LA is the second most populated city in the US and has the third largest Mexican population in the world including Mexico (Los Angeles = the Angels in spanish). The city is culturally diverse with nearly half the population born outside of the US.
The first thing I heard when planning our US trip was don't spend too long in LA as there's nothing to do there etc. etc. I will start by saying this is not true at all and we thoroughly enjoyed our time in LA. How long you spend in LA will depend on what you want to see and do. We spent 5 nights and did trips out to different parts of the city and to Southern California/ San Diego.
Getting There
Most will arrive in LA via LAX- the huge international airport. There are also four other commercial airports in LA. You can take the LAX flyaway bus to most major areas- Downtown, Hollywood, Santa Monica etc. One way ticket $8. Look for the green sign that says 'flyaway, buses ... ' at each terminal.
Taxis take around 30 mins from LAX to downtown LA in good traffic and cost around $70USD. Unfortunately traffic is often terrible making the trip much more expensive.
Again, car hire may be a much more economical option. Post on car hire in the US is coming soon.
Geography
LA is a great base from which to travel to other areas of California. Many flights from Australia land in or connect via LAX so if you have a long enough layover you should get out and explore. The city itself is 1215 km² in size (vs. Melbourne 35km² or Sydney 25 km²)- aka. absolutely huge. Because of this, I found it was extremely handy to have a car.
I know what you are thinking... driving on the other side of the road eeeeeek. If I did it so can you! LA is actually a great place to practice your driving.
There is lots of districts in LA. The main areas we visited were
- Hollywood
- Downtown LA
- Beverley Hills/ West Hollywood (WEHO)
- Santa Monica/ Venice Beach
Public transport in LA is doable but a car is a better option. We negotiated the city's buses and trains but found we did a lot of walking. Buses are not particularly frequent, expect 10-30 minutes in touristy areas and 30-90 minutes away from tourist areas. Because of the city's sheer size, even when getting off at the nearest stop you can find yourself walking a km or two. Many bus services finish in the early evening and services are reduced on weekends.
Buses and trains are run by the LA metro service. The train service was useful to get to Universal studios (red line- Universal City stop) and to some parts of Hollywood otherwise I found it wasn't really going anywhere that we were! There's a good map of the different lines here.
Firstly- do yourself a favour and download the HOPSTOP app. This app will save your life if you are using public transport. Just plug in your destination, time and voila- it will give you step by step instructions in line with current timetables.
Things to do
If you aren't sure what you want to do, want an easy way to get around and have limited time, the hop on hop off bus by starline tours is an easy way to get started. I'm usually against them but many of the tourist sights in LA are easy to see this way. There are a few different connecting routes depending on what you want to see - Hollywood, Santa Monica, downtown LA etc.
Hollywood
Hollywood & Highland is a major landmark in Hollywood- located on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue. There is a large shopping centre here and red line train station (Hollywood & Highland station). It is also home to the Chinese Theatre and Dolby Theatre.
The Hollywood Walk of Fame
- The walk of fame runs for 2.1 kms on Hollywood Boulevard (from North Gower Street to North La Brea avenue), a short segment of Marshfield Way (between Hollywood and La Brea) and 0.7 km of Vine Street (between Yucca Street and Sunset Boulevard).
- Wander along and appreciate the talent that has graced Hollywood over the years.
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Dolby Theatre
- Formerly known as the Kodak theatre
- Hosts the Acadamy awards and now the Oscars (since 2011)
- 6801 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood (part of the Hollywood/highland shopping mall)
- Famous theatre that has hosted the premiere of many famous films such as star wars.
- Now hosts the largest IMAX theatre in the world.
- Check out the signatures, handprints, footprints etc. of celebrities in the concrete blocks out the front.
- 6801 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood
- Site of the first Hollywood film premiere, currently undergoing restoration works.
- 6706 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood.
Sunset strip
- The Sunset Strip is an area of sunset boulevard running for 2.4 kms in West Hollywood (WEHO).
- Famous for its nightclubs and massive advertising billboards.
- Viper room
- Damous nightclub in WEHO partly owned by Johnny Depp until 1994
- Place where River Phoenix died of a drug overdose
- metal, punk rock and alternative
- 8852 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood
- The original movie stars' homes tour is run by Starline tours. The tour visits the homes and former homes of famous celebrities and also passes the sunset strip, chinese theatre, rodeo drive, the hollywood sign.
- We didn't do this tour as a friend did it just before we travelled and said she did not see much except for large gates/ driveways. That said I heard a friend of a friend saw Bill Cosby putting his rubbish bin out (I'd pay $47 for any celebrity sighting haha)
- $47 adult (cheaper online), duration 2 hours
The Hollywood Sign
- The most convenient spot to see the sign? Hollywood & Highland Centre
- Take the red line train here and look out for framed views of the Hollywood sign throughout the shopping centre.
- An easy spot if you have limited time plus additional views of LA- try Mulholland Drive.
- Coming from Hollywood, turn right into Mulholland drive. After passing Runyon Canyon Park (on your right) slow down and it is the next lookout on your right.
- Parking area fits only 6 cars so can be tricky. Park your car and walk up the stairs.
- Griffith Park Observatory
- Check out the view from the carpark.
- 2800 E Observatory Rd, Los Angele
- The best place to see the sign? 3000 Canyon Lake drive (in a residential area)
- You will need a car to get here. Take the US 101, exit at Barham Boulevard.
- Turn right to Lake Hollywood drive. Follow it around the resevoir (it's a bit confusing, lots of small roads in this super rich housing estate) until Tahoe drive.
- Turn Left at Tahor Drive, turn right into Canyon Lake Drive.
- Park near the dog park and walk up the hill to the unobstructed viewing spot on the left.
- I actually loved the drive around this area, it was very cool albeit the hazardous skinny roads.
- Check out the science and space related displays (closed Mondays).
- Come here for the amazing view of LA, including the Hollywood sign.
- Cost- Free!
- 2800 E Observatory Rd, Los Angeles
Runyon Canyon Park
- I absolutely loved hiking and running through Runyon Canyon when we were in LA.
- Runyon Canyon is another well known place to spot celebrities. Check out this website where photo evidence of sightings are updated regularly!
- Cost- Free!
- 2000 N. Fuller Ave., Los Angeles (southern entrance).
- The Getty museum is known for its architecture, gardens and amazing view of LA.
- Cost- Free!
- 1200 Getty Centre Drive, LA.
Hollywood forever cemetery
- Many old school famous actors, musicians and celebrities have been buried here.
- Book early to attend the outdoor cinema, Cinespia. Saturdays at 7pm $10USD pp.
- 6000 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles
Beverley Hills
- This is where the rich and famous come to shop. The golden triangle, bounded by Wilshire, Santa Monica Boulevard and Canon Drive, is the shopping area where if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it! Definitely worth a window shop and a wander.
- Rodeo Drive
- The main strip is between Santa Monica Boulevard in the north and Wilshire Boulevard in the south.
- Check out the lobby of the Beverley Wilshire Hotel, the hotel where Pretty Woman was set.
- 9500 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills
- Try the cupcake ATM at Sprinkles, where you can get baked goods from the ATM 24/7! Scary!
- 9635 S Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills
- Have lunch at the Ivy and do some celeb spotting (see Restaurant section below)
Downtown LA
Olvera Street
- This street is part of the historic centre of LA and is part of the Los Angeles Plaza historic district, El Pueblo de Los Angeles State Historic Park. The alley is a romantic vision of old mexico and a popular tourist attraction.
- It is filled with trinket stores and Mexican restaurants.
- 125 Paseo De La Plaza, Los Angeles
- Modern cathedral hat was build to replace the Cathedral of Saint Vibiana , damaged in an earthquake in 1994.
- 555 W Temple St, Los Angeles,
- LA has a large Chinatown area including a market, Chinese specialty stores and restaurants.
- Little Tokyo aka J-Town next to Chinatown has Japanese shops restaurants and museums.
- Warehouses, markets and designer knock offs can all be found in the LA fashion district.
- Visit the infamous Santee Alley for knock offs and counterfeit goods.
- 110 E 9th St A1175, Los Angeles
Universal Studios Hollywood
- What is a trip to LA without visiting the original Universal Studios!
- Don't miss the studio tour (do this first because the lines get massive).
- Check the timetable for when the shows are on. The Waterworld stunt show is pretty good (better than the movie Waterworld ironically).
- 1 day pass $92USD, front of the line pass $139USD (buy this, it will honestly save you hours of waiting in line), VIP pass $299USD.
- Check out the skip the line section of undercovertourist for crowd calendars, tour plans and a downloadable app with ride wait times.
- front of the line passes give you one priority entry to each ride (buy in advance because they sell out)
- or booked a combined bus ticket/entry via starline tours.
- The main street with restaurants and chain store shopping is along the 3rd street promenade
- I found there were lots of good clothes shops here and all of the major retail outlet chains.
- Don't miss Kitson the quirky gift store that celebrities love to frequent.
- 395 Santa Monica Place Suite #120, Santa Monica
- 395 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica
- Check out Santa Monica Pier, it has an amusement park, restaurants, Santa Monica Pier Aquarium and bicycle/rollerblade hire etc.
- Hire a bike from the Santa Monica Bike Centre on Santa Monica Pier
- standard bike $20USD 2 hours, $25USD half day, $30 full day.
- ride south along the bike paths to Venice beach, Marina Del Ray and down to Rodondo beach. This will take you around an hour 1 way without stopping.
- Check out the original muscle beach (on the south side of Santa Monica Pier)
- In the 1930s exercise equipment was installed on the beach here which became a popular home for famous body builders and gymnasts.
- Today the original muscle beach serves acrobats, gymnasts etc. and body builders have moved on to muscle beach venice (see below).
- Venice Beach
- Venture along the ocean front walk to find massage parlours, fortune tellers, hippies, handmade crafts, street performers, souvenir shops, a freakshow and lots and lots of people smoking weed.
- Robin's sculpture gallery
- Have a look at Robin Murez's sculpture garden. Also hosts concerts and performances etc.
- 1632 Albert Kinney Boulevard, Venice CA.
- Venice Muscle Beach
- The famous beachfront open air 'gym' where bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts work out and put on a good show for passers by. Relocated from the original muscle beach in Santa Monica.
- 1800 Ocean Front Walk, Venice CA.
- Be careful because Venice can be a little dicey at night.
Warner Brother's VIP Tour
- Don't miss the chance to enter real life movie sets, see props, costumes and cars from popular movies and TV shows.
- $49USD + $7USD parking, duration 2 hours 15 mins, book early.
- 3400 Riverside Dr, Burbank, CA
Attend a real tv filming as an audience member
- Attend a filming of your favourite show in the flesh. Year round shows such as Conan, the today show with Jay Leno and Ellen are filmed in LA. Sometimes you can get standby tickets on the day if you follow the show's protocols.
- Try individual show website or tvtickets.com (most tickets are released 30 days in advance)
Sports
- See the LA Lakers play NBA at the staples centre, tickets are very expensive! Alternatively you can see the LA clippers- a rising team in the NBA. Tickets will be slightly cheaper than the Lakers.
- The LA Dodgers play baseball at Dodger stadium.
Celebrity hunt
- We know that there are many celebrities frequenting LA, the question is - where can we find them?
- My online research has allowed me to come to the conclusion that celebrities can be found anywhere. They are just people and fortunately like to eat out, go shopping, go to the supermarket etc. like the rest of us! If they aren't Lady Gaga, celebrities often don't have an entourage following them and can be hard to spot! If you see someone who looks a little familiar and you can't work out why- they are probably a B grade celebrity you have seen on TV.
- Other places the internet suggests you may have success- Nate 'N Al's (Deli), Kitson (shop), The Ivy (restaurant), Runyon Canyon (park), Sunset Plaza- Cafe Med or Il Sole, and restaurants in Malibu such as Nobi and Taverna Tony's (many celebrities live in Malibu).
Shopping
- Beverley Hills
- The Beverly Centre
- mid to high end shopping with macy's, bloomingdales etc.
- 8500 Beverley Boulevard, Beverley Hills
- Rodeo drive and 'the golden triangle' (see above section on Beverley hills)
- WEHO
- Small quirky boutiques and second hand shops can be found along Melrose avenue between La Brea in the east and Fairfax in the west (1.6km)
- The Grove
- Midrange shopping with chain stores, Macy's etc.
- Has outdoor restaurants, cinemas etc. The Cheesecake Factory has a store here - awesome value chain restaurant with delicious food (and cheesecake of course).
- 189 The Grove Dr, Los Angeles
- Santa Monica
- Check out the chain stores on 3rd street promenade (parallel to the beach a few streets back)
- Venice Beach
- Check out Main street and Abbot Kinney Boulevard for boutiques
- Other large malls include Hollwood & Highland (6801 Hollywood Boulevard) and Century City (10250 Santa Monica Boulevard, LA).
Accomodation
First you need to consider what district you want to stay in. Options are basically
- Hollywood- central, good for those who plan on nightclubbing, good access to public transport. Not many nice places to eat.
- West Hollywood (WEHO)- most of the major hotels are here, some with amazing views. fairly good public transport access.
- Beverley Grove/ Central LA- centred around the Grove shopping centre, there is lots of shopping and dining well placed in this area.
- Santa Monica- right on the beach, great family area. Further away from the Hollywood tourist sights, expensive.
- Downtown - cheaper but more of a business district than the main city area. Has some dicey areas in terms of safety, especially at night. Better access to major public transport systems.
- Beverley Hills- fairly close to the beach and Hollywood, poor access to public transport.
- Other beachside areas- Marina Del Ray, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach.- lovely areas, but getting further and further away from Hollywood.
Check out the apartment we stayed in here.
Restaurants and nightlife
- The Ivy
- Book ahead to secure a spot for lunch at the Ivy, a spot well known to frequent celebrities.
- One of my favourite restaurants in the US! Make sure you dress nicely and arrive on time. When we arrived our table wouldn't be ready for 15 minutes so were were offered free champagne in an amazing room filled with fresh roses. One of the best meals and cocktails I have ever had.
- 113 N Robertson Blvd, Los Angeles (there is also a franchise in Santa Monica now)
- Del Frisco's Grille Santa Monica
- nice pub food in a great spot
- 1551 Ocean Ave, Santa Monica
- Craft
- High end restaurant renowned as one of the best in LA.
- 10100 Constellation Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
- Cleo
- Contemporary mediterranean food.
- 1717 Vine St (inside The Redbury), Los Angeles
- In 'N Out Burger
- Don't miss LA's legendary fast food chain. My boyfriend nearly had road rage in the carpark here after waiting in the driveway for 45 minutes to get a park! but it was well worth the trip.
- Farmer's market
- fresh produce, food stalls and restaurants located next to the Grove shopping centre.
- 6333 W 3rd St, Los Angeles
- Kitchen 24
- Great brunch and homely food in Hollywood. Well priced
- 1608 North Cahuenga Boulevard, Hollywood.
- The Rooftop Bar at The Standard hotel
- 550 S Flower St, Los Angeles
- Writer's Room (bar)
- one of the hottest new bars in Hollywood with a vibe that mixes speakeasy, modernism and art deco. Get yourself onto the list prior.
- 6685 Hollywood Blvd
- The Spare Room (bar)
- Classic cocktails served by waitresses in Gatsby era dresses
- Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles,
- Harvard & Stone (bar)
- Blues and rock n roll music with American craft cocktails. Make sure you adhere to the dress code.
- 5221 Hollywood Boulevard
Be cautious when traveling around LA as it is well known that many parts of the city can be dangerous. Be sensible and avoid dangerous areas on foot, especially at night. Wikipedia suggests you should avoid the following areas
- Skid Row (downtown, near the main Greyhound bus station- take a taxi if you need to get a bus from here)
- Pico-Union, Westlake, Boyle Heights, and South Central
- San Fernando Valley region- avoid the neighborhoods of Pacoima, Panorama City, Arleta, Van Nuys, Canoga Park, North Hills, North Hollywood (northern half), and Northridge (southern half) on foot.
Trips from LA
- Disneyland, Anaheim
- $96USD per day for a 1 day ticket aged 10+, ages 3-9 $90. Cheaper with each additional day.
- Approx 30-40 mins drive from downtown LA (without traffic). Many bus companies offer tours or you can also take the train.
- Take a drive down to Malibu or Santa Barbara (see my pacific coast post here)
- We also visited San Diego & Orange County- I'll cover these in another post.
LA has plenty to keep anyone busy is the heart and soul of beautiful California. Enjoy being a tourist and soak up everything Los Angeles has to offer.
Sample Itinerary
Day 1- Hop on hop off bus or star homes tour, Hollywood walk of fame, sunset strip, chinese theatre.
Day 2- Santa Monica/ Venice
Day 3 - Find the Hollywood sign, Beverley Hills, shopping, the Grove/ famers market.
Day 4- Day trip / Universal Studios or Warner Brothers VIP tour
Day 5- See downtown LA, hang out in Malibu, see a tv show filming etc.
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