Non-Disneyland Things To Do in Anaheim

Obviously, the thing to do if you've never been to Anaheim is to visit Disneyland. Anaheim is also next door to Buena Park, which is home to Knott's Berry Farm. Anaheim is also home to Nonosina's Polynesian Music and Dance Production. The dancers at Nonosina were recently featured in the TV show Mr. Personality. They also compete in various Tahitian dance competitions and usually place first, so they're very famous in the Polynesian community.

Quick Tips:

Anaheim is inland and far from ocean breezes. The best time to visit is in the fall or spring. Fall is usually better since Southern California gets rain primarily in late winter or early spring. Spring is a bit unpredictable, so my pick to visit S. California is October or November.

Best Way To Get Around:

Car is the best way. Anaheim is surrounded by four freeways: the 5, the 91, the 57, and the 22. In general, the other freeways are better than the 5, but it all depends on traffic. The 91 freeway has a carpool lane, but currently there is construction on the carpool lane, so it's not much help right now.

I had a hard time figuring out how to enter the hotel. I parked near the coffee shop and couldn't find an entrance. I went inside the coffee shop to ask and was told to go through the coffee shop. Apparently, I parked at the north entrance and the registration desk is at the south entrance.

Parking overnight is $8. You get a paper parking pass that allows entry through the parking gate. There are several automatic doors to enter the hotel from the parking lot. Elevators are at both ends of the building.

I was in room 827, which is on the 8th floor and faces Disneyland. I specifically asked for a room that faces Disneyland so that I could watch the firework display from my balcony. It was a breathtaking sight. Perfect view from my balcony.

The amenities were fine: two kinds of hotel soaps, shower cap, shampoo, lotion, breath freshener, hair dryer, and cable TV. There was no refrigerator in the room. The pool is supposedly Olympic sized, heated, and open from 7am-10pm. Pool towels are provided. Wireless internet is available, but I did not try it out. There is a fitness center open from 6am-10pm on the 12th floor, but I didn't try it out. There is a bar and restaurant in the hotel. Room service prices are pretty good, but I didn't try it. They are basically the same as the coffee shop, except the food is brought to your room with an automatic 18% gratuity added to your bill. You can also order a breakfast in bed by filling out a breakfast order form and hanging it from your doorknob before a 2am deadline. I guess someone goes from floor to floor to check for breakfast orders.

I ate in the coffee shop twice. The first time I ordered chicken quesadillas. It was really good. They weren't authentic Mexican quesadillas, but they were a very good Californian version and probably healthier. The second time I ordered the Belgian waffles with strawberries. The waffles were one of the best I have ever tasted. Serving portions were big, so I felt that I got the best bang for my buck at the coffee shop. The food tastes very good, too!

This is a great hotel to stay at, considering that you can book it for about $50 a night through the internet. I have stayed at motels that cost more than this hotel. This is where I would choose to stay in Anaheim if I couldn't book a timeshare week.

Best Things Nearby:
Disneyland, California Adventure, Knott's Berry Farm, Movieland Wax Museum, Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament, Wild Bill's Wild West Dinner Extravaganza, Ripley's Believe it or Not! Museum, and a variety of restaurants

Best Things About the Resort:
A shuttle goes to Disneyland, there is a rec room where there are resort activities, a pool, and covered parking.

Resort Experience:
I decided to try out the Dolphin's Cove Resort. I was a little intimidated by reviews that I read online about a problem with ants. My stay was in August, a very hot time of the year for Southern California. I was afraid that I would see ants, but I didn't see even one. I did smell insecticide, but I'm guessing that other rooms had problems and were sprayed down. Luckily, it wasn't my room.

The resort is not walking distance from Disneyland, but it's a short driving distance. It's a good place to stay at for the Anaheim attractions. It's convenient, and there is a Vons close by where we bought our groceries. The neighborhood appeared to be fairly safe, a middle-class neighborhood.

Our 1-bedroom unit was nice. There was a sofabed, dining table with settings for four, a full-sized refrigerator, dishwasher, and coffeemaker with a starter set of coffee and hot chocolate. There was a king-sized bed in the bedroom. The bathroom was carpeted with two divisions. When you walk from the living room, you first go into the sink/vanity area with a mirrored closet, then into the room that contains the toilet and bathtub/shower. There was a courtesy supply of shampoo and lotion. Our unit was on the bottom floor with a patio table. Make sure you close the patio door after using it. Anyone can walk up to the patio from the walkways.

Check in and check out was fairly simple. The electronic gate for the driveway was a little tempermental, but all in all, we enjoyed our stay here. We liked the convenience.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Very Good
• Amenities: Very Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Very Good

Matiki Island Barbeque is owned by Mel and Riki Liufau. They cook Polynesian favorites, like kalua pig, lau lau, macaroni salad, chicken teriyaki, and kalbi. I have had the kalbi on two separate occasions. It was pretty good on my first try. On the second try, it was too salty without much garlic. (I'm very picky since I'm Korean. I know my kalbi!) I'm not sure who made the kalbi the second time, but it wasn't as good as the first time. I tried the lau lau once, but it was a bit salty, otherwise very good. (Since taste is subjective, it leads me to think that the cook is more liberal with the salt than I tend to be.)

Sundays they have started serving Samoan food from 11am-4pm. I have not tried their Samoan selection since I am usually in Anaheim on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Riki Liufau is also the instructor for Nonosina Polynesian Productions. She and her son Mevina teach Tahitian dance, winning awards and touring around the country as well as Tahiti. If you ever get a chance to see one of their shows, it's a must see. They usually offer a dinner buffet with their shows, catered by Matiki Island Barbeque.

OK, so I did in fact go to Disneyland. My friend wanted to go to the Blue Bayou because he had never eaten there. Neither had I, so we went for lunch. It's better to make reservations, but we waited only about 10-15 minutes for a table for two. When we were seated, it was actually a table for four not too far from the water under the bayou night sky.

I ordered a mint julep. It was non-alcoholic. It tasted like a mojito without the rum. My friend tried to order a glass of wine, but alcohol is not served here. He had a virgin mint julep instead. I ordered a pork loin that was marinated in jerk sauce and came with caramelized apples. My friend ordered the jambalaya dish. I tasted his dish, and it was OK, your typical rice pilaf dish. Not special, but just OK. My dish was fine, but I had a Caribbean jerk pizza the night before, so I don't think I should have ordered another jerk dish. I think I should have gone with the famous Monte Cristo sandwich instead. Oh, well...

We didn't have room for dessert. We were stuffed. The damage came out to about $45 for lunch for two people. The restaurant is inside the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, so the atmosphere was very romantic. I wish we were closer to the water, but I didn't want to wait longer for a table to open up. It would have been fun to watch the people ride by. Next time I happen to go to Disneyland, I’ll make reservations for a table by the water.

Nonosina is an award-winning Tahitian dance troupe. They usually place first in the many competitions that they enter: San Jose Tahiti Fête, Tahiti Nui International, Heiva I Reno, etc. Riki Liufau and her son Mevina are the instructors. They are known for their flashy big style of Tahitian dance.

They have fundraisers twice a year, once in the summer (7pm, August 10, 2003 this year) and again around Christmas. This is when the beginning classes can usually perform. "Beginners" at Nonosina are much more advanced than beginners elsewhere. Since the whole troupe is at such a high competitive level, their beginning level is considered advanced at other Tahitian troupes.

One warning, one you have seen Nonosina perform, you might not be able to go back and watch other Tahitian troupes perform. It's just not the same after seeing such a great performance. You'll want to see only the award-winning troupes perform after this. Luckily, there are several in the California area . . .

If you're going to be in Anaheim, you might as well drive to The Block at Orange. The Block is an open-air promenade with stores like Hilo Hattie's, Borders, Saks Fifth Avenue Outlet, Old Navy, Virgin Megastore, Frederick's of Hollywood, and Skechers. There is an AMC movie theater, a Krispy Kreme store, Alcatraz Brewing Company, and a Wolfgang Puck Café.

I usually go to Hilo Hattie's to get any Hawaiian merchandise. This is the only one in California. Wolfgang Puck Café is also very good. Alcatraz Brewing Company is a good place to sip a beer or two. The people who shop at the Block tend to be suburbanites who live in the Orange County area. The atmosphere is very similar to Universal City Walk, but it's usually less crowded at the Block. Occasionally, it does get crowded when the theme park crowd from Disneyland spills over, but it doesn't happen as often as it does at City Walk.