Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post - Southern California for a week in October

getbak · 02-03-2014, 01:38 PM

I have stayed at that Hilton in Anaheim. It's one of the older hotels in the area and it's also one of the biggest in the area, which has its good and bad points. I believe parking also cost extra, so take that into account when comparing rates because most of the hotels don't charge for parking.

For weeknights in October, you should be able to get a good rate at either the Disneyland or Paradise Pier hotels, which are Disney owned. The Grand Californian is really nice, but also really expensive. You might have to wait until the end of summer before they discount the rates for October.

For the shopping day, I would not want to drive all the way to the other side of LA to go to an outlet mall. Have you checked out the one in Carlsbad? http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=66

I don't know which specific stores you're looking for, but it seems like all Premium Outlet locations are generally the same. If you're going from Anaheim, this location should be a lot quicker to get to and back.

For Disneyland, if you're going mid-week in October, you shouldn't have any problem being able to see everything you want. Use Fastpass on the rides that have it (FYI, you don't have to return exactly during the return window, they just care if the start time has passed, so don't rush through the park thinking you have to get there before it expires).

I did the WB Tour. It's really good, and you see a lot more behind the scenes stuff than you do at Universal. You travel in a small group and get to walk around the back stages and sets.

I've done two tv tapings. I went to an episode of Two and a Half Men at the WB lot. It was interesting to see what goes into to shooting a sitcom. Charlie Sheen was still married to Denise Richards at the time, so she was on the set, and still hot. There aren't that many shows that still shoot in front of an audience any more, so the choices are limited. I think most of them shoot on Friday nights.

I also went to a taping of the Jimmy Kimmel show. He's right on Hollywood Blvd in a little old theatre. For that one, I was down there on business, so I was alone and they had one seat right in the front row they needed to fill, so I had the perfect view (and my fat head got on national tv). Too bad there were no hot women on that night, just Fred Willard and Seth MacFarlane, but Jimmy was still dating Sarah Silverman at the time, so she was there and she's cute.

I don't know how Ellen does her tickets, but with both of those shows, you had to show up 2 or 3 hours before the taping was scheduled to start just to stand in line. The night I went to Kimmel, the Batman Begins premiere was taking place at the Chinese Theatre across the street, so I got to see Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and others all arriving on the red carpet. So, that was at least something to look at while waiting.

For the Half Man taping, it was at the WB lot. You have to park in an office building a mile away; you check in there and they put you on a bus to the studio; then, you go through security at the studio, then stand around waiting to be let in to the sound stage.

It's interesting to see everything behind the scenes, but it can take out a big chunk of your day.

02-03-2014, 01:38 PM	#35
getbak Franchise Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Calgary, AB Exp:	I have stayed at that Hilton in Anaheim. It's one of the older hotels in the area and it's also one of the biggest in the area, which has its good and bad points. I believe parking also cost extra, so take that into account when comparing rates because most of the hotels don't charge for parking. For weeknights in October, you should be able to get a good rate at either the Disneyland or Paradise Pier hotels, which are Disney owned. The Grand Californian is really nice, but also really expensive. You might have to wait until the end of summer before they discount the rates for October. For the shopping day, I would not want to drive all the way to the other side of LA to go to an outlet mall. Have you checked out the one in Carlsbad? http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=66 I don't know which specific stores you're looking for, but it seems like all Premium Outlet locations are generally the same. If you're going from Anaheim, this location should be a lot quicker to get to and back. For Disneyland, if you're going mid-week in October, you shouldn't have any problem being able to see everything you want. Use Fastpass on the rides that have it (FYI, you don't have to return exactly during the return window, they just care if the start time has passed, so don't rush through the park thinking you have to get there before it expires). I did the WB Tour. It's really good, and you see a lot more behind the scenes stuff than you do at Universal. You travel in a small group and get to walk around the back stages and sets. I've done two tv tapings. I went to an episode of Two and a Half Men at the WB lot. It was interesting to see what goes into to shooting a sitcom. Charlie Sheen was still married to Denise Richards at the time, so she was on the set, and still hot. There aren't that many shows that still shoot in front of an audience any more, so the choices are limited. I think most of them shoot on Friday nights. I also went to a taping of the Jimmy Kimmel show. He's right on Hollywood Blvd in a little old theatre. For that one, I was down there on business, so I was alone and they had one seat right in the front row they needed to fill, so I had the perfect view (and my fat head got on national tv). Too bad there were no hot women on that night, just Fred Willard and Seth MacFarlane, but Jimmy was still dating Sarah Silverman at the time, so she was there and she's cute. I don't know how Ellen does her tickets, but with both of those shows, you had to show up 2 or 3 hours before the taping was scheduled to start just to stand in line. The night I went to Kimmel, the Batman Begins premiere was taking place at the Chinese Theatre across the street, so I got to see Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and others all arriving on the red carpet. So, that was at least something to look at while waiting. For the Half Man taping, it was at the WB lot. You have to park in an office building a mile away; you check in there and they put you on a bus to the studio; then, you go through security at the studio, then stand around waiting to be let in to the sound stage. It's interesting to see everything behind the scenes, but it can take out a big chunk of your day. __________________ Turn up the good, turn down the suck!