# Does anyone own at Grand Pacific Palisades?  Are there laundry facilities?



## rickandcindy23 (Jul 13, 2009)

Is there a parking charge for the resort?  Is parking at a premium?  We exchanged into GPP for 7/25 and haven't received any information from RCI yet.  

I noticed there are no washer/dryers in the units, which is disappointing, but as long as there are some onsite, we will be fine.  

Thanks in advance.....


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## calgal (Jul 13, 2009)

There are laundry rooms on most floors, coin-operated. The majority of the parking is underground and plentiful. I believe there is a daily resort fee (maybe $9?) for exchangers that covers internet, newspaper, and parking. As an owner, I am exempt. Enjoy!


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 13, 2009)

That's what I needed!  Thanks so much for your information.  Not a bad deal for parking and internet, considering it IS Southern California.  

What is your opinion of Legoland?  Our granddaughter is not quite 2 1/2, and she cannot ride many rides because she is 33 inches tall, and that exempts her from so many of them on their website, but is it a fun place to go?


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## J&JFamily (Jul 14, 2009)

rickandcindy23 said:


> That's what I needed!  Thanks so much for your information.  Not a bad deal for parking and internet, considering it IS Southern California.
> 
> What is your opinion of Legoland?  Our granddaughter is not quite 2 1/2, and she cannot ride many rides because she is 33 inches tall, and that exempts her from so many of them on their website, but is it a fun place to go?



I am new to using TUG, what a great site!  We are owners at Grand Pacific and have frequented Legoland many times as we also live in So Cal and my wife's family lives in Southern OC - about 40 minutes from Legoland.  If your granddaughter is 2 1/2 there should be enough for her to do to make it worthwhile.  It is a very charming but small amusement park (small compared to Disney, Knotts, Six Flags, etc.).  Not enough for kids older than 10 but enough for a two- to eight-year-old.  When my son was between the ages of 3 and 6 it was his favorite park.  Let me know if you want more info on the Grand Pacific.  I can be real honest with you - decent place but doesn't compare to the "big resorts" like Westin, Marriott, etc.  But Carlsbad is so centrally located to EVERYTHING in So Cal that you don't need to spend too much time at the resort.  Please let me know if you need more info and I will share with you what I know.  Oh one more thing - beware of the underground parking.  I consider myself a decent driver as I drive over 100 miles a day to/from work and never had an accident that was my fault (I hope I didn't just jinx myself :ignore: )  Despite that, I scratched the side of my wife's minivan because the columns in the parking lot are difficult to navigate around - park in one of the middle spots if you can.


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## RichM (Jul 14, 2009)

My sister owns at GPP and just took her 32" tall 18-month-old boy to Legoland and said it was okay, but it would have been much better if he were 4" taller and could go on many more rides.  Once he's 36", they're buying passes.

We just went with our 5, 7 and 9-year-olds and they could go on everything.  It was fun although the rides seemed geared toward younger kids - probably between 36" and about 7-8 years old.   All the kids had fun in the Make & Test lab building "pinewood derby" style race cars out of LEGO and competing on their test ramp complete with digital timer.

We waited quite awhile (45 mins.) for the Egyptian laser-shooting ride and were sorely disappointed.  If you've done Buzz Lightyear at Disneyland or the Toy Story version at California Adventure, don't bother with the one at Legoland.  It's one-quarter as long and the laser guns don't work very well.

We went on 3 coasters at Legoland - the Technic test track, the Dragon and Coastersaurus.  All 3 were good.  Technic was the most fun and exciting with a super-fast, high drop.  The Dragon was pretty good, but short, with the first half being an indoor, non-coaster, viewing experience similar to Pirates of the Caribbean before the first hill or the indoor part of Splash Mountain.   Coastersaurus was good, but smaller than Technic.  It's probably better than Dragon because you go around twice.

The water park area was loads of fun for the kids.  They let them go in barefoot and if it's warm enough, they can just put their shirts back on and let their suits drip dry so you don't have to bring towels.  

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## applegirl (Jul 14, 2009)

We took our kids to Legoland last summer on our San Diego trip when they were 5 and 2.  Our daughter is tall for her age, so she sould go on many rides and the kids really liked the pirate ship water play area.  But if your grandaughter is not tall enough for most rides, I think it's too much money to spend to just see the place and play in the water play area a little.  She'll enjoy it more anyway in a year or two.  That's my humble opinion since you asked!

Have fun at a great area along Southern California's coast!

Janna


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 14, 2009)

Thanks for the Legoland information.  Seems like Evie is just too short for those rides, and it's a shame because she is such a daredevil!  We took her to the North Pole at the foot of Pike's Peak, and she rode just about everything.  She even went on some of the more "thrilling" rides that made other kids upset.  She rode with Grandpa, and he sure had fun!  She is so cute!  

Disneyland is the best place for Evie this trip, I think. 

Does Seaworld have rides?  I remembered a few from SeaWorld, but I cannot think of any for toddlers.  

By the way, another question at GPP: How do the units sleep 7 people?  Is there a small bed somewhere?  We were thinking of bringing an aerobed for Evie, so she won't have to sleep with her mommy, but we would rather not lug that thing around, if it isn't necessary.  We need to put Evie down by 8:00 at the latest, so the sleep sofa isn't an option.


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## post-it (Jul 14, 2009)

Cindy,

We live very close to Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm and went to both when our kids were little.  Knotts Camp Snoopy is great for very little kids.  There always seems to be discount tickets for entry, their website will list any discounts available.

Glenda


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## rhonda (Jul 14, 2009)

rickandcindy23 said:


> By the way, another question at GPP: How do the units sleep 7 people?  Is there a small bed somewhere?


Two in the master bedroom (king bed), three in the 2nd bedroom (one full size bed, one twin) and two on the pull-out couch.


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## HudsHut (Jul 15, 2009)

rickandcindy23 said:


> Is there a parking charge for the resort?  Is parking at a premium?  We exchanged into GPP for 7/25 and haven't received any information from RCI yet.
> 
> I noticed there are no washer/dryers in the units, which is disappointing, but as long as there are some onsite, we will be fine.
> 
> Thanks in advance.....



We were at GPP 3 years ago. (Unless it has changed,) the washer/dryers are on the 1st & 3rd floors; our room was on the 3rd floor, just 2 or 3 rooms away from the laundry, so it was convenient to the coin laundry. I wouldn't want a 2nd floor unit, and have to haul the laundry up/down the elevator/stairs to get to the washer/dryers.

The 2 bedroom is quite large, and would have had plenty of room for the washer/dryer inside the unit; it's a shame they didn't design it that way.


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## rhonda (Jul 15, 2009)

hudshut said:


> The 2 bedroom is quite large, and would have had plenty of room for the washer/dryer inside the unit; it's a shame they didn't design it that way.


No kidding.  The large closet in the living room is practically begging for a stacked washer/dryer installation.  FWIW, the owners have made the request many times at the annual meetings.


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## Bxian (Jul 23, 2009)

Does anyone know if there is still free admission to Legoland in the last hour that they are open?  We are staying at GPP in August-our 2 kids (21 and 23) are joining us-they are probably too old for the rides, but I know that they would enjoy looking at the Lego sculptures.


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## jamstew (Jul 23, 2009)

Cindy - I don't know about the SeaWorld park in CA, but the one in San Antonio has a Shamu coaster, similar to Goofy's Barnstormer at WDW but smaller and slower. That was my grandchildrens' first coaster experience, and it was good preparation for Disney. They also have a log flume ride, although shorter than Splash Mountain and with a smaller final drop. This was another good prelude for our Disney trip. I think those were the only two rides that were appropriate for the under-3 set, but the shows are the best part IMO. The little ones loved all of them.


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 23, 2009)

Thanks, Jamie!  I don't think we care too much about rides at SeaWorld.  Evie is so excited to see whales and hold starfish.  She actually has a puzzle with crabs, lobsters, starfish, whales, dolphins, sharks, etc., and she can identify all of them.  I think she will love holding the starfish best of all!  She is such a joy.  I love being a grandma.


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## ronandjoan (Apr 2, 2017)

calgal said:


> There are laundry rooms on most floors, coin-operated. The majority of the parking is underground and plentiful. I believe there is a daily resort fee (maybe $9?) for exchangers that covers internet, newspaper, and parking. As an owner, I am exempt. Enjoy!


$20/day now, plus tax , required


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## VegasBella (Apr 2, 2017)

rickandcindy23 said:


> What is your opinion of Legoland?  Our granddaughter is not quite 2 1/2, and she cannot ride many rides because she is 33 inches tall, and that exempts her from so many of them on their website, but is it a fun place to go?



We took our son to Legoland right before he turned 3 (ages under 3 are free) and we absolutely LOVED it. That's actually one of the reasons we own a Carlsbad timeshare. We bought at Carsbad Inn near the beach because we liked the location better than Palisades but we have stayed at Palisades twice and really enjoyed ourselves. We have stayed in Carlsbad other locations as well - we have been there A LOT now. And we go to Legoland every time. We just LOVE the place.

I think the people who don't like it don't like Legos and Lego humor. Do you like the movies and the video games? Do you like playing with/building Legos? If so you will like it. If you're just looking for fun rides then it might not be the best option. They have fun rides, but lots of places have fun rides.

For that age, I suggest: 
- the sandpit near the dinosaur roller coaster (Explorer Island)
- Duplo play area
- Heartland stables
- Fairyland (and all the other boat rides)
- the show with the Lego Friends



RichM said:


> We waited quite awhile (45 mins.) for the Egyptian laser-shooting ride and were sorely disappointed.  If you've done Buzz Lightyear at Disneyland or the Toy Story version at California Adventure, don't bother with the one at Legoland.  It's one-quarter as long and the laser guns don't work very well.



I actually disagree on this. My son LOVED that ride the first time and every single time after (he's 7 now). We've only done the similar Disney ride once and that was certainly enjoyable, but we really did like the Lost Kingdom Adventure.

One of the thing Legoland does better than all the other theme parks IMO is that they have areas for the kids to play while parents wait in line. So while you are waiting for Lost Kingdom, another adult and the grandkid can go play in Pharaoh's Revenge nearby. But that's only if the kiddo likes the idea of shooting a laser gun. Our kiddo loved it. 

*I recommend downloading the Legoland app *so you can see wait times and plan your day. It shows min height and age requirements so you can really know ahead of time. I also recommend going on a weekday and I recommend going first thing in the AM. 



RichM said:


> The water park area was loads of fun for the kids.  They let them go in barefoot and if it's warm enough, they can just put their shirts back on and let their suits drip dry so you don't have to bring towels.


For a kiddo your granddaughter's age I would definitely bring a towel. The little ones get cold very quickly. 
But yeah if it's a nice day then bring a swimsuit and towel and maybe add on the water park area. I will say though that our experience was that it's not really worth it until they're a bit older. There's just not much very young kids can do in the water park area. It's probably just as fun to enjoy the resort pool area (it's not a water park but they have a little splash pad next to a very nice large family pool.)


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## presley (Apr 3, 2017)

rickandcindy23 said:


> What is your opinion of Legoland? Our granddaughter is not quite 2 1/2, and she cannot ride many rides because she is 33 inches tall, and that exempts her from so many of them on their website, but is it a fun place to go?


Legoland was great for my youngest when she was very small. Granted, she was already about 4 when it opened. She liked it much more than Disneyland. It's grown by leaps and bounds since then, so maybe the newer stuff is less small child friendly.

As far as if it is a fun place to to visit sans rides, the answer is yes. My husband and I will still go there once in a while without going on any rides or just a ride or two. It's a fun place to walk around and everyone in my family (other than myself) needs to head straight over to buy the apple fries every time.


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## slomac (Apr 6, 2017)

You are right across the street from Legoland that I would take your granddaughter.  There is plenty for her to do at her age and it is just such a nice park for little kids.  My kids had passes from the time they were born until age 8.  Also if she likes sea animals you can get a park hopper and take her to sea life aquarium.  Check Costco for discount tickets and also there are always coupons for free kid admission with purchase of adult.  Pm me if you can't find one.  You will love GPP the views are amazing andCarlsbad is s great place to visit.


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## humor_monger (Apr 8, 2017)

Haha, you guys realize the OP was in 2009? The girl is 10 now. Joan, thanks for the surcharge update. The price applies to all GPR resorts.


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