Last week we visited the Disneyland Resort in LA for the Cars Land opening. I
attended as a member of the media, but since Disney offered park passes for the family and hotel room would be covered anyway, we decided to make it a family trip. We're already splurging on airline tickets to the UK and the Philippines this year, so for our Disney trip we decided to go the budget route and drive down instead.
Many people choose to drive down to LA instead of fly because it's cheaper, and if you factor in the time it takes to drive to the airport, park, etc..., it's only a couple of hours difference in travel time. Still, the drive from the SF Bay Area to Anaheim takes about 8 hours, door-to-door, including a lunch stop, gas reloading and a reasonable amount of potty breaks and light LA traffic (although "light LA traffic" is something of an oxymoron), so it's not a picnic in the park. Fortunately, we have ourToyota Sienna to take us on our road trip in comfort and style! Here are my favorite features in the Sienna that make an 8-hour drive not only bearable, but almost enjoyable:
Space. I'm pride myself on being a light packer, and whenever we fly places I try to emphasize to the kids and Alfie the necessity of taking only what you need (
Do you really need 10 Webkinz animals? And why not take the small size of body wash instead of the extra-value jumbo size?). But when we take the Sienna, I can relax, because I know everything will fit. I can take water and snacks and cereal for breakfast at the hotel. I can take daytime
and evening outfits, with matching shoes -- and shoes are a big deal because my feet are so huge! Ten Webkinz? Go on, take 15! Alfie packs a tea kettle so he can enjoy his cup of tea without having to pay $5 for it. I even considered taking the toaster so we could have warm bagels for breakfast.
Comfort. Every seat in the Sienna is like a first-class airplane seat. Wide, leather-bound, comfy, lots of leg room. Every seat reclines, so we can nap when we feel like it. There's even room for pillows and blankets! If the sun is shining a bit too brightly, we can pull up the retractable sunshade to keep the glare away.
High Tech. Okay, we have the 2004 model, so we don't exactly have the cutting edge in auto technology: Bluetooth connectivity, rear view camera, USB ports and the like. But for an 8 year-old car, it's pretty high tech. We have a DVD player so the kids can watch a movie (or two or three) while we drive. Even more important, the Sienna has 2 110-volt AC power outlets and 2 (or is it 3?) 12-volt power outlets, so we can charge all our numerous electronic devices -- phones, ipads, tablets, and game consoles -- too keep us all amused. Thanks to all our devices, I barely heard an "
Are we there yet?" the whole time!
As the Cars movie theme song says,
Life is a highway, I'm gonna ride it all night long..... I couldn't agree more -- as long as we're in a Sienna :)
Disclosure:I was selected for participation in the TWIN community through a program with Clever Girls Collective. I did not receive any compensation for writing this post, or payment in exchange for participating. The opinions expressed herein are mine, and do not reflect the views of Toyota.
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