I cobbled together a nine-day break, with six days devoted to driving down to Los Angeles — the agenda: Disneyland, whale watching at Newport Beach, The Getty, and Griffith Observatory. We drove the whole way in a Tesla with FSD, heading south on I-5 and 101, stopping at Superchargers along the route. The pace was deliberately relaxed, with buffer time built into every day. Total spend: approximately $2,400 for two people.
Day 1: Bay Area → Anaheim
Day one was pure driving. We left Santa Clara and Supercharged at Firebaugh, Lost Hills, and Lebec — about 6.5 hours behind the wheel, or roughly 8 hours total including charging and rest stops. We arrived in Anaheim before evening.
If you’re planning an EV road trip to LA, I’d recommend checking Supercharger wait times along your route in advance — we hit a queue at Lebec that added unexpected time.
Day 2: Whale Watching at Newport Beach
We drove from Anaheim to Newport Beach for a noon whale watching tour. I bought tickets in advance on Groupon at half price; the 9 AM departure is even cheaper if you’re flexible. We spent the afternoon back at the hotel resting and getting supplies ready for Disneyland.
Day 3–4: Two Days at Disneyland (Disneyland Park + Disney California Adventure)
We split the two parks across two days. A few tips that genuinely helped:
- Lightning Lane single-ride passes (not the multi-pass) can only be purchased after you enter the park. Buy them the moment you walk in — popular rides fill up fast and you’ll end up with late-evening slots if you wait.
- Check wait times for the longest queues first (Indiana Jones is a good starting point). If it’s under 30 minutes, just queue up. Otherwise, prioritize getting a Lightning Lane reservation.
- Star Wars rides don’t accept Lightning Lane — just join the regular queue when wait times look short.
- Classic rides — Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan’s Flight, Alice in Wonderland — also don’t take Lightning Lane, but lines tend to be more manageable. Save these for mid-day.
- Avoid the 12–1 PM lunch rush, or order ahead in the app and pick up at a set time.
- Peter Pan and Snow White are worth saving for the evening — many families leave for the fireworks show, and wait times drop noticeably.
Hotel recommendation: Wyndham near the park. Three-star, clean, free parking, reasonable rates, walkable to the Disneyland entrance, and easy access to Newport Beach for day trips. We stayed three nights.
Day 5: The Getty, Hollywood & Griffith Observatory
After checking out, we headed to The Getty first. Tickets require advance booking on their website, and their app includes an audio guide that makes the visit noticeably better — plan for a full morning. In the afternoon we passed through Hollywood, and we saved the evening for Griffith Observatory. No reservation needed; just walk up and take in the city lights.
Parking tip: Park at the Greek Theater lot at the base of the hill (free), then take the shuttle or walk up — parking at the top is limited and pricey.
We stayed the night in Santa Clarita — significantly cheaper than West LA and perfectly positioned for the drive home the next day.
Day 6: Back to the Bay Area
No sightseeing on the last day. We Supercharged at Lost Hills and Firebaugh on the way back, stopped for a simple lunch, and were home before evening.
Takeaways
The biggest thing I took away: EV road trips to LA are completely doable. Plan your Supercharger stops in advance and the logistics are actually less stressful than you might expect. FSD handled freeway driving almost entirely hands-free, and performed well enough in LA city traffic too — overall, it was a comfortable drive.
If you’re putting together a Disneyland + beach + museum + city views trip, this itinerary is worth borrowing directly. One main stop per day, plenty of buffer time, and a much more enjoyable experience than trying to squeeze everything in.