Amber H. from New York was the winner of the Propeller experience to "Win a VIP Experience at the Goo Goo Dolls Big Night Out Tour in CA" that took place in September 2023. Below are some of Amber's highlights from the experience.
My amazing trip for Goo Goo Dolls in CA started early thanks to Propeller! I asked if they could book our flights a few days early if we covered lodging during those days, and they were more than willing to accommodate. This immediately set the tone for a wonderful vacation.
On day one we were flown out to Irvine, California. Then we headed down to Newport Beach to catch the sunrays and huge waves! This was my first time in California, and my first time in the Pacific ocean… and it was beautiful. We did get a little sunburnt though - California sunshine doesn't hold back!
The next day we headed to LA and spent time taking in the sights and visiting places like the Hollywood sign and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We took pictures with all of our favorite stars, ranging from Chris Pratt to Gene Autry to Lassie! Aside from the stars, my favorite part of walking around Hollywood was the Funko store. We explored all the exhibits and even turned ourselves into Funko Pops which we brought home with us. My Funko of course had a coffee in hand and some cats by my side! Then we headed to a tour of the Warner Brothers Studio. There is too much to say on this but I will summarize: It's SO worth it!
Then began the first day of our official trip. We woke up early to head to Disneyland for an entire day before checking into our lovely Propeller accommodations! There are so many highlights, but my absolute favorite part of Disneyland was Avengers Campus. We rode the Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission Breakout, and we popped over to the Pym Tasting Lab & Test Kitchen for some oversized food and funky drinks. After a few more hours at the park, we had some dinner at Earl of Sandwich Tavern in Downtown Disney and called it a night.
Finally - the day came for Goo Goo Dolls, and I was so excited! We spent a few hours by the pool before we took our complimentary hotel shuttle to the FivePoint Amphitheatre for our VIP check-in. They gave us a ton of cool merch and then we headed over to the pre-show party where they served us drinks and delicious apps!
After the pre-show party, we were taken for our backstage tour. During our tour we saw John and he said hello to everyone! Afterwards we headed over to do our meet and greet and photo opportunity with John and Robby. We took our seats to enjoy OAR's performance, and then went sidestage for Goo Goo Dolls. Words can't express how wonderful this whole experience was, but especially being sidestage and singing along to the songs while seeing the show from a whole different perspective.
The next morning we caught the sunrise at Laguna Beach, and enjoyed some breakfast at Shirley's Bagels before heading to the airport for our flight home. Everything was perfect, and Propeller has my greatest thanks for making the dream a reality!
- Amber H.
