The Ultimate LA Tour for Outsiders

[dweebo2220]

What do you mean by "the millenium has not quite come to LA yet"?

Thanks for the info on that region.

[svs]

By the milleneum, I mean the era when all the peoples of the world live together in peaceful harmony as brothers; not the coming of the 21st century. Milleniiumism has often refered to a post messianic era of peace, harmony, and brotherhood.

[yamota]

well, speaking of the millenium, I'm pretty sure every computer in LA is Y2K compliant by now

[rgolch]

I'm gonna be in LA for about 3-4 days next week. I'll be staying in Beverly Hills, and wanted some advice. It's been about a decade since I've been to LA. I know it's impossible to scratch the surface in that brief time, but I have a couple of questions.

1) Any must-see's you guys would recommend? Just so you know, I'm not one of these forumers that's incredibly caught up in urban density. I don't need evidence that LA is densely populated.

2) Recommendations on Iconic LA restaurants. Price is generally not a consideration. Hopefully the concierge at my hotel can get me reservations.

3) Is the Getty museum worth the trip? Where is that in relation to Beverly Hills.

4) Forgot which iconic beach it is with all the fortune tellers/ weight lifters/ tourists. Is it Venice, or Manhattan Beach. I think my daughter would appreciate it.

5) Being 1/2 Persian, I would like to check out LA's Iranian neighborhoods. I believe it's Westwood, no?

6) What's the deal with the Queen Mary? Is it a waste of time?

7) Since much of my time will be wasted following my wife around shopping, outside of Rodeo Dr., where else would you recommend for very high end, boutique type shopping?

any other recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Westsidelife]

Originally Posted by rgolch

1) Any must-see's you guys would recommend? Just so you know, I'm not one of these forumers that's incredibly caught up in urban density. I don't need evidence that LA is densely populated.

1. Griffith Observatory (Los Feliz) - Be sure to visit their website and read up on how to reserve your tickets. (www.griffithobs.org)
2. Walt Disney Concert Hall (Downtown)
3. MOCA (Downtown)
4. LACMA (Wilshire)
5. La Brea Tar Pits (Wilshire)
6. Hammer Museum (Wilshire, near UCLA)
7. Santa Monica Beach and Pier
8. Third Street Promenade (Santa Monica)
9. Getty Villa (Malibu)

Originally Posted by rgolch

2) Recommendations on Iconic LA restaurants. Price is generally not a consideration. Hopefully the concierge at my hotel can get me reservations.

1. Spago
2. Cheescake Factory

Yes, you can find both of them in just about any major city but both were started in Beverly Hills.

3. The Belvedere (Peninsula Beverly Hills)
4. In N' Out (An LA must)
5. The Ivy (Robertson Blvd., near the shopping)

There are lots of top rated restaurants in Beverly Hills alone. The concierge is more knowledgeable than I am.

Originally Posted by rgolch

3) Is the Getty museum worth the trip? Where is that in relation to Beverly Hills.

Definitely worth the trip. I assume you're talking about the Getty Center and not the Getty Villa? Then absolutely, the views alone are worth the trip. Though it might be a little smoggy. It's quite a ways from Beverly Hills, further west. Allow yourself at least 2 hours.

Originally Posted by rgolch

4) Forgot which iconic beach it is with all the fortune tellers/ weight lifters/ tourists. Is it Venice, or Manhattan Beach. I think my daughter would appreciate it.

Venice Beach

Originally Posted by rgolch

5) Being 1/2 Persian, I would like to check out LA's Iranian neighborhoods. I believe it's Westwood, no?

Yes. Westwood Blvd. in Westwood. But Beverly Hills hosts a large Iranian population as well, though I doubt there is anything there that reflects the culture.

Originally Posted by rgolch

6) What's the deal with the Queen Mary? Is it a waste of time?

Since you're going to be here for only a few days, it's not that important to visit. Plus it's all the way down in Long Beach which is far away.

Originally Posted by rgolch

7) Since much of my time will be wasted following my wife around shopping, outside of Rodeo Dr., where else would you recommend for very high end, boutique type shopping?

1. Melrose Place
2. Robertson Blvd.
3. Fred Segal (Melrose Ave., east of Melrose Place)

Originally Posted by rgolch

any other recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks.

I strongly recommend you do a little research on what you want to do during your stay here and map it out. Also, remember that everything is spread out so you must factor in the traffic. Be wise and avoid certain freeways during certain hours if you can. For example, do Venice, Santa Monica, Getty Center, Getty Villa, Hammer Museum, and Westwood on the same day because they are located within close proximity to one another.

[jessemh431]

i don't know if this was mentioned already, but how about Imperial Ave. in El Segundo where it overlooks LAX and you can see forever on a clear day.

and what about the Beverly Wilshire hotel.

old town pasadena and the rose bowl is fun.

malibua beaches and malibu canyon are fun to drive by

[rgolch]

Wow!

Westsidelife, thank you very much. Your help is very much appreciated. I'll definely have to try The Belvedere, since I'm staying at the Peninsula.

I'm really looking forward to coming back to LA, as it's been awhile. Nothing like getting help from the locals.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

for great steak, try Cut in Beverly Hills (Wolfgang Puck Restaurant that is getting amazing reviews. havent gone myself yet, but will soon). You can also check out EaterLA.com and LA.com for some other recommendations of what is hot right now.

[The Baz]

Westside has a nice list. I would also check out Santa Monica Beach/Pier/Promenade and UCLA since they are not far.

[ChrisLA]

I'm suprised no one mentioned The Grove, LA's number one tourist spot now days.

[Fern~Fern*]

Over~rated*

[haldcottingham]

Originally Posted by svs

This may take a while to complete so bear with me.

A few starting points:

LA is probably the hardest of the Alpha cities to get to know on short basis. Unlike NYC, Paris, or even London, LA's attractions are spread out over a large geographical area. Also unlike places like Chicago, where a tourist can see all the interesting and fun places while avoiding the most unattractive parts of the City, negotiating LA by car is going to expose some of the less beautiful and more poorly designed city areas. Still I think there is no major metropolis that has access to mountains, beaches, deserts, kitsch, and culture like LA. You will not be able to see everything in a week or even three weeks. My advice is to take it slow, limit your geographical wanderings, save some sights for the next trip, and remember life is a beach.

I am going to arrange this thread as follows, first I want to list the twenty or so major sights (IMHO) to see in LA. (Like I said, they are scattered all over the place, don't get caught in the trap of spending your entire time on the freeway.) Then I will provide more detailed breakup of things to see by area, beginning with the city proper (downtown, midtown, west side, east side, south central etc.), fill in the close surburbs (San Gabriel Valley, Long Beach, the South Bay, and then move on to Orange County, the Inland Empire, the High and Low Deserts, and if I still have the stamina, Santa Barbara, Kern, and San Diego counties. I will try to post photos(mostly from the web,not original) of the attractions as well. In order to keep the threads manageable, I intend to break up my postings into small packets of info.

If I have time, I will try to list performaning arts venues, special restaurants, and clubs as well.

I will also use the Michilin convention *** three stars is worth a trip; ** two stars is worth a detour; * one star is worth while if you are in the neighborhood; and I will use a "Q" for quirky, worthwhile if you are into that sort of thing.

At any rate, here is my list of the tourist essentials (The Big Twenty) in alphabetical order.
1. Anaheim resort
2. Catalina Island
3. Disney Concert Hall
4. Getty Museum
5. Getty Villa
6. Griffith Park Observatory
7. Hollywood
8. Huntington Library and Gardens
9. Los Angeles cathedral
10. Los Angeles County Art Museum
11. Norton Simon Museum
12. Olvera street and birthplace of LA
13. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits
14. Rodeo Drive
15. Santa Monica Pier
16. Sunset Strip
17. Universal Studios and Citywalk
18. Venice beach
19. Venice canals
20. Watts Towers

Uh-oh, I've been in California for 11 1/2 years and I've only been to #15 and #17.

[jessemh431]

Originally Posted by haldcottingham

Uh-oh, I've been in California for 11 1/2 years and I've only been to #15 and #17.

wow. you really needa get out more. im only 15 and have to most of those.

[haldcottingham]

I get out plenty. I just spend most of my time at the beaches in San Diego or at skateparks. I'm not much for the touristy type stuff unless I'm in another state.

Here are some places that I've been in the state that didn't make that list(LA, I know):

Sequoia National Park
Yosemite
Santa Barbara
Monterey
Ventura Harbor
Lake Arrowhead
Big Bear
Catalina Island

Just wanted to show that I like to check out the state. But I prefer it to be low-key.

[yamota]

catalina's on that list; so I guess that makes three places on that list you've been to

[haldcottingham]

Yep, I must have missed that! Thanks!

[klamedia]

Great link, finally someone is doing it!

http://laist.com/neighborhoods/neighborhood_pr/2007/07/

[The Baz]

LAist has done a good job so far.

[chicagogeorge]

In L.A. in 6 days. I'm staying from Thursday the 9th until that following Thursday Ok actually Orange County. Doe anyone care to hook up and show me my wife and my son a good time?

Btw, the weather in Chicago is hot and very humid.

See what I mean




According to accuweather.com, L.A.'s weather will be 80F and sunny every day next week.

[Westsidelife]

^A lot of the guys at SSP would be more than happy to give you a tour. Get in touch with ChrisLA and maybe Gatorbitch Squared at SSP. But they like to take outsiders to certain areas; since your son would be there, it might be better if you didn't go to those areas and instead opt for more family friendly destinations like Disneyland and Universal Studios.

You also might want to do certain things on the same day. For example, do Hollywood, Universal Studios, Griffith Observatory, and Downtown all on the same day because the Metro Red Line Subway takes you to all those places. Except you would take a special shuttle from Hollywood and Highland to the Observatory. I think it's 8 bucks for adults and it's free for children. You could catch the shuttle from the Greek Theater just down the hill from the Observatory and it won't cost you a dime. But for convenience, you might want to catch it from Hollywood/Highland. And reserve your tickets for the evening and stay for the sunset. It might be smoggy but it clears up later in the evening and is just spectacular at night. You could also go to Old Town Pasadena via the Metro Gold Line and Long Beach via the Metro Blue Line. But beware of the Blue Line, for it travels through Compton and other parts of South Central to get to Long Beach. But if you take it during certain hours, it should be fine.

What are you looking to see and do during your visit? Don't know if your son would be interested in going to a bunch of museums, but the Getty Center is a museum that everyone should visit. Hope this helps a little. But yeah, try to get in contact with some of the guys at SSP. If I remember correctly, ChrisLA said he was up for it. Have a nice time.