Craft beer, choppers and trapeze! There's more to do in California than Hollywood and Disneyland

If you're planning a big group trip with your mates to California, but you're over the whole Hollywood thing, then it's time to start exploring it local style.

First things first, to the food! With a brewery tour planned for the afternoon, our group headed to the Anaheim Packing House for an obligatory pre-beer nourishing fest.

Originally an orange packing house for Sunkist in the '20s, the Anaheim Packing House is now a carefully curated food hall literally packed with gourmet delights, including the adorable Popbar.

Image: Popbar

It's been a long flight, we're parched!

Next door to the packing house lies Anaheim Brewery, run by husband-and-wife duo Barbara and Greg, who brew German-style craft beers.

The couple, who discovered their passion for beer after a seven-year stint in Bavaria, revived a pre-prohibition brewery in the heart of the packing district and they're damn proud of it. Inside the tasting room they even have some cute memorabilia of the days before prohibition closed the taps in 1920. Oh, and they have a killer beer garden.

Image: Anaheim Brewery

Nerds rejoice. Our second stop was to Bottle Logic, a team who brew batches of beer with cute names like She Shot First and The Tattered Prince. Every beer label is like a mini story, complete with recurring characters. Cute!

Last stop on the tour was Noble Ale Works to taste a few weirdly flavoured brews on offer. The highlights for our group were I Believe I Can Chai and Too Darn Hot. But hey, everyone is different and this place caters for all tastes. Did I mention it's located conveniently next to the Angel's Stadium and the Honda Center? That's right sports fans, Budweiser has its place, but there's nothing like a pre-game craft IPA.

But no Anaheim brewery tour would be complete without sampling sour beer, one of the specialties of The Bruery. So our guide made a quick detour there to savour the Belgian-inspired tart ales. Sure, it is an acquired taste and a bit indulgent, but yum!

So, erm, how do people keep fit around these parts?

After overdoing it just a tad on the brewery tour the day before, perhaps trapeze school wasn't exactly the next the logical activity. But we gave it a go anyway. The members of our group who are regulars at yoga and pilates had the most success, but Swing It Trapeze will take in any level of experience. Even uncoordinated nerds like myself with zero core strength. Hey, the hilarious footage of my attempt was worth the cost of admission.

Enough exercise...it's taco time!

We'd been in California for a good 24 hours by now and not yet savoured tacos...blasphemy! So we ducked into Pour Vida on Anaheim's Center Street promenade to tuck into some Latin style fresh tortillas. Yum!

Celebrity chef Jimmy Martinez opened up the corner cafe after stints at highly regarded restaurants 41 Ocean Club and BOA Steakhouse, choosing to take his pro skills to the everyday consumer.

Jimmy proudly makes everything in house at Pour Vida, including the furniture, using only local and in-season ingredients.

Image: Pour Vida

The focus is on the fresh tacos themed by land, sea (squid ink!) and garden varietals like spinach, and inspired by his Jimmy's Puerto Rican and Mexican roots. Oh and if you're craving salad after too much burger time at the theme parks, Jimmy does an exceptional kale salad with Belgian endive, shaved apple, candied pepita, blue cheese crumbles and smoked paprika cranberry vinaigrette. So good.

But you don't have to skimp totally on the good stuff, you're on holidays after all! So indulge in his truffle fries. You won't regret it.

So little time...how do we see more of California and fast?

After all that land time, what better way to view the coast of Orange County than with a guided helicopter tour. Our OC Helicopters pilot briefed us all on safety and made everyone feel totally at ease before we cruised above Laguna Beach and the affluent burbs of Orange County. So if you're looking for something a little special for your loved one, this would make an epic proposal option.

Image: Our crew at OC Helicopters

Let's see what all the fuss is about...

You didn't think we'd come to Anaheim without checking out a few of California's most renowned theme parks, did you?

Our group were on a tight schedule with little time to try the rides as well as the Disneyland Forever Fireworks Show, so we picked our top three rides at Disneyland and made the most of a night.

If you're there with the family, there are plenty of child-friendly rides and attractions. Just be sure to plan out your day. We were there in US school holiday time and experienced ride waits of up to 75 minutes. Ouch.

Lines are a bit shorter for the classics like the Teacup ride, but as a general guide you'll be lining up for around an hour or more for the popular attractions.

If killer rollercoasters and thrills are more your thing, you have to hit up Space Mountain in Tomorrowland and Hollywood Tower. We headed to the Tower closer to the park's closing time, so the wait was only around 20 minutes.

Image: Hollywood Tower in California Adventure Park

Hint: If you want to get the most out of your Disneyland experience, then we highly recommend purchasing a fast pass to skip the queues.

For the more serious theme park thrill seekers, Knott's Berry Farm has dozens of rides sectioned out by level of horror. We chose all the level 5 "high thrill" rides – With the Xcelerator, the Silver Bullet and Ghostrider an absolute must.

Did we mention you can drink beer while you make your way around the park? Just make sure you have your passport in tow if you want to partake in a sneaky schooner – they won't accept your licence or proof-of-age card in Knott's or Disneyland. In fact, most bars and restaurants we went to in Orange County insisted on passports for ID checks.

The last hurrah...

Another highlight of our stay in Anaheim was our night out to The Ranch Restaurant and Saloon for an epic feast and line dancing...in California? Yes, really.

Specialising in fresh American regional cuisine sourced from sustainable sources, we especially savoured the huge serving sizes.

After dinner we retired next door to watch some good old fashioned Southern-style dancing. But after getting a stern talking to for just rocking out on the dancefloor (Aussie style), we managed to sweet talk some locals into showing us some moves, and now we're best friends for life. Well, that's the way I'll remember it anyway.