When to leave the zoo to miss traffic?

[drichey25]

We will be at the zoo on Tuesday May 18th. After visiting the zoo we would like to drive over to la jolla beach and see the seals and have a picnic. After this we will be heading up to Anahiem. Is this schedule doable? And when should we leave the area to avoid the heavest traffic?

Thanks

Denise

 

[Monkey Monkey]

I'm curious to see what others have to say, but IMO you're better off leaving the zoo by around 2:30, and then waiting until after dinner to head up to Anaheim. Anytime between 3 and 6:30 is going to be pretty congested.

 

[HydroGuy]

The drive to La Jolla should not be too bad for traffic. The worst traffic is north of SD on the way to Anaheim. If it was me I would leave for Anaheim after 7PM. At the earliest. If you have a chance to eat dinner in La Jolla and go after dinner it will be best IMO.

 

[drichey25]

Could we skip the beach and leave around 3:00pm to miss traffic? In other words when does traffic start to get bad?

 

[amamax2]

Traffic starts building around 3 and then just keeps growing till about 7 or later for the areas you are talking about.

How long do you plan to be at the zoo? It opens at 9 a.m. and if you hope to be at the beach and eating a picnic (lunch?), you'd only get a couple of hours there. It is a huge zoo and worth spending more time than that, IMO.

As pps have said, go to the Zoo, leave at 2:30 p.m., head to La Jolla, spend a few hours there, have a picnic dinner or eat dinner somewhere in La Jolla, then head to Anaheim around 7 p.m.

Anaheim is not bad distance-wise from La Jolla, but why have it take 2 - 3 times as long because of bumper-to-bumper traffic when you can be enjoying a lovely time at the beach or dinner and then zip up without aggravation later?

 

[drichey25]

Thanks for all the great information. This will help things go a little smother and with three kids this is always a plus.
Denise

 

[haley's mom]

No to hijack the thread, but what all is there to do in La Jolla? We are going to be taking a day trip to SDZoo and will probably need to kill some time before batteling traffic.

Is there anywhere else besides La Jolla? I will be traveling with DS11 and DD7.

TIA

 

[Monkey Monkey]

No to hijack the thread, but what all is there to do in La Jolla? We are going to be taking a day trip to SDZoo and will probably need to kill some time before batteling traffic.

Is there anywhere else besides La Jolla? I will be traveling with DS11 and DD7.

TIA

La Jolla has beautiful beaches and great shopping. There is also the Birch Aquarium.

http://aquarium.ucsd.edu/

http://www.lajolla.com/visitorinfo.htm

The UTC mall is a very nice, outdoor shopping center with a great food court (and an ice rink!).

 

[Monkey Monkey]

No to hijack the thread, but what all is there to do in La Jolla? We are going to be taking a day trip to SDZoo and will probably need to kill some time before batteling traffic.

Is there anywhere else besides La Jolla? I will be traveling with DS11 and DD7.

TIA

Actually, to kill time, you can just stay at Balboa Park for a few hours. The zoo is part of Balboa Park, and there are many museums and gardens there. It's really a beautiful place.

www.balboapark.org

 

[HydroGuy]

No to hijack the thread, but what all is there to do in La Jolla? We are going to be taking a day trip to SDZoo and will probably need to kill some time before batteling traffic.

Is there anywhere else besides La Jolla? I will be traveling with DS11 and DD7.

TIA

Things to do in La Jolla...

1. Walk on the rocky outcroppings and look for crabs and mini-tidepools

2. Enjoy he waves crashing on the rocks

3. Go down the tunnel to one of the sea caves

4. Walk the sandy beach or boardwalk on La Jolla Shores

5. Shop in La Jolla - it is a fun little kind of 60's throw-back town with lots of little creative stores

6. Play around in La Jolla Cove (a semi-secluded beach surrounded by rock)

7. Have a picnic in the grassy park. Play frisbee.