RuthinHolland

We have 21 days to spend in South California next April. Here's our starter itinerary, please give me lots of advice. My husband and I have done many driving holidays in the west but things change, this is our first big holiday since our daughter was born.

Thurs April 9 Arrive in LA. Stay somewhere beachy - Hermosa/Manhatten/Santa Monica? Hopefully get over jetlag!
Sat April 11 San Diego - Sea World and the zoo
Tues April 14 Joshua Tree
Thur April 16 Bakersfield
Fri April 17 Yosemite
Tues April 21 Monterey - Aquarium and coast
Fri April 24 San Luis Obispo
Sun April 26 Anaheim - Both Disney parks and some shopping
Thurs April 30 home

I know we'll be missing SF but my husband travels there a lot on business so I'm sure we'll go later. I'm most concerned about the Joshua Tree/Bakersfield/Yosemite leg, seems like a lot of driving without much to see on the way. I love the desert though...

This is my first post here after lurking (and dreaming) for years. Hope I've done it right. I'm sure I read a post on a similar topic recently but I couldn't find it again.

Thanks in advance.

boom_boom

Your Joshua Tree to Bakersfield is a long day. You can avoid most of the LA basin and the worst of the traffic by taking 247 from Desert Hot Springs to Hesperia and then finding US 395 to the junction of SR 58 which takes you to Bakersfield. Not much en route other than an intereting rail loop a few miles west of Techachapi off 58. If you have the time to get off 58 there is a Ghost Town (Calico) just east of Barstow (about a 100 miles round trip detour) and a small, but nioce museum in Ridgecrest (about a 70 mile detour if you take SR 178 west over Walker Pass into Bakersfield. That route is more scenic thanks to the Kern River Canyon west of Lake Isabella.

RuthinHolland

Thanks very much, the rail loop looks interesting, I really like finding unusual things by chance on long otherwise dull drives.

I'd also wondered about a stop at the Desert Tortoise Natural area, near California City?

coxbox

Im hoping you mean Apri 11 thru the 14 for Seaworld and the zoo...those will take one day each..

Curious

You mean "Southern California". There is no "South California".

Curious

PeaceOut

Well, there is a South California, but we call it Southern California.

RuthinHolland

Sorry Curious, I didn't mean to offend anyone with incorrect naming of the region, in the part of England I'm from (the South!), this is how it would be said. I suppose it's just another example of English and American not really being the same language!

BKP

Hi Ruth -- That looks like a fun road trip -- but I don't know if I would take a 3 year old on it. After spending 10 hours on a plane (if you get a direct flight) you're asking her to get in the car for 7 different trips, each taking 3 to 4 hours, in 21 days and then another flight home. You know your child better than we do but I think my 3 year old would be very sick of his car seat by the end of this trip. I also think we would spend more time pulling out games, toys, snacks, videos, etc trying to appease him than actually enjoying the scenery. If you add strange food and a different bed every couple of nights it might put your toddler over the edge.

Having said all that -- if you want to go, go! If you're willing to put in the effort I'm sure you can make it work. I would just be overly prepared with activities, toys, and snacks for your child to keep her busy. Some parents are against it, but we use laptops to let our son watch videos on plane rides and a Zune if we're desperate in the car.

Good luck!

Supercilious

If I were doing this trip, coming from Europe, I would fly into SoCal and then drive up to NoCal, flying back to LAX for your flight home. Less driving this way.

I'd also cut out Joshua Tree. It's kind of out of your way and probably not the best place to take a 3 year old. If you want interesting rock formations, go to Pinnacles National Monument which is near Monterey. This is a fantastic place in April if the weather is decent.

Turning your car in at Fresno or Sacramento after Yosemite would save you a day of driving. Flights back to LA are pretty cheap. And then you don't have to hassle with the horrible traffic in LA twice on your trip.

mrwunrfl

good post, Ruth, you have done it right. Looks like a fun itinerary. I think I might not want to get to Yosemite on a Friday or Saturday, but would prefer a weekday. Though when we visited it was on a weekend and was, of course, spectacular. Your visit would be earlier in the season than ours was, too. I wonder though, if it is too early. I suggest that you check to see when all the roads open, esp. the road to Glacier Point.

WannabeinaMontserrat

I'd suggest a few shorter trips out & about before I would submit my child to such a trip. Even as an adult, it is not something I would want to partake in. She may be a great traveler or, she may loathe even getting near a car after a few days of this trip. I would at the very least, have some alternate plans or parts I could leave out if needed.

SuzieTrue

RuthinHolland,
We took our son on a month long trip from Michigan to Washington when he was 2 1/2. We spent a week each way traveling, then 2 weeks in/around Seattle/Tacoma doing day trips and a few overnights.

It is possible for this to be fun BUT you must be prepared to stop every couple of hours and let your daughter run around. We also got up early on travel days and got in 2-3 hours of driving before our son was really awake. We also had a cooler and picnic basket so that breakfast/lunches did not need to be eaten at restaurants.

We did have some meltdowns, which have now become great stories since son is almost 23, but overall had a lot of fun.

Good luck with the planning!

ST

PeaceOut

It sounds like an overly-packed itinerary. Lots of driving, and Bakersfield is nothing special. Too many theme parks that will exhaust a three-year old (and yourselves)-- Sea World, the zoo, the aquarium, and 2 Disney parks?

Our kids at 3 were happy with much smaller outings, and less overwhelming activities. The aquarium would be a good one, and it's less intense. I'd choose one of the Disney Parks in addition to the aquarium. I recommend you substitute beach play time instead of theme parks. Much more fun for a three-year old, and you. Also, much less expensive!

I'd alter the drive plan and skip a couple of destinations, like Bakersfield and Joshua Tree. Yosemite is gorgeous, as is the coast around Monterey and San Luis Obispo.

In fact, I would stay longer in L.A. at Manhattan Beach or Santa Monica. I'd skip San Diego this visit. Focus on beach time and Yosemite and the coastline.

Have you purchased airfare? Could you fly into Los Angeles and home from San Francisco or San Jose? Would make your drive plan simpler.

RuthinHolland

Thanks for all the input, you've really made me think hard about trying to do so much in such a short time. This would have been a very conservative itinerary for us pre-daughter, we used to average 2500 miles in 21 days! Our daughter is a fairly good traveller, we've done some shorter driving holidays in Europe and the UK and she's been great, I can see that she might get fed up with it though, we'll be taking a portable dvd player!
So, can anyone suggest a better plan. I think 3-4 hour drives, split with a play stop are reasonable, albeit not so many. We've already booked our flights, got a great deal for BA business class dependent on flying in and out of LA, so are tied to start and finish at LAX. Bit worried about baggage considerations if we take internal flights, allowed 3 pieces each transatlantic but presumably only one domestically.
Help, the more I think about it the more confused I get!

Supercilious

Southwest allows 2 bags with no additional charge and they fly to LA from Sac. You should really rethink bringing 3 bags each. We do have laundry here in the US, often at most major motel chains. There's no reason to drive up to NoCal and then back to SoCal unless you love using one of your vacation days just driving.

RuthinHolland

Not really planning on bringing three bags each, nine pieces of luggage for three people for three weeks sounds crazy! But, with a stroller, a portacrib (possibly) and a spare bag for the shopping we'd like to do, it soon mounts up. Can't believe I used to be able to go on holiday for a week with just carry-on!

ncounty

I would support what PeaceOut said. I think you are taking on too much with a 3 year old. I would favor staying 2-3 nights in each location to really explore it and limit your driving to 4-6 hours per day in between. If you do come to San Diego, consider Legoland unless you've got one at home. It is the best of the parks for a child that age IMO. We've got wonderful beaches for all to play at as well. Definitely skip Bakersfield and Joshua Tree.

PeaceOut

You have plenty of time to plan your trip. Flying in and out of LAX will be fine, especially since you have comfortable seats on BA.

With 21 days, you can see plenty, without rushing through.

You didn't mention San Francisco, which I would suggest over San Diego, because it's so different from L.A. and it's one of the world's great cities. Have you already been to San Francisco?

You could fly into L.A.
Go to Yosemite (see some desert along the way, if that's important).
Go to San Francisco, maybe visit Napa.
Drive down the coast and see Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara.
Fly home from L.A.?

There are lots of options. What are your must-see and must-do things?

RuthinHolland

Thanks PeaceOut, that sounds like a good route, I'm dithering about San Diego, our daughter would love the zoo. We've been to San Francisco before and my husband travels to San Jose a lot on business so we'll probably save it for another trip.

Must-see and must-do things are Yosemite, Monterey and Disneyland. My husband and I have already been to all of the places on my original itinerary pre-daughter, we want to make sure we have a great family holiday. We live very near a good beach, so spend quite a lot of time there. will it be beach weather in LA in April?

Should we consider substituting San Diego and SF with LV and spending some time by the pool? Then we could drive to Yosemite via Death Valley. There are so many great things to see!

Thanks for all your help.

POlson

Don't overlook all the fun that can be had in Los Angeles and nearby areas.

Here are a few suggestions:
Farmer's Market (Santa Monica or the permanent one in LA);
La Brea Tar Pits and LA County Museum of Art;
Kidspace Children's Museum (if the timing is right you could combine with a sunday morning trip to the Rose Bowl flea market which is an amazing collection of stuff for sale - I think it is the second sunday of each month);
Huntington gardens and Library (in Pasadena) - has a water garden my kids enjoy playing in and a wonderful collection of art and rare books;
Manhattan Beach is a great family beach town, lots of kids;
Los Angeles Zoo and nearby Griffith Park (travel town, Merry-go-round, pony rides etc);
find a local farm (we enjoy the occasional farm visit when travelling with our little ones - I know Simi Valley area has a few, if you are interested I can try to find the name of the one we like);
Long Beach (Aquarium of the Pacific, Queen Mary, deep sea fishing, full day trip to Catalina Island);
Downtown LA (Olvera Street, Chinatown, Disney concert Hall - sometimes has children's programs, architecture tour, Union Station)

Hopefully you find an item or two of interest for your time in LA.

As for the rest:
In San Diego, your child will enjoy Legoland, Sea World and the beach. The Zoo and the Animal Park are amazing but can make for a very long day with alot of walking.

Yosemite is wonderful and I would allow 4 days. The drive from LA is not bad (we stopped in Fresno and saw the zoo - fed a giraffe - before heading into the final stretch).

I would probably skip Joshua Tree and Bakersfield.

The coast drive will be beautiful but long and made more difficult with a 3 year old but with lots of stops, walks, short stretches to new activities and long drives during naptime you should be just fine.

When travelling with the little ones I like hotel stays of at least three days as they tend to get a little stressed with each new change.

How about:
April 9: Fly into LAX, drive to Anaheim, relax at the pool (that way you can begin your trip and get over jet lag at the same time)
April 9 - 12 (3 nights) - Anaheim: time for both parks at a leisurely pace, maybe some shopping at the Grove or Costa Mesa;
April 12 - 16 (4 nights): San Diego
April 16 - 19 (3 nights): Los Angeles (stay at Beach town or in Pasadena);
April 19 - 23 (4 nights): Yosemite
April 23 - 28 (6 nights): Coast drive - pick two places for extended stops, maybe Monterey and SLO
April 29 - 30 (1 night) - final night near LAX airport, maybe at the beach.

Have a wonderful trip.