Questions about a trip to LA?

[Deleted]

We've never been to LA before, but we're contemplating going for a weekend at the tail end of a trip to Hawaii this summer.  Still deciding whether it would be a fun place for a couple to go to (rather than going another time with friends).  Besides the obvious eating and drinking, what does a tourist do in LA for a weekend, assuming that they don't care about where stars live?  We'd have to drive places, right?  What neighborhood would you recommend that we stay in?

Thanks!

[Deleted]

You definitely need a car.

And you must go to the Getty!

[Deleted]

What do you want to do? Museums, outdoors, studio tour?

[dapotato]

depends on what kind of weekend you want. beach (which will suck compared to hawaii's, but is nice to look at), shopping, museum, night life?

[Deleted]

Jan 26, 2013 14:48:40 GMT -5 @spenjamins said:

What do you want to do? Museums, outdoors, studio tour?

Really not sure.  Probably not outdoors on such a short trip (and having just been in Hawaii).  A studio tour sounds fun.  Probably not too hardcore on museums because we have a lot of good museums here and the plan right now is that we will have pretty limited time.  I would like shopping that can't be done in NY, but I don't know that I could convince my husband on that.  And eating and drinking well is always a top priority, but we can figure that out later.  We know we would want to do that so that's already on the list of reasons to go to LA.  Roscoe's is a no-brainer for me (right? is it overrated? I love chicken and waffles).

I know this isn't particularly helpful -- we're trying to figure out what things there are to do out there in order to decide if we want to go there versus somewhere else.

[dapotato]

well, in that case, here's a sampling of where i take OOTers, to show you the range of what you can do here.

getty museum - more to wander the grounds & look at the view than the art.

getty villa (again, more for the grounds than the art)

griffith park & observatory. there's an awesome, 20-30 minute trail that takes you to one of the highest parts of griffith park, and you get better views than the observatory. observatory is fun, too.

lacma - they've always got some cool exhibits going on, and again, you can just walk around the grounds & get a drink. photo op at the street lamp sculpture out front on wilshire. the bar & restaurant there is pretty good.

drive up to & around beachwood canyon for good hollywood sign photo ops. charming neighborhood, some crazy houses up there.

barnsdall park & hollyhock house - tour the frank lloyd wright house. picnic at the park. they have farmer's markets & also a friday evening wine tasting during the summer.

the stahl house - case study house no. 22, of life magazine cover fame (that modern house canitlevered off a hillside with a girl in a dress sitting in the corner). they offer tours, but you have to book ahead as it's privately owned by the family.

farmer's market & the grove - farmer's market has been there forever, good people watching, not as charming as it was pre-grove but still fun; then you can head over to the adjacent grove for outdoor mall.

drinks at the bonaventure downtown or even at the standard rooftop (kinda passe now, but still cool experience for first-timers) - views, you see downtown.

hollywood & highland - super touristy, chinese theater, see some of the stars on the sidewalk, get a drink at the roosevelt hotel.

thai town in hollywood for thai food (some of the best/most authentic thai food in the US).

koreatown for korean food.

dimsum somewhere in the san gabriel valley (my chinese friends from ny say it's better here).

drive up pch to malibu seafood. eat seafood on picnic benches up there. some prefer neptune's net, which is nearby & same experience.

walk around little tokyo and the arts district for shopping (expensive sneakers, a couple fun boutiques, poketo), japanese-korean-french pastries & really good coffee at caffe dulce, good sushi, mochi, and beer + sausages.

walk around venice. go to the whole foods of "whole foods parking lot" fame.

art walk on certain thursdays downtown. get a taste of downtown/chinatown, the art scene, food trucks.

hikes in runyon canyon, topanga canyon, rustic canyon.

walk around rodeo dr.

walk around robertson blvd. & browse kitson, high-end furniture stores, etc.

walk around beverly dr. get cheese at cheese store of beverly hills.

shopping experiences you can't get in ny:
malibu country mart
santa monica 3rd street promenade (no amazing stores, but just to walk around outside, mostly, and then you can walk out on the pier)
any outdoor mall, including the grove, americana, and some in oc if you want to stay down there
hillhurst in los feliz, silver lake blvd. & sunset junction in silver lake (tends more toward hipster, indie, but still expensive designers; lots of good food & coffee in these areas including la mill, intelligentsia, umami burger, cheese store of silver lake, storefront deli, etc.)

since each neighborhood is so different & traffic sucks even on weekends, i'll usually do a westside day, mid-city/west hollywood day, eastside day, long beach or oc day to give the experience of each area but also not go crazy driving back and forth across town in one day.

[dapotato]

holy novel. i did copy/paste most of this from a list i have. lol.

[auberge]

Good work dapotato.

Ditto lol

[belovedbride07]

Sorry to threadjack, but wow, dapotato! We've lived here for almost 4 years and seen three things on your list. I think we'll be printing that out for weekend activity ideas this year!

[dapotato]

thanks, auberge & @kirkette! happy to be of service, belovedbride07

also, there is stuff to do in the 'burbs (pasadena, south bay, long beach, oc), but if for your first time, v, i'd stay in a fun hotel on the westside or west hollywood/beverly hills-ish and go from there.

[agnes]

Jan 26, 2013 16:35:06 GMT -5 belovedbride07 said:

Sorry to threadjack, but wow, dapotato! We've lived here for almost 4 years and seen three things on your list. I think we'll be printing that out for weekend activity ideas this year!

Lol I've lived here my whole life an have only done a few things on her list. I'll be able to check Korean Food in Korean town off this list tonight

[nancybotwin]

The only thing I would add to the amazing list is Sprinkles ice cream on Little Santa Monica in Beverly Hills. Sprinkles sundae (cupcake and ice cream) is delicious...and you need to take a picture next to the Sprinkles ATM.

[dapotato]

Jan 26, 2013 16:53:14 GMT -5 nancybotwin said:

The only thing I would add to the amazing list is Sprinkles ice cream on Little Santa Monica in Beverly Hills. Sprinkles sundae (cupcake and ice cream) is delicious...and you need to take a picture next to the Sprinkles ATM.

you could loop this into the beverly dr./robertson blvd./rodeo dr. walking around day. cheaper parking lots & metered parking off of beverly are within walking distance.

if you pick an area, v, i can give food/drink suggestions (or you can ask @misoangry).

[dapotato]

oh, and august is hollywood bowl season! see a show that allows you to bring in your own food & alcohol.

[Deleted]

This is awesome. Thanks so much guys.

I will definitely be bothering you again when it is time to plan food/drink

[Deleted]

I would definitely hit the the Hollywood Bowl. Day one, stay on the Westside, walk around the promenade, hit the old part of the Farmer's Market and consider the Getty, if only for the gardens and the view. The Bowl at night. It is lovely. Day two, consider a drive to see the Space Shuttle! Good food at the Children's Museum.. They have a lovely ecosystems exhibit. Then go to Chinatown for dim sum.  Or Phillipes or The Pantry if you want old LA.

You could visit Hollywood but it has a run-down sleaze factor that is kind of gross.

See if you can score tickets to the Magic Castle. It is fantastic and where I take people who come to visit. The food is mediocre but the magic is outstanding. Do not know if these links work but it is worth a try.
carlism.com/magiccastlepass.html
www.mikewong.com/contact_captcha/html-contact-form4.php

You could also see what is going on at the Disney Concert Hall.

Roscoe's is ok.  Chicken is dry sometimes.