2020 barely pre-pandemic family vacation
February of 2020, we managed to take a memorable vacation to California before life shifted dramatically. We flew into Los Angeles and went on a road trip to enjoy sun, water, and the magic of Disney.
We stayed in LA the first night so we could have a reasonable bedtime and not deal with acquiring a rental car late in the evening. The next day included a big continental breakfast, sunshine, and departing for Anaheim, where we enjoyed one full day of Disneyland. Getting in was stressful. The shuttle from the hotel kept filling up so we gave up and took a bus in. I wished we had an earlier start because lines to get in were insane. Once inside, it was magical. We went straight to meet princesses since there was a short line. And were were happy to spend the money on FastPass+ to reserve ahead for FastPass rides (rather than spending time running around the park with little ones). In one day, we managed all the rides we hoped for, met characters, and saw one show. One kid slept through the Winnie the Pooh ride. And there was agreement that the Roger Rabbit and Pinocchio rides were a bit scary. A little parent hack of mine: I bought Minnie ears and t-shirts before the trip so there was no need to buy apparel at Disneyland.
The day after Disneyland we enjoyed an extended character breakfast (at one point the waiter made my coffee refill to go) and strolled Downtown Disney. This felt like another day of Disneyland without buying tickets.
From Anaheim we headed to Palm Springs. We loved Palm Springs. We stayed at a hotel with a large inviting pool and a lawn the kids could run around on. Our time in Palm Springs was focused on pool time and visiting Joshua Tree National Park. The park was amazing. We left in the morning and got back to Palm Springs at dinner time. We did a few short hikes and explored the area with Skull Rock. Skull Rock was by far the biggest hit for our kids. They enjoyed climbing and exploring. At our last stop, our four year old lost her balance on a small bridge and fall on Cholla Cactus. Luckily, she was impaled by only one spine. But it turns out the spines have little barbs at the end that are extra painful. During our visit to Palm Springs, we stumbled upon their weekly Village Fest. It was very congested and we were nervous we would lose track of a kid but it interesting to walk around and see the various vendors.
From Palm Springs, we headed to our last stop, Santa Monica. We stayed nearby by at Marina Del Ray, next to the Cheesecake Factory. We had a balcony overlooking Mother’s beach that included a playground. We still had our rental car, which made visiting Venice Beach and Santa Monica a little easier. Highlights include playing at the beach, a beautiful sunset, watching roller skaters and skate boarders, and visiting the Santa Monica Pier.
During the weeks following our trip, everything started shutting down due to Covid. And we didn’t get on a plane again for two years. Where did we go after a two year hiatus on flying? First stop was Palm Springs for much needed sunshine.