Our last minute trip to Los Angeles, Disneyland and Legoland and Tips we learned!

My husband and I recently each earned our Southwest Airlines Companion passes! which give us the rest of this year and all of next year to each take a companion with us on flights for free!  So excited with the prospects of the next 20 months of free flights for our kids and cheap flights for us using Southwest points or get-away fares, we decided to book our first trip with the passes!

Since it was a last minute trip over Easter weekend, the flight choices were a little limited but we found lots of non-stop options to LAX... so one week before the trip, we booked the flights! Then a few days before the trip we booked the hotel and car rental.  All very last minute!  I was lucky to find a deal with Hertz that saved over $100 compared with other competitors using the Amex Plat CDP code!  We chose a hotel close to Disneyland and then decided we could uber it to the park and back for less $$ than Disneyland parking would charge for the day and have a lot less hassle!

Then the search was on for discounted tickets to Disneyland and Legoland so I scoured the web and read many blogs for tips and tricks.  We ended up getting the 2 day Disneyland 1 park per day tickets since every extra day you add is at a deep discount!  Even though we flew in on Friday at 2pm we got to the park at 4pm and stayed until midnight and got to enjoy the parades, fireworks show and most of the rides seemed to have no lines after 8pm! 

Undercover Tourist also has lots of deals and discounts, and currently have an American Express rebate offer!

I learned from Mousesavers that AAA members can get a 10% discount on Legoland tickets at the local AAA in California, or 5% at the gate!

On a side note, we probably should've done a bit more research and gotten the Merlin passes instead which would allow us access to any Legoland or Sea Life Aquarium for a whole year!

Membership Special - Limited Time Offer

FREE One Night Stay at the LEGOLAND Hotel at LEGOLAND California Resort with purchase of Four (4) Merlin Annual Pass Premium, now through May 1, 2017. Not available on monthly pay. Offer cannot be combined with any other offers or promotions. Valid only on Premium Merlin Annual Passes purchased at LEGOLAND California Resort. Blackout dates and restrictions apply.

Merlin Annual Pass Premium Benefits include:

• 1-year of admission* to LEGOLAND California, SEA LIFE Aquarium, LEGOLAND Water Park and 30+ Merlin North America Attractions.
• FREE regular parking
• Dining and retail discounts
• 1 FREE 1-Day Ticket to LEGOLAND California
• And more!

* Includes unlimited access to LEGOLAND Water Park and includes admission to Brick-or-Treat Party Nights.