San Diego to San Francisco

"Monterey has a great aquarium that the tiny girls will love."

We probably will visit Seaworld in San Diego, before heading north. Is
the Monteray aquarium worth the visit, bearing in mind that we recently
done Seaworld, or should we focus on an other feature?

In article .com,
flygis wrote:
We probably will visit Seaworld in San Diego, before heading north.
Is the Monteray aquarium worth the visit, bearing in mind that we
recently done Seaworld, or should we focus on an other feature?

They are very different. Seaworld is an amusement park, built on
spectacle. The Aquarium is fundamentally educational. Personally,
I much prefer the Aquarium, but that's a matter of taste. (My kids
love it too.)

In article .com,
flygis wrote:
Are there any holidays or other special days the 11-13 of December?

No, you should be fine. There will be many places to stay, although
note that it is sometimes (but not always) possible to get a lower
rate if you reserve in advance (at least 2 weeks in advance).

My wife mentioned Disneyland

Go to Disneyland if you and your wife want to see it, but don't do it
just for your daughters; they are a little too young. Certainly you
could find things they'd enjoy there (especially in Fantasyland), but
2-year-olds will be either bored or scared by many things there. There
is a Disneyland newsgroup where you could get more specific
recommendations, and also some good web sites.

I would like to see some wildlife in Monterey

Monterey is beautiful. You might want to stop first at Point Lobos, a
state park just south of the Monterey Pennensula. It has nice walking
trails with dramatic ocean views.

http://pt-lobos.parks.state.ca.us/

Then drive through the picturesque town of Carmel-By-The-Sea, which has
a nice Spanish Mission, a nice public beach (but chilly water), and a
picturesque downtown.

Just north of Carmel is the "17-Mile-Drive", which is a scenic road
around the coast of the Monterey Pennensula, with some of the best
ocean scenery in the state of California. Many overlooks where you can
see sea lions, otters, sea birds, etc. The official site is:

http://www.pebblebeach.com
(click the "17-Mile-Drive" link at the bottom)

At the north end of the 17-Mile-Drive is the city of Monterey, which
has the fabulous Monterey Bay Aquarium.

http://www.mbayaq.org/

There are also whale-watching cruises available in that area, although
I'm not sure if you'll whales in December; you mainly see them when
they migrate.

Be sure to save some time for San Francisco; most folks would rate at
the best city in the state for tourists.

Jim

flygis wrote:
"Whether you should book a room in advance depends on precisely when
you will be traveling. Friday and Saturday can be a problem (but
you seem to be leaving on Sunday, so that's good), and then there
are holidays."

Yes, we'll leave SD on Sunday (the time not planned yet), and want to
be in SF Tuesday afternoon. So we need motels the nights to Monday and
Tuesday.


You shouldn't have any problems on a Monday and Tuesday in the middle of
December. After arrival, you might want to look for one of the coupon
books, such as Roomsaver, that you can get outside coffee shops like
Denny's. You should be able to get good deals on lodging that way.

"flygis" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I need advice. We are going to travel to US in december. First stop
will be in Phoenix to visit an old friend from Sweden (where we're
travelling from), then by car to San Diego. This part is planned.

From San Diego to San Francisco we plan to travel by car. Three days
travelling and two overnight stay in motels will be a good pace I
think, regarding that my wife and I are travelling with our two
daughters, 23 months old. We would like to see (part of) highway 1 and
nature surrounding.

Now: What to see? Where to stay? We both prefer
nature/wildlife/culture.
My wife mentioned Disneyland in Anaheim, but I'm not sure.
I would like to see some wildlife in Monterey.

Any suggestions? How to split the trip, bearing in mind that we need
(preferably) to have checked in at the motels in the afternoon or early
evening so our daughters can have their sleep in beds?


I'm not sure about Disneyland for 23 month olds, I doubt that they will
remember it the way an older child would. Still you might enjoy the
memories of taking the girls to Disneyland.

Thanks all for the help and answers!

Another question, related to cars and kids:
The cost for car seat rental for my girls is $8 per seat per day, which
sums up to $160 for the rental period. That is rather expensive we
think, and since we need to get two extra seats for use at home, we
thought we could buy them in Phoenix and bring them home to Sweden from
SF. But, since all kids car seats used in Europe must have an E-marking
to be legal for use, it can be difficult to get these seats in USA.

Do any of you know if it is possible to get E-marked seats in the US? I
have searched the web for a baby/kid store that I can ask this, but
failed miserably. Any of you that know a store in Phoenix that could
help me with this question?

"flygis" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thanks all for the help and answers!

Another question, related to cars and kids:
The cost for car seat rental for my girls is $8 per seat per day, which
sums up to $160 for the rental period. That is rather expensive we
think, and since we need to get two extra seats for use at home, we
thought we could buy them in Phoenix and bring them home to Sweden from
SF. But, since all kids car seats used in Europe must have an E-marking
to be legal for use, it can be difficult to get these seats in USA.

Do any of you know if it is possible to get E-marked seats in the US? I
have searched the web for a baby/kid store that I can ask this, but
failed miserably. Any of you that know a store in Phoenix that could
help me with this question?


It seems HIGHLY unlikely that any seat sold in the USA will
have been verified as meeting European standards.
Worse the shape of car seats, the length of seat belts and
the position of seat belt anchor points differ between cars
so, not all child seats fit all cars which means any seats you
buy in the US may not fit your car at home and you'll
have to spend some time ensuring the seats you buy in the
US fit the rental car

Frankly I'd advise spending the $160, at least you'll
get seats that fit the rental car.

Keith



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Cathy Kearns wrote:

"TheNewsGuy(Mike)" wrote in message
...

flygis wrote:

Hi,

I need advice. We are going to travel to US in december. First stop
will be in Phoenix to visit an old friend from Sweden (where we're
travelling from), then by car to San Diego. This part is planned.

From San Diego to San Francisco we plan to travel by car. Three days
travelling and two overnight stay in motels will be a good pace I
think, regarding that my wife and I are travelling with our two
daughters, 23 months old. We would like to see (part of) highway 1 and
nature surrounding.

Now: What to see? Where to stay? We both prefer
nature/wildlife/culture.
My wife mentioned Disneyland in Anaheim, but I'm not sure.
I would like to see some wildlife in Monterey.

Any suggestions? How to split the trip, bearing in mind that we need
(preferably) to have checked in at the motels in the afternoon or early
evening so our daughters can have their sleep in beds?


Your daughters are far too young to appreciate Disneyworld and would
only interfere with your enjoyment of it - that should wait until they
are much older...


I disagree, almost two year olds are a prime demographic for DisneyLAND.
(Disneyworld is in Florida.) The park is decorated for the holidays and is
enchanting for tiny kids who believe Minnie can make snow fall on cue. (I
still find it magical, and I'm a cynical grownup.) That said, the best way
to do Disneyland with little ones is to go right when the park opens at 9 or
10am, take them back to the hotel for naps as the park is getting crowded in
the afternoon, and come back for the fireworks at night. If you are coming
from San Diego that kind of schedule might not work. There is morning rush
hours between San Diego and Anaheim, I don't know how bad it is in
December.



Well, I'll go with the original comment. I see Disney as more the 4-6
age demographic than for 2 year olds.

wrote:

flygis wrote:

"Whether you should book a room in advance depends on precisely when
you will be traveling. Friday and Saturday can be a problem (but
you seem to be leaving on Sunday, so that's good), and then there
are holidays."

Yes, we'll leave SD on Sunday (the time not planned yet), and want to
be in SF Tuesday afternoon. So we need motels the nights to Monday and
Tuesday.



You shouldn't have any problems on a Monday and Tuesday in the middle of
December. After arrival, you might want to look for one of the coupon
books, such as Roomsaver, that you can get outside coffee shops like
Denny's. You should be able to get good deals on lodging that way.


Take a look at

http://www.roomsaver.com/roomsaver/search.asp

to see what may be available.