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10 Savvy Entertainment Deals in Southern California

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Southern California theme park discounts

Summer is a great time to check out many local entertainment venues in Southern California.  The kids are out of school and parents have a lot more free time on their hands.  While going on a vacation is ideal, it also comes at a significant price.  So instead I prefer to plan a staycation close to home and do a variety of activities with my family all summer long.

Therefore, here’s a round up of the best summer entertainment deals in Southern California for families.  As always, if you find a deal that you like, make sure to purchase it immediately.  Once tickets are sold, they are gone forever.  Happy Summer!

Southern California Entertainment Discount Tickets

$19.00 Tickets to Pageant of the Masters: Paintings Come Alive, Laguna Beach

See a work of art come to life at the Pageant of the Masters. This one-of-a-kind production, an Orange County tradition, uses real people to recreate classical and contemporary paintings down to the finest detail. As you take in the visual marvel, a narrator guides you through the story behind each work while a live orchestra sets the tone. This year’s presentation, Partners, showcases artworks that came about through great collaborations. In some cases the partnership was between the artist and a model, in others a dancer, sibling or patron. See the results of these collaborations in a whole new way at the Pageant of the Masters.

$16.00 Tickets to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Presents Out Of This World @ The Honda Center, Anaheim

Prepare to blast off on an intergalactic adventure for space-age family fun as the ultimate circus experience launches into the future with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Presents Out Of This World.  Audiences will take the helm to join the Circus Space Fleet on a heroic quest of good versus evil that will let imaginations run wild with unexpected surprises and thrills at every turn. Through the lens of a magic telescope, Out Of This World transports your entire family on an unforgettable journey as the circus Star Seeker battles to bring the most spectacular and talented performers back to Earth after years in outer space. Children of all ages will be amazed by the cosmic voyage as you discover the wonders of gravity-defying acrobats, orbital aerialists, majestic animals, fearless daredevils and humorous clowns.

$35.00 Tickets to Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park

There’s tons to keep you and your family amused by land, water and air at Knott’s Berry Farm’s 160 acres of roller coasters, games, shopping, live entertainment, dining and children’s rides in Buena Park. Ride the Sierra Sidewinder and the hair-raising Montezooma’s Revenge. Bang into your buddies on the Wheeler Dealer Bumper Cars. Go head-over-heels and heels-over-head on the scream machine Boomerang. Make a splash on Bigfoot Rapids. Take a spin on Wipeout — if you dare — and check out Voyage to the Iron Reef, a spectacular new interactive 4-D ride for the entire family. Riders aim their freeze rays at menacing sea creatures while competing against each other to blast the highest score and save Knott’s from a watery doom.

$7.00 Tickets to Aquarium of the Pacific at Night: See Sharks, Seals, Jellies & More in a Whole New Light, Long Beach

Submerge yourself in the Aquarium of the Pacific after hours, when darkness descends and the ocean’s most wondrous creatures begin their nocturnal activities. Drift through a colorful array of oceanic habitats as ethereal evening illumination bathes iridescent sea jellies, adorable Magellanic penguins, playful seals and many other fascinating species. Touch one of the fierce predators swimming in the Shark Lagoon and discover new worlds in the Ocean Science Center. The entire aquarium will be open during this special after-hours entry time except for Lorikeet Forest, letting you experience the undersea realms of Long Beach and beyond in a whole new light.

$27.99 Tickets to Raging Waters Los Angeles: Rides, Slides, Pools & More, San Dimas

Spend a day cooling off at California’s largest water park, Raging Waters Los Angeles. With 50 beautifully landscaped acres of slides, attractions and its own sandy beach, Raging Waters has active entertainment options for everyone. Feel the adrenaline rush on the all new Aqua Rocket, a four-person rocket style raft merging the excitement of a roller coaster and the thrills and spills of a water ride. Face thrillers like the Dr. Von Dark’s Tunnel of Terror, which features both a 40-foot drop and 360-degree spins … in total darkness! Make a splash at Wave Cove, a wave pool that simulates true tidal movements or just kick back and tube the quarter-mile-long lazy river known as Amazon Adventure. Just grab your bathing suit and the sun screen and get ready for a good time!

$19.00 Tickets to see The Sound of Music @ Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Costa Mesa

Three-time Tony Award winner Jack O’Brien directs a lavish new production of one of the world’s most beloved musicals, The Sound of Music. Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the film version, which remains the most successful movie musical in cinematic history, and you can keep the celebration going by seeing this gorgeously produced show live on stage at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa. Get swept away by the romance, touching family story and heartbreaking drama of the musical story of Maria and the Von Trapp family, featuring such Rodgers & Hammerstein classics as “My Favorite Things,” “Do-Re-Mi,” “Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” “Edelweiss” and, of course, the enchanting title track.

$17 Tickets to see Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Live on Stage @ La Mirada Theatre for the Performing ArtsLa Mirada

Another triumph of musical imagination from the creative wizards at Disney, The Hunchback of Notre Dame comes to the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts in this stirring musical version, based on the animated film. It was produced through a one-of-a-kind collaboration between Alan Menken (Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast) and Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Pippin), a true Dream Team of Broadway talent. This version sticks more closely to Victor Hugo’s original, so it’s somewhat darker in tone. The story is the one we know, that of a love triangle between a gypsy (Esmeralda), a priest (Frollo) and a deformed bell-ringer (Quasimodo). Parental discretion is advised.

$20 Tickets to see Hello, Dolly! @ Plummer AuditoriumFullerton

Before Tinder, Bumble, Grindr and even OKCupid, there were matchmakers — and Dolly Levi was one of the best. Considered one of the “greatest musicals ever,” Hello, Dolly! is a romantic comedy based on Thornton Wilder’s farce The Matchmaker. In the film version of this charming, laugh-out-loud tale, Barbara Streisand played the brassy leading lady who travels to Yonkers, New York to find a match for the miserly “well-known unmarried half-a-millionaire” Horace Vandergelder. But sometimes, love is right around the corner.

$12.50 Tickets to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatRose Center Theater, Westminster

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Broadway musical provides a colorful twist on the Old Testament tale of Joseph, whose father gives him a gorgeous multi-hued cloak as a gift. Green with envy over the garment, Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery, and he ends up in Egypt, where he manages to rescue the country from famine with a little help from an Elvis-esque pharoah. A multiple Tony nominee when it first appeared on stage, this perennially popular show boasts a mix of musical styles, ranging from country and pop to rock and even calypso. Catch all the dazzling color and delightful songs of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Westminster’s Rose Center Theater.

$28.00 Tickets to Knott’s Soak City Water ParkBuena Park

The summer heat is here to stay, but you can cool off with a fun-packed day in the water at Knott’s Soak City, a water adventure park right next door to Knott’s Theme Park. Whimsically themed to recreate SoCal beach towns of the 1950s, Soak City boasts 17 speed, tube and body slides for tons of wet ‘n’ wild good times. Take the plunge on the six-story high Pacific Spin, catch some waves at Tidal Wave Bay, relax on the lazy Sunset River and have epic water battles with the three-story Toyota Beach House’s water guns, nozzles, sprayers and other interactive surprises. Little ones can join in the fun as well! Designed for maximum family appeal, Gremmie Lagoon is a hands-on water playground for pint-sized surfers. Just be sure to wear your swimsuit, because you’re not going to get out of here without getting wet!

1 – Bonus Southern California Entertainment Deals!

$10.00 to see Beauty and the Beast: Beloved Musical in the Park @ Peppertree Park, Tustin

The enchanting tale of Beauty and the Beast comes to Tustin’s Peppertree Park as part of Broadway in the Park. Based on the beloved 1991 animated film, the musical tells the story of Belle, an intelligent young woman in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince under a witch’s curse. Time is running out, and if the Beast doesn’t learn his lesson soon, he and his household will remain in their cursed forms forever. This musical love story is filled with colorful characters, beautiful costumes and show-stopping numbers including “Be Our Guest” and the unforgettable title song. The accessible venue and open space is perfect for the whole family.

Happy Field Tripping!

Jilleen

More Summer Activities for Kids in Southern California:

Free Summer Disney Movie Nights in Anaheim

60+ Places in Orange County to Explore with Kids

Kids Bowl Free

How to See A Free Concert Rehearsal at the Hollywood Bowl

Free Summer Reading Programs for Kids