Visiting Southern California

Recently we traveled to Southern California for spring break. We visited UCLA, Universal Studios, Disneyland, and Legoland. I wanted to share our experience below as well as some dos and dont’s to help save your wallet and sanity. Hoping this post may be helpful if you are planning on visiting Southern California in the near future!

UCLA/WESTWOOD

DO visit a college campus with your kids long before they begin their own application process if you can! My oldest daughter was stunned at how huge it all was. Seeing all the young, energetic, and motivated scholars walking around campus plants the seed in their minds that this in time, could be their future too.

My kids had a blast visiting UCLA! There are many visitor parking areas you can use when visiting. We ended up parking in Lot 4 and met up with my old college roommate and together our two families walked around campus. It was a gorgeous day as usual. The campus is sprawling with beautiful greenery and architecture just as how I remember it (from my days there as a physiological science major nearly thirty years ago).

Recently UCLA has been named the nation’s number one public university for the eighth year in a row so all through campus, these flags were proudly displayed. My kids were greeted by a group of very friendly students on Bruin Walk and were invited to help them pass out fliers for their club. We even ran into the Dean of UCLA’s School of Education. I quickly took a picture of her with my kids to save for their future college applications. We ended the day visiting Westwood, having lunch at In- N-Out Burger, and stopping by Diddy Riese (a very affordable and delicious local bakery).

DON’T stop by Diddy Riese on Mondays as they are closed every Monday.

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD

DO take advantage of their buy a day get a second day free deal. With ten themed worlds including the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Super Nintendo World, Jurassic World, Minion Land, and Transformers, it did not disappoint. My oldest daughter (10) is currently really into the Harry Potters series and found the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to be absolutely amazing.

DO try the Butterbeer if you visit during Butterbeer Season (March 1st – May 31st). We shared a glass on both days and it was so delicious!

DO take lots of pictures with all the characters there. Shown above is our family with Megatron. You can meet Megatron, Optimus Prime, or Bumblebee. My husband follows Megatron on Instagram and he is hilarious.

DON’T get your hopes up for the Transformers ride as it is currently closed until June 2025.

DON’T go on the motion simulator rides if you are really prone to motion sickness. My husband and oldest daughter experienced a bit of this so had to close their eyes on some rides and opt out of others. Overall, my kids did enjoy a lot of the roller coasters. My youngest (five) was able to go on most rides however was too short for the Harry Potter Forbidden Journey Ride and the Mummy Ride which require a height of 48 inches.

DISNEYLAND

DO spend two days in Disneyland even though there isn’t a buy one day get one free deal. With so much to see and do, it really is hard to get it all done in a single day.

DON’T come to Disneyland (or Disney World) dressed in costume unless there is a special event such as the Oogie Boogie Bash (Halloween event). I learned this the hard way at the gate on our first day. Once upon a time, I purchased matching Jasmine outfits for myself and for my daughter and had them tucked away in my closet. My youngest (5) has been asking me to match her daily since she discovered that she could fit in her costume. I promised her that I would wear it to our first day at Disneyland together. Fast forward to our first day, going through security… there is a rule that guests ages 14 or older can NOT wear costumes into any Disney theme parks. If you didn’t know, consider yourself now informed. Disneybounding (dressing in the colors or style of the characters without wearing a full costume) is however allowed. Fortunately we stayed only a few minutes walk away and I was able to go home and change quickly.

DO purchase the Lightning Lane Multi Pass if possible as it can get you on more rides through shorter lines.

DON’T purchase the Disney PhotoPass at Disneyland but DO purchase it at Disney World. There just weren’t enough photographers present at Disneyland compared to Disney World. As a result, when you could finally find a photographer, the lines to take pictures with them were way too long.

DO book a character meal if possible once during your visit. They are expensive and a splurge so we never do more than one each time we visit. The food is wonderful and there is always a large variety for all diets. The characters come around to each table and spend time taking pictures and signing autograph books for your kids. It is something all my kids (ages 5-12) still enjoy.

DO book some time for your princess at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. They have all sorts of packages ranging from just hair, nails, and light makeup to packages including princess dresses and photos. Keep in mind some dresses may be itchy for kids so I would recommend bringing a dress your princess is already comfortable in. This can also help to save you a lot of money as well. My girls always enjoy this special treat. It’s like a Disney spa day for them.

DO pack lots of snacks, lunch, and water for your kids to the park. Outside food is allowed at Disney parks as well as at Hollywood Studios and Legoland. Lines are long and food is expensive at Disney so this really is a money, time, and sanity saver. I use my Yeti backpack which is insulated. Most mornings while on vacation, the kids ate a simple breakfast at home before leaving (yogurt, bagels and cream cheese for example), and I would pack their lunches and snacks so we would end up only having to pay for one meal a day.

LEGOLAND

DO visit Legoland if you can. We went on a Saturday during spring break and was pleasantly surprised to find that lines for rides were short, the park was not too crowded, and the gift shops had really fair prices. I actually price checked and found some lego sets to be even more expensive on Amazon than at Legoland.

DO stay at the Legoland Hotel! They have many fun themed rooms ranging from DUPLO, NINJAGO, LEGO Friends, Pirate, and Adventure. We stayed in a pirate themed room. We had the buffet dinner and breakfast at the Bricks Family Restaurant located in the hotel and the food was excellent!

DO check out the height requirements for Legoland rides before planning your trip. My youngest is 42 inches on the dot and was thrilled she could go on every ride. There are also many large play structures and invitation to build areas for kids to explore as well.

Your family may also enjoy:

Disney Countdown, Word Search, and Journal

Harry Potter Crafts and Printables

Mario Day Coloring Pages

I create more fun printables for kids here.

Wishing you and your family happy vacation planning and safe travels!