Los Angeles vacation

amother

Copper

Sun, May 22 2016, 8:28 pm

HI Ill be going to LA and San Francisco with my husband and 2 kids - ages 6 and 3. Never been to California and wondering what are some nice attractions that would be suitable with kids? Also want to visit a winery - any way to do that with kids or do I need to somehow arrange a babysitter? What are the best restaurants? Any info is greatly appreciated!

THanks

amother

cornflower

Sun, May 22 2016, 9:02 pm

A few things to note:
You NEED a car. Especially to do touristy things. Plus to get from LA to SF- can be 8 hours by car, more if you are the type to need to stretch your legs and have lots of bathroom breaks.
How long will you be here?
What sort of family are you? Athletic? (Some kids needs parks, some beach...) Disney? Kids museums?
How much do you want to spend?
When are you coming? Weather matters...

The winery in the LA area is Herzog- no vineyards or anything. Just wine tasting, a self guided tour of their factory and THE best restaurant anywhere!! THE BEST. Get a babysitter. It's a bit of a drive from LA and is not a place for kids. Fancy and $$$$$.

Not sure about SF area food. restaurants there come and go. There is Alcatraz, ferries...

Go to San Diego for the day (or 2!). The zoos are out of this world!
Legoland might be good for the kids.
There are great beaches- Malibu beach has a kosher Fish Grill overlooking the water...
There is a lot to do... Just give us some more info! Where will you be based out of? LA is huge, tons of food and to do!

Amarante

Sun, May 22 2016, 10:25 pm

Recommendations depend on how long you are staying.

SF and LA are one day of travel whether by car or by plane so unless you are staying for a long time, I personally would pick one or the other because both places have plenty to do.

If you are in SF, the wine country of Somoma is a wonderful day trip. I am not a serious wind person but it was beautiful country and we had a wonderful picnic at one of the vineyards.

LA has wonderful stuff as obviously Disneyland is a must for kids that age. If you stay in LA, San Diego is an easy trip especially if you stay overnight. Sea World and the San Diego Zoo are awesome for kids as well as fun for adults. I've done some off beat things with the kids like Roar and Snore at the zoo where you sleep in the zoo and have special tours.

LA has wonderful restaurants ranging from cafes to fancy and I think is probably only second to NY in terms of that.

Kids like the Natural History Museum and there is a lot of green space for them to run around and the giant mastodons which are definitely a draw for guys of every age. My brother made me stop and wait for him so he could see them. Lol

The beach is fun and there is a nice kid type amusement park by the Santa Monica Pier.

SF is fantastic but I think if you have to choose, LA is a lot more kid friendly and SF has more appeal to urbane older people in terms of attractions

amother

Copper

Mon, May 23 2016, 11:58 am

I'm the OP

THanks so much. We are flying into SF late june and would like to spend a few days there and then one week in LA. My kids like beaches as well as museums and parks etc. How long drive is it from LA to santa Monica and LA to San diego?

doctorima

Mon, May 23 2016, 12:04 pm

LA to Santa Monica can be around 30 minutes, depending on traffic (which can be beyond brutal) and where you're coming from, and LA to San Diego is around 2 hours, again depending on time of day. Definitely look into Legoland, Sea World, SD Zoo, and in SF there's a great science museum called the Exploratorium, plus Alcatraz.

Amarante

Mon, May 23 2016, 12:13 pm

Santa Monica is essentially Los Angeles so time to travel depends on where You are staying but assuming you are in Pico district and there is not rush hour traffic, maybe twenty minutes.

San Diego is at least four hours by car but maybe less depending n traffic but I am being realistic in terms of arriving at destination. With children, I wouldn't go to San Diego in a day trip because it would be too much. Figure out wha you want to see in Los Angeles and then see if you have time to do. There is a lot to see in Los Angeles. I don't know if your children are too young but the Museum of the Holovpcaust is outstanding. There is an incredible interactive portion where you are given the name of a Holocaust person and then travel through a reenactment of the experience.

Disneyland is definitely doable in one day especially if you get an early start.

LA has a nice zoo with a nice children's section. There is a cute prairie dog tunnel where your children can pop up in the holes.

tichellady

Mon, May 23 2016, 1:45 pm

Check out the Annenberg beach house. Try to get tickets to the broad museum now, they are free but need to be purchased way in advance. We love the tidepools at abalone cove. The herzog winery is great for good food, but is not really a winery. Dinner is expensive, lunch is reasonable- if you want to take kids you can go for lunch and ask to sit outside. The long Beach aquarium is great. I love both the Getty museums. Los liones is a good hike, not too long for kids.

doctorima

Mon, May 23 2016, 3:32 pm

LA to San Diego is 120 miles, straight highway. If you time it right and avoid rush hour, it can be done in 2 hours. Still, there's enough there that I agree not to do it as a day trip, but spend at least 1 night there if you're planning to go.

amother

Copper

Tue, May 31 2016, 8:18 pm

Thanks everyone! just made an itinerary with all your ideas!

Now I need restaurant idea please for San Francisco, LA, and San Diego. Also plan go to Disneyland - any food nearby?

I need ideas for breakfast, lunch, dinner - kid friendly and adult friendly

THanks so much!

Amarante

Tue, May 31 2016, 8:36 pm

amother wrote:

Where will you be staying in Los Angeles. There are some great restaurants but they are generally located to a great extent around the Pico District.

Disneyland has kosher food options which are edible but not wonderful. I used to bring sandwiches in as they never checked and then supplemented with various nosh there.

It's also not a bad idea to pack picnic stuff if you take the kids to Santa Monica which you should do. Again, there are some great places along Pico for that kind of stuff.

Don't miss the pretzel challah from Got Kosher

http://gotkosherinc.com

There is a kosher Mexican which is probably kid friendly as well as kosher Thai as well as kosher Chinese of course.

There are some lovely upscale restaurants as well but do you want to shlep the kids to those kinds of places?

Supermom#1

Tue, May 31 2016, 8:54 pm

amother wrote:

The forums on Dan's deals helped me alot, as well as his trip reports, complete with pictures. Not only does he recommend restaurants, he even recommends which dishes to order. Check it out, you'll be glad you did.

doctorima

Tue, May 31 2016, 10:13 pm

In San Francisco proper, the only option is Sabra Grill (read reviews before going). In Oakland there's a place with deli, and a bagel place in Palo Alto. San Diego offerings are also quite limited. LA has everything you could want; if you're able to make it, try to get to Oxnard for dinner, or at the very least for lunch.