Entries Tagged 'Disneyland' ↓

Right across the street from Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, California and only 15 minutes away from Disneyland is the ultra fun, wet and wild Soak City USA water park.  If you or your family is really into water sports, Soak City is the place to be!  Usually open from the third week of May until Labor Day, Soak City is just what you need to cool off from the scorching Southern California summer heat.  This water park is practically it’s own city with high speed water slides, both relaxing and swimming inner tube excursions as well as as gigantic 750,000 gallon Tidal Wave pool where you can body surf and boogie board just like you were at the beach.  Soak City USA is great for kids of all ages.  Children visiting the park may not be tall enough to go on many of the slide attractions (the minimum heighth on most slides is 42 inches and a minimum age of 5 years old), the park has a wonderful pool and activity lagoon area to give them a fun but safe experience.   The water park is reasonably priced at $20 for children 12 and under and $29 for adults.  You will need to pay the admission fee regardless if you are planning on utilizing the park or simply watching your family.  If you are hungry, there are several snack shops and hot dog bars within the park, but you are not allowed to bring in your own picnic lunch to eat inside of the park.  You are allowed, however, to bring in a small cooler with water bottles or hydrating drinks.  There are locker rentals so you do not have to carry your bags and towels around the park all day and so your valuables will be stored safely.  The cost is $22 for a large locker and $7 for a medium sized locker as well as a $5 deposit fee.

Knott’s Berry Farm is the oldest theme park located in the United States.  This park pays homage to an 1880’s ghost town complete with saloon girls and a location where you can mine for real gold.  Knott’s is a great experience for those who love the “Old West” as well as for the younger generation who love wild and exhillarating thrill rides, because this park has both!  Knott’s Berry Farm is located just 15 minutes from Disneyland.  It is filled to the rim with charming shops, adorable characters and great food.  The most popular restaurant at the park is Mrs. Knott’s Chicken Dinner Restaurant where you will get a finger-lickin’ delicious fried chicken dinner made from Cordelia Knotts original recipe.  It is worth a trip to Knott’s Berry Farm just for this meal, I assure you!  Once you are inside the park, there are many different sections that you can visit at a time.  Camp Snoopy is geared entirely for the younger visitors.  All of the attractions are just the right size for the uner 10 age group and children love this portion of the park.  The more adventurous visitor can brave death-defying thrill rides like the all-wooden Ghost Rider, Jaguar, Boomerang or Montezooma’s Revenge.  These rides certainly are not for those with motion sickness or fear of heights!  Visiting Old Ghost Town will take you back into time with a stage coach ride, blacksmith demonstration as well as a shop which sells handmade bonnets and aprons.  Knott’s Berry Farm may not have the “magic” and “wonderment” of Disneyland, but it is charming nonetheless and should be given a chance.

If you drive about an hour outside of Anaheim (where Disneyland is located) you will find yourself in Burbank, California at Universal Studios Hollywood.  This is where all of entertainment action is.  Television shows, movies and commercials are shot here in the lower lots and the park is where you can experience all of the behind-the-scenes action and learn all about how these shows are made and how the special effects work.  Universal Studios also has a large variety of ride attractions and shows to appease every age group.  There are thrill rides such as Jurassic Park and Revenge of the Mummy for those who are not faint-of-heart as well as Shrek 4D or The Simpson’s Ride for those who are just on the ride to get a chuckle and smile.  If you are an “I Love Lucy” fan, you will be blown away at the impressive tribute building they have in honor of Lucille Ball.  You will be taken down nostalgia lane as you learn about “America’s Favorite Redhead”.  If you have an hour or so to spare, you should not miss out on the Studio Lot Tour.  This open-sided tram tour is guided by a tongue-in-cheek guide who points out all of the locations where your favorite movies and television shows were shot.  You will also be taken into several lots designed to show you how the special effects work in movies.  You will experience what a true earthquake feels like, as well as how it would be if a gigantic 10 story tall gorilla tried to capture you…yes, it’s King Kong.  Wherever you walk in Universal Studios, you will find your favorite movie star or character.  Granted, they will only be celebrity impersonators, but boy, do they look like the real thing!  They are always eager to pose for a picture and are more than willing to ham it up for the audience.  There are so many things to see and do at Universal Studios.  If you are close enough, you should consider purchasing a 2-day ticket.  Located directly next to Universal Studios is the City Walk.  This area is full of designer shopping as well as delicious restaurants like The Hard Rock Cafe, Bubba Gump Shrimping Company and the world famous Wolfgang Puck’s LA Bistro.  There is something for everybody at this Hollywood park!

If you are planning on visiting Disneyland, do yourself a favor and save some time for a day at Sea World in San Diego.  Located 90 miles south of Anaheim, there are many tour buses that you can reserve to take you down to the park for the day, if you do not have your own car or rental.  Sea World is an amazing experience and anyone from young to old enjoys everything that Sea World has to offer.  Over the last 5 or so years, the park has made many incredible changes.  The park now offers many ride attractions, all of which include water (and getting wet) in one way or another.  The Journey to Atlantis ride is a thrill a minute adventure into the ancient Aztec village and the Shipwreck Rapids takes you barrelling down a swift moving river and though soaking wet water falls.  Be prepared to get wet!   The biggest highlight for most visitors however, are the live shows.  To see the beautiful and gentle killer whales leaping into the air with sheer gracefulness is truly a sight to behold.  There are other live shows that gear more towards making the audience laugh like a mischievous seal spanking the trainier to an extra large walrus with even larger belches.  These shows are true pieces of entertainment.  There are unbelievable exhibits that are awe inspiring.  Journey to the Wild Artic where you will come face-to-face with Beluga Wales, Polar Bears and Walruses, or take a walk on the wild side of the Shark Encounter and see these terrifyingly beautiful creatures as close as can be.  A day in Sea World is something that should not be missed.  You can easily visit the park in one day, but if you have 2 days to spare, you will be able to see every inch of the park and take every piece of it in.

When you travel to Disneyland, one of the greatest things about its location is how close it is to many other sites and attractions.  One of the most favorite things that tourists like to do at night after a long day in the Disneyland is to venture 10 minutes away to Medieval Times.  Located in Buena Park, this medieval dueling knights dinner show attracts thousands of visitors each month and is great entertainment for all ages.  Advanced reservations are highly recommended, especially during busy tourist seasons.  You can purchase these tickets in person or online at www.medivaltimes.com.  The tickets are $53.95 for adults and $36.95 for children under 12 years of age.  Upon arrival, you will be greeted by a renaissance knight who will assign you a certain color (red, green, yellow or blue).  You will sit in your assigned color section which means you will be cheering for the knight wearing that particular color.  Throughout the evening, your knights will be dueling one another on horseback while fighting for the hand of the fair maiden.  While you watch the show, you will be dining on dining fare reminiscent of medieval days….without the use of utensils!  This is a favorite among kids!  A tasty menu of roasted chicken, potatoes, bread and pastries make it a well rounded and authentic dinner.  Your evening will end with a trip into the gift shop where you can load up your knights with swords and armour and your princesses with maiden hair wreathes. Medieval Times is a must-see for those in the area.

Here’s a little Disney trivia for you; did you know that Sleeping Beauty’s castle at Disneyland is not really as tall as it seems?  It is a façade that the Disney creators made where they built the higher parts of the Disneyland castle in smaller pieces making it appear as though it is farther away and higher up than it actually is!  This type of “magical trickery” is displayed all around the parks from Big Thunder Mountain Railroad to the Matterhorn, but it is not quite as awe inspiring than that of Sleeping Beauty’s castle.  This castle is the icon of everything that embodies Disneyland; magic, wonder and fairy tales.  As you pass over the swan swimming moat and through the gates, you are transported into Fantasyland.  Most people were not aware that you can actually go up inside of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.  Directly to your left as you enter Fantasyland, you will find a small doorway with a narrow set of stairs (not great for those of you with claustrophobia).  If you travel up these stairs, you will pass several small paintings all depicting drawings and verses from the Disney classic, Sleeping Beauty.  Once you reach the top, you can look out the picturesque windows to see the tourists below.  While it is not necessarily the most exciting of Disneyland features, it is one that not many people know about, so you can consider yourself one of the lucky few who can say that you actually went inside of Sleeping Beauty’s castle!

Where Disneyland is concerned, you will always find great deals.  Now, more than ever when the economy is struggling as badly as it is, the folks at Disney are doing everything they can and pulling out all of the stops to offer unbelievable Disney deals that you just can’t think about passing up.  All throughout the year are special offers from 2 nights free with a 3 night purchase to kids fly free with every paying adult to Disneyland, specials, discounts and deals are running rampant.  Disneyland is all about celebrations.  Here’s a great deal tip for you; if you are planning on visiting Disneyland over your birthday, guess what?  You get into the park for free that day!  If you show valid identification or a copy of your child’s birth certificate confirming that this is in fact your birthday, you get free admission, saving you approximately $100!  That’s quite a deal!  During tough financial times, Disney is offering several discounts at their stores and restaurants both at Disneyland and California Adventure as well as in Downtown Disney to inherit more business.  You will receive special discounted prices or a certain percentage off at any or all of the shops in both parks and downtown Disney.  If you want a great deal to Disneyland that you just can’t turn own, now is the time to go!

If you are a “Disney Connoisseur” then you are sure to know that nothing in Disneyland comes cheap.  Luckily, there are ways that you can make your impending Disney vacation as stress free financially as possible.  Walt Disney Tickets into Disneyland are given in 1 to 8 day passes that must be used consecutively and are valid for two weeks after the date of original purchase.  If you are planning on visiting Disneyland for more than one day, purchasing a multi-day pass is the best deal you can pay for.  The more days that you buy in the park, the less you will be paying per day.  With each extra day that you buy after the first day, you will be receiving an average of $10 more off.  That can be a savings of over $80 if you are planning on purchasing an eight day pass.  Admission tickets for both Disneyland and California Adventure can be purchased separately if you are planning on only visiting one of the parks; however, you will get a much better deal investing in a Park Hopper Pass which allows you access to both parks that can be used at any time of the day.  Essentially, you are “hopping” from one park to the next, enjoying both parks and all that they have to offer.

If you are traveling to Disneyland during the busy summer months or on a typical vacation time from school like the Christmas holiday or spring break, be prepared for lines.  A lot of them.  Waiting in these long lines is especially hard if you are traveling with very young children can be excruciating and exhausting and leave you wondering why you decided to vacation to the UN-happiest place on Earth in the first place!  Well, let me let you in on a little secret…Fast Passes.  That’s right, folks.  Fast passes are the new wave of the future at Disneyland.  These precious little passes let you jump your pretty little selves to the front of the line in front of all of those people who didn’t know the Fast Pass secret and you can ride on your chose attraction and go on your merry way to your next ride adventure.  In order to ease the strain and stress of lines at the park, the brains of Disneyland got together and created Fast Passes.  These kiosks that are placed beside all of the major attraction rides at Disneyland (a.k.a. the most popular) allow you to insert your admission ticket and it will print out a voucher, or Fast Pass, telling you what time you should come back to the ride and you will get first dibs on the attraction. While you wait for your designated time, go grab a bite to eat or catch a live show or parade.   Be careful, however.  You are only allowed to use a Fast Pass up to 3 times a day, so if the line doesn’t appear to long, wait it out and use the Fast Pass when the lines get a little longer during the busiest parts of the day.  And that, my friends, is the secret of the infamous Fast Pass.

Turning your impending Disneyland vacation into a Disney Adventure can be a ton of fun!  Instead of the same old same old, spice things up a little bit and really enjoy yourself at the park.  If you are traveling with a large group of people, divide up into several small groups and go on a sort of scavenger hunt throughout the park.  Give each group a disposable camera and a list of clues that will lead them to places they must find inside the park.  Once they find what they’re looking for, they have to take a picture of it.  You have to really “know” Disneyland in order to play this game, which can make an adventure like a Disney Scavenger Hunt incredibly fun!  One person has to make the rules.  Write clever little sayings and hints to give them clues.  This game will have everyone in your group, young or old spending hours running all around the park trying to beat the other team.  At a certain point in the day, everyone should meet at a designated area inside or outside of the park.  At that time, someone can run the disposable cameras to a one hour photo shop and the team who got the most answers right, wins!  Reward them with a great souvenir of their choosing from Disneyland.  If you are bored with the same old Disneyland, spice it up a big and make a fun adventure game out of your next visit!