L.A. Holiday

I will be in L.A. for a few days at the end of June and was wondering where is a good area to stay. I want to do a few tours ie Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Universal Studios, going out etc but I am not sure of which area I should be looking at. Any ideas, also activities etc and distance from the airport.


Thanks!

The best place to stay that is near the airport is Manhattan Beach. You have the beach right there, the area is full of bars and restuarants and you will only be about 10-15 minutes from the airport.


I hope you will have a car as L.A. is a big place and the places you list above are quite a distance from one another mainly due to the time you will probably spend sitting in traffic.


I definately wouldn't stay near Universal as you have much better options in the area around the airport.


Depends on what you are looking to do on your down time. I highly recommend Westwood, Venice Beach, Santa Monica or Manhattan Beach. At least at night you will have areas around you to walk around in or shop.

I would definitely recommend renting a car if you're going to only be there for a few days. The difference between loving and hating LA for my friends visiting there from abroad has been whether or not they could drive there.


I would not recommend staying anywhere too close to LAX as there isn't much to do around there. If you want to be somewhere kind of equidistant from the attractions you mentioned and the airport, I'd stay in the Beverly Hills, Westwood, or perhaps on the Sunset Strip. There are good places you can walk around those areas if you are so inclined, but they are located in a decent enough place to be able to drive places without wasting an inordinate amount of time in traffic.


If you stay on the Strip, you'll be able to walk to great restaurants, cool clubs/bars, and all they kind of Hollywood attractions you may wish to see like the Chinese Theater, the Kodak Theater (where the Oscars are), and things like that. If you're more concerned about the beach than Hollywood, I'd stay in Santa Monica-- it's a walkable part of town, near the water, and there's stuff to do there. It will likely cost more than staying in Manhattan Beach, but there will be more for you to do within walking distance (plus it's just more pedestrian friendly).


Other recommendations/things I miss about LA:


1. If you like BBQ, you should definitely check out Mr. Cecil's California BBQ. It's pretty much a shack, but in that shack they create some of the best ribs I've ever tasted. Also, they make the very best hushpuppies I've ever eaten (if you don't know what those are-- you must go).


2. Eat all the sushi you can. In particular, I'd recommend Sasabune (http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/11288761/), Matsuhisa (more reasonable for lunch, if possible) (http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/11288761/), and Sushiya (if you're staying on the strip)(http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/32529299/).


3. If you like burgers, The Counter (http://www.la.com/dining/fastfoodpizzabarfood/thecounter/9588) and Father's Office (www.fathersoffice.com) in Santa Monica are great places to eat. I also enjoyed Fatburger (fast chain).


4. The Newsroom Cafe was my hands-down favorite place to eat. They have a great, healthy menu and its in a fun place in Beverly Hills on Robertson. I've seen a lot of celebrities both in the restaurant and from the restaurant as they were going to The Ivy across the street (a place I do NOT recommend).


5. I used to drink Robek's smoothies like an inmate smokes cigarettes. Robek's is a chain, though I've only seen them in CA and CT. Anyway, they're delicious. Thinking about them is giving me the shakes.


Hope you have fun.

Hi I highly recommend Santa Monica, a very nice seaview with shipping area around

Wow! Thank you all so much for your very useful info! Barks, thanks a lot for your advice. I am staying in L.A. on a stopover to Cancun then on to Cuba, any thoughts on those places?


Thanks again.