What to do in California?

[dutchca]

Specifically, Orange County/Anaheim/Disney area.

We are not into theme parks and are intersted in other things to do such as shopping, sight seeing, museums and casinos with table games.

We may check out Universal, but aren't interested in Disney (although we will be staying at the Disney resort).

What is the public transit system like? We want to avoid car rental if possible - is it close to the beach?

[Fraser River Rat]

Hi,

When are you planning to be in California? If you weren't going to go to Disneyland, why are you staying in the Disneyland Resort? Would have thought you would have picked a place in L.A. or along the coast.

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/Visitors-Guide-Order/Order-Guide/

[dutchca]

Hi,

When are you planning to be in California? If you weren't going to go to Disneyland, why are you staying in the Disneyland Resort? Would have thought you would have picked a place in L.A. or along the coast.

http://www.visitcalifornia.com/Visitors-Guide-Order/Order-Guide/

Will be there mid-November for about a week. Going to a conference and the venue is Disney, I would ahve preferred LA or SanFran.

Thanks for the link.

[Arrgh]

Orange County and generally the LA area is quite vast. It's not easy and takes a long time to get around by public transit. You pretty well need a rental car.

If not renting from the airport, you'll save on a bunch of taxes/fees. Ask the hotel what rental agencies are on site or nearby. If not on site, they may be able to provide free pickup. Some agencies allow one-way rentals, to return at the airport. So that can be another saving.

Nov. time, it gets colder at the beach. Heck, the California water, even in the south, is not warm to start with.

[gsrce]

I have to say, if you've never been to Disneyland you don't know what you're missing.

Contrary to popular belief, it's not just for kids. People of any age would have a great time.

If anything, Universal has literally only 1/10th the amount of attractions and things to do that Disneyland has.

[Fraser River Rat]

I have to say, if you've never been to Disneyland you don't know what you're missing.

Contrary to popular belief, it's not just for kids. People of any age would have a great time.

If anything, Universal has literally only 1/10th the amount of attractions and things to do that Disneyland has.

Hi,

Taking transit from Anaheim to downtown L.A. is like taking the bus from downtown Toronto to Burlington. Time wise, it will probably take longer to travel through all the counties to L.A. than it would be to go to Burlington from Toronto. Disneyland is still a ride park, if you're not an amusement ride person or a fan of Disney movies...there isn't any attraction for you. But if you're an amusement ride person & you've never been to Disneyland or been to Disneyland without your kids, don't pass this up. Yes, Universal is 1/10 of Disneyland but all the rides are from Universal's movies & they're all thrill rides. Universal's haunted house is to die for. P.S. no line ups at this attraction.

How much free time will you have? Any full days off or just half days? If you want to leave the Anaheim area, you should rent a car for the day. Bring your GPS with you, so you won't have to buy any maps. Of course, being at a conference, you'll be bringing your laptop.

Maybe catch a hockey game in Anaheim?
http://ducks.nhl.com/club/schedule.htm?cmpid=ggl1bx

[nippleholic]

go here:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BAE0xGk7_6s/TioBoZGDG1I/AAAAAAAAB7o/UWkwqxeP1Uw/s1600/in-n-out-burger1.jpg

[mudd_stuffin]

I agree with others here - you need a car to get around LA. It is a big city.

How about going to Santa Monica/Redondo Beach area? It is a beautiful part of LA though it is about 45 minutes by car from Orange County.

[swifferman]

I'll agree with the others. If you haven't been to Disneyland before it's definitely worth a visit. Universal studios, for all ages, pales in comparison to the entertainment behemoth that is Disneyland (which in turn is a poor man's Disney WORLD :D). You'll be visiting during the off season so lines for rides shouldn't be bad and it should be pretty easy to do whatever you'd like without having to wait too long for it. I would not suggest visiting Universal Studios as it is both much further from Orange County and much worse than Disneyland.

With that said, if theme parks aren't your thing, you can always go to Newport Beach and Laguna Beach and check out the lifestyle. Although these are both in Orange County, LA County is pretty much non-navigable by anything other than car. You can also check out Huntington Beach which might be hosting some surf competitions while you're there as it is prime time for the waves.

Check out also the Crystal Cathedral in Orange Grove close by to where you're staying. It's a big glass church that is pretty neat to walk around (you might have seen it on those Sunday morning television preachings).

With your preferences in mind, there are no real noteworthy museums within the Orange County area though further afield in LA are some of the world's best: The LACMA, Getty Villa and Museum, La Brea Tar Pits etc., but then you'll be straying quite far from Orange County. I can't remember whether or not there are any casinos. There's a large mall http://www.simon.com/mall/default.aspx?id=1236 and also the Anaheim Garden Walk nearby to where you're staying.

Unless you only plan on going to Disneyland each day (and even that can be a pain in the ass on Anaheim transit) you will need to rent a car.

Best of luck and have fun

[dutchca]

Thanks for all the recs.

Based on the above, going to re-think Disney.
Will go to a Ducks game. They are playing at home while we are there.
Depending on time, will rent a car and head to the coast.
Will check out the glass Church, sounds interesting.

I'm extending the conference at least 5 days so that will leave some time to evaluate.

Good tip on the GPS. I have a handheld that I can load the California map on.

[n3o321]

car - a must
GPS - a must
Santa Monica beach for their 7.50$ funnel cake - a must LOL @__@
I had a really low expectation for Universal studios, and honestly after paying 77$ for it, it didnt seem that bad LOL. I guess its also the company you are with that counts.

[TorontoEh]

Specifically, Orange County/Anaheim/Disney area.

We are not into theme parks and are intersted in other things to do such as shopping, sight seeing, museums and casinos with table games.

We may check out Universal, but aren't interested in Disney (although we will be staying at the Disney resort).

What is the public transit system like? We want to avoid car rental if possible - is it close to the beach?


When we went to LA back in spring, we stayed in a suburb of LA (Hawaiian Gardens) not too far from Orange County. There's a casino in Hawaiian Gardens albeit a run-down one.

We were also in north Orange County area - La Palma/Buena Park and there is a nice shopping outlet http://www.shoploscerritos.com/ Cerritos Shopping Center.

We rented the car from the airport, had our own GPS and it was totaly worth it. Transit in LA is non-existent.

We also did the HW1 journey down from Laguna Beach up till Pismo Beach :) One of the best drives I must say!!!!

I wish we wouldn've gone much north but I think there was a land slide near Big Sur area at that time.

Also checked out;

Santa Monica Beach (love it) + 3rd Street Promenade
Huntington Beach
Long beach pier area
Pismo Beach - Central CA Coast area
Getty Museum (a must see)
Hollywood area -the stars walk of fame/Chinese theater
Did live taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live (stars Christina Aguilera and Mike Tyson)

That;s all I could remember for now :)

[shoei]

I have family in OC. They live near Huntington beach so if your going there check out "main st" Nice shops and bars along the beaches. A car is a must if your in OC and if you want to go outlet shopping theres a huge outlet in palm springs called Cabazon Outlets which is in the dessert. Irvine is close by and it has an outside mall called irvine spectrum. Other huge mall near by is South Coast which is in Costa Mesa. New port beach is also nice to visit but again in Nov the beach might be chilly.

[codemonkey]

in california, I liked San Diego the best. also La Jolla is a must visit. beautiful place.

in LA, go see the Getty Museum and the Getty Villa.

[time space]

Check out also the Crystal Cathedral in Orange Grove close by to where you're staying. It's a big glass church that is pretty neat to walk around (you might have seen it on those Sunday morning television preachings).

I'm not sure if their "Glory of Christmas" (http://www.crystalcathedral.org/events_news/detail.php?contentid=4774) show starts in November, but with it's beautiful choirs, special FX, and even live animals in the nativity play, it's something to see even for a non-churchgoer.

On the Disneyland question - if you're not into theme parks, skip it - it's nothing compared to DisneyWorld.

Also, consider booking free tickets with the TV networks for shows taping (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/losangeles/0014021209.html) when you're there.