Discounts at the Aquarium

Not far from Disneyland and Knott's is the historic town of Long Beach with its Aquarium of the Pacific. The aquarium is running its "Shark Summer Sundays" promotion, meaning that from May 31 to September 6, the facility is open until 10:00 p.m. Sunday nights. And the best part is that admission on these Sundays after 5:00 p.m. is only $11.95, which is about half-off their regular ticket. The aquarium's Shark Lagoon has more than 150 species of sharks and rays and a pool where you can reach in and touch one. (No refunds on lost fingers!).

Biking in L.A.

You normally don't think of biking in L.A., but a writer from the Toronto Globe & Mail did a great piece about his experience renting and riding through L.A. neighborhoods. He does make it sound as though Southern California isn't bike friendly, but that's not the case. There are hundreds of thousands of bikers roaming nature trails to city streets. Bike rentals are around $25 per day, the story lists a couple of rental locations in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica.

Cheap Seafood

The always tasty McCormick & Schmick's upscale seafood chain is in the midst of a promotion:
They have 10 lunch menu items for $10 or less. It applies to the restaurants in downtown L.A., Pasadena, El Segundo, Santa Ana, Burbank, Anaheim and Irvine.

Jay Leno Tix

Just found a great tip on MouseSavers.com. If you're dying to see Leno and you don't want to wait all day outside the studio in Burbank for the chance of extra seats, the Hollywood Ticket Outlet at Universal Studios has priority seating passes available free, two per person, first-come, first-served. For shows with big-time guests, this probably means you'll have to be among the first in line to get in the park. The Ticket Outlet is located near the Blues Brothers Stage.

Hotel Discount

When you book through Ares Travel, you can get 25% off your stay at the Comfort Inn near Universal Studios through June 30. Using our hypothetical four-person family, we spent $82.50/night for a two-queen room over the end-of-the-school-year weekend of June 12-14.

Mini-Cooping in L.A.

Sometimes you have to splurge, what could be better than rolling down Sunset in a new Mini-Cooper, then racing down PCH in Malibu as the sun goes down? Of course, renting an MC is going to cost a lot more than the typical red Chevy Cobalt. But California Rent a Car is offering a nice deal: You can pick up one of their Coopers for $60/day till the end of May, which is about half what other rental car places are charging. You can also get a Prius for $69 or a convertible experience with the PT Cruiser for $49.

A Different Disney Experience

If you want to get to the "real" Disney in Southern California, you may have to do a little searching. One of the nuggets of Disneyana is located in Griffith Park, where Walt's Barn was moved about 10 years ago. The barn had been located on Disney's Holmby Hills estate. It was the headquarters for the miniature railway he ran on his property and it was also a place where he could get away from business and think about plans for the future. Who knows what rides, movies and characters were thought of in this structure? The barn is free and features Disney items and pictures. It's open the third Sunday of every month.