyland and visit Knott’s Berry Farm instead.
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Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, CA is a great theme park for thrill seekers, with some roller coasters more intense than Disneyland. | © Stuffed Suitcase
Again, if you stay on site in a Disney hotel, you will have a magical hour early in the morning to one of the parks, perhaps the other one from the one offered yesterday. Use early in the morning to maximize your park time.
Leave the parks around dinner time, unless you have a strong desire to watch the evening parade or fireworks.
OPTION 1: Stay for the evening shows at Disneyland and stay another night in your Disneyland hotel, or drive late at night to your next stop.
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Check into the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa. This is a great hotel with an amazing spa that will delight adults, and some fun pools, perfect for the kids.
The Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa is a great place to stay when planning your trip to Southern California | © Stuffed Suitcase
Enjoy a campfire on the beach, this is a great time to talk about how your trip is going. And if you prefer camping over hotels, there are some great beach camping spots in Southern California!
If you want to explore more of Anaheim, check out these 10 things to do in Anaheim outside of Disneyland.
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A visit to Southern California could not be complete without a visit to the beach. Huntington Beach is a great place to visit. The city center is a great place to walk and eat. Plus, being Surf City USA, it’s the perfect place to try and hang ten with a surf lesson.
Surf City USA, Huntington Beach, CA, is just a short drive from Disneyland and the perfect beach destination for your Southern California itinerary | © Stuffed Suitcase
Plan to arrive in San Diego that night. I recently stayed at the Catamaran Resort in San Diego. It is located on Mission Bay, and a beautiful building. The gardens are full of lush plants, and a good size pool. Plus it’s a bayfront property. Waterview rooms overlook the bay and the beach chairs and tables that the resort sets up.
The Catamaran Resort in San Diego, CA sits on Mission Bay and has a beautiful property! | © Stuffed Suitcase
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Their on-site restaurant, Oceana Coastal Kitchen, has a spectacular view and a slippery aquarium in the restaurant. Highly recommend this place for a seafood dinner, or plan to enjoy breakfast with a view.
Be sure to plan for a meal at the on-site Oceana Coastal Kitchen at The Catamaran Resort in San Diego | © Stuffed Suitcase
Depending on your interests, this day can be full of ideas. If you love animals, you might consider a trip to the San Diego Zoo. It’s located in Balboa Park which also has a lot of great museums, like the Science Center and the Natural History Museum. If you have small children you can also consider visiting the carousel and the miniature railway.
This polar bear appeared to us while we were taking the San Diego Zoo bus tour on our Southern California itinerary | © Stuffed Suitcase
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If you love aquariums and want more tours, consider visiting SeaWorld. My daughter loved the Manta roller coaster, and I have to say the Atlantis ride was a surprise! Consider a behind-the-scenes tour if you want to see some of the conservation and animal care efforts SeaWorld is working on. There are lots of great things to do in San Diego with kids.
The Behind the Scenes tour at SeaWorld San Diego lets you learn about the rescue efforts on site and see some of the rescued animals | © Stuffed Suitcase
For some good old fashioned fun, enter your San Diego Day at Belmont Park. It looks like an old-fashioned fair and arcade, and is located right on Mission Beach. It is a perfect place to catch a spectacular sunset.
If you’re Belmont Park, consider dinner
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