Of all the family vacations we have taken, this past weekend was by far the best one yet. I had my whole family together for 3 days to just enjoy each others company with no fighting, no bickering, and pure teamwork. Disneyland was bustling this weekend and although we shut the park down for two nights, it still took some planning and coordinating in order to hit all the rides. Average wait time was 30 minutes per ride (some were 65 minutes). If you get a fast pass for a ride, you have to wait for the time to open up in order to get another fast pass for another ride.
Fantasyland was the busiest area of the whole park and it drove me fricken insane. Stroller parking took up most of the real estate in front of rides and I remember a time when we could park in front of the Disneyland entrance gates and walk right in.
Between Disneyland and California Adventure, we had more fun at California. It wasn't as crowded and the ride wait times was much less. We were able to conquer the entire California Adventure Park in one full day. We all had a fabulous time at both places. It was time and money well spent.
After four days in Anaheim, we drove back to Vegas for a day and then headed out to Arizona for 2 days. We went to Bearizona, the Grand Canyon, and the Phoenix locale of Iglesia Ni Cristo. It was very long day of driving but an awesome time. I highly recommend visiting Bearizona if you're planning a trip to the Canyon. It is a must see!!
The next morning we slept in and had a nice hearty breakfast at the Country Inn and Suites Deer Valley. I LOVE the Country Inn. It is THE BEST!! After getting a lot of rest, we checked out and spent three hours in Cabela's in Glendale, AZ. Before leaving (back to Vegas), I picked up some items from the Cafe and Deli. Venison hot dogs, Bison Bratwurst, Smoked Bison sandwich and Cheese Curds. YES!!! It sure did make our drive back awesome!
We're now back in Vegas and doing laundry and barbecuing with friends and having a relaxing night at home. I swear we're the only ones who come to vegas and don't gamble. LOL!! We haven't stepped foot in a casino or touched a slot machine. The one good thing about that is our pockets are still FULL. lol!!!
I'm obviously leaving a lot of nitty gritty details to our super exciting trip. I want to journalize every moment but I am exhausted and really want to spend my time with my loved ones instead of sitting here at the table banging on my macbook keys.
For those wondering what this trip costed us, here's the breakdown:
2 Bedroom condo for 10 days - $49.00 transaction fee (We own three so we never pay for accommodations)
Minivan Rental for 10 days $110.66 (used timeshare points and paid transaction fee plus extra day, I booked it in March and messed up the dates)
All airfare (including RJ's flight to LAX) $2,571.00
Disneyland/California 3 day hoppers $519 (4 hoppers) - Military benefit by purchasing the tickets at MWR
Holiday Inn Anaheim for 3 nights $99.00 + $35 for parking = $134 (used timeshare points and only paid the transaction fee)
This hotel is right around the corner from the parking structure. So it's a quick 10 minute walk to the tram station.
Country Inn and Suites Deer Valley, AZ for 1 night $7.00 (only paid a small fee to purchase the additional Club Carlson points to book the room for FREE)
The rest of the money spent was for gas, shopping, and food. We saved a TON of money on food being in a timeshare. We cooked most of the time and always packed our own food for the road when we left Vegas. We ate out four times since we got here. I actually packed 15 cups of rice and 2 cans of spam in my luggage to save even more money. We used to buy rice when we got here and end up wasting half a bag. This time, I premeasured the rice. 5 cups fit in a quart bag. 15 cups was the perfect amount. I just cooked the last of it for the bbq and we'll have leftovers for breakfast tomorrow. It pays to be a "planner". LOL
I can't wait for EUROPE 2015!
Fantasyland was the busiest area of the whole park and it drove me fricken insane. Stroller parking took up most of the real estate in front of rides and I remember a time when we could park in front of the Disneyland entrance gates and walk right in.
Between Disneyland and California Adventure, we had more fun at California. It wasn't as crowded and the ride wait times was much less. We were able to conquer the entire California Adventure Park in one full day. We all had a fabulous time at both places. It was time and money well spent.
After four days in Anaheim, we drove back to Vegas for a day and then headed out to Arizona for 2 days. We went to Bearizona, the Grand Canyon, and the Phoenix locale of Iglesia Ni Cristo. It was very long day of driving but an awesome time. I highly recommend visiting Bearizona if you're planning a trip to the Canyon. It is a must see!!
The next morning we slept in and had a nice hearty breakfast at the Country Inn and Suites Deer Valley. I LOVE the Country Inn. It is THE BEST!! After getting a lot of rest, we checked out and spent three hours in Cabela's in Glendale, AZ. Before leaving (back to Vegas), I picked up some items from the Cafe and Deli. Venison hot dogs, Bison Bratwurst, Smoked Bison sandwich and Cheese Curds. YES!!! It sure did make our drive back awesome!
We're now back in Vegas and doing laundry and barbecuing with friends and having a relaxing night at home. I swear we're the only ones who come to vegas and don't gamble. LOL!! We haven't stepped foot in a casino or touched a slot machine. The one good thing about that is our pockets are still FULL. lol!!!
I'm obviously leaving a lot of nitty gritty details to our super exciting trip. I want to journalize every moment but I am exhausted and really want to spend my time with my loved ones instead of sitting here at the table banging on my macbook keys.
For those wondering what this trip costed us, here's the breakdown:
2 Bedroom condo for 10 days - $49.00 transaction fee (We own three so we never pay for accommodations)
Minivan Rental for 10 days $110.66 (used timeshare points and paid transaction fee plus extra day, I booked it in March and messed up the dates)
All airfare (including RJ's flight to LAX) $2,571.00
Disneyland/California 3 day hoppers $519 (4 hoppers) - Military benefit by purchasing the tickets at MWR
Holiday Inn Anaheim for 3 nights $99.00 + $35 for parking = $134 (used timeshare points and only paid the transaction fee)
This hotel is right around the corner from the parking structure. So it's a quick 10 minute walk to the tram station.
Country Inn and Suites Deer Valley, AZ for 1 night $7.00 (only paid a small fee to purchase the additional Club Carlson points to book the room for FREE)
The rest of the money spent was for gas, shopping, and food. We saved a TON of money on food being in a timeshare. We cooked most of the time and always packed our own food for the road when we left Vegas. We ate out four times since we got here. I actually packed 15 cups of rice and 2 cans of spam in my luggage to save even more money. We used to buy rice when we got here and end up wasting half a bag. This time, I premeasured the rice. 5 cups fit in a quart bag. 15 cups was the perfect amount. I just cooked the last of it for the bbq and we'll have leftovers for breakfast tomorrow. It pays to be a "planner". LOL
I can't wait for EUROPE 2015!
RSS Feed
