California Family Vacation - My Family Travels
Palm trees of Beveraly Hills
My California road trip sign
Famous HollywoodBoulevard
Mom poses with Elvis and Marilyn Monroe
Christina Aguilera takes a break

After spending a week visiting our relatives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, my family and I boarded a plane to California before going back to our home state of Alabama. Sight-seeing California was a much anticipated experience for all of us, and we were very eager to finally arrive. After landing on the LAX runway, we grabbed our bags and were taken to our rental car, a Dodge Charger. Immediately we drove to San Luis Obispo where we stayed the night at the world famous Madonna Inn.

Following a wonderful night’s stay in the charming two-story “Sky Loft” room in the Madonna, we drove to San Simeon which is home of the beautiful Hearst Castle. This magnificent estate, originally owned by William Hearst, contains several buildings, ranging from 2,600 to 60,000 square feet each. Each building contains several rooms with antique pieces of brilliantly created artwork and upholstery, and the entire estate itself is clearly designed for entertainment. Two swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor, sit on this extravagant piece of property. The outdoor pool is constructed with pillars, statues, and fountains, and the indoor pool draws every tourist’s attention to its partially golden bottom. My family and I were fortunate to take a two hour tour of this magnificent estate, and we left in complete awe of the splendid Hearst Castle.

We eventually drove to Santa Monica, ate a delicious dinner, and went to a hotel for a good night’s rest in order to be prepared for the exciting day that would follow in Los Angeles.

Once awakened by our anxiousness, we set out for our day in the middle of Los Angeles. Upon entering the heart and soul of the big California city, we found ourselves driving along the famous Hollywood Boulevard. After finding a decently priced parking garage, we began our exploration and were amazed by what we found. The boulevard sidewalks were busy with locals quickly walking by and tourists taking time to point out each significant mark by taking multiple pictures. My family and I first noticed the beautiful Chinese Theater and later were surrounded by people dressed as celebrities. While my mother spent a few minutes getting her picture taken with “Marilyn Monroe” and “Elvis”, I glanced towards my feet, finding myself standing on someone’s name.

I had discovered the Sidewalk of the Stars with its hundreds of stars lining the sidewalks on both sides of the boulevard. We quickly began snapping pictures of our favorite actors and singers. Finishing our little self-guided tour of the sidewalk, we hopped on a tour bus which took us to the most popular landmarks in the Los Angeles area. The Beverly Hill’s sign, several famous buildings and statues, Paramount Pictures, and a distant view of the hillside Hollywood sign were included in the informative and incredibly interesting tour.

Our next step involved visiting the Guinness and Celebrity Wax museums both of which provided amazement and lots of laughs. Concluding our day with shopping and eating, we were very fortunate to see an actual celebrity in person- Christina Aguilera. Christina was filming part of a video on the side of Hollywood Boulevard, and my family and I were given the chance to hear her sing and take several pictures from the balcony.

On the plane ride back to our home in Alabama, my family and I were disappointed to leave such a remarkable city. However, we were able to bring back pictures, souvenirs, and most importantly, memories of our once in a lifetime family trip.

Dear Reader: This page may contain affiliate links which may earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. Our independent journalism is not influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative unless it is clearly marked as sponsored content. As travel products change, please be sure to reconfirm all details and stay up to date with current events to ensure a safe and successful trip.

1 Reply to “California Family Vacation”

  • Hai

    I have been absent for some time, but now I remember why I used to love this blog. Thanks , I will try and check back more often. How frequently you update your site?

  • www

    I could not resist commenting. Very well written!

  • Google UltraFan :)

    Hi webmaster, commenters and everybody else !!! The blog was absolutely fantastic!

    Lots of great information and inspiration, both of which we all need!b Keep em coming you all do such a great job at such Concepts
    cant tell you how much I, for one appreciate all you do!

  • PARASKEVI

    Hello!
    I am student of the department of tourism at the University of Piraeus in Greece and i am excited that we are conducting a survey about Family Travel.
    I would be really happy if you completed this quick survey:
    https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1s1OjLYV6AtLcEgkaa6UsqtxjVCnLQ1NMjTGANmOqyAw/edit
    Thank you very much!

  • bookanyboat

    Best Family Summer Vacations. Bookanyboat helps you search for boat rentals, yacht charters and sightseeing cruises in 3 exciting destinations, including: Dubai, Ibiza and Miami. bookanyboat.com

  • international

    Exceptional post but I was wondering if you could write
    a litte more on this topic? I’d be very thankful if you could elaborate a little bit more.
    Bless you!

  • bon

    Thanks for finally writing about > How To Chhoose a Dude Ranch When Therre Are
    So Manny Chhoices – My Family Travels

  • HIRA

    Summer is the best time to visit Alaska because the days are longer as well as the temperature were warmer.
    As ones luxury cruise ship glides past creaking blue-white glacier and lush woodland, rest on you private veranda.
    The Last Frontier is a nature lover’s dream, with places like Production of essential which you can see big cats fishing trout or Queenstown with which you can witness humpback whales breaching on a whale-watching cruise.
    In Icy Strait Point, soar over the trees on the a zipline, and learn about the history of the Gold Rush in Skagway.

  • zor

    Very superb information can be found on web site.

  • canadian

    Fantastic site. Lots of useful information here.
    I am sending it to some buddies ans additionally sharing.

  • zor

    Lovely just what I was looking for.Thanks to the author for taking his time on this one.

  • Beauty

    Awsome info and straight to the point. I am not sure if this is really the best place to ask but do you guys have any ideea where to get some professional writers? Thanks in advance 🙂

  • slo

    Hey very interesting blog!

  • Is There A Swimming Race In Middle School?

    Ahaa, its fastidious conversation regarding this post at this place at this web
    site, I have read all that, so now me also commenting here.

  • slo

    I think that what you published was very logical. However,
    what about this? what if you typed a catchier post title?
    I ain’t suggesting your content is not good, but suppose you
    added something that grabbed people’s attention? I mean How To Choose a
    Dude Ranch When There Are So Many Choices – My Family Travels is
    kinda plain. You ought to look at Yahoo’s home
    page and see how they create news headlines to grab viewers
    interested. You might add a video or a related pic or two to get readers interested about what you’ve written. Just my opinion, it could bring your blog a little
    bit more interesting.

  • zor

    Everything is very open and very clear explanation of issues. was truly information. Your website is very useful. Thanks for sharing.

  • gra

    It’s actually a cool and useful piece of info. I am glad that you shared this useful info with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.

  • bp77

    Wow, this post is good, my sister is analyzing these things,
    so I am going to convey her.

  • zor

    You have brought up a very good points, regards for the post.

  • gra

    I truly appreciate this post. I have been looking everywhere for this! Thank goodness I found it on Bing. You have made my day! Thanks again!

  • Donte

    Howdy! Someone in my Myspace group shared this website with us so I came
    to look it over. I’m definitely loving the information. I’m bookmarking and will be tweeting this to my followers!
    Wonderful blog and terrific design and style.

  • Claribel Dallison

    After going over a few of the blog posts on your web page, I seriously like your technique of writing a blog. I saved as a favorite it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back soon. Please check out my web site as well and let me know what you think.

  • Emanuel Hallef

    Your site is very good, I liked the information. Grateful. 10070690

  • houston

    I’m no longer sure where you’re getting your info, however good topic.

    I must spend a while finding out much more or understanding more. Thanks for wonderful info I was looking for this information for my mission.

  • Graham Denogean

    Have you ever thought about creating an e-book or guest authoring on other websites? I have a blog centered on the same subjects you discuss and would really like to have you share some stories/information. I know my readers would value your work. If you’re even remotely interested, feel free to send me an e-mail.

  • site

    Hello there! I could have sworn I’ve been to this site before but after browsing through some of the post I realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m definitely delighted I found it and I’ll be book-marking and checking back often!

  • emily cooper

    Do you have at least some idea how to cancel Hawaiian airlines flight? Booked tickets can be dropped online by Visiting Hawaiian Airlines’ actual webpage. explorers don’t have even the remotest clue how to drop the trip on the web, they can contact flight chiefs at Hawaiian Airlines drop ticket

  • zor

    Hi there! I just wish to give a huge thumbs up for the great information you will have here on this post. I will be coming back to your weblog for more soon.

  • Its excellent as your other posts : D, regards for posting.

  • Finch

    Great Post ! I have read your other posts which are really informative for any family traveler. Thanks for sharing such a beautiful informative information.

  • freeindexer

    Exactly what I was searching for, thank you for posting.

  • Hairstyles

    very nice publish, i certainly love this website, keep on it

  • Susan McCloud

    Many years ago, I did study Spanish in Barcelona, with a school called CIEE. I loved every minute of my month there, stayed with an older woman who ran a boarding house for students. She made us all speak Spanish at every meal. I remember eating a lot of patates fritas at her house, but I did learn a lot of Spanish (a little Catalan too) and I fell in love with Barcelona.

  • hotshot bald cop

    I was just telling my friend about that.

Comment on this article

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.