Plan It Time

I wanted to make one last Preparation post before i start making my reviews for day trips (which i promise will be today).  I made a Plan It callendar of sorts for family trips. It was simple and quick. I think a plan-a-gram like this will help give you the inspiration to go on trips alone or with friends or family. Sometimes saying it isn't enough. If you write it down, it will have a better chance of happening.

So my planner looks like this

Summer Family Activity Plans

Activity              when          rating           comments

sequoias	april 4 2012	5/5	BREATH TAKING!!! Must go back to spend the night. try the fishing spots too.
Paso Robles	may 1 2012	3/5	didn't live up to the hype but it was beautiful and peaceful. just not many activities.
Forest Falls	August 20 2012	3/5	Neat waterfalls, clean streams, next to houses, too many people during summer. try when school goes back.

So you see, it is simple and quick to make a list like this. I will post a blank one below so you might be able to cut and paste. But, plan a trip: once a week, once every other weekend, once a month. Make it happen! These are moments you and your family or friends will cherish.

One side note: In the coming months, a sister blog to my So Cal road trips will begin. It is going to be hosted by my best friend and travel companion. I will post links to the blog when it starts and may even cowrite some of the activities (as she does for mine). Subscribe to my blog so you don't miss out.

Now the blank Planagram.

Summer Family Activity Plans

Activity           when      rating           comments

Quick list of free or cheap places in So Cal

1. The beach -- any of them

2. The mountains -- any of them will do. Los Angeles Forest is closest to ONT

3. Attraction type cities:

• Solvang
• San Luis Obisbo downtown
• San Diego Balboa Island
• huntington beach pier
• newport beach pier
• santa barbara downtown
• julian, ca
• Sonoma, AZ
• Temecula's Old town
• Morro Bay
• Monte Ray
• Carmel 
• Coronado Island
• Pasadena Downtown
• Santa Monica
• Redondo Beach
• Manhattan Beach
• Pacific Pallicades
• Pheonix, AZ

4. City and Regional Parks (check out county webpages)

5. Libraries in another city

6. State or National Parks, forests, or beaches

7. Wineries

8. factory tours

9. Museums (free on some days but parking might cost $)

10. Famous roads near by ( Route 66, The LA marathon Route, the Olympic Flame Route, etc)

11. Observatories, Planetariums

12. Open Space Preserves

13. Dog Parks (these are always fenced in and your kid can be exposed to their 4 legged best friends)

14. Beach clean ups, lake clean ups, city graffiti clean ups, etc

15. City parks with splash pads (Prado park has one).

16. Downtown Disney (pay for parking only)

17. Universal Citywalk (pay for parking only)

18. Movie Studio tours

19. Radio Station tours

My intro to the one-tank blog, things to know

Over the last few months i have been scouring the Internet, maps, and library books for day trips in the Southern California area. I have been disappointed by Internet searches and their desire to make me spend $100+ a person persay trip. I have seen that anything that is deemed free via Internet has horrible yelp reviews. Well, i dont wat to do something that yelpers dont like, do i? Maybe, maybe not? The library had given me many ideas and i have become the library's best customer for  the last six months (For you Generation Next-ers out there, the library is his magical place that used to be in EVERY school and different neiborhoods in EVERY city that loans a patron free books for a few weeks at a time!) (for those same Generation Next-ers out there books are like very long Internet articles printed onto paper and bonded together with or without hand drawn pictures or photographs). Finally good old fashioned paper maps via AAA have given me new perspective about what is reachable in a day from my neighborhood.

I want this space to become a resource for all families of all forms to use to find something to do for little or no money in the Southern California area. All of these trips can be done on one full gas tank or darn close to it. Ill tell you what you'll need for the trip, how much money you'll need, how much time you can expect to spend there, and if it is worthwhile for a family. I MUST DISCLOSE RIGHT NOW: I believe that a hold should experience everything in public and should learn how to behave in places that kids may find boring. So all of the places in this blog are normal places where adults can go with other adults or alone. I will tell you if my kid liked it. And I will tell you if it was kid friendly (meaning he loved it and i didnt). I will tell you if it was family friendly (you are stuck with other adults wih annoying kids). Best of all i will tell you if it is with it and if you should do it or skip it.

For all intents and purposes, i am starting my day trip miles at Ontario International Airport because it is the best pinnacle location in my area.

I am excited to share our trips with everyone, and The Kid is excited about going on trips with us.