Los Angeles

[Drewboy]

Hey guys, I'm going with a friend to LA towards the end of the year and I am only going to have time to spend about 5 days at theme parks. I will definately visit Disneyland but I'm wondering what other theme parks u recommend. How many days do u suggest at Disneyland and what other theme parks are worth a visit and why?

[rappa]

Well depending on when you go (I was there late October) Disney should be DEAD! I mean 2min waits on most rides and if it gets really bad you might have to wait a whole 5 That being the case I recomend 2 days at Disney, go 3 if you really want but you can get by without it. I would say definately make sure you get to Knott's, its a great park and you'll only need a day. Six Flaggs and Universal are good too and you could spend 1 day at each and maybe stretch six flaggs to two if you really want. Depends on crowds, only having weekend operation at the mountain may mean crowds will be busier...

[StarparksEurope]

You certainly need to visit Universal Studios Hollywood! They're great. SFMM is good for the thrills.

[D.C.]

Disneyland and California Adventure are right next door to each other. There both worth visiting and you can buy park hopper tickets that give you access to both the parks at the same time. When we were there we got three day park hopper tickets. We were going to spend three days at those parks initially but ended up staying five days there. That was on the off-season when lots of the rides were down for refurbishment as well. There's plenty to do. Especially if you've got a hotel nearby. Universal Studios is also definately worth visiting. They've just opened Revenge of the Mummy as well. If you like Coasters you should definately go to Six Flags: Magic Mountain, but I prefer themed rides more.

[Drewboy]

So many people have read this thread and hardly any replies. I am sure more people have been, so help me out guys.

[D.C.]

What types of rides are you into? If you're into innovative, themed rides then parks like Disneyland, California Adventure, and Universal Studios is definately worth going to. Knott's Berry Farm and Six Flags: Magic Mountain have there fair amount of coasters, but I'd prefer Disneyland, California Adventure and Universal Studios. They also have Sea World in San Diego. I think it has some rides as well, but I'm not sure how different it is from the one on the Gold Coast.

[mikrowave]

I spent a couple of weeks at LA area parks last August. It really depends what type of park you are more interested in as to where you should go. I am far more into the themed experience so, for me, Disney parks are always the number 1 parks to attend. I would recommend at least 3 days at Disneyland/DCA. (you could get by with 2 depending on crowds) Universal Studios is a nice park but you'll find that it's not really a "full day park" (unless you hit a really crowded day). Its still a great park with some cool rides & excellent Tram Tour. In past years I have always enjoyed myself at Knotts, however, last visit I found it to be quite lacking in cleanliness & staff attitude. (again not really a "full day park"). They have some great rides (I would be more inclined to go now that Silver Bullet is open) but I found by 3pm I was done with pretty much everything there was to see/do, unless you want to re-ride the coasters over & over. SFMM has some excellent coasters, but park management/operations are pretty bad. If you are a coaster geek I would definitely recommend going there, you can easily fill in a whole day there. So really it comes down to your personal preferance. If you can, try to go to all of them. You should do at least 2 days at Disneyland/DCA, then you should be fine with just 1 day at the rest of the parks.

[bigglesworth003]

Just rmember its disneylands 50th aniversary this year so expect it to be busier than normal, off season weekdays should be good still but weekends most likley will busier than usual. For me id say 3 day stay at Disneyland and DCA (using a park hopper, these are the best parks a MUST!) If you like movies do universal on a weekday and grab a taxi to WB studios and do there tour its 2 1/2 hours long and so much better than universals only 6 people per tour and you go on sets and get off the buggy in the backlot to get a closer look (plus you see stars walking aorund cause there actually working were you go. we saw matt leblanc, jenifer aniston, david schwimer, charlie sheen and some of the west wing people) do this in the morning than spend the rest of the day at universal you will still get everything done esp in the off season. plus a taxi from the entrance of universal and back is only like 10 bucks Use your other day at knotts great for some coasters and fried chicken (delicious!!!) magic mountain is a b**ch to get to from anaheim and a dump apparenty but lots of coasters.so instead on knotts you may prefer magic mountain enjoy!!!!!!

[Drewboy]

Thanks so far. Well we have already planned to go to Disneyland for 3 days using a Disneyland Resort Park Hopper BonusTicket. We are also spending a full day at Universal Studios and a full day at Knott's Berry farm. I really want to go to SFMM to experience some decent rollercoasters but I don't know how you would get there from Anaheim. We are going to stay at Hollywood when we stay in Los Angeles so maybe it would be easier to do SFMM while staying there. We have about 4-5 USA brochures and SFMM is not mentioned once. It's really strange.

[Richard]

Consider staying in Anaheim, at least for the Disneyland/Knott's part of your stay. Hollywood really is a long way to go for these parks, which are within a few miles of each other and very easy to get between (catch the 460 inbound from out front of Disneyland to get there, outbound to get home). There's nothing quite like waking up in the morning, strolling over to Disneyland for the day and then walking back at night after the fireworks. I'd also recommend doing some of the other things Hollywood has to offer while you're there if you don't already plan to. Take the renowned Warner Bros. Studio tour as mentioned above or the down-to-earth NBC tour. Also consider seeing the taping of a sitcom (you can get free tickets to these from Audiences Unlimited, Paramount Studios or if you don't mind seeing something you'll have never heard of, get last-minute tickets from right in Universal Studios) or see a talk show taping (you tend to have to pre-book these or put up with multiple hour standby waits for uncertain results) - Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel and Craig Ferguson all tape in Hollywood. Personally SFMM is not worth the huge effort and expense it takes to get there. If you only have five days for theme parks, I'd say forget it, especially if you're not renting a car. It's next to impossible to get to by public transport, a taxi will cost you upwards of US$80 and VIP Tours aren't known for their good value. It's a pretty sad park to visit and though they've got plenty of good coasters (and plenty of really bad ones), I assure you it'll be the "worst" park of the trip.

[rappa]

I can't say enough good things in favour of staying AT Disney. I don't know your budget but last trip I stayed at Paradise Pier (got a good rate of expedia) and it was fantastic. Just that whole experience of being right at the park just made Disney easily 10 times better from me than we we travelled each day from LA. Disney is easily my favourite park and I really didn't want to leave where as on the previous trip I only found it okay. It's easy to get to Knotts as well from Disney. I recommend as you say going up to Universal as well and saying in that area as it is easier than travelling the long distance. I would say that if you have the time you SHOULD go to SFMM. True it's the lesser of the parks but well worth going to if you haven't been and I always think it's better to make up your own mind about a park. Also there just isn't anything even like their coasters here or at the other parks (Calif. Screamin, Xcel and Ghostie exluded). Get a ride on Ridlers, X and Goliath, they really are something else. To get there there really are 2 options...Tour or car. A transport with VIP tours (they suck but don't even come close to being as bad as LA Sightseeing who told us we couldn't go and we should go to Knotts because it's just the same anyway) will cost you about $40US plus entry. Hiring a car depending on your age will likely cost you close to $100US with your fuel, a bit less if your not lazy and refuel it yourself. Really depends how many of you there are as to what is more economical.

[Drewboy]

Thanks Richard and Djrappa! We are staying at the Anaheim Hilton while staying in Anaheim. We are staying for 4 nights there and we'll have our 3 Day Disneyland Resort Park Hopper BonusTicket as well as 1 day at Knott's Berry Farm. We will be staying in Hollywood for 3 nights and while there we will do Universal Studios and most likely SFMM. Are there any sitcoms or something 'interesting' that's filmed in Hollywood - I would really like to visit one. Hopefully we will find a tour we can do in Anaheim that will let us visit the set of "The OC". Djrappa, our budget doesn't really stretch to the Disneyland Hotels. They seem really expensive! They are double the price of the Hilton and I'm sure the Hilton will do fine, you never know, I could bump into Paris! *wishes* Haha I really want to go to SFMM but because on this trip my friend and me will only be 19 and 20, we can't hire a car and taxi's are too expensive. $40 doesn't seem too bad when you consider how much this whole trip is costing each of us! What exactly is wrong with SFMM, it seems to leave a "bad taste" in everyones mouth? Atleast when we do New York and Las Vegas we won't have to waste money on theme parks. Well we will ride the rollercoaster at New York New York and Stratosphere in Las Vegas, but I'm not aware of anything like that in New York. So I guess a lot of our money is being "used" in the begining of our holiday because of Disneyland, Knott's, Universal and SFMM as we're going from Brisbane to LA, then we're doing Las Vegas and lastly New York, then back to LA and home.

[mikrowave]

SFMM is a fun park, however it's operations are pretty poor, it can be quite dirty and lines can be very slow moving on a busy day. On a quiet day it's quite bearable and I'd recommend a visit there to see if you like it yourself. Some people hate it, others love it. It just depends how much crap you can put up with. However you could skip SFMM and go to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey while you are in the New York area. I'm not exactly sure how long it would take to get there from NY but I don't think it would be too long. Anyone know? Yep, the only way to experience Disney parks is to be staying close by. I wouldn't do it any other way.

[bigglesworth003]

Hopefully we will find a tour we can do in Anaheim that will let us visit the set of "The OC". Atleast when we do New York and Las Vegas we won't have to waste money on theme parks.  Well we will ride the rollercoaster at New York New York and Stratosphere in Las Vegas, but I'm not aware of anything like that in New York.  So I guess a lot of our money is being "used" in the begining of our holiday because of Disneyland, Knott's, Universal and SFMM as we're going from Brisbane to LA, then we're doing Las Vegas and lastly New York, then back to LA and home.

Hey your doing the same route i did last year Anaheim, Vegas , NYC There was a tour of the oc locations here's a link disscusing it,however dont know if they still do it as the website no longer lists it. A tour onto the set dosnt exist all the acual house sets etc are in a studio called Raleigh Manhattan Beach Studios its on melrose AVE in hollywood. http://www.miboards.com/forums/showthread....light=coach+usa http://www.anaheimsightseeing.com/ Vegas the newyork newyork rollercoaster is crap ,extrememly painful and a ripoff $12 a ride! http://www.nynyhotelcasino.com/pages/ent_coaster.asp Didnt do stratosphere think its about6 or 9 bucks. http://www.stratospherehotel.com/las_vegas...phere_ride.html Theres a launched coaster around the sahara casino too theres a monorail station there. you canget a day ride pass for this one for i think 20 bucks http://www.saharacasino.com/thrills/index.html At circus circus there is the adventuredome indoor theme park might be worth a look. its 21 bucks for an all day pass got about 14 or so rides i think looks like fun. http://www.adventuredome.com/index2.php Being under 21 in vegas for more than 2 days gets really boring the place is cool and amazing BUT lacks on much for the under 21. if you have more than 2 days in vegas should do a day trip tour inc the grand canyon and hoover damn bout 80 bucks lunch included and the canyon is just amazing you will never see anything like it again. But vegas is really cool esp. after dark. cant wait to go back in september but ill be 21 this time. New york dosnt have any parks or rides, but has so much to do and see the best city in the world and it really never sleeps, you'll proberly never stop the whole time your there and when ya leave still not have seen everything. Also whatch your money NYC is more expensive than la and vegas. Except for cabs cabs are cheap and fun just about like a thrill ride there insane, ontherwise the cheapest way around is the subway like 4 bucks a day. hope you have a great time!!!

[rappa]

Yes SFMM is a good park for rides but it lacks atmosphere. For me there was just too much there that isn't operating or has been neglected which is a pet hate of mine. Having said that I did wait 3 hours for X the first time I went and didn't regret it at all, in fact last November I again was happy to wait 2 hours to get on that one of a kind wonder. I also left out DJV, get in the front seat (no matter what they tell you), it really is something you have to try! As for Knott's see if you can top my 50 rides in 1 day whilst still doing everything else See if there is a weird old guy riding that just stays on, that is Richard, tell him his aussie friend says hi. In regards to Vegas I have been there both being over and under 21. I did have a blast out on the town last time but I still very much loved it when I was younger in 2003 too. You can do heaps and easily fill many days. Be sure to spend hours watching the fountains at the Bellagio, BREATHTAKING. Go up the tower at Paris for a different look. Ride ME at NYNY at night for the experience (go the front) but yes after the first drop it does suck with the exception of the diving inversion. Speed at Sahara is a top notch shuttle coaster, beware that 12 times can make you sick In the Adventuredome there is an Arrow looper which while mild and simple is very smooth. Do Big Shot and X Scream at Stratosphere but unless you're after the credit dont bother with the coaster, it is ****! That's the only thing I would say not to bother riding everything else still give a go even if people do tell you they are crap. Whilst in Vegas (in fact get them before you go) get Tickets to BLUE MAN GROUP, its the best show around and I gurantee you'll love it.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

I myself have done California, although it was exactly 9 years ago today. A lot of the parks have added new things, especially big coasters, since I was there. We stayed at Best Western Pavillions on Katella Avenue. This was about a block from Disneyland, they provided their own bus which shuttled to and from disneyland every half hour, and came included in the hotel price. we had a five day disneyland pass (DCA wasn't there then) and we managed to spend 4 days at Disneyland without getting bored. this was quiet season (february is pretty cold), and the only thing closed was the matterhorn. In Disneyland we did pretty much all the big stuff on the first day - space and splash mountain, the haunted mansion, the paddlewheeler and tom sawyer island, small world and a few others, and then came back and systematically went through the whole park, land by land. i think we did about two or three lands per day, covering them from start to finish, repeating our favourite rides. on the last day we came back to what we enjoyed most - (splash, space, and haunted were our favourites). I could honestly spend 7 days in Disneyland without running out of things to do, but if you rush it through you could cover it all in a little over 1 and a half days. Spending any less than 3 days between disneyland and DCA is cheating yourself of an experience. We did Knotts, wayyy before a lot of their new stuff came in... Montezooma was awesome, and we were surprised to see Boomerang, as it was a clone of Demon at WLS (we weren't very aware of the mass production of that particular model at the time). Knotts is great for food as well, the chicken dinners are brilliant, and (if it still runs) go and see the indian storytelling... its an indoor show with light and smoke and all the rest, and its absolutely amazing. We did Sea World San Diego, which was very enjoyable, but having previously been to Sea World G.C., the only real attraction for us was Shamu. They do have a few rides but nothing to write home about, and its not worth the trip down to sandiego unless you're really into marine life. We also took the trip to Magic Mountain, and for people who at the time were not HEAVILY into the industry of theme parks, we found it amazing. the best they had at the time was Ninja, Viper and Goliath, all three of which are well worth the trip there in their own special way (im not sure if one or all of them are still standing), but Viper and Goliath are just intense. We also did Universal as well, but i would liken it very closely to WBMW in most respects. We had our entire trip arranged by Qantas holidays, and all of our day trips were handled by (i think) Pacific Coast buslines (big blue buses, im pretty sure thats right). I cannot recall the prices for the buses, but we had to arrange to go to SFMM separately, as it was the only park not on our itinerary. Pacific Coast were able to arrange this for us and it was pretty cheap in the scheme of things. Rather than public buses or taxis, they can be worth checking out as it can work out cheaper, better time-saving wise, and they'll pick you up from your hotel, rather than you have to get to a bus stop.

[Ian]

3 words for ya KNOTTS BERRY FARM