NEWBIE hoping to get to Disneyland in November with family

[mumoftriplets]

Hi - just wanted to say "HI" to fellows Disney fans.

We are a family of 5 - hubby, myself and DD, DD & DS who are all 5 ! Yes, we are a triplet family

We are hoping to get to Disneyland in November for the kids 6th birthday - what a way to spend your birthday!

We will only be in the US for 2 weeks - not long enough, but travelling with kids, budgets, school & work, that is how it has to be.

At this stage we will leave Aus on the 1st Nov and leave US on the 15th Nov. Be at Disney from the 10th Nov to 14th Nov. We will spend the first week visiting family in San Fran and country California. And I am hoping to scam a night in Yosemite

Looking at flying Air New Zealand - from what I have seen alot of people are happy with them? We are usually Qantas people, but ANZ seem to get some good bargins.

Anyway - thought I would just say HI and I enjoy reading everyones stories and hints etc.....

Cheers

[aussie shaz]

Yay to going to Disneyland!

We went in August 2011 and my youngest son had his 8th birthday there. It was wonderful. We did the Minnie and Friends breakfast in the park which was fantastic.

He did comment before we left though 'Is there anything to do there though?'! I think he thought we were dudding him out of a birthday party! He knows now that there certainly is plenty of stuff to do there.

We go back in May and can't wait. You will have such a great time.

Where are you staying in Anaheim?

[Luisa]

Have you had a look at Virgin for flights? My travel agent fog me a great deal in Nov flying in to San Francisco and out of LA- could be a great option for you.

Sounds like a fun trip for your family! What a fantastic way for your kids to celebrate their birthday!

[Luisa]

Good grief auto correct! How did you get 'fog' from 'got'?!...

[WAMUMOF4]

What an awesome birthday present for your triplets sounds like a great trip

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome to the boards and what a great trip with the triplets.

ANZ offers a decent flight and service. It does mean that you stop and transit in Auckland; and that will be something that you may need to consider with the kids.

[Tara2004]

We got cheap flight s from Qantas. You just have to keep checking the website. I found they have great flight entertainment, and you dont have to stop over in NZ which add hours to your trip. We went on the big sucker. Its the smoothest flight I have been on. This is our second trip to LA and I wouldn't use anyone but Qantas.
( Even thought last time we went they went on strike )

We are doing both Disney world and disneyland. My girlfriend and her hubby worked there and are taking me to company D ( Staff disney store ) and they have passes to go straight to the start of all the lines at the park.

[mumoftriplets]

Not sure where we are staying - I have a couple of places to think about. I did want to stay at Hyatt Regency in Orange County as they had good size kid rooms - but they are all booked out now due to a conference ! Couldn't believe it. I was thinking HOJO's, but not sure. The Marriott in Orange County looks OK too. I would love to stay at GC - but budget!
We went to England last year and flew Qantas on there no double deckers and I was in LOVE! We were at the back of the plane and you wouldn't have known that we were, esp since I hear every noice possible . I would still like to go to them, but the main thing that I don't like now is that they don't stop in San Fran - just LA. And I HATE LAX with a passion Not too worried about the stop in Auckland - from what I can work out it will be a couple of hours.

[SimonNZ]

We went to DL over Christmas, New Year, with son 6 and daughter, 4 Flew ANZ and they were great! Had a 14 day pass and stayed at the HoJo, great place, get the room with the kids bunks in their own room. Do the Minnie breakfast, it's awesome. Also do the Bibbidy Bobbity Boutique, very special. Have an amazing time, I wish I was going back!

[jacs1234]

This will be the best birthday ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 6 is perfect for a disney birthday. If I were you I'd add an extra day or two to disney It's amazing how much there is to do there. Have you heard of the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique? The girls can get all princessed up and now there is a pirate one for the boys too and they can look like Jake from Neverland pirates or other pirates. So cute and would be a fun splurge for a birthday. Don't forget to get them happy birthday badges.

[shushh]

Welcome to the boards! What an awesome way to celebrate a 6th birthday. You are cool parents indeed!

When you have airfares x 5, at the end of the day whichever airline will get you there is doesn't really so much so long as you get there!

We've not flown ANZ to the US so can't comment but have flown all Qantas, Virgin, and Delta and they are all fine. Even United (I know it doesn't have in flight entertainment) does the job, you just have to be creative and bring your own but it can sometimes mean that you save quite a bit.

If you are keen to stay onsite, have you considered other Disney resorts such as Paradise Pier if the GC is not feasible?

Either way, happy planning! It is half the fun

[5ofus]

How exciting!!! What a fabulous way for your kids to spend their 6th birthday!!!

We're going to Disneyland in September. I have three kids too and they will be 6, 4 and 2. We're flying ANZ, I've never flown with them before but chose them this time for a number of reasons. Firstly, the price was unbelievable. Secondly, we liked the time of their flights. We fly out of Sydney at 11:30am and then out of AKL at 4:30pm. We think this will be a great time as they can spend a few hours on the big flight settling in, playing with the fantastic IFE and eating before settling down for (hopefully) a long sleep... which leads to our third reason: We're getting the SkyCouch. It may not be as useful to you since your kids will all be the size of my eldest, but we figure we can have at least two of the boys laying down on the SkyCouch for a good amount of sleep.

As an adult without kids I've flown both Qantas and United and my only advice is to avoid United. 14-odd hours with no IFE and six year old triplets?!?! No thanks!

As for hotels, we're booked in for one night at the Grand Californian (wish it was longer, but we'll take what we can afford!) and then the rest of the time (9 days) at HoJos. With 3 x six year olds, I'd suggest that you try to find somewhere really close to the entrance as they will be doing a LOT of walking and that walk back to the hotel at the end of the day, or waiting for a shuttle, can seem far, far too long. Keep in mind that the Disney hotels aren't necessarily the closest to the entrance.

Have fun planning, I guarantee that your kids will never forget their sixth birthday!

[OziJo]

How exciting! Disneyland for the triplets 6th birthday!! We stayed at the Anaheim Camelot Inn in a family Suite. It was just across the road and had two rooms with a fridge and a dining table. There was 5 of us and our girls were aged 10, 12 & 15 at the time. There was plenty of room. It's not onsite but it's close to everything. Have fun planning.

[wiigirl]

SO exciting.....and with triplets...so cute!